Mail-Order Grooms: The Complete Boxed Set Page 5

  Warmth bloomed over her body. She very much wanted Adam to take her into his arms and kiss her soundly, but she knew he was likely referring to her spanking.

  He stood and collected her hand in his. “Bedroom,” he said, his voice even lower and filled with lust. His gaze raked down her body, branding it with his eyes and making it clear she would be his in every way before the sun came up.

  With one of her hands captured in his, she picked up the lamp on the hearth with her free hand and walked with him across the hardwood floor into her bedroom, which was on the opposite side of the cabin from Caleb’s. Their hands unlocked. While she set the lamp on her dresser, Adam attempted to close the door. “It’s broken,” she said apologetically. “Just lift it a little and…”

  Before she could finish her sentence, he’d jammed it shut. “I’ll see to that tomorrow,” he told her, which infused her with gratefulness. She wondered if he knew how much a simple statement like that made her feel cared for. She didn’t even have to order him to fix it, like she’d been planning to do.

  He slid out of his vest and shirt, and Susannah could see the shadows of the muscles on his chest and abdomen. She salivated, her body already responding to his presence in the room where they would consummate their status as man and wife.

  Adam took the two strides to the bed, sat down, and struggled out of his boots as she unbuckled and removed her own, along with her stockings. He set his shoes aside neatly against the wall. Susannah took in the sight of him. He wore only his trousers, which hugged his long, hard legs. His hands rested on his knees in a relaxed pose.

  “Take off your clothes, Mrs. Harrington,” he commanded softly.

  She blinked and moved trembling hands to her dress’s bodice. She fumbled with her buttons.

  “Nervous?” he asked, a slight tease in his voice.

  She glanced at him and smiled bashfully, and he chuckled. His tease lightened the mood and made her feel a little more relaxed. She unbuttoned the rest of her dress smoothly, gaining courage as she did. Holding it in place for a moment, she caught his eye, then let it drop gracefully to the ground. His gaze darkened as he took in the sight of her body, now covered only by her thin chemise and drawers.

  “Come here, darlin’,” he said, holding out his hand to her.

  Though she knew punishment was first on the menu, she didn’t hesitate to move in his direction. She felt a magnetic pull toward him, and being near him felt natural. When his hand enclosed around hers once again, she felt a tremor of delight, and it only increased when his hands enveloped her waist and he positioned her to stand between his knees.

  “You are lovely.” His hands lowered to her hips, where he located the tied ribbon holding her drawers in place. “I am a man of my word, which is why I’m first going to lower these for the rest of your spanking,” he said, sliding them down. “But it will be a short chastisement.”

  Her breathing became shallow, and her nipples felt sore and hard from rubbing against her silk chemise.

  “Step out,” he said, and she obeyed so that he could remove the drawers completely. His hands trailed up the backs of her legs, and a whimper escaped her lips when his palms reached the underside of her buttocks. His hands felt warm, and she longed for him to caress her everywhere. He caught the hem of her chemise and slowly lifted it over her head. He tossed it aside, and she stood in front of him fully naked.

  He groaned when he took in the complete sight of her, and he leaned forward to kiss each peaked nipple. The chill in the air intermingled with her arousal caused her to shiver, which he noticed. His lips spread into a sly smile. “Don’t worry, darlin’, I’m going to warm you up.” He patted his leg. “You know what to do.”

  She moaned, feeling frantic with desire and also a bit irritated that even her naked body couldn’t dissuade him from his disciplinary intent. A more compliant woman would have held her tongue, but Susannah said, “I very much wish you would make love to me instead of spanking me, Adam. That’s what usually happens on the wedding night, you know.”

  His eyes narrowed. “I hope you’re not arguing. This spanking has already been agreed upon.”

  She wanted him to kiss her. She wanted him to be worshiping her body, not disciplining her, and all her nervous energy and excitement aggravated her frustration. “I’m not arguing, I am commenting,” she said petulantly. “I know you would prefer to make love to me too.”

