Two lengths of rope—and a knife.
“Bought this rope from your pa. I reckon if he knew what I’d planned on tying up, he would have leveled his shotgun at my chest again.”
Shirley’s heart slammed to life. “Wh-what do you plan on tying up?” She swallowed a few times, trying in vain to moisten her dry throat.
“A headstrong filly,” he replied, his voice deepening with desire. “She needs a firm hand to break her. But I’m gonna ride her until she collapses with exhaustion and allows me to do any damn thing I want.”
She closed her eyes and groaned, unable to keep herself from trembling. “What about the knife?” she asked, hearing the tremor in her voice.
“For cuttin’ the rope,” he said, closer now. “When I’m good and sure my filly won’t bolt. When I know she’s been branded as mine.”
Opening her eyes, Shirley had to crane her neck to look up into Luke’s face. He stood right in front of her, gazing down at her like a conquering hero. She had no doubt he could see right down her chemise to the swell of her bosom. And her eyes caught something long and hard bulging underneath his robe.
“Lay back on the pillows,” he said, just as he put the knife on the side table. His voice was soft, but she heard the command.
“Will this…h-hurt?” she asked, silently pleading with him. His sensual games now brought more fear than excitement at the unknown.
Luke crouched down on his haunches until his face was level with hers. “I would never hurt you. Ever. I’m gonna love every inch of this luscious body until I hear you screamin’ my name. But you’ll be in control. I won’t do anything you don’t ask me for. If you want me to stop, I will. What I’m about to do is take away your inhibitions and show you that you can trust me. I want to give you pleasure like you’ve never felt. But you will feel a virgin’s pain, honey. I can’t help that.”
She searched his eyes and saw the truth behind his words. “I trust you.”
Luke shook his head. “Not yet, you don’t, or you wouldn’t have left me behind in the dust.”
Shirley looked away in shame. She played with her hands in her lap.
“Lay back on the pillows, Shirley,” he said, his voice smooth, like velvet. “And give me your trust.”
His smooth smile did her in. She couldn’t help but do as he said, unable to keep her eyes off his angelic face. He was a man of his word. She knew he wouldn’t hurt her. Her fear melted away until curiosity replaced it and she lay back.
Luke took her right arm first and held it up to the iron bed frame against the wall. She watched him tie her wrist and tug on the rope to make sure she was secure. He didn’t tie her too tightly, but she couldn’t remove her arm at all.
“Now for the other one,” he said with a smile. Climbing on the bed, Luke straddled her hips and twisted the rope around her left wrist. Once he was satisfied it held her to the bed, he sat up and gazed down at her. Shirley couldn’t help but blush at the admiration in his eyes. But she didn’t dare look any further down his body. His robe had opened wide when he’d straddled her and was dangerously close to revealing his privates.
“Where is your bandage?”
“What?” His unexpected question had her blinking and bewildered.
“For your ankle. You told me you’d need help wrapping it again.”
“Oh.” Why did he care about that now? “It’s in the bathing room. On top of my folded clothes.”
Luke leaned close to her face, as if he was going to kiss her. But just as she accepted it and closed her eyes to participate, he was gone, adjusting his robe and walking across the room. When he reemerged from the bathing room, he held the bandage in his hand.
Taking her injured foot, he sat on the bed and laid it in his lap. “You have some good bruises,” he murmured, not bothering to look at her. “Does this hurt a lot?”
“It felt better after my bath,” she said. “But it’s starting to ache again.”
Luke lifted her ankle and brought it to his mouth. Shirley sucked in her breath the moment his lips lightly kissed her there, barely grazing her skin. His fingers trailed their way up her calf to her knee before retreating again. His warm palms against her cool skin was divine.
He gingerly set it back down in his lap before winding the bandage like Doctor Newcomb had earlier.
“If I bump this ankle or hurt it in any way, I want you to tell me.” He glanced at her.
“All right.” She was still amazed at his tender show of affection. She’d thought he would have attacked her by now, but instead, he’d taken his time binding her foot.
