DERRICK WATCHED Bella’s lovely face as she slept. He had come to care for her. Should he marry, she was everything he wanted. He didn’t just desire her; he respected her, her compassionate nature, her passion for life. And she was brave. The way she cared for others less fortunate than herself had unlocked a cold place in his chest. The thought of letting her go sent a pain to the region of his heart. But let her go he must. When Hector failed to run him down in the middle of Town, his cousin had promised to succeed the next time. A friend who’d watched Horace’s carriage sideswiping a wagon and careening away down the street, urged Derrick to report him. That would mean Horace thrown into an insane asylum and Derrick would never subject the poor fellow to that, but he knew, should he plan to marry, the lady’s life would be in danger too. He was in no doubt that Hector’s wild threats were real, although his attempts were usually ill-judged, as if he wanted to die himself. You couldn’t reason with a madman. And madmen, even aristocratic ones, were treated cruelly. It was not something Derrick wanted on his conscience. While he watched his back, he kept praying for a miracle, that some medical breakthrough would help his cousin. He’d been reading about Josef Breuer in Vienna, who was making startling discoveries in the study of the brain, a new discipline and an exciting one. Derrick wanted to take Hector to consult a doctor, but so far, even in his saner moments, his cousin had resisted.
Derrick wanted to explain this to Bella, to make her understand why marriage was impossible, but his thoughts evaporated when she opened her blue eyes, and her lips, swollen with his kisses, lifted in a welcoming smile.
“What time is it?” She stretched her lovely limbs, causing him to catch his breath.
He caressed the satiny skin of her thigh as his body stirred with want.
“Three o’clock.”
“Oh, good, we have hours.”
He cocked a brow. “To do what?”
Her lips parted in a smile and she reached up to stroke his chest. “I want to do it all again.”
“You’ll be sore,” he warned, temptation weakening his resolve. “A nice hot bath is in order.”
Her eyes widened. “You’ll wake the servants.”
“We’ll manage.” He left the bed and held out his hand to her. “I had a bathroom installed with hot water earlier this year.”
“How divine.” She threw back the quilt, unconscious of the effect her voluptuous beauty had on him.
Derrick draped his dressing gown around her shoulders. It was far too long; she had to gather up the folds to walk from the room.
A mammoth, noisy geyser had been installed in his bathroom, which banged loudly enough to wake the dead as it spouted water into the large porcelain bath.
When it was half full, Bella slipped off the robe and stepped into the water, sitting her bottom down with an appreciative sigh. With a grin, Derrick joined her.
“Mmm.” She settled between his legs and rested her back against his chest.
Derrick lathered the soap in his hands and slid soapy fingers over her full breasts and the soft rise of her stomach. She leaned her head back against his shoulder with a deep sigh. Forming circles, he drifted lower, gently stroking the plump, swollen folds amid the silken curls between her legs. When she opened her thighs for him, he pressed two fingers inside. She made an appreciative noise in her throat.
“Turn around, Bella.”
Bella turned and settled her thighs on each side of his. She circled his hard length with her hands. “Show me how to pleasure you.”
He placed his hand over hers, guiding her. She had good hands. Too good. His breathing became ragged, his cock growing harder. He held one hand at her nape and pulled her closer, moving his mouth over hers, devouring its softness.
He dragged his mouth from hers. “Shall we try? I’ll stop if I hurt you.”
After her nod, he grasped her pert bottom and raised her hips. She guided him inside her tight passage and slowly pressed down on him. Her eyes widened, and she bit her luscious bottom lip. As her body drew him in, he fought to keep control as his emotions rampaged within him. His heart seemed to swell in his chest at the intensity of his feelings for her.
He watched the play of emotions on her beautiful face, how her eyes grew unfocused and her tongue swept over her lips. “Good, my love?”
With a breathy acknowledgement, she rose gently up and down. Her breasts jiggled, and he cupped them, thumbing the nipples into rigid peaks. Her nails pricked his shoulders, and she threw back her head, moaning as his fingers sought the source of her pleasure. She was lost in another orgasm, her body tightening around his cock. His heart racing, breath rasping, Derrick lost control and, with a cry, grabbed her hips and drove into her, water splashing over the sides of the bath onto the floor. He eased her off him and spilled his seed over her stomach.