Lucinda

Lucinda

By

Paige Mallory

©2011 by Blushing Books® and Paige Mallory

Copyright © 2011 by Blushing Books® and Paige Mallory

All rights reserved.  No part of the book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

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Mallory, Paige

Lucinda

eBook ISBN: 978-1-60968-634-5

Cover Design by ABCD Graphics

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This book is intended for adults only.  Spanking and other sexual activities represented in this book are fantasies only, intended for adults.  Nothing in this book should be interpreted as advocating any non-consensual spanking activity or the spanking of minors.

Chapter One

Lucinda was terribly weary from traveling, and would have loved nothing more than taking a night or two in a hotel to refresh herself before continuing her journey, but the fiery rage burning within her insisted she push forward until she arrived at her destination and put an end to the life of the man she’d traveled all the way from Boston to kill.

The stopover at this out of the way station in the middle of nowhere was to give the driver and the station manager a chance to change horses.  The station manager’s wife cheerfully served the travelers hot food that was surprisingly good, and Lucinda permitted herself to enjoy a second helping when it was offered.  It was the best meal she’d had since leaving home on her mission.

When the driver finished eating, he got to his feet and announced they would pull out in ten minutes.  Lucinda politely thanked the station manager’s wife for her meal and told her how much she enjoyed it before walking outside into the hot sun.  When none of the other passengers joined her she wasn’t surprised; she’d overheard the two women and young boy wondering aloud if William would remember that he was to pick them up at Crawford’s Station.  Since the family was still inside, it appeared that William’s memory was none too good.

The driver came around and gave her a toothless smile.  “Time to board, ma’am.  We need to be on our way.  I hope to make Snowfall before dark.”

“That is a ridiculous name for a town in a desert state!” Lucinda remarked.

“Yes, ma’am.  Folks who settled there first sure had a sense of humor,” the man chortled, helping her into the small coach.

Lucinda smiled, but did not tell the driver that the first settlers were more than likely crazy to begin with to willingly settle in the middle of the desert!  She took a seat riding forward in the coach, and when she heard some children laughing she looked out the window to see a wagon coming as fast as the horses could go toward the station!  Apparently the children thought it amusing, since they were pointing and laughing, but Lucinda failed to see the humor in the situation.  She did notice the driver seemed to be waiting, and once the wagon pulled to a halt right beside them, she realized that the handsome man was trying to catch the coach before it pulled out.  The children were all trying to talk to him, and he took a moment to pat them on the head, and said something to make them giggle, before throwing his bag on top of the coach and then jumping inside and sitting across from her.  He turned to the window and said, “Thanks a lot, William.  Don’t forget to go and get your family from inside the Station,” he reminded the elderly gentleman.

“Thanks, sonny,” the man nodded happily, and then started to climb down to go and fetch his loved ones home.  He’d nearly forgotten all about that!

The driver let out on the brake, and slapped the reins against the horses’ rumps with a loud, “Giddyap!”   They were soon on their way toward Snowfall.

“My apologies for making you wait, ma’am.  I needed to get back to town tonight, and Elmer is running ahead of schedule, and William forgot all about bringing me, so we had to hook up the team to the wagon,” he chuckled, his blue eyes sparkling with good humor.

Lucinda acknowledged his comments with a nod of her head, but she knew better than to speak to a gentleman she had not been properly introduced to.  She pointedly looked out the window, hoping to put an end to the conversation.

Henry grinned, then pulled his hat down over his eyes and pretended to go to sleep.  They had at least seven to eight hours of travel to make town, and he hadn’t had much sleep in the last several days.  It wouldn’t hurt to rest, and leave Miss Snooty alone with her thoughts.  It was too bad, however, because she was a pretty little thing.  Coal black hair, and pretty green eyes, and she was built just right in all the right places.  He shifted a bit on the seat because his body decided to respond physically to his thoughts, and he knew it had been much too long since he’d been with a warm and willing female.  Precisely two years and ten days, he felt the pain jab him once again as he remembered his sweet Marilynn.  She was at work in the Mercantile her Papa owned, and climbed up to get down a jar of medicine for a customer.  She caught her foot in the hem of her skirt, fell, and hit her head on the wooden counter.  Marilynn was gone by the time he got to her… and the pain still stabbed at his heart.  Henry knew that he would eventually come to love again, but not yet… His memories of his sweet wife were all he wanted for now.

Lucinda couldn’t resist peeking at the handsome man as he slept.  He had the most beautiful blue eyes she’d ever seen on a man!  And, she liked his smile, too.  His dark red hair was wavy and a bit too long for her taste, but it was so thick and she wondered what it would be like to run her hands through it.  She felt her cheeks turn pink, and had to laugh silently at herself.  What would Mother and Father think if they knew her most private thoughts?  She was raised to be a lady, and Lucinda doubted that her prim and proper Mother ever had a lusty thought in her life… especially about her very strict and stern husband.  Lucinda’s Father rarely smiled, and he never laughed.  He was full of responsibility and had a sense of duty to his family, and of course, to the business he ran with an iron fist.  His ideas were old-fashioned, and unless his subordinates were willing to do things his way, they did not remain employed very long.  Calvin Jacobs ran his family in much the same way as his business.  Compliance to his wishes was expected, and his children learned that at a very young age, and Lucinda often suspected her Father chose her Mother for a wife because she was totally without spirit.  Mildred Jacobs deferred to her husband in every way, and Lucinda vowed she would never marry a man like her Father.  She wanted a husband who knew how to laugh at a joke, and one who would respect her views and listen to her opinion.

