The Bargain Mail Order Bride

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  She remained seated as she weighed the pros and cons of each possibility she had. She could ask him to come to her bed, but she didn’t think that would work any better than it had the last time she’d done it. Leaving him alone hadn’t worked in her favor, either. That only left her with one option. If they were going to make the most of their marriage, she was going to have to be the one to initiate lovemaking.

  She took a deep breath and released it before she put her brush back in her trunk. Once she closed the lid, she took a moment to gather her courage then walked over to him, her bare feet not making a sound as she crossed the room.

  As soon as she reached Carl, she knelt beside him and touched his shoulder. His eyes flew open and he jerked, just as he had last time.

  She thought over what she might say to reassure him that she wasn’t going to hurt him, but by the startled expression on his face, she suspected her words wouldn’t calm him. The only thing she could think of was to show him, and that would require her to be assertive.

  Without waiting for him to protest, she leaned toward him and kissed him. As expected, he didn’t respond. In fact, he remained frozen in place. Even when she made an attempt to deepen the kiss, he didn’t move. The poor man. No one should have been as hurt as he’d been in the past. Whatever Lydia had done to him, she was going to have to undo it. No doubt, it was going to take time, but the sooner they started the process of healing him from his wounds, the better.

  Since he had expressed an interest in her breasts, she thought it might help to lower his defenses if she showed them to him. Shifting away from him, she pulled her nightshirt off. As she hoped, his gaze went to her breasts, and she took the moment’s distraction to lift his blankets and get into bed with him.

  At once, he made another attempt to get away from her, but it didn’t work. He was already up against the wall. There was nowhere he could go. And she’d come too far to back out now. If she didn’t do this tonight, she might never get the courage to do it again.

  She took his hand and placed it over her breast. Then, without waiting for him to respond, she kissed him again. This time, she kept her lips on his despite the awkwardness of it all. Feeling more emboldened, she slipped her arm around his waist and snuggled up against him.

  After a moment, he started to relax. He wasn’t returning her kiss, but he was at least cupping her breast in his hand. It was progress. Slow progress, but progress nonetheless. But kissing him on the mouth wasn’t going anywhere, so she decided to kiss his neck instead.

  In a million years, she never thought she’d think of her brothers while making love to her husband, but in this case, she realized she was going to have to think back to the sordid conversations they’d had when they hadn’t realized she was nearby. One thing they seemed to enjoy was being kissed on the ear. Personally, she had no idea what was so exciting about being kissed on the ear. The whole thing seemed silly to her, but it was worth trying.

  So she did that with Carl, and recalling the strategy her brothers had discussed, she proceeded to trace his ear with her tongue. The trick worked. Carl gave a slight shiver and further relaxed. She continued with the technique while she unfastened the buttons on his shirt. He, in turn, began to caress her breast in earnest, seeming intent to memorize every inch of it. At one point, his thumb brushed her nipple, and the sensation sent a pleasant spark straight down to her core.

  “I like that,” she whispered. “Will you do it again?”

  He obliged, and the same sensation coursed through her again. With a moan, she brought her mouth back to his and cupped the back of his neck, pulling him closer to her. This time he responded to her kiss. Even if there was a hint of hesitation in it, he was finally relenting, and that further encouraged her to keep going.

  Another thing her brothers had seemed to like was intimate kissing. At least that was what they called it. Curious to see what all the fuss was about, she traced his lower lip with her tongue. She hadn’t expected him to open his mouth to her right away, but he did.

  Accepting the invitation, she brushed his tongue with hers. He responded in kind, and soon, the pleasant sensation that had begun to settle in her core grew more insistent. And this insistence was prompting her to discard the last of her inhibitions.

  She encouraged him to get on his back and shifted so that she was on top of him. She would have let him get on top of her if she thought he’d stay there, but since he was so reluctant to explore her, she was afraid he might bolt out of the cabin. By settling on top of him, however, he couldn’t easily escape, and better yet, he would be able to get a good view of her breasts, which should provide him a good incentive to stay with her.

  Her ploy worked. He didn’t try to stop her as she unbuttoned his pants. Through the fabric, she could feel his erection. He was fully aroused. She glanced up at his face and saw that he was preoccupied with her breasts. She suspected he wanted to touch them again but was afraid to make the move.

  Well, she could certainly oblige him on that. But first, she urged him to let her pull his pants down. Then she straddled him until her sensitive nub settled on his penis. Then she brought his hands to her breasts and leaned over him. He let out an appreciative groan and resumed his exploration of her while she began to rock her hips. It felt good. So good, in fact, that she couldn’t help but moan in pleasure.

  Her original plan had been to take him into her right away, thinking it would help him if she sped things along, but rubbing her sensitive nub against his penis only intensified her pleasure. She moaned and rocked her hips back and forth until she established a rhythm that brought her the greatest pleasure. There was no way she could take him inside her at this moment. She needed to keep going, to know where this mounting pleasure was taking her.

