Jack took Elizabeth's hand and helped her into the buggy he had rented for the night. He knew some people might think it was foolish to rent the buggy when they were in walking distance of the row house, but Jack didn't care. He felt the buggy ride was a nice, romantic touch. He knew he was right when Elizabeth gave him that bright smile he loved so much. Once she was seated, he walked around the buggy and got in on the other side.

He pulled up in front of what would be their home for a few short months and quickly got out. He tied the horse to the post outside; Bill would be coming by later to bring the horse and buggy back to the livery. He held out his hand for Elizabeth and helped her down. They walked up the stairs together; Jack opened the door and then swept her up in his arms. Elizabeth giggled and gave his a quick kiss on his cheek. Once inside, he set her down then turned to close and lock the door for the night. He picked her up again and carried her upstairs to their bedroom. He gently put her down on the bed and sat next to her. He watched as she looked around the room. He had arraigned to have the room set up romantically; candles burning in various places, rose petals were strewn on the bed, inside a wine bucket a bottle of champagne sat in ice. He wanted this night to be absolutely perfect for his Elizabeth. He knew she probably was little nervous and scared about being with him. Truth be told, he was scared and nervous too; it was his first time as well.

"Oh, Jack! This is beautiful." She felt tears form in her eyes. She was so happy that they were married but she was nervous about the night would bring.

As if he read her mind, he said as he wiped the tears from her face. "We can take things as slow as you want, Sweetheart. Just tell me if you feel things are getting too rushed and we will slow down." He reached to remove the tiara holding her veil in place. He carefully removed her veil and stood to lay it on her dresser. He returned to the bed where he began taking the pins out of her hair. He brush his fingers through her it and let it fall around her shoulders and down her back. He let his fingers run though her hair. "I love to touch your hair." He whispered. It's so soft and smell so good, like a garden of flowers." He leaned in to give her a kiss, gentle at first, then growing in intensity as he heard her moan in pleasure.

Elizabeth pulled away, then rested her forehead against his. "I love you." She whispered.

"I love you too, Sweetheart. I love you so much. I never knew it was possible to love someone this much." He stood from the bed and pulled her up with him. They kissed again, with even more passion than before. "I think we should get you out of this dress. That is, if you are ready. I don't want to rush you." Elizabeth nodded, indicating that she wanted him to help with her dress. He pushed her hair over her shoulder and went to work. "There's a lot of buttons on this dress." He whispered.

When he had opened most of the buttons, Elizabeth went into the bathroom to change. After she closed the door, she leaned back against it and took a deep breath. She was overcome with the depths of her love for him. She was excited and nervous about the night ahead. She slipped out of her dress and undergarments. She had put a negligee in between the towels she had stored on a shelf. She pulled it out of the bag and slipped it on. She felt sure that Jack would like it; it was almost the same shade of blue as her eyes. She reached for her brush and fixed her hair. She took a deep breath and opened the door to what would now be their bedroom.

While waiting for Elizabeth, Jack had pulled back the bed linens, taken off his jacket and tie and pushed his sleeves up. He looked up as he heard the bathroom door open. Before him was a vision so breathtaking; Elizabeth was wearing a beautiful negligee the color of her eyes, with a lace bodice. It fell to just above her knees. Jack had never seen anything or anyone so beautiful. Jack felt tears come to his eyes. What had he done to get such a wonderful, thoughtful, caring, gorgeous woman in his life? He slowly walked towards her; "Elizabeth," he whispered. "You are so beautiful." When he reached her, he pulled her close to him so he could kiss her. She pulled away slightly to start unbuttoning his shirt. He was surprised but happy by her boldness. Once his shirt was unbuttoned, Elizabeth pushed it over his shoulders and let it drop on the floor. He then gently took her in his arms and carried her to their bed. Still a little nervous and unsure of things in this new situation, she turned away while he removed his pants.

Jack climbed into to bed and reached for her. They started kissing, gentle at first, then growing in intensity. Jack pushed the straps down on her negligee, lifted her arms up and slipped it off her body. His hand began exploring her, kissing and touching her. Hesitant, Elizabeth began an exploration of her own, culminating in her pulling his head down to kiss him passionately. Jack rolled himself over her, feeling her body rise to his and knowing she was ready. They gave themselves up for the first time as husband and wife, loving each other all through the night.

Early the next morning, Elizabeth woke up first, with Jack's arm wrapped tightly around her. She slipped out of his embrace and went to her desk to write in her journal. She wanted to get her thoughts down about her wedding night and her new found feeling of being close to her husband. Once she was done, she watched Jack sleep; he was so handsome even at rest. She walked back to bed and slid in beside him, putting his arm back around her. The motion woke him up; "Good morning, Sweetheart! I love you!" He whispered as he started to kiss her neck and shoulders. She moaned and turned over to face him. Her lips found his and they began to kiss passionately. He rolled on top of her and continued to kiss her. She put her arms around his back and began massaging the strong muscles. Jack moaned, loving the feeling of her hands kneading his back. He moved closer to her and soon they became one.

