Chapter Sixteen

Nick

Nick finished with the buckboard and horses, then he started his walk home. Henry chose to bed down in the bunkhouse, just as he had several times since his father had passed. The moonless evening was quiet. Stars blanketed the sky.

The evening’s meal and festivities felt like the official start of marriage, or at least it did to him. He hoped Cora felt the same. He’d only had her in his bed one night, and he’d kept things from going too far too fast. He’d rather take his time than rush Cora and risk spooking her, but he couldn’t hold back his need for her anymore.

When he went upstairs, he paused by Justine’s door. The room was dark and quiet. He went on to his room and found Cora inside. A well of pleasure surged through him as he took in the sight of her, dressed in his nightshirt. She brushed her hair and eyed him warily. Did she expect him to pounce on her? As much as he wanted to, he forced himself to refrain.

“You came to my room.” He shut the door and leaned against it, folding his arms.

Her lips quirked. “I did. Is that all right?”

“It’s more than all right.”

“Justine fell asleep almost immediately.”

“Then it’s just you and me.” He pushed off the door and went to her. Coaxing the brush from her hand, he fought the urge to toss her on the bed, tear her gown off and ravish her. Instead he brushed her hair. She tensed but laughed softly.

Her hair was silk. When he scooped a swath into his hand, it tumbled from his fingers like a waterfall. The feel of her soft hair only made his need burn hotter. He’d hoped brushing her hair would serve as a distraction, but it only made his lust flare.

He dimmed the lamps and came back to her, smiling. “I want my nightshirt back.”

Even in the shadowed light he saw the way her face pinked. He took her mouth with his, kissing her, gently at first. She gave a small moan of pleasure and set her hands on his chest. Teasing her lips with his tongue, he growled when she submitted to his kiss. She drew a sharp breath in response.

It slowly dawned on him that she could feel the reverberations of the growl. He broke the kiss, but didn’t move away. He growled again and watched her lips curve into a smile.

“I can feel that,” she said softly.

“I like that,” he said. “Very much. But you still need to give me back my nightshirt.”

Before she could protest, he tugged it up and over her head, tossing it aside. He kissed her again and backed her to the bed. When she could go no further, he lifted her and set her in the middle of his bed. He kissed her neck, lifting his hand to cup her breast. She flinched at his touch. Soothing her with a light touch, he scattered kisses down her neck and across her collarbone.

Her breasts filled his hand. He brushed his thumb across her nipple and lowered to kiss the curve of her breast. The taste of her skin made his body harden to steel. He nipped and licked her breasts while she writhed beneath him.

Crouched over her, he kissed her breasts and down her stomach, noticing the contrast between her pale skin, almost luminous in the lamplight, and his own tanned skin. His hands were roughened with work, hers were softer than anything he’d ever known.

Moving between her thighs, he smiled to see how she looked at him, her gaze lost in a sensual daze. Her eyes told him of her desire. Her parted lips and quickened breath spoke to him of her need. He nudged between her thighs and let his gaze roam down to her sex. She was wet and swollen. He needed to taste her before anything else.

She gave a murmur of surprise and edged away from him. He shook his head, narrowing his eyes as he hauled her back to him. The scent of her arousal almost undid him. He kissed a trail down one silken thigh. Her head fell back to the bedding. She was pliant beneath his hold, giving herself over to him. Slowly he licked her, groaning with pleasure at the taste of her virginal arousal.

Her breathing grew ragged. He kissed and teased her, sensing when her arousal climbed, but not letting her peak, just yet. Soft, needy sounds fell from her lips. She writhed. He tightened his hold, pinning her beneath him.

“Nick, please…”

The yearning in her voice made him relent. Gently, he stroked her with his finger. She was impossibly tight. He’d have to take her slowly, to ease her into lovemaking. But now he wanted to give her what she so desperately needed. He sucked her clit, taking her over the edge.

