“Is it customary for newly married couples to travel?”
“I’d like that. I’ve other estates to show you. Although I think we should wait until I ascertain whether danger lingers beyond our borders.”
Garrick detested being hindered by Zotikos, but he wasn’t about to let Aisley or Angelica fall to harm. He also wasn’t willing to remain captive on his land and had already sent messengers to Henry warning of potential danger in Danford.
“Are you certain there is nothing we can do to rid ourselves of Zotikos’ threats?”
“Patience and vigilance are our best options,” he advised.
“I’m beginning to wonder if we should dare speak of him on our wedding night.”
Garrick couldn’t have agreed more. He pulled out from beneath her and turned to the table beside their bed.
“What are you doing, searching for more oil?” The longing in Aisley’s voice matched her rumbling. Already he could smell her renewed desire. It was as alluring to him as sustenance.
“Nay, I have a gift for my wife.”
“I need nothing. You’ve been so generous.”
Garrick faced away from her. His hardness had begun to ache and wouldn’t be eased until he took her again.
“What I give you now is more than a gift.” Turning back to her, he presented his offering. “When my father was courting my mother, it was customary for Abcynian males to bestow their mates with a torque or bridal chain. I would very much like for you to wear one, as I will, only mine will not have a stone,” he told her.
“How lovely,” Aisley said, rising as he displayed his gift.
At first he stilled as her eyes alighted upon the gift. It was made of smooth, tanned leather with intricate silver thread wrapped about the long cord. Garrick prayed that Aisley liked the blue stone hanging at the center. It was a gift from his heart meant to tell the world that she was his wife.
“Garrick, it’s beautiful,” she uttered. Without hesitation, she lowered her head to permit him to fasten it about her neck.
“This was made for you, little one. As I’d said, I shall wear one and all Abcynians who see it will know we are mated.”
“Can I see yours?” she requested.
“Aye,” he agreed and reached for his cord. “Will you place it around my neck?”
Aisley took it and knelt before him. In the candlelight, she looked beautiful with her tangled hair and heated flush of her freckled skin. She smelled of him and desire, of pleasure and need. He wanted that scent to forever mark her. She didn’t yet know the spices in their sustenance masked her panthera scent from those who’d like to destroy them.
“Did an Abcynian craftsman make these?”
“Aye.”
“I would like to meet more of our kind,” she admitted. “I’d like to understand more about the Abcynians.”
“You will. There’s no hurry, Aisley. It’s taken me four hundred and fifty years to understand our kind and I’m still learning. I suspect much is to be learned by both of us in the coming years. What you need to know now is that only Abcynians born with the blood of a panther can change form. Those of us that can change are granted the status of Elder upon reaching maturity. Being an Elder is similar to being part of the nobility in England,” he explained. “Mayhap in another hundred years or so, what we know will be proven wrong. It’s difficult to say. Either way, we’ll have plenty of time to find out together.”
“That’s so odd. To think a simple bite can lengthen my life and give me the traits of a leopard, it’s a miracle.”
“You’re the miracle. I haven’t a clue as to what I’ve done to deserve your love, but I shall endeavor to protect it well.”
“Is that your way of promising fidelity?” Aisley’s fingers tightened about his neck and tugged.
Garrick’s heart skipped a beat. Aisley thought he might look elsewhere for his pleasures and he had only himself to blame for her concern. He’d been honest about his past and his wives, mayhap too honest.
“Never think I would leave you for another woman. I love you. The mistakes I made are best left in the past and I will spend our life together proving my loyalty to you if you need it.”
“You misunderstand, my lord,” she teased, her hands remaining firm as her lips touched his. “Your word is all I need to believe in your faithfulness.”
Garrick shivered. She continued to kiss him. Her mouth was as soft as satin, moist and slightly parted. It would only take a dart of his tongue to possess her completely.
“Besides, I’ve found the leopard’s essence within me has made me very, very territorial,” she said, catching his lower lip between her teeth.
