A/N - For delicate readers, this is where things get ~steamy~ , this and the next two chapters won't add a huge amount to the plot, but I just got a bit carried away having these two exploring each other for the first time. I'll leave a TL; DR at the end of the steamy section so you won't miss out! For those of you that came here for the M - your time has come!

Thanks for hanging in there with this story - life got crazy and I missed a few weeks of posting schedule, but it's nearly there and queued for posting!

Chapter 10 - connection / ecstasy

There was a softness to her voice when she leaned heavily on his shoulder and said "shall we get out of here?"

It was sometime around midnight, and the party was still in full swing. They could see her parents dancing alongside Jane and Charles, though the brides themselves had left. A few moments ago, Lizzy and Will had also been dancing to the cheesy wedding tunes, surrounded by her family. But they now stood at the bar, rehydrating with the thoughtfully-placed glasses of water that were arranged like party favours in front of them. He still had his hand around her waist as they both drank quietly, and he wasn't sure whether he was more intoxicated by the stomach full of alcohol or by the heady feeling of her dress at his fingertips. At her question, he squeezed her gently.

"I would like that," he said honestly. He did not want to be presumptuous, so he let the offer of a ride back to his townhouse fall unsaid between them. They had exchanged drunken "I love yous" and made out like teenagers all evening, but still, it was so new.

"I have a room here," she murmured. She eyed him curiously, still a little tipsy with affection pouring like sunshine from her gaze. He breathed out forcefully and soldiered on.

"Are you asking me to walk you up and then return here to take my car home, or are you asking me to join you?" He asked. His voice threatened to crack, and he swallowed thickly. He wasn't sure if the alcohol had made him artificially bold. All he knew was that he was loath for there to be any further misunderstandings between them.

"Definitely the latter," she replied, tracing an absent-minded finger across the arm he held at her waist. She had to admit to being slightly concerned that he would disappear if she went to bed without him.

"Good," he admitted, swallowing thickly, "-because I really want to join you."

"Excellent," she smiled broadly. She placed a rough kiss on his neck and squeezed his hand at her waist.

He did not know how he kept himself upright amidst the rolling wave of desire that washed over him. Jesus, he wanted her - had done for quite a long time - and here she was offering herself to him. He decided for the time being to ignore the part of him that told him that he should wait until they were sober.

"By all means, lead the way." He gestured for her to do so, right after he held her to his hard form and placed an open-mouthed kiss behind her earlobe. She shuddered and appeared to be processing his movements for a moment before setting off to their desired destination.

He followed her, pulled by the gentle pressure of her hand in his. When they had gained the privacy of the lift, he pulled her close again and whispered hotly.

"Damn, the things I want to do to you right now," he breathed, unable to help himself.

She swore lightly and he found himself cornering her with his body, holding her against the mirrored wall of the lift. He kissed her, not quite sloppy but definitely not clean. There was an urgency that had been building for the best part of six weeks, and more acutely for the past six hours. And they were struggling to remember that they had not quite made it to her room yet. It was hard to remember anything when there was such heat and promise between them.

When he dropped her lips and rested his forehead on hers, he could hear their ragged breathing filling the suddenly small space.

"It is a good thing that you said no to carpooling," he mused, "because if I had you alone like this at work, we might get into trouble."

She whimpered. He moaned.

The lift notified them of their arrival to her floor. He placed a playful kiss on her nose and hauled her out eagerly, picking a direction seemingly at random in his hurry to get to her room.

"Slow down, big guy," she joked. "It's this way-"

The tease, from the first time they met, filled him with a gentle warmth that slowed his urgent passion. He identified the feeling as affection, pure and sweet, and he hoped she could see it radiating from him whenever he looked at her.

"Sorry," he said, and followed her readily.

"Here we are then," she said when they had reached the threshold of her borrowed room. "Last chance to go back to pretending." Her voice told him of her insecurity, so similar to his.

"In case I haven't already made it abundantly clear, I hate pretence of any kind."

"Ok then," she said simply.

"No it is not ok," he replied, heat of a different sort coming over him. "I need you to understand, if we are going to do this-"

She swallowed in anticipation.

"This is not just going to be a one-time 'fake dating for a wedding' thing. It's not just some meaningless pretence for us to enjoy this evening and then forget on Monday morning when you arrive bright and early and looking so… so damn beautiful that I can't concentrate."

He took a breath to steady himself, and she squeezed his arms reassuringly. It felt like the weight he was carrying was momentarily lifted, and he could speak again.

