Lilias contemplated her ladiesmaid Aisling's advice. She should not worry or desire so very much to convince others of her pure and true love for Lord Craven. People could be cruel and create their own false assumptions, because it's what they expect anyone and everyone to think and believe. Misselthwaite and its grounds were like a secret kingdom for her and Archie alone. That would be how she would view it. She would be wholly content to simply exist for and with Archie alone. She would live life with him, treasuring each special moment they shared together. She knew that she needed to relax in her haste and leave it to God as to whether she and Archie would conceive of a child-a son.
As much as Lilias knew Archie lived to please her, she wanted nothing more than to please him in every way as well.
Archie just dismissed a meeting in his study regarding matters of the estate. He searched out his wife to spend the rest of the afternoon with her.
"Medlock, where might I find my wife? Do you know?"
"Why, in the garden. Of course, your Lordship."
"Of course. Silly question." He smiled. One thing Medlock knew was that she never saw Lord Craven smile as much as he did since his marriage to Mrs. Craven.
It was a gorgeous, breezy Summer day. Lilias had fallen asleep stretched out on her back upon a picnic blanket near the arched ruins in the garden.
Archie had entered the gate and approached her gliding gracefully and slow in his stride keeping his gaze upon her beauty as she slept. Her hands pressed the book she was reading flat to her belly. When he was nearer, he noticed the breeze caused the climbing roses upon the stone archway to shed their petals. The Rose petals fell from the air above her and landed gently upon her body, around her face, and in her hair-a continuous showering of Rose petals. Archie had never seen anything more beautiful in his entire life. He carried with him a single white Rose. He knelt beside her and brushed the soft flower of the Rose gently and delicately upon her cheekbone. She stirred.
Her eyes captured his with serene beauty.
"I'm sorry. It was foolish of me to wake you. You were resting so peacefully."
Lilias tried to sit up slightly and noticed out of the corner of her eye the Rose petals stuck in her hair.
"Oh..." She murmured. "The Roses..."
"A shower of Roses." Archie chuckled. Lilias then noticed the many petals that covered the front of her gown almost trying to create a blanket over her.
Archie wanted to shower her with love.
"Can I ever show you how much I love you?" Archie smiled.
"Do try." Lilias responded in her soft, graceful tone.
He began kissing her. Naturally, she lay back again. His lips moved from her cheeks to her forehead to her jaw and then lowering with a feverish passion to her neck and then to her lips again.
"Archie," She whispered his name arousedly, "I want you to make love to me...here... In our garden."
...Please," she whispered.
"As you wish..." Archie answered. Lilias noticed Archie always answered her romantic requests with those words. She wanted to fulfill his wish or desire. Let it not always be hers but his.
"No," Lilias moaned slightly. Archie paused. He hovered above her. He was afraid he upset her, but that was not so...
She continued to speak, "What is your wish, Archie my love? Let it not always be mine but yours..."
"I could not wish for anything more than to make love to you now...this very moment."
"How...How do you wish to make love to me?" Lilias grew very bold but still maintained a sense of innocence and purity in her tone.
"This way...holding you in my arms. He rolled her body so tenderly sideways. He faced her on his side as well. His arms enveloped her cradling her body as close as possible to his. He brought her waist and midsection tenderly to his. He grabbed her hip with a certain tenderness to his touch and wrapped his fingers round her thigh to draw one of her legs over his hip. He needed to undress her. He turned her back round again gently to unfasten the buttons at the back of her gown. "May I?" He whispered.
"Ask me nothing, but do as you wish." Lilias replied still sweetly but with a hint of seductiveness this time. Lilias knew that Archie would always always make love to her with tender and gentle passion not animalistic passion. Archie and Lilias knew each other's thoughts, feelings, and desires. They understood each other...always knew what each other wanted in physical love, but Lilias wanted Archie to be entirely in control this time. Perhaps, she wanted to boost his confidence a bit.
He slowly drew her dress down from her upper body and then lower, past her waist, and all the way down her body until she could step out of it.
Her long slip dress was revealed under her tea gown.
She began kissing Archie. She paused to look into his eyes which were sparkling soulfully as ever. How she adored her Archie!
As they made love in their Elysian secret garden, the wind continued to cast the Rose petals down upon them.