  She reached out suddenly and pressed her hand between his legs to feel for the telltale sign of a man's desire, but she was not prepared for what she would discover. She gasped when her hand felt him through his trousers. He was already fully hard for her.

  Catching her wrist, he pulled it away, and his eyes flashed dangerously. “Big mistake, kitten. You will pay dearly for that.”

  “Please,” she said breathlessly. “Now I know it without a doubt. You want me.” She licked her lips and nibbled at her bottom one, noticing how his eyes roamed down to see her movement.

  “Right now I want you over my knee.” He tugged her wrist south.

  “Oh, fine,” she huffed. “Get it over with then.” She gave him a withering look before she fell over his leg with exaggerated obedience, lifting her bare bottom high in the air.

  He slapped her ass immediately, very hard, and she squealed in protest, expecting him to at least let her settle first. “What was that?” she hissed.

  He spanked her again, harder. “I was going to make this spanking pleasurable for you, since as you mentioned, it’s our wedding night.” He gripped her about the waist and fastened her against him as his hand fell hard and fast. “But you’ve made it quite clear you need to learn some discipline first, so there’s been a change in plans.”

  “Owww,” she cried, kicking her legs and wriggling. The slaps of his hand on her bare skin stung like nothing she’d ever experienced before. Gone was his teasing demeanor. Now she felt only his displeasure, and she didn’t like it one bit. The spanking at the hotel had stung, but the current discipline stung much worse due to the removal of her drawers. Every spank felt like a burned branding.

  “Did you learn nothing from earlier when you tried to seduce me instead of being apologetic over your deception?”

  “I said I was sorry about that, Adam!”

  “Oh yes, you were very sorry once the spanking began, and you’re about to be very sorry once again. I can’t believe you pulled the same trick twice.”

  “What trick?” she demanded, twisting in his lap angrily. “I wasn’t pulling any trick!” This was simply not fair. Any normal man would be caressing her now, not causing her such agony.

  “You most certainly were. Draping over me, pressing your breasts against me, and just now grabbing my cock like it’s something you can lead me around by. That’s not how this is going to work, wife. Trying to manipulate me will only get you spanked.”

  As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. That was exactly what she had tried to do. Her anger evaporated and she sunk over his lap in defeat, no longer stiffening or trying to avoid the swats. She hadn’t wanted a man who would take charge, but that was exactly what she had gotten. She would have to get used to it, though she really wished he would be less strict.

  He must have noticed her body’s submission because the punishment ended after two more firm swats. He ran his hand over her smarting cheeks and then caressed them, rubbing out the sting. Within moments the burn transformed into a softer warmth that spread to her belly and caused an ache between her legs she hadn’t felt in quite some time. She crushed her thighs together, surprised by how much her center burned for her new husband’s attention.

  “Your ass is so fucking gorgeous,” he said, and squeezed each cheek.

  She squeaked with surprise over the crude words, which ignited her desire. She had never wanted anything as desperately as she wanted him in that moment. “Please…” she whimpered.

  He ran his hand down her thighs and brushed the sensitive flesh behind her knees. His fingers presse
d between her legs and made their way back up again, spreading her legs apart as they did. “That’s it,” he murmured, as the spreading of his fingers caused her to open for him. His hand was soon inches from the apex of her legs, and she opened wider, inviting his touch.

  With a lightness that differed sharply from the punishment his hand had inflicted on her bottom, he touched her swollen sex, letting out a low growl that made her stomach clench. “You liked it when I disciplined you, didn’t you, kitten?” He ran a finger up her drenched slit to her clit and circled the aching nub gently. “You needed to be taught a lesson, hmm?”

  His voice was as smooth as cream, and she felt herself gush onto his hand. “No,” she whimpered. It was far too embarrassing to admit how aroused and submissive the discipline made her feel.

  “Liar,” he said mildly, giving her pussy a light spank before he continued to fondle her. As he did so in languorous strokes, she pressed her sex against him, needing to feel pressure, needing him inside of her. He removed his hand from where it was buried between her legs and smacked her bottom. “Get up on the bed. Lie on your back and spread your legs for me, kitten.”

