Hello again! Thank you for your lovely reviews! I hope you are enjoying my little story so far! I am over a third of the way finished with An Ardent Affection and the full first part can be purchased on Amazon in its full and sensual entirety. (I've had to make some cuts here and there in this version to ensure that this will hold up to ffnet's rating policies).

All my love,

G.R


It was during the carriage ride back to Longbourn that Elizabeth Darcy was able her first long look at her husband. Her husband.

His dark eyes were cast down in his lap, where he held tight to her hand in his. She could still taste his kiss on her lips and the thought thrilled her a bit more than it should have so early in the day.

His dark curls looked impeccable, save for one that seemed not to follow the rules the others had set. She longed to reach up and straighten it. To touch every hair on his head. To discover whether they were soft or coarse.

She'd expect they were soft. They appeared like they'd be soft.

She was still admiring her husband's profile when he looked up. Abruptly. His eyes caught her gaze and the result was very nearly scorching.

The corners of his mouth quirked upward in that subtle way he had. "Mrs. Darcy?"

Her cheeks reddened, the heat rising in them as she looked away, down into her own lap, where her other hand remained, clutching her skirts anxiously. "My husband?" she countered.

A sound rose, seemingly from the depths of his soul. It rumbled through his chest as he clutched her hand in both of his, bringing it up to his lips and pressing soft kisses there. "I do so adore being yours, Elizabeth."

"If we are being frank, isn't it I who is yours now?" she asked. The response was merely meant in jest, but it appeared to take some of the light from his eyes. He deflated significantly before straightening his back once more. Her heart clenched in regret for having said the words, but there was no way to take them back now.

"I suppose, technically, this is the way the vows were written. Obeying her husband is the virtue of a good wife, is it not?" he asked.

"I don't suppose it's a difficult vow to follow, provided one's husband is agreeable. If he isn't barbaric in his demands."

"I have no intention of playing the barbarian, Elizabeth."

"I am glad to hear it, Fitzwilliam."

"My sister calls me William," he said gently.

"And mine call me 'Lizzy'," she replied, smiling. A counter offer to his gentle suggestion.

"I would defer to 'Lizzy' if you would only do me the same honor."

"I'm not sure 'Lizzy' suits you, William," she teased.

His face split into the boyish grin that she'd only be fortunate to see a handful of times. She aimed to see it more often now that she was his wife.

"I think Lizzy suits me very well," he murmured, pressing his lips to her hand once more. This time, he turned it, so her hand was open. He kissed her palm, then each one of her finger tips. She thrilled at the soft brushes of his lips and the way his breath caressed her skin.

"William…" she breathed, allowing him to pull her over flush against his side. One strong arm wrapped around her waist, holding her in place. The other trailed up her lace-covered arm, over her shoulder and along the column of her throat. She could not help but lay her head down on his shoulder

He'd never touched her so intimately before. He'd never had an opportunity. Save for that day in the garden, when his kisses had stolen her breath.

She swallowed thickly as his fingers reached her chin, trailing along her jaw until he cupped her face, tilting her mouth up toward his like a goblet he would like to sip from.

And sip he did.

His lips took hers. His mouth plundering her own in a show of passion unlike any she'd seen from him until now.

The unbridled emotion translated through his touch. His fingers softly and gently held her still as his lips and even his tongue sought pleasure in hers.

He went slowly, as if making sure she could keep up. His lips pulled and plucked hers, making soft sucking noises in the relative quiet of the carriage.

The quiet struck her as odd. There was no clip clop of horse hooves. There was no rattle of wagon wheels.

There was, however, a polite tapping at the window. Itpulled William and Lizzy from their reverie. They had arrived at Longbourn.

While locked in a passionate embrace that likely everyone waiting to greet them could see.

Her husband's face reddened considerably, but Lizzy refused to be embarrassed. They had only just been married. A newly married husband and wife were entitled to a few moments alone before they had to greet their guests.

She squeezed his hand and he nodded to the footman.

The door was opened to mixed giggling and applause, although Lizzy rightfully assumed the giggling sounded loud only because of the proximity of the younger guests to the carriage.

Lydia's husband was also in attendance, albeit in a much more subdued manner than his young wife, who was, in a dreadful show of what Lizzy understood to be jealousy, telling anyone who would listen that she found Lizzy and Darcy's wedding to pale in comparison to her own. Lizzy simply could not find reason to quarrel with her youngest sister, for she was much too happy to care about what Lydia found well about her nuptials. He glanced round the yard, finding the trees more interesting than the Darcys' exit from their wedding carriage.

The newly-married couple greeted everyone in attendance, and Elizabeth's cheeks truly hurt from smiling by the time she was able to cease her perpetual merriment.

Her husband's tight-lipped demeanor, however, had returned. After having been in his acquaintance for some time, Elizabeth was more inclined to label her William as shy and reserved, rather than conceited and arrogant. As such, his countenance had become dear to her. Especially in its current state.

She smiled up at him. "I do love you so, Mr. Darcy."

The smile he gave her was like opening the shades after a long night. As if the sun were shining just there across the horizon. Not blazing yet. Not blinding. Just a sliver of light in the middle of the dark.

In a word, it was lovely and Elizabeth was finding reasons to love each and every one of William's smiles. Especially if it was directed at her.

And they often were, she was discovering.