“Ah, I like your aggression.” Sharp as her teeth were, her play tempted him in a way she didn’t understand quite yet.
Wanting to lead, Garrick grabbed her waist and pushed her back enough to catch her eyes. They were warm and narrowed in catlike need. Aisley was beginning to feel her leopard’s aggressive sexuality.
“Do you want me again, Aisley?”
“Aye, I do.”
“Then kiss me,” he commanded.
“With pleasure, my lord,” she granted, claiming his mouth.
Upon her permission, their tongues mated. She sucked on his tongue and his shaft pulsed with each pull of her soft, full lips. It wouldn’t be long before she’d learn to use her mouth to draw forth his seed. For now, he pulled Aisley onto his lap, her legs on either side of his thighs and he welcomed the feel of her hot, swollen flesh sliding along his shaft.
Breaking their kiss, he cupped her chin and studied her face. “Ah, love, you’ve so much to give. And the bridal chain looks lovely upon your neck. So much so, I might have to bite you again.”
“Is that a threat?” she chuckled.
“A promise,” he answered. “You should know the gift serves two purposes.”
“I think I know what you’re about to say.”
“Do you?”
“It symbolizes our marriage and hides the bite mark on my neck.”
“Aye, like the mark on your wrist, the one that will form on your neck will be noticeable in certain light. I’m also having a bracelet designed for your wrist.”
She lifted her wrist then, displaying the iridescent symbol of the leopard’s essence. “I am grateful that you would consider my safety, Garrick.”
“I could do nothing less, but I’ve other things in mind than discussing jewelry.”
“That would be my wish too.” Aisley wrapped her arms about him. She was like silk and steel, soft to the touch and strong enough to take his full strength. “Can you take me like this, Garrick?”
“Later, I will.”
“Shall I lie back? I’d like to face the headboard this time.”
“You may.” Garrick waited for her to move from his lap and caught her waist. “Not that way.” Tightening his fingers, he turned her to her stomach, her head toward the headboard. The sight of her freckled back and thighs invited kisses.
Part of him hesitated, thinking it might be too soon to take her the way he intended. “Aisley, I’m going to take you this way, from behind. Don’t be afraid.”
“It’s all right, Garrick. Nothing we ever do in this bed is wrong, remember?” she whispered into the pillows where she lay. “I trust you to love me well, in any way you choose.”
“Have I told you I adore you?”
“With kisses you have.”
“Then permit me to adore you some more.” He didn’t wait for her response. He straddled her thighs instead and massaged her shoulders, bringing forth a mew from her throat as he caressed her spine.
“Hmm, keep doing that and I may fall asleep.”
“I promise I’ll not let you rest. Not until much later.”
“Since you keep your promises, I shall trust you.” She shifted, lifting her backside in invitation.
Fighting the urge to claim, he concentrated on stroking her back and hips. When he reached her buttocks, Aisley almost drew back. It too
k only a caress of his palms to calm her.
“Beautiful,” he complimented, enjoying the sight of his hands kneading her flesh. Her skin grew pinker as he stroked. He liked being the source of her pleasure and treasured every nuance of her movements as he gently scratched his nails down the back of her pale thighs.
“Garrick—”
“Hush, let me love you.”
They both fell quiet, their breathing filling the chamber. His caresses made her flesh grow warm and flushed. Her feminine needs became more apparent in her scent.
“Have mercy, I need you,” she grumbled, her hips shifting in natural, instinctive cadence.
“You shall have me again soon.”
“Please,” she whispered.
Enticed, he lowered until he nearly lay on top of her. His legs fell to either side of hers, his hardness finding haven in the notch between her inner thighs.
“Do you realize you’ve done much of the work this night and I’ve simply taken it?” she asked.
“Don’t you know you move with me, love? Every shift and grind of your hips makes me harder. God’s teeth, if I don’t take you soon, I’m going to spill my seed all over the bed instead of inside of you.”