"Lizzy, I promise we will figure out how to break the news at work together. But I want everyone to know that I love you, and that we are committed to each other. I don't want any more fucking pretending."

Perhaps the words were a little slurred, for he had drunk a fair amount, and it had been a very emotional day. But they were earnest, and she understood them clear as day.

"I thought that it was obvious?" She replied cheekily, pulling him from his heavy mood. "I thought I'd been clear that I want those things just as much as you do? I have done for a while, and after the past week… well-"

She shrunk three sizes as she continued. "I know what I want now," she spoke in a tiny voice,

"Thank God for that," he let go of the last of his trepidation in one breath and hauled her to him. She felt the tantalising breath of warm air tickling her lips.

"Now tell me, for the sake of transparency, what it is that you want?" He could not resist teasing her, less than an inch from kissing her soundly, hovering on the precipice.

"I want - you," she said, her words stumbling over themselves in her haste to let him know. "I want everyone to know that you are mine. I want to finally meet Georgie. I want to go to sleep with you, and to sleep with you. I want to wake up in the morning with your name on my lips and your tongue between my-"

She seemed to be running away with her more lustful thoughts, but she reigned it in to summarise simply.

"I want it all, Will," she said, and it might have been on the verge of too soon, but fuck if he didn't feel the same. Here she was, the marvel that was Elizabeth Bennet, and once she made her mind up about something, she was relentless to her cause. It was one of the things he admired the most about her.

She was so heartfelt that he was almost rendered speechless.

"Lizzy," he breathed, her name a surrender. In response, she fumbled with the key card and the door, not willing to lose a single second now they had finally understood one another.

~.~

After they had dispatched the door, it had not taken long to find their way to her bed. Heated in their motion, they removed more and more clothing with every step. Though he had earlier permitted himself to imagine taking her clothes off romantically in a king size bed, he simply did not have the patience and did not care to take his time now that he was here on the precipice with her.

The first things to go were his jacket and bowtie, which he let her remove in a hurry. He did not even wince when she threw them to the floor, but then again, he wasn't really paying attention to where they landed. He had an incredible view of her tits from where he was standing, and that seemed much more important than the potential wrinkling of his clothing.

She ran distracting hot hands all over his shirt, teasing him through the fabric. He could feel the trail of tension she left in her wake, swimming from his muscles to his growing erection. He had allowed the taboo to lift, and his body responded as eagerly as one could expect for six weeks of mutual flirtation, three weeks of workplace cockblocking and a crush that had become almost impossible to contain.

He started removing the pins in her hair without looking, whilst trailing his lips across her neck and collarbone. He had removed about five when she stopped him with a breathy moan.

"What?" He replied, equally breathless. His lips stilled at her neck, and she moaned louder.

"Stop that," she complained. At his confused and mildly hurt expression, she clarified. "Stop wasting your time with bloody hairpins."

Oh, he thought. He supposed that was a good sign. Heeding her request, he instead made to remove his shirt, to get them on a more even playing field for what he planned next. He broke from her neck when he pulled the shirt from his body and threw it carelessly to the side. She hummed appreciatively as she drank him in.

"Can I?" He asked, with his hand on the zip underneath her arm.

"Yes-" her voice was little more than a breath, thick with desire. "Yes, please."

He forced himself to look her in the eyes as he undid the dress and helped her out of it, as much as the tenting of his trousers yelled at him to do otherwise. His sense of urgency dissipated for that moment when he would bare her to him for the first time. Christ, he wanted to see her, but he wanted to savour seeing her more. Added to that, he would not have missed the soft glowing anticipation in her eyes, even for an early glimpse at her body. He kissed her softly on the nose, and she giggled to evaporate her nerves.

His deliberate slowness yielded a huff of frustration from her when he kissed across her shoulders and slowly inched the fabric down past her hard nipples. When the soft fabric pulled against them on the way past, she swore lightly. He chuckled, and it was thick and deep and gravelly, and she felt her desire rushing straight between her legs.

"That feels so good," she breathed. "Please, whatever you do, don't stop."

"Not planning on it," he assured her, wavering slightly when he glanced down and saw her. She was perfect.

He was overcome for a fraction of a moment, seeing their bare chests almost touching. He broke his promise for an instant, stilling as he held the bodice of the dress inverted against her hips and closed the space, kissing her and rejoicing in how her nipples felt against his chest.

"Will," she said, but it was more like a whine. He heard the unspoken request to get on with it without her having to say the words. But a not inconsiderable part of him wanted her to say it. He grasped the dress firmly in both hands and paused, eyeing her suggestively.

