Catching his eyes, a giggle escaped through her lips and she pressed her face into his neck. Who would have thought that Jamie MacFusty had a sense of humor? Part of her was too embarrassed to admit, even to herself, that this other side of him—the soft, tender, humorous side—made her heart flutter.

Her smile was suddenly wiped from her face and replaced with a grimace. A pained shriek escaped her lips, her nails instinctively digging into her shoulders. Rather than pushing him away, she clutched him tighter: her heels dug into the back of his calves, and her upper arms instinctively tightened.

"Be careful," she gasped, nose scrunching as she tried to adjust to the discomfort. After taking a deep—but not too deep, lest she cause her body to shift underneath him—breath, she muttered, "It hurts. Please don't move."

---

For once, Jamie had anticipated such a reaction from Bella. Even when he'd been with more experienced women, some had to still adjust to his size. Though, none ever really shrieked in such a way so that part was new to him. He didn't make a habit of ruining virgins, after all, and Bella was most certainly a virgin. The lack of experience was beyond evident once he'd entered her and he hadn't been able to hold the rather satisfied groan in as a result.

But her words had him chuckling slightly as he buried his own face into the crook of her neck. He hadn't intended on moving again, not right away anyways. He nipped at her neck and then earlobe while trying to remain as still as he could.

"It will for a bit," he said softly, reassuringly, "But it won't get any better without movement." Of that he was sure. Just lying there would do neither of them any good in the grand scheme of things. He'd wait though, however long she needed him to.

---

Scowling at his comments, Bella laced her fingers into his hair and tried to relax.

"I don't believe you," she pouted, tracing shapes on his back to distract herself from the stinging pain. If he was so convinced it wasn't meant to hurt forever, maybe they weren't meant to fit together! (It wouldn't surprise her if she wasn't a fit for any man, given her poor streak of luck, she thought bitterly.)

---

Jamie propped himself up on an elbow again as she pouted, doing his best not to shift too much on or in her. He looked her in the eye, brow even raised a bit as he regarded her. He didn't really know what to say or do. He hated the thought of it just stopping but he would if it was what she wanted.

"Look," he started to say though had to pause so that he didn't come off harsh in the matter. He didn't want to hurt her, he really didn't, but there was only so much that could be done at that point and she'd have to make that decision. "You can trust me and see for yourself," he said, tone softened once more, "Or we can stop. It's your choice."

---

Bella readjusted herself, squirming underneath Jamie as he propped himself up on his elbows. "If I didn't trust you, we wouldn't be in bed at all," she pointed out, poking the tip of his nose. "And I didn't ask you to stop." Sleeping with a man as an unmarried woman was bad enough—imagine if they didn't finish the act!

"Unless it's you who's having second thoughts...?" she challenged, a single brow raised.

---

Jamie crinkled his nose as she poked at it. She did have a point at least. Being there, in his bed and under him, was certainly a big sign of trust. Or if insanity. Who knew, maybe it was a mixture of both? He was sure feeling a bit crazy himself. Women weren't in his house. Ever. Or, at least, not until she'd shown up. Bella had changed a lot of Jamie's world, that much was sure.

"No second thoughts here," he said with a smirk, "But if you're going to fret and worry about the pain the whole time, you'll never experience the good." A brow was raised again, a silent challenge being issued for her to just let go and relax.

---

Grumbling something incoherent under her breath, Bella wrapped her arms back around her neck and pulled him down for a kiss. Trailing a hand down his chest, she pulled back. "If there's any good to be had, you'll have to prove it to me," she taunted, taking a deep breath in as she pushed her hips up against his. If anything was worse than the physical pain of intercourse, it was the emotional pain of upsetting Jamie to the point where he left her in bed. She would have to hope he was right—that the pain was temporary and would even be pleasurable.

---

The kiss was welcome but Jamie was finally starting to think that perhaps she would listen to him and relax a bit. Her words only helped and he smirked in response. The pushing of her hips, however, brought a groan of pleasure from him.

Sliding his arms under her head to tangle in her hair, he pulled her face back to him s o that he could kiss her some more. Lips locked and that desire showing through further, he slowly started to move within her once more. He was hyper aware of every wince she made, doing his best to make it as pleasurable for her as he could manage. His movements were soft and slow initially, helping her to ease further with his size. If she wanted to taunt him with proving himself right, he'd do just that. But there was a matter of getting her comfortable first.

---

Kissing was easy. Kissing was familiar. And above all, kissing was more comfortable when compared to the jolts of pain that shot through her as Jamie moved about her. Fortunately, Jamie seemed to recognize that as well and pulled her against him, his lips capturing hers. Bella squeezed her eyes shut, fighting—and oftentimes failing—to prevent the winces and muffled yelps that escaped her lips every time he moved deeper.