Of course, she would never marry, Lucinda was forced to face reality.  Once she killed the man she came so far to see dead, she would either be hanged or sent to prison for the rest of her life… unless she chose the coward’s way out and took her own life.  She doubted she had the courage it would take to do that, but it was a comforting thought when faced with life behind bars, considering she was only twenty-one years old and she had a good many years ahead to be punished for her deed.  She would rather be hanged than live in prison for forty or fifty years.

Still, it would not hurt a single thing for Lucinda to enjoy looking at the handsome man and pretend that he loved her.  Her vivid imagination had no trouble picturing him sliding across the coach to sit beside her, and coaxing her to return his sweet kisses with passion.  And, of course, his touch was gentle when he caressed her breasts.  Her nipples hardened at the thought, and Lucinda was a bit embarrassed when she felt the moisture between her legs.  She was the type of woman her Mother whispered about as being a wanton and immoral, one of those rare women who actually enjoyed a man’s touch!  Why else would she entertain such fantasies? she demanded of herself.  Her Mother would be ashamed of her if she knew, and her stern Father would lock her away until he secured an older, more settled man to be her husband.  If that man were a widower and also worked for Calvin, it would be a bonus.  Calvin did not wish to dower his daughter unless he could benefit in some way from a union.

Lucinda took a deep breath, and let it out slowly.  Perhaps before she committed murder, which was a sin that would guarantee her a trip to hell, she would break another commandment and sample the pleasures of the flesh.  She couldn’t imagine being hung, or going to prison for the rest of her life, without experiencing a man’s touch.  Her lovely green eyes looked across the coach in speculation; maybe the handsome man would be just the perfect candidate?

It was all Henry could do to keep from smiling at the pretty young woman as she openly studied him as if she was considering buying a piece of property.  He could tell that she liked what she saw, and the pink on her cheeks told him her thoughts were straying into areas that most young ladies did not express a curiosity about.  He was trying to decide whether or not to ‘wake up’ when there was an earsplitting scream.  Henry didn’t hesitate, but quickly pulled the young woman to the floor of the coach and ordered her to keep down.  He drew his gun, and leaned out the window, taking aim and shooting at the Apache closest to the coach.  The man screamed, grabbed his chest, and fell to the ground dead.

“How dare you push me down!” Lucinda sputtered angrily.  “I can shoot as well as you can!” she declared, and quickly moved to the other side of the coach, removing her gun from her bag as she did so.  She took aim and quickly fired at the man who came alongside the coach, and the look of shock in his dark eyes would have been comical under other circumstances.  It made her ill to take a human life, but she would rather live than die, and she was not a fool… if she did not help defend them, they would all be killed, or even worse, taken captive.  If that happened, she would not be able to fulfill her mission, and that was unacceptable.  She took aim again, fired, and another Indian brave fell to the ground.  “How many more are there?” she asked her companion, who was also firing as quickly as possible.

“I don’t know,” Henry fired once more, and heard her do the same.  “I’ve stopped four now.”

“I’ve hit three,” she said.  “That is seven.”

“They’re turning tail and running,” Henry said calmly, more relieved than he cared to admit.  “Without your help, we wouldn’t have been so fortunate,” he praised her.

“You folks okay?” the driver called down to them in a loud voice.

“We’re fine, Elmer… You doing all right?” Henry asked.

“I’m fine.  You did good, Henry.  Thanks!”

“Thank this young lady, Elmer; she got three of them!” he gave her credit.

“Good Lord!” Elmer laughed.  “Didn’t know you had it in you, lady!”  He slapped the horses at that, and kept them moving at a brisk pace lest the braves try once more.

Lucinda’s heart was beating rapidly now that the danger was past, and although she was trying to reload her gun, her hands were beginning to shake and to her shock, her eyes filled with tears and she started crying uncontrollably.  The handsome stranger took her gun from her hands and placed it in her bag, and then slipped over on the seat beside her and gave her a comforting hug.  He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against his chest and held her close.

“Go ahead and cry, honey.  It’s all over now.”  Henry couldn’t help but feel sorry for the young woman.  It was obvious she’d never been forced to kill before and now that the danger was past, she was falling apart.  “You did what you had to do, honey.  Those Apache would have either killed you, or raped you and sold you into slavery.  You saved us all, and I’m proud of you.”  She continued to sob, and he continued to say comforting things as he held her.  Finally, she quieted down, but instead of pulling away, she went to sleep.  Henry smiled and held her.  It was the least he could do.

When Lucinda woke up she was shocked to find herself in the arms of the handsome man!  She bolted upright, her cheeks turning a brilliant pink with embarrassment over her behavior.   “I beg your pardon!” she said at once.  “I am not given to tears or hysterics, and I assure you I have never fallen asleep in a man’s arms before!”

“There is no need to apologize, ma’am, or to be embarrassed,” Henry smiled.  “You have never been in a battle before, and taking a human life hurts, even when that person is trying to kill you.  I wouldn’t think as highly of you as I do if you’d taken killing as an everyday occurrence.”