To Catch a Husband…(49)

'Oh, please, if you have to go out then we will leave,' said Kitty rising.

The old woman waved her back into her seat.

'That you won't. You are quite welcome to stay here while I go out. I  was planning to spend the night with our Jack, so you can stay here as  long as you wish.'

'Thank you, mother,' said Daniel. 'You may be sure we will lock up behind us.'

The old woman gave a cackle of laughter.

'Bless you, sir, there's no need for that.' She held out her hands and  looked around. 'There's nothing here worth the trouble o' stealing. And  besides it's rare that anyone passes this way. No, my dears, you sit  there as long as you want, there'll be no one to bother ye. You'll find a  bit o' broth in the kettle by the fire: you're welcome to that and if  you want water the pump is just outside the door,' She gave another  toothless cackle. 'Although I'd say you'd both had enough water today!  Well, I'll bid you good day then.'

She picked up her bundle.

'Goodbye, mistress, and thank you!' called Kitty.

The woman gave them a final wave and went out, closing the door behind her.

Silence settled around them. Daniel looked down at his bare feet,  suddenly feeling awkward. What was he doing here, sitting near-naked in a  spinster's cottage? A glance at Kitty showed him that she, too, was  uneasy.

'What a good soul,' she said with forced brightness. 'And trusting, to leave us here alone.'

'She saw the quality of our clothes. She knows we are not vagabonds.'  Eager for a distraction, Daniel moved over to the fire and poked at the  logs until they were blazing merrily. He glanced back at Kitty. 'Your  hair is still wet. Will you sit a little closer to the fire?'

'Yes, please.' Kitty rose and rubbed her arms as Daniel tried to move  the settle, which creaked alarmingly. She laughed. 'I think we should  leave it where it is. I am afraid if we move it from the wall it will  fall apart. But I have an idea!'

Daniel watched her pull the cushions from the settle and put them on the  rug in front of the fire. Then she knelt down with her back to the  fire, shaking her hair loose. His breath caught in his throat as he  watched it ripple down her back like a dark waterfall. Daniel quickly  turned away, knowing the shawl wrapped around his hips would not conceal  his desire from her.                       
       
           



       

'Daniel, will you not sit beside me?'

She spoke softly but he heard the wistfulness in her voice. He dropped  down on to the rug behind her and put his hand to her hair, allowing the  dark tresses to flow through his fingers like silk. With a sigh she  tilted back her head and rested against him, her eyes closed. It was  irresistible: Daniel leaned forward to place a gentle kiss on the slim  column of her neck. Her hand came up to his cheek. She twisted round to  face him, her mouth seeking his. Daniel had intended nothing more than a  tender kiss but as soon as their lips met she trembled against him and a  ripple of excitement flowed between them as her lips parted and their  tongues engaged in a sensuous, silent conversation. He wrapped her in  his arms and eased her down on to the rug. She clung to him. The firm  swell of her breasts pressed against his chest, only the thin fabric of  her shift between them. He raised his head, trying to contain his  excitement, then he began to kiss her again, his lips caressing her  eyes, her cheeks. He trailed his tongue along her jaw and lightly over  her neck. His fingers clenched on the folds of the shift. He wanted to  remove it, since it was the last barrier between his body and Kitty's  soft white skin. She struggled beneath him and immediately he pushed  himself away from her, determined that he would in no way force his will  upon her.

