Anna shivered and held her head still as Anjana arranged the tiara on her hair. She met her eyes in the mirror as the darker woman smiled. "You'll have to get used to wearing it. It's the tiara of a Duchess and you'll be one soon enough."

"I'm the wife of a Duke, there's a difference." Anna rolled her shoulders back. "Can I ask you something?"

"You can ask me anything milady."

Anna laughed, "You never called me that before."

"You weren't my lady before."

"I'm not now."

"You're about to be." Anjana shrugged and positioned the last pin. "And it's good for me to get into practice. The Dowager insists that I help dress you now that you'll have to be a bit more of a showpiece."

"I can dress myself."

"For functions." Anjana shook her head, "I don't intend on dressing you every day when I've an old woman who struggles to move in the morning."

Anna paused, "Is she alright?"

"It's an old malady that affects the old." Anjana gave a little chuckle. "There are many who have it here when their bones creak and ache in the mornings. They usually solve it with salves, stretching, and yoga."

"Yoga?"

"The Dowager refuses to participate. Says she's 'an old dog who can't learn new tricks'." Anjana paused, "But the humidity and the heat help her joints so she's not as stiff as she could be if she were still back in England."

"Is there a chance she'll go back?"

Anjana made a face in the mirror. "With her son here? She'll not leave India for anything less than her burial and even then she's said she wants to be cremated like us Hindus are."

"And her ashes scattered on the Ganges?"

"Milady's been studying."

"I thought it best." Anna took a breath. "Are you married?"

"Yes milady, I am." Anjana stepped away from Anna. "I think you're ready for your guests."

"Thank you." Anna stood, checking herself in the mirror. "Does your husband mind all the time you spend working for us?"

"My husband's not in a position to mind milady." Anjana paused, folding up some of Anna's clothing. "He was killed by British soldiers just after Arjuna was born."

"I'm so sorry." Anna put a hand to her mouth. "I didn't know he was-"

"It's in the past, milady." Anjana shrugged, her hand smoothing the material over her arm as if trying to remove the wrinkles but Anna recognized the calming motion. "I was very angry for a very long time and I wanted revenge for my husband. I wanted to avenge him."

"What stopped you?"

"I had a son. My parents had passed and I had no siblings. If not for me…"

"Then who would care for him." Anna gave a little chuckle, "I can certainly understand those feelings."

"What happened to you, I feel, is much harder."

Anna narrowed her eyes, "How do you-"

"The Dowager speaks to me for company." Anjana raised a hand, finally letting the fabric in her grip go into the wardrobe. "I've told no one. I know the bond between a lady and her maid. I would never betray it."

"How did you…" Anna shuffled, "What made you no longer hate the British after what happened to you?"

"I simply learned two truths."

"What are they?"

"First, that there is nothing fair about life. There will always be misfortune and sometimes you are the one to receive and sometimes you are the one to give it."

Anna nodded, "What's the other truth?"

"That people are people. There are those who will use their power to hurt, repress, torment, and injure while others will use their authority, influence, and blessings to bless others." She managed a small smile, "People like Lord Wuthering."

"He is rather special in that way, isn't he?"

"He's like few men I've ever met. Indian or British." Anjana nodded at Anna, "You'd best not keep your guests waiting any longer of they'll think you're too vain to be the Lady of this house."

"I'm very sure I don't belong as the Lady of any house but I'll take the compliment all the same." Anna reached out a hand, taking Anjana's. "I do hope you'll remember me first as Arjuna's teacher and then as the Lady of the house. I'd hate to think everyone will forget where I came from."

"They won't milady and many will use that against you for a very long time. Perhaps your entire life." Anjana squeezed Anna's hand back before dropping it. "But I think you're most concerned with you forgetting who you are."

"If I am?"

"I'd tell you not to worry since you're in no danger of forgetting yourself as far as I can tell." Someone knocked on the door and Anjana walked over to it. "I told you, time to hurry away."

She opened the door and Anna brightened to see John. He ducked his head, his white tie sitting on him as perfectly as ever, and smiled at her. "I'm sure I don't have to tell you that there are a great many guests waiting to meet the future Lady Wuthering before our nuptials the day after tomorrow."

"And I'm sure I don't have to tell you that I wish they'd all just vanish so I didn't have to try and remember a hundred names Mary'll whisper in my ear later."

