Chapter Three –Riding

Cora's reaction was, as expected, one of unbridled joy – and unspoken relief. "So…have you decided on a date?" Her eyes were veritable beacons of anticipation.

"It's to be in June, Ma-ma. We wanted to marry sooner but…," Mary looked to Matthew.

"I have business matters to settle in Manchester," finished Matthew, "And I still need to re-establish my law practice in Ripon."

Cora cautioned her daughter, "June is not long away, Mary. We simply must get started."

"Wedding plans," Robert said plainly. "Well, I'm afraid that signals my exit. Matthew, shall we leave this business to the ladies?"

Matthew looked at Mary and back to Robert. "Forgive me, Cousin Robert, but Mary and I have plans for an outing. We're to go riding. Isn't that right, darling?"

"Yes, it is. And the day is wearing thin. We should head out." Mary's heart fluttered at the thought of the afternoon's prospects. She had already planned out her strategy and had a precise destination in mind.

Not an hour later, Mary dismounted her ride and tied her horse onto the post of the weathered fence at the edge of the wild. She watched Matthew ride up. "You win again, Mary. Remind me never to wager you. You'll bankrupt me." He gave her a sidelong glance. She laughed, petting the black muzzle of her horse. Matthew landed softly on the ground beside her. His horse tethered securely beside hers, Matthew grabbed her hand and Mary led him into the forest. The brush around them crackled and snapped as they forced their way. "What is this?" Matthew inquired as they came upon a small cabin.

Mary whispered in dramatic fashion, "It is the haunted cottage of Hanging George the Gameskeeper."

Matthew laughed lightly. "That's ghastly. You're joking, surely." He tried the latch and it didn't budge.

"I assure you, I'm not. He did hang himself." Mary answered. "My sisters and I never ventured back here. We were terrified of coming upon his corpse swinging in the trees." She looked about her in a pretense of nervousness.

Matthew continued to study the problem of the door. "Don't be scared, darling," he rejoined, "I am your fearless protector." He grinned at her. Matthew braced to take down the door by force while Mary looked on, amused. "Step aside, sir." She shifted her hips, shoving him playfully. He stepped back and put his arms about her waist, hugging her to him. He buried his face into the side of her neck. She jiggled the door back and forth while pressing keenly on the ancient fixture with both hands. The door sprung ajar. Her eyes flashed at him triumphantly. She stepped forward into the damp and dark structure. Matthew followed her, his hand on her hip.

Together, they surveyed the state of things. The place smelled faintly of must and there was a thick veneer of dust on the cabin's two windows, making them impassible to a view. The room was sparsely furnished. There was a wooden cot in the corner, bearing a thin mattress of questionable use. A table and chair had been installed across from the cot.

Standing so close to her, Matthew was heady from her scent. He felt his passions rising. He turned her to face him. Mary's face was still flush from the ride and tendrils of her hair framed her cheeks and forehead. He brushed aside a stray brown tress from her eyes. "You are quite simply the most beautiful creature I've ever beheld," Matthew teased softly. "Why ever did you bring me here?"

Mary turned around to face the room once again. She tried her best to sound detached, "Oh, I don't know. You'll have to learn to hunt now we're to be married. This place could prove useful." Mary felt abandoned by her usual poise. She walked to the table, taking off her gloves first, then her jacket. She draped it on the back of the chair. "Just try to imagine it." She turned and smiled at him.

"Do you know what I think, Mary?" he said, striding to her and taking off his gloves in turn. He pulled her to him. His eyes travelled from her eyes, down her throat to the rise and fall of her breasts. "I think you mean to seduce me," he whispered into her hair. His hands slid down the curve of her back, to her hips and he pulled her closer still, until she could feel the hardness of his loins against her thigh. "Am I right?" His blue eyes were piercing, his breathing, soft but labored. "Is that what you mean to do?" he whispered into her mouth, their lips poised for intercourse.

Mary draped her arms about his neck. His lips were even softer than she remembered. She opened her mouth, her tongue sliding along the inside of his top and bottom lips. They felt like silk.

Matthew took her head in both of his hands and murmured tenderly, "God, I love you, Mary, beyond anything imaginable." He looked at her intently. "Can you feel what you do to me, Mary Crawley?" Before she could answer, he kissed her again, fiercely, lustfully. His right hand felt for the buttons of her blouse and he undid them with as much haste as he could muster. Upon the last, he reached under her blouse over her bare shoulders, and ran his hands down her silken arms. Her blouse wafted to the floor. Instinctually, Mary let her head fall back, allowing him a clear path to her throat. His lips landed there and traced a downward path. Mary watched, wide-eyed, as his lips caressed the tops of her breasts that mounded from the ruffled lace of her corset.

She held onto his head, losing her fingers in his hair. He straightened, and asked her, breathlessly, "Is it all right?" His eyes were a desperate blue and his blond hair was tousled. He was so utterly wild, vulnerable, like a boy after her approval. Mary was speechless; she was so consumed by her wanton appetites. He grabbed her hands and brought them up to the top of her corset. Together at first, they began to unhook the silver fastenings. Then he stood back and watched as she continued the task, her dark brown hair draping down.

Matthew watched, mesmerized. When she had finished, she returned his stare and allowed her corset to fall from her body. His countenance shifted visibly as he surveyed her nakedness. He pulled her to him boldly by her waist and with his other hand, he cupped her breast, squeezing gently. Her breasts were smooth, rounded and white, like the halves of a pear. He brushed his lips, first against the right one, then the left, alternately licking, sucking, and biting.