Beneath him, she stilled and clenched her fists. “I’ll stop moving.”
“If you stop, I’ll spank your pretty arse.”
“Try and I will get you back,” she promised with such feistiness he almost roared with the need to conquer her.
“Forgive me,” he said, unremorseful.
Aisley relaxed, her hips shifting with his subtle thrusts. To maintain control, he lifted with his elbows and kissed her neck, pushing the leather chain this way and that to gain better access, then he kissed his way to her hips.
“Oh my…nice,” she whimpered.
Sweet little moans spilled from her lips, urging him to kiss and nibble each globe of her backside before nuzzling and rubbing his face into the small of her back. Aisley arched and sighed with pleasure, inviting him to nip at her spine and drag his hair back and forth across her long freckled back.
When he could take the play no longer, he hauled Aisley to her knees.
“Be careful,” she whispered.
“There’s nothing to fear. I’d never hurt you or demand anything you couldn’t accept.”
“You’re a good man. Do you know that?”
“With you, I’ve become so.”
“You’ve always been.” Trustingly, she pushed up from the bed until her back pressed to his chest. “Hold me.”
He grasped her about the waist and held her for as long as she needed. While he ached for surcease, his desire to reassure her was stronger. Never before had he thought to restrain himself in such a simple way.
Wanting to tempt her, he moved his hands from her waist to her breasts. A gentle squeeze had her arching. A pull on the hardened nipples made her keen aloud. Her hips ground back against his and he coaxed her forward.
Slowly, he dotted her back and shoulders with kisses and soon had her palms flat to the bed. He plucked her nipples with his left hand while his right slid to her damp folds. His thumb stroked the sensitive bit of flesh near her entrance and he parted her with two fingers, pleasuring her with quick, short thrusts of his longer third finger.
Aisley’s arse swayed and countered his movements, seeking to take his finger deep and hard. Her sweet moans made him smile. The gyrations of her hips beckoned him to take her the way he wanted.
Rising behind her, he withdrew his hand and embraced her, the urge to claim her exceeding anything else he’d known. Instinctively, she pushed against him and he penetrated her until he was buried to the hilt. Her inner silken muscles surrounded him, clenching, tempting him to take her hard and fast, but he wanted to enjoy the feel of being joined as much as he wanted to enter her again and again.
“Oh!” Aisley gasped, arching back to take his long, deliberate thrusts. He wanted her to feel him deep, to take everything he could give.
Breathing harder with every stroke, he moved his hand back to her folds, encouraging her hips to rock and grind against his hand. She roared with the fierce passion of a panthera pardus female and something within him broke. Gone was the patient lover he’d meant to be this night. In its place was a panthera Abcynian male claiming his mate.
Aisley was his! No other man would ever know her scent or the sound of her needful cries. She was snug and hot and perfectly made for him.
Her inner muscles clenched around him, massaging his rock hard staff and he roared. Knowing what to do to urge her to completion, he nudged her tangled red hair away from her neck and bit. Finding purchase as he thrust, he pushed her to her elbows and held her still.
Feel me, love, feel me deep and follow me. Sharing his essence with her, he knew it would catapult to the core of her need.
She bucked, drawing him impossibly deeper. “Garrick, I think…I fear I shall swoon. I cannot take much more.”
You will take all that I have and more. Bracing both of them, he surged. Her body trembled from the merging of essence and passion and his seed rushed forth. His shout joined her cries, their bodies cresting as one.
Feeling heavy and spent, Garrick eased down on top of her, their bodies still joined. Burying his head further into the crook of her neck, he lapped at the small panther’s face emerging on her skin.
Proud to know he’d marked her, he nudged her bridal chain back into place and turned her until she lay within his arms.
Comfortable and content, he listened to Aisley’s quiet, contented rumble.
* * * * *
“I cannot believe you let her go,” Sedgewick admonished. “John, are you paying attention? Edwina and I are talking to you.”
