by Carew, Opal
Drawn back to the memory of him watching her earlier, it was far too easy to imagine his chest naked against her swollen breasts, to imagine him moving his pelvis against hers in a forbidden act.
Five minutes in his arms. She didn’t think she’d survive the conflicting feelings wreaking havoc on her sanity. She would find a way out of this. Maybe if she gave him false confidence in her submission ...
“Fine,” she said tightly and slumped against him. As she’d hoped, his hold relaxed a little, and she thrust her elbow into his solar plexus, then pushed back with all her might. He stepped back, regaining his balance, then caught his heel on a rock. They both fell, but she ducked and rolled out of his grasp, then darted into the woods.
She dashed through the trees, intending to retrieve her clothes and race home. Under ordinary circumstances, it was much simpler to swim across the pond, but she couldn’t do that without being spotted by the stranger; he’d catch her for sure. It was a longer, harder route, but after ten minutes, she spotted the burgundy-leafed blazing fire bush alongside the grey-green bark of the two elra trees near where she’d left her things. Her gaze locked to the spot where her clothes should have been. God, they were gone!
Had the stranger taken them? As she stepped from between the trees, searching the ground for any sign of her tunic and tayghas, a leering voice froze her in her tracks.
“Look, fellows. What have we here?” A burly man with a straggly, sand-colored beard grinned at her, exposing grey, crooked teeth. His grubby uniform jacket hung open, exposing a sweat-stained shirt beneath.
His lurid gaze traveled down the black cape to her feet. She was conscious of the grass between her toes, which reminded her that her feet were bare. What would he think? His focus shifted from her feet to the opening of the cape, which she clung to in a desperate effort to keep it closed.
“I suppose you’re looking for those.” He pointed to where another man held up her plain white bra and panties.
“Well, well, men. It seems the lass must be naked under that cloak.”
Sandy-Beard stepped toward her and she backed up, bumping against a tree. A bitter taste filled her mouth as adrenaline flooded her system. Her whole body trembled uncontrollably.
“I bet she’s up for a bit of fun.” His voice lowered to a gritty huskiness. “And I’d sure be willing to show you a bit of fun, lass.”
Suddenly, three other men began to crowd around her, and terror squeezed the breath from her.
“Aye, and we would, too, Clancy.”
He shoved them back. “One at a time, lads.” His sneering lips curled into a caricature of a smile. “Or maybe two. But not ’til I’ve had my go.”
Dizziness overwhelmed her, but she fought it as she tried to ease sideways to use the same trick as she had on the tall, dark stranger -- funny, she hadn’t felt the same kind of fear with him -- and escape to the side, but the man’s hand shot out to rest against the tree on her right, trapping that escape route. The other soldiers loomed on the left so she’d have nowhere to run.
As he reached for her, terror built within her like an inferno. He clamped his hand around her shoulder, his bony fingers digging into her flesh, and grasped the clasp at her neck.
She felt faint as she tried to stifle memories that still haunted her nightmares. Memories of the young woman who used to keep house for her father. The image of the woman, hands fastened above her head, clothes stripped from her body. She had screamed as the soldiers rammed into her, over and over again. Those screams still echoed through Shena’s body.
“Remove your hand from her, or you’ll lose it.”
The stranger’s voice! She turned her gaze to see him standing at the edge of the clearing. Tall. Dark. Ominous-looking.
“Who the ’ell are you?” her captor demanded.
The dark stranger stepped forward, bringing his hand to the hilt of his sword. All the soldiers backed away except the man holding her.
“I said, remove your hand.” The words came out as a low warning, but an undercurrent of rage carried clearly in his tone.
Her captor hesitated, but he reluctantly pulled his hand from her shoulder. “What’s it to you, stranger?”
Chapter Two
Keern had to use all the control he could muster not to strike down the man holding the frightened woman in his grip.
He reached for her arm and drew her away from her captor. To his surprise, she flung herself against his side and wrapped her arms around his waist. As she buried her face against his chest, he allowed his left arm to circle her waist, tucking her tightly against him.
“She’s my woman,” he lied, wishing it were so.
The man’s eyes narrowed, but he stepped back. “You shouldn’t let her go running around tempting a man to distraction like that. After all, if a man sees a naked ankle, can a naked thigh be far behind?”
“You are trespassing. This land belongs to my family.”
The man narrowed his eyes.
“No, this land rightfully belongs to Henry Wakefield. He gave us permission to be here.”
Anger simmered through him. Will would never give up this beautiful place.
“He has no right to give you permission. My name is Herrington, and this land has been in my family for five generations. I do not take lightly to being called a liar.”
The woman pressed to his side stiffened. He stroked her back reassuringly. If not for her, he’d take these lying, undisciplined oafs, but he didn’t want to do anything to frighten her more.
Uncertainty flickered in his opponent’s eyes.
“I suggest you take your leave.”
The soldiers grumbled, but mounted their horses and left.