She arched off the bed and cried out his name as she was overcome with pleasure. He moved over her and took her in his arms. Trembling, she clung to him as her climax faded.

“You’re still dressed,” she said drowsily. “And I’m naked.”

He kissed her. Her eyes widened, and she lifted her hand to her mouth.

“I love the taste of my bride.”

She opened her mouth, but with no response ready, quickly closed it. Instead, she smacked his shoulder, shock etching her eyes. He loved undoing her prim sensibilities. From the first moment, he’d enjoyed teasing her, and having her all to himself, naked in his arms, made him think of a thousand dirty things he’d like to tell her.

“I imagined what you would taste like the first time I met you. What you would sound like as I made you mine.”

She pursed her lips. “Wicked man.”

He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed her. “Love of my life.”

With a soft look lighting her eyes, she smiled at him and stroked his jaw. Her hair spread around her like a halo spun from golden-red silk. Her milky skin held a blush.

“I am all yours,” she whispered.

Her sweet words shot a surge of possessive need through him. He rose from the bed. “You want me undressed?”

“Seems fair. You’ve seen me naked.”

He smiled at the memory of stripping her down, after pulling her from the river.

She pouted. “I might not know much about the particulars of the marriage bed, but it seems to me, things might be easier if you wore less clothing.”

“All right, sassy girl. Then come undress me.”

She came to the edge of the bed and stood beside him. First, she took off his shirt. Taking her time, she ran her palms over his chest before slipping it from his shoulders.

“I think you’re teasing me,” he growled, tossing the shirt aside.

“But I haven’t said a word.”

He kicked off his boots and narrowed his eyes. “Come on. Pants next.”

Biting her lip, she tugged the belt from its buckle. Her fingers brushed his stomach. His body felt like iron. He curled his hands into fists. A bead of sweat rolled down his spine. She slid the belt from the loops and when she began rolling it up, he snatched it and threw it the direction he’d tossed the shirt.

She sighed. Her warm breath fanned over his skin. One by one, she undid the buttons of his trousers. Her fingers skimmed his erection, drawing a groan from him. The smile playing on her lips made it clear she was enjoying this torment far too much. Swatting her hands away, he stripped off the rest of his clothing.

She laughed softly, but her mirth gave way to a gasp of surprise when he tossed her to the bed. She was about to protest, but he silenced her with a hard kiss. He stroked her mouth with his tongue. When he skimmed his hand over her thighs, she parted them. Her sweet and inviting response broke the last of his self-control.

Settling between her thighs, he cupped her face between his hands. Their gazes locked, he entered as slowly as he could. She was impossibly tight. When he slowed, she pressed her fingers into his shoulders.

He eased into her body, met with her virginal barrier and took her with a gentle thrust. She let out a soft huff. Her eyes watered and she tried to blink back the tears.

“It’s done,” he said.

She bit her lip and nodded. He lowered and kissed the tears that fell. He steeled himself to hold back the savage lust gripping him. Instead, he took gentle strokes, easing into her a little at a time. When he’d entered her fully, she relaxed beneath him. He hadn’t expected her to sigh or to entice him. Not the first time. But she clasped his hips between her thighs.

With each stroke, her small cries became more desperate. She arched beneath him, growing wilder. He felt her pleasure build. She made him feel like a ravening beast, and when she climaxed, he could hold back no longer. He snarled as she cried out. He thrust hard. She gasped beneath him. He fell over her, as he filled her with his seed, the last of his strength ebbing.

He rolled to her side and, cupping her chin, turned her to face him. “Cora?”

She smiled. “I’m fine. Wonderful, in fact.”

Closing his eyes, he drifted for a time, vaguely aware of her nestling closer. He held her in his embrace, and they dozed off. When he woke, sometime later, he tended to her, soothing her when she grumbled sleepily. A streak of blood across her thighs was the only evidence of her lost innocence. He turned down the lamp and lay in the darkness, listening to her soft breath and the rumble of a distant storm.