Attention, there are 3 new chapters today. This is the third.

Breakfast.

As Charles's mind slipped from sleep into a doze and the memories of last night played havoc with his senses, a satisfied smile unconsciously appeared on his face.

With his eyes still closed, he turned to his left. That was the side Elsie was lying on. He moved as gently as possible so as not to wake her. It had happened two or three times in the past few weeks that Elsie had fallen asleep in bed with him, but she had never woken up with him; she had always slipped away quietly and secretly so as not to deprive him of the precious sleep he needed to recover. And when he was well again, she never entered his attic room anyway.

The moment here was therefore something very special for Charles, something completely new. He wanted to look at her, but he didn't dare, his eyes were still closed. Charles counted to three in his mind.

One ... two ... It was one of those precious moments in life when the anticipation seems more engaging than the moment itself. You can linger longer in anticipation. The euphoria of the imagination, which carries feelings of happiness right down to your little toes, can be kept in your body for longer, in contrast to the moment: once it has come, it has already passed.

One ... two ... When he inadvertently brushed Elsie's warm skin with his hand, the hairs on his arms and legs stood up. It was as if his skin had remembered the extraordinary and unprecedented touches of the previous night, her bare skin felt electrifying against his. As he took a relaxing breath at the thought of last night, he inadvertently inhaled her scent. His lips seemed to echo the taste of her kisses, and her restrained moans echoed in his ears.

So here we go again, Charles thought to himself: one ... two ... three ... But now really ...

He had such fond, engaging memories of the previous night that he found it difficult to stay in the here and now. Although he had to admit to himself that it hadn't gone the way he had imagined a hundred times before. He was very tense and reserved, and Elsie didn't seem to have come out of her either, although he was very careful not to hurt her. It was unexpectedly short. But they had still been very intimate. And then they had been again, and a third time too. But he wasn't sure if Elsie had liked it either. Charles' ears turned cherry red as he thought about it, his grin widening enormously.

He was so nervous, and so full of anticipation, and so full of pride, that he really had to force himself to open his eyes. The moment seemed so perfect, so unique. He didn't want it to end, he wanted it to stay that way forever. He and she were content and protected from the outside world in a cosy bed with the whole day ahead of them.

What would she look like? How was she lying next to him? Was she perhaps already looking at him?

Charles had to make another effort to open his eyes. So up to three now. One ... two ... three ... .

If he opened his eyes now, now at last, he would see her lying next to him.

So, open your eyes now! For the first time, he would see Elsie lying next to him in bed. The first time he would start the day together with Elsie. His wife. His pride. His perfection.

He was already in danger of drifting off in his thoughts again.

But now. One ... two ... three ... .

There she was. Immersed in the soft backlight of the still young sun, her frame seemed to glow in orange tones. She was lying on her right side, her face turned towards him, her hand resting under Elsie's cheek, her loose hair scattered around her, still asleep. Charles was captivated by her appearance: her beautiful s-shaped curves, which stretched from her shoulders to her waist to her buttocks, looked to him like a scene from a fairy tale from a thousand and one nights, when the sun rose behind dunes in the desert. The blanket that caressed her curves emphasised Charles' perception.

Elsie began to smile. "Good morning, Charlie.", Elsie said with her eyes closed.

Charles had to start laughing, he felt caught out and wanted to know how she knew he was already awake.

"That was quite simple. Your contented snoring has stopped.", Elsie replied, giggling. When she opened her eyes, she looked straight into Charles'.

He moved closer to her and placed his palm on her cheek. She savoured the touch and closed her eyes again in pleasure. Lost in thought, he whispered: "I didn't realise you could touch love."

"Charles, you old flatterer!", she replied, rolling her eyes but grateful.

"I love you, Elsie.", he replied, stroking her cheek gently once more, kissing her quickly on the lips and jumping out of bed as if stung by a bee with the following words: "I have a present for you."

Elsie was startled by Charles' abrupt movement and winced. "But ... Charlie ... I don't have a present for you.", Elsie confessed, unpleasantly touched, and sat up. Her linen nightdress emerged. She watched Charles as he searched for something between his folded shirts.

"No present?", Charles turned to Elsie, stunned, as he stood in front of the wardrobe with a small parcel in his hands. „If only you had seen the sight you showed me when I woke up! If you had seen how beautiful you were lying next to me. My love, you are my gift. The fact that you are here with me after all these weeks is my gift."