  The instructions were so straightforward and obvious in intent that she almost laughed. She managed to stifle her giggles though, thankfully. She didn’t want to take a chance that he would change his mind and force her to suffer the rest of the evening in unmet lust.

  Scrambling to obey, she positioned herself in the center of the bed and rested the back of her head on the pillow. She allowed her knees to fall apart and watched his eyes darken. “It pleases me, you obeying like that,” he said. “And I want to reward you. Tell me what you want, darlin’.” He shucked off his trousers, bringing to her view his thick, erect manhood.

  She licked her lips and trembled with anticipation as he approached. His calloused hands pressed the backs of her thighs, guiding her knees to her chest and exposing her sex obscenely in a way that was both humiliating and exhilarating. Her breath caught as he draped each of her legs carefully over his shoulders, then leaned forward and kissed her lips, stretching and opening her even wider. The pressure of his mouth against hers increased and her lips parted when his tongue gently insisted on entrance. Every bit of her felt open to him, her body a quivering, hopeful invitation. Their tongues intermingled and passion grew in her belly.

  When his kiss moved to her neck, she answered his question in a whisper. “I want you.”

  “Good girl,” he said approvingly, and the small praise ignited her desire. In that moment, she wanted to be his good girl, to please and submit to him, and she loved everything about being in his strong arms.

  His cock pressed against her and, though she was fairly pinned in place, she moved toward him ever-so-slightly, a silent entreaty. When he entered her, she spasmed and the walls of her channel clutched him. It felt beyond good, beyond right. She needed more.

  He fed her need and continued to push himself forward, splitting her into two halves made whole by him. When he began fucking her in earnest, every stroke inside of her felt like both a caress and a demand, both a gift and a plundering.

  She clung to him as the waves of pleasure washed over her, digging her fingernails into his back and crying out her release. He continued to pound into her until he stiffened and she felt him release his hot cum inside her.

  “Criminy.” He collapsed next to her, breathing hard.

  She snuggled up against him, using the dip between his arm and chest as a pillow. They didn’t speak for some time, the only sounds in the room their deep breaths and the distant howl of the foreman’s dog.

  Finally, Adam said in a tender voice, “Good night, wife.”

  She smiled and pulled the quilt up over them. She listened as his breathing become steady with sleep. She too found sleep shortly after, but before she did, she felt a wave of happiness over her choice and everything that had transpired that day. For the first time since she could remember, she felt some peace. Susannah hoped her contentment would never change, but there was still much she didn’t know about her new husband and his methods for maintaining authority.

  Chapter Six

  Susannah was still asleep when Adam woke up at dawn as he did every morning, regardless of time or location. Ranching had attuned his body and mind to the necessity for light; he wouldn’t have been able to sleep in if he’d tried. A chill was in the air, but the bed felt warm. Susannah’s body was tucked into his chest naturally, as though they had been sleeping together for years and not hours. The nearby sound of a rooster’s crow and a horse’s nicker caused a sense of well-being and calm to flow through him. He felt like he was home, despite being hundreds of miles away from the only place he’d called home his entire life.

  Reluctantly, he rolled away from Susannah. He stood to his feet, yawned, and stretched out his arms before looking down at the sleeping woman in the bed. She hadn’t stirred. Without bothering to remain quiet, Adam dressed himself, washed his face using the frigid water in the basin on the dresser, and pulled on his boots. Still his bride remained immobile and silent as a rock.

  He sat on the bed and observed her for a moment. She lay on her side, curled into a little ball facing away from him. Her light hair was tangled and fell over her face. The quilt only halfway covered her, revealing most of her slender bare back. He reached out and trailed a finger across her forehead, settling her messy hair away from her face. She sighed but still didn’t wake up.

