by Jenika Snow
This was their lives they were dealing with, not some random blind date.
“So, why did you decide to become an applicant for mail order?” he asked, sitting at the table. She didn’t speak for long seconds, maybe nervous about the question. He could assume women signed up for these things for various reasons, maybe some not so savvy, others depressing. “I’d like to know, if you’re comfortable letting me in.” Landon had never been sweet and gentle. It wasn’t in his nature. But where it came to Anna this part of him rose up, one that wanted to ease her into all of this.
She stared at him. “Tell me why you need a mail order bride first.” She smiled softly.
He didn’t see a reason to force her to answer first, and so he gave his. “I want a family.”
“A family?”
“A wife, kids … a family. Mail order brides take away the dating element. I don’t have to go in search. I can find a woman with mutual interests, and maybe hope that something develops as we build a family.”
“Are you talking about love?”
“I can’t expect her to love me right away, but eventually, yes. I hope that will happen. In the meantime I guess I’m leaning more toward companionship. Stuff like that. I prefer my solidarity, my isolation. And because of those factors I haven’t had the desire to find a woman for myself.”
“I believe in love and I had hoped that when I started a family it would be for that.” She ran fingers through her hair. “My mom. She’s sick, and my brother needs help paying her medical bills. Unless I quit college to work more than I am, I can’t afford it. But I’ve worked so hard at school, and I know my mother wouldn’t want me to give it up. I’m only just scraping by now, hence why I need to go this route.”
At least she was honest.
He didn’t know how to respond. She was doing this out of desperation. Before Landon had gone away from society he’d gotten a business degree, tried to do all the things “normal” people did to make a life. It hadn’t been for him. He’d had his own business, an actual woodworking shop that he devoted his life to. But in the end he’d felt trapped, like his life was wasting away.
Being out in the wild, that was what life was about, and he intended to live his life to the fullest.
“School is very important. I’m sure your mother wouldn’t want you to give up your dream.”
She nodded but didn’t say anything in reply.
“I want a wife and a family,” he said again, his voice softer, trying to ease her worries a bit. “We could take time, get to know each other, and see where this goes.” He wanted her. His cock was rock hard at the thought of exploring her, of claiming her as his.
Landon had read every single stipulation, knew how things would play out. This wasn’t a set in stone kind of deal. They could break the marriage off like anyone else if it didn’t work out. But fuck, he sure as hell hoped it worked out.
The agency would handle everything in terms of date and marriage, but Landon was impatient. He knew this would take time, but he wanted Anna now.
“In the end this is your call.”
3
Several months later
Anna breathed out roughly as she stared at the two-story cabin. She was still in her car, the engine running, the backseat filled with her bags. The lease for her apartment had been up, so breaking the contract hadn’t been an issue. But she couldn’t believe she was actually doing this, agreeing to marry a man she didn’t even know. There were no other options open to her.
But on the heels of that she also couldn’t deny this weight had lifted off her shoulders when she got the check from the agency and had been able to send it to Jack for the care of their mom. She’d do anything for her mother, and marrying a stranger was just one thing on the list.
She even had enough money to put some in the bank, a little nest egg for the “what ifs” and “just in cases.” She’d even had a little splurge on herself. It had been some time since she’d been able to shop for some nice lingerie. Thinking about Landon and what might be, she purchased some special items with him in mind.
Anna exhaled once more and continued to stare at the house. She could see Landon‘s truck off to the side, and on the other side was an impressive sized garage. He seemed like a nice enough man, not overbearing or wanting to own her like a piece of property, but also she felt he was holding back.
The only saving grace in all of this was that she knew this wasn’t a forever kind of arrangement. If things didn’t work out she had the option of leaving. She had the option of divorce. She sobered at that. Divorce. She never thought she’d be married, let alone knowing that if this didn’t work out she could get a divorce. Just the thought of it left her feeling cold. This wasn’t about love and she needed to remember that.
Their wedding hadn’t been anything more than them going to the courthouse, an officiate from the agency there to make sure all the documents were in place, and all the t’s were crossed. But a part of her had wished she’d had a big wedding, that love had been involved, that her brother and mother had been there. There were a lot of things in life she wished she could change. The main one being her mother’s illness. She’d take that away in a heartbeat. Landon, now her husband, was helping her, and she wouldn’t forget that.
This isn’t about that. Keep that in mind. This is about Jack and Mom.
Even now she thought about the phone call she’d had with Jack before she headed up to Landon‘s place. He wanted to know where the money had come from. And she had told him the truth. She’d been honest, because that’s what her family was about. She told him about the marriage, how she would do it all over again if it meant helping him and their mother. He’d been shocked, to say the least. But in the end she was an adult and it was her decision. This was her life.
No time like the present.
