Lothiriel loved Eomer´s hair. It was blond, and unlike the rest of him, very soft. Eomer had to bend over to kiss her, and unfortunately a part of his mane got caught between their faces. In the bliss of the moment, and successfully distracted by Eomer´s hands on her body, Lothiriel was able to ignore it. But then a strand of hair found its way into her mouth.
Lothiriel choked, put her hands against his shoulders and took a hasty step back. After a moment of confusion Eomer´s attempt to help her by tapping on her back almost brought her to her knees. Lothiriel´s husband sometimes forgot his strength.
"Did I hurt you?", he asked, concerned.
Lothiriel waved his apology away, still fighting for air. When she had gained her composure, her head was clear again. Back in Gondor the maids had told her of kisses so perfect they made one forget the world around. And this really had been such a kiss, but it had been interrupted by Eomer´s hair in her throat. It was embarrassing; she bet that this had never happened to one of her maids! And the world came back crushing down on her. All of a sudden she felt weak, and didn't know if she should laugh or cry.
Lothiriel looked at her feet. There still were blood stains on her dress.
"I want to take a bath.", she said. She needed to calm her thoughts.
"I could come with you.", Eomer said. Sharply Lothiriel looked up and found him still grinning at her. A few moments ago she would have happily agreed, and she was well aware what he was implying. Panic overcame her. His eyes looked warmly down on her and Lothiriel found it hard to breathe. Why was she reacting like this?
"No.", she said. "I would like so have some time just for me." His grin dropped, and it made her feel guilty, to add it to her other emotions.
Lothiriel turned around and fled from the room.
The tub was filled with steaming hot water. The mirror in the corner was fogged and Lothiriel couldn't see her reflection. She was thankful for it. She scrambled out of her clothes and sank into the water. It burned her skin at first, but Lothiriel welcomed the sensation. It gave her a sense of reality after this long day so far outside her comfort zone.
She leant back and closed her eyes. What had caused her to flee from him? Eomer was considerate, beautiful and strong, and most importantly, her husband. Sometimes he was stubborn and loud, and his temper got the better of him, but she could live with that. She had to. Lothiriel had not been that skittish even in her wedding night. She knew she could trust him.
Lothiriel reached for the sponge and began to scrub herself clean from grime and sweat. It was heavenly. Following a sudden impuls, she dipped her head into the water. She had planned to wash her hair two days from now, when the visit of some lord of the Eastfold was due, but the day simply called for it.
Gasping for air, she stilled in her actions. She could trust him, couldn't she? After all, what did she have to fear? They were married; it wasn't as if he could leave her. Lothiriel had told him she wished to be able to trust him again, and it was the truth. And he had changed. Or had she? It didn't matter; their relationship was different now from what it had been before. Her body trusted him, and she couldn't help it. She even felt safe around him! Around the same Eomer who hadn´t spared her a glance less than two months ago!
She shouldn't forget the past, she told herself. Right from the start, Lothiriel had tried to please her husband, but he had ignored her. When she had come to Rohan, and although it had been an arranged marriage, she had hoped for a partner, someone to talk to, someone who would listen to her problems. Their wedding night had been wonderful, and she even had allowed herself to hope for something like love.
Her hopes had been crushed, and she had been alone. She didn't want this to happen to her again. Apparently love wasn't meant for her. And after the last few weeks, she knew there was no way out of marriage. Eomer and she were stuck with each other, in the good days just as in the bad days. But she had also learnt that she could cope with it.
This time it was different. This time they were no strangers, he knew her, and she knew him. She was able to be happy with things standing as they were. Lothiriel and Eomer were friends, and she was being useful in the household. No need to panic.
She washed her hair with the soap she had brought from Dol Amroth and finally left the bath tub. She guessed Eomer had fallen asleep in the meanwhile. Bathing had taken her remarkably longer than usual.
Lothiriel entered their bedchamber in her nightgown. Her hair was dried as much as possible with a towel, and braided. The lights were out. Eomer already occupied his half of the bed, seemingly asleep. Quietly Lothiriel slipped under the covers. She shivered and pulled the fur from the middle of the bed closer to her.
Eomer snorted. Lothiriel´s hand froze mid-air.
"Everything alright, little wife?", he asked. "Are you cold, or why are you stealing my fur?"
Obviously she had been mistaken, her husband was very much awake.
"It´s nothing.", she murmured sheepishly. "My hair is wet."
"Come here."
Suddenly a long arm came from behind and took her by the waist. Lothiriel squeaked. What was he doing? Eomer pulled her closer and Lothiriel was too surprised to even think about showing resistance. His body pressed against her back. Lothiriel was tense. Eomer didn't claim his marital rights, at least he didn't act like the times he had, and these had been the only occasions they had been this near. They had never… cuddled.
Eomer radiated warmth. Gradually Lothiriel relaxed. Yes, she was able to hear him breathing somewhere behind her left ear, and it was a great distraction, but taken it all together, it was wonderful here. The cold left her body, even her toes warmed up. Cuddling Eomer was a nice experience.
She didn't know for how long they had lain like this, but sleep evaded her. With every passing minute she became more aware of his presence, expecially his hand on her hip. Although they didn't talk, Lothiriel knew that he was also awake.
She nearly jolted when she felt his fingers move. They drew small circles on her waist, and Lothiriel fought to keep her breathing even. She didn't want him to see how much he affected her. She was here to sleep, after all.
He continued brushing over her skin, with tender movements, the palm of his hand rough. Now Lothiriel became uncomfortably hot. She considered bringing distance between their bodies, but feared it might be insulting. But she didn't want to take advantage of him when he had been so nice to her.
