by Sahara Kelly
She felt so right in his arms, Reid realized. Her head had found the perfect spot on his shoulder and her weight was balanced exactly where it should be. She didn’t fidget or fuss, just moved with the horse, busy with her own thoughts as he was with his.
It was a kind of silent companionship that was new to him. And he found he enjoyed it very much. The anticipation of what was to come lay there all around them, a ring of pleasure that he was eager to explore.
But that need didn’t obliterate his awareness of this moment, this quietness that had developed between them.
No words were necessary. They both knew where they were headed…all that remained was to relish the journey.
The night was cloudy, dark and with a scent that hinted at more snow soon. It was a good thing Reid knew most of this part of the county like the back of his hand, having been riding over it since he threw a little leg over his first pony. The path to the hideout was sloppy now, but crusting over as the temperature fell.
“We’ll see snow before dawn.” He spoke quietly, knowing she would hear and understand.
“You can smell it too?”
“Yes.”
“I believe there is enough wood to keep us warm if we must stay.” She turned slightly and glanced up at him. “What about your horse?”
“She’ll manage. There are enough trees around to give her shelter for a few hours. Perhaps even the little bush shelter Brent and I carved from a rhododendron. I had forgotten about that…” He chuckled. “I will see if it’s still there.”
“But you are more concerned about us spending the night?”
“It’s on my mind. I would not put you in any kind of a difficult situation, Prudence.” He gently nudged the horse toward their destination. “I want to spend this night with you. To see if what we have goes deeper than an afternoon of pleasure. It would be foolish of me to pretend otherwise. But I will admit I am worried that you’ll bear the brunt of condemnation should word of our…activities become public knowledge.”
She leaned against him briefly. “Don’t concern yourself, Reid. I care not for public knowledge, condemnation, gossip or scandal. I am of age, a widow and provided that we are discreet, I see no problems at all. You and I will have left the Church Hall at a late hour. We parted ways and you found yourself stranded in the snow and sought shelter in a cave you recalled from childhood. I will have arrived very late at the Inn and reached my room without anyone noticing. Brent will vouch for me.”
“It’s feasible, I suppose.” He thought about what she had said. “But Brent? He will stand for you?”
“Yes, indeed.”
They arrived at the hideaway, and dismounted.
“Reid, who do you think told me about this place?” She waved her hand at the concealed cave. “It was Brent. He told me about how you’d played here, and all about your youthful adventures. He thinks the world of you, you know.”
“He’s been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. I’m glad he’s here.” He paused. “I’m glad he brought you.”
She smiled at him. “Settle the horse. I’ll go in and start the fire.”
Reid nodded. She was magic made flesh, standing in near darkness, a silhouette against the snowy meadow behind her.
Then she was gone and he turned to see if the little shelter he and Brent had built for one of Brent’s dogs that followed them everywhere still stood.
It was no longer a little shelter. It was now a reasonably sized hole in a massive shrub, covered in snow. The rhododendron leaves were crinkled and brown, but they were still there, reminding Reid that this was yet another evergreen that refused to give up its foliage.
The horse seemed to understand the point, since she willingly walked beneath the arched branches and let Reid tether her bridle loosely. He unrolled the blanket and looped it over her, knowing the saddle should come off, but guessing that it would help to keep her warm.
She contentedly lipped at some grass around her feet, and snorted as he patted her rump and told her to behave herself.
And with that duty completed, Reid turned to the cave and saw a faint glow coming from beneath the oilskins that covered a few of the gaps in the wooden door.
She was there, waiting for him.
He took a breath and walked inside.
*~~*~~*
The wood caught quickly and the light from the flames filled the small space, turning it into a golden world with just two inhabitants.
Warmth grew and Prudence reached up to release her hair from the pins that had held it coiled so properly. It was a reflection of her own personality, she realized, as it fell free and soft around her. Neither she nor her hair liked being confined.
“I like that.”
He’d entered as she pulled out the last pin. “So do I. Too many pins give me a headache.” She turned and saw him in the firelight, looking at her, his eyes betraying his desire.
Something rose within her, a need perhaps, or a simple want that matched his. “Come to me, Reid. I’m here. And I want to feel your skin against mine…”
“It’s madness.” He neared her, tossing his cloak onto the furs. “Utter madness.”
“What is?” She watched him reach for her hair and run his fingers through the loosened curls.
“Us. This. Scarcely more than a day and I’m overwhelmed with the urge to hold you every time I see you. Every time I think of you I lose my breath.”
“That’s good.” She smiled a little, extending her hands to the buttons of his green jacket. “Very good. I confess to being in a similar state. For example,” she slipped button after button free, pushing the jacket aside to reach his waistcoat. “I find myself quite clumsy here. It is taking far too long to rid you of this—this wardrobe you’re wearing.”
He chuckled at that. “Remember I have a title now.”
“Indeed, my Lord Mistletoe.”
The waistcoat was also free and he shrugged both it and his jacket down and away from his body. “I would assist you, my Lady. Turn around.”
