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love several times before, but it still felt as if each time was the first. She thought she would burst, unable to contain all the love she felt for this man. It was if they had been fashioned specifically for one another, and not just sexually, but in every aspect of their lives.
    Her hands gripped his shoulders. They were slick with sweat, his muscles bunching with exertion as he held himself still. His forearms quivered as he dropped his forehead to hers. “I cannot wait.”
    “Then don’t.” Wrapping her legs around the backs of his thighs, she held on tight as he began to love her.
    His strokes were long and slow at first. He sat back suddenly, gripping her hips in his hands as he plunged deep and hard and fast.
    Esther dug her fingers into the warm, hard ground beneath her, searching desperately for something to hold on to. The heat between them was overwhelming as it surged to engulf her completely. Her inner muscles were clamped down hard on his cock and she knew she was close. James wrapped one strong arm around her as he continued to hammer into her. With his free hand, he stroked the small bundle of nerves at the apex of her thighs.
    Esther exploded. Bucking and crying incoherently, she reached out to him. James hips continued to pump frantically. He stiffened, crying out. She could feel the flood of his seed within her as he pulsed hot and hard in her core, her inner muscles milking him dry.
    He slumped forward, all but collapsing upon her. She welcomed him with open arms, loving the feeling of his large body covering hers. Now that the heat of passion had passed, the cool night air began to chill her. James stirred, raised his head and smiled at her as he brushed a lock of hair from her face. “All will be well. Trust me.”
     
    Esther was still hanging onto his words of hope several days later. The further it got from Samhain the more the image faded from her mind. Perhaps she was just being foolish and overly emotional. It was well known that when a woman was with child her emotions were volatile. She smiled softly as she stroked the slight bulge of her belly. She’d meant to tell James about their child on the night of the Samhain fire, but she’d gotten distracted by all that had happened. By her count, she was about three months along. Esther suspected that her mother knew, but she had said nothing. It was a good thing that the priest had come.
    “Are you ready, Esther?” Her father stood in the doorway, waiting for her.
    Taking a deep breath, she walked toward him, forever leaving behind her childhood home. “I’m ready.”
    “He’s a good man or I’d not let him have you,” her father uttered gruffly as he placed her arm in the crook of his.
    “I know.” She gave him a saucy smile. “I would not have him if he was not as good as you.”
    Her father threw back his head, his booming laughter shaking the rafters of the three-room cottage. She glanced around one final time before stepping through the front door and making the walk to the center of the village where everyone awaited.
    James stood handsome and proud before the priest, waiting for her to join him. The second she was beside him, he clasped her hand in his and gave her an encouraging squeeze. The priest smiled at them both and began. The ceremony was a blur and then James was bending down to kiss her. In a daze, she kissed him back. The villagers laughed and cheered as they greeted the newly joined couple.
    Happiness filled her as she realized that they were finally about to start their life together. Surely no woman had ever been as blessed as she. The feasting and celebrating lasted the afternoon and into the evening as everyone was in good spirits.
    The sun was barely set when a scream split the air. Everyone froze in place and Esther’s heart clenched as an unreasonable fear took hold of her. One of the older women pointed to the far end of the village. “Fire!”
    Sure enough, dark plumes of smoke were encircling a cottage.