Her mind stopped. He wouldn't he touch her like this if he didn't want something from her, would he? All men were the same, or so she had been told by her mother. Lothiriel gathered all her courage and wriggled closer to him. There was a stone-hard erection pressing against her back. Lothiriel suppressed a giggle. That made things pretty clear.
She turned around and looked him in the eyes. His smile was almost apologetic.
"I can´t help it.", he whispered. "My beautiful wife next to me... If you wish, you could-"
Lothiriel shut him up with a kiss.
His lips were soft and welcoming, immediately answering her. His arms came up and drew her closer. It reminded her of the kiss they had shared not two days ago, but infinitely better. This time, she had nowhere to go. His hands caressed her back and she was lying half above him, melting into the embrace.
Was this even real? Her heart pounded too loud for Lothiriel to be able to think. She moved a little bit away and looked down. Eomer slowly opened his eyes. They were almost black. Only their ragged breaths were heard in the room. Leisurely, Eomer smiled.
"But of course, we could also continue." His husky voice betrayed the nonchalance he was showing.
Oh, no. He wouldn't get away that easily. Despite the fact that Lothiriel was slightly anxious, after all she had never been the one to initialise intimacies between them, she knew what she wanted.
"I do enjoy touching you.", she teased him, propping on her elbows. The tunic he wore for sleep had fallen open, and she traced the skin beneath the hem. There was fine pale hair, and she was impatient to feel what lay beneath the rest of his nightgown. Pushing the covers aside, she started planting little kisses on his throat, moving further down with each touch. Eomer had gone completely still. When she opened the first button and brushed with her lips over the revealed skin, his breath hitched.
Lothiriel looked up inquiringly.
"Do you want me to stop?", she asked and opened the next button.
Eomer´s eyes were wide and glued to her face. Apparently unable to speak, he shook his head. Well, she seemed to do something right. Lothiriel continued opening his tunic. When she was at the last button, he finally snapped out of his paralysis. In a fluid motion he grabbed her and brought her body underneath him, his mouth covering hers.
Lothiriel couldn't think. She could only taste him, feel him, the broad shoulders and the beard scratching her face but his lips, sweet Elbereth, his lips! But then she was in need of air, and pushed, and he let go of her for only seconds before he came down on her again.
Eomer´s hand stroked her side, and then she felt her own nightgown being shoved up, and his touch on her skin created a fever she hadn´t known she possessed before. She made a surprised noise, it sounded suspiciously like mewling, when his hand cupped her right breast. Her whole body was on fire, and he made it worse each time he touched her. Eomer helped her out of her nightgown, and eventually she was naked. The cold air caressed her skin. He took a moment to enjoy the view and Lothiriel shivered under his gaze.
Then Eomer locked eyes with her.
"You are gorgeous.", he said. "Tonight I will make you forget all the hardships you had to suffer. I will do my best to make it up to you."
Eomer´s voice was completely sincere. Lothiriel reached out to him. Never had she heard a promise more beautiful. They met in the middle, kissing, and Eomer removed his tunic completely. Lothiriel put her legs around him, and he pushed into her without warning. She couldn't hold back a gasp, but he didn't seem to mind. When he started moving, Lothiriel found it harder and harder to concentrate on him, instead her focus was blurry and mostly there where he touched her, her belly, her breasts, her thighs, not to mention his kisses. All she could do was to cling and press into him, and to move whenever her instincts told her to, and it worked out just great.
She was going to die. There was a pressure building up inside her, and while it did feel absolutely incredible, Lothiriel was terrified of losing her control. She reached up and touched Eomer´s neck, stroking down his arms and chest, breathing evenly. Normally touching him would calm her, but now it accomplished quite the opposite. The heat just wouldn't subside, and suddenly there was a hand between them, and it was most certainly not hers. Eomer looked Lothiriels in the eyes while he was stroking her. And then she couldn't hold it back anymore. Lothiriel´s mental walls collapsed around her and her last conscious thought was to bite in the next available thing in order to prevent screams. Her muscles clenched. Eomer held her while her whole body shook. Maybe she did make a few sounds.
When she came back to reality a few minutes later, the first thing she noticed was the taste of blood.
"Oh Eomer, I am so-"
The thrust interrupted her sentence. Eomer took up speed again and although her body felt completely boneless, it reacted to him. She lifted her pelvis to meet him, and Eomer grabbed her even firmer. His kiss was hard, but Lothiriel welcomed it anyway. His breathing got heavier, then he thrusted one last time and came with a grunt. He fell on her and Lothiriel was positively flattened, but it felt good. Eomer breathed loudly, and she still trembled. She had never felt so close to anyone.
Slowly her strength came back her and she patted him on the shoulder. As much as Lothiriel liked being buried underneath him, she didn´t want him to fall asleep here. She was to weak to push him away, so she didn´t even try it.
Eomer rolled off of her, but took her with him so she was lying on top of him. Lothiriel kissed his chest and Eomer smiled at her. She snuggled even closer. Everything was perfect. She was already so sleepy, and Eomer´s gentle fingers on her back comforted her.
"Good night.", she whispered. Tomorrow she would think about the blood on his shoulder.
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Thank you ctgirl92, Anna and guest :)
Well, as promised, one new chapter, about two more to go. Finals are over and I failed one dramatically, but we were in Berlin for the weekend afterwards to watch a musical (Tanz der Vampire) and it cheered me up.
*cough cough* the sex... no bedsheet acrobatics, but still satisfying, I would say. Oh my, please say something. I haven´t written a sex scene for over two years, and real life is quite different from fanfiction, so... I hope you had fun. I certainly had.