John walked over to Anna and took her hands, looking deep into her eyes as he laid a gentle kiss on both of her gloves. "And I'm sure I don't have to tell you that I'd rather they all just bugger off as well so I could have you all over that dining room but needs must."

Anna took a deep breath, trying to steady her breathing. "Careful Mr. Bates, you'll make me come over all insensible and I won't have the power to contain myself around you."

"Who said I wanted that?" John grinned and dipped forward to kiss her.

Anna accepted his kiss but pulled back after a moment. "We've guests."

He groaned and then huffed, "You will be far too much of a temptation."

"Then be grateful I'll be sitting on the other side of a rather large table."

"Why would I be grateful of that?"

"Then you can't distract me and I can't distract you." Anna kissed his cheek, edging toward his ear. "We'll get our fill tonight, I promise."

He shuddered and then straightened to offer her his arm. "Then the sooner I get you downstairs the sooner I can expect you to fulfill on that promise."

They left her room but paused in the corridor at the sight of Thomas speaking with Ms. O'Brien next to the railing overlooking the main floor. The duo paused as well, Thomas nodding to them before pointing to Ms. O'Brien. "I'm not sure you've all been properly introduced."

"I'm sure introductions are best made with all the other guests." John stepped slightly in front of Anna. "And I'd prefer if you didn't invite strangers onto this level Thomas. Guests belong on the main floor. This floor is for family and friends. It's private and-"

"But Ms. O'Brien here is a friend." Thomas pointed toward Anna. "She officiated the exams for Ms. Smith here."

"Ms. O'Brien and I are acquainted, yes, but I wouldn't consider her a friend." Anna kept her eyes between Thomas and O'Brien. "As I recall she didn't have much hope for my students when she officiated those exams."

"If I'd known then you were a Colonial Indian, Ms. Smith, I would've been a little more sympathetic to why you had such misplaced faith in them."

"How dare you?" John took another step forward but Anna grabbed his arm. "You'll apologize to my fiancé this moment."

"Or what John?" Thomas scoffed, "We all know you're far too much the pet of our more notable cousins to do anything to embarrass yourself. Not that agreeing to shackle yourself to a fallen woman of no standing and inferior birth didn't already drag what little reputation you had left through the mud."

"Then let me remind you, Thomas," John's jaw tightened so severely the muscle in his cheek twitched. "That I've the power to strip you of your allowance, toss you from the homes you use, and ruin your delicate reputation as well."

Thomas swallowed, "You wouldn't."

"Wouldn't I?" John snorted, "For a delicate flower such as yourself it must be hard to maintain any sense of decorum."

"I-"

"And as for you." John turned to Ms. O'Brien, now cowering slightly. "You'll leave this house and this compound before I use my not-so-insignificant influence to strip you of your position and whatever meager power you hold that makes you feel superior to those around you. Have I made myself clear?"

Without a word, Ms. O'Brien ducked her head and hurried down the stairs to leave the house. John met Thomas's eyes again. "You're not welcome at our wedding ceremony or any of the ceremonies to follow. You'll pack your bags tonight, you'll take yourself to a hotel close to the docks, and you'll be on the next boat back to England. You'll move out of the London house, the manor in Yorkshire, and you'll confine yourself to the cottage in Sussex. Do you understand?"

Thomas nodded.

"I'm sorry. You were full of words for me just moments ago and yet you seem to've gone mute." John put himself nose-to-nose with Thomas. "Please give me an answer I can hear."

"I understand."

"Good." John returned to Anna's side and offered her his arm. "We've other guests to attend to and it's best if we do."

Anna chewed the inside of her cheek, catching a final glimpse of Thomas as they descended the stairs. Just short of the turn that would put them in view of all those gathered below, Anna stopped John. "Are you alright?"

John shook his head, "No."

"I don't know if what just happened was entirely necessary and I trust that you were acting in my best interests but John…" Anna took his hands in hers. "We might've just made powerful enemies. Enemies who could be thorns in our sides."

"What else would you have had me do?" John thrust his hand in the air toward Thomas's relative position above them. "Let him get away with insulting you? Or worse, have the woman degrade you in front of me?"

"No." Anna kissed his knuckles, as he had her hands what already seemed like a lifetime ago. "I would've had us descend these stairs, greet our guests like a couple engaged and excited to be married, and forget that we've every had problems before in our lives but there's so much more to all of this than that."

John pulled her close and held her to him. "I just want to feel like I can stop fighting the world for those things that make me happy."

