Chapter 13: Our Married Lives Commence

I awoke the next morning with James standing by our bed shaking my shoulder. “Come on, you slugabed, wake up!” he ordered. I rolled to one side rather grumpily, but he persisted. “Up and at them, sleepyhead! We have to go!”

I managed to pry my sleep-encrusted eyes apart and noticed that bright sunlight was pouring through our windows, and that James was putting the finishing touches on his regular outfit of charcoal and black. I also noticed that I was laying on our bed, still dressed in my wedding gown! I sat upright and looked around wildly. My shoes were tossed aside, and that seemed to be the only change from the other evening. I looked up at my new husband curiously. “James, last night, did we...?”

He snorted at this and laughed. “You were out like a light, darling, and I tend to prefer the women I sleep with to at least pretend to be alive.”

I stuck my tongue out at him, and James reached down and took my hands in his. Raising them to his lips, he gently kissed them, and said, “Love, you were exhausted, and I was little better. We have the rest of our lives for such things, and I promise to make every day a fresh wonder for you.”

I slid off our bed and wrapped my arms around him, reaching up to kiss him on the lips. “I know, James, it is just that I wanted our first night together to be so very special.”

“And it will be,” he replied, stepping back to don his coat. “We did not reach the bedroom until after midnight, so tonight will technically be our first night. Now, you need to get ready for a trip. You do not have much time left.”

It was now my turn to snort in laughter at this specious argument. I turned away and looked back over my shoulder. “Undo my buttons and stays, darling,” I asked.

James smiled and stepped closer. He allowed his fingers to wander briefly as they managed to loosen my gown, and I felt a marvelous thrill wash through me. All the previous evening James’ attentions and presence had heated and moistened my loins to the point where I felt the bawdiest of tarts, and now fresh juices of love poured from me. Looking over my shoulder at him, I winked and lowered my dress down sufficiently that he could see my naked posterior. “Are you sure we do not have any time?” I asked innocently.

James gave a ghostly smile and studied my form for a moment, then his arm reached out and I felt a quick SWAT upon my arse. “Get dressed!” he ordered pleasantly. We have to be at the train station in an hour.”

“What! An hour!” I dropped my dress to the floor and ran into my bedroom dressed in nothing but my stockings. “We’ll never make it!” I had thought we had much more time.

“You had better hurry then.”

I did so, stripping naked and taking a very quick and cold bath, then rushing into my travel clothing. Fortunately, we had packed days before, and almost all of our luggage had been sent ahead to the train station. We only needed to dress and throw our final necessaries into a small bag, and we were off. As I scampered down the stairs, James took the bag from my hands and pushed me out the door, as anybody up waved and laughed at our predicament. After handing me up into the carriage, he reached into a pocket and proffered me an apple. “Breakfast,” he explained, then pulled a second from his pocket for himself. Mister Strong, James’ foreman, waited for us to be settled, then flicked the reins and set the team to a brisk canter. We made the train station by noon and found our way to the private Pullman car.

Already present were Bessie and Jenny, who would be traveling with us. They had, in fact, already spent the night on the train, as their combined escort had been Mister Dornwood. The two girls preferred a team approach to romance, finding that pleasures divided became pleasures multiplied, and Mister Dornwood was rather agreeable to the entire idea. By the time we arrived at the carriage, he and the girls had luncheon prepared and were beginning to set out the china.

Also present were AnneMarie and Harry Kendrickson. They announced that they were taking a train back to New York that afternoon and wanted to see us off. Over the next day or two, the house would empty out as our guests went about their way and returned home. Ahkbar Singh would maintain the household in perfect fashion whilst we traveled. The four of us sat down to dine, and I for one was famished!

By the time lunch was finished, we felt and heard a loud crashing lurch, and our cars began to slowly move. AnneMarie looked up nervously. “We’re moving!” she cried.

Mister Dornwood stuck his head out of the galley. “That is just the yard engine pushing us to the train to Chicago. We’ll let you folks off at the station.” He glanced at his pocket watch. “You’ve got another half an hour.”

