“Bloody guard didn’t want me marrying an Englishman. As though he had a say. I made sure he understood he didn’t.” Isa spoke from the side of her mouth, trying to keep her words only for Ric, especially once she realized she had sworn within the house of the Lord. Ric could not keep from returning her smile and entwined his fingers with hers, eliciting another scowl from the priest.
Ric and Isa floated through the ceremony, standing and kneeling at the appropriate times, intoning the vows while looking into one another’s eyes. Isa felt the depth of Ric’s sincerity, and she found her mind finally settled after a day of anxious energy. They held hands even during parts of the service when they were expected to clasp their own hands in prayer. When the ceremony was finally over and the priest announced them married, Ric pulled Isa in for a kiss. He cupped her jaw as he smiled down at her and her eyes filled with happy tears. His thumb caught one, and he was in no rush to hurry through their first kiss as a married couple. He brushed his lips against hers twice before they sealed their fate with a kiss that had Isa melting against Ric’s larger frame. He held her as though she were something precious and delicate, and to him, she was. It was only when they both sensed people milling about near them that they pulled apart. Isa’s close friends pulled her in for an embrace while the Sinclair men and Edward Bruce pounded Ric on the back and made jokes Isa did not understand but made Ric’s face go up in flames. Isa realized she had never seen Ric blush before, and she found his discomfort rather charming.
Ric had just extricated his bride from her friends when he caught sight of the king’s taut expression. He nodded before looking down at Isa, who was watching him. A frown marred her forehead for a moment before it disappeared. He knew she was astute and already understood something was afoot that she was not aware of. He lifted her hand and brought it to his lips.
“Let us adjourn to the Great Hall, and I will explain everything.” Or at least most of it.
Isa nodded and leaned into Ric’s embrace as they left the chapel with his arm wrapped around her waist. She held her head high as she walked past people who pretended to offer sincere felicitations. Some barely hid their disgust that an Englishman was allowed a place within the Scottish king’s court, content to disregard Ric’s Scottish heritage. Others, mainly women, glared at them, specifically Isa. They did little to veil their animosity since Ric had eyes for no one but Isa. They were unaccustomed to any man ignoring them, let alone one they deemed still an eligible catch. Isa knew that if they stayed long at court, one, if not all of them, would offer to be Ric’s mistress.
Ric led them to the where the king and queen were about to be seated on the dais. Isa dipped into a low curtsy that afforded Ric an unprecedented view of her ample cleavage as he bowed before the royal couple. Ric felt his cock hardening, and he was grateful for the long surcoat that covered the growing bulge in his leggings. He wished for the plaids Magnus and Tavish favored.
“Sir Dedric and Lady Isabella, we offer our congratulations and best wishes. I shall be sad to bid you goodbye, Bella. The meal shall be all too brief, and then you shall be on your way.”
Ric winced at both the use of the other diminutive for Isa’s name and the fact that the queen announced their departure before Ric had a chance. The look on Isa’s face made the queen cover her mouth.
“Might I have the use of your antechamber for a moment, Your Majesty?” Ric asked softly.
“I think that would be for the best,” Robert glared at Ric before offering the fatherliest expression she had ever seen the man bestow. She found the entire conversation disconcerting.
Ric led Isa behind a tapestry that separated the king’s antechamber from the Great Hall. He looked around to be sure they were alone before pulling Isa into his arms. She stood rigid before relenting and returning his embrace.
“I did not intend for you to learn of the king’s newest plan from anyone but me.” Ric cupped her shoulders, and she nodded. “I was summoned to his Privy Council chamber this morning, and that is why I missed Matins. The king has learned that Hargate and Graystone have turned back and intend to raze as many farms along the western border as they can. King Robert has ordered me back to the border and to our new keep. Isa, I couldn’t bear the thought of leaving you here, of leaving without calling you my wife. It’s selfish, but I want you by my side. I didn’t want anything that might disrupt the wedding, so I didn’t seek you out like I should have.”
“Did you worry I wouldn’t marry you?”
“Perhaps not today. And I didn’t want to wait.”
“Wasn’t the intention all along for you to gain a piece of land in Scotland? I read the betrothal papers that granted a parcel and keep to you as part of my dowry. Why wouldn’t I come with you?”
“I feared something would interfere, and if I rode out without you, then I wouldn’t know when I might see you next. Without being my wife, you couldn’t come with me.”
“Is that why you demanded the ceremony be moved?”
“Yes.” Ric slid his hand over her shoulder until he could cup the bare flesh of her nape and tangle his fingers in the wisps that rested against the neckline of her kirtle. “I also don’t want to make love to my wife for the first time on the ground with all and sundry around to hear us. I don’t know that we will be able to stay at an inn each night. There may be some spent under the stars. I don’t want the hard ground to be your introduction to the marriage bed.”
Isa stood listening as she absorbed this information. She wished someone had thought to share the news with her sooner, but she understood that women were not generally consulted on such matters. It was not hers to reason why. She looked back over her shoulder in the direction of the Great Hall before looking at Ric. She bit her lip as she weighed her options.