Kitty sat up. The cottage was silent save for the fire crackling behind  her and Daniel's ragged breathing. Keeping her eyes fixed on his face,  she crossed her arms in front of her and took hold of the shift, lifting  it cleanly away and upwards in one smooth movement. As she raised her  arms above her head Daniel reached out for her. She gasped. Her arms and  head were temporarily imprisoned in the fine linen, leaving Daniel free  to plunder her breasts, cupping them in his hands, burying his face  between them before fastening his mouth on one tender bud and causing a  shaft of white-hot desire to drive through her. She threw off the  offending material and reached for him, driving her fingers through his  hair, clasping him to her as she fell back against the cushions. She had  no control over her body. It arched and moved against him, inviting his  hands to caress her. She moaned with pleasure as his fingers traced a  line from the inside of her knee and along her thigh, gasping as those  same fingers moved into her and roused her to even higher realms of  delight. His fingers caressed effortlessly, she was slick with desire,  opening for him, raising her hips in blatant invitation. In one swift  move he rolled over her and she felt his aroused body pressed against  her. His hands slid under her hips, lifting her up to receive him. Kitty  clung to him, her fingers digging into his back as he entered her. A  tiny gasp, a tiny pain, then the joy and exhilaration of their union      overwhelmed her. She tried to follow his lead, moving with him, a fierce  excitement coursing through every part of her body. She was flying,  soaring, her senses on fire as they moved together. She was vaguely  aware that Daniel was holding himself in check, moving for her pleasure  rather than his own, but she could do nothing about it, for he was  lifting her to such a height of pleasure that she was helpless beneath  him, crying out as her body exploded. Deep within her, muscles were  clenching in spasm and with an almost painful pleasure. She clung to  Daniel, whispering his name, knowing they were still joined. He held her  safe in his arms as her body relaxed against his, a perfect fit. She  was filled with a pleasant torpor with Daniel's hands gently caressing  her body. Then he was kissing her, feather-light touches along her neck,  fanning the flames of desire until her body began to pulse again. This  time she pushed against him, revelling in her power to make him gasp and  moan with delight. She quivered as he took her once more to the peak of  excitement and this time he was with her, pushing, tensing and crying  out as they soared together before falling back to earth, clinging to  one another.



They lay before the fire, wrapped in each other's arms, while the sun moved across the sky.

'We must get back,' murmured Kitty.

'Soon.' Daniel nibbled at her ear.

Kitty gave a little gasp and struggled to sit up.

'We will be missed,' she said urgently. 'Your mother will be waiting … '

'No, we agreed she would take Bella home. I told her it might take me some time to … persuade you.'

Kitty turned to look at him. He was lying naked beside her, reminding  her of the statues displayed in many of the grand houses she had visited  with her godmother, although there was nothing cold or lifeless about  Daniel. She reached out to touch him, her fingers splaying through the  crisp black hair of his chest.                       
       
           



       

'And … was I difficult to persuade?'

'Very.' With a growl Daniel pulled her back into his arms. 'I am not convinced I have yet succeeded.'



They made love again and this time it was even more delightful as they  explored new ways to please each other as their naked bodies tangled  together. Later they took great pleasure in dressing each other, with  much laughter and fevered kisses until at last they were ready to leave  the little cottage. Daniel dropped a handful of coins in a cup on the  hearth.

'I would give her ten times as much if I had it on me,' he declared,  grinning. 'The old mother has secured a wife for me.' He caught Kitty up  in his arms and kissed her. 'You must marry me now, you shameless  wench!'

She wound her arms about his neck and kissed him back fiercely until  with a groan he put his hands on her waist and put her away from him.

'If you do not behave I will have to take you again,' he muttered. 'Come  along, we'll walk to the top of the clough, then Marnie will carry us  both home.'

'I fear we will be very late,' remarked Kitty. 'And I was supposed to be collecting elderberries. What shall I tell Mama?'

'We will tell her the truth, that you lost your basket in the beck.'

'And my shawl, too! Oh dear, she will be so vexed with me!'

With a low laugh Daniel turned her to face him, catching her face between her hands.

'I doubt she will give your shawl a thought when we tell her that you are going to be married!'



It was growing dark as they rode over the moor, Kitty sitting across the  saddle in front of Daniel, enveloped in his arms. The sun had  disappeared below the horizon and the first stars twinkled in the sky.  Daniel lowered his head to rest his cheek briefly on her curls.