by Marie Hall
Scold’s Desire
Worship Series - Book Seven
Marie Hall
Published by Blushing Books
An Imprint of
ABCD Graphics and Design, Inc.
A Virginia Corporation
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©2019
All rights reserved.
No part of the book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The trademark Blushing Books is pending in the US Patent and Trademark Office.
Marie Hall
Scold’s Desire
EBook ISBN: 978-1-64563-029-6
v1
Cover Art by ABCD Graphics & Design
This book contains fantasy themes appropriate for mature readers only. Nothing in this book should be interpreted as Blushing Books' or the author's advocating any non-consensual sexual activity.
Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Marie Hall
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Chapter 1
Xavier Brice dismounted, handed the reins to the waiting groom, and took the first of the last few steps bringing him to his waiting wife. Abruptly stopping, he turned back. The servants working to remove the supplies and saddle from the horse stopped and looked at him.
"Thank you," he said, doing his best to smile. They all smiled back and seemed to give more effort to the tasks at hand.
Turning towards the house, Xavier shook his head and sighed tiredly. His wife, Io, was correct. Treating people well, no matter their status, produced good results. It was uncommon among his peers to acknowledge servants and common people working a house and its lands. In the last two years, Io had shown him, again and again, it did matter, all people mattered, regardless of rank or status.
Shaking his head again, he picked up the pace, trying to get back to the only person who mattered to him, Io.
He didn't believe the welcoming he'd get would be completely warm. The punishment he'd imposed before leaving, while not severe, was wholly new for Io. But, he'd tried the normal things to get her to comply with his demand that she delegate more of the work to those around her, to not work herself to exhaustion. He knew it was his doing that Io felt such a need to prove she was a capable mistress. And while he told her everyday she'd nothing to prove to anyone, not even him, she still tried.
The last of his patience went when she'd tried to clear the rock slide brought down with the weight of the last snows. She wouldn't take the engineer's word, going to inspect the area herself and nearly being buried when more of the sodden ground gave way.
She needed to learn to trust others to handle matters without her direct guidance, so he'd forbidden her to leave their chambers. She'd only be able to act based on what she was told and she'd have to send others with word if she wanted anything else accomplished. Io was to stay in their chambers until his return.
Only he'd not known it'd take sixteen days to settle the matter on his western borders. Sixteen days, Io was likely a mad woman by now. As if on cue, Roth exited the house, stopped at the top of the steps, and, shaking his head, stared Xavier down. Then he threw his head back and laughed.
"My lord," Roth said, coming at him with a smile and an extended hand. "Did you end up taking Lord De Frappier's head?"
Xavier chuckled. "No, but I suspect once he receives the king's demand that he step aside, he will wish I had." He watched the knight shake his head; it wasn't a surprise to anyone Xavier would recommend the incompetent fool be replaced. And, because it was Xavier doing the recommending, it was as good as done. "Are you here to warn me my own head will be rolling?"
His knight seemed startled for a moment then laughed. Laughed a little too long and hard for Xavier's comfort. "My lord," Roth said, still laughing. "My lady wouldn't take off your head, at least not the one on your shoulders."
Xavier ground his teeth. Friendliness toward servants wasn't the only new thing in his house. The stiff decorum was replaced with blunt honesty. It was simply impossible to have anything else with Io. She still didn't always understand implied meanings. Or maybe she did, but she didn't have enough experience to always judge them. Everyone in the house said things plainly. And while the women managed to remain tactful, at least with him, his men never held back…at least not with him.
"My lord." Roth set his hand on Xavier's shoulder. "All is well. Your lady is very adaptable."
"Is she?" Some of the tension slipped as he started up the steps, his knight beside him, still chuckling.
"She did very well. Better than we thought," Roth said as servants rushed up with a tray of refreshments. "It took a bit of instruction, but within the week, she was doing exactly as you asked with little struggle."
"Of course she was," Gunther said, stepping up to greet Xavier. Again, warmth spread across Xavier's chest. Any coldness that once lived between these walls was gone from the moment he set Io in as mistress. "And had you been home but four days sooner…"
Around him, several people groaned loudly. Xavier didn't miss Roth's grimace. "What happened?" He was hoping it wasn't anything to make his homecoming less pleasant than it might be.
"The tub broke," Thomas said, giving Xavier a formal bow. His squire was no longer his squire but in training now to be the house chamberlain. Xavier thought him too young by far, but Io insisted, and the boy, now nearly a man, rose to the calling. Xavier wouldn't ever need to fear this man would betray either his wife or him.
"The tub broke? The bath tub?" Xavier asked, and nodding heads confirmed it was so.