  And he seemed more than happy to let her do this. He wasn’t stopping her. He didn’t make an attempt to enter her. Instead, he put his hands on her hips and helped her along. At one point, she looked at his face and saw that he was watching her with a mixture of curiosity and excitement.

  She’d never seen that kind of look on his face before, but she knew what it meant. She’d finally done it. She’d managed to break through his wall. He was with her in this moment. He was open to her. He was allowing himself to be vulnerable.

  At the moment she reached her peak, she cried out and closed her eyes. She grew still as wave after wave of pleasure crashed into her. She had no idea how long she remained suspended in her state of bliss, but it was the most wonderful experience she’d ever had.

  When she finally descended back to earth, she took him inside her and rocked her hips again, this time, prompting him to ascend to the heights she’d just been to. And he did. Before long, he grew taut and spilled his seed into her.

  After he relaxed, she got off of him and pulled the blanket around them. Then she snuggled up against his side, put her arm around his waist, and rested her head on his shoulder. To be honest, she worried he might use this moment to get away from her. But thankfully, he didn’t. Instead, he chose to put his arms around her and held her close.

  Neither spoke for the rest of the night. Not that she expected it. What they had just shared seemed to be too private for words. And really, it was much better they were quiet. That way, she could hear the beating of their hearts.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Carl didn’t sleep that night. Even long after Juliet fell asleep, he chose to stay awake, afraid that if he went to sleep, he’d wake up and find out it’d all been a dream. He didn’t care how tired he was going to be the next day. He just wanted to savor the memory for as long as possible.

  So, staring at the ceiling, he continued to hold her. Once in a while, he even caressed her back. But he tried not to do anything that might wake her in case she decided it was too uncomfortable on the floor and go back to the bed without him.

  It was strange to make love to a woman and feel good about it. Strange, but very wonderful. He had no idea he was capable of bringing any woman pleasure, but h
e’d watched Juliet as she made love to him and there was no denying that she’d reached her climax. If he could make the moment last forever, he would. There was nothing better than knowing the woman he was making love to wanted to be with him.

  That had never happened with Lydia. Even the first time they were together, it left him feeling empty and alone. As soon as he was done, she let out a sigh of relief and turned her back to him, letting him know she hadn’t enjoyed it. He’d made some attempts during that first year of marriage to please her, but no matter what he did, it wasn’t good enough.

  By the time the second year came along, he gave up and left her alone, something she didn’t once protest. And, from there, bitterness and resentment took root in their marriage until neither one could stand the sight of the other.

  That wasn’t the kind of marriage he wanted with Juliet. He wanted the kind of marriage Abe, Eric, and Travis had. One could tell by looking at them that they were happy, and there was no denying that when their wives looked at them, they were happy as well.

  He hadn’t expected to be happy when he first met Juliet. He would have settled for someone who’d let him live out his life in peace. But she’d quickly become someone he liked. Even better, she liked him, too. And now, she was a part of him. He couldn’t imagine his life without her. No matter what it took, he was going to do everything in his power to keep her safe so no one would take her away from him.

  By the time traces of dawn lit up the sky, she stirred from her sleep. He was almost sorry she was waking up. He’d been enjoying the quiet time he had to reflect on how much better things had been ever since she came into his life. And last night… Well, last night had been one of the best things that had ever happened to him.

  She lifted her head, her gaze going to the window. “Is it morning already?”

  “I’m afraid so,” he whispered, reluctant to part from the bliss he’d enjoyed all through the night.

  It was a new day, and he wasn’t sure what to expect from it. He’d never had a positive experience with making love. Did couples do it and then go about their day as if nothing of significance happened? Did they wait for a week or more before coming together again? Or did they dare do it the next day? More than anything, he wanted to experience it with her again, to reassure himself that it could be as wonderful as it’d been last night.

  “Did you sleep at all?” she asked, turning her gaze to him.

  Noting the concern in her voice, he smiled. “No. I didn’t want to ruin the moment.”

  “How would it have been ruined?”

  He shrugged. “It was nice. Between us. I wanted to hold onto it for as long as I could.”

  She smiled. “It was nice.” She shifted so that she was partially lying on top of him, and his body responded in a way that let him know it didn’t want to wait to make love to her again. She ran her fingers along his jaw and added, “I’m glad you didn’t tell me to go back to the bed.”

  “To be honest, I was too shocked to do anything.”

  She giggled. “I didn’t give you much time to think over what I was doing.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t,” he admitted.

  “Good.”

  “Juliet,” he began after a moment of silence passed between them, “have you given any thought to where you’d like to go if we strike it rich?”

  “Not really. As long as it’s not Texas, I don’t care where it is. I spent my entire life there. I’d like to be in another part of the country.”

  He had no doubt Texas would be the worst place she could go, but he wasn’t sure she’d be safe anywhere else in the country, either. Not when Wanted posters of her were circling through the territories and states. If one could make it to a town as small as this one, every sheriff was probably aware she had a huge bounty on her head.

  “What about living in another country?” he asked.

  Her eyebrows furrowed. “Are you thinking of going to Mexico?”