Mary quivered, uttering softly, "Matthew, oh…please…" She draped her arms about his neck and buried her face in his hair. He picked her up and laid her on the cot. She arched her back, hoping to entice him to even greater delights. Her nipples were wet, pink candies. He stared, brushing the palms of his hands lightly over one then the other. They seemed to tremble to his touch. Mary gasped as he took a full breast into his mouth, swirling his tongue around its swollen tip. She moaned, feeling the swell of desire between her hips and thighs.

Matthew raised his head, mouth open. He stared at Mary, as a wolf might stare down its prey. Eyes fixed on her, he stood up and quickly removed his jacket, throwing it onto the chair. Mary had not seen this Matthew. He had an air of savagery about him that titillated her. He continued to undress, first unbuttoning his cuffs, then his shirt front. His manner was hurried but deliberate. He was as naked as she when he reclaimed his place. "You must promise me, Mary, that you will have no other lover." His voice was deep, commanding. She slid her hands across his broad shoulders and down his muscled arms. He leaned over once again to continue ravishing her. He set again to fondling her breasts gently while they kissed with hot open mouths and he pressed her to him. "Promise me," he whispered fiercely as he kissed her.

Mary felt herself hot, wet and aching between her thighs. She grasped at his hair with both hands. "Oh, Matthew…" she gasped. He grabbed her right hand and placed it on his crotch, showing her the shape and form of his throbbing desire for her. Eagerly, she sat up and brought her skirted legs underneath her. She wanted so much to please him. The heat in her belly rose as she began to work on his belt. Matthew leaned back against the wall and watched as Mary pulled at the leather straps with her slender white fingers.

The future Earl of Grantham could hardly believe his good fortune. She was his Aphrodite and he was on the brink of redeeming his reward for pleasures received. How utterly lovely she was. Her milky shoulders were veiled by random lengths of silky brown hair. He was surprised by her deftness as she made short work of his buttons. She reached into his briefs and wrapped her fingers around his thickness, brazenly. Holding his shaft with her right hand, she used her left to pull away the folds of his clothing. She stared at the fullness of him as if she was not able to fathom it. Following a lustful hunch, she stroked him with her left hand while the fingers of her right hand danced around its swollen knob with light caresses.

Matthew reclined his head, and closed his eyes as Mary's fingers sent him headlong into a spiral of ecstasy. He yearned to watch her as she handled him but he feared an early climax. He opened his eyes slowly just as her head descended. He could feel the heat of her breath along the shaft. "No, Mary, you mustn't…" Matthew grabbed her before her tongue had found its landing.

He fell back against the wall, trembling. Mary reclined with him and laid her head on his chest. "A moment," he said softly. "I don't want this to end just yet." He was panting.

"Did I please you?" Mary looked to him hopefully, biting her bottom lip. Matthew laughed. "Yes", he breathed, and kissed her forehead tenderly. "Very much." He rested his lips against her hair. Only seconds had passed when Mary rose to her feet. She could feel Matthew's eyes upon her. She undid the buttons at the back of her skirt and let it fall. She stepped over it easily and returned to Matthew.

She reached out to him. He grabbed her outstretched hands and she pulled him to standing. His pants immediately dropped to the ground. She smiled and pushed him back onto the bed. "This is why I brought you here, Matthew Crawley," she teased softly. She undid the ribbons that held up her drawers and they fell beside her skirt. She stepped out of her boots gingerly.

Matthew was awestruck. His breath quickened as she walked towards the cot, and straddled his thighs. She grabbed his hand and thrust it between her legs. She moaned as he slid his fingers between her creamy folds. As he explored her depths, he ran his open mouth across her bosom. Their lust for each other was building to a height. She began to rock on his hand. She draped her arms about his neck, kissed him and thrust her tongue into his throat. She broke the kiss and pleaded, "Now, Matthew, please, please…"

She raised her thighs and Matthew placed his cock on the threshold of her hot and luscious puss. Slowly, she lowered herself. Matthew let out a gasping cry as his rod was swallowed up in the tight recesses between her buttocks. Mary watched Matthew. His eyes were closed, his mouth open in a wordless expression of bliss. He grabbed her hips and began to push them back and forth. She rocked, each movement raising the heat in her loins. Matthew opened his eyes and saw the woman of his dreams mounted on him in a frenzy of ecstasy. He buried his head between her breasts and his shaft quivered and thrusted and quivered again.

He fell back against the wall, spent. Every cell in his body was vibrating, alive. He looked up to see Mary, leaning over him, smiling, and her long hair lightly grazing his chest. Her eyes were welling up with tears. "Darling," he said softly, "Did I hurt you?" She shook her head and laid her head gently against his chest. They lay there in silence for several minutes, both rapturous.

"I suppose we should depart for home soon" Mary said lazily. She traced her finger from his throat down to his chest and over his stomach. She turned and rested her chin on his chest, looking up at him. "We don't have much time to prepare for dinner."

"Would you mind very much wearing your black gown, the sleeveless one?" Matthew asked. "That's always been my personal favorite."

"You're mad," Mary laughed. "As if you remember all of the gowns that I've ever worn."

"I do." Matthew challenged her. 'And that one is really the most fetching…the others not so much." He grinned like a schoolboy.

"What about the one I wore last night. You seemed to like that one well enough, "she teased. "You did, after all, propose to me."

"I think that proposal had more to do with this," he kissed her throat, "…and these," he kissed her two breasts, "and this." He ran his hand up and down her thigh and slapped her left buttock.

She laughed and kissed him, lingering. She lifted her head. "Promise me you'll come to the house as soon as you can."

"I promise."

They rose from the cot and gathered their clothes.