Anna sank into his hold. "Me too."

"Can we pretend, for a moment, that we live in that world? In one where the forces of the universe aren't throwing themselves at us to try and see when we'll crack and break?" John kissed the top of her head carefully, conscious of her hair and the tiara. "A moment where no one minds that two insignificant people are in love and want only to live with one another as they love each other?"

Anna grinned against his jacket. "Yes. But just for a moment."

They took their moment and then carefully plastered on their smiles to greet their guests. Guests who offered their congratulations on hollow ears that, eventually, eased and softened. As the night drew on, Anna's smile stayed in place without effort and she wished the guests goodnights and goodbyes with the genuine affection she built over the night. Even catching a glimpse of Thomas hurrying to his carriage did nothing to dampen her mood.

When the doors finally closed, and John dismissed the servants, Anna took his hands and guided him toward his rooms. But when she went to wish him goodnight he tightened his grip and shook his head. "I hope you didn't think I'd forget what you suggested at the beginning of this evening."

"It's been a long day and you've…" Anna sighed, "I don't want you to feel obligated. I know that what happened with Thomas earlier must've-"

"Did nothing to stop me fulfilling on my promises." John tugged her closer, running his lips along her jaw to reach her ear. "Unless you'd rather not. I wouldn't want you to think I'd force you to do what you don't want to do."

Anna breathed against his ear, "I want it."

"Good." John kissed her cheek and opened his door. "Then let's forget any of the unpleasantness of today and lose ourselves in one another."

"I'm sure this goes against every convention of the bride and groom sharing a bed before the wedding." Anna pulled him toward her for a kiss as the door closed and he crowded her against it.

"You realize," John ended their kiss, dabbling his mouth over her exposed neck. "Those rules and traditions were instituted in an age when the first time you met your bride or groom was the wedding day itself, yes?"

"Yes." Anna shivered and put her hands on John's shoulders to push him back enough to look at his eyes. "May I suggest something?"

"You're not about to suggest that we shouldn't see each other before the wedding, aren't you?"

"No, so don't pout." Anna kissed him quickly, smiling at his exaggerated expression. "I was going to suggest a Hindu ceremony."

"You want to convert to Hinduism?"

"No. I want a ceremony that our friends and neighbors who aren't Christian can enjoy." Anna ran her teeth along the inside of her cheek. "I was speaking to Anjana earlier and I realized that part of the problem we face here is that no one is willing to try and understand one another. We're all shouting and screaming to be heard for what we have to say but we're not listening for our neighbors."

"You want to use this as a demonstration that we'll listen?"

"I'd like to, if we can." Anna shrugged, "Your former wife was cremated in the Hindu way. Why not allow us to marry as they do?"

"They might see it as an insult."

"Then we'll find out what we can do and be as respectful as possible." Anna interlocked her fingers behind John's neck. "Can we?"

John nodded, "I'll see what we can do."

"You will?"

"Of course." He kissed the tip of her nose. "If, as Mrs. Crawley suggests, I'm to be the next Viceroy of India than the rumor I was married in a Hindu ceremony might go a long way to helping me soothe over ruffled feathers on the sides of the Indians."

"Won't it ruffle British feathers?"

John shrugged a shoulder, "Let them be ruffled."

Anna drew him toward her but paused just short of his lips. "How secluded are your grounds?"

"Why?" He narrowed his eyes, "Are you planning something devious Ms. Smith? Something that could land us in a great deal of trouble?"

"Only if we're caught."

"You do like to play with fire."

"You'll only find out if you can tell me a secluded place we can go." Anna finally ghosted her lips over his. "Somewhere only we'll know."

"I'm sure I know of a place." John's hands skimmed over her through her dress. "But you can't wear this out there."

"Then I should probably leave it here." Anna turned in his arms and looked at him over her shoulder. "Do you mind?"

His fingers moved smoothly over her and Anna faced the door again. The twinge of a thought, barely formed, beckoned her and Anna followed it. As John's hands pushed the bodice of the dress forward down her arms, Anna shed the dress and stepped back into him to escape the confines of the fabric.

He held her, tracing down her arms to the top of her corset and loosened the strings for her. But he stuttered a moment as Anna made a tiny noise. "Did I-?"

"Please continue Mr. Bates." Anna urged, grinning to herself as she spread her legs slightly and pulled at the edge of her chemise to expose her knicker-covered ass to him. "I'm quite content with my current care."

