Author's note: This is for the lovely Bellemorte180 for the Klaroline Winter Gift Exchange 2021. This is a historical Regency human AU. It's the day after Klaus and Caroline's arranged marriage — and it's just as uncomfortable as it is unconsummated. Or, how 2 stubborn people + misunderstandings = sexytimes.
Warning: Smutty goodness
"You pierce my soul. I am half agony, half hope...I have loved none but you."
― Jane Austen, Persuasion
Pianos could be so smug. Just like the dimpled rapscallion who owned him, Caroline thought mulishly, as the bell-like treble tones rang out merrily despite how cold and stony her heart felt. Merely a week ago, her life had been a lovely dream of envious whispers throughout the Ton. Despite being betrothed since birth, Lord Klaus Mikaelson had courted her with a fervor that always brought a blush to her cheeks. He possessed an extraordinary gift for drawing, and his compositions often featured her quite prominently. He lovingly called her his muse, and he would twirl her round and round the ballrooms, tearing up her dance card with a devious grin because he adored her so.
The pleasant notes of the country reel faded off, and she heaved a sigh as she recalled how their once-beautiful courtship had soured so quickly. First, it was the rumors that the malicious Lady de Martel gleefully whispered to any willing ear that Klaus had been frequenting a bawdyhouse. When Caroline questioned him, he was stone-faced and curt, barely uttering a word. And yet had the audacity to send her the most punishing of glares and muttering nonsense about how she must 'look after her own ill-doings'.
With a final bang of her hands to the keys, Caroline let the ugly notes mirror her thoughts. Klaus had ripped his hand from hers the moment their vows had been spoken, fist curled at his side as he refused to give her more than a cursory glance as they were escorted to the carriage. Heartless bastard.
"Surely you're more accomplished than that? I recall quite lengthy lessons to the contrary."
Why did he have to wear that waistcoat? She recalled resting her cheek to the velvet lapel, breathing him in as Klaus whispered wondrously outrageous compliments. She didn't bother with dulling the ice of her tone. "Fortunately, your opinions have no bearing on the breadth and depth of my accomplishments." Feeling the weight of his gaze, she noisily shuffled the sheet music, uncomfortable and anxious. "I don't wish to keep you from more worthy pursuits, my Lord," she said dismissively.
Arching an eyebrow, he coolly replied, "Too true. After all, you've certainly been pursuing new interests as of late."
What in creation was he blathering on about? Caroline had been so preoccupied with the wedding planning she'd barely found time to leave her family's manor. Narrowing her blue eyes, she bit out, "What new interests?! For months now, my time hasn't been my own as I was inundated with planning our wedding. The wedding you couldn't be bothered to attend with even a semblance of a smile!"
Klaus scoffed, "Master Lockwood certainly seemed to reap the benefits of whatever precious time you could spare."
She wrinkled her brow in confusion. Tyler was her family's new stablemaster, and she'd quietly met with him to plan what she'd foolishly thought would be a marvelous surprise. She'd intended to tell Klaus on the carriage ride to his estate in Northern White Oak, but instead held her tongue and silently seethed at his unseemly behavior. It didn't matter now. "My interactions with Tyler were perfectly innocent! I entreated him to use his laudable reputation as stablemaster to procure a Norwegian Fjord Horse as a wedding gift for you! You'd expressed a desire to visit the homeland of your kinsmen, and I thought this would be a way to honor your heritage, you insufferable prat!"
For once, she'd struck him speechless. Klaus' gobsmacked expression gave her a small sense of satisfaction, and she leveled him with the iciest of glares as he asked, "You...those secret meetings in the stables and whispered conversations were about purchasing a horse for me?"
The uncertainty in his voice was something Caroline had never experienced before, but she would not be swayed by his pretty words. She haughtily sniffed, turning back to the piano to begin playing once more. Loudly. Her body was rigid as she pointedly refused to look at him. "Feel free to take your leave and examine your new acquisition. I'm sure you'll find it almost as disappointing as your bride."
"Sweetheart, that's not...I mean to say...it's just that I thought your affections had waned and you were sporting with another," Klaus stammered, gently taking her hands from the keys and bringing her to her feet. The intensity of his gray stare made her flinch, and his tone grew soft as he swore, "I apologize for my foolish assumptions. Your generosity humbles me. I couldn't ask for a more perfect bride, and I must admit that I am rapturously in love with you." Suddenly, he pulled her into his embrace, kissing her with a fiery passion that was both familiar and new.
Caroline found herself melting into the sensations he aroused within her, greedily accepting his advances after he'd been so cold. He'd grown cold because he'd been with others. With a painful gasp, she wrenched herself away, delivering sharp kicks to his shins with the pointed toes of her ankle boots. "No! Did you honestly think I could forgive your indiscretions? The wagging tongues of the Ton were all too eager to spread word of your disgraceful visits to a bawdyhouse. Did you think I wouldn't hear of this? Or did you just not care?!"
He rubbed at his shins in consternation, giving a funny little hop that made her tuck away an impish grin. But then his expression fell and it gave her pause. He seemed...broken. "Oh, love, is that why you turned from me? All this time, you'd thought that I..." He shook his head, eyes bright with a hint of tears as he hoarsely whispered, "I pledge my love to you and you alone. You are my wife and my truest friend. Always."
At her skepticism, he heaved a weary sigh, confessing, "I'd thought I could quietly handle my familial obligations without causing you further burden. Had I known such vicious gossip would reach your ears, I would've told you straight away. I'm afraid my brother Kol has gotten one of the girls in a family way, and he's refused to accept his responsibilities. I've been using what influence I have to quell the rumors, lest our father learn of his debauchery and expel him from the family."