"Lizzy," he mimicked her husky tone.

"Will, please-"

"Please what?" He teased further.

"Please get rid of our clothes, I want to see you."

Jesus, how had he got her so worked up already?

She thought that the insistent hardness against her stomach had some bearing on that. Not to mention, she had been fighting her arousal all evening. She had wanted him since that uncomfortable car journey, if she was being honest. Since she had an errant thought about closing the partition, clambering across that horrible distance in the middle seat and straddling him all the way to the venue. Looking back, it was just as well they had chosen to lift share. She would not have wanted to miss her best friend's wedding, even now feeling his considerable bulge and anticipating how good he would feel.

"Ladies first," he said with a soft chuckle, and pulled firmly on her dress. He was enthralled as it fell like water to her feet. She was left standing topless with a tiny pair of deep blue lace panties. His pulse quickened when he realised she had put them on for him, removing any shed of remaining trepidation at their lack of sobriety. She wants me, his heart sung.

He couldn't resist palming her perfect round ass as he had wanted to do on so many occasions over the past few weeks. As anticipated, she felt perfect in his hand, the weight giving him a great feeling of contentment as he squeezed and she squirmed.

He felt her fingers at his belt, moving in synchronisation with his hands at her rear. He sucked in a breath, then promptly swore as she accidentally touched his member with her hands over his trousers. He was done for.

With a growl that was frankly embarrassing, he helped her rid him of his belt, trousers and boxers until they stood there, gloriously bared to each other. He looked at her for confirmation that this was still what she wanted, his eyes ravenous over her curves. She smiled seductively and walked to the nightstand, wiggling her bottom as she went. He stepped towards her, unwilling to allow any kind of distance between them and entranced by the gentle sway of her hips.

She bent down, providing him with the most marvellous view of the ass he had just been fondling, and procured a foil wrapper from the drawer. She turned around nervously, and his heart swelled in his chest.

"Do you mi-"

"Of course not," he cut her off, leaning in to kiss her softly and surprising them both with his tenderness.

His hands migrated to her breasts whilst she covered him with deft hands. He was glad for the kisses for swallowing the hiss of anticipation he couldn't hold back when she touched his most sensitive skin.

"Fuuuck," he breathed when she settled the condom in place and started to run her hands back and forth across his length. "That feels… I mean you are… wow."

She giggled, until he ran a finger across her nipple and squeezed hard. The giggle morphed into a moan and he thought it was the sexiest sound he had ever heard. The moan returned in earnest when he picked her up unceremoniously, settled her in the centre of her bed and climbed over her.

Warm, wet kisses replaced his hands at her chest. Her delightful sounds filled the air as she pulled softly at his hair to keep him in place.

Her grip tightened all of a sudden when she felt two strong but soft fingers lightly grace over her clit. His light touch was tantalising, in that it denied her the pressure she really needed, and she let out an involuntary whimper.

That confirmed it, his new favourite sound. It told him more profoundly than words ever could of her love, desire and impatience for him, so it was not a difficult decision to yield to her.

"Your moans are driving me crazy, Lizzy," he said quietly. "I don't know how long-"

"Please," she said simply. Her voice was charged with desire. He felt himself stiffen further. She used his hair to guide his lips to hers, kissing him passionately before she broke off to beg him to proceed, "please, I want to feel you inside me."

He did not need any further encouragement.

He settled himself between her legs, coating himself with her slick as he took an unnecessary breath and filled her slowly. It was indescribable. The hot pressure of her against him, the intimacy of feeling so connected, the delicious pleasure it sent to his gut when he moved. Sure, he had slept with other people before, but it had never felt quite like this - this all-consuming warmth and contentment.

He was torn in two. One half wished this moment would never end, that he could stay surrounded by her with her hands tracing urgent circles across his back forever. The other whispered the promise that echoed when he moved slightly within her and felt the pressure of her walls adapting to his presence. It urged him towards what he knew would be the best orgasm he had ever had, and proved impossible to ignore.

She swore when he started moving in earnest, holding her hips to keep her in place so he could feel the delicious expanse of her thighs slapping against him as he moved.

"Will," she moaned.

"Lizzy," he echoed her tone.

One of his hands found her breast again. He was not harsh about it, but nor was he soft either. She moaned his name again, and he joined her with a wordless pant.

When he squeezed her nipple again with deft fingers, she moaned his name for a third time. He could not get enough of it. He wanted to hear her say his name in every intonation, but especially like that, every day.