Keern vaguely remembered his brother complaining about a greedy neighbor with an eye on their land. Could this Wakefield be telling others this pond belonged to him, giving them permission to use it as a way to solidify his claim? Would he keep whittling away at the edges of their property, expanding his own in the process?
“They’re gone,” he said to the woman still clinging to him. The feel of her soft and pliant against him, the delicate floral smell of her hair as it wisped across her cheek, sent his hormones soaring. He hooked his finger beneath her chin and lifted until she looked into his face.
Her eyes were glazed with terror, and he wished he’d skewered the bastard who’d torn away her peaceful bliss. Better yet, he wished he’d had his laser pistol and been able to fry every last one of them, but technology was forbidden here. The coalition had designated this planet as a conservation area, to be kept untouched by industry, pollution, and chemicals. Anything high-tech was deemed a threat to the natural balance of the world. Keern used to hate that policy, until he’d traveled to other worlds and seen how technology had changed society, damned near destroying many.
Less than a half-hour ago, he’d watched this lovely woman bathing in the sparkling water, carefree as a creature of nature in her glorious nakedness. He’d felt a little guilty spying on her, but how could he resist? Her beauty surpassed that of any woman he’d ever seen. He could almost believe her to be a mythical being straight from one of the storybooks his mother used to read him when he was a boy.
She gazed up at him, her blue eyes soft and dewy.
“Thank you.”
The words, like delicate petals, drifted from her lips. She looked like a woman wanting to be kissed. He slid his other arm around her and drew her body close to his. The memory of her pressed against him earlier, naked and dripping wet, tightened his body in arousal. He couldn’t help remembering that she was still naked beneath his black cloak.
“Why don’t you thank me with a kiss?” he murmured.
Shena wanted to grant him more than a kiss. She’d never felt this way with a man before. Safe. Protected. She wanted to burrow into his arms and stay there forever.
At her hesitation, he smiled encouragingly. “Surely you can grant me one kiss?”
One kiss. Yes, at least that. She drew her t
ongue around her lips to moisten them, then parted them slightly as she raised her hands to hold his face. His cheeks scratched slightly with the new growth of his beard, but she didn’t mind. The very masculinity of it stimulated her, made her feel more feminine. His eyes, the color of sun-gilt bronze, darkened as he watched her. She pushed herself onto her tiptoes to reach him, and he waited for her. When her lips touched his, she felt as if she would faint, the feeling was so painfully exciting. As though he sensed her weakness, his hands slid up her back and he pulled her closer to his body. She moved her lips on his, and he followed her lead, though she sensed he carefully controlled his movements.
She felt the tip of his tongue slip across the seam of her mouth, then nudge with a delicate pressure. She opened, granting him access. His tongue slid inside her mouth, then caressed the inside of her lips. The delicate yet powerful sensation caught her breath. He pulled her tighter to him. Her breasts, crushed against the hardness of his well-muscled chest, swelled, the nipples tightening to hard buds. She longed to feel bare skin against hers.
As though reading her mind, he skimmed his hand over her, then slipped it inside the cloak to cup her breast, and a choked sound of pleasure escaped her. His other hand pushed her cloak aside and cupped her bottom. He pulled her pelvis close to his body, and she felt the bulge of his arousal. She tensed, and he immediately loosened his hold, but his hand remained on her breast, warm, exciting, her nipple thrusting into his palm. As he parted from their kiss to gaze down at her, his hand shifted slightly on her breast, sending arrows of pleasure shimmering through her body. She knew she should pull away, should be frightened of him touching her, but his warm bronze eyes, filled with compassion and kindness, soothed her frazzled spirit.
“I won’t do anything you don’t want me to.”
She couldn’t utter a word under the primal need raging through her, so she just nodded, then slipped her arms around his neck and pulled him into another kiss. His hands danced the length of her body as he eased her onto the soft grass beneath their feet. He untied the cloak and slowly peeled it back, holding her gaze the whole time. He smiled as he looked at her naked body, his gaze like liquid fire across the length of her.
“My God, you’re beautiful.”
She smiled back at him. No one had ever told her that.
He kissed her lips, dipping his tongue inside her mouth, then moved to the crook of her neck. Slowly, he kissed down her chest and over the swell of her breast. She melted as his mouth captured her rigid nipple. Her eyelids fell closed as his hand found her other nipple and nurtured it to heightened arousal. Both her breasts wanted more. She wanted more. Had she said it out loud? She didn’t know or care.
All that existed for her was the rise and fall of her breathing, the rigid need of her breasts, the overwhelming desire for something more. She just didn’t know what. He stroked her breasts, and she undulated to press more firmly into his hands. The rhythm of her labored breathing, the odd, whimpering sounds she made, only skimmed the edges of her consciousness.
“It’s all right, sweetheart.”
His calming words sluiced through the heated fever overtaking her. His hands fell away from her breasts, but his lips claimed hers, capturing the tiny sound of disappointment. Their only contact now was his mouth on hers, but his tongue sweeping across hers, and the ardent pressure of his lips, demanded her full attention. Her heated body longed for more, and an instant later she felt his body return. Naked now. She opened her eyes to look at him. His arms, thick and corded with muscle, settled on either side of her, suspending him over her. Her nipples peaked as the light coating of coarse hair sprinkled across his tanned chest stimulated those sensitized nubs. She dragged her hands across his strong, broad shoulders, awed by the feel of his steel-hard muscles rippling under her fingertips.