The Kendricksons smiled with relief. There was a definite air of spicy scintillation in the air, and under some circumstances we would all have been happy to move in such a direction. However, both James and I desired each other more at the moment, and Harry and his bride seemed to sense that, as well, so we all simply simmered our passions rather than allow them to rollick to a boil. We shared a last bottle of champagne, then Tommy announced it was time for our guests to depart. We walked them to the platform and embraced warmly. “Caroline and I were talking,”, said James, “and we have decided that when we finish our little trip, we will probably finish in New York about a week before we originally thought to. Perhaps we could meet for dinner or whatever?”

AnneMarie’s eyes lit up as she glanced at her secret husband. “Really? What a wonderful idea! We could spend an awful lot of time together that way, couldn’t we.”

“Yes,” I agreed. “In fact, I talked to Mary Johnson earlier this week, and she agreed to join us when we came to town. That way, when our husbands are off around town, the three of us could shop or whatnot.”

AnneMarie’s eyes lit up at this idea. Unbeknownst to our husbands, Mary, AnneMarie, and I had become the most intimate of friends; that is to say that when together we would often spend time practicing the art of love as taught on the Isle of Lesbos. “She is not sure whether she is going to return to the Waldorf-Astoria but promises to meet us.”

James looked curious at this. “She is giving up her position at the hotel?”

“Well really, James, David is doing very well there, and is probably going to do even better, and Mary now has three young children to care for,” I answered.

Harry nodded in agreement. “Yes, I was most impressed with him. I know you have no need for such an individual in your investments, James, but you ladies should mention to Mary that if he ever wishes to leave the hotel business, I have a number of industrial concerns that he would do very well at. I would hire such a fellow immediately.” James nodded his agreement of David’s character and potential.

I grinned and nodded compliance, and a second round of kisses and embraces followed, even warmer than the first. Then James and I climbed aboard, and a few minutes later we heard the whistle blow and the train lurched into motion, heading West. Our itinerary was not at all cast in stone but was somewhat speculative. James’ intention was to show me more of this vast and amazing nation, and we planned a cross-country trip. Our first stop was to be that Midwest Metropolis, Chicago, then on to Saint Louis, Denver, and San Francisco. On our trip home we would take a more southerly route, going through some smaller towns and cities in the Southwest and Texas, then on to New Orleans and Atlanta and Savannah. I was very excited by it all, and not simply because it was our honeymoon.

We began moving westward and we were finally on our way. James eyed the hallway leading to our chambers speculatively, smiling at me archly, and I smiled back. “Give me some time to freshen up, darling, then join me. I’ll have the girls bring you.” Followed by my maids, I moved to our bedroom and closed the door behind us.

My first order of business was indeed to freshen up, and this marvelous conveyance was possessed of every conceivable luxury, though they were often of a most intriguing and compact dimension. Bessie and Jenny assisted me in removing my clothing and showing me the operation of the various features of the attached water closet, then we returned to the bedroom. Though I had planned my wedding night to be consummated by what I wore beneath my gown, now I made a change. First, I pulled on some very long and very sheer black stockings and slid my feet into the highest of black slippers. Next, I donned my favorite diamonds, given to me by James at the time we were engaged. These consisted of an enormous pear-shaped diamond hanging from a thin gold necklace, along with earrings made from a pair of large and matching stones hanging from gold chains. Bessie and Jenny oohed and aahed pleasantly at the sight of these wonderful gems. Lastly, I donned a pair of arm length black silk evening gloves. This proved a bit of a problem, since my engagement ring would not fit inside, so I removed it and slipped it onto the necklace holding the diamond pendant. The girls brushed out my hair, and then I had them leave, to order James back.

I heard their giggling in the hallway as James opened the door, then more as he suggested that they keep Mister Dornwood busy for a while. Then my beloved entered, carrying a bottle of champagne and a pair of flutes. He stared at me hungrily as I lounged enticingly on the bedcovers, then closed the door behind him. “What a lovely outfit, Caroline, so simple and yet so elegant. You should wear it more often!” he quipped.

I moved around on the bed, feeling my womanhood heating and moistening simply by being in his presence. “What, this old thing? You’ve seen it before!”