  “No. I was thinking of going north to Canada.”

  “I don’t know anything about Canada.”

  “My mother’s sister lived there.” He shrugged. “She might still be there for all I know. She used to write letters to my mother about how beautiful it was there. My mother longed to go, but she never got the chance.” He swallowed the lump in his throat. It wasn’t her fault she never got there. The blame rested solely on his father, who’d destroyed all the dreams she’d ever had. Forcing his attention back to Juliet, he continued, “I thought maybe you’d enjoy being there.”

  Juliet smiled. “It sounds lovely. I don’t care where we go as long as you’re with me. And it’s not Texas,” she quickly added.

  “I wouldn’t go anywhere without you.”

  This time, he didn’t feel so awkward when she kissed him. He cupped the side of her face with his hand and responded to her, encouraged that things might be leading in a certain direction. With a contented sigh, she moved until she was settled completely on top of him, the warmth of her flesh pressing up against his erection.

  She proceeded to deepen the kiss, prompting him to accept her into his mouth. He did as she wished, and he was rewarded with a pleasant sensation that coursed through him as her tongue brushed his.

  Good. He had hoped this was leading to the same thing they had enjoyed last night. He wrapped his arms around her and let her know he was eager to be with her again, and so it was in mutual agreement that they proceeded to make love.

  ***

  Later that day, Carl had just loaded up the wheelbarrow with the bucket of pay dirt when he noticed a man walking his way. At first, he thought it was Abe coming to bother him about the stream, but the man was too tall and broad to be Abe. Upon further inspection, he realized it was Travis.

  Relaxing, he put the shovel and other tools into the wheelbarrow.

  “Juliet said you were down here, but I thought for sure she was mistaken,” Travis said as he approached him. “What are you doing at the stream this time of year? The water must be freezing.”

  “It’s fine.” Carl lifted the handles of the wheelbarrow and headed up the path, and Travis fell in step beside him. “Did you need something?”

  “No. I just wanted to make sure everything was alright. I wasn’t going to interfere, but no matter how much I tried to forget your hurry to leave town when we were at Eric’s, it kept bothering me. What’s going on?”

  “Nothing. I wanted to get back before it got dark.” When Travis didn’t seem convinced, he added, “In case you haven’t noticed, I live further out of town than you do. It takes me longer to get back home.”

  “Eric might have believed that, but I don’t. I know it when I see a man who’s scared, and you were scared.”

  Carl didn’t like the sound of this. Travis seemed like he was onto something, but he couldn’t know about Juliet. No one in this town knew she was an outlaw. And if someone did, Eric would be at his door demanding she be taken to jail.

  Forcing himself to laugh, Carl asked, “What would I be scared of?”

  “I’m not sure. That’s why I came out here. I wanted to make sure you’re alright.”

  “Yeah, I’m alright.”

  “Really? Because it snowed last night, and you’re out here digging up dirt so you can pan for gold.”

  “What’s wrong with that?”

  “Nothing, I guess, but you once told me you don’t like to go panning once it snows.”

  This was just what Carl needed: a man with a good memory bothering him. What could he say or do to get Travis to stop pestering him about things? He glanced behind him and saw Abe’s barn and cabin up the hill. From time to time, Abe would sit on the roof of the barn and watch him as he panned for gold. It’d always given him a creepy feeling, as if a vulture was circling over its prey, patiently waiting for it to die so it could sweep in and devour it. Thankfully, he rarely did that ever since his marriage to Phoebe.

  Inspired, he turned back to Travis and said, “I don’t have much time before I’m thirty
. I couldn’t get Lydia with child, and I can’t do that with Juliet, either. The only option I have is to get to the gold before Abe pries the stream from me. My father’s will was very specific on the terms of keeping the stream.”

  “Maybe if you talked to Abe, he’d be willing to let you keep panning for gold once it goes to him.”

  Carl snorted. “Abe hates me.”

  “How can you be sure of that?”

  “His fist told me so. On several occasions.”

  “I don’t understand this feud you two have. You’d think with the things you have in common that you would get along.”

  Carl stiffened, and he stopped pushing the wheelbarrow. “I have nothing in common with him.”

  “Both of you are unpopular in town. Neither of you feels like he has any friends. Well, except maybe for me and Eric. Neither one of you wants to be in this town but feel like you can’t get out. I’m not saying it’s your fault. It’s just that when your father took a mistress and Abe was born out of an adulterous relationship, it was bound to make you both outcasts in the town. I bet if you took the time to talk to Abe, you’d find out you aren’t so different after all.”

  “I’ve heard enough.”

  Gritting his teeth, Carl proceeded forward. He should be thankful Travis hadn’t figured out that Juliet was an outlaw. But even so, it irked him that Travis spouted off all the things he had. What business was it of his what his father had done? For that matter, what business was it of the town’s? Couldn’t anyone mind their own business around here?

  “I think I said the wrong things,” Travis said after a long, tense moment of silence passed between them.

  “You think so, huh?” Carl snapped.