She felt the strength in his hands as he grasped her shoulders and spun her to face the fire. Deft fingers found her laces and untied them, sending her hands instinctively to her breasts as her gown began to slide down her arms and she shivered.
“Are you cold?” His breath caressed her skin.
She shook her head. “No. On the contrary. I feel…aroused. Excited. Eager for what will be next.”
“Agreed.” His arms surrounded her and she could smell the lavender scent of his shirt mixed with leather and him. “Are you sure you want this, Prudence? It’s not too late to say no.”
“If I wanted to say no, I would have said it the first time.”
“But you’ve had time to think.”
“Yes. And I’m still not saying no.” She paused, her gaze on the fire. “Have you changed your mind, Reid?”
His hands rose, tugging at hers and allowing her gown to fall. Then he reached upward and cupped her breasts through her thin undergarments, gently rubbing her nipples with his thumbs. It sent sharp darts of pleasure through her body and she shuddered, whimpering a little and leaning back against him.
“Does that answer your question?”
She raised her hands and pressed them over his, holding them tightly to her flesh. “I cannot remember what I asked.”
“Prudence…” It was a whispered caress and he turned her, stripping away the rest of her clothing.
She closed the little gap between them as she pulled his shirt from his breeches and ripped the buttons free. Then, desperate for the feel of him, she pressed close, letting the warmth of his bare chest tease the aroused nubs as her breasts flattened against his muscles.
“Oh, God, Reid. So good. So very good.” She closed her eyes and let her head fall back, her hair brushing her bare spine as he leaned to her neck and gently nibbled on it. His tongue followed the path and he kissed and licked and nipped his way around her exposed skin until he reached her chin and then…she was los
t.
His mouth was hot and hard and demanding, and she breathed in his groan as he forced her lips apart and thrust his tongue past her teeth, learning, teasing, tasting her.
She tasted back, answering him thrust with thrust, tangling their tongues, and sensing the rise of such passion it nearly choked her.
He tore his mouth from hers, his cheeks flushed with the heat of his passion and the warmth from the fire. “Undress me, Prudence.” He let his hands fall away from her and watched her. “Take the rest of my clothes off. Show me you want me as much as I want you.”
A ripple of excitement shimmered over her and she kicked her own clothing aside, shedding the last of it and relishing the air on her bare body. Then she put her hands on his chest and removed the remains of his shirt, tossing that aside as well.
Slowly, with teasing gentleness, she let her fingertips drift over his chest and down, down toward the waist of his breeches. Then she delved even further, finding the buttons that secured them and undoing them with ease.
They fell, catching at his knees where more buttons secured them.
“I’m still dressed,” he said.
She looked at him, noting the heat, knowing that his cock was hard, bare and pointing right at her.
It was a challenge, she knew, and one that she would answer to both their satisfaction.
So she slowly lowered herself, shaking her hair forward, and letting it drift over his skin, and that special piece of sensitive masculine flesh. She smiled at the sound of his breathing, a hitch that told her she’d made an impression.
Deliberately taking her time she dipped down to unfasten the buttons, three on one side and three on the other, making sure to brush her hair over his arousal as she did so.
“There. I believe that will suffice?”
His breeches dropped to the floor, leaving him in full display, and with stockings and boots.
“One more thing.” He stared pointedly downward
She sighed. “You’d better sit down.”
This would be the ultimate test. And if he thought she would give in, he was in for a big surprise.
He sat carefully on the pile of blankets, his eyes on her, his face betraying no expression, but his eyes…ah yes, they spoke volumes.
She moved to face him, then turned her back. And when she bent over to pick up his boot and tug it between her legs, she heard him choke down a groan.
Prudence smiled. She had indeed made her point. She was as involved in this moment as he was.
His boots seemed to fly off his legs and his stockings followed every bit as rapidly. He was standing again before she had time to realize it, reaching for her and picking her up, putting her on the furs in front of him.
“Lie down, Pru. Lie down for me.”
She obeyed, loving the heat of him between her thighs and the sensual kiss of the furs against her back.
Then he pushed her legs wide and lowered his head.
And her mind melted.
Chapter Eight
He lost himself in her—falling into a world that was bounded by her skin and filled with her scent. She tasted sweet and tart and unique, a flavor he’d remember until his last moments on earth.
She writhed as he slid his tongue around her delicate folds, slowly at first as he learned how to make her respond. Then, when her body had shown him what he needed to know, he began to tease, tantalize and arouse her to the point where she was trembling, her muscles taut, her breath coming quickly with tiny sounds of pleasure and need.
He was on fire, devouring her, unable to sate this new appetite for her, this urge to feast on her flesh and drown in her ecstasy.
“Reid…Reid…’t’is too much…” She reached for his head, grabbing his hair and pulling him away from her sex.
He obeyed, but only to rise up above her. “I like your taste, Prudence.” He saw her eyes on his lips and daringly bent to kiss her. “Taste yourself…”
She did, opening her mouth as he drew close. It was one of the most erotic moments Reid could ever remember having, and he knew it was the tipping point for his self-control.
