psl; [a marriage of inconvenience]

[hedgemaze]

THE AUBEL ESTATE is located in Derbyshire, England, a stately old home reminiscent of centuries long past. Long ago, it had fallen into disrepair and abandoned until previous generations of the Aubel family purchased the land for themselves, having found their fortunes in matters of real estate. Since that time, the outside has been restored and the inside has been renovated at least three times. Four, if you ask the uncle who remembers the one summer where the chandelier fell from the dining hall, taking a large portion of the ceiling with it. How embarrassing, if such a thing is true.

In its present state, it straddles the line between the old and new. The large, prominent rooms are ostentatious as they are filled to the brim with austere English culture; the smaller quarters, traditionally used by the servants and staff, are far more modest, and over time have allowed the tendrils of modernity to creep in as a result. Regardless, the home is impressive no matter how you look at it, and there are few who do not cast an envious glance at the estate as they pass by Derbyshire on their way to town, or perhaps northwest to Manchester, if they've even farther to go.

PHILIP AND JAMES AUBEL, father and son respectively, are the owners of the home, though only the father remains for any extended period of time. And even then, he only stays perhaps one or two seasons at a time, until he returns to his home in London, spending one or two seasons there, before returning again, living out his life of retirement to the fullest. James visits nearly every week (driving in from Manchester, and back) in the Spring, until the first freeze of Winter, when nothing will grow. Though they have a staff of two dozen -- give or take, depending upon the time of year -- taking care of the estate and its grounds, James is more diligent about keeping up appearances of the house, showing a special interest in maintaining the complex hedge maze on the land directly behind them. Only he keeps access to its center, a literal walled garden of seasonal flora.

AS RECENT DEVELOPMENTS WOULD HAVE IT, James has been drawn into an arranged marriage by his father and an old business acquaintance. She is scheduled for an extended visit soon, and the staff have done a meticulous job of preparing the hall for her arrival -- and the rest of the rooms, as well, if she is expected to make her living here permanent, one day. Today, the weather is clear and the help is eager to aid her in unpacking. The grounds are green and the family dog, an old greyhound with cataracts in one eye, bounds up to her with a slow wagging tail. The father will greet her, of course, with all the usual formalities, and though he doesn't know her all that well at all, she at least seems nice enough. He disappears soon after, leaving her to her own devices as she sees fit. James himself is nowhere to be found.

Somewhere, sooner rather than later, a collision course of first impressions will take place.

----------

D I R E C T O R Y;

➤ shitpost.
➤ first impressions.
➤ diamonds.
➤ text her, texter.
➤ saviour.
➤ flirt.
➤ closer.
➤ cross-examine.
➤ PARTY CRASHERS.
✶ elle + devon
✶ elle + corvus
✶ ian + james + corvus
✶ devon + james
➤ alien abduction.
➤ sleep now.
➤ bathe.
➤ remember.
➤ drink.
➤ welcome home.

Comments

[winterheart]

I could, but-... [Her banter is cut short by his kisses on her collarbone, the feel of his teeth that teases her with a bite, but not quite. She's only barely able to hold back a moan, but breathes out some words.]

Not... Fair...

[The flame he presented her and she chased after, she's beginning to feel it envelope her, making her insides begin to burn, like embers being fanned. She wants to touch him even more, she wants him touch her everywhere, she wants to consume him, she wants them to consume each other.]

[hedgemaze]

Plenty fair. [-he manages in-between kisses. She may be able to feel the way his lips curl up into a grin, him being so close to her.

While he busies himself with teasing her with light bites, one hand moves down to rest at her hip. A part of him -- the hungry, lustful side -- wants to unleash everything he's feeling right then and there; but that would defeat the purpose of their little challenge, whispers the more cognizant part of his mind. Best to make it tantalizingly slow and teasing, make her writhe for him, until she was practically begging for him to continue.

He wasn't sure which of the two sides was more mischievous than the other, honestly.

And so instead of removing her shorts, or even hinting that's what he wants, he keeps his hand there and moves his kisses downwards. From collarbone to chest, to torso, tasting every part of her that she bares to him.]

[winterheart]

[Devon bites her lower lip as James continues first with the nips and when she feels his hand on her hip, she braces herself...

