Taming Maria (13 page)

They collapsed
on the carpet then, smiling into each other's eyes, came back from
the paradise of sensual pleasure to harsh reality. 'I must take you
home, sweetheart,' he said, kissing the tip of her nose.

'It this the
end? Shall we meet again?' She despised herself for asking, wanting
to appear ice-cool, as if losing her virginity was an everyday
event.

Charles looked
down at her. He was already dressing, shirt and breeches on,
transforming him once more into a gentleman, not a god of love.
'That's rather up to you,' he said, with his quirky smile. 'How
strong are you and how much do you obey your guardian?'

'He has
control of my money for another three years.' She began to realise
just how much Damien was in charge and how hopeless it was to fight
him.

Charles stood
in front of the mirror, adjusting his cravat and combing his
fingers through his hair. 'You could talk to your aunt. I know
Arabella quite well and she's not an unreasonable person.'

'He has a hold
over her. She seems to enjoy him being cruel to her.'

'They are of
the same persuasion.' Charles's eyes were angry. Maria hoped he
never looked at her like that. 'We can meet secretly for the time
being, if you wish, and see what transpires.'

'Perhaps he'll
go off to the West Indies again. He has sugar plantations there.'
She, too, had dressed, but had not bothered to tie back her hair or
bind her breasts.

Charles
shrugged. 'Who knows? He seems to be a law unto himself.'

His tone made
her uneasy. 'You know something about him, don't you? What is it?
Tell me.'

He tapped the
side of his nose mysteriously, still smiling. 'No, my dear.'

'Oh, Charles!
Don't tease!' Her arms were round him and he clipped her waist,
hugging her, his mouth hovering just above hers.

The door
crashed open. 'Well, well!' said a scornful female voice. 'What's
all this, Charlie? Are you buggering boys now?'

He turned, his
arm still holding Maria. 'Good evening, Sally,' he said calmly. 'I
wasn't expecting you.'

'So I see,'
she retorted, her eyes going over Maria, scalpel sharp. 'I've got a
key, remember?' He ignored her, gathering up his hat and Maria's
and guiding her out of the door. 'Where are you off to?' Sally
demanded, arms akimbo.

'I'm taking my
friend home, and I don't want to find you here when I get back.
Understand?'

'Oh,
hoity-toity!' Sally mocked. 'Your friend, is it? We'll see about
that.'

Charles stood
to one side, his stance insisting that she went down the hall
before him. 'Get out, Sally, and don't come back until I send for
you. Give me the key.' He held out his hand and, with a curse, she
dropped it into his open palm.

'Right!' Sally
glared at him and then at Maria. 'You won't get rid of me that
easily, and as for you... boy, girl or whatever you are, you
haven't seen the last of me!'

Robin used his
key to gain entrance to one of a row of three-storied houses. A
lantern mitigated the gloom of the hall, and he was about to lead
Jane up the narrow staircase when a door opened and a man was
silhouetted there.

'Come in,
Robin,' he boomed, his voice loud and cheery. 'No sneaking off to
your room until you've joined us in a bumper of ale. Ah, I see
you're not alone. Bring your friend in too.'

'Thanks,
Will,' Robin said reluctantly, and his hand tightened on
Jane's.

She found
herself in an untidy parlour, where a black iron kettle hung on a
trivet over an open fire and several equally untidy young men
lounged on broken-down couches and in sagging armchairs. One sat at
the table, books spread out before him, head in his hands as he
carried on studying, oblivious of the general banter, coarse jokes
and laughter.

'Good evening,
Robin,' shouted a ginger-haired individual, waving his tankard.
'We're holding a debate on Socrates. Was he or was he not a
pederast?'

'And this is
going to help you to get through your examination on Greek
philosophers?' Robin took this in his stride and Jane's admiration
for him mounted. 'I shouldn't think his sexual persuasion will make
an iota of difference to your marks, Johnny.'

'Don't be so
damned pedantic,' Johnny retorted, but still in a joking vein.
'It's blatantly obvious, my boy, that you'll come to naught and eke
out your existence as a curate in some rural backwater.'