Then, with a flash of frigid water through her veins, she froze at the feel of his hard shaft falling across her belly. Her eyes shot wide open. He eased his pelvis away from her and placed the tip of his cock against the moist opening of her vagina.
She sucked in a breath as panic tore through her, and she planted her hands firmly on his chest.
“No.” The word, choked out, was hardly audible.
He paused. “What is it, neisha?” The tip of his immense cock sat cradled in the soft folds of her, waiting for entry. One shift of his huge, muscular body and he’d be inside her.
Open, a voice inside her screamed. Pull him in. Feel the power of a man inside you.
He kissed her temple, still poised to fill her. Fear churned through her insides. Oh God, what if he didn’t stop?
“Tell me.”
The word her father had used so many times to describe this act, the word the soldiers around her always seemed to use with such relish, the word she had come to fear so completely, came unbidden to her mind.
“Don’t fuck me,” she choked out.
His thick brown eyebrows lowered, darkening his expression, and he eased away, then settled beside her. He stroked her hair behind her ear.
“I prefer to call it making love. Where did you hear a word like that?”
She closed her eyes and shook her head.
“I would never fuck you, my little wood nymph.” He kissed her gently, the tender brush of his lips warming her. “And I won’t make love to you unless you want me to.”
He deepened the kiss, and heat flooded through her
“Even though I feel I might die of need.” He smiled in an attempt to reassure her.
“Is it okay if I do this?” He stroked her breast.
She nodded at the exquisite pleasure.
“And this?” He flicked her other nipple with his tongue, and she moaned.
“How much do you know about making love?”
“I know that it means pain. When a man ... enters a woman, she screams and bleeds.”
Shena remembered when her father had decided to punish the young housekeeper. He had tied her hands above her head and fastened the rope to a large hook on the ceiling, then given her to the soldiers. He’d made Shena watch, telling her that would be her punishment if she ever allowed a man to take her virginity. She remembered how, afterward, the girl had hung from the rope, her feet dangling loosely, blood streaming down her thighs.
“You’re trembling.” His voice brought her back to the moment. He gathered her in his arms and held her close. “You know, it doesn’t have to be like that.”
“I ... I can’t. My father told me ... if I ever let a man ...” She sobbed.
He stroked her hair. “It’s all right. I told you I wouldn’t do anything you didn’t want me to.” He folded her in his arms and rocked her.
“Do you trust me?” He whispered the question in her ear, setting the fine hairs along the side of her neck on end.
“Yes,” she breathed. It was strange, but she knew she did trust him.
“Then let me show you another way to take pleasure.”
He eased her back and stroked the length of her body, from nape to hip. Very slowly, he moved his hand to her down-covered mound.
“Will you let me? I promise I won’t do anything to harm your maidenhead.”
She nodded. He stroked her fur, then slid his finger between her intimate folds, skimming the surface. The exquisite feel of it nearly overcame her. He stroked again, and her breath caught. He kissed her belly, then dipped his tongue into her navel. His kisses drifted lower until she felt his tongue slide through her curls, then lick the moist slit between her thighs. His tongue entered her, twirling and cajoling, licking and thrusting. His mouth shifted, covering the rigid nub of her clitoris.
She cried out in pleasure. He dabbed and flicked as his fingers slipped to her slit, stroking until the pressure building within her threatened to explode.
“Do you like this, neisha?” he paused to ask.
“Yes.”
His mouth claimed her again, and she cried out. Heat raged through every part of her, inundating her senses with burning pleasure, b
uilding to an impossible level, then bursting into ecstatic flames.
Her body, which had been clenched tight, relaxed.
He stroked her hair. She gazed up at him.
“That was incredible.”
His smile widened. “I’m glad you approve.”
He kissed her, gentle and sweet. He tasted of her, and that excited her.
He had given her so much pleasure, but she had done nothing for him. She noticed his cock still stood tall, swollen with need.
“What about you?”
He followed her gaze and grinned. “You have left me in a state, neisha.” He nuzzled her neck. “But don’t worry about it. I’ll deal with it. Just give me a minute.” He lay back on the grass and wrapped his hand around his erection and pumped.
That wasn’t good enough for her.
Chapter Three
Keern watched her inquisitive expression turn to one of determination. She rolled and pushed herself to her knees. Her breasts shifted enticingly as she reached for his wrist and stilled his movement.
“I want to do something for you now.”
She drew his hand to her mouth and planted a delicate kiss in his palm. Her gentle, moist lips brushed him where his penis had just been. His groin tightened at the thought of her lips brushing against his oh-so-ready cock, her mouth surrounding his rigid member and sucking it deep within. Of course, she wouldn’t do that, and he wouldn’t ask her to.