Mail-Order Grooms: The Complete Boxed Set Page 20

  A primitive growl resonated from somewhere in the back of Roderick’s throat. He rested his hand on her knee before trailing his fingers slowly along her inner thigh until he reached her aching center. His hand only hovered over her sex, making contact with some of her soft curls but applying no pressure. The feather-light sensation made every nerve ending in her body feel like it might burst into flames.

  He touched her belly and trailed his hand further up under her clothes. “Time for that dress to come off,” he growled.

  It was more an order than a statement. With her knees bent and feet flat on the bed, she arched her pelvis off the bed so that he might push her dress and shift up toward her head and neck. She sat up. The rough fabric of the woolen blanket felt prickly on her bare bottom. He drew the clothing over her head and tossed the material aside.

  His gaze lingered on her breasts. They were small with hardened nipples protruding on display. She let out a gasp when he clamped his mouth over one and sucked, flicking his tongue back and forth. His hand found her other breast and kneaded it gently. “God, you’re gorgeous,” he growled against her skin, kissing along her neck. He kissed her mouth again, this time with a possessiveness she felt at the very center of her being.

  When he pulled away and sat next to her on the bed, she let out a whine of protest. “Why did you stop? That, that felt good,” she stammered.

  “Yes,” he said gravely. “I can tell. I want you to feel good and you will, but I would be remiss not to punish you first for running away again.”

  Her mouth fell open. His chiding words caused her sex to pulse and ache, even as her mind rallied against the punishment. He didn’t wait for her agreement or participation in positioning herself for her spanking. Instead he hauled her naked, quivering body over his lap and wrapped a steadying hand around her waist.

  “But Roderick, you said you weren’t angry with me,” she protested.

  “I’m not, darling, but you’re still getting punished. You must learn,” he scolded, bringing his hand down hard on her bare bottom, “that we do not run from problems. We face them together.” He spanked her several more times, the swats hard enough to cause a sting right away on her highly sensitized skin.

  She yelped and twisted as his hand picked up speed. The spanking echoed loudly against the logs of the cabin.

  “And you will also learn,” he said while smacking, “who this naughty red bottom belongs to. Who does it belong to?”

  “You,” she gasped.

  “Mm hmm, that’s right.” The spanking continued, heating her flesh and knocking her mound and sensitive clit against his hard thigh. “And every time you doubt it from here on out, this naughty bottom going to be spanked scarlet. Make no mistake about that.”

  She moaned, the pain and pleasure of the spanking so intense she needed relief from both. “Please, Roderick!” she cried, unsure of what she was asking for, knowing only that she felt like she might burst.

  Her plea didn’t move him. “You will accept every earned swat, young lady. We’re not stopping for some time.” True to his word, he continued to spank her hard, roasting her tender flesh in measured, firm discipline.

  She tried to remain still and accept the punishment, but her bottom smarted anew with every swat that layered one over the other. She squirmed, her legs spreading wantonly over his lap as he continued to discipline her. He spanked her thighs, his fingers catching her inner legs as she kicked and spread them. Her belly wiggled frantically against his hard lap, igniting her feeling of helpless arousal and pain.

  He stopped and slid his hot hand between her legs, where he cupped her pussy. “This is very naughty, getting wet during discipline. He gave her pussy a sharp spank, sending shockwaves of pain and pleasure throughout her belly and sex. “Are you my naughty girl?”

  “Oh, God,” she said, trembling with the intensity of her humiliation, which caused unimaginable desire from somewhere deep inside of her.

  He spanked her pussy again. “Answer me. Are you my naughty girl?”

  “Yes!” she cried, tears coming to her eyes.

  “And what do naughty girls get?”

  “S-spanked,” she stuttered.

  “That’s right. They get their bottom spanked. And then they get their naughty little pussy spanked and filled.” He hauled her forward so that her legs straddled his left thigh. She gasped as he took firm hold of her bottom cheeks and pulled her higher up his leg, rubbing the sensitive folds of her womanhood along the fabric of his trousers. He planted his arm along her back with his elbow at her neck and proceeded to spank her again, alternating between each cheek, driving her pussy down on his leg.

