Her heart rate increased.

Her breaths came in short heavy gasps.

The hair on her arms and the back of her neck stood on edge.

Her hand trembled as she carefully picked up her glass to take a sip of red wine. The taste bland as she attempted to divert her attention away from her husband's smouldering gaze…

It felt like she was drowning… in the most delicious and erotic way.

The family surrounding her continued talking nonsense about one thing or another… of what, she could not say. Since returning from honeymoon, almost every meal had been the same as this one. Hot, tense, tedious, exciting, endless… she blamed Matthew of course for his insatiable appetite and the inability to disguise the fact that he loved watching her with each passing second. He relished in it, and if she was completely honest, so did she. (Although she would never tell him of course)

Three months spent indulging in the sexual delights of one another had resulted in the inevitable… desperation. It had been almost a week now and every time they had attempted to excuse themselves for an early night the family had insisted on making them stay a little longer to hear yet another story from their honeymoon in France. How ironic it seemed that three blissful months completely alone with one another were now preventing them from exactly that…

Her attention was suddenly diverted back into the present with her father asking Matthew about the latest developments on the estate. As his smooth masculine voice reached her ears she smirked to herself, hearing the clear tint of his voice that only she understood. She brought her gaze to settle on his whilst he faced towards her father, indulging in his handsome features before he decided to trap her once more. The smoothness of his face, with the slightest hint of stubble made her shiver involuntarily; the rounded chin she so loved to nibble on when they were alone, the little creases in between his eyebrows which she had kissed on many heated occasions; and the… sharp, deep blue eyes which were suddenly locking with hers. She gasped, attempting to appear calm and collected as she was lost in the wondrous, exotic sea that drew her in and left her desperate for more. Her eyes slowly travelled down to his lips as the corner of his mouth turned up to form that smirk… he knew…

"Mary!"

"What?!"

"We're going through to the drawing-room darling, are you quite alright?"

"Oh, of course Mama. Just thinking about France" She said as innocently as she could. As she stood, she could practically feel his supressed laugh and she forced herself not to look in his direction as the room began to clear. Every step seemed to make the distance between her and the door longer, and it was only pronounced by her awareness of him mirroring almost her every move. She attempted to walk faster, and at last reached the door still determined to look at anything other than him. As her shoes hit the wooden floor, his breath ghosted the back of her neck making her tremble with memories of stolen touches.

She was almost at the drawing-room door when he stopped her.

Gently grabbing her arm, he tugged her back and pushed her against the wall. She barely had time to react before his face was level with hers. His right hand braced the wall next to her head and the other slowly slid around her waist. Her breaths were uneven and she craved every inch of his body against hers but as she lowered his head to hers, the only thing in her mind was the softness of his lips as the gap became smaller and smaller…

"Mary?!"

They both froze on the spot as Mama called her name from the next room. Their eyes met with a silent promise and as she tilted her head towards his, he took his grip from her and walked in the opposite direction. She stood for several seconds in shock and excitement as she calmed her breathing and smiled at the thought of more delicious games to come. Standing away from the wall, she blushed as she felt the unmistakable sign that she was incredibly aroused. Holding her head high, she walked towards the door, determined to satisfy both their needs later on….