Ghastly Appeal
"Have you been reading that all day?" Robert asked, finding Cora still sitting in the exact same place on the chaise by the fire in her bedroom she'd been in before the dressing gong.
Cora's nose was firmly in her book, and she did not answer until her eyes moved across the page to the end of the paragraph. She looked up, surprised to see him there. "Oh! Yes, I suppose I have. This book is wonderful, Robert," she told him.
"You shall have to tell me about it, but why don't you call for your maid and we can get into bed, hmm?"
She marked her place, just three chapters from the end, and put the book down for the night. "Yes, alright, I'm sorry."
"You came up early, I thought you'd be in bed already," he complained. "You said you were going to check on the girls, but did you just come up to read?"
A wry smile crossed Cora's lips. "Well, Mama was being rather difficult…"
"And you wanted to escape her, yes," Robert interjected understandingly.
Cora was pleased that he allowed her that liberty. He'd been better about understanding how difficult his mother was on her in the last few years. Ever since Sybil was born, Robert had been even more protective than usual. Cora did not blame him in the least. Even after three years, she still did not like to think about what had happened during the birth of their youngest child.
"Was everything alright with the girls?" Robert asked again, knowing that Cora would not have said she was going to check on their daughters and not done so. She was often chastised by Mama and Papa and even the nanny with the way she clung to their children. Robert found Cora's maternal attachments quite lovely, and he would never begrudge her for wanting to be with them. His parents had never been like that, and he rather liked Cora being more hands-on than his mother had been.
"Sybil was asleep. Edith was a little grumpy, and Mary was cuddling that little stuffed dog you gave her. Apparently they had a quarrel again, but I think they're fine. I didn't stay too long. You're right, I did want to come up and read my book," Cora confessed.
Robert chuckled and went over to pick up the book. "Get ready for bed, please," he requested. "I'm going to take a look at what could possibly be fascinating you so."
Cora crossed the room to ring for her maid. "Please don't lose my place, Robert," she warned.
He assured her he wouldn't. He went back to his dressing room to wait for the maid to come up and undress his wife. When he had seen her still fully dressed in her dress from dinner, Robert did consider offering to undress her himself, but he knew better. For one thing, he had never quite managed to do so without damaging her clothes in some way. Though that was perhaps more to do with the eagerness with which he wanted to undress her on those occasions; he'd not really been very careful. And Cora never liked having to tell her maid that something had ripped. It was easier to just have the maid do it. After all, it was her job, and she was probably waiting for the Viscountess to call for her. So Robert would wait. Not in the bedroom, of course, as it would be far too much to expect a lady's maid to undress her mistress with a man present, even if that man was the husband. Nothing to do but wait.
As he did, he looked over Cora's precious book. It had a rather garish yellow cover with red writing. Dracula. Odd sort of title. Written by a Bram Stoker. Robert had never heard of him. Intrigued, he flipped through and skimmed some of the first few pages.
Meanwhile, Cora asked her maid to be quick about things tonight, apologizing for ringing so late. She nearly said that the Viscount was waiting, but she stopped herself. Robert was just waiting so that they could go to bed to sleep, as they did together every night. Saying that he was waiting made it seem as though there were an amorous purpose to her need to hurry to bed. Which there wasn't. Was there? Cora did not think that was what Robert had in mind. But sometimes he surprised her with his attentions. He was always quite convincing. Cora saw herself blush in the mirror at the thought as the pins were removed from her hair.
Her thoughts turned instead back to her book. Oh it was no wonder she could hardly put it down! She was not usually one for gothic horror, but this one was just too intriguing. The mysterious vampire and the vampire hunter and the poor Harkers caught in the midst of such a foreboding circumstance. She just had to know what happened next, and she hoped that Robert wouldn't lose her place with his taking the book. She also hoped he wouldn't think her silly after seeing what the book was about.
Cora dismissed her maid, and as soon as she was gone, Cora went to the door between her room and Robert's dressing room and knocked. He opened it an instant later. He was holding the book up in astonishment. "You've been reading this!?"
"Yes," she answered, suddenly embarrassed over it.
"And you enjoy it?" he asked with a yet more bewildered expression.
Cora frowned. "Y-yes."
Robert put the book down on the side table where she'd left it earlier, shaking his head. "I cannot understand the appeal of vampires," he said, removing his dressing gown.
As he readied himself to get into bed, Cora did the same, taking off her own dressing gown and slippers and pulling back the covers on the bed. "It's the fantastical that's intriguing, I suppose. A different world and a story that's so far removed from reality. It's silly, I suppose," she conceded.
"It's ghastly," he muttered, getting into bed and blowing out the candle at his bedside.
Cora paused before blowing out her own candle, looking at her husband curiously. "What makes you say that?" she asked.
"Well, drinking blood, to start. Don't you find it rather gruesome?"
"I suppose so but…"
Robert's eyes went wide. "But what!?"
Cora suddenly blushed bright pink. She bit her lip and giggled slightly. Robert knew that expression. He knew that whatever she had been about to say was quite naughty. His stomach flipped at the prospect of what she could possibly be thinking.
"Well?" he prompted. His voice came out lower than he'd intended.
"I was just thinking that drinking blood obviously holds no appeal but the manner of doing so…I could understand how a vampire and their victim might find it enjoyable," she murmured in response.