Do we forego consummating the marriage until we reach Dunbar land? Do we wait and hope for an inn? What about what Ric said, making love surrounded by his men? The thought of staring up at the stars is rather nice, but not if others know what we’ve been doing. Can’t we escape now and get this out of the way? No! That’s not how I want to think of being with Ric for the first time, but is that how he thinks of it? He said “make love” again, but does he really just mean wedded and bedded?
Isa’s thoughts were running away with her, and Ric saw the uncertainty that clouded her eyes as she looked at his shoulder rather than his face.
“Isa, we don’t have to do anything you don’t want. We can also do things any way that you want to,” Ric’s hushed tones brought Isa back to the present, but just as quickly, his final words created a lurid image of them tangled together flash before her eyes.
“Do we have to attend the feast? Wouldn’t the king understand why we might want to retire before a journey where I shall be the only woman?” Isa stepped back. “I will be the only woman, won’t I?”
“Unfortunately, yes.” Isa pushed away from Ric as he tried to understand the rapid shift in Isa’s mood. One moment he was sure she was alluding to them consummating their marriage and the next she was pushing him away. When understanding dawned on Ric, he could have kicked himself. “Isa, I meant it’s unfortunate because there will be no one to help you, and I’m not sure you will enjoy the company of gruff and grizzled men. I find it most fortunate since I shall have to serve as your lady’s maid, and I am quite looking forward to being at your service.”
Isa nodded as she forced herself to be more rational as her mind scrambled to put together all the moving parts.
“Ric, I’m not sure I understand everything. The king ordered you back to the border, and since you already have the land granted to you as part of my dowry, that’s where he will send you for now. You didn’t want to leave me behind, so rather than tell me that we’re to leave today, you moved the ceremony forward, presumably to give us more time together, but now you say that we don’t have to do anything that I don’t want. Are you assuming I don’t want you?” Isa shook her head. “The first time we spoke of marriage, you said you wouldn
’t rush me. The last time we spoke of it, you seemed eager to make our marriage more than just a signed document, and now you’re back to putting distance between us. I just don’t understand. It makes me question whether I should be feeling the way I do. I’m ashamed of myself.”
“Ashamed? What could you be ashamed of?”
“Of my curiosity. Of my anticipation. Perhaps I am not a lady but in name.”
Ric opened and shut his mouth several times before he yanked Isa against him. His mouth crushed hers as his tongue swept across her lips. She parted them, and he pressed his tongue past her teeth. His kiss was gentler than she prepared for, but the heat and need were evident. She returned his ardor as her hands roamed over his back and chest. There was a door on the far side that led away from the Great Hall. He grasped Isa’s hand and tugged her behind him until they entered the passageway.
“My chamber is closer,” Isa offered before taking the lead. It was her turn to tug him. She lifted her skirts above her ankles as they raced through the passageways. They arrived at her door winded and laughing, but their humor stilled as Isa once more cradled his jaw and pressed herself against him, using the door behind her to hold her up when she was sure her knees would give way. Their need coalesced into impatience as Isa fumbled with the door, eventually having to turn away from Ric to unlock it. Once inside her chamber, Ric quickly turned the key and dropped the bar. He refused to risk anyone interrupting them until they were ready to leave.
Isa unfastened the belt to her kirtle as she kicked off the slippers that matched her gown.
“How much do you like this gown?” Ric growled as he spun her around and began pulling on her laces.
“I’ve never worn it before, but it’s my favorite.”
Ric groaned before kissing her nape.
“Could you replace the ribbons and laces if need be?”
“I suppose.” Those were the last words Isa spoke before she felt a snap then a cool breeze across her back. She looked down when she heard a clatter. She gasped when she realized Ric had used a dirk to slice open her gown, but he was already pushing it down her arms. She snapped her attention back to him and turned to face him. His expression was a purely predatory one, and she licked her lips as she unfastened the empty sword belt, letting it drop to the floor next to the knife. She pushed the surcoat up as far as she could reach before Ric whipped it over his head. In the brief moment his face was covered, Isa slipped free of her gown. Ric tossed the garment aside before pausing to take his first look at Isa standing in only her chemise. The thin shift teased him as he made out the curves of her body. As riveted as he was, her eyes lingered on the swelling bulge in his leggings. The longer she looked, the more painful his arousal became.
“Isa, there will be some pain this first time, but all I will ever intend to do is bring you pleasure. I want you to enjoy our coupling. Each time we join together, it makes us one in a way even our vows before God could not do.”
Isa nodded slowly before taking a small step closer.
“May I touch you?” her voice so low Ric almost missed what she asked.
“You need never ask. Isa, I’m your husband as much as you are my wife. You are entitled to seek your release with me just as a man does with his wife.”
“Release?”
Ric paused as the reminder that his bride was truly an innocent slammed into him.
“That’s one way to describe the physical enjoyment that should come when a man and woman couple.”
“Does it always happen?”
