Catherine's Awakening (13 page)

She’d stepped close enough that they could see her, and now they wanted more.

“Catherine! Cat!” voices called to her, and Wade turned to her with a look of rueful

pride.

“You’d better come out here,” he said. “They won’t leave until they see you, and if

we don’t settle them down they might decide to break in. Then you really will get your

wheelbarrow ride, and I’ll get worse. You remember Chester Miller? He didn’t make it

back from his chivaree for two days.”

She took his hand and stepped out on the balcony, leaning over and waving

hesitantly at the people gathered below. They shouted their approval, and at Wade’s

urging she flung a handful of coins to them. Then Wade pulled her back, turning her to

face him.

“I think they’ll be happy if we give them a kiss,” he said. “You all right with that?”

She nodded her head, giddy. He reached around her, pulling her body into his as

he took her mouth. The kiss was hard and fast, but it went long enough for him to drop

one hand down to her ass and give it a squeeze. The men below went crazy, cheering

and hooting in drunken delight. The women weren’t much better, clapping and calling

out for Wade to show them more. Then Wade ended the embrace, pushing her back

into the room before he turned to the crowd once more.

“Now my father has a barrel of whiskey waiting for the men back at the barn,” he

called out. “But if you don’t get there soon, it may all be gone. And as for the rest of

you, I’m sure there’s more dancing to be done. Have a good time tonight and don’t

forget to toast my new bride!”

The group gave another cheer, and there was a general commotion as the mob

turned to head back to the party. Wade reentered the room, and Catherine stepped into

his arms, realizing with a start that they hadn’t been alone since their discovery that

morning under the wagon.

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Joanna Wylde

“That was smart, throwing the money and giving your father the whiskey,” she

whispered. “When did you have time to make all those arrangements?”

Wade laughed, the sound rumbling through his chest.

“I’ve seen how these things go,” he said. “I wanted to spend my wedding night

with my bride, not being chased around by a mob of drunken cowboys. While you were

getting prettied up, Dad and I rode all over the county, searching for cash and booze.

He was more than willing to help—he wants grandchildren.”

“Let’s not worry about that just yet,” Catherine said, blushing. “I need to get used

to the idea of being married, first. I really was going to take that teaching job, Wade. I

had it all planned out.”

“Well, for a woman hell-bent on becoming a respectable teacher, you sure crawled

into my bed fast enough last night.”

She didn’t respond, pulling free of him and walking over toward a small vanity

table. She reached up, pulling her hair free of pins. Wade came up behind her, combing

her long, soft hair with his fingers as she started unbuttoning her gown.

“I suppose I could blame the cider,” she said finally. She finished the buttons, and

pulled the dress over her head and shoulders, Wade helping. Her petticoats followed,

and when she finally turned to face him she wore only her chemise, pantalets and

corset. She put one hand on her hip and cocked it at him playfully.

“But I’m not entirely sure that would be the whole truth,” she admitted. “I think

that maybe a little part of me wanted to get caught.”

“Well, a big part of me wanted you to get caught,” Wade laughed, grabbing her

hand and pressing it against the front of his trousers. “I’ll be happy to introduce you to

it.”

“We’ve met,” she smirked. “Several times.”

Wade kissed her again, reaching around to pull at the strings of her corset.

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Catherine’s Awakening

“I thought you liked it on,” she said, giving him a sultry look. He nodded, and

laughed.

“Yes, I have to say it does great things for your figure,” he said. “But I’d like to see

all of you.”

“Well, I haven’t seen all of you yet,” she said. “And you’ve seen lots of me. I don’t

think that’s quite fair, do you?”

He shook his head, smiling at her, and she sashayed around him over to the bed,

dropping down with a bounce.

“Strip,” she ordered.

Wade stopped short. She knew he wasn’t used to a woman giving him orders, but it

was about time he learned what it felt like. He’d been ordering Catherine around for

years. Her new husband stood, just looking at her, and she lost patience.

“I said
 
strip
.”

He nodded his head at her, and then reached down to the vest, unbuttoning it

slowly. Then he pulled the fine fabric off.

“Oh, I think you can do better than that,” Catherine said, smirking. “I’ve been

giving you peep shows for months now, at least that’s what you told me in the kitchen.

I think you owe me a little more enthusiasm.”

He offered her a challenging stare, and then dropped his hands to his stomach,

rubbing it through the thin fabric of his soft cotton shirt. He rubbed up and down

several times, pulling the fabric free, taunting her with little glimpses of the muscular

flesh beneath. Then he started pulling the buttons apart from the bottom up, revealing

his sculpted muscles and the light sprinkling of dark hair that covered his chest. Finally

the shirt hung loose, and he pulled it off his shoulders, tossing it to the ground.

“Is that better?” he asked. She smiled and nodded, licking her lips absently. His

nipples were round and tight, and she wondered how they tasted.

