Help me forget…
They did not move from the landing, but she pressed herself to him. She grasped the velvet collar of his cape as her lips wandered his disfigured face ever so slowly before she found his own.
As she kissed him, he pushed her own cloak from her and began to unfasten her gown. He would not let her break the contact of that kiss as he carefully maneuvered the dress from her body.
His tongue delved into the warmth of her mouth as he tugged loose the laces of her corset and pulled her chemise down off her shoulder. Both were oblivious to the sound of the silk ripping as he yanked it free from her and tossed it aside.
Finally, she stood before him wearing nothing but the necklace he had given her only an hour or two earlier.
We were so close to being happy together…
She took his hand and undid the button of his glove, pressing her lips against his bared wrist before drawing off one glove and then the other.
He carried her up the steps…not to his own room, but to the swan bed.
She made no protest as he pushed her into the crimson cushions and quickly removed his own garments.
"I love you," he said, his lips moving tenderly along the gentle slant of her collarbone, "I love you."
She closed her eyes as he caressed her, his hands pausing for a moment to lie still and heavy on her breasts.
Who are those words meant for…for me…or for her…
Even when she heard him whispering her own name, her mind felt no relief.
And when he took her, she knew that something had changed between them.
It's as if he is making love…not just to my body…but my soul…
As if for the
last time…
That thought terrified her, she could not
banish it as her body welcomed him with a strange desperation that
seemed to match his own.
One of her hands clutched frantically at the coverlet, the other was enmeshed in his hair.
He stopped abruptly and took both of her wrists, pinning them to the pillow.
"Tell me, Helene, tell me again that you love me."
"Erik, please…you know it…"
"Tell me!"
"I love you, Erik," she gasped, feeling the heat of him so still within her.
"Swear to me," he demanded, his teeth grazing the smoothness of her shoulder, "that you will never leave me!"
It seemed almost impossible for her to speak, but she forced herself to answer him.
"I swear it…Erik…Erik…please…don't stop!"
---------
She awakened in his embrace, the curve of her back fitted against his chest.
She almost blushed as she realized that his hand still lay so intimately against the fold of her thigh.
She smiled instead and closed her eyes again.