“I’ll aim to be careful.”
Shirley bit the inside of her lip and glanced away. On instinct she tried to push her hair from her face, but remembered he’d tied her to the bed.
“Already trying to break free?” he asked with a grin.
“No,” she said, her eyes rounding. “I’d just…forgotten.”
“Ah,” he answered with a nod. Leaning over her again, he grabbed the knife he’d laid on the side table. “When I told you to take off your robe, I thought you’d be naked underneath. Looks like we’ll have to remedy that.”
Shirley gasped. “You mean to rip my unmentionables?”
Luke cocked his head and grinned. “You wanna make love with your clothes on?”
She took a deep breath, but shook her head.
With a slice, he slit first one, then the other shoulder strap of her chemise. A few sharp tugs, and he yanked it right out from under her. Shirley stared hard at the ceiling, imagining wildflowers, rainbows, and kittens—anything other than the unbelievably sexy man drinking in his fill of her naked breasts.
“Mmm, look at these beauties,” he said in awe. “Never seen a more perfect pair of titties, darlin’. And to think, these are all mine.”
His head disappeared and before she knew it, he’d latched on to her right breast, suckling it deep and groaning as he did so. Shirley arched upward, and her wrists tugged on the ropes in an effort to hold on to him. She groaned as well—in frustration.
“You like this?”
She panted in response.
“Asked you a question, baby.” His fingers suddenly pinched her nipple, eliciting a cry from her.
“Yes,” she finally admitted.
“Want me to suck your other titty?”
It took her a moment, but she answered him. “Yes.”
“Ask me nice.”
“Good Lord, Luke—”
“Ask me nice or I won’t.”
Shirley swallowed her heart as well as her pride and slammed her eyes shut. “Please will you…will you…?”
“Will I what?”
She took in a sharp breath and blurted it out. “Will you suck on my …breast?”
Instantly, her other nipple was engulfed by his mouth. Just like the night before, the sensations seemed somehow connected to her clit. She vaguely felt him tugging her drawers down her thighs, and she lifted off the bed to help him. The need for Luke to touch her in every way he’d promised suddenly flared to life. She wanted him to hurry.
He pulled away, only to make sure her undergarments didn’t snag on her injured foot. But when he turned back to gaze at her, completely naked underneath him, Shirley couldn’t stop herself from saying, “Kiss me, Luke. Please?”
His face had a look of wonder as he took her in from head to toe. “Oh, I intend to kiss you, filly,” he said, licking his lips. “Every-damn-where.”
He started at her calves and kissed her skin, making her tingle all over. His teeth barely tugged at the tender skin of her inner thighs, bringing forth a hiss through her lips. She was helpless to do any more than lie there with her legs spread wide. Luke crouched between them and gave her a look of longing.
“My God, woman. Your pussy’s so wet.”
“What are you doing?” She couldn’t keep the note of panic from her voice. He was about to touch her where no man ever had, and her sudden need for propriety reared its head. Her knees pres
sed against his shoulders in an effort to close her legs.
But Luke’s gentle hands opened them wide once more. “I’m about to taste you,” he said. “I’m about to drive you wild.”
“It’s not proper, people don’t kiss each other…there. You-you shouldn’t—”
Luke chuckled, and the deep vibrations prompted her to lift her hips of their own accord. Her body was betraying her. She wanted his tongue to delve along her private flesh.
“You want me to start bein’ proper now?”
“Yes!” Despite her cry, her hips once again thrust upward.
“Liar,” he said with a grin. “I’m gonna lick your clit, and if you don’t like it, I won’t do it again our entire marriage.”
“You won’t?”
“I won’t.”
She’d never known him to make a promise he hadn’t kept. “All right, then.”
