'So I just fill the bucket with sand? And upturn it?' Her husband asked Elizabeth and Michael who had taken on the gargantuan task of teaching Benedict to build a sandcastle. They had come to the beach once again, after she had made sure Ben would be alright with it. The tide was high so the children would not be allowed to swim and would only be there to fly their kites, which went a long way toward easing his concerns. He had been coming with her to the orphanage as of late and the children had grown rather fond of him. He was a little awkward and unsure of himself at times, but he dealt with them well, letting them prattle on with their stories and show him their projects. The only thing was that he tended to speak to them as if they were small-sized adults, rather than children, but that was hardly his own fault. It was the way his own parents had raised him, he did not know any better.
'No, you silly billy! You have to make sure you pack it in realllyyyy well. Or else it'll just fall apart.'
Ben nodded seriously, pushing the sand into the bucket and pressing down on it in intervals. Today, he had cast off his cravat and waistcoat, sitting only in his shirtsleeves and looking unfortunately delicious. This whole List of Fun business was not very good for her resolve to never develop feelings for her husband. In fact, she was feeling a whole host of things right now; affection, adoration, and, most importantly, a healthy amount of lust. Honestly, it was indecent how he had rolled up his sleeves to show his forearms, drawing attention to his strong capable hands. Hands that knew how to touch her just right. Fingers that had sunk into her while he had whispered dirty words in her ear.
It was beginning to feel like a little sexual gratification might just be worth the threat he posed to her emotional well-being.
Because she had no doubts now; it would be good. He would fill her so well and he would play with her just right, all while muttering the filthiest, most vulgar praise she could imagine.
At least she could blame her flush on the hotness of the day. She shot a look heavenward, wondering if it was a sin to think lustful thoughts about one's husband. Surely not. It was surely all quite normal to want your husband to bend you over the edge of a bed and enter you in one hard buck of his hips-
A loud wave crashed over a nearby rock, spraying her with some salty water.
Well. Point taken, God.
She observed him turn over the bucket and then lift it very carefully, shooting her a triumphant grin once the sand underneath maintained its shape. And somehow even that managed to send her most intimate area aflutter. And while she was happy to keep watching from her position a few feet away, she had a more pressing task at hand. She turned her face to a very, very sullen-looking Prudence and Nicholas, who were refusing to look at one another.
'Now, I am going to give both of you turns to speak. And you will tell me why the two of you have behaved so unkindly to one another.'
The two started to protest and complain in unison, their cacophony rendering it impossible for Vera to hear a single word. She quickly quelled it with a stern, 'Children! Silence please.'
'Yes, Your Grace.' They replied in dejected unison.
'Prudence.' She began sternly. 'Why did you call Nicholas such a mean word?'
'Because he is a bastard.' She replied mutinously.
'And how is that relevant? He has nothing to be ashamed of for his father's sins, you're old enough to know better, Pru.'
'He called my sketches rubbish and said no one would ever buy anything I made!' She explained in frustration. 'He was being mean so I was being mean right back!'
YOU ARE READING
A Marriage Most Inconvenient (Inconvenient Matches Book #1)
Romance[The Inconvenient Matches series is comprised entirely of stand alone novels that can be read in any order] Forced into marriage by duty and obligation, The Duke and Duchess of Rothbury parted ways a week after saying their vows under the explicit u...