Elsie was once again flattered by Charles' words and tried to accept the compliment for his sake. She looked at her husband in his pyjamas with his ravaged hair and nodded sheepishly in thanks.

Charles sat back down on the bed and handed Elsie the present.

Before Elsie tore open the wrapping paper, she scrutinised it. It was flat and rectangular. "What is it?", she asked Charles.

„You'll see when you open it.", he replied curtly (Mr. know-it-all), without giving the slightest hint of what was inside.

Elsie began by tearing open a corner of the paper and then rustling as she removed the entire contents.

As soon as she realised what it was, she looked at the gift so intently that she completely forgot to thank Charles. She stroked her fingers gingerly over the smooth surface. Elsie realised that her tears were making it difficult for her to see clearly and she tried hard not to let them fall.

Charles sensed Elsie's emotions, sat close to her and pulled her towards him with one hand, her head now resting on his shoulder. He knew she would like it, so he refrained from asking for confirmation, that would seem silly to him, but said: „I thought we might find a nice place for it in our cottage once we've moved in."

"Charles, the frame is beautiful." Elsie was touched by Charles' gesture of giving Becky's drawing a place in their new home. They sat leaning against each other for a few more minutes before a tender "Thank you, Charlie.", left Elsie's lips.

Elsie put the picture frame down on the table in the corner, went back to bed and pushed Charles back into the mattress with a full head of steam. This came as a great surprise to him, but he went along with it. She was now lying half on top of him, half on the mattress, while she rested her head on his chest and savoured the gentle rise and fall of his breaths. He held her in his arms and gently stroked her shoulder. He felt great pleasure as he could feel her warm skin through her nightdress.

It was still very unusual for both of them to be so close to each other. Elsie had often seen Charles in his pyjamas over the last few weeks when she was nursing him, and the few times she had (unintentionally) fallen asleep on the mattress with him, they had felt each other, but on those occasions Elsie's heavy dress fabrics had still been in between them, along with her corset. Now not only were these fabrics gone, but also the knowledge that they were not allowed to touch each other's bodies. - Which seemed to have given them a certain kind of self-confidence.

Because the beginning of last night (well, the first night) was littered with furtive glances and tentative touches, and uncertain smiles, it all seemed spasmodic and awkward. Both were nervous and caught up in themselves as they stood next to each other in their nightdresses in front of the bed in the hotel. They had both imagined it differently.

Before the wedding, there were a few delicate moments when it had all seemed so easy. Moments when they were already longing for the wedding night because the physical desire was so agonising. It all came so automatically and thoughtlessly, each knew how they wanted and needed to touch the other. They could just follow their natural urges.

But last night? Last night everything was so different. They both knew that 'it' would come to "it" as soon as they got to the hotel room and it would be night.

And as they arrived in their beautiful hotel room yesterday, when evening and night had just joined hands and the only thing that awaited them after the long, wonderful day was bed.

They both stood helplessly next to each other as the owner closed the door behind her and left the newlyweds alone, a suitcase on either side of them. The room seemed to be equipped with everything they needed for a cosy stay.

In front of them was the bed. They tried not to pay too much attention to it and looked around the room. Elsie began to bob her feet up and down a little and locked her hands in front of her stomach, her thumbs twisting around each other, her tongue pressing left and right against the inside of her cheeks, unnoticed by her. Charles took off his bowler hat and scratched the back of his head while he tried to look calm. But both of their eyes kept lingering on the bed, hoping that the other wouldn't notice the doubting bull.

Charles cleared his throat. "What an impressive wardrobe!", Charles remarked, nodding towards the beautiful, dark wooden wardrobe opposite the bed. They both looked to their right and admired it.

Elsie was grateful that he said something and agreed: "Indeed. The room seems to be very lovingly decorated. Look at the chandelier above us, it's similar to the one in the library at Downton Abbey.", both heads tilted upwards.

"And the beautiful curtain.", Charles added with his eagle eyes, whereupon they both turned their attention to the two windows opposite them and had to look over the bed.

"The small table has very fine carvings.", Elsie remarked. "And the upholstered chair is a perfect match." Both heads moved to the right again and looked at the corner where a small round table stood between the window and the wardrobe.

