Obligatory disclaimer: The Mouse owns all, save my own original characters.


A/N: Slowly escalating towards the 'M' rating... Okay, not so slowly. ;-)
James felt the change in her almost immediately. At first, her kiss was hesitant, unsure. Frozen in his arms, thrumming with tension, Julia soon melted to liquid energy as she responded to his touch. What started as a gentle, feather light brushing of his lips against hers deepened into full exploration of the contours of her mouth. His tongue explored the seam of her lips, attempting to coax her closed lips open. His teeth grazed her upper lip. His left hand came up to caress the curvature of her cheekbone, his thumb brushing the corner of her lips. He then cupped her chin in his hand, stroking his thumb up and down the length of her jaw, sending shivers up and down her spine. Not breaking their kiss, Julia turned her cheek into his palm and smiled against James' lips.

A groan came from deep within her throat and parted her full, hungry lips. Instinctively, he thrust his tongue into her mouth and the heat of James' lips seemed to spill down Julia's throat. As he explored the velvety recesses of her mouth as though it belonged to him, James felt such an overwhelming desire to be inside her…in every way possible.

But when his tongue slipped past her lips, Julia broke away, turning her head to the side and pressing against James' chest with her palms spread wide. Her eyes were widened in panic and her heart pounded so hard, so loud, that Julia was convinced that it would explode at any moment.

James' brow furrowed in confusion and concern. His right arm held snug around her waist but his left hand gravitated from her cheek to the base of Julia's skull where his thumb rubbed circles on the nape of her neck. "What is wrong?" She was strung tighter than before; James was afraid he would snap her in two.

Shaking her head, Julia attempted to pull out of his arms, but James held fast. "I… I cannot breathe." Julia was not about to admit that the last time she had been kissed in such a manner was when she was but a girl and engaged to Cutler Beckett. But it had felt completely different before. Then, even kissing him had made her feel sullied and slightly queasy. Now, it scared Julia how right being in James' arms truly felt.

It took everything in his power not to laugh. "That is half the point. The other half…" His voice was low and husky, laden with intimacy. His hand gazed her jaw line. Then, suddenly, James looked around in sudden confusion, as if the reality of the situation suddenly hit him, also. "I mean not to be rude, but do you not have any servants for your household?"

Shocked by the abrupt change of subject, Julia felt a nervous giggle escape past her lips. Hating herself for acting like a lovesick schoolgirl, she swallowed hard, fighting back her laughter. But his question brought some much-needed levity to the situation. "I felt that they deserved a break, too, while I was gone. Both are still here in town, I presume, for William – my butler and stable boy – promised to care for my animals in my absence. And although Mary lives with me, her sister married well. So while I was absent, I was not in need of Mary's services for there were no household duties to assist with. Tomorrow I shall let them know that I have returned."

Relief washed over his features as James pulled the good Missus Ramage up against him, wrapping his arms around her lower back, drawing her closer, holding her steady… and himself. "Good. So that means that we will not be interrupted." He leaned down and closed the distance between their mouths, grateful that Julia lost her balance and fell against him.

When his lips touched hers, James felt that the previous convergence had just been a dress rehearsal. When Julia timidly returned the kiss – after a moment's hesitation – she soon was responding with the same fervor as James, he began to kiss her deeply… hot and demanding. She responded in kind until James was unsure of who was ravishing whom. No longer were the kisses gentle or tender. The kisses escalated in their aggression as their arousal increased.

Julia soon felt her knees weaken and was certain that she would collapse to the floor if it was not for James' arm firmly encircling her waist. But that was not the only part of her that felt like jelly and the feeling was new and unexpected – and quite lovely. The heat radiating between the meeting of her legs screamed to be quenched. The realization that she was now feeling stirrings that had never once materialized in her previous encounters with her husband sent a wave of wooziness through Julia. As Julia stumbled, James' arms tightened around her waist.

The room spun away as her arms wrapped around James' neck. Not caring how wanton it appeared, Julia pressed herself against the length of him. But no matter how tightly she pressed, Julia could not get close enough.

James was grateful that his weight rested against the wall behind him. It had been so long since he had felt a woman's touch and even longer if he took into account not having to spend coin in order to enjoy their pleasures. He was breathing with great difficulty, panting almost, because his need for Julia was so great. But James knew that he had taken enough liberties as it was and needed to end their encounter before he could not stop himself. With an anguished groan, he tore his mouth away from Julia's, panting from the exertion of doing so.

He could not look Julia in the eyes for fear that he would pull her to the floor and couple with her like some wild beast. Because James turned his head away, he was unable to see the hurt in her eyes. It nearly shattered him into a million pieces when she asked, "What did I do wrong?"

A deep sigh was his immediate response. He then looked her straight in the eyes, his gaze completely unwavering. "Absolutely nothing. It is I who is in the wrong; I have taken unforgivable liberties against your person and if I do not stop now, there will be no stopping at all." His veins felt like they were coursing with liquid fire.

"I do not understand." The anguish in her voice made James' heart twist.