Despite the rising tension and blatant sensuality between them in that moment, Robert was properly confused. "How so?" he asked. Was he getting lightheaded? Good lord, she'd not even touched him yet. He didn't even know what she was going to do!
Cora debated how to explain. She could just tell him what she had been thinking. Or…well…it might be nice to show him.
Deciding quickly, she turned to blow out her candle and moved closer to Robert. Even in the dark, she could see that he was both wary and eager for what she would do next. There was nothing to do but go right ahead and do it.
"Well," she began, scooting close and putting her hands on his chest, "vampires bite the neck of their victims and drink their blood. I imagine that other than the blood loss, it might be…"
"Oh!" Robert exclaimed, suddenly realizing what she meant. And no sooner had he figured it out than Cora's mouth descended upon his neck.
All rational thought melted out of Robert's head. Cora's lips sucked hard on the spot just behind his ear. Her tongue laved over it, and her teeth grazed over him. She moved down his neck, nipping at him a little harder. Robert groaned in a manner he could not control in the least. Her fingers undid the buttons of his pajama shirt, and her seductive biting kisses moved to the other side of his neck and down his chest.
At a certain point, Robert could not control himself in the least. He pulled her off him and flipped her onto her back, covering her body with his own. "My turn," he growled.
She grinned and laughed breathlessly. "See? I knew you'd see the appeal of vampires." Cora gladly ceded the role of vampire to Robert. It had been quite fun for her, actually, to lavish him with attentions that she'd only ever fantasized of before. He was so often the instigator and leader of their bedroom activities, but Cora had picked up quite a few things over the years, and she relished the opportunity to show her husband just how much she adored and desired him. But of course, she liked it even more when he showed those things to her as well.
Robert did not give the vampiric treatment to Cora's neck. He kissed her gently and traced her tendons with his tongue, but he kept his teeth and rougher attentions away from her beautiful pale neck. Instead, he saved such things for when he pulled her nightgown up over her head and dipped down to her gorgeous breasts. She made the most erotic little noises as his lips and teeth and tongue worked her into a state of near frenzy. His attentions made their way lower, over her belly and to the velvety softness of her inner thighs. He'd never thought to bite her thighs before, and now he wondered why he never had. In fact…
He sat up and lifted Cora with him, turning her over so she was lying on her stomach. She was panting and a bit dazed as he went back to his gentle kisses over the ridges of her spine and down to the swell of her bum. His teeth were back, then, and his fingers found their way between her legs. Cora was so overwhelmed that she pressed her face into the pillow as she screamed in ecstasy.
The pair exhausted themselves eventually and slept deeply, tangled up together. The next morning, other than feeling happy and sated and very well rested, they did not give another thought to their activities of the night before. Well, not right away, at least.
Robert got up first, as always. He put his pajamas back on and kissed his still-sleeping wife and went into his dressing room to call for his valet. He hummed to himself, feeling quite pleased. The valet arrived to dress him for the day as always. Robert's thoughts were focused on the day ahead.
"My Lord?"
The sound of the valet's apprehensive voice was odd. "Yes?" Robert asked.
"Is…is everything alright?"
"Of course, why do you ask?"
The valet stepped aside so that Robert could see himself in the mirror. He was undressed from the waist up, and all over his neck and chest were red blotches. If he didn't know any better, he would have thought himself afflicted with leprosy or something ghastly. Ghastly. Cora had tried to convince him of the appeals of vampires, which Robert had called 'ghastly' and in doing so, she had sucked and bitten marks into his flesh.
Robert blushed furiously and tried to think of an excuse. "Never mind. It's alright. Please be sure my collar covers the neck," he stammered awkwardly.
The valet must have understood. He was suppressing a smile and his eyes were alight. "Very good, My Lord."
Back in the bedroom, Cora put her nightgown back on and rang for the maid to bring her breakfast. She loved her quiet, beautiful mornings. Woken with a kiss from Robert and left to her own peace until after breakfast. It was quite the luxury, and she quite enjoyed the indulgence.
But soon enough it was time to start the day. The breakfast tray was removed and the maid set about dressing Cora. The nightgown was removed, and both Cora and her maid gasped.
Her breasts and belly and thighs and—upon turning to see her backside in the mirror—her bum were covered in purplish red blotches. Cora's mind returned to all the attentions Robert had paid when playing vampire. She'd never imagined he'd left so many marks on her! But oh, she'd probably left marks on him as well!
"Shall I call for the doctor, My Lady?" the maid asked, horrified.
Cora had never blushed so deeply in her life. But she started to laugh. "No, there's no need for that. It's alright. My clothes will cover it all," she reasoned. "But I will have to inform Viscount Downton that my argument about the appeal of vampires perhaps had some unintended consequences."
The poor maid's eyes gave away how scandalized she was at Lady Downton's statement. But Cora could not have cared less in that moment. She had visible memories of what she and Robert had gotten up to. Well, visible only to herself and her maid. And she would get to spend all day knowing that those lascivious secrets remained on her flesh. She would have to find an opportunity to show Robert his handiwork and see if he'd let her get a glimpse of what she'd left on him. Perhaps later. After she finished reading her book. There were three chapters left. She might get more ideas.