"Then please explain," His lips sucked where her neck met her shoulder as he continued loosening her corset so she could breathe more easily with every motion. "What you're doing."

"Getting started."

Anna held her chemise to the edge of her corset and pushed her knickers down. They caught on her garters but Anna pressed her ass closer to John's trousers to unclip both and roll her stockings to the floor while stepping clear of her shoes. The motion drove her even closer to John and the tight grit to his teeth came through in the hiss as she rubbed over him.

When she went to stand his hands caught on her hips, her corset catching about her arms before she let it drop to the floor. All that stood between them were his clothes and the thin material that feigned protection of her body from him. But as he used his hands to lift the fabric and stroke over her abdomen they both knew it was nothing but a tool for temptation now.

Her fingers skated over his, barely pausing as they tripped toward the space between her legs, and circled the center of her nerves. John's motions paused, one of his hands lingering over her ass while her other hand worked away from her nerves to her folds. To the places he showed her could be used for great pleasure. Pleasure she wanted to explore now.

"Anna?" His breath ghosted past her ear, hot even in the humidity of the room. "What are you doing?"

"I already told you." Her lungs tightened when she tested one of her fingers inside herself. "I'm getting started."

"But I could help with this." John's fingers gripped the flesh of her ass while his other hand tested his fingers with hers before sliding along her dampening folds. "You usually like when I do."

"And I'll like this time as well." Anna closed her eyes to try and gain more control over her body as her fingers stuttered in their self-guided exploration. "But we've a slight problem."

"What's that?"

"You're still dressed."

"Yes I am." John pressed closer to her, his fingers still working inside her but his other hand leaving her skin. "Does that trouble you?"

"It makes seducing you a bit difficult."

"Not difficult at all." Anna blinked her eyes open at the sound of his trousers opening and the tantalizing pressed of his arousal along the crease of her ass. "Just a bit different."

"Do you have something in mind?"

"Many things." He purred against her ear and used his knee to urge hers apart just a bit more before sliding himself along her. The run of his skin along her folds pried them apart and Anna's hands left their attempts to hold onto John's trousers. "This is just the first of them."

It was her turn to grit her teeth and moan when John's hands returned to her hips, holding gently as he steered himself in sawing motions between her legs. The taunting brush of his head against her nerves left her digging her nails into his trousers so hard she was sure they would tear. But there was nothing she wanted more than to tear them away so he could take her.

A moment later, Anna practically panting for his attentions, John stepped away, pulling her tiara with him. She pivoted, her chemise billowing away from her with the motion, and watched as John left the tiara on a small table before taking a seat on the chair near the doors that opened to his balcony. A chair that allowed him to spread his still-clad legs and beckon her forward.

"If you want."

Anna narrowed her eyes and approached him, padding over the tile of the floor in her bare feet while John discarded nothing more than his tie, jacket, shoes, and socks. They made a pitiful pile next to the various accouterments of hers mounted near the door. He put out his hand for her to take and Anna interlaced their fingers so he could guide her around his legs. She straddled them easily but ignored his urge and sank down just short of him. It was enough, however, to run his entire length over her so they both shuddered in pleasure.

"You'll be the death of me Ms. Smith."

"Then the feeling's mutual, Mr. Bates." Anna took his face in her hands and kissed him deeply as she went on her toes to readjust and then sink down.

The chair creaked and strained, not used to the vigorous use to which they put it, but Anna did not care. She rocked and gyrated over John as he struggled to rid her of the final barrier between his mouth and her body. When it drifted lazily to the floor, his lips covered a nipple and sucked hard enough to send Anna's teeth biting into the fabric of his shirt to stop the shriek of ecstasy that thundered through her.

When they thrust together, Anna almost bouncing like a new rider testing out a horse, their lips and teeth clashed before making themselves satisfied with sucking at skin. Her neck, she was sure, dotted and patterned with the vicious red markings from his lips and teeth while they sought their release together. And even in the moment when she recognized that he brought them together with the rasp of his clothing against her body, Anna gave over and came.

They rested, breathing shallowly in the infinitesimal cooling of the evening, but only for a moment. Anna peeled herself away from his damp clothing and worked her shaking legs from his. "I'll leave you to undress."

"Leave?"

"Well," Anna offered a hand but only used it to pull John to his feet and take the chair for herself with a smirk. "I'll certainly enjoy the view."