Oh. What an impossible mess of misunderstandings. Positively Shakespearian in its own way, Caroline mused. She leaned forward, placing a hesitant kiss on his dimpled cheek. "Your family is mine now, remember? Whatever happens next, we face together," she told him solemnly.
"Agreed." This time, his kiss was gentle. But urgent. He grew bold, trailing his lips down her neck as he whispered in her ear, "I've been quite remiss in my duties, sweetheart." Slightly pulling away, he coyly asked, "Would you care to consummate our union?"
Good heavens, who talked like that? Pretentious man. She was loathe to admit how she adored it. "Here? Now," she sputtered, looking about the drawing room in surprise as she felt her cheeks grow warm.
"Here. Now." There was a fierceness to him that sent a shiver down her spine. She trusted him implicitly, even when they were children and he was boastful and petulant, she still found him steadfast. Not to mention impossibly beautiful. He led her back to the cushioned bench at the piano, and when she sat down, he knelt before her, gazing up at her reverently. With a featherlight touch, he placed his hands to her knees, wearing a devilish smirk as he told her, "You know, there was a reason why I purchased this specific piano for you, love. It was for a very particular purpose."
"Oh," she asked, a bit breathless.
Letting out a chuckle, he flicked his gaze to the piano as he seductively said, "The square grand's stout frame of elaborately carved rosewood casework makes it not only beautiful, but also quite sturdy." With a steady hand, he slowly lifted the hem of her silk overdress, running a palm appreciatively over her lace-topped stockings as he carefully watched her reaction.
Caroline didn't know what her face showed in that moment, but the small fire that always burned whenever they were close had grown into an inferno, one that made her sigh in pleasure as he continued his explorations. "More," she asked shakily, her understanding of carnal relations limited to half-whispered gossip amongst the servants and the indecent poetry she'd secreted in her room.
"I'll give you plenty," he promised with a twinkle in his eyes as he bent his head to her, thoroughly shocking her as his tongue brushed against her most intimate place. A whine began at the back of her throat as he dipped inside, becoming a low, almost painful moan as he licked and thrust against her cream and velvet.
"Beautiful," he murmured, the hum of his lips against that bit of sensitive flesh sending a sensual thrill along her flesh.
At night in her chambers, Caroline's curiosity drew her fingers there, but no matter how she plucked and pressed, it never felt quite like this. "Klaus," she called out, rocking her hips to chase that sweet, sweet fire he caused, "it's never...I've never...please, just..." she trailed off helplessly, deliciously consumed by her body's urges.
Klaus drew his tongue away, a devious smile on his lips as his slipped in a finger, those careful strokes causing her legs to tremble. The second finger was snug, but somehow beautifully so, and she could feel them building toward that golden release she'd longed for. "That's it, sweetheart. Take your pleasure."
When the explosion came, she felt as though she was floating and it only was when she was in his arms that she realized they were far from finished. With a startled laugh, she realized he'd laid her on the piano, her elbow knocking over the small brass bell she used to ring the servants. Her face grew rose red as she considered whether the servants could hear them, or if Miss Gilbert with her judgmental brow might be summoned by the errant tinkle of the bell.
"Not to worry; your dour-faced maid is seeing to the deliveries in the back," he reassured her, fingers pausing at his trouser buttons as he added, "but we could retire to our chambers if you would feel more comfortable? I would have you at ease, my love."
"No!" Caroline winced at her eagerness, but couldn't deny herself another moment. "I mean...I like it here with you in this moment." Biting her lip, she flirted her lashes to add, "Perhaps there are other rooms where we could make...memories again?"
Klaus deftly unbuttoned his trousers, tipping her a saucy wink as he said, "What a delightful little minx you are." With one fluid motion, he tossed aside his muslin shirt, his bare chest a feast for her eyes as she uttered a small sigh of pleasure.
Running a hand along her bodice, he lightly traced the tiny pearl buttons, his tone full of mirth as he asked, "Are you quite fond of this dress?"
Oh my. Yes. "Do with it as you will," Caroline replied, her imperious tone containing just a hint of impatience.
The seams ripped with ease, and her thin chemise soon followed in his rush to touch her breasts. During their previous kissing, she'd often wondered what these moments would be like, and the delirious ecstasy she imagined was nothing compared to the flames that raged between them. When he placed his lips to her nipples, the strangled, choked noise she uttered quickly grew into a scandalous moan, and she felt his stiffening need against her slick core.
"I ache," she whispered wantonly, tentatively touching his back to pull him close.
The wildness in Klaus' gray gaze thrilled her, and the moment he drew forth his cock to rub along her folds made her tremble and sigh. "I want to please you," he confessed, slowly easing inside with a groan. "To consume you, my love."
Caroline never had felt such a stretch, the hot tightness that coiled as her body strained to let him in. He was big, she thought with pride, feeling how she'd caused him to swell. This was what she'd dreamed of, lying in her lonely bed with fumbling fingers. Klaus' touch was as enigmatic as the man himself, and she felt how her passions stirred his own.
"What an exquisite picture you make; your ivory thighs cradling me just so," Klaus gasped, his smooth thrusts picking up the pace as she writhed against him. Every twitch of muscle and slap of skin was felt and heard as the couple took their time, exploring each other's bodies in wonderment. Caroline loved the way his muscles moved in service to her, a marvelous tableau that fixed itself in her mind. It was building again, another crashing wave of ecstasy that twisted inside and begged for release. When he stiffened against her, shouting her name hoarsely, she felt complete once more, a lazy, curling desire that spread throughout her sated limbs.
As he climbed onto the piano to lay beside her, sharing sweet kisses on cheeks and noses and lips, Caroline couldn't help but marvel that Klaus had been right.
The piano was quite sturdy.