Free Web NovelChapter 49: Chapter 49 - Letting guards down
"Lilith, I believe you are hoping I lack experience to make this easier for yourself. I doubt Michael could have prepared you well," Cassian said, making no move to free his hands.
He could easily have shifted her, but being held down by Lilith was a moment he did not want to cut short.
Lilith smiled, amused at the mention of Michael. "It must be some kind of bad luck to name an old lover at a time like this."
"You brought up my experience with other women first."
"Yes, but I didn’t name them, did I? In truth, I don’t know their names. To think that one of your old lovers could have been seated at our wedding tonight, and I would not have known. I ought to punish you for the possibility," Lilith said, leaning forward as though she intended to kiss him.
"None of them was there," Cassian said. "Though I know you won’t take my word for it."
His gaze moved briefly from her face to her neckline as she leaned forward, and then came back up again.
"You are turning out to be a quick learner. Keep your hands where they are," Lilith said, releasing them. "I would tie them, but I suspect you could break free without much effort."
She slid her hands back down his chest and began to ease his coat from his shoulders, pleased by how he followed her lead.
’The advantage of marrying a soldier, ’ Lilith thought.
She freed him of the coat and moved to the buttons at his waist.
"Lilith," Cassian said. The word carried no real resistance. "We don’t have to go through with this tonight. No one is coming in the morning to look for evidence." freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
Lilith paused. "Whilst I appreciate the consideration, not going through with it will only give people reason to talk. And when it comes to me, no one hesitates to speak. My family sent so many intruders to my chamber over the years that I imagine they always assumed I was long spoiled."
"Let us be clear about something. If I choose not to object to sharing a bed with you, it is because I want to. I have never let anyone else decide who I take to bed. That has always been my decision alone," Lilith said, meeting his gaze. "You are ruining this moment."
Cassian shifted his hands, and Lilith narrowed her eyes. "I am a complete fool," he said, recognising exactly what he had done.
She had been willing, even eager, and he had interrupted the mood with his concerns.
"Don’t plot, Lilith. Tell me what you want, and I will give it to you. That is the kind of hold you already have over me," Cassian said, his hand coming up to cup her face, his thumb tracing the line of her cheekbone.
"Then tell me the truth. Why did you kill my father, and why this sudden devotion to me? We never spoke before for you to claim to love me. If you fell for me from a distance, that was infatuation, not love."
"You won’t believe me if I tell you now, so I will keep it a little longer. When the time is right, and you are ready, I will share it," Cassian promised.
"This marriage is off to a difficult start if my husband cannot be honest with me. You tell me to ask, and then you withhold the answer," Lilith said, giving up with her advances. She shifted her weight and began to move off him.
Lilith had to stop herself from being angry as she, too, had secrets she wouldn’t share.
Cassian caught her hand before she could leave the bed. "If I tell you too soon, you will think I have lost my mind, and you will put even more distance between us. Until you feel something for me, I have to hold it back. But it is nothing like what you are imagining."
Lilith turned to look at him over her shoulder. "You needn’t worry about me thinking you are mad. I thought so from the very first day you came back. But fine. I keep my secrets from you as well, so I can hardly demand yours."
"A pity. I was going to seduce them out of you, but that plan has come to a rather disappointing end," Lilith said, watching the realisation settle over Cassian’s face as he understood what he had talked himself out of. "You moved too quickly, Cassian. We could have had a fine night. I was genuinely a little eager." freewebnσvel.cøm
Cassian drew her back by her hand so that she fell against his chest, her hair fanning out across him. "We have a marriage to consummate, and now you have forced me to prove myself."
"It clearly wounded you when I suggested you were inexperienced. You are a large man who knows how to please a woman," Lilith said, solely to spare his feelings.
Before she could react, Cassian shifted their weight in one smooth movement and reversed their positions, pressing her back against the pillows so that it was he who looked down at her now.
"I would rather you mean what you say than offer me kindness to save my pride. You wear this beautiful garment, so you deserve to have it appreciated. You are beautiful, Lilith."
"About time you noticed," Lilith replied, the corners of her mouth lifting.
"A shame it must come off so soon," Cassian murmured, lowering his lips to hers and beginning their second kiss of the day.
Lilith’s hands stayed still at first, and Cassian did not press her. In time, her coldness would soften. She had done it before, and she would again. He only needed to be patient.
Lilith did not fight the kiss. She welcomed it, letting the tension of the past days begin to loosen.
Cassian was her husband now, and after the long days of planning and keeping her guard up, she would allow herself this.
Slowly, her hands found their way to him, settling against the broad frame of his shoulders.
For tonight, Lilith could set aside the suspicions and the mistrust. She could play the part of a bride and mean it, just for this one night.
Cassian’s hand traced down the side of her body, sliding beneath her thigh to place it gently around his waist, pulling her closer.
Cassian broke away from the kiss, leaving kisses along her jaw. His fingers caught the edge of her sleeve and drew it down from her shoulder, starting to reveal her body to his eyes.