"This is for your pleasure then?" John put his fingers to his waistcoat, turning on his toes as if to model the clothing for her. "I can explain how it's the fashion of England as of three months ago."

"No need for words." Anna spread her legs and let her hand drift down.

"Anna?"

"Go on." Her other hand waved him on. "Shouldn't you be getting undressed? I'd hate to continue without you."

Her smile could not stretch wider as John tore at his clothing. He paused when they both stopped at what sounded suspiciously like a tearing seam but neither of them could take it more seriously than the giggles they exchanged before John continued more slowly. Sometimes Anna distracted him with her noises as she continued to use her fingers in a vague, and vain, imitation of his own practiced caresses where she already bore the wet remains of their first foray of the evening.

Of a few more, if she had her way.

But whatever hold she thought she held, whatever hand she wanted to continue to play, she lost the moment John dropped before her. On his knees, hands on her thighs, he pried her open and attacked her with his mouth. She gripped his shoulders, the arms of the chair, and even raked her nails over his back but there was nothing to be done. He did not stop until she sobbed her finish.

Then he brought her to the floor. On a makeshift bed of their clothing, hardly protection from the tile, John slid deep inside her. They moved together and exchanged nothing more than fevered kisses and half-coherent phrases. Their bodies intertwined, wrapped, tightened, and interlocked like sinuous pieces of a puzzle with no beginning or end. And they came together, finally releasing all the tension in their bodies and their holds until they no longer grappled with one another but for air.

John rolled to the side, catching himself on his forearms, and Anna remained where she was. Part of her wondered if she could ever hope to move again. But a little laugh from John drew her attention.

She turned, wincing at the unforgiving tile floor, and faced him. "What?"

"This wasn't exactly what I had in mind when I said I wanted to bring you out of yourself and lay you bare."

"The tile floor?"

"No, you seductress." John edged forward to seize her lips in a kiss that reignited every nerve in her body she feared completely burned away. "You… touching yourself while I watched."

"Did you enjoy it?"

"More than I have a right to."

"For now." Anna traced a finger over his bare chest and let it tempt toward his awakening arousal. "But, perhaps, when I've your ring on my finger and I've placed mine on yours, you won't feel as though you've taken anything from me."

"I didn't say I thought I took it from you." John brushed his lips to her cheek. "Only that I've not the right to enjoy the sight of you arousing yourself."

"If not you than who?"

"Me, in two days time." John got to his knees and helped her stand. "You've got a rather wicked gleam in your eyes Ms. Smith."

"Because I'm not finished, Mr. Bates." She reached around him for one of the thin blankets from his bed and draped it over herself. "And you said you had many things in mind."

"I did." His fingers trailed over her arms, folding and rumpling the blanket.

"Do you still?"

Joh nodded and took a blanket for himself. "Are you still convinced that the out of doors is best?"

"I never said 'best'." Anna warned and went to John's balcony, taking the wrapping stairs to the patio facing the east side of the estate. "But I'm sure you won't mind once you know what I intend."

"And what," John joined her, kissing her neck as he carefully picked around her hair to leave it all on one shoulder. "Might that be?"

"Patience." She put her finger over his lips, "You'll know soon enough."

He took her hand in his and led them through the darkness. The grass whispered and nipped at their feet but John guided them confidently to a winding path. One that took them into a grove of trees with simple chairs and tables dotting a clearing. In the center stood a gazebo, with padded cushions and low tables pushed to the sides of the walls.

"You've never brought me here before."

"It's for simple ceremonies." John nodded to it in the dark, the almost full moon giving them enough light to see with the distance flickers of the watch torches dotting the night with orange flares. "It's where I hold meetings with the local leaders. It's more like what they're used to and it allows me to experience the setting as they prefer. Puts us on the same level."

Anna gaped at him, shaking her head. "You are a man for a different time and place than this, John Bates."

"Why?"

"Because you are always trying to do the right thing, to be a good man." Her hand cupped his cheek as a finger traced the bone there. "I admire you for it."

"And I," He kissed her palm before holding it between his hands and massaging it. "Believe I've waited long enough."

"Have you?"

"We're out in the open," John motioned about them as his voice took on a growling edge, "And I've been patient enough to tramp through the dark. So tell me what seductions you've planned for me."

"You make me sound rather succubic in my intentions." Anna freed her hand from his hold to drag over his chest, threatening to pull away the blanket that hung limply over his shoulders as if the weight of the humid air dragged it down.