Spurred on by her receptiveness, he picked up the pace to a point where even names became unnecessary. He could feel her breath quicken, and held back his impending orgasm with every ounce of self control he possessed.

Her sharp intake of breath was the first warning he received of what was to come. This, followed by her cry of "don't stop," left him with no doubt as to what was to follow. He picked up his pace and felt his balls tightening deliciously.

It was not long until she cried his name as she came around him.

She was pretty certain that she saw stars. Her face felt like a thousand small suns had formed under her skin, a delicious tingling feeling blooming across her cheeks as she had to remind herself to breathe. He saw the glow under her skin, and her delighted look of contentment sent him barrelling off the edge and into his own powerful orgasm with her.

It was his turn to cry out her name, not caring an ounce if anyone heard him. His muscles tightened, and he felt himself pulse thickly into her. He was so overcome by the intensity of the feeling that he laid on her chest to catch his breath and did not think about his weight on top of her. She relished in the feeling of his warm skin on hers, the scent of him filling her pores and the weight of him covering her like a blanket.

~.~

She absent-mindedly stroked soothing patterns on his back as she waited patiently for him to return to her. A minute or so later, he realised he was crushing her and pulled out of her warmth to her quiet sound of disappointment. He quickly cleaned himself off and returned to her side, taking her in the circle of his arms and kissing her softly at her hairline.

"Where was I?" He said, with humour. "Let me-"

He returned to his much earlier task of removing the pins from her hair. The whole act felt so domestic, and she surprised herself with how much she enjoyed the feeling of being looked after. He was no less entranced by the intimacy of the moment, and did not stop smiling until he found the last one, and placed them all in a neat pile on the bedside table.

His stretch to the bedside gave her an excellent view of his tight muscles, especially his round, firm bottom. She could not resist reaching for him with a hum of contentment, which he returned.

"Thank you," she purred happily when he turned to look at her with a brow raised in question.

"Like what you see?" He asked innocently. She heard and understood his very real insecurity in the slight wobble of his tone, and smiled mischievously at him.

"Better than tennis whites," she smirked. "As in, my favourite view of your marvellous ass is most definitely the one in your birthday suit."

"Shame that's one suit that's frowned upon in polite professional circles, then." She laughed at his playfulness.

"Damn, you're right." She paused, considering. "But I think this is a suit I'd rather keep to myself, if you don't mind?"

"I don't," he said, perhaps a bit over-eagerly. She heard the honesty in his rushed voice, but wanted to err on the side of caution after all of their confusions and complications to get here.

"So you're with me on the desire for this," she gestured between them, "to be a merger of the mutually exclusive kind."

Jesus, she was perfect for him.

"Certainly, Elizabeth. Just give me the contract and I'll sign on the dotted line."

The potential for such a contract to exist in the future was not lost on either of them, and Lizzy spoke to lighten the sudden heaviness that was their mutual depth of feeling.

"I think you'll find this contract to be more of the handshake kind," she jested. "In that it's made with physical touch rather than intellectual entrapment."

"Why do I feel like I want to be intellectually entrapped by you as well?" He asked, breathless again.

"Because I am fiercely smart, and you have an intelligence kink," she teased, arching her perfect eyebrow and looking all too smug for his liking.

"I don't think that's a secret, for either of us," he admitted. He smiled deviously and continued, "though I am very much looking forward to discovering the rest of yours."

She refused to be embarrassed by the warmth that had pooled again so soon between her legs, and the gentle flush which accompanied her dilated pupils.

"As am I, Mr Darcy, as am I.'

The way she had said his name, like that, in her huskiest voice, whilst heating his skin with her desirous gaze, well… If that was a kink, it was one he especially wanted to explore with her.

"I love you," he said, and he meant it.

She could tell. She smiled broadly at him, caressing his shoulder and pecs with one hand. The other made its way to his face, where she held his cheek softly.

"I love you, too, Will," she said.

The second time that night that they came together was a lot less rushed than the first. He took his time pleasing her with his mouth and hands until she squirmed at his touch and begged in that 'fuck me' voice of hers for him to oblige. He did so gladly, turning her over onto all fours, crawling behind her and moving at an agonisingly slow pace to really draw out the pleasure for them both. And it was so pleasurable for them both.

A short while after, she had washed her make-up off and they were side by side, naked under soft bedsheets and playing a game of who could keep their eyes open longest. Neither wanted to fall asleep and ruin the perfect evening, no matter how early the breakfast was the next day - nor the fact that her entire family would be there. Instead, they both basked in the comfortable silence, for once neither needing to say anything.