Chapter Six
The bedroom was small. It was neat, like the rest of the house, but it was bare of everything other than the essentials. It didn’t seem like Liam had made any special arrangements for greeting his new bride.
Isabel had helped Sophie brush her teeth, then change into her night clothes and eventually tucked her into her big four-poster bed. Sophie’s room was fit for a princess. It appeared that Liam had pulled out all the stops necessary to make his daughter’s room comfortable and modern.
His own bedroom remained stuck in the nineteenth century, Isabel had never seen anything like it. There were barely any lights in the bedroom. His mirror was old and silver polish was chipping from its sides. She couldn’t see any of his clothes. There were no carpets and only a thin lace curtain hung from the window, the room’s only embellishment.
Isabel smiled as she stood in the middle of the room, thinking about how peaceful it was to read Sophie a story. She had even watched the little girl’s face as she drifted off to sleep. Sophie held onto Isabel’s little finger as she read. She knew instantly that it was going to be very easy to fall in love with this charming young girl.
Now she was in Liam’s bedroom. Her two bags had been placed by the door and she looked at them with dread.
This was supposed to be their wedding night, but they weren’t even married yet. He had hinted earlier that he wanted to test her worthiness as his wife, even in bed!
Isabel gulped at the thought of that. She was twenty-four years old and still a virgin. She had only had one boyfriend in college and she had never felt comfortable enough with him to go all the way. And here she was, planning on losing her virginity to a man who she didn’t even know. A man who was testing her to make sure that she was marriage material.
Isabel slowly walked over to the window and, to her surprise, found Liam rocking on a chair on the front porch beneath her.
He had his cowboy hat on and he was smoking from a pipe. Again, something she had never seen. He looked like he was stuck in time. He had taken off his jacket, so she could see the faded checked shirt he was wearing, rolled up to his elbows.
He was looking out into the darkness, sitting under the only dim overhead lamp on the porch, rocking silently. Isabel watched him, for several minutes, wondering what it was about him that drew her to him. He barely spoke to her, refused to answer any of her questions, and didn’t seem to appreciate her or even want to marry her. And, yet, Isabel couldn’t help but feel excited.
He wanted her in his bedroom, which could only mean one thing. That he wanted her in his bed.
She quickly walked over to her suitcases and pulled out the red silk nightdress she had packed in the last moment. It looked out of place in her hands here, like it didn’t belong in the room. She slowly peeled her dress off her shoulders, took off her boots, and then slipped into the night dress.
When Isabel walked over to the mirror, she saw for herself what Liam would see. Pale pink complexion, a large red mouth, green eyes and thick brown corkscrew curls. Her nightdress clung to her body so that her breasts stuck out voluptuously. Her legs were long and smooth.
“Admiring yourself?” She heard his voice and blushed immediately. She hadn’t even sensed or heard him come in.
Liam was standing near the door with a grin on his face. When she turned to him, she noticed the way his gaze fell immediately to the rise of her chest. He looked away like he was embarrassed for the first time.
“I just wanted to change into my night clothes,” she said and ran her fingers through her hair.
Liam nodded his head and walked over to the bed. Wordlessly, he started unbuttoning his shirt. Isabel remained standing in front of the mirror, watching him in silence.
So this was how it was going to be. This was how she was going to lose her virginity. She took in a deep breath when his shirt came off and she saw his bare torso for the first time.
Liam may have been a decade older than her, but he had the body of a twenty-year-old athlete. His abs were chiseled, as if out of stone, and his body was as tanned as his face and neck were. She saw the way his muscles bulged and flexed when he flung his shirt to the floor. Isabel gulped again. The man of her dreams was standing before her.
“Isabel, you can back out now if you want to,” he said, interrupting her musing. She looked up at his face and found him staring at her. He was still trying to get her to change her mind. He was still testing her!
“I want to do this,” she said hoarsely, and he clenched his jaw.
“I needed to ask,” he said and took a few steps towards her. Isabel remained frozen to the spot. Was he not attracted to her? Was that what it was? Was that why he was trying to get her to change her mind? Her back tensed up and she lifted her chin to meet him as he came closer.
“Have you changed your mind, Liam?” she asked him in a near whisper.
“No, I’ve just made up my mind,” he said. Before she could process his words, he had grabbed her by her waist and pulled her close. His lips were on hers before she knew what he was even doing.