She turned her car off and opened the door, stepping out. A second later Landon opened the front door and came onto the porch. Anna couldn’t deny that this was a beautiful house, and a gorgeous location. It was a few hours from where she’d been living. There were no neighbors around, not for miles. It was clear Landon liked his isolation.
The only reason she wasn’t scared out of her mind right now was because she felt that Landon would honestly give her the time she needed to adjust. He seemed genuine, and she went with her gut instinct that hopefully things would work out. He said he wouldn’t push her, that if she needed space she had it.
She just hoped that’s how it was, because this certainly was going to be an adjustment. Attraction and desire didn’t make for love, and although she had plenty of the former where Landon was concerned, love was another matter.
He started making his way down the front steps and she turned and went to the back passenger side door, opened it, and started pulling out her bags. The feel of Landon’s hand on her shoulder had everything in Anna tingling, stilling. At least she knew her attraction to him was real. She looked over at him and he shook his head slowly.
“Let me do that.”
She moved to the side and he stepped closer, his big body brushing against hers. He was so masculine, so powerful. She felt very feminine in his presence. He made her want things that she’d never wanted, like rolling around naked in front of a roaring fire. The stuff written about in romance books, and she pushed all of those thoughts to one side.
He grabbed several of her bags and went inside. She stayed outside and watched, not sure what she was supposed to do, if she was supposed to follow him. But he came outside seconds later and grabbed the rest of her bags. He shut the car door and glanced at her.
“You ready?” His voice was so deep, so husky. There was this part of her that thought maybe he was holding back, being gentler to her than he normally was in reality. Maybe he thought she couldn’t handle the rougher side of him, that she was vulnerable, fragile. He seemed like he would be gruff, like he wouldn’t take shit from anybody.
He was certainly intimidating; that wasn’t a lie. He was a foot
taller than her five foot three height. His dark hair was a little on the messy side, like he’d been running his fingers through it. She loved that, wanted to do that herself. The days’ worth of stubble made him look harsher around the edges.
He definitely wasn’t the boy-next-door type, but Anna found that she liked him just the way he was. And part of her didn’t want him to be sweet and gentle with her. She’d never wanted or fantasized about that kind of man. She didn’t want pretty and nice. The stronger, more aroused part wanted him to be exactly how he was, even if that was him holding her down and making her cry out in pleasure. She wondered if he’d let go and take her. Did he want her? So many thoughts and possibilities awaited her.
“As ready as I’ll ever be.” She smiled.
Anna couldn’t lie and say she wasn’t kind of looking forward to seeing how this all transpired. She was kind of anticipating it, and maybe that made her crazy, but she was embracing it.
4
“This place is amazing,” Anna said, following close behind him.
Landon smiled as she took in the house. He’d worked hard to make this place what it was … a family home. Every single piece of furniture, the decoration, it had all been with one thing in mind, for his wife and children. His patience had finally paid off with her reaction. He knew there was a chance that if she wasn’t happy with him they could get a divorce.
The website had been strict in the rules that bound them. If at any time they wanted out of the contract, they could. There was no law that forced them together. He didn’t intend for there to be a divorce. Not that he considered himself a holy religious person but he didn’t believe in divorce. He believed they could make this work. “I’m glad you think so.”
“I can see why you don’t want to leave this place. It’s … there are no words.”
He didn’t say anything and went up the spiral staircase heading toward her room. For the past couple of months, he’d been decorating her space. Soon, he hoped for her to share his room and his bed.
At first, he intended for her to sleep with him but then he felt with time, she’d be ready. She seemed a little skittish around him, and he wanted to ease her into this. If he didn’t know the signs of an aroused woman he’d have been worried. He noticed how her nipples always hardened, and her breathing deepened. She also had this look as if she wanted him to kiss her. When he’d kissed her at the reception it had been a brush of lips, nothing deeper. In time he’d change this room to a nursery for their children. All in good time though. He had everything planned out.
All of his life he’d planned everything, and nothing took him by surprise.
Putting her belongings on the bed, he turned toward her. “My room is through there.” He pointed at one of the doors. He’d been tempted to put her across the hall, give her some space at first, but he’d not wanted her to be away from him. They were new, and he wanted the chance to be close to her every single chance he got.
“Oh. This isn’t your room?”
“No. You wanted adjustment, and here you go. This is your room. If you need me, just give me a knock or enter, and I’ll help any way that I can.” Glancing down at her full body, he could think of many instances of what he could help her with. He wondered if she’d ever come to him naked, desperate for him. He quickly pushed the thought aside as he didn’t want to think of her bared. His cock began to thicken at just the thought of seeing her without clothes.
“Thank you.”
“This is your closet,” he said, going to the door on the opposite wall. Opening it up, he flicked the light on and grabbed the present he had for her. “And this is for you.” He held the small box out for her to take, which she did with a frown.
“You didn’t have to give me anything. You’ve done more than enough.”
“I like giving gifts.”