  “You’d better not be getting my leg wet with your arousal,” he warned. “Otherwise your pussy is going to get spanked again.”

  She moaned, the threat and humiliation causing a wave of pleasure to build. It grew in intensity, and she felt like she was closing in on something just out of her reach. Her body stiffened. Just another couple swats and she would be there.

  He stopped suddenly and rubbed her bottom. “Not yet, your punishment isn’t over,” he chided.

  “Roderick, please, I need…”

  “You will get everything you need, all in good time,” he said. He lifted her off of him and laid her on her stomach on the bed. “Hmm, it’s just as I suspected. Look at what you did, you bad girl.”

  She looked at him over her shoulder and she felt her eyes widen at seeing the large wet spot on his leg. “I… I didn’t mean…”

  “What did I say would happen if you left a wet spot?” The corners of his mouth tugged upward, the only sign that he wasn’t truly scolding her. His eyes glimmered.

  “That I would get-get my…” Her cheeks burned.

  He landed a hard spank on her right cheek. “Say it.”

  “I would get my pussy spanked,” she said quickly, the heat in her face intensifying.

  “That’s right. Get up on your hands and knees, spread your legs open.”

  With a whimper, she did as instructed. He smacked her bottom again. “Arch your back. Stick your naughty bottom out.”

  Again she obeyed with a shiver. Her breasts swung down in front of her, and Roderick took advantage of his easy access. He held one gently and pinched her nipple, not very hard. He still wore all his clothes, which somehow added to the vulnerability of her position. Still, she trusted him and all the wonderful, scary feelings he was causing to burst inside of her.

  “I’ll let you know a secret,” his voice rumbled. “I was very happy to see that wet spot.” His hand traced lightly down her back and over her hot bottom. “This will be a good punishment for being such a good, dirty little girl.”

  He placed his hand over her sex and held it there for a moment and then started spanking. Crisp sharp swats layered on top of her nether lips and clitoris, bringing loud yelps and moans. She moved one knee forward, which earned her a hard swat on her inner thigh and a barked order to stay still. He was right, it was a good punishment. She’d never felt anything so shockingly pleasurable in her life.

  He stopped spanking her pussy, and she could hear the sound of clothing being removed. He joined her on the bed and cradled her next to him, kissing and pulling her entire body flush against his. His hardness pressed against the apex of her legs. Even though she’d never experienced a man’s member inside of her before, she instinctually knew it was exactly what she wanted. She longed to be stretched and filled and possessed.

  He moved over her, straddling her hips. As rough as he was with her before, Roderick was gentle as he eased himself into her opening. The walls of pussy expanded around him. After a pinch of pain, he was fully buried in her tight channel. “You all right, darling?” he asked, keeping still.

  In answer to his question, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his lips to hers. He kissed her tenderly and slowly pulled his cock through her. Sparks of pleasure zipped through her body. They were so close, so connected. He rocked back down inside of her, t
he second stroke even more exhilarating than the first.

  He picked up speed, filling and spreading her. The buildup of feelings she had before returned, and this time he didn’t interrupt. “Good girl,” he praised, encouraging her to go to where the pleasure was leading.

  “Oh, God, Roderick,” she cried, her back arching. Every bit of her stiffened before she jerked in his arms. The pleasure shot through her as her pussy milked his cock, spasming with the rest of her.

  He groaned. “You’re so fucking beautiful coming for me like that, baby.” As the waves of her orgasm receded, his began. He clutched her to his body and let out a growl as he filled her with his seed. The moment he became lost in his own pleasure was a moment Betsy would never forget and would take joy in seeing repeated often. It made her feel like she was the most beautiful, powerful woman in the world that her body could provide him with such pleasure.