"Have you noticed the details on the wallpaper? I think there are little dragonflies hidden among the flowers.", Charles explained with narrowed eyes. Charles's remark about the intricacies of the wallpaper made Elsie think of Mrs. Patmore and how she would deal with them both if she witnessed this scene.

But apparently they both noticed the ridiculous behaviour even without the cook's help and turned their heads straight again with drooping shoulders and stood side by side in silence, looking at the bed in front of them. It was still not mentioned by either of them, which made it the wordless centre of attention.

"Where does the door lead to?", Elsie had wanted to know after a while as she glanced past Charles.

"That will be the door to the bathroom.", Charles had replied. "Shall we go and have a look?" Without waiting for an answer, Charles turned on his heels in relief and opened the white wooden door to his left, which was next to the bed.

Elsie secretly regretted that they had both behaved so stiffly yesterday. Because she really wanted to be touched by Charles and she really wanted to touch Charles. But there was this shame inside her that was holding her back. She had imagined the first night differently. She missed the feeling she felt on Charles' thigh back then, she missed that burning and tickling sensation and the tingling in her whole body.

"What are you thinking about, Elsie?", Charles asked when he heard her exhale loudly after a few minutes, almost as if she were sighing. Her fingers were absently playing with one of the buttons on Charles' pyjama top. With this question, he brought Elsie back from her thoughts of the previous night.

"It's not quite true that I don't have a present for you, Charlie. I brought you a little something. Would you like to see it?" Elsie lifted her head from his chest and looked up at him. She saw Charles nod.

"But you have to close your eyes.", Elsie demanded and waited for Charles to nod again before getting out of bed.

Elsie went to her suitcase and told Charles that the present had been difficult to wrap and that she hadn't really wrapped it in paper as it had seemed strange.

"That's why I borrowed a kitchen towel from Mrs. Patmore.", Elsie explained as she carefully pulled the wrapped bundle of cloth from the inside pocket of her suitcase, carefully returned to bed and placed it on Charles' lap.

When she had positioned herself comfortably on the mattress again, she told him that he could open his eyes again. He was such a good boy and really hadn't looked.

"What's this?", Charles asked, puzzled, as he turned his gaze to his thigh, lifted the fabric to eye level and turned it slightly back and forth. It seemed so inconsistent and soft, he wasn't even sure if there was anything inside. One of his eyebrows snapped upwards as he slid his gaze from the mysterious thing to Elsie. Charles was very suspicious and expected an answer from Elsie.

"Well, well! Same rules for everyone, Charlie! You'll have to open it to find out.", Elsie countered with a raised chin (hihi) and didn't say a word. She gestured for him to unfold the cloth.

Elsie was tense. Hopefully the contents wouldn't go too far. Hopefully it wasn't too naughty and immoral. She held her breath, bit her lower lip and watched Charles's hands sceptically roll up the bundle and unfold the corners.

As the cloth lay fully spread out on his thighs, revealing its secret, Charles turned pale.

"And Mrs. Patmore knows about this? She knows why you wrapped it?" Charles tried to appear as composed as possible, but Elsie realised his flabbergasting and laughed. She understood that it wasn't so much the present as the fear of having told Mrs. Patmore about it that was bothering him.

"You, my daft husband, you! What are you thinking about? Of course she doesn't know about my chatelaine or how much you like its rattling, Charlie!", Elsie replied, shaking her head.

His eyes continued to rest on the many chains and keys. Elsie studied his facial muscles closely and waited to be able to interpret Charles' reaction. She couldn't tell what he was thinking. Charles didn't realise this himself at first, but after a few seconds he began to grin mischievously and lifted the chatelaine so that the keys could dangle from their chains and gave their viewers a delicate rattle.

Unlike Charles, Elsie wasn't so sure about the effect of her gift, so she asked: "What do you think? Do you like it?"

"Well, I don't think it's a gift for me, but for both of us. And that we'll have some wonderful moments with it. But yes, I do like it, Elsie. I like it very much.", Charles said with a mischievous smile, grabbed the back of Elsie's neck and pulled her in for a deep kiss. Elsie was relieved and gratefully accepted his kiss.

When they pulled away from each other, Charles suggested: "But first, let's go and have breakfast. We can't work without fortifying ourselves."