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Joanna Wylde

“Now the trousers,” she said, leaning back on her elbows, thrusting her breasts up

and out toward him. She watched his eyes follow her body hungrily, and gave a husky

chuckle.

“Trousers, Wade,” she repeated.

He nodded his head, dropping his hands down to his fly. One by one the buttons

slipped open, revealing smooth, warm skin. She gave a little gasp when she realized he

wasn’t wearing anything beneath, the proud tip of his erection peeking at her through

the open fabric. Then he turned away from her slowly and deliberately, leaning over as

he pulled one boot and then the next free from his feet, followed by his socks. The fabric

of his pants hung loose on his ass, almost but not quite slipping down to show off his

tight rear. Catherine shivered. She couldn’t wait to see all of him. He pulled his socks

free, and then stood back up, still facing away from her.

The moment seemed endless.

When he finally pushed his pants down her breath caught. Everything about Wade

was handsome, but his rear was something to be truly admired. Tight and hard from

years of riding and working on the range, each cheek curved slightly concave at the

edges, crafted like a fine sculpture. Catherine wanted to reach over and cup them in her

hands, squeeze him like a piece of ripe fruit. Instead she decided to give him a taste of

his own medicine. When he turned back toward her, she was fondling herself between

her legs with one hand, the other sliding down into the tight fabric of her corset to rub

against her nipple. Wade’s eyes flared, then he strode powerfully across the room

toward her.

His mouth took hers with all the force of the desire pent up between them. It wasn’t

a kind, gentle kiss. No, this was the kiss of a man long deprived, a man who wanted to

brand his woman for all to see. He reached down beneath her body, cupping the gently

swelling mound of her ass and pulling her up and into his embrace. There could be no

doubting how much he wanted her—the evidence prodding against her stomach was

unmistakable. He pulled his mouth from hers, gasping.

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Catherine’s Awakening

“I need to be inside you right now,” he said, and she nodded her head against him,

agreeing wholeheartedly.

He pulled back, ripping her pantalets off and pushing up her chemise before

shoving himself into her body with one smooth, hard stroke. She shrieked, her legs

coming up to clutch his waist, pulling him down into her body as far as he could go.

Again and again he pounded into her opening until they both gasped for air, desperate

to complete the act that would make them a married couple. Each stroke brought them

closer—the tension in Catherine’s body pulled as tight as she could bear. Then it drew

tighter still, and she exploded into a thousand pieces. She felt his seed shooting deep

into her womb, heard him grunt as he climaxed, and then he collapsed on top of her,

kissing her and murmuring soft words of love. Finally he rolled to one side, pulling her

into the crook of his arm and nestling her down against his body.

Catherine wanted to say something to him, explain her complex feelings, but she

couldn’t put the words together. She hadn’t wanted this marriage. Yet when she

searched within her heart, she couldn’t be upset with the way things had turned out.

Having her own house would have been nice, but how lonely would her bed have

been? No, that wouldn’t have been nice at all. And the thought of him with another

woman made her vision blacken with dark jealousy. Catherine had to be honest with

herself—she would never have left him alone with Maria out on the ranch. No way. Just

the idea made her want to brand him, mark him as her own. She leaned up, kissed

Wade’s chest and licked her way over to this nipple, drawing the tight little bud into

her mouth. Then she gave him a sharp nip. Wade groaned.

“Are you trying to kill me?” he muttered. She laughed and nodded her head,

licking at the tiny hurt she’d made.

“Yes, I think so,” she replied. “After all, I can’t just let you win. I’ve got to find some

way to show you that just because we’re married doesn’t mean you own me.”

“I’m too scared of you for that,” Wade replied, smirking. “Although I won’t

apologize for letting everyone discover us. I told you I wasn’t going to play fair.”

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Joanna Wylde

She bit his nipple again and he squawked, sitting up suddenly and knocking her

back onto the bed. Rather that retaliate, she sprawled her legs open and took a deep

breath, almost pushing her breasts up and out of the corset. Wade groaned, reaching

out to run a finger along the gentle swell of her mound.

“All right, Cat,” he said. “You win. Just as long as I get to see you like this

whenever I want.”

She smiled up at him.

“So long as
 
you
 
keep your place,” Catherine whispered. “Right here, serving me.

Don’t you dare forget it.”

“I won’t,” Wade replied fervently. “Trust me, I’ve never wanted to serve anyone

more.”

“One more thing. The name is Catherine.”

“
 
Cat
,” he whispered, tugging her hair. She hit him playfully and he gave a mock

whimper before leaning over and claiming her lips once more.

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About the Author

Joanna Wylde is a freelance writer who worked as both a journalist and a

fundraiser before finding her niche in erotic romance. In April 2002,
 
The Price of Pleasure

was released as an e-book and quickly found a receptive audience. Jo is married and