He broke the kiss, urged her fully onto the furs beneath him and stared at her. She was cream and roses and chestnut hair, her breasts heaving as she reached for him, her eyelids heavy with desire.
“I want you inside me. Now.” She spread her thighs wide, leaving him in no doubt of her meaning. “Now, Reid. Please. I can wait no longer.”
Who was he to deny a lady her pleasure? He could not. Not when his cock was screaming at him to get on with it or suffer the consequences of his manhood exploding much too soon.
He moved into position between her legs, sliding his hands beneath her buttocks and pulling her up into his body. Then he positioned the head of his cock at exactly the right point—and rubbed it over her skin and the little shiny bud that protruded toward him.
She cried out and he thrust; a movement that buried his cock within her fiery slick silk.
She shivered, moaned and he felt the first tremors of her release as they built inside her. His own needs clawed at him and he began to move, steadily, realizing that he would probably reach his own peak within moments of hers.
She was tensing, her body arching, her mouth opening on whimpers of ecstasy as her eyes closed.
He continued to thrust, watching her, noting every tiny movement, every flicker of sensation that crossed her flesh. Her breasts were full, the nipples tight buds that cast strange shadows over her skin in the firelight.
He quickened his pace, knowing he could not hold back much longer. And this time it was he who began to tense, responding to the mounting pressure within his lower body, the smooth slide of her inner flesh against his, and the muscle spasms within her that were strengthening every second.
The world collapsed around him, narrowing down to the joining of their bodies and the imminent eruption—he gasped as the sensation hit him like a hammer and he let go, erupting inside Prudence with a roar that matched the cry of the woman beneath him.
She shook violently, her inner walls clamping down on his cock with a rhythm that matched his, milking him, urging him to fly with her off the cliff of blind and exquisite euphoria.
So fly he did, his eyes never leaving her face, anchored to Prudence by forces beyond his control.
And as she finally eased and he felt that last tiny throb, he choked back a sound that could have been a sob, or just the emotions of the moment rising in his throat.
She lay limp, her body shining a little as the fire dappled shadows over her curves. Then she opened her eyes and looked at him. “I am at a loss for words, Reid.”
A cold draft woke him from his stupor and he shivered a little. “Me too.”
Regretfully sliding from her body, he reached for the blankets and his cloak, piling them on the furs beside her. “Let me tend the fire.”
He put on more logs, made sure it was settled safely and then returned to the makeshift bed, settling down at Prudence’s side and tucking her against his body. “Sleep now. We’ll be warm enough.”
“I know.” She snuggled herself into his arms. “I know.”
And they slept, sated, exhausted and content.
*~~*~~*
Prudence awoke to feel a chill against her skin. She mumbled, pulled the blankets around her more snugly and reached for Reid without even thinking about it.
But he wasn’t there.
She sat up, wrapping herself securely, peering through the dim light to see where he was.
There was a slight sound from outside, and she breathed a sigh of relief. He had most probably gone to answer the call of nature. Which, now she thought about it, sounded like a practical idea.
The blanket wasn’t all it could be for warmth, and she dreaded the cold snowy ground beneath her bare feet, but for two minutes and the rest of the night in comfort, it was worth it.
So she moved quietly to the door and opened it.
He stood outside, bare naked, staring up at t
he moon. She took a moment to appreciate the sheer beauty of his body, gleaming in the blue white light.
“Hullo. Are you worshipping the Goddess of the Night?”
He turned and she caught the flash of white teeth as he smiled. “I thought I’d already done that.”
She laughed. “I’m no Goddess. Just a woman with a desperate need for a convenient bush.”
He nodded. “I completely understand. Milady’s bush is over there.” He pointed to a large shrub.
“My thanks.” With a few muttered exclamations as warm feet met cold ground, Prudence hurried to the bush and emerged shortly thereafter much refreshed.
“Isn’t it lovely?” Reid was still outside. “There’ll be snow within the hour…” He nodded at a large cloud bank gathering nearby. “But for this moment, right now, it’s just perfect.”
She tiptoed to him. “If a little cold on the exposed bits. How can you stand it?” She eyed him curiously.
“I’ve always loved the winter. There’s something cleansing about snow, and I used to go running in it whenever I could. When Mama found I liked to take my clothes off when I did, she explained that it wasn’t good for my body to chill it so quickly. So I took my clothes off little by little. One winter she followed my trail of garments for close on a quarter of a mile before she caught me frolicking naked in a big pile of snow.” He grinned.
“You are a strange man, Mr. Chillendale.”
“And you, Lady Prudence, need to experience a good frolic.”
“I thought I’d already done that.” She threw his words back to him as quick as a wink.
“You’re shivering. Come here.”
“I’m thinking the fire would be nice...”
“Coward.”
To her surprise, he picked her up, holding her like a child. There was more strength than she’d realized in those muscled arms of his.
Then he tossed her blanket aside.
“Reid…for heaven’s sake. I’ll freeze to death.”
His chest rumbled with his laughter. “I won’t let that happen, love. Never fear. But ‘t’is as I said. You need a frolic.”