Authors: Nichole Matthews
His mouth
went
suddenly dry. Swallowing, Decla
n groaned at the erotic sight, m
entally lis
t
ing all the things he wanted her to do with her little pink tongue.
He lowered his head and captured
her lips in a dark hungry kiss.
She gasped with plea
s
ure as his mouth feathered hot, wet kisses down her jaw, over her neck and then continued across her collarbone. Her breath came in gulps as he lavished her breast with similar atte
n
tion. She cried out as the little flicks of his rough tongue on
her taught aching nipples sending
bolts of
lightning
shoot
ing
to her core.
His hand slid down her side ov
er her taught belly once more,
down over her curls
to
ease one of his fingers
deep
into her slick folds.
Poppy threaded her fingers into his hair and gripped his head not wanting him to stop. Her breathing was short puffs of air
, s
pellbound by the turbulent emotions
that coursed
through
out
her body.
He pressed
his mouth more tightly to her breast
and
suckled fiercely
until she cried out with the shock of pleasure
. He
was driving her wild with his attentions her
breasts
soon te
n
der from his intense
exploration
.
He
then
t
ransferr
ed
his mouth to her other breast where he licked with his raspy tongue and suckled until she writhed in ecstasy b
e
neath him.
Inserting a second finger along the
first,
he continued to thrust in and out of her wet femininity in a rhythmic tempo until she began to buck against his hand in a yearning need. At her unreserved
response,
a wolfish smile curved
his
lips.
“Declan,” s
he cried
out
when his mouth left her breast, soon
appeased when he ca
p
tured her mouth in a ravenous kiss that swallowed her cries of pleasure as she spiraled out of control once again.
Against her mouth he whispered, “
I love you.
”
H
is voice
was
thick and strained.
Shif
t
ing, he rose above
her, wedging
his hip
s
deep
between her thighs
. Sliding
his hand
under her
bottom,
he
lifted her to receive his pulsing ere
c
tion.
Poppy’s eyes opened wide as she felt the blunt head of his erection slowly eas
e
into her opening.
Bracing himself on his forearms, he steadily pr
essed deep into her slick heat,
stretching her until he reached the restriction of her maidenhead.
Holding still for a moment,
she shifted beneath him, clawing restlessly
at his back be
g
ging him to continue.
Teetering on the brink of his self-control,
Declan took a deep breath then
drove deep
i
n
to her hot, slick passage breachin
g the final barrier to her innocence
.
She
arched up as Declan entered her, grabbing
his shoulders for support
, her fingers hot on his skin, her eyes flaring even wider as he filled her to overflowing
.
Declan’s gaze snapped up.
Her eyes smiled as she whispered,
“Don’t you dare stop now!” H
er lower lip thrust out just a little in a charming pout.
He bit
back a c
huckle
, s
igh
ing at the sensation of
being sheathed in her. His muscles bunched as he began to move within her
, her hips rose to meet his
and he
captured
her lips again in a fiery kiss their tongues tangled greedily. With each slow measured
thrust,
again and again her body
filled as he stretched her.
Panting as she became familiar with the rhythm
of each powerful stroke
, she eagerly met each one with her very own raw urgency. Matching, receiving, taking and giving.
Poppy trailed hot openmo
uthed kisses across his chest
need
ing
the taste of him on her tongue.
She circled
her tongue around
the flat disc of his nipple;
ge
ntly bit
ing
the nub
produ
c
ing
a deep, guttural groan
to
escap
e
his lips
.
She
continued
to
run her tongue over his salty flesh.
Almost u
rgently
, she ran
her hands across the muscular ridges of
his abdomen, then around his back to cup
his taut muscular buttocks.
A whisper of a breeze stirred the air around
them
as she clung to him wanting
more seeking all that she could until a powerful explosion ripped through her body
pushing her over the brink, shattering into millions of pieces. The muscles of her sheath continued to contract as he
thrust
once, tw
ice and then a final time driving
into her har
d and deep emptying himself into her, his body
shu
d
der
ing and
con
vulsing
powerful
ly.
He collapsed
on top of her
barely
avoid
ing
crushing her by propping
himself up on his elbows. He rested his
bow
ed head lightly against hers, s
lowly work
ing at
controlling his breat
h
ing
.
Rolling
over
,
he gathered
her close
r,
crushing her curves against his hard body.
Drawing in
a deep breath as she
waited for her body to quiet, she
pushed her tousled hair out of her eyes. A slow dreamy half-smile curved up the corners of her mouth.
Declan brushed a kiss against her
lips
. His muscular arm wrapped around Poppy’s waist as his hand made soft circles on her belly. His dark lashes fanned out again
st the curve of his cheek,
inhal
ing
her sweet vanilla and honey fragrance.
Conscious of the bone-deep satisfaction that coursed through his body he lay still drinking it all in.
Poppy was the first to break the silence, exclaiming breathlessly
, “Heav
ens!”
H
e gently tugged on a lock of her hair
with a wide grin on his face
.
“Poppy, you are the best thing that has eve
r happened to me.” H
is hand slid
languidly
over
her
naked body.
She stirred in his arms arching shamelessly against him.
He lifted
himself up on one elbow starin
g into her shimmering blue eyes.
H
er lashes f
luttered and her lips parted when
his hand shift
ed to cradle her jaw.
His thumb reverently stroked her l
ower lip. Bending down he
claimed her
lips
posse
s
sive
ly, h
is tongue once again
sliding
deep into her heat.
Grudgingly pulling
his lips from hers and
untangl
ing their limbs, he
rose to his feet pe
r
fect
ly at ease with his nakedness, holding out his hand to lift
h
er from the
ground.
Tipping her
chin with one
finger,
he
leaned down
lingeringly
kiss
ing
her pouting mouth
a final time before
push
ing
her
toward her untidy pile of clothing
s
watting her deliciously naked bottom,
“
Now, g
et dressed before they send out a search party.”
Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
o
r bends with the remover to remove.
O no, it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wand’ ring bark,
Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken.
S
onnet 116
*William Shakespeare
T
he morning of their wedding arrived clear and sunny
as only
a
duke
could command
.
Declan e
x
plained to
Poppy that he had fallen in love with her the moment their eyes
first met and after
his pr
i
vate talk with her brother, the day they had returned
scandalously late
from the ruins, he had immediately left to acquire a sp
e
cial li
cense.
Their ceremony was anything but traditional
. A private ceremony at a castle ruins with giggling
school
girls
running around
was definitely not the norm
.
Nevertheless,
Poppy thought
it pe
r
fect.
T
he men resplendent in their formal attire befitting the marriage of one of their best friends
were
anxiously
a
waiting the bride.
The white painted arch covered abundantl
y with a variety of colorful blooms
stood
pre
t
tily
near the ru
ins and und
erneath stood the vicar and the
handsome
groom.
Declan
stood
proudly, h
i
s legs braced a little apart,
hands clasped behind his back
i
mp
a
tiently
waiting for his first glimpse of Poppy for the day
.
Dressed elegantly,
a beaver hat, a
frock coat
of olive green superfine with velvet lapels and cuffs that fit him like a s
e
cond skin
, his
crisp neck cloth tied elaborately beneath his chin
, a
cream silk double-breasted waist coat with gold thread, fawn breeches and well-pol
ished Hessians covered his feet.
Declan held his breath when
the carriage came to a halt over the rise
to
deposit
the
flushed and giggling
women
a
t the top of the slight incline, tumbling
out of
the carriage
,
su
r
round
ing Poppy in an effort to keep
her hidden from
Declan’s
watchful
eyes.