Page 62 of The Lady No One Noticed

Esther released a trembling breath.

She had never felt so close to another person. He surrounded her and filled her until there seemed to be no distance left between them, no secret or unspoken fear capable of separating them again.

Ian withdrew carefully before entering her again.

The slow movement created a delicious friction that made Esther moan into his mouth. He repeated it, allowing her body to adjust. Each deep stroke brought greater pleasure until the last trace of discomfort disappeared.

Esther tightened instinctively around him and whispered his name.

Ian groaned at the helpless response of her body and entered her more deeply, still holding every ounce of his weight away from her.

The careful rhythm began to break. His movements grew faster, driven by the desire both of them had restrained for too long. The bed moved beneath them. Esther’s breasts pressed against his chest while his mouth devoured hers.

She wrapped both legs around his waist, drawing him deeper.

Ian moaned her name against her neck. The sound shattered the last of her control. Esther’s nails dragged down his back as she clung to him. Every thrust sent a fierce wave through her body. The tension inside her tightened until she could barely breathe beneath its force.

“Do not stop,” she begged. “Ian, please do not stop.”

His free hand slipped between their joined bodies and found the sensitive peak once more. He stroked it in time with each deep thrust. Esther’s breath broke into helpless gasps. Her thighs trembled against the mattress, and every muscle low in her body drew tighter until Ian’s face, his voice and the exquisite pressure of him were all she could comprehend.

“I love you,” he groaned into her ear. “God, Esther, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

The unbearable pressure reached its height and shattered.

Esther cried out his name as her body clenched around him in fierce, helpless pulses. Pleasure rushed from the place where his hand touched her through every part of her, leaving her thighs trembling and her fingers locked around his shoulder. She could scarcely draw breath while the waves continued, one following another as Ian moved inside her.

Ian’s rhythm faltered. He buried his face against her neck and entered her once more, deep and controlled despite the tremor that passed through his body.

A rough moan escaped him as he held himself inside her and surrendered to his own release.

Esther held him tightly while the tremors slowly faded. Their hearts pounded together, and their damp skin remained pressed close. Ian lifted his head after a moment and looked down at her with love shining openly in his hazel eyes.

He kissed her with exquisite tenderness.

Esther smiled against his lips.

For the first time in her life, she did not feel plain, overlooked or merely convenient. Ian had seen every part of her, the wounded parts she kept hidden and the body she had been taught to doubt, and he loved her completely.

At that moment, Esther knew that no matter what had happened between them in the past, nothing and no one could deny that they were meant for one another. There really was no going back. He was hers, and she was his, forever.

EPILOGUE

One month later …

Esther looked outside her carriage window and noticed the serenity of the morning. She had imagined this day since she was a little girl but couldn’t believe that it had finally arrived. What was even more unbelievable was that she was marrying the man that she loved with all her heart. The man who was her ever after, her one and only. She was going to be Ian’s bride, and nothing in the world could make her happier.

“Esther, should we step out darling?” her father asked as the carriage stopped in front of a small church located a little distance from London. Her mother, sisters, Ian’s family, and a few of their invited family and friends had already arrived. Esther was supposed to come with her father. She had made sure that Ian would see her in her wedding dress under no circumstance before the ceremony. She wished for them to lay eyes on one another simultaneously, so their eyes could meet and time would stand still in the moment.

“Yes, father,” Esther replied and brought her beautifully embellished veil in front of her face. She breathed in, feeling the familiar rush of butterflies in her stomach, and nodded at her father. He stepped out and assisted Esther out.

The church was entirely concealed with large dense trees, and the old building was decorated with shrubs and tendrils growing out from all directions. Esther sighed, feeling as if she were in a small cottage in the middle of the woods.

Her mother was waiting for her just outside the doors, and Esther smiled at her as she walked forward.

“You look beautiful, darling,” she sighed, and Esther smiled at her. “Everyone’s waiting inside, come along.”