May 1617
The day had come. The feeling of celebration was already in the air in the streets of Cluaine Mor. Despite knowing that they would not catch a glimpse of the newly wedded couple until the next day, the people of Carib wanted to celebrate the marriage of their king's sister to the new duke, and that feeling of festival extended to the castle. The court was dismissed for the morning, expected to return for the feasting that would be the great celebration that evening, yet the wedding itself was a small affair, intimate and private as the couple desired. For Elspeth, came Harry and Bryn, Jane and Felipe; for Miles, came his father and brothers, and their wives. A small, family affair, but no less warm for that, the vows were spoken in soft tones before the Goddess, with no need of excessive outpourings of delight. Yet there were hours yet before the court would reconvene, and in that time, no one expected to see the newly-wedded duke and duchess set foot outside the rooms that were theirs alone. After all, what else did a man and woman do after they shared vows that bound them for a lifetime"
The answer to that question seemed obvious, but for a couple who obviously adored each other, but were more than a little nervous when it came to the matter of consummating their marriage, it was easier said than done. As for Miles, his stomach had been in knots since he'd gotten up that morning, hardly having slept much the night before. It wasn't that he was unsure of what he was doing; he knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Elspeth. It was only a case of nervous jitters, common to most brides and bridegrooms, especially to those who weren't well versed in the matters of lovemaking.
In fact, the first thing his blushing bride did when they reached their chambers was kick off her shoes with slightly extreme violence, and remove the tiara from her head, sighing in relief. Then she threw herself onto her back on the bed, and groaned. "Why can't we just stay in here for the rest of the day?" she whimpered, not really looking forward to all the pointing and whispering that would be inevitable during the feast. "Maybe we could dress a couple of servants up as us."
Miles chuckled as Elspeth made herself comfortable. Thankfully, he hadn't been subjected to wearing anything too terribly uncomfortable or encumbering, though it seemed to have taken a ridiculously long time just to fasten all the buttons that lined the front of his jacket. As splendid as he looked, he had a feeling this was one outfit he was only going to wear once. "Are we expected to wear these ridiculous clothes to the feast, as well?" he complained, though he didn't find her dress ridiculous, so much as gorgeous.
She raised her head, leaning up onto her elbows. "I think so," she admitted ruefully. "I think the court will be a little put out if we show up wearing what we would normally wear." A thought occurred to her, making her giggle. "Jane and Bryn would kill me if I showed up with my arms covered."
"It will take at least an hour to get all these buttons fastened again," he complained, exaggerating just a little as he scowled at himself in the mirror. He was almost afraid to look at her now that they were alone, for fear he might lose control of himself.
She laughed, pushing herself onto her feet to move over to him. "I'll help you," she promised, rising onto her toes to press a soft kiss behind his ear as she peeked over his shoulder at his reflection in the mirror. Her hands crept about his waist, the simple gold ring on her finger declaring to the world that she was a married woman.
He exhaled a soft sigh and laid his hands over hers, feeling a strange flood of contentment washing over him, mingled with other feelings he didn't quite have a name for. "I love you, you know. No matter what happens, I will always love you," he assured her softly, despite the fact that they'd just said their vows.
Her eyes were only just visible over his shoulder in their reflection, but her smile was still there for him to see. "And I love you," she promised in a tender tone, her fingers tangling with his. "You see me. No one else really does."
"I think they do," he replied, slowly turning to face her. "Your brother does, and Jane and the queen," he said, to name but a few, but then, perhaps they saw her differently than he did. He touched her cheek, like he had so many times before, and yet it was like the very first time all over again.
Her head tilted back, spilling her loose hair back from her shoulders in a rippling fall of bright copper. "Not the way you do," she told him, a small smile quirking her lips as she inched her fingers up over his chest.
He had never seen her so relaxed as she was now - surpirisingly relaxed, considering what they were expected to do. They had at least a few hours to themselves, plenty of time to discover each other in new ways now that they were wed. He sifted her soft fall of copper hair through his fingers. It was a rare thing to see her with her hair loose and her shoulders bare, and he was admiring the view, still a little astonished to know that she belonged to him. "That's because I love you," he told her. It wasn't that the others didn't love her, too, but they didn't love her the way he did. Towering over her the way he did, he bent his head to kiss her lips, stoking the spark he had spoken of earlier that would set both their hearts and bodies on fire. His kiss was as tender as always, but not quite as chaste, a little more demanding, a little more hungry.