  He felt the beginning of a smile. She looked quite sweet while she slept, and he hesitated to wake her, but it was time to begin the day. He needed her to fix him some coffee and breakfast so that he could get to work. He’d never known a woman to wait until after dawn to awaken. The women he knew would see to the tasks of lighting a fire and getting breakfast ready for their husbands, and he had assumed Susannah would do the same.

  He placed a hand on her shoulder and shook her gently. “Susannah? Time to get up.”

  She groaned without opening her eyes and pulled the quilt up to her neck. He yanked it away from her, allowing her naked body to feel the nip in the air. He watched as gooseflesh suddenly appeared over her arms and legs.

  “I want to sleep a little more,” she whined, grasping the air for the quilt, which he moved down even further out of her reach.

  Though her nimble, naked body caused a flurry of unwholesome thoughts, and he would have preferred to rejoin her in bed, he was firm in his resolve. He wouldn’t tolerate laziness from himself or from her. He planted a smart slap on her rump and said in a firmer voice, “Up, Susannah. There’s work to be done, and it’s light outside.”

  Grumbling nonsensically, she sat up as he stood to his feet. She glared at him before her face softened into a smile. “Good morning, husband.”

  Her greeting was so sweet that Adam had to stoop to kiss her, which gave her the opportunity to wrap her arms around his neck and pull him closer, trying to bring him back to bed. Instead, he linked one strong arm around her waist and hauled her forward to her feet, where he continued to kiss her. His cock twitched under his trousers, and he knew that if she was cheeky enough to feel him again, he would give away how much he would like to return to bed with her.

  Rubbing a hand down her back to her bottom, he smiled to himself when she clenched her cheeks. He doubted she would misbehave so soon after a chastisement. When their lips unlocked, he planted another swat on her bottom. “Get dressed.” His voice was husky and riddled with arousal even to his own ears. Susannah heard it too because she gave him a much less sweet and much more mischievous smile before turning away to obey. Adam stuffed his twitching palm into his pocket before he succumbed to the temptation to smack her naughty backside again.

  Turning his attention to the door, he examined the hinge while she dressed. He heard the sound of tiny footsteps padding across the floor outside of the room, and Adam realized it had to be Caleb, who obviously had an easier time getting out of bed than his mother. Adam shoved the door and propped it open, deciding tha
t the door would be the first thing he would attend to that morning.

  Caleb stood nearby and stared up at him with wide, curious eyes.

  “Hello, kid. How’d you sleep?”

  Caleb let out a shy giggle and bounded away from him toward the Dutch oven. His mother followed and got to work lighting it, admonishing Caleb to stay away so he wouldn’t get burned. Adam noticed that the child didn’t mind his mother, and he also noticed that Susannah did nothing about that. Instead, she kept shooing him away, and he kept returning moments later.

  The whole scenario bothered Adam. He thought Susannah should do a better job of getting her child to behave. He also felt worried that Caleb’s lack of obedience would indeed get him burned eventually, and he could see that Susannah was struggling through the task of cooking breakfast when she so often had to focus attention on her son.

  “Caleb, come here,” Adam said, hearing the authority in his own voice. Caleb heard it too because his eyes grew wide again. His nervous gaze darted to his mother, who nodded at him encouragingly.

  “Go on,” she said.

  Caleb leaned forward to where Susannah was crouched in front of the oven and whispered something in her ear. She smiled and looked over at Adam. “He’s wondering if he should call you ‘pa.’”

  Adam’s heart constricted painfully. He’d never intended on being a father, and suddenly becoming one caused a rush of memories about his deceased siblings to flood his mind. It was overwhelming for him to suddenly have a child, but he quickly realized it had to be just as overwhelming for the lad to suddenly have a father.

  Adam smiled at Susannah and then at Caleb. “That would be just fine to call me ‘pa’, son, seein’ as how that’s what I am. Now come on over here, please,” he repeated.

  Caleb walked to him, still looking shy, which was quite different from how he’d acted the previous evening. Adam hoped it wouldn’t be long before the boy became comfortable again. He crouched down to meet him at eye level.