"No, you'd be a succubus if you took me while sleeping." John grinned at her, letting his hands curve over her shoulders. "But I'm fully awake."

"Perhaps we're in fairyland."

"Then," He dipped his head forward, kissing under her jaw, "We'd best be a bit more natural in our accouterments."

Guiding them carefully over the ground, John led them into the gazebo. Kicking a bit carelessly, but with good aim, John arranged the pillows into a functional pile before stripping them both of the blankets he then let drop into unceremonious heaps to the side. Anna waited as he turned back to her.

"Now what, Ms. Smith?"

"You have it all rather well in hand John."

"Do I?"

"Yes." Anna put her hand to the back of his neck and pulled him down to whisper in his ear. "In fact, I'd like you to continue taking charge."

"Why?"

"There's something to seeing you like this." Her fingers skipped over his chest, pausing to play wherever he shivered slightly.

"How?"

"All overcome and impatient." Anna ran her tongue over her teeth and noted, even in the dark, that John's pupils dilated to almost take over the color in his eyes. "Ready to take charge and take what you want."

The moment froze as he met her eyes, the two of them calming in the sliver of eternity. "I'd never take anything from you Anna."

"I know." She nipped at his ear before whispering. "That's why I'm giving you permission."

"To do what?"

"To take me as you want. Right now, in the dark, out in nature, where we're as primitively connected to one another as anyone can be and as connected to the earth as we can be." Ana drew back, her fingers barely brushing his skin. "I want you to take me, John. I want you to truly make me yours."

"I couldn't." John murmured, closing in on her but not touching her.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm already yours."

"Then we'll belong to one another."

His mouth met hers then and his hands gripped tightly to her arms. She held onto him with matching fervor, her nails biting into his skin as he pivoted them like a tightly executed dance move, and gasped slightly when he slipped his foot behind her ankle to bring her to the floor. The pile of pillows stopped any kind of crash and while there was comfort to them they were not much more than the hastily assembled clothing in John's room.

But Anna reveled in it. Reveled in the way his hands mapped her skin like familiar territory while also seeking to learn her anew. Joyed in how he sank his tongue deep into her mouth to turn the kiss as he willed and even stopped her hands any time she sought out his arousal.

He only broke contact for a moment, taking her wrists in one hand and placing burning kisses on the soft skin there before drawing them over her head. "You told me to take you. That means you're at my mercy."

"Am I?" Anna trilled but the whisper of a tremor soothed the moment John's other hand glided over her cheek.

"Unless you say otherwise Anna. If you-"

"Keep going." She urged, surging up to take his lips with hers and working to keep her hands above her head. "Don't stop."

His hands left her wrists and she dug her nails into one of the pillows over her head instead. John set to work, leaving traces of his touch, his tongue, and his teasing that had Anna writhing and almost weeping. His mouth brought her to the edge with flat, broad strokes before pointing to explore and taunt at her center and her nerves. And when he finally sucked her to climax, he only gave her a moment.

Then he was on her again, tongue and fingers learning her anew between explorative treks to her breasts. No place on her body where even the smallest twinge of pleasure hid was left unloved. And Anna shattered again before John even paused in his heavenly ministrations.

Their eyes met and John took a deep breath, Anna taking note of the quiver in his body. "How do you want me Anna?"

"However you-"

"No," He stopped her, leaning over her to ensure their eyes met. "How can I do this? I don't want to hurt you and I don't want you afraid."

"But?"

"But I want to take you. I want to take you as you want. I want…" He hung his head, hauling in a breath before risking meeting her eyes again. "I want to take you as primitively as you suggested but I don't want you to be afraid. I want you to enjoy it. I want you to want this as much as I do."

"I do." Anna soothed him, kissing softly over both of his cheeks. "You'll just have to speak to me. Assure me you're there and…"

"What?"

Anna bit her lip, glad the lack of light made it so he could not see the blush of red heating her cheeks. "Tell me how you like it. If you do."

"That need not worry you." John took her lips, easing her back until her body fell pliant under his educated hands. "I'll like whatever you give me."

Anna shifted, turning her back to him, and found a comfortable position on her knees. His kisses immediately rained over her neck, shoulders, and back. Each caress left her sighing in pleasure until she had to lean forward to better support herself. But all that did was open her for John's questing fingers and tongue.

