Chapter 21: Bliss

Two weeks after Marjorie Binnings’ trial, on a warm day in early August, the tenants of Matcham and Woodbridge and their dependants assembled in and in front of the village church. The front pews were taken up by a large group of visitors, noble and rich people, who had come to celebrate with Richard and Ellen. Before their friends and relatives and the assembled country folk, the new squire of Woodbridge Manor, Richard Lord Lambert and his lovely bride, Ellen Trilby Wilkes, exchanged their marriage vows. The Hon. James Palmer, the eldest son of Lord Brougham, served as Richard’s best man, whilst Eleanor Carter had difficulties maintaining a facade of happiness serving as bridesmaid for her friend Ellen.

The ensuing celebration lasted well into the next morning. For most of the evening, Richard and Ellen danced together, save for a few occasions when close relatives danced with the bride. When it was time for the newlyweds to retire, Richard felt anything but tired, having foregone wine and spirits for days and drinking sparsely over the day. He could barely believe that finally, finally Ellen was his. During the coach ride back to Woodbridge Manor, he dared not let go of her hands, lest some quirk of fate may snatch her away at the last moment.

Ellen, for her part, felt Richard’s emotions, and they echoed her own sentiments. Nothing would go wrong this night, she promised herself. When they arrived, she felt the elation as her husband lifted her from the coach. In spite of the late hour, the house staff lined the stairs as Richard led her to the first floor bedroom. She squealed in appreciation when she saw the flower arrangements around the room that filled the air with a sweet scent. A cool bottle of wine and small snacks were waiting, too. She remembered the adoring look of Millicent Wade and she envisioned the girl slaving away to prepare the bedroom for them.

Richard opened the bottle and poured wine into the long-stemmed glasses. He handed her one glass and then saluted her.

“To the lovely Lady Lambert!” he smiled, and they sipped of the wine. Ellen had had a few glasses of wine over the day, and she felt like floating. She knew this night would include one little barrier for them to overcome, and she was slightly apprehensive. The wine helped her a little to quell her fears. With quick determination, she took the covers off the bed and started to remove her jewellery. She needed Richard’s help to undo the clasps that held her dress in the back, and she felt his fingers tremble slightly. When she let her dress slip down her body, she heard Richard’s admiring intake of breath. Stepping out of the puddle of silk, she dropped her underwear in quick succession until she stood naked in front of her mesmerised husband.

Richard felt short of breath watching Ellen shed her clothes. The flickering light of the candles cast a golden hue over her skin. When she reached up to unfasten her hair, he could not resist his urges anymore. Stepping forward, he crushed her against his chest, pressing his lips against hers and kissing her with all the pent-up passion of over two years.

“Won’t you undress, Richard?” she asked breathlessly.

Quickly, he shed his clothes, sending buttons flying over the room as he ripped open his shirt. Ellen giggled happily until she saw his engorged member jump out of his breeches. The apprehension was back again for a moment, but she dismissed it quickly. She would be his tonight, regardless of what it took. Having undressed, Richard blew out the candle and led Ellen to the windows. In the pale light of the full moon, her hair seemed to glow in the dark. He opened a door to the balcony and together they stepped out. Richard knew that no servant chamber had windows to the back. From the balcony, he led her down over a stairway into the small walled garden. The blankets he had ordered were there, as was another bottle of wine and a pitcher with water. He made Ellen lie down on the blankets in the shadow of a blossoming cherry tree and stretched out beside her. Reverently, he let his fingers explore her body, starting from her cheeks down over her neck, her shoulders. When his fingertips touched the upright nipples of her breasts, Ellen drew a sharp gasp and pulled his head down. With his lips and tongue, he continued the worship of her breasts until he heard soft moans escape from her mouth with every breath she exhaled. He moved down to her belly, and he felt her muscles flutter under his tongue. Desperately trying to contain his own lust, he moved his lips lower on her body until he smelled the aroma of her arousal. Her sparse blond hair shimmered in the moonlight, and she opened her legs willingly as he moved to the top of her untried opening.