“I shall do everything within my power to make sure that it does. Isa, I know you’ve heard and seen couples in various stages, but have you never heard the crescendo of moans and groans even grunts?”
“Yes. It seemed to be when the couples were most passionate.”
“That is because they were striving for and reaching a climax. Their release.”
Isa’s fingernails scraped along the ridges of Ric’s belly before pausing at his waist. She waited until he nodded before continuing her progress until her fingers trailed over his rod. The look of bliss that swept across Ric’s face amazed Isa, and they had not even finished disrobing.
“Do you have any idea what you do to me, my sweet? How close you drive me to the brink of losing control?”
“Would that be so bad?” Coming from any other woman, Ric would have believed those were the words of an experienced coquette, but his bride appeared mystified.
“Perhaps after your first time,” Ric choked out as he guided Isa hand to stroke him. His eyes drifted closed, and Isa watched the cords in his neck jump each time her hand slid over him. Ric slipped his hands to hem of Isa’s chemise and inched it up to her hips as he spied his first glance of the thatch of curls at the juncture of her thighs. As the fabric crept higher, Ric exposed a trim waist, then full breasts that he knew would fit his palm as though God had placed them there himself. Isa raised her arms, and Ric whipped the gown over her head.
Isa stood still, unsure of what to do as she stood before her husband with no clothes and he was still half dressed. She wanted to see him, too, but she was not sure how to proceed. Her eyes darted to her bed, which she now realized would be far too narrow for them.
“We will fit, Isa, since I have no intention of letting go of you.”
Isa nodded before her gaze dropped to the outline of Ric’s shaft that pressed against his leggings.
“We will fit, Isa.” Ric reassured as he pictured what his bride’s vivid imagination must have wondered.
“Can we—now?”
“Yes, my sweet one. Do you wish to get into bed, and I’ll cover the windows before I finish undressing?”
Isa shook her head slowly then she moved faster.
“Can I not see you, too? I’ve wondered. I mean, I had hoped. I—I—” she trailed off unsure of how to state her curiosity without coming across as even more brazen than she already had.
“You don’t have to fear telling me anything, and certainly not when we are alone. I didn’t want to frighten you or embarrass you.”
“Embarrass me? I think we’re well past that. I’m standing in front of you completely bare, and you have the security of still being covered up.”
Ric tipped Isa’s chin up and whispered a kiss against her lips.
“Don’t be embarrassed. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, and it is the barrier of clothing that has kept me from mauling you already. Once I am undressed too, I will make love to you. I will become your husband in truth.”
“And I your wife,” Isa murmured. “Please, Ric. No more waiting.”
Isa hooked her fingers into the waist of Ric’s leggings and began to push them down.
“Can I touch you again?”
“I sincerely hope you will. And quickly.” Ric kicked his legs free as he fisted his cock and stroked.
“I’d like to do that,” Isa offered.
She reached out, and Ric guided her hand until she wrapped her fingers around his length. Once more, Ric’s eyes drifted shut as the feel of Isa’s skin against his nearly pushed him over the edge. Ric smattered kisses along the side of her neck until he reached her collarbone. He kissed her shoulder as his hands kneaded her plump breasts. Their mouths found one another, and the kiss erupted. He ripped the coverlet back before easing them onto the bed. He was careful to not press his full weight against Isa, fearing he would crush her. While she was tall, she was also willowy, and Ric was certain his body would smother her if he was not careful. Isa’s hands explored the ridges and troughs of the muscles that twitched in his back as her touch spurred on his need to claim her. Her feather-soft fingertips ran along his spine, making him shiver with anticipation.
“Ric, I ache for something that I don’t know, but my body screams for you. I don’t know what I want you to touch first, but please, more.”
“I will give you anything you wish.”
The time for waiting had come and gone as they claimed one another and joined as one.
They shared an explosive passion that left them both reeling. As they floated back to earth, Ric attempted to roll onto his side.
I don’t want to crush you.”
“You’re not. I just—” Isa looked up at Ric, emotions swirling within her that she feared confessing. She was sure that the occasion had not been anywhere near as momentous for him as it had been for her.
“What is it, Isa?” Ric brushed hair from her damp temple. “You can tell me anything. Tell me what you want, and I shall endeavor to give it to you.”
Isa searched for something within his eyes that Ric could not guess, but when she cupped his cheeks and strained to reach his lips, he was lost all over again as his kiss poured forth equal parts tenderness and need. He rolled them so she rested across his chest.
“I don’t want this to end. I would make this moment stretch on before we must return to reality, return to our duties and responsibilities. I would like to just savor this one time together.”
“One time? Never doubt how much I crave you, Isabella. I will never get enough of you.”
“Good, because I suspect I shall be a very demanding wife.”
It did not escape Isa’s attention that Ric used her full name. He had not done that since they met. His seriousness made her wonder if his feelings might run deeper than mere attraction. Isa pushed her mind away from those wonderings, sure that the deeper feelings were still just forms of lust.
A Spy at the Highland Court Page 15