Unsure of the meaning of his words, Elsie planted another kiss on his lips and got out of bed to get dressed. Before she went to the wardrobe, however, she looked out of one of the windows and immediately opened it to let in the fresh morning air. Charles watched her closely, he was so fascinated by her long, loose hair that he found it difficult to take his eyes off her, he knew that this sight was his alone. He also noticed that the incoming sunlight was making Elsie's nightdress transparent, which of course made it even harder for him not to look at her. Especially now that he realised the effect the cool air was having on Elsie's breasts. But he kept that to himself. His gaze followed her further to the wardrobe, whose two large doors she opened to take out a skirt and a blouse; she also looked for stockings and underwear. Her corset was still in the bathroom. As she took her clothes out of the wardrobe and stood on her tiptoes, Charles continued to silently admire the movement of her loose hair. He was simply fascinated by the length and the way the ends caressed Elsie's hips. Charles began to wonder whether he really wanted to have breakfast with her now, because he was actually feeling something other than hunger.

Elsie let her head slide over her shoulder out of curiosity, as something seemed strange to her, and noticed Charles still sitting in the middle of the bed. He looked to her as if he had been watching her the whole time.

"Aren't you getting dressed, sir?", she asked Charles teasingly, but got no answer, she now realised his mental absence.

"A penny for your thoughts.", she added with a smile. "Charlie?"

Charles moved from the centre of the bed to the edge and looked at Elsie without answering her question.

"Charlie, what are you doing?", Elsie asked, slightly unsettled. Just as she was about to turn towards him to ask again, Charles got up from the mattress and walked straight towards her as if hypnotised.

When he reached her, he took the clothes from her hands and stuffed them back into the wardrobe without taking his eyes off his wife, burying his face in her neck after grabbing her by one of her arms and pulling her towards him. With his other hand, he pushed the nightgown off her shoulder as best he could. "I (a kiss on the shoulder) must (a kiss on the collarbone) have (a kiss on the neck) you (a kiss behind the ear), Elsie.", he whispered as if remote-controlled.

"Now? Charles, I ... we wanted ... or ... should rather ... " Elsie was so surprised by Charles' insistent passion that she initially wanted to react with defence and tried to refer him to later, but his kisses were so well placed that Elsie forgot what she had actually wanted to suggest to him. The mixture of the hot air he exhaled tickling her skin, the light sucking when he ended the kisses and the tingling sensation when he started another kiss made her knees weak.

"Charles, I ... ", but even now Elsie's objection didn't make it out of her. Charles had finally reached her lips and covered them with his.

His left hand pressed her lower back against him, his right hand travelled up her back to her neck. She enjoyed Charles' guidance and the pressure he exerted, she liked it when he gave free rein to his dominance.

He finally realised how Elsie joined in the kiss and opened her lips. Her tension seemed to drain from her muscles, causing her to snuggle even closer to him. She placed her hands on his chest and enjoyed the wild dance of their tongues.

When she realised that Charles wanted to break the kiss after a while, she tiptoed over again and immediately pulled him back towards her by his pyjama collar. Charles also enjoyed it when Elsie's dominance burst out of her.

His hands then clasped her back again and pressed her body tightly against him. At the thought that he was now pressing her breasts, which had just looked at him so cheekily through her shimmering nightgown, firmly against him, he noticed how his member began to twitch joyfully. Charles pulled Elsie backwards towards the bed with him.

When he felt the resistance of the mattress in the hollow of his knee, he dropped down and pulled Elsie onto his lap. He knew from past situations that they both liked this position. So it couldn't hurt to start today.

When Elsie sat on Charles' lap, allowing her to look down at him and forcing him to look up at her, they held intense eye contact for a few seconds. He loved it when she was in a position to look down at him.

Without breaking eye contact, Charles let his hands explore Elsie's body. Slowly, he guided his hands from her pelvis up to her waist. Elsie was excited because she had never felt his hands so briskly on her body before. These hands would now take what they wanted, they were no longer as restrained as yesterday.

When Elsie realised that Charles' hands were not stopping at her waist, but moving further up to her shoulders, almost touching her breasts, Elsie began to breathe faster with excitement.

Exploring Elsie without a corset was idolatrous for Charles, so how would it be when his hands were on her bare skin. His fingers wanted to touch every inch of her. He also realised that he almost enjoyed watching Elsie react to his touch even more.