He waited as she opened it.
It was just a necklace with a diamond heart. The moment he’d seen it in the city a few weeks ago, he knew it would look good on her.
“Landon, it’s so beautiful. You didn’t have to. Thank you.”
“I wanted to. You’re going to have to get used to gifts. I do like to give.” He took the box from her, removing the necklace, and moving behind her. “May I?”
She smiled and nodded. She lifted her hair up. “Of course.”
His fingers touched her neck and he was sure he heard her gasp. He locked the clasp and released the necklace. Placing a kiss at her neck, he quickly stepped away, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. Of course it was the opposite of what he wanted to do.
She touched the heart. “Thank you. It’s beautiful.”
“I’ll leave you to unpack, and I’ll grab the rest of your bags.” He made his way downstairs to grab her last few things.
He made the trek back up to her room with the last of her cases. The door was open, and he walked in.
“Is this all you have?” he asked, looking at the few suitcases.
“Yeah, I’ve never been one to go shopping. Just a few clothes, some pictures, and a few bits that I bought for my apartment. Most of the furniture came with the apartment, and anything I had that wasn’t necessary to bring I just put in a small storage facility. I figured I didn’t need much.”
He watched as she placed her clothes in the closet.
Landon was so used to doing stuff that he didn’t like standing around. Opening up one of the cases, he flicked the lid back, and stared at really nice lingerie.
She rushed toward him, and closed it. “I, erm, I.”
“I’m your husband, Anna.”
Her cheeks were a delightful shade of red. “I-I went shopping. I wanted to buy some nice things. All of my old stuff was grey and horrible.”
He stroked her cheek. “You’ll never have to worry about that again. I like you having nice things. If you ever want anything, let me know.” He’d seen a beautiful red lacy set that looked so soft. He couldn’t wait to see her in that, but wait he would. “I’ll go and make you some lunch.”
Leaving the bedroom, he breathed out a sigh of relief. His cock was so fucking hard, but he didn’t want to pressure her. He knew without a doubt that with a few touches he’d have her naked and underneath him begging for his dick. Afterward would be a whole other problem though. He didn’t want her to regret belonging to him.
One step at a time, but he was a patient man.
Entering the kitchen, he grabbed some of the ingredients for lunch, and began to make them both a sandwich. The first day with her in his house, and everything was going well. Now, he just needed to get his dick under control, and all would be fine.
5
One week later
Anna stared at the food that she was preparing for dinner tonight. Diced carrots, celery, potatoes, spices, and anything else she could find to make the stew. She was all but crying from cutting up the onions, but she wanted to make him a nice home-cooked meal, wanted to show him that she wouldn’t just be sitting around. That wasn’t like Anna. She had always worked her ass off, made sure others came before her, and now was no different. No matter how bad her day had gone, going home and seeing her mother had always made her feel better. Since her illness though, that hadn’t been the case.
The meat that Landon gave her was fresh, something he’d gone out and hunted for just before she’d arrived. The deer was done defrosting in the sink, and as she stared at it she couldn’t help but picture him out there in the wilderness, his rifle slung over his back, his focus intent, all of his senses on alert, looking every bit the alpha as he hunted.
God, thinking about him going all mountain man shouldn’t have turned her on, but it sure as hell did. The thought of him ready and able to protect her aroused her.
The sound of him working in his workshop was crystal clear, even though she was inside. The fact he’d built this home with his own hands, and made his living building things for others, did amaze her.
Once she had everything in the pot for the venison stew, she put it on
low and let it cook. Anna walked over to the large window that overlooked the front of the property. She pulled the curtain inside and stared at where the garage was located. The massive bay doors were open, and she could see Landon inside.
Over the last week he’d given her space. At first she thought he’d want to get right down to consummating their marriage. But the fact that he’d given her her own room, and didn’t push her into being with him, spoke volumes about what type of person he really was.
Over the last several days she’d been acclimating herself to being a wife. Although honestly, she felt more like she had a roommate. He didn’t touch her, but he stared at her plenty of times. Anne could literally feel his gaze on her, like fingers skating over her body. She couldn’t deny that he didn’t arouse her, because that would be a lie. Just looking at his big, strong, and muscular body made her wetter and had her nipples pushing through her shirt.
And the sexual chemistry was definitely there.
Anna did want Landon, was attracted to him, and she knew he felt the same for her. But he was being a gentleman, controlling himself, and because of that she found herself falling hard for him.
Yes, in only this short amount of time she was falling for the burly woodworker.
She found herself moving away from the window and opening the front door, and stepping out onto the porch. She watched him work, using the various tools to make these gorgeous, beautiful wood sculptures. The fact he worked at home made them getting to know each other a lot easier. But a part of her wished things weren’t so stilted. A part of her, the part she didn’t know had existed until meeting Landon, wished she was more brazen and could just give herself over to him without overthinking things.