They collapsed on the bed, spent but happy. Elizabeth moved to put her head on Jack's chest. He put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him. "I love you so much, Elizabeth." He whispered.

"I love you too, Jack. With all my heart. My heart is yours forever."

Jack felt a tear come to his eye. He wondered if any man had a right to be this happy.

"Are you hungry?" Elizabeth asked. Jack raised his eyebrow at her. She giggled. "For food, I mean."

"I am." Elizabeth started to get up but Jack stopped her. "You stay here. I will make breakfast for both of us to share in bed."

"Oh, Jack! That sounds great. Especially the eating in bed part." She winked at him. Jack smiled as he walked towards door. He winked back at her before walking downstairs to the kitchen.

He started some coffee, then checked the contents of the icebox. He knew Abigail had dropped off some food yesterday to keep them tied over until they left for their honeymoon tomorrow. He found some eggs, bacon and some strawberries. He also saw two plates of pot roast with mashed potatoes for their dinner. He found biscuits and scones in a basket on the counter as well has a couple of slices of apple pie. "Perfect" he thought to himself as he pulled a bowl from the cupboard and began making the eggs.

Upstairs, Elizabeth got out of bed and put her negligee back on. She was not comfortable enough with Jack yet to eat breakfast without her clothes on. She went to the bathroom to freshen up and brush her hair. She put some perfume on behind her ears and on her wrists. She decided to start packing her suitcase for their honeymoon. She went to her dresser and pulled out more lingerie, presents for her from Julie but truth be told they would be gifts for Jack. Elizabeth was nervous about putting them on; they were a bit more revealing than she would have picked, but she was willing to try them. She had decided that now that she was married she would try new things.

She heard Jack coming up the stairs. She quickly closed her suitcase and walked back to bed. He entered the room just as she was pulling the covers back up. Jack placed the tray in front of her, noticing that she had put the negligee back on. He figured she was still nervous being around him in an intimate way. He didn't mind; he knew she would become comfortable in time. Besides, it would be fun for him to remove it again. He jumped into bed beside her. "Eat up, Sweetheart." He up a strawberry and fed it to her.

"Mmmm" she said after biting into the berry. She then picked one up and fed it to Jack. The little game continued the rest of the meal. After they were finished, Jack put the tray on the floor, then pulled Elizabeth into his arms. At this moment, he was quite content to hold her. He was so happy that they were married and couldn't wait for their lives to continue as a married couple.

They held each other for a long time, occasionally kissing and remembering their wedding. Then Elizabeth sat up. "Jack, I feel like taking a bath. Would you join me?" She gave him a sultry smile.

"I would love to. Let me go start the water." He walked into the bathroom to get the bath going. He noticed that she had some bubble bath sitting on the shelf. He opened the bottle and smelled it. The pleasant smell of apple greeted his nostrils. "Now I know why she sometimes smells of apple." He thought.

At that moment, Elizabeth walked into the bathroom. She looked over at the tub. "Ahh, you found the bubble bath. I meant to ask you to put some in." She removed her robe and slipped into the tub. Jack climbed in behind her and pulled her towards his chest. He gently rubbed her neck, shoulders and arms. She started lightly massaging his legs, not sure if he would like it. When he moaned in pleasure, she continued, with a slightly harder touch. Soon, they were both lost, enjoying the massaging of each other. Elizabeth abruptly stopped what she was doing and moved in the water to face him. She slowly moved her face towards him, culminating in her lips touching his. The kiss was soft at first, then grew in intensity. He put his arm around her neck and ran his fingers into her hair. His body became alive at the feeling of her lips, the way she touched him.

"Elizabeth," he whispered, his voice rough with passion. "Let's take this back to bed." She nodded and watched him climb out of the tub. He had such a nice body, she couldn't help but stare until he wrapped a towel around himself. Then he held out his hand for her and helped her out, where he took a towel and started drying her. She felt heat rush through her body; she found it hard to believe that the simple act of drying her off would make her feel this way, so sensual. She rather enjoyed it. She stood on her toes to give him a passionate kiss; he then dropped the towels, pick her up in his arms and brought her to bed.

"Love me, Jack." She whispered. "You make me come alive when you kiss me and massage me."

Jack's heart sang as he made love to her. He was so happy that she seemed to be getting used to this new experience quickly. He loved how bold she was in the privacy of their bedroom. He continued to kiss her, up and down her body, while she did the same until they became one.

The honeymoon trip is next!