Richard knew what to do and how. He had had extensive tutoring as a youth, and today, he wanted to give his wife a lovemaking she would always remember. He let his tongue play over the soft and sensitive insides of her thigh, and he was rewarded with sobbing intakes of breath. He took his time then, kissing down her legs, caressing her knees and her calves, moving back up again, skirting her opening and latching onto her navel again. The uncontrolled flutter of her stomach muscles was accompanied by ragged breaths and moans, and Richard prepared for the final assault.

When Richard led her down into the small garden, Ellen was surprised and delighted. The thought of giving herself to her husband under the bright moon made her giddy with emotion and desire. From his first touches, Ellen’s body was on fire. His soft caresses made her yearn for more intimate touches. She nearly exploded when his lips moved towards the centre of her lust, and she whimpered in frustration when he skirted it. She went through another built up when he moved up from her calves and along her legs, but again, he did not touch the core of her desire. Nevertheless, his tongue in her belly button very nearly made her cry with lust. She looked down between her breasts and saw his tongue as it trailed down from her navel and through the patch of blonde hair, and she expected him to skirt her pussy again and renew the torture.

When the tip of his tongue lashed her love button for the first time, she was unprepared for the jolt of lust that surged through her and, with a keening wail, she experienced a powerful release that left her limp and almost lifeless. When she came to, she looked down into Richard’s smiling eyes, and she reached down to caress his face. Just then, he started a second assault on her slit, penetrating the soft lips with his tongue, sucking on her little nubbin of lust until she reached a second, even more powerful peak. While recovering, she suddenly realised that he was kissing her, his lips tasting of her essence whilst his torso settled on her with his weight. She wanted to cry with joy when she felt the tip of his member settling against her entrance, and she smiled up at her husband.

“Yes, my love! Do it now!” she encouraged him, all fear and apprehension blown away.

She felt her lips part as his massive member wedged between them, and her opening was stretched like never before as the head of his member parted the lips. She felt it acutely when his advance met with the natural obstruction, and she took a deep breath, preparing for the pain. Suddenly, Richard bent down and bit gently into her neck, just below the ear. A shudder passed over her, and she squealed in pleasure, forgetting about everything for a moment. The squeal ended in a short yelp when he pressed forward, tearing through the barrier and penetrating by an inch. He rested, giving her the time to sample the sensation.

“Are you all right, darling?”

“I don’t know yet,” she panted truthfully. “I feel like I was split along my seams.”

That feeling subsided quickly though, replaced by a wonderful feeling of fullness. The sensations she felt were overwhelming, especially when Richard began to press deeper, rocking his pelvis ever so slightly. With each in and out sawing movement, she felt his member penetrate her deeper. Even in her lightheaded state, she admired her husband’s self-control. She could feel his desire to plunge into her depths, and she loved him for his consideration.

The friction inside her made her gasp again. This was like nothing she had ever felt, and she savoured every little movement. When the amplitude of his strokes increased, so did their breathing. Sometimes, when he pressed really deep inside her, she felt a shudder from deep within. At other times, when his movements were lighter, she felt like riding in the clouds, detached from gravity.

Then, gradually, she noticed a change in Richard’s movements. They gained in urgency, force and speed. His breathing became ragged and his eyes clouded. She watched in awe as his face contorted into a grimace of lust, and she knew that it was she who gave him those intense feelings.

Crying out her name, he finally erupted inside her, and that knowledge gave her a deep satisfaction. She could feel the pulsing of his member in her tight canal, heard his sobbing cries, and she clung to him tightly. When he was finally spent, he pressed into her one last time, deeper than before, and that triggered a final release in her, more satisfying than the first two, more emotional and less selfish.

‘Shared joy is twice the joy.’ The old saying popped into her mind, and she giggled softly.

Richard propped himself up with some effort and looked into her face questioningly.

Instead of answering the implied question, Ellen wanted to get something off her chest.

“Richard, there is something I have to tell you right now: I just had the most wonderful moments of my life,” she said earnestly. “I want to thank you for the care and patience you showed. You have made this a memory to behold and cherish. I love you with all my heart.”