Focusing her attention on his lips helped take her focus off the pain as the minutes passed. By the time she'd pulled back, her lungs aching for a deep breath, she noticed that the pain was absent. There was a dull soreness that accompanied every thrust, but the stinging pain—the kind that made her yelp—had vanished.

Pleasure, it seemed, wouldn't be an option this time, but he'd been right: the pain didn't last. Bella reached up and traced her fingers down his cheek, watching his expression as it shifted throughout the midst of pleasure.

---

Jamie did all he could to make it as easy and pleasurable for her as he could. Obviously he was a bit out of his realm when it came to a virgin, though, so there was never really knowing if it would do any good or not. He did, however, make sure her interests were in the forefront of his mind as they kissed and then didn't and then did some more. He nibbled on her neck, kissed below her ear. Sweet and sensual sort of things to hopefully help as best he could before it became all too apparent he couldn't hold his own release off for long.

Soon enough, the deed was done and he carefully slid from her. Very well aware of how awkward it could be for her to be faced with all the nudity, he was quick to pull one of the blankets on his bed up and over them before he all but collapsed on the bed next to her. He focused on his breathing then, trying to calm his own racing heart as he was totally at a loss for words in that moment.

---

Awkwardness was an understatement.

Goosebumps dotted her flesh as Bella was exposed to the cool draft. She reached for the blanket and was thankful to find that Jamie had been one step ahead of her, pulling the blanket up and over their nude forms. Tucking the cover beneath her chin, she cast a red-faced glance in his direction.

"Are you... alright?" she asked, breaking the silence in the room. He'd rolled off her without as much as a word, leaving her wondering what thoughts were running through his mind.

---

Jamie cursed himself silently. He shouldn't have ended it that way, not without offering a smile or something before he'd collapsed in such a way. Bella wasn't some barmaid or prostitute, after all. She'd need different reassurances. At least he hadn't just gotten up and left as he often did.

"Fine, sorry," he said as he propped up on an elbow and rested his head in the palm of his hand. Lying on his side, he finally looked to her, taking in the flushed features and wide eyes. What in Merlin's name had he just done?

He'd ruined an innocent. His brother's assistant.

Fuck.

"Just tired," he said, voice catching slightly as he said it. He was going to be murdered, he was sure of it.

---

One brow quirked in confusion, Bella mirrored his body language, propping  her head up on her elbow. "What are you apologizing for?" she asked, a wince crossing her features as she shifted onto her side. Good Lord.

Despite the pain, Bella was overcome with an overwhelming urge to close the gasp between them and bury her face in his chest. It must have been a womanly urge, she thought, to crave comfort and closeness—but his expression was far too difficult for her to discern whether he wanted the same. Was he... upset? Concerned? Regretful?

---

Shit. That wasn't right either. Now Jamie had her questioning him and his motives or thoughts. This was all exactly why he didn't form attachments. Why he never slept with women that would or could. Expectations were things he avoided beyond his position and job within the MacFusty family. Expectations made things complicated. He hated complicated.

"I'm not sure," he answered honestly, shrugging slightly as a crooked sort of lazy grin formed on his features. He just had to keep things light and then maybe it would be fine. Maybe she wouldn't expect too much and maybe she wouldn't hate him for doing something they both knew he shouldn't have done. "The pain, the aches," he said, starting to smirk slightly, "You're going to be sore tomorrow."

---

"Tomorrow? I'd say I'm sore now," she teased, feeling empowered by his smirking and smiling. She scooted across the bed and buried her face into his chest, one arm draped across his waist. This was what she wanted—the warmth, the intimacy, the closeness. Even as silly as it seemed, facing Jamie from the other side of the bed while they both lady nude under the covers brought a feeling of... loneliness. Self-consciousness. "But, as I've said before, I've felt worse," she murmured happily, pressing a kiss to his throat.

---

Jamie chuckled, well, more barked out a bit of laughter at her remark. This was what he needed. Easy and simple banter. Nothing serious. Otherwise he'd overthink. He'd already been doing so. But if things were kept light, he could handle it. He hoped.

Not having expected her to scoot close, he went a bit stiff at first. It wasn't for a long amount of time though, so hopefully not noticeable, before he relaxed into it. One calloused hand ran along her bare arm and up her shoulder, twirling fingers into her hair on occasion.

"You have said that before," he said, though he was unsure of how to proceed with that. He didn't want to pry. And he certainly didn't want to ruin whatever that moment was for them. "You're strong," he ended up saying instead, "Stronger than you give yourself credit for, I think. You'll bounce back soon enough." Whether that meant back into his bed, he wasn't sure though he was surprised the thought had even come to him. That definitely wasn't a normal thing for him.

---