This time, however, he did not finish her. Anna keened when he moved away from her, turning to try and see him over her shoulder. His lips met hers and Anna sucked the taste of herself from them. She whimpered into his hold a moment later when he ran along her folds so the pulsing heat of him could radiate through her.

It only took a moment to adjust and then he sank home. They paused, holding their positions, and Anna trembled under the delicate touch of John's hands on her hips before his fingers dug bruising into her skin. He grunted but did not move until she managed a small motion.

"Are you ready Anna?" He hissed against her ear, barely thrusting inside her. "Because you… You're strangling me."

Anna rocked on her knees and met John's tentative thrust. His groan roused her, the ripple of pleasure running through them like a current only building toward a greater shared sensation. One Anna wanted to trigger but needed John to move so they could find.

"Yes." She finally managed, her nails digging furrows into the pillow in front of her. It already bore the signs of her earlier abuse when John made her pleasure his only priority. "Please move."

"Good." The whole-body sigh of relief vibrated through her and Anna cried out when John withdrew to the very edge. "Because you're so damn tight."

Anna could not even respond before John seated himself back inside her. His hands on her hips helped him set a punishing pace that left them both panting. But as they panted together, rocking and thrusting like a perpetual piston, John kept his promise to speak to her. Even through the breaks for air and his sounds, it brought Anna to new heights of pleasure.

"Shit Anna, you are… This is wonderful." John worked harder, grinding against her so her ass ran along the cradle of his hips. "You feel wonderful. It's… It's like the hottest, tightest glove around me. Like your mouth but better."

"Why… better?" Anna managed, hissing when one of his hands risked abandoning her hip to run over her nerves and then up to her breasts.

"Because this way," His voice lowered, taking on the growling edge that made the hairs on Anna's arms stand on end. "I could have you carrying my child. No matter how soft or warm or wet your mouth is, you can't carry my child that way."

"Our child." Anna breathed, crying out as he altered his angle to strike her more precisely and made each motion a direct assault on her pleasure.

"Yes. Our child." He paused, stretching over her to whisper in her ear. "It could happen tonight. Right now."

"Yes." She breathed and he flexed inside her. "Please."

"As you wish." John maneuvered behind her again. "You look magnificent from here Anna. In all your naked glory."

"Please John."

Between his driving thrusts, hitting everywhere she needed him to with the speed and depth that struck to her very bones, and his fingers working tirelessly between her sensitive breasts and her nerves, Anna came. She cried out into the pillows under her, slumping over as John continued. He draped over her a moment later as his body stuttered to finish and they fell into a tangled mess on the pillows.

Anna was unconscious of anything for some time. Time itself might have stopped and she would have been none the wiser. It was the patter of rain on the roof of the gazebo and a few errant drops blown toward her on the wind that roused her. She blinked against a few drops as John shifted behind her, muttering something incoherent in his sleep.

She moved, gingerly as her body complained of the various positions and vigorous activity of the evening. The flickers of orange around the compound fought valiantly against the rain until the downpour turned to a deluge and doused them. Within moments there was a torrent flooding from above and soaking everything.

It beat against Anna's skin and she raised her head toward the rain. Her hair washed back from her face and, for a moment, she did not even feel John's hand at her shoulder. But when she turned to him, the rain emboldening her, she did not even have time to hear him attempt to bid her seek shelter.

He stumbled into the kiss she pressed to his lips and responded just as fiercely. And when she copied his earlier move to force him to his back in the mud, she straddling his chest, John only deepened their kiss. Their fingers played with the water to arouse and coax flagging and sensitive skin to seek another foray into pleasure. In moments Anna sank down over him and, digging her toes and knees into the growing mud, rode him until they came together in the rain.

Just as soon as it started, the rain petered away. They dug themselves free, taking the last of the water from the gazebo's gutters to try and wash the mud away, and ducked into the gazebo again. Anna reached for her blanket but John wrapped her in his arms instead, pulling them together as they waited for the last of the rain to finish and let them return to the house.

"I hope you don't mind." She whispered, her head on his shoulder as they sat together. "I don't know what came over me."

"I rather enjoyed it." John kissed at her temple, smiling against her skin. "My rain goddess in her element."

"I'm no goddess."

"You're my goddess." John let his fingers move through her damp and tangling hair. "And I'll worship you for the rest of my life."

"Perhaps on a bed next time." Anna sighed, resting back against him.

"Absolutely on a bed." John agreed and they laughed together, waiting for the rain to stop.