“You have no idea what this moment means for me, Ellen. It is the fulfilment of a dream. We are one now.”

They kissed tenderly for a while.

“Are you comfortable, Ellen? Would you rather I moved off?”

“No, stay!” she whispered back. “Your weight on me feels reassuring. I just hope there are no ants here,” she giggled, and he laughed softly in reply. “How soon can you do this again?”

In response, she felt his manhood swell inside her, and she gasped. “That fast?”

He smiled back at her. “Have you any idea how desirable you are, Ellen?”

In truth, he was astonished himself. Within a few seconds, he was hard as a rock again. Holding Ellen tightly, he rolled on his back, pulling her on top of him.

“Ride me, Ellen. Set your own pace.”

Comprehension showed on Ellen’s face. She sat up, straddling him, his member still lodged inside her, and she began to move up and down tentatively. Richard held still, giving her the time to explore the possibilities. Her face showed such intense concentration that he almost laughed.

After just a few minutes, Ellen had found out what she needed. Combining the obvious up and down movement with a rocking movement of her pelvis, she soon elicited delighted gasps from her husband and her own throat. The way her own love button rubbed against his pubic hair sent shivers of lust through her body, and the way the head of his member pressed against the front of her love canal during certain movements caused small spasms in her very core.

Lost in her movements, she suddenly became aware of an additional stimulus. His hands had found her breasts, and his thumbs brushed over her sensitive nipples with every up and down movement. She felt the heat rise from her belly over her chest, along her neck and into her face. When it reached the top of her head, a dam broke, and she became rigid. For three or four seconds, she remained motionless, the blood rushing in her ears. Then, Richard pressed his abdomen upwards to impale her, and she felt the pulsing of his member as he shot his semen deep into her womb.

Exhausted, Ellen slumped over Richard’s chest, her heavy blonde tresses covering them completely. Carefully, Richard rolled her off his chest and onto her side, extracting his limp member from her. Covering her with a blanket, he held her tightly in his arms. After what seemed a long time, Richard tore himself from the sleepiness that encroached on him.

“Shall we go to bed now, darling? Much as I’d like to stay here, this is not how I want to be found by the servants.”

Ellen nodded sleepily. He helped her up and wrapped her in a blanket. On a whim, he picked her up in his arms and carried her up the stairs and into the bedroom. He laid her down on the bed and covered her with a blanket. Then he stretched out beside her and was asleep within minutes.

They skipped breakfast on the next morning, opting instead for another love making session. They finished in time to dress for lunch. The family came over from High Matcham, and it was obvious from the beaming smiles of Ellen and Richard that the wedding night had gone well. Aunt Emily’s smile was a bit wistful when she saw the happiness of the couple, but Eleanor was clearly hurting. Antonio was gone for over two years, and ten months had gone by since the shipwreck. Her hopes were dwindling although she would never admit to it. She asked herself whether she would ever know the happiness that her friend Ellen felt.

Of course, Ellen noticed her friend’s mood, and her heart went out for her, but she felt unable to give her new hope. She knew that Doña Maria had begun to wear black, and that this had been a major blow for Eleanor. Ellen asked herself how long Eleanor would continue to hope against all probability.

Some time during the afternoon, Lady Carter asked her daughter in law for a private moment. She led the unsuspecting Ellen to a room on the second floor, a room Ellen had not paid attention to, yet. When Harriet opened the door, Ellen gasped in surprise. Memories came rushing back to her when she looked at the furniture, some pictures, and a small harpsichord. She knew that instrument, she knew the pictures and the small table with the elegant chairs.

“Where did you get those?” she whispered.

Harriet cleared her throat.

“When Colonel Meadows visited, we asked him about personal items from your mother. He was very embarrassed, but he admitted selling most of those items to make ends meet, as he chose to call it. He gave us the name of the trader to whom he had sold the items. We sent John Little to Gloucestershire, and with the help of the trader, he was able to retrieve some but not all of your mother’s possessions.”