Only for him to continue kissing and leaving what feels like no part of her skin untouched, a trail of heat that stokes the flames of her desire. She thought she was aching before, but this was just cruel and torturous. No, this was not fair, not fair at all; not with how good it felt, not with how he kept unraveling her, making Devon want to take him right away.

Her heart is thumping heavily against her chest and her breathing that had slowed down at first begins to ramp up and her voice threatens to spill out. Hands fly up to cover her mouth. He may be unrelenting with his touch, but she's proving more stubborn in reacting (but she's quivering, her breathing that escapes between her fingers is growing more feverish, her thighs clench together trying to contain her excitement).]

[hedgemaze]

[He stops kissing, only briefly, to lift his head up and take in Devon's expression. The look on her face -- the way she's covering her mouth so stubbornly to keep from making any noise -- makes him grin, and it only makes him want her more. But he can afford patience for the sake of the game they're playing. It's only more torturous when he stops completely, after all.]

Problems, Devon?

[What a tease.]

[winterheart]

[The pause causes Devon to drop her fingers slightly so she can exhale and relax from her effort to stay silent. She almost wants to ask if he's going to stop there, but thinks that would be too close to begging. He's making it hard for her to think, but she isn't so far gone yet that she'll ask him to continue. And thus, she shrugs at him, moving so that she's sitting up against the headboard of the bed, hand dropping to her sides.

Her reply is light and airy, relaxed even as she brushes her long hair behind her shoulder]

No. No problem at all.

[She might as well be taunting him.]

I could keep causing some though.

[hedgemaze]

[He shifts up, leaning back on his knees and looking at her, as she rests against the headboard. James should commend her for her brave face, he really should. But it merely tells him that he just needs to continue his assault, one way or another.

One hand presses against the headboard next to her, and he leans in close. His eyes lock with hers, mere inches away, and at this proximity it's not difficult to see the teasing spark of lust in his gaze.

His other free hand works on undoing the button of his pants as he speaks.] Cause away, or I'll beat you to it.

[winterheart]

[Devon thinks that if she wasn't a stronger person, by now she would have been undone simply by his gaze as James leans in close. She can't look away though, not when nothing in his eyes (god they were beautiful) betrays how he feels about her, about how he wants her and no one else. And there's nothing else that could give Devon as much happiness and pleasure to just know that and to share this moment with him again right now, again in the future, again, when they want each other.

He teases her back, she delivers. Devon closes the distances between them, first by lightly biting his lower lip before kissing him in full, tongue slipping in and slowly indulging and tasting him.

Devon moves closer so that they're almost chest to chest and her hands move down to stroke the sides of his torso before her thumbs hook to the band of his pants, helping him with the removal.

With a kiss this deep ravenous and her hands, eager to help him get undressed, it's not difficult to perceive her want for James. It's not as uncertain before now that they've had each other before and yet everything still feels completely new.]

[hedgemaze]

[With Devon kissing him like that, James can't help but make a pleasurable little hum into her mouth. His tongue tastes her, just as she does the same to him. And when she presses against him, working on his pants, he's shrugging off his shoes, deftly using his own feet to do so. They clatter to the ground with a dull thud, next to the bedside.

His pants join them soon, and James is clothed in nothing more than his boxers. His own hands move to her shorts, thumb hooking in its band. He'll be sliding those off of her, and his hips are already making subtle movements of grinding against her body. His want for her is just as equal as what she's feeling, though he's keeping it simmering under the surface for now.]

[winterheart]

[The combination of their raw and sensual kiss and James' hips grinding into her now bare hips, finally causes Devon to moan desperately into his mouth. She moves and presses closer to him in return as the shorts are removed and she draws back, struggling to breathe. The taste of him lingers on her lips and for a moment she seems like she wants to let her voice escape, to just give in and yet...]

J... James?

[Devon wraps her arms around his shoulders, forehead against his. There's a question that lingers in the way she says his name.]

[hedgemaze]

[When she pulls away, James has to stop himself from making a noise of disapproval. All he wants to feel is her body pressed close to his, but his mind returns to reality long enough for him to hear her say his name, in the form of a question.]

Yes, Devon?

[He locks his gaze with hers, forehead pressed against her own.]

[winterheart]

[She has to take a deep breath. Focus. What did she want? What did she need to feel before they...?]