  He lay down next to her and cuddled her body into his. Their legs and arms entwined like vines. He landed soft kisses all over her face. “My sweet girl. Now do you know I am yours and you are mine?”

  She sighed happily. “Yes, Roderick.”

  As she drifted near to sleep, she recalled the punishment and how it had morphed into unimaginable pleasure. She tried to determine the exact moment the spanking stopped being punishment and began being pleasure, but she couldn’t. The feelings were all tied together and led to an emotional contentment in addition to physical gratification. She was Roderick’s, forever, and every mark on her body served as proof of that.

  Chapter Eleven

  Shortly after Betsy and Roderick were joined in the marriage of flesh, they made plans to join in marriage by law. Their plans were delayed, however, because Betsy’s parents and the Harringtons admonished them to settle the matter of where they would live before going through with the wedding. Though the two of them were impatient and in love, they heeded the well-intentioned advice.

  Roderick’s greatest hope was that the position with Florence Clark’s uncle at his firm in Sacramento would lead to a secure job that would allow them to plant roots. Its location was close to Virginia City in both distance and culture. He would be able to resume work, and Betsy would feel at home there and be able to visit her family and friends much more often than if they moved all the way to the east coast. As for Roderick’s house in New York, he couldn’t bear to sell it. He would keep it and maintain the staff’s salaries for the time being.

  After exchanging a few telegrams with Florence’s uncle in California, Roderick was invited for an interview. He promptly bought a train ticket and packed for the trip. He wanted nothing more than to take Betsy with him on his journey, as the thought of not seeing her even for a day pained him, but it wasn’t proper for two unmarried people to travel together, so he decided he must travel alone.

  The two lovers stood on the platform, waiting for Roderick’s train west. “Can you believe it was only a little more than a month ago we met here for the first time?” he mused.

  Betsy stood on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m the luckiest girl in the world, having you for a fiancé. Thank you for seeing about this job, Roderick.”

  He enclosed her body in his arms and kissed her tenderly. “I’d do much more than that for you, Betsy. Anything you wish for, I will do everything in my power to grant.”

  She sighed happily before her face clouded with sadness at the distant sound of the train’s whistle and chug along the tracks. The noise grew nearer, as did the time when they would have to say goodbye.

  He swiped a tear off her cheek with his thumb. “None of that. I’ll be back before you can miss me.”

  “Not true. I miss you already,” she huffed, her bottom lip protruding.

  “You’d better stop pouting. Otherwise, a spanking will be the first order of business upon my return,” he teased.

  She pouted even more noticeably, which made him laugh. “I’ll see you soon, brat.” He leaned forward and nipped at her bottom lip, then kissed her passionately, not caring about whether people around them were scandalized. Her kisses felt as important as the air he breathed. He needed them. The train screeched to a halt behind him, and the smell of coal from the engine filled his senses. They clung to each for a final brief moment before letting go.

  “I love you!” she called after him as he climbed the steps to the train.

  “Love you too, darling.”

  As Roderick waved to Betsy from a window of the train, a powerful feeling of grief struck him, and he couldn’t help but feel like he was losing her. It was entirely irrational, he knew. They would be together again before long, but that didn’t lessen the painful feeling.

  Throughout the whole of his journey, that same strange feeling of loss would revisit him often. Each time he pushed it away, scolding himself for being so dramatic, and each time it would return.

  In spite of the sadness that haunted him, the trip turned out to be successful beyond what he could have hoped. He immediately liked Florence’s uncle, and the feeling was mutual. By the time Roderick left the state capital, he’d secured a job and bought a comfortable house for him and Betsy to live in.

  The distance from Sacramento back to Virginia City was only a fraction of his original trip from New York City, but it somehow seemed longer. He couldn’t wait to see Betsy again and to hold her close. He missed her terribly, which he supposed was normal for people in love, but his impatience also stemmed from something else. Worry. For no good reason, he worried that leaving Betsy even for that short time had been a mistake. Relief would only come from seeing her again.

