“I can think of a more pleasant way to pass the time,” Matthew said suddenly.
Tabitha laughed. “You are insatiable.”
Her hands moved to her slightly distended belly, where their first child grew. That was, if anything, a testament to her husband’s ravenous appetite. Tabitha could not say that she found such to be unpleasant, however. She found that their romantic entanglements were even more pleasurable and passionate now that they were of one accord.
Matthew grinned and settled into the seat beside her. Tabitha sighed dramatically, feigning vexation as she spread her legs. She lifted her hips so he could shift her skirts past her waist. Matthew lowered his head and kissed the inside of her thigh.
His lips were warm and damp against her bare skin, and Tabitha drew a ragged breath. When Matthew kissed her like that, it always indicated that he intended to be very slow with her, to treat her like something fragile and breakable. By the time he finished with her, she would be practically begging for her release.
“Oh!” Tabitha gasped.
Matthew chuckled, the sound rumbling from deep in his chest. He kissed her again and again until, at last, he reached that wonderful place between her legs. His nose brushed against the delicate curls of hair and down to her entrance. Matthew worked her with his tongue until her legs were quivering beneath his ministrations. Then, he unbuttoned his trousers, freeing his manhood. Tabitha tossed her head back, the bouncing of the carriage jolting through her sensitive body with every uneven motion.
He thrust inside her with a single, strong motion, and Tabitha gasped. Matthew brought his mouth to hers in a feverish kiss.
Their movements were awkward and impeded by the tightness of the carriage, but somehow, that seemed to make the moment all the more intimate and exhilarating. Tabitha kissed him as if her very life depended on it, as if he were the only thing in the world that mattered, as if he were her entire world, and maybe he was.
Tabitha’s hips rocked, seemingly of their own accord. She moved more and more quickly, increasing her pace to match Matthew’s own, which had gone from agonizing slowness to hot intensity. Tabitha groaned. Her muscles tightened, and her legs shook. Tabitha’s orgasm swept over her like a wave crashing against the shore. White spots dotted her vision as she gasped for air. She fell back against the seats, sweat sticking her back to the finely upholstered seats.
Matthew continued inside her, and Tabitha watched as he thrust. His muscles tightened, and his face reddened as he pushed himself nearer to the edge. At last, he found it. His body shuddered, and his seed spilled inside her body, warm and wet. Tabitha grinned lazily at him as he withdrew. He remained over her, panting for air and grinning.
“Insatiable,” Tabitha said, playfully accusing.
“I hope that is not a complaint.”
He kissed her, and Tabitha’s lips tingled from even that brief contact. She ran her hands through his hair, as always marvelling at how soft it was. “You look a little dishevelled,” Tabitha said.
He always did after these activities.
“As do you,” he replied.
He stroked along her sides and over her body, past her hips. Matthew put a hand on her calf and carefully retied a garter that had come loose. Tabitha had not even noticed that her stocking was slowly working its way down her calf. He smiled and took handfuls of her skirts.
Tabitha raised her hips so he could smooth them down her legs. The silk would still be a little wrinkled, no matter how hard Matthew tried to smooth the fabric. However, Tabitha did not think there would be any questions. They had travelled a long way, after all, and it was only to be expected that her clothes might become a little unorderly.
Matthew took his shaft in hand and tucked it back into his trousers, deftly buttoning them. Tabitha straightened against the seat and ran her hands through her hair, trying to work away any tangles that might have formed while her head was pressed against the seat cushions. “You were correct,” Tabitha said. “That was a more pleasant pastime than many others we might have found on this journey.”
“I am glad you agree.”
He seated himself beside her and leaned against her shoulder. His breath still came more quickly than it usually did, and his face was still flushed. With time, the redness would fade, and by the time they reached Lady Haywood’s country estate, there would be no evidence that the two of them had done anything inappropriate in the back of the carriage. Hopefully, the uneven road and the carriage’s infernal bouncing would have concealed their sounds from the driver.
Matthew moved a hand to Tabitha’s stomach, stroking her through the thin material of her gown. Tabitha smiled and placed her hand over his. “I cannot will our child into being a boy.”
He shrugged. “If this child is not a boy, the next one will be.”
“Will it? Are you like the wizard Merlin and capable of seeing the future?” Tabitha asked, her lips twitching into a small smile.
“Or the next one,” Matthew said. “Or the fourth one. The fifth, perhaps.”
“You are anticipating an army of heirs!” Tabitha exclaimed, laughing.
“I am,” he replied. “You will give me many children, and I shall love them all.”
Tabitha smiled, imagining Matthew surrounded by dozens of children. “It sounds like a difficult time on the marriage mart,” she observed. “We will have to find suitable matches for all those children.”
“I like to think of it as a challenge, which I know you will enjoy.”
“Indeed.”