If... If we're going to make this difficult...

[Devon's hands travel down to his shoulders and then they begin to slowly trail down his sides and then pausing at his thighs, hovering very closely to where he was probably feeling ]

... Is it okay if I touch you there? [She hasn't looked away from his eyes, trying to gauge his reaction to what she just requested. Her head tilts at him, making for a playful, if not wanting and seductive gesture.]

And you can touch me back?

[hedgemaze]

[It takes all of James' willpower to hold back a shudder as her hands trail down his body. They stop and lingering around his hardness, and furrows a brow in consternation. His gaze is wanting, what with he can only translate as her teasing touch, and the look in his eyes says all.

He returns the favor, moving his own fingertips down her torso, to her hip, and then lower. Through the thin cloth of her panties, James touches her where she's wanting most. A slow, torturously gentle lingering at first.

He hasn't looked away from her, not yet.]

Yes. Please do.

[winterheart]

[Is she getting carried away? It's a question that might have lingered in Devon's head near the beginning considering that they're doing all this in her old bedroom in the house where her parents or Ian could come back at any time and...

When James reaches down between her legs and she finds herself panting unevenly, all doubt disappears even in the back of her mind. And with his permission, Devon lets herself get carried away and her hands move to pull down his boxers. Her gaze doesn't break from him and before long, fingers dance upon his length, tracing downwards first, slowly and tantalizingly. She marvels at the sensation of him how it's so different from her and she wonder what it feels like for James.]

[hedgemaze]

[Devon's touch is exhilarating in both the heat it makes wash over his body, and in its newness of feeling. She's never touched him like that before (though they've only shared physical intimacy once before), and it's almost enough to make him forget exactly what he was doing, his hips moving slightly as she strokes him. He hums a little pleasant noise from the back of his throat, leaning in his forehead against her shoulder, but manages to stay lucid enough to not forget about his own "task" at hand.

He continues to rub her through the cloth of her panties, but only a moment or two passes before he decides to return the favor in full. His hand rises up, only to slip under the band, feeling her properly with tip of his fingers.

He manages in appreciation,] Mm, you're wet.

[winterheart]

[Her face is flooded with warmth when he speaks up, pointing out that she's excited. Partly out of embarrassment, partly because, well, when James points it out like that while his fingers tease her and she's touching him at the same time, Devon is all too aware of her arousal and how hot her insides are and how hungry he is.]

... And whose fault do you think it is? Although...

[Her hand gently wraps around him and begins to make more rhythmic strokes. Devon's breath, lingers around James' neck.]

If you're like this, I'm definitely at fault too.

[Even though it's still new, even though she had always been uncertain about how to participate in this dangerous dance with him, Devon finds that just like the first time, she's swept away, uncertainty be damned. It's what scares and exhilarates her about James, that she wants him so much, that he makes her so aware of it once he has her in his grasp and it's such a bright and vivid lust that burns within her that she can't look away from it.

Her hips shift slightly and then finally, finally, an audible and delicious moan from her is uttered.]

[hedgemaze]

[James can't help himself but grind into her hand a little; she makes it all too tempting to do so. His own body is teeming with warmth just under the skin, and his lips are parted only slightly as he breathes. Though at her comment, he huffs out a breathless laugh.]

Of course you are. I won't take that away from you...

[And ah, he hears that moan. He grins, despite himself, and his fingers move faster against her, lingering in her warmth and wetness.]

Not too loud, now. [He teases. She can be just as bloody loud as she wants, for all he cares.]

[winterheart]

[Okay, forget about the so called "challenge." James teases her and has the gall to stroke her so earnestly and vigorously all while grinding into her hand. Devon is flushed and feverish all over and she can't even retort back; like a match being struck, she's set ablaze even more than before as they pleasure each other and again her voice escapes as a cry, amorous and wanting.

Her unoccupied hand reaches to pull her underwear down, unwittingly moving her hips against his fingers making Devon gasp. She feels she can't take this much longer. James is touching her, she's touching him, but she wants more, she wants him to take her right now.]

James...!

[And she finally calls his name, lovingly, desperately. She gets her underwear off and she bucks her hips against him to let him know.]

James, I'm... Can you just...? I want...!

[She's struggling to ask him, when they're like this.]