'This suits me
very well,' Robin said, and Jane was acutely uncomfortable, certain
that they would see through her disguise. She could not refuse when
a mug was put in her hand, but found the ale too strong.

Johnny toasted
her, and then put his tankard down. 'Who's your friend, Robin? Are
you fond of choirboys? If I didn't know you better, I say you've
brought one home for private tuition.'

Every eye
turned to Jane. Even the scholar at the table glanced her way.
There was a hush, then Robin cleared his throat and said, 'This is
not a boy, sirs. Let me introduce Jane. We love one another, but I
should not be considered wealthy or influential enough for her
father to give us his blessing. We have to meet in secret and
tonight she dressed in a groom's clothing and met me at The Three
Tuns.'

This statement
was greeted by whistles, cheers and stamping feet. To them it was
great fun and not in the least scandalous. Students were a law unto
themselves, neither fish nor fowl and, apart from paying lip
service to their tutors, they lived very much as they liked. They
were scions of great families who had been given the choice of the
army, the church, or university. A humbly-born youth rarely had the
opportunity to join their exalted ranks, though occasionally a
nobleman pulled strings in order to have his bastard son
educated.

'Well, Robin,
if this is true, then why are you wasting time down here? Get
upstairs and make the most of it,' advised Johnny, grinning at
Jane. 'Have no fear. Our lips will be sealed and no one shall be
any the wiser.'

'Thank you,'
she whispered, fingers locked in Robin's.

'I hope you
aren't thinking that impropriety is about to take place,' Robin
blurted.

Further hoots
and disbelief greeted this statement. 'I should hope not!' said
Will, the twinkle in his eyes belying the sternness of his tone.
'Whatever next? We live a monastic life here, don't we, boys?'

'Pure as the
driven slush!' agreed a portly youth who was kneeling by the fire.
He held a coal shovel flat above the flames with a meat pie heating
on its surface. 'We never invite whores back here.'

'Never!' they
lied in unison.

'Can't often
afford 'em,' cut in Johnny. 'It's usually a tuppenny fuck against a
wall. You're fortunate, Robin, my lad.'

'I can assure
you...'

'Fie, don't
perjure your immortal soul. Go away and do it, man. Give the poor
lass what she craves.'

Jane left the
room in a welter of shame, but Robin gave her no chance to
reconsider, whisking her up the stairs to his room under the eaves.
It was cold, and he lit the candle and drew the threadbare
curtains. Taking her hands in his he chafed them between his own to
warm them.

'I'm sorry
this is such a poor abode, but it's all I can manage at the moment.
My lot will be improved when I take up my position in Burdock in
the autumn. I shall be living with the vicar and his family in the
manse.'

'That will
make it all the more difficult for us to see each other,' she
mourned, clinging to him, wanting to stay like that for all
eternity.

'It's not too
far from Bath, and your parents visit there to take the waters,' he
pointed out, and held her closer. They stood together under the
sloping ceiling, oblivious to the cheerlessness of their
surroundings.

They could
hear his fellow lodgers shouting and laughing below, but they posed
no threat. There was nothing to stop them making love and they sank
on to his bed together. Jane was eager yet fearful, as she had been
on that first occasion of intimacy. But now the fear was much less
and the desire greater. She lay back, wide legged, blessing the
freedom of breeches, wanting to have him take them off for her. But
for now it was enough to be able to feast her eyes on his face.

He bent over
her, and his loosened hair brushed her temples. She could see the
line of his cheekbone and finely shaped brows. She slid her hands
under his coat and let her fingers stray across his chest, feeling
the muscles under the linen shirt. He gasped, and his pupils were
dilated with passion in the candlelight.

'We should
stop,' he muttered, even as he found her breasts under the mannish
attire. She was glad she had not found it necessary to bind them,
like the full-bosomed Maria.

'I don't want
to stop,' she whispered, invading his mouth with her tongue.

He pulled away
to whisper, 'We shouldn't... it's a sin. You might get with
child.'

For a second
she wished he was a more impetuous lover, but knew it was only his
concern for her that made him careful. A wayward part of her urged
that she break down his resolve, proving her power over him. 'We
haven't long before Maria comes for me. Let's undress and go to
bed,' she urged.