Perhaps what Elspeth had truly been afraid of was already done. He'd proven, beyond any doubt, that he loved her and wanted her, simply by going through with exchanging those vows, by making her his wife. The fear was no longer choking her as she pressed into his arms, opening herself to his kiss even as she shivered at the sensation of his hands in her hair. He loved her. That was all she needed to know.
He had promised to always love, cherish, protect her and care for her, and he intended to keep that promise. Whatever had happened in her past, he would make her forget; he would replace those bad memories with good ones - memories full of love and laughter, and this was only the beginning.
They had both made those promises. They both intended to go above and beyond in keeping them. And for Elspeth, that first step was to be brave beyond her usual means; to stop hiding behind her fears and reach out to show him that she felt as he did. Her kisses deepened, tasting him with the same hunger he dared to show her, lithe fingers reaching up to begin undoing the plethora of buttons that held his doublet closed.
There was so little to her dress, it was almost astounding. It was usually the woman who was covered in several layers of clothing, but this time it seemed he was the one who was overdressed. While she worked the buttons of his doublet open, he leaned in to let his lips trace the curve of one bare shoulder, the skin beneath his lips so soft and fragrant.
In that soft exploration, he found the first of her secrets - that the curve of her neck was ticklish enough to make her giggle quietly as his lips brushed toward her shoulder, the delicate sound muffled against his chest as she pressed her face to his doublet to try and hide it. Perhaps it was strange, that she could laugh so easily in such a moment, or perhaps not. He was the only man beyond her brother in whom she had so much trust and love as to be entirely herself.
Muffled as it was, he heard her giggle and smiled, that giggle only encouraging him further. Was this what Jane meant when she'd implied they should relax and enjoy each other" And why not' Why should this be a chore? Shouldn't they have fun with it and not take it so seriously' They were human; they were going to make mistakes, but together, they would learn from those mistakes. All of a sudden, Miles' kisses stopped, but only so that he could scoop her up into his arms and carry her toward the bed, where he intended to show her just how tender a lover he could be.
How many secrets could he uncover in a single afternoon' From the ticklish curve of her throat to the way she counted each button as it came undone on his doublet; from how sensitive the soft underside of her knee was to a single touch to the unexpected dominance she displayed when it came to baring his skin to her hands; from the tender sound of his name on her lips to the way every inch of her skin blushed when he finally saw her pale skin unwrapped for the first time ....there were many secrets only he would ever know, and this was only the beginning.
The day had come. The feeling of celebration was already in the air in the streets of Cluaine Mor. Despite knowing that they would not catch a glimpse of the newly wedded couple until the next day, the people of Carib wanted to celebrate the marriage of their king's sister to the new duke, and that feeling of festival extended to the castle. The court was dismissed for the morning, expected to return for the feasting that would be the great celebration that evening, yet the wedding itself was a small affair, intimate and private as the couple desired. For Elspeth, came Harry and Bryn, Jane and Felipe; for Miles, came his father and brothers, and their wives. A small, family affair, but no less warm for that, the vows were spoken in soft tones before the Goddess, with no need of excessive outpourings of delight. Yet there were hours yet before the court would reconvene, and in that time, no one expected to see the newly-wedded duke and duchess set foot outside the rooms that were theirs alone. After all, what else did a man and woman do after they shared vows that bound them for a lifetime"
The answer to that question seemed obvious, but for a couple who obviously adored each other, but were more than a little nervous when it came to the matter of consummating their marriage, it was easier said than done. As for Miles, his stomach had been in knots since he'd gotten up that morning, hardly having slept much the night before. It wasn't that he was unsure of what he was doing; he knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with Elspeth. It was only a case of nervous jitters, common to most brides and bridegrooms, especially to those who weren't well versed in the matters of lovemaking.
In fact, the first thing his blushing bride did when they reached their chambers was kick off her shoes with slightly extreme violence, and remove the tiara from her head, sighing in relief. Then she threw herself onto her back on the bed, and groaned. "Why can't we just stay in here for the rest of the day?" she whimpered, not really looking forward to all the pointing and whispering that would be inevitable during the feast. "Maybe we could dress a couple of servants up as us."
Miles chuckled as Elspeth made herself comfortable. Thankfully, he hadn't been subjected to wearing anything too terribly uncomfortable or encumbering, though it seemed to have taken a ridiculously long time just to fasten all the buttons that lined the front of his jacket. As splendid as he looked, he had a feeling this was one outfit he was only going to wear once. "Are we expected to wear these ridiculous clothes to the feast, as well?" he complained, though he didn't find her dress ridiculous, so much as gorgeous.
