Celia hesitated. She wasn’t sure how he would go about giving her pleasure, but a bit of pain would accompany the ecstasy she was about to experience.

She nodded slowly, watching as he quickly lashed the free end of his cravat near the top of the post’s finial. When he was done, she stood like a filly tethered to a post, the cravat granting a limited range of movement.

“Are you all right?” he whispered against her ear.

Celia moaned, the sound soft and breathy. “Yes.” She could feel his muscled chest brushing her back, his cock gliding against the cheeks of her bottom. He was so hard and so big. Everywhere.

“You’re such a good girl. Waiting so patiently for me to make you come. Just a bit longer until I show you the stars,” he murmured, smoothing his hand over her buttocks. “Christ, I cannot keep my hands off you when you are wearing shoes like this. They scream for me to fuck you so hard we both forget how to breathe.”

Celia jolted forward, her belly and the valley between her breasts coming into contact with the fluted column of wood. The coolness of the bedpost’s surface made her gasp with awareness. Her nipples puckered even more in reaction. They were now painfully tight. Aching for contact. Aching for Gabriel’s mouth. His tongue. His teeth.

“Please…”

The word slipped out. A supplication for more.

“You’ve been frightened of the dark since I’ve known you, Celia, and since our marriage, I’ve realized the severity of your condition is far deeper than just simple fear. Perhaps I can help with this, if you trust me to do what I think is best. Will you allow it, pet? Let me help you?”

Celia’s brow creased. Was he trying to cure her of that trauma? How could he? And how did this mesh with the promise of pleasure? It did not seem the two could possibly intertwine.

“I-I don’t know.”

“Shhh. Let me show you what I mean. You can always use your word and I will stop.” He stood beside the bed, his dark eyes burning into hers. His hand smoothed over one of her breasts, tweaking the nipple between thumb and forefinger. When she sucked in a breath and trembled, Gabriel smiled as though he’d just been provided with vital information. “I hope you don’t use that word, however. It will please me immensely if you can endure this for even a few moments.”

Celia took a deep, ragged breath. She wanted so desperately to please him. Surely, she could do what he wanted for a few seconds. “I’ll try. For you, Gabriel.”

“Good girl.” His approval rumbled through her, leaving her warm and achy all over but especially in the space between her legs. “Wait here. I shall return shortly.”

Dropping his hands, he stepped away, and instantly, Celia was cold, her skin pebbling with goosebumps. She hung from the bedpost, listening to the sounds he made while searching for something in the adjoining room which served as a huge wardrobe. It seemed an eternity before he finally returned, and in the soft glow of the lamplight, she saw that Gabriel carried two items in his hands.