Shirley gazed back at the ceiling, once again thinking of rainbows and butterflies when a sensation of pleasure rippled through her with such ungodly force, she couldn’t find the strength to protest. Her hands tugged on the ropes in an effort to keep Luke’s head exactly where it was. She’d never known a man’s tongue could be used for such—
Her thoughts went blank the moment his tongue delved inside her. He did it a few times before pulling out and licking her all the way back up, slow-like, before lapping her clit like a thirsty hound. When his mouth left her, she whimpered loudly.
“No!” That one single word tore from her throat and she arched her back.
He laughed, damn him. “No, what, darlin’?”
“Don’t stop.”
“I thought you said—”
“Luke, don’t toy with me.”
“Then tell me what you want me to do.” She heard the grin in his voice.
Shirley was losing her mind—that was the only reason she felt the need to sob right now. Her breathing was ragged and the only thing she wanted in the entire world was the silken slide of Luke’s perfect tongue.
“I want you to lick me.”
“Where?”
She ground her teeth together and balled her fists. “My clit.”
“Then you do like it?”
She growled. “Why do you insist on torturing me?”
“Do you like it, Shirley?” he asked, ignoring her.
“Yes.” She couldn’t continue arguing with him. She’d fall deeper into insanity. “Please?”
“Would you like me to do this often?”
One single sob escaped her. “Yes, Luke, yes.”
His mouth returned and she spread her legs farther to accommodate his large frame. Up and down his head bobbed while his tongue swirled, and her hips found a rhythm against him. Sounds escaped her throat, sounds she’d never made before. The sensations Luke created were so intense, she couldn’t stay silent for long. No wonder he’d told her he could make a woman scream his name.
That hadn’t been arrogance. It had been the damn truth.
His finger entered her and she cried out at the unexpected pressure. But he didn’t stop. He merely pumped in and out, lending his hand to her pleasure. Before long, Shirley strained against her bonds and planted her feet firmly on the bed. She knew her pleasure would release as it once had before, but this time, it was sure to rip her apart.
She didn’t care.
With a few more thrusts of her hips, her rapture swept over her and forced her to grind herself against her husband’s face.
“Oh, Luke!”
His mouth followed her hips and continued to roll her clit on his tongue. Once her orgasm had passed, his ministrations only served to make her body jump with smaller arcs of pleasure.
She was crying. When had she started crying? She couldn’t stop no matter how hard she tried.
“Christ, Shirley, did I hurt you?”
Luke was on top of her in an instant, gazing at her with concern in his lovely blue eyes.
“No,” she said through her sobs. “No, it just…you just overwhelmed me.”
Relief played across his features. “I knew you’d love it.” His eyes narrowed as he playfully grinned at her. “You know what else you’ll love?”
“What?” she replied, breathless.
“My cock.”
Luke pushed off of her once again, only to stand on his knees between her legs. With short, sharp tugs, he pulled on the belt of his robe, yanked it off his shoulders, and tossed it aside. Shirley’s first glimpse of a naked man took her breath away. Luke’s belly was flat, and his chest was covered in light hair.
But it was his cock that caught her eye, thick and hard, and oh-so-ready for her.
“It won’t fit,” she whispered, glancing into his eyes.
“Yes, it will. Might have trouble the first time, but after that, you’ll fit me like a glove.”
“You’re too big!” Shirley felt the panic returning. “Luke, I…I couldn’t possibly!”
“Trust me,” he said soothingly, returning his body to hers. The coarse hair of his chest felt absolutely wicked rubbing against her sensitive, erect nipples. “Do you trust me, filly?”
“I trust you, but I’m just scared.”
“Shh. Don’t be. What we’re about to do, people have been doin’ for years.”
She smiled at his playful tone.
“All I need,” he continued, “is to be coated in your juices, and I’ll slide right in.”
“Are you sure?”
He nodded and winked. “I mighta done this a few times.”
She looked away, feeling an unfamiliar emotion well up within her heart. For some strange reason, she didn’t want to know about his past and the women who’d come before her.