No man worth
his salt could have refused such an invitation, and Robin was no
saint. They started to take off their clothes. She was naked first,
suddenly shy, clasping her arms about her breasts and pulling the
bedclothes over her. Robin, too, was self-conscious about his body,
hiding his genitals as he climbed in beside her.

'It would be
like this if we were married,' she said, cuddling his shoulder.
'Every night we'd spend together. Just you and me, alone. I want
that, Robin. I don't like the idea of doing it with Percy, and
that's what my family are planning. Can't we elope?'

'You must be
patient, sweetheart.' He made it all the more difficult to do this,
seizing her hand and kissing each finger, the knuckles, the nails,
and the inside of her wrist. It set her on fire.

She wriggled
down under the sheet and grasped his erect cock. She had dreamed of
doing this again, even thought of it when Jane was caressing her.
The reality was even more wonderful than she had remembered.

He moaned at
her touch. 'Oh, darling, I need you so much. I have used your sweet
image to fire my imagination as I satisfied myself, losing my seed,
but never really stilling my craving. I love you, Jane. There, I've
confessed it. Now you can make or break me.'

'Robin, my
dearest! I feel the same about you. I shall die if we can't marry.
I'll speak to my father or maybe Lady Arabella. She is much admired
and respected by all.'

'And if not?'
He was fast losing control, rolling his thumbs over her nipples and
then pinching the needy points. Thrusting herself up to meet his
touch, Jane was aching with desire.

'Then it's
Gretna Green,' she murmured, unable to concentrate on anything
except her body's demands.

He propped
himself up on one elbow and looked down at her. 'We'll do it,
darling, even if it means I have to leave the church. I can work at
other things... as a college lecturer or private tutor to an
important family.'

His voice
trailed off and his hand cruised over her belly and mound and
thighs. She parted them, opening herself to him. He sat back,
looking at her, his hands still cruising over her. 'I could gaze at
you forever,' he said, unsteadily. 'You are more beautiful than any
work of art. I want you... but must give you the greatest pleasure.
I'm not skilled at lovemaking.'

'I showed you
what to do last time.' She took his hand and placed it on her
mound. 'My love-bud is my most sensitive part. Remember?'

This time she
was bolder, teaching him how to go down on her, open her cleft with
his fingers and lick her till she peaked. Coming in a sunburst of
pleasure, her instinct was to draw him into her, welcoming his
penis, wanting it to clench herself around in her final orgasmic
spasms. He needed no urging, inserting his glans, meeting the
obstruction of her virginity and pushing against it.

'I'm sorry,
darling, am I hurting you?' he gasped, unable to stop the urge to
thrust deeper.

'Yes... no...
it's all right... go on!' she squealed, tolerating the pain as her
untried love-channel yielded to his invasion.

'Dear love...
oh, my dearest,' he gasped, his movements quickening.

Jane flung her
arms round his neck and her legs about his body, forgetful of
everything in the desperate need to get closer and closer to him.
His penis felt huge, and she feared it would split her asunder, but
it became more bearable as their mutual fluids eased the path.

'I love you,'
she whispered, her face buried in his hair. 'Oh, God, I'm going to
come. I can't hold back.'

She felt him
pulsing within her, then he suddenly pulled out and spilled his
semen on her belly. It was wet and sticky, rapidly cooling, but to
her it was a sign that he cared so much for her that her safety was
of paramount importance. He was avoiding planting a baby in her
womb.

'Oh, Robin,
that was wonderful,' she murmured, languid in the aftermath of
pleasure.

He was drowsy
now, snuggling into her, wanting to sleep, but their peace was
rudely shattered by Will banging on the door and shouting, 'There's
a man here. Says he's come to take Jane home. He called her "Lady
Jane". Is this true, or a joke?'

Robin did not
answer; instead he struggled into his breeches, then said, 'Tell
him we'll be only a moment.' Jane had already leapt from the bed
and was almost ready. She took one last look round at the room
where she had lost her virginity and then accompanied Robin and
Will downstairs.