The eye contact was still maintained. Charles noticed how Elsie's chest began to move up and down faster and how Elsie's cheeks began to turn a reddish colour. She felt the urge to rock her pelvis back and forth, but didn't dare to give in. As if Charles had sensed it, he ran his hands down her sides again to grab her thighs and encourage her to move.

Elsie took his face in her hand and finally began to move her pelvis, realising how the movements were giving her the tingling sensation she had missed yesterday and began to kiss Charles. Charles also realised how his arousal was increasing and wanted Elsie to press herself against him even more, he desperately wanted to feel more of her pressure. So he pressed her even more against his lap at the small of her back. His member was now so swollen that he could more than just feel Elsie's every thrust. Elsie's pubic area was also throbbing and desperately wanted more of what she could feel under Charles' thin pyjama bottoms. Elsie's movement and arousal made her more and more breathless and she had to let go of her kiss to catch her breath. They both looked at each other again. Charles' right hand now travelled to Elsie's knee and crept under her nightdress. Elsie let out a gasp and wanted to stop moving, but Charles' other hand wouldn't let her, reminding her to keep rocking back and forth. Elsie reacted with goose bumps as she felt Charles' hand move up her outer thigh.
She inadvertently gasped his first name, closed her eyes and leant her head back. He enjoyed the fact that he could put his wife in such a state. There was no comparison to yesterday. Arousing this lust in her only made Charles' member swell even more. He wouldn't be able to withstand this throbbing for much longer. His hand slid further down to her bare bottom, causing her to let out another gasp. He pushed her towards him and kept her hips as close to him as possible, that's when she really noticed the size of his erection. Charles played with her buttocks a little, pulling them apart and pinching them at will. He kept a close eye on Elsie, it drove him crazy to watch her as he touched her, it made him incredibly hot. She bit her lower lip, her pulse pounding at her throat. Before he sent his hand on a further journey, he kissed her inviting neck and worked it generously with his mouth while his hand slid up and down her back. The feeling of his soft, sucking and pinching lips on her neck made her shudder. A huge tugging sensation grew inside her, she realised how her womanhood pulsated and instinctively began to press her pelvis even harder against Charles' bulge. She wanted to put even more pressure on the sensitive spot between her legs. Elsie began to moan, Charles now really had to be careful not to please himself too quickly.

Elsie wanted to feel him now, she wanted him inside her now and began to unbutton his pyjama top. Charles knew how to interpret her behaviour, but he wasn't finished with her yet. Her willingness, her excitement, her offence demanded everything from him. For a few minutes now, he could feel through his trouser leg how hot and wet Elsie was. The knowledge that she was so ready for him was hard to bear.

He brought his hand back out of her nightdress and stopped his movements. Elsie was surprised and paused as well, looking at Charles in shock.

He knew that his plan would be a bit of a challenge for Elsie and wanted to make eye contact with her beforehand to show her that what was about to happen was his full intention.

He began to pull at the fabric of her nightdress as it was pinched by both of them, whereupon she realised what he had in mind. He recognised in her face that she was reluctant to take off her nightgown.

"Don't.", Elsie whispered despondently. "It's so bright."

„There's nothing about you that I wouldn't like. There's nothing I don't like.", he corrected himself. She believed Charles' words and didn't recognise any lies in them. Nevertheless, he read disbelief in Elsie's eyes.

"Do you feel that?" He pressed his bulging crotch against her hip. "And do you feel this?" He placed one of her hands on his heart and lingered there with his on hers. "Can you feel how much it beats, how much YOU speed it up? Can you feel it?" He pressed her hand even harder against his heart, looking almost desperate as he looked into her disbelieving eyes. "You do that, Elsie, YOU do that. Whether you wear this fabric or not. I love you. I desire you. There's nothing I don't want to see of you, I want to touch you everywhere, I want to caress and taste you everywhere. Everywhere. - Do you believe me?"

Charles knew she would be too shy to get consent from her, but he hoped she wouldn't stop him if he tried to free her from her nightgown again.

He kissed and pressed her against him with everything he had and let his hands wander back to the hem of her nightgown.

Charles released the kiss and rested his forehead on hers, keeping his eyes closed. He gently lifted the fabric and noticed Elsie's self-consciousness again.