James groaned aloud in want. In need. His heart pounded hard and fast, almost in time with the throbbing of his loins. He dragged his fingers through his hair in frustration. "Julia, if we continue I cannot be held accountable for my actions. I could not live with that on my conscience." His voice was thick and rough.

It suddenly dawned on her that the captain was now concerned with her virtue and that realization almost caused her to stagger. Out of all the thoughts that crossed his mind since they first met, now was the time he was concerned!

Julia took his left hand and placed it in the hollow of her back, liking the way it fit into the curve. She then brushed the hair away from his neck and as she stood on her tiptoes, softly, gently, placed a kiss against James' collarbone. She then kissed her way across the hollow of his throat, pausing to gently lick, then nip, against James' pulse point. Each tantalizing movement of her mouth sent warm shivers surging through him. James buried his hands in her hair; his efforts to stop Julia were half hearted.

"No." The word was a ragged whisper. The physical need in James was so strong that it nearly dropped him to his knees.

"Yes." Julia smiled as she pulled the captain's head down to hers. She then stood on her tiptoes and let her lips brush his suggestively. Her kiss was feather light, reminding James of the warm Caribbean wind caressing his skin on dark lonely nights. His good intentions spiraled away, orbiting out of control. James clung to her desperately.

"Yes," she whispered again, the single word coming out as a moan, her lips curving into a smile against James' lips, thrilled with all her being when he returned her kiss.

She tilted her head back to give James further access to her mouth, opening her lips to accept his delving tongue. As his kisses became more demanding, Julia slipped her arms around his neck and allowed her fingers to tug the ribbon out of his hair and then tunnel their way through his tresses. James moaned low in his throat in appreciation.

As his tongue slid past her lips, Julia groaned in approval. The stroking motion of his tongue, coupled with his fingers winding through her hair, left Julia panting with desire. His command of her lips would alternate between soft and gentle, then switch to hot and demanding. In his desire, James claimed Julia's mouth as his own… as if he had every right to pillage her mouth. And Julia was helpless to do anything but respond to James' advances.

Julia clung to his shoulders, the muscles beneath her fingers constantly flexing. She had a moment of lucidity and marveled at how smooth but hard his shoulders felt in comparison to the plushness of his lips and the velvet texture of his tongue.

Dizzy, Julia dropped her hands to James' forearms. Desire swirled though her as pleasure overwhelmed her senses. However, Julia knew that they would be kissing in her parlor until the end of time if she did not make a decision and knew it would be to her to nudge their actions along. She let her hands slip off his forearms to James' hips. Feeling her hands shake in anticipation and fear, Julia slowly drug her fingertips across the front of his pants.

James hissed as the sensation overrode all rational thought. He drew back to allow more room for Julia to maneuver, cupping Julia's face in his hands. Her hair hung in a curtain around her face, perfectly framing her features. Her eyes bled to black in desire, her chest heaving in pure, unadulterated lust.

Unable to bear any longer the sensations her wandering fingers caused, James then crushed Julia against himself, his hands roaming over her curves. Caressing Julia from every possible angle, James locked his hips against hers, his desire more than evident. His lips left a searing trail as he kissed his way down her neck, unbuttoning the neck of her dress to expose more skin, sending delicious pleasures over her body.

Julia pressed back, her need for the captain overriding all thought. Not caring that she was acting like a cat in heat, Julia rubbed herself along the length of him, needing to feel James' muscular length against her. She was unable to stop what she was feeling or her reactions to the captain's touch.

Sighing in pleasure, Julia broke the kiss, a saucy smile curving her lips. Placing her index finger against his lips, Julia silenced James' immediate question. She laughed as he playfully nipped at her fingertip. Taking his hand in hers, Julia laced their fingers together, binding James to her and turned, leading him up the stairs.

Realizing where she was leading him, James stopped Julia in her tracks and in one quick swoop, he picked her up in his arms and carried her effortlessly, as if she were a rag doll, up the stairway. When they reached the door to her chambers, James pushed it open with his foot. He crossed the room in quick strides, stopping when his leg bumped the corner of the bed.

Almost reverently, he deposited Julia on the huge bed. Dust floated upwards from weeks of disuse, causing moments of sneezing and giggling. Once she settled back against the pillows, James looked down at her for a long moment, before brushing a stray tendril of hair off her cheek. He then sat down next to her hip and kissed her forehead, then her eyelids.

James whispered, "Are you sure?"

Julia looked up at James with unfocused eyes. Her mouth was half open, her lips bruised and swollen, soft and inviting. Her chest rose and fell with each intake of breath. James had to reach hard to find the gentleman lurking behind the libertine, so he took a deep breath and looked at the ceiling, trying hard to recenter his thoughts… and failing miserably. The emotions that were dancing across his face melted Julia's heart and caused her to grab two handfuls of his shirt, pulling the captain against her and whispered against his lips, "Please."

It was all that James needed. Cradling her jaw, he tilted up her face so he could look deeper into those incredible eyes. His lips covered hers in a tender kiss.

With his weight resting upon her, Julia closed her eyes in bliss, spirals of light swirling against the back of her eyelids. For the first time ever, Julia was looking forward to allowing a man liberties with her person. She reached for the bottom of James' shirt and began to tug it up over his head.