AN: Hello, so I decided to change this chapter. I know the rating is T, so I am going to keep it that way. R&R
Margaret Hale, now Margaret Thornton, stood in the doorway of their bedroom, still in her wedding dress, waiting for their new servant Jane to help her out. John was still downstairs, entertaining the men in the parlor, while the women had gone home with well-wishes for the newlyweds.
She was so nervous her curls were bobbing up and down in a state of agitation, and her hands were cold with her prospects. They were to leave on the morrow for Cadiz, and that being so, it meant that their wedding night would be at their home, here, in Milton.
Margaret jumped when Jane came to her side, a quiet girl, not more that sixteen, and began unlacing her dress, rather oblivious that the job should be done inside the room, and not in the doorway. Margaret corrected her, and they moved inside where Jane succeeded in getting Margaret down to her loose chemise, the only thing between the world and her skin. Without a word, Jane went to her wardrobe and took out her wedding gown, the night dress that was a gift from Edith.
It was a thin silk thing, with a plunging neckline and lace along the hem, a hem, coincidentally, that only reached mid-thigh. The girl smiled shyly at her mistress when she handed over the conspicuous garment, and turned to leave.
"Wait!" Margaret called to her, stopping the girl in her tracks.
"Yes mum?" she curtsied.
"Tell me when my husband will be up, please. I wish to be ready."
"Yes mum," Jane repeated, coloring scarlet with the implication. She shut the door and Margaret set to work on her wrinkled chemise, replacing it with that scandalous half-dress. She unpinned her hair and went to the vanity, where she dabbed a little perfume on her throat. It was not enough to be openly noticeable, but if one got close it provided a wonderful and heady scent.
Next, feeling rather undecided, she sat on the bed and set to braiding and re-braiding her long dark hair. She yawned, the day suddenly apparent, and relaxed into the thick goose-down pillows. Her hands stopped, mid-braid, and her eyelids drooped. No, she thought, I cannot fall asleep. John will be waiting for me. But try as she might, the fog of sleep descended, and she closed her eyes, content in but a moment's rest.
After what seemed like a decade, she awoke to a small laugh by the door. Disoriented and confused, she pulled the covers up to her chin and, feeling sheepish, slowly lowered them when she saw John. He was standing in the same place she had hours earlier, leaned up against the casement. His shirt open and his stance relaxed. A smile played across his lips.
"My dear, was I gone so long?" He asked.
"Oh, no," Margaret replied, flustered, attempting to tame her wild locks which had gotten tangled in her sleep. "I must have... dozed off I suppose." In three long strides he was beside her, and took her flustered hands in his, amused and gentle.
"You do look beautiful," he said, "I wish I had not stayed so long with the men."
Margaret could hear the husky tone in her husband's voice and gave him a shy smile.
"Yes," she replied, "for you would have melted to see me."
"I believe I still might," John kissed her cheek, then her nose. Her lips found his in an act of boldness she had not thought possible, and he tangled his hands in her hair, pulling them closer. His teeth grazed her lip and his tongue caressed hers, sweetly, and passionately. She sighed against his lips, and, encouraged, he adjusted his position so that he was half-straddling her, kissing along her jaw, her neck, and her collar bone.
Margaret looked up and knew she loved him, more that she had that morning at their wedding.
...
"My God, Maggie," he said, pulling her into his arms, "you are perfect."
Margaret blushed at the compliment, and was pleased he was using her nickname so readily. She curled up to him, their bodies natural and uninhibited, even by their blankets, and were both soon asleep, her cheek against his chest and his hand on her waist.
AN: Ok, so modified. I think this should be better.