Perhaps he’d sensed her change of mood. Or maybe he wanted her to open up to him again. But his lips caught hers and he kissed her, finally giving her what she’d originally asked him for. His taste was different, changed by her essence, and the flavor of him burst in her mouth. Luke slid his cock between her pussy lips, slicking himself and reigniting her passion. Her fear soon melted away, replaced once again by need.
Her arms fought against the ropes. The only way she could embrace him was with her legs. But she lifted her head in an effort to kiss him deeper, warring with him and asking for his surrender. He wouldn’t give it.
With one last fevered plunge of his tongue, Luke kissed his way to her ear and suckled her earlobe. The warm puff of his breath sent goose flesh across her body.
“Luke…” she whispered, panting. “Come into me.”
“Not yet,” he answered, now suckling his way down her neck. “I want you thinkin’ of me, fantasizing of me, wanting me. Not Christopher, not Nathaniel. Me.”
“But I’m your wife. I won’t ever be with another man.”
A fire lit in his icy eyes. “That’s right, you won’t,” he agreed. “I know that. I wanna make sure you know that. I’m a jealous man, sweetheart.” He advanced slowly and Shirley threw back her head. Luke kissed her exposed neck. Even though he was a big man, her body suddenly craved him, and she wanted him to thrust deeply.
“So tell me, filly,” he whispered into her ear. “Do you want me?”
“Yes!” she answered, without hesitation.
“Do you fantasize about me?”
She swallowed hard and gazed into his eyes just as his fingers threaded through her hair. “Y-yes.”
“Do you want my cock inside you?”
He wasn’t going to advance unless she told him what he wanted to hear. Setting her jaw, she decided to do so without his prompting.
“I want your cock, Luke. I want you inside of me. Make me come again.”
It was his turn to be shocked. But he wasn’t for long. A slow, easy grin lit his face. “You want me to claim you fast or slow?”
Shirley moaned when he pressed forward another little bit. It wasn’t nearly enough.
“Fast!” she demanded.
He didn’t say another word. His mouth was on hers moments before he thrust sharply,
demanding her body accommodate him. Shirley squealed and tensed, trying to come to grips with the pain. But Luke didn’t move, he merely kissed her, as if he had all the time in the world to allow her to get used to him. She lost herself in the swipes of his tongue against hers and the soft caress of his hands on her skin, anywhere he could reach.
When he finally moved, Shirley’s eyes flew open. Luke plunged again, deeper this time and she winced.
“You all right?” His concerned look had her smiling.
“It hurts,” she whined.
“Told ya it would.” He gave her a few delicate kisses along her brow.
“It’s not as bad as I thought, though.”
“No?” Luke withdrew and thrust forward, holding her eye contact.
Shirley grunted, but shook her head.
“What we need,” he said, thrusting again, “is some more of your lovely cream to guide me.”
“How do we do that?”
He gave her a swift kiss on the lips before dipping lower. “I lick your nipple again.”
Luke’s scorching mouth clamped over her nipple, suckling her, flicking her, and making her acutely aware that her clit pulsed with every tug of his teeth. Just as he’d said, his plunges became smoother and easier for her to bear.
“Ah, filly,” he panted when he finally found a rhythm. “I told ya you’d fit me. Christ A’mighty, woman. I don’t know how much longer I can hold on.”
Shirley watched in fascination as Luke’s body moved, thrusting within hers, straining for release. She lifted up for him. If she couldn’t embrace him, she could at least participate another way. With her hips in a slightly different position, he ground his skin against her clit, and she rocked with him to feel that contact again and again.
“Come with me, darlin’. Ride this cowboy and take me to the moon.”
His words shattered her. With a loud shout, she gave in to his demand, searching for his mouth in her throes of pleasure. Luke gasped himself and his body tensed, kissing her so deeply he forced her head far into the pillows.
Releasing her mouth, he continued to pump his hips, growling with each new thrust and shuddering above her. His passion seemed endless as he continued to push deep, and Shirley desperately cursed her bonds. She wanted to delve her fingers into his hair and share his passion. She wanted to hold him close and caress his sweat-slicked skin.
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