"If your wife didn't have such a strange obsession with bathing, it might have lasted years yet," Roth complained, and everyone, including Xavier, laughed. It was far less an obsession with bathing and more that Io found calm when in water, be it bathing or swimming or just standing with her feet in a creek.
"She tried two days to be satisfied with buckets," Gunther continued.
"Well, who thought that would work?" Xavier asked with great sarcasm.
"No one," Thomas said.
"She was completely dissatisfied by last night, and I made the call to allow her to go down to the bath house this morning," Roth said, taking the full brunt of the responsibility in acting against Xavier's direct command.
"You made the decision?" Xavier glared at him then smiled, "Or did Ann threaten your life if you did not allow her mistress to soak?"
The man colored and glared back. "Mistress Ann would not..."
"She does." Gunther laughed and shoved the man. "She keeps your sac in a vice worse than Mistress Sarah does Seth."
Xavier tried not to laugh. Io was a rather keen matchmaker, and while she was sad to see her best friend wed and gone with Sir Seth to the house Xavier held in the south, everyone could see how well suited the couple was.
"Seth is wed to a tyrant; I have no such commitment to Ann." Roth folded his arms over his chest.
"The last reading of the bans is this very Sunday, i
s it not?" Xavier asked, raising a brow at the man who colored more as Gunther acted out having a noose put around his neck and strangling.
"Mistress Ann said she would not wed him if he did not get out of the way so Lady Io could go to the bath house," Thomas supplied, only to get smacked in the back of the head by the knight.
Xavier cleared his throat to try to bring back a little formality, "Can I assume then, my lady wife is in a better mood?"
"Who knows? She's not gotten out of the bath yet," Gunther informed him.
"Mistress Jude said she will not heat water again," Thomas told him, rubbing the back of his head. "She said four times is enough."
"Four times is plenty," Xavier agreed. "Does this mean my chambers are empty for me?"
"No, my lord," Thomas said, sounding appalled by the idea. "I sent in maids to clean and air it for my lady." He hesitated, looking at Xavier for approval. "Mistress Ann said that was..."
"It is appropriate, Thomas, you've done well," Xavier praised, watching the boy beam. "Let the maids finish the room. I will see about fishing Io from the water." The men stepped aside, and Xavier headed toward the back of the house where the small building was built so Io would always have access to warm water and a large tub.
He bumped into Jude as she was coming out, scolding Io about staying in the water so long she wrinkled. He held a finger to his lips and slipped inside the warm room. Io's head was tilted back, her eyes closed, and though the lighting was muted, Xavier didn't mistake what his wife was about.
Chapter 2
Io leaned back, resting her head on the edge of the tub. The water grew cold, and Jude insisted she wasn't going to reheat it, but soaking felt heavenly. She scrubbed clean first because after three days of buckets only, she felt as if she had layers of grime on her skin. But after, her skin tingling, she couldn't resist trying a bit of what she hadn't practiced in a while. It was never necessary when her husband was in the house, but he'd been gone more than a fortnight. If she had to return to her lonely chambers, she at least wanted to return somewhat satisfied.
She lifted a lazy hand, setting it at her neck and then drawing it down between her breasts. How she longed to have Xavier touch her. She never missed her husband more than when she lying down each night without him there. It wasn't even the sex she missed, though after sixteen days, the ache was there; it was more the way he made her feel with his presence. She could breathe in his scent and know the familiar. She could listen to his snores and feel relaxed. His warmth kept her comfortable, and when his arms wound around her and tucked her against him, Io felt a safety and security she'd never known before.
Being restricted to their chambers until his return made her aware of how precious those moments shared talking, reading or enjoying each other's company were. Being able to turn and see the huge, empty bed all day, every day… she simply couldn't deny how very much she wanted to be held again by Xavier.
Oddly, what he'd intended as a punishment and a lesson in delegation might be all that had kept her worry free as the few days he was expected to be gone stretched into weeks. Though she wasn't actually locked in, not being able to leave her chambers left her with very little house to hold. It'd take a full assault before anyone could take her from that singular space, and she knew the knights and soldiers of the house wouldn't let anyone get that far in.
She'd kept company and handled the matters of the holdings from the safety of the master's chambers, and even without him there, his presence was all around her. The few moments when doubt and uncertainty tried to shake her, she touched Xavier's papers or stood where his armor was stored and had the reassurance of his return.
Only his return was slower than she wanted. The last few days, watching as her maid Ann teased and tormented her intended, Sir Roth, Io felt that particular need in her grow. But she'd take care of that now, and as her hand slid to her left breast, she could think she might have him there tonight. Her fingers strayed to her nipple, hardening in the cooling water. She'd feel his mouth on her tonight and… her other hand settled on her belly, sliding toward that place where pleasure began and ended, her knees fell open. Xavier's instruction had made this possible. She didn't need him to find a climax, but she preferred it be him. Io's eyes drifted closed and as fingers worked both her hard nipple and her swollen clit, she imagined what she might demand her husband do to her this night.