  Two days before he’d set out for his return journey, he’d sent Betsy a telegram, informing her about the good news of his new job and letting her know the date and time of his arrival in Virginia City. He’d expected to receive a reply from her, but when he checked at the telegraph office before boarding the train, no reply waited for him. Logically, he knew this wasn’t anything to be alarmed about. There could be many benign reasons why she’d been unable to reply or the message didn’t make it to him in time. Still, the lack of communication from her only added to his needling fear that something was wrong and made him even more impatient to be back with her in Virginia City.

  After what seemed like ages, but in actuality was only a few days, the train reached its stop in Virginia City. Roderick peered out the window, looking for Betsy, but she wasn’t on the platform. He tried to settle his wild thoughts, but his anxiety reached an all-time high. He hastened to his room at the hotel. Not bothering to freshen up, he dropped his suitcase there and headed immediately for Betsy’s cabin at a jog.

  When he reached his destination, he stood outside momentarily, trying to catch his breath. Before he fully succeeded at that, he knocked on the door. He could hear some murmuring and movement inside before the door opened and Lou appeared in the doorway. The worried, sad frown on her face nearly knocked Roderick over.

  “Mrs. Blake? Is everything all right?” he asked.

  She shook her head and looked down. “I’m afraid not, Roderick.”

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, trying to keep the panic out of his voice.

  Lou nibbled at her bottom lip. “I don’t know how to explain it, but… something is different about Betsy. We don’t understand it. It happened shortly after you left, and her pa and I can’t figure out the cause.”

  Roderick had to talk himself out of tearing past Lou into the house. “What? Is she ill? Is she hurt?”

  Lou shook her head quickly and reached out to touch his arm. “No, it’s nothing like that. She is perfectly well. It’s just…”

  “What?” Roderick asked, hearing the desperation in his voice. “What in God’s name is going on?”

  “She doesn’t want to see you.” Lou’s words tumbled out quickly.

  The revelation hit him like a punch in the stomach, knocking out all the air from his lungs. When he found his voice, he said, “I don’t understand.”

  “Neither d
o we,” Lou responded.

  Timothy appeared next to his wife in the doorway. Neither made an offer to allow Roderick entrance. They seemed wary of him, Timothy even more so than Lou. “She won’t tell us why,” Timothy said. “Only that she no longer wishes to marry you. She asked me to give you this.” He opened his palm, which contained the diamond engagement ring.

  Roderick barely glanced at it. “I won’t accept that ring back, and I won’t accept the end of this courtship without hearing why from her,” he said, his voice rising in volume. “I insist on speaking with her.”

  Lou and Timothy exchanged glances.

  “Betsy!” Roderick called past them. He couldn’t even begin to guess why this was happening. All he knew was that he felt like his entire world was upside down and didn’t make sense. He needed to see his girl.

  Betsy came into his view, which gave him a measure of relief until he saw her face. Roderick frowned with concern. She looked in his direction, but it was as though she was looking through him, not at him. “It’s all right,” she told her parents. “I’ll talk to him.” Her pa gave her shoulder a squeeze before he and Lou moved so that Betsy could join Roderick outside. A moment later the door was closed and Betsy and Roderick were alone.

  It was all Roderick could do not to take her into his arms and hold her tight, but her demeanor was such that she didn’t welcome his presence, let alone his embrace. “Tell me what happened, Betsy. I’m so confused.”

  Betsy set her jaw and stared at him, her eyes cold. When she spoke, it was without emotion. “I’ve decided I do not wish to marry you, Roderick.”

  Even though he’d been told this already by Timothy, hearing the words from Betsy caused a new wave of shock and pain. “But why? What changed your mind? I love you more than anything, and I know you love me too!”

  “I don’t love you, Roderick,” she said evenly. “I thought I did, but while you were gone I realized we are not meant to be together. I’m better suited for a man from around here. Please forgive me for leading you on for so long.”