"I just love you, Charles." She was extremely grateful to him for his empathy. She was touched by his thoughtfulness towards her feelings.

She gave him an intense kiss and snuggled up to him, only to pull away again immediately afterwards. He could see in her eyes that Elsie was now ready. Without leaving her gaze, he slowly pulled the fabric over her stomach, her breasts, over her head and gave her a few moments to get used to the feeling being nacked before he guided her to his lips at the back of her head.

Elsie was surprised that the discomfort quickly gave way to a sensation that reminded her less of shame and more of excitement. Excitement that made her eagerly wait to see how Charles would touch her now.

His hands ran up and down Elsie's back again, gripping her bottom and squeezing and pulling at it. Through Charles' open pyjamas, he could feel Elsie's breasts brushing against his skin during certain movements.

Elsie felt a hand making its way up her side, she knew where it was going. She was so excited that she needed more air, so she let go of her kiss. After a few deep breaths, she began to kiss him again and only moments later, she felt Charles' palm cradle her breast. He began to massage it gently, getting Elsie used to the touch. He noticed no resistance and became more forceful. His massaging turned into kneading and when he began to pinch her nipple lightly between his index finger and thumb, she moaned with surprise into his mouth.

Charles ended the kiss and placed his lips on her collarbone and moved on to her breasts. Elsie was curious about the touch and leant back slightly to make it easier for Charles to reach his target. She leant her head back, bit her lips and had to start moving her pelvis back and forth again with desire, she couldn't just sit there, she couldn't do it anymore. She wanted it all so badly, her mound of pleasure was already so sensitive, so swollen, that the slightest touch from Charles made her moan. This didn't go unnoticed by Charles either, as he could still feel Elsie's arousal, wet and hot, through his thin pyjama bottoms.
Elsie liked the way Charles looked after her, she could feel nothing but her husband's caresses, her self-doubt no longer had any place.

Charles' mouth had finally found her nipple. He ran his tongue around it in circles and then left it again. He blew against the moistened area and was rewarded with a surprised moan from Elsie. He noticed how her rosy nipple stood up hard and happily took it back into his mouth to suck on it with relish. Elsie savoured the unfamiliar feeling, it seemed to increase her lust immeasurably.

One of her hands scratched Charles' scalp, applying light pressure to keep him from leaving her breast. She placed the other hand on his knee to support herself better. She could no longer tell where she could feel Charles, her mind seemed to have stopped working. Charles seemed to be everywhere.

Charles realised that he couldn't hold back much longer, he had really done his best so far, but he couldn't go on much longer, he had to unite with her. He turned with Elsie so that she could fall behind him on the mattress. He quickly removed his top and trousers and lay down between his wife's legs.

He savoured the look on her face as he slowly and agonisingly inserted his stiff cock into Elsie. She kept her eyes closed, no sound escaped her mouth, but he realised very well that she was ready for more, that she wanted more. She was so wet and he was so stiff that he didn't need a hand to plunge in.

He began to move and immediately realised that Elsie couldn't be far away from her climax either. Her breathing became jerky and with each of his thrusts, a joyful moan escaped her, quiet and restrained, but she moaned. Charles' thrusts became firmer and more energetic, he wanted to penetrate her as far as possible.

The pressure that Charles left on her swollen mound with each of his thrusts became more and more intense. The intoxicating sensation took up more and more space in her body, thrust after thrust. Elsie unconsciously tensed her muscles, which did not go unnoticed by Charles. As wonderful as the feeling was, she didn't know much about it. She needed Charles as close to her as possible. That's why Elsie pulled his head down to kiss him.

"Charles ... I ... it ... ", she breathed out bumpily between gasps and kisses. Charles was extremely turned on by this gasps, he was afraid he wouldn't last until her orgasm. "Charles ... ", she breathed again.

He noticed how Elsie tensed around him and held her breath, her fingers seeking a hold on his back. He slowed down his thrusts, watched her in her pleasurable ecstasy and also climaxed after just a few more thrusts.

Elsie was dazed, all her senses were failing her. Her eyes were teeming with stars, her ears were ringing and her skin seemed to be numb. She felt a pleasant, unprecedented sense of relaxation throughout her body. She was completely satisfied.