“I heard you.” John lifted his eyes from the table where they had gathered for their midday repast. He didn’t bother to look at the woman beside him and Sedgewick wondered why John married her. “The two of you have been grumbling about the healer for days. Haven’t you realized she is small prey compared to the Earl of Danford?”
“You intend for the three of us to go against him?” Sedgewick asked. “How would you propose we begin?”
“We use his countess,” John replied with a shrug. “After all, you believe she’s a witch.”
“She must be,” Sedgewick said. “If she weren’t, she never would have convinced you to free her and now you want to recapture her. Mayhap you’ve gone mad.”
John glared, his wrath causing a layer of ice to form on his goblet. Sedgewick drew back as far as the booth would allow, but he shivered anyway. Never had he thought someone’s temper would make him cold.
“I did not free her without reason,” John stated. “I’d hoped the Earl of Danford would find her and she’d become the distraction we need to bring him to his knees. I’ve known him for ages. The evil he practices is worse than the healer’s.”
“How could he be worse? Over the last three sennights, we learned he has commanded legions of men. If Lord Danford had taken his regiment into Castillon, the English would have retained Aquitaine.”
“So common folk say,” John said. “What do they know of war? I say to you, the Earl of Danford believes he can change from man to beast.”
Sedgewick gulped. “He couldn’t be a werewolf. I’d have known.”
“Like you knew the child to be the offspring of one? I must disappoint you in that regard. The babe is an innocent, nothing more. Danford believes he can become a leopard.”
Sedgewick scowled at that. He didn’t know what a leopard was. “Are there such creatures in England?”
“Does it matter?” Sedgewick asked. “We must expose him for his beliefs and mayhap a confession will save his soul. The charge of heresy will send him to hell if he doesn’t.”
“I do not understand why we should bother with Lord Danford. It is the healer who needs to pay.”
“The healer may have stolen the child from you, but it was the Earl who would have sent you to poverty if I’d not saved you.”
<
br /> “You’re right. Yet it is unwise to provoke a man who holds the protection of the King. I don’t know about you, John, but I like my head where it is.”
“You’ll not lose your head if you listen to my plan. If we do nothing about the Earl, we’ll never get Aisley from him. Take his mate and Garrick Forrester will know what it means to suffer.”
“Darling, won’t you include me in your plans? You’re discussing the ones who are holding my niece captive. I want to know she’ll be returned to us,” Edwina said to her husband.
“Unfortunately, the healer does not trust you, my dear,” John replied. “We must find another way to regain guardianship of the child.”
“I hope so. I want a second chance to raise her right and proper.”
Sedgewick watched Edwina silently. He’d known her to have a harsh tongue in his past dealings with her and now she spoke well. He couldn’t say for certain that Edwina and John had actually married, but the two had disappeared for a short time after they’d met and claimed to have visited a priest. How John managed to avoid having his banns read, Sedgewick couldn’t say. Edwina was convinced that she was John’s wife and that was all that seemed to matter to her.
“I was wrong to let her go when I did,” Edwina confessed. “I had no means to fend for a child and Sedgewick offered to care for her. I’d little choice.”
“You’ll not condemn me for that, Edwina,” Sedgewick said. “You sold your niece to me for two marks. Never forget the truth of that.”
John slammed a fist against the table. “Enough, to succeed we must work together. I can do nothing without your support, Sedgewick. And you, my dear wife, are always needed,” he said, drawing Edwina closer. “I propose we find a way to lure Danford from his manor. We may need to use one of the Earl’s family members to succeed. Once he’s distracted, Aisley will become vulnerable and the child will be ours.”
“Tell us more,” Edwina invited.
Sedgewick couldn’t help it, he wanted to listen. He’d lost all that he had because of Danford and a witch, both should answer for their doings.
“I shall in time,” John said, smiling. “Edwina, tell me what you know about Welford. Who profits from the land? Is it a knight, a baron or an earl? Tell me and I’ll show you how the three of us can defeat the Earl of Danford and his pretty healer.”
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