She raised her head, leaning up onto her elbows. "I think so," she admitted ruefully. "I think the court will be a little put out if we show up wearing what we would normally wear." A thought occurred to her, making her giggle. "Jane and Bryn would kill me if I showed up with my arms covered."
"It will take at least an hour to get all these buttons fastened again," he complained, exaggerating just a little as he scowled at himself in the mirror. He was almost afraid to look at her now that they were alone, for fear he might lose control of himself.
She laughed, pushing herself onto her feet to move over to him. "I'll help you," she promised, rising onto her toes to press a soft kiss behind his ear as she peeked over his shoulder at his reflection in the mirror. Her hands crept about his waist, the simple gold ring on her finger declaring to the world that she was a married woman.
He exhaled a soft sigh and laid his hands over hers, feeling a strange flood of contentment washing over him, mingled with other feelings he didn't quite have a name for. "I love you, you know. No matter what happens, I will always love you," he assured her softly, despite the fact that they'd just said their vows.
Her eyes were only just visible over his shoulder in their reflection, but her smile was still there for him to see. "And I love you," she promised in a tender tone, her fingers tangling with his. "You see me. No one else really does."
"I think they do," he replied, slowly turning to face her. "Your brother does, and Jane and the queen," he said, to name but a few, but then, perhaps they saw her differently than he did. He touched her cheek, like he had so many times before, and yet it was like the very first time all over again.
Her head tilted back, spilling her loose hair back from her shoulders in a rippling fall of bright copper. "Not the way you do," she told him, a small smile quirking her lips as she inched her fingers up over his chest.
He had never seen her so relaxed as she was now - surpirisingly relaxed, considering what they were expected to do. They had at least a few hours to themselves, plenty of time to discover each other in new ways now that they were wed. He sifted her soft fall of copper hair through his fingers. It was a rare thing to see her with her hair loose and her shoulders bare, and he was admiring the view, still a little astonished to know that she belonged to him. "That's because I love you," he told her. It wasn't that the others didn't love her, too, but they didn't love her the way he did. Towering over her the way he did, he bent his head to kiss her lips, stoking the spark he had spoken of earlier that would set both their hearts and bodies on fire. His kiss was as tender as always, but not quite as chaste, a little more demanding, a little more hungry.
Perhaps what Elspeth had truly been afraid of was already done. He'd proven, beyond any doubt, that he loved her and wanted her, simply by going through with exchanging those vows, by making her his wife. The fear was no longer choking her as she pressed into his arms, opening herself to his kiss even as she shivered at the sensation of his hands in her hair. He loved her. That was all she needed to know.
He had promised to always love, cherish, protect her and care for her, and he intended to keep that promise. Whatever had happened in her past, he would make her forget; he would replace those bad memories with good ones - memories full of love and laughter, and this was only the beginning.
They had both made those promises. They both intended to go above and beyond in keeping them. And for Elspeth, that first step was to be brave beyond her usual means; to stop hiding behind her fears and reach out to show him that she felt as he did. Her kisses deepened, tasting him with the same hunger he dared to show her, lithe fingers reaching up to begin undoing the plethora of buttons that held his doublet closed.
There was so little to her dress, it was almost astounding. It was usually the woman who was covered in several layers of clothing, but this time it seemed he was the one who was overdressed. While she worked the buttons of his doublet open, he leaned in to let his lips trace the curve of one bare shoulder, the skin beneath his lips so soft and fragrant.
In that soft exploration, he found the first of her secrets - that the curve of her neck was ticklish enough to make her giggle quietly as his lips brushed toward her shoulder, the delicate sound muffled against his chest as she pressed her face to his doublet to try and hide it. Perhaps it was strange, that she could laugh so easily in such a moment, or perhaps not. He was the only man beyond her brother in whom she had so much trust and love as to be entirely herself.
Muffled as it was, he heard her giggle and smiled, that giggle only encouraging him further. Was this what Jane meant when she'd implied they should relax and enjoy each other" And why not' Why should this be a chore? Shouldn't they have fun with it and not take it so seriously' They were human; they were going to make mistakes, but together, they would learn from those mistakes. All of a sudden, Miles' kisses stopped, but only so that he could scoop her up into his arms and carry her toward the bed, where he intended to show her just how tender a lover he could be.
How many secrets could he uncover in a single afternoon' From the ticklish curve of her throat to the way she counted each button as it came undone on his doublet; from how sensitive the soft underside of her knee was to a single touch to the unexpected dominance she displayed when it came to baring his skin to her hands; from the tender sound of his name on her lips to the way every inch of her skin blushed when he finally saw her pale skin unwrapped for the first time ....there were many secrets only he would ever know, and this was only the beginning.