Charles lay panting next to his Elsie and also savoured the lingering sensation of his orgasm. He pulled the blanket out from under them and covered them both with it. It was only now that he realised that the window was still open. His currently overheated body was beginning to freeze and he didn't want Elsie to get cold either.

They both lay next to each other out of breath and needed a moment to themselves.

When Elsie realised that her pulse had calmed down again, she snuggled up to Charles and rested her head on his shoulder. He placed his hand on her waist. They were both wordlessly happy and content. They both enjoyed the intimate moment, simply lying naked next to each other and caressing each other tenderly.

_C&E_

Charles entered the breakfast room of the guesthouse with a ravenous appetite. After a few minutes in bed this became noticeable with loud growling and raging.

They would probably still be lying in bed if Charles' stomach hadn't been hissing for attention, Elsie thought with a grin as she watched her husband looking around the small buffet for breakfast.

Elsie, on the other hand, started by looking for their table, as she noticed that there were little name cards on each table. She found the card she was looking for with the words "Mr. and Mrs. Carson" on it on the table near a glass-covered wall that offered a wonderful view of the garden. Elsie sat down and looked around. The room they were in was a mixture of a winter garden and a dining room, but probably more of a dining room with a lot of glass. The sun was shining and Elsie marvelled at the beautiful flowers and happy birds that were chirping around. Her gaze wandered further and caught on the white-flowering elder trees that she spotted at the back of the garden, which brought a dreamy smile to her face.

Mrs. Dewshine, the owner of the bed and breakfast, approached Elsie, but Elsie was reluctant to be brought back from her thoughts and forced her head to turn towards Mrs. Dewshine, but without taking her eyes from the garden. Only at the last moment did her gaze jump from the white blossoms of the elder to the owner's face. She enquired about their night and Elsie could assure her that they had had a pleasant night without the slightest disturbance and thanked her politely for asking. The plump hostess then asked for coffee, tea or hot chocolate.

Elsie ordered a cup of black tea with milk for both of them.

There were four more tables in the room. One was already being eaten at, as the many crumbs and used crockery on it suggested. Two little boys were sitting at another, sipping hot chocolate with their parents. The other two tables had either already been prepared again or were still waiting for their users.

Charles returned with a fully loaded plate containing a couple of slices of fried bacon, a portion of egg dish with sausages and two slices of toast with plenty of butter.

Elsie was amazed at the load that Charles brought with him and, rolling her eyes, admonished: "Don't let Dr. Clarkson know! As far as I know, you're supposed to eat a little more heart-healthy."

"Hasn't my heart had a good meal today?" Charles grinned cheekily at Elsie and waggled his bushy eyebrows up and down as he licked his lips demonstratively.

"Charles!", Elsie exclaimed indignantly and gave him a warning slap on his upper arm.

Just then, Mrs. Dewshine appeared with the tea she had ordered. She looked at them both, puzzled. Elsie gave a laugh that was supposed to minimise what she had just done, but it seemed rather convulsive. Charles had to stifle a laugh as he watched Elsie's behaviour. Neither she nor Charles moved, waiting until Mrs. Dewshine had poured the tea and placed the jug of milk in the centre of the table. Elsie would have liked to sink into the ground.

Charles burst out laughing as the owner left the room.

"Just relax. Firstly, no one has heard or seen it." He looked amusedly at the neighbouring table and greeted the small family with a nod. "And secondly, no one has any idea what I'm talking about. Unless I have to explain it to you in more detail."

"Charles, will you stop talking!", Elsie hissed at a volume that couldn't leave her table. "What's got into you. You'd better eat your food before it gets cold."

"You see, that's all I wanted to hear." Charles pressed a cheeky kiss to Elsie's cheek and laughed at her excitement. "But now tell me, my sweet lass, what just made you smile so much?"

Elsie was surprised that Charles had noticed and took a large sip of tea from her cup, putting it off again when she said she would get something to eat from the buffet first.

After just a few moments, Elsie was back with Charles with a small portion of porridge, on which she had sprinkled some sugar and cinnamon, and a banana. She placed the apple she had brought with her in front of his plate and gave him a "here-this-is-for-you-and-you'll-eat-that, too" look.

"That looks like a deal to me."

Irritated, Elsie asked: "What do you mean, Charlie?"

„I'll eat the apple and you tell me about your smile."