She would have him put his lips on her, and then his tongue would...
"Io," Xavier called.
Water sloshed as Io jumped, sitting up. She blinked, expecting him to disappear, but he remained. The water could be ice and not douse the rush of heat Io felt watching the big man step closer.
"What are you doing?" Xavier asked, his eyes lingering on her breasts before sliding down to where her hand still rested, beneath the water and between her legs.
"Xavier," Io breathed. "You are home; I have missed you so." She heard him chuckle as he waved her back down into the tub.
"Yes, I see," he said, pulling his tunic from his body and squatting down next to the tub.
"Xavier," Io chided, even as she felt her face heat.
He chuckled again and leaned in to meet her halfway for the first kiss they'd shared in forever. It was far too brief, but when they pulled apart, Io saw a wicked gleam in the man's eyes. "So tell me, my heart, what are you doing here?"
Io leaned back and closed her eyes. "Practicing, my lord."
"Have you practiced much in my absence?" Xavier asked, moving from the side of the tub to position himself at her head. His callused hands settled on her shoulders and smoothed upward and over her neck until his fingers tangled in her hair.
"Not at all," Io said, the sigh turning into a moan as she more firmly placed the fingers at her sex.
"Have I not commanded you to practice your lesson often?" Xavier asked as his breath tickled her ear before his teeth bit down on the lobe.
"I was waiting, that I might not take another more… direct lesson from the master," Io told him then lifted into his hands as they slid down her chest and over her breasts.
"Vulgar little goddess," he said with a chuckle.
"It is how you like me, is it not?"
"No, it is how I love you." He cupped a tit in each hand and squeezed. The act, combined with what she did between her thighs, sent little flashes of pleasure through her. Xavier's fingers rolled the nipple then pinched down, giving Io a little more of what she sought. His lips settled on her neck and the harder he nipped and sucked, the harder her fingers worked her clit. After so long without feeling anything close to this, she was once again going to reach heights of pleasure only her husband could lift her to.
"My lady." They jerked apart as the door opened and Kate stuck her head in. "Lord Brice is home."
"She is aware, mistress," Xavier said, standing and crossing to the door to shove Kate out. Io heard Kate gasp as the door shut in her face. Xavier turned back, now working the lighter linen shirt from his body. The light from the fire and the few candles made his skin glow like polished bronze. He rolled his shoulders, all the muscles flexed. That he never used any of that power and strength to harm her still amazed. Not that he wasn't responsible for causing some unholy amount of pain, but he never once struck her wanting to harm. Again, she strummed her fingers over her clit. Lifting a hand to her own tit as he took the first step back toward her, she used her tongue to wet her dry lips.
"My lady?" The door swung open, hitting Xavier in the back and causing him to stumble forward as Ruth tried to push inside. "Your husband is… home," she finished lamely as Xavier turned to face her and crowd her back out the door.
"Do none of you speak with each other?" Xavier griped. "She is aware I am home."
"Yes, and are you trying to make her even more aware of that fact?" Ruth quipped, and Io slapped a hand over her mouth to stop the laughter.
"Get out," Xavier bellowed.
"No, wait," Ruth said in defiance of her lord's orders. Like all of Io's lady's ma
ids, Ruth was more than familiar with Xavier's bellowing. "Are you going to be dining in the hall or in your chambers?"
Xavier paused and took a moment to look back at Io. That he gave her a moment's consideration in the decision was uplifting. "I think my lady and I have some things to speak on after so long apart." He met Io's eyes and she inclined her head slightly before he turned, shoved Ruth out and said, "Put our meal in our chambers."
"Xavier," Io scolded before he could slam the door.
"Please," he added, then shut the door on Ruth, who stood outside for a full minute laughing like a fool.
"Bolt the door, Xavier," Io demanded before Xavier could step away.
"Bolt the... why?" He turned and slid the bolt in place then crossed to the tub.
"Because now that you are here," she said with a little bite in her tone, "I might be able to get there." Io set her fingers back where they'd been as Xavier knelt down at the side of the tub. "If we can end the disruptions." She heard him chuckle, heard his fingers splash the water.
"The water is cold, Io," he chided softly. Io responded with a soft moan. "Do you really need me here to get there?"
"Uh-huh," Io moaned again and worked a little more at her clit. Maybe she didn't really need him watching, but it seemed to her, she felt it more when he did. With her eyes closed, she could only think what he did now. She could hear him moving about, even smell the heady woodsy scent that was his alone. But she kept her eyes closed as she tried to obtain that sensation.