Maggie Mine (17 page)

Nicholas raised his head, drew his tongue slowly
along
her most private places, and
looked up
at her.
His blue eyes twinkled with mischief, with heat, too. He teased her with that wonderful tongue, playing with a special spot she hadn’t known about.

As he continued to flick the nubbin with his tongue, she arched upward, gasping. “Nicholas,” she drew out his name. “Ohhh…
Nicholas!” Then she seemed to explode and
warm liquid
flooded from “down there.”
On and on
it
flowed and she squeezed her eyes shut, embarrassed.

He lapped
it
up and as she hazarded a wary glance at him, he licked his lips, grinning. He looked very proud of himself.

She pulled in a calming breath and said, “I didna’ ken… What ye did… What I did…
.
”

He eased back to kneel between her legs, reaching down to lightly run his calloused hands up and down her thighs. They quivered at his touch. Her heart raced again, wondering what he was about next, for there was still mischief in his eyes.
What held her attention, though, was the long, thick rod waving between them. She wanted to touch it, to explore its wonders.
Find out if it was as hard as it looked.

“There’s a lot you don’t know about, wife. A lot I will show you, teach you.”

She thought she should feel
mortified
, now that her mind had come back from the haze he’d sent her into. After all she was naked, from the handiwork of the women who’d brought her to his bedchamber and prepared her for his pleasure. Only her maids had ever seen her completely naked.
Now this man—her husband—
had her spread apart
for his viewing
.
She was vulnerable to whatever he wished to do with her. “Why am I no’ embarrassed?” she asked on a whisper, still
staring
at his rod.

Seeing where she was looking, he
shifted back and put one large hand around his pole. He stroked it as she watched mesmerized. But his gaze drew hers, locked with hers. “Because I am your husband, you are my wife. There is nothing to be discomfited about when we are together. When you look at me. When I look at you.”

She’d heard many of the castle’s young
women
talk about sharing their bodies with some of the men. Of course, she’d overheard talk of lusty times between a man and a woman back at Urquhart, too.
Even from her brothers.
She’d been curious, hoped to one day find out about such experiences herself. Yet as Nicholas had sought a husband for her, she had grown to dread the mating between a man and his woman. Especially
when Dunston had come to see her…even more so after hearing the disgusting things he’d mentioned. Just the thought of them made her shiver.

As if Nicholas knew where her thoughts had wandered, he grew serious and shook his head. “Do not think about him. I will never treat you in the vile ways he talked about. You must trust me on this.”

“Trust ye?” She continued watching him as he again stroked his shaft. “I do.”
And she did.

Relief filled his face. He leaned closer, still holding his rod. His expression turned intent. “It is time for the taking, wife. Are you ready?”

Her heart pounded so hard she feared it would burst right out of her chest.
Time for the taking.
He would stick that thick pole inside her body. How could it possibly fit? Yet she was desperate to find out. “Aye,” she answered on a
determined breath.

H
is brow was furrowed, his eyes solemn. “There will be a bit of pain at first. But it will quickly pass.”

“I am no’ afeared, husband. Just do what ye must so we can get to the pleasuring.”

Amusement flickered in his expression. “Is that an order?”

She shrugged, focused on how he leaned toward her, watching the play of his muscles
across his magnificent chest
. His
musky
scent surrounded her, drew her. She was more than ready for the next step in their mating. “Aye, ‘tis an order. Put that thing inside me. Now.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Thing?” He put the head of his shaft to her opening. “’Tis my cock, my manhood.” He grinned as he eased it in a bare inch. “Your pleasure rod.”

She squirmed and tried to move so that he would shove further into her. “Yer teasing me, husband. I doona’
like to be teased in this way. I wish to have this
pleasure rod
, now.”

The stubborn man only slid slightly more inside her. “Patience.”

A booming laugh carried up from downstairs where
the people
were
drinking and eating and celebrating
. She knew they were
waiting for
their lord to claim his bride
. Her face heated at the knowledge
.
“They’re waiting fer ye to do yer duty. Waiting fer the displaying of the bloodied sheet, proof ye’ve made me yer wife.”

His face pinched in annoyance.
“I’m
not
concerned about the people below.
Or giving them any kind of proof. All that
concern
s me is you
, Maggie
mine
.”

His words warmed her heart, still bruised about being forced to wed him. The “bruise” was fast fading
at his tender care for her. She knew he was ready to proceed farther with this. The strain of holding back was etched on his handsome face, in the tenseness of his shoulders.

“And I’m worried about ye.” She arched upward, again trying to bring him more inside her. “Ye doona’ take hints verra well, husband.”

He
took hold of
her legs, pushed them back until her knees touched her chest.
Then he
spread them apart and
released her. As she kept her legs raised, h
e
bent over
and suckled a breast as he’d done earlier
,
before he’d put his mouth to her private place
.

She moaned at the
pleasure of it
. W
aited, held her breath.

In the next instant,
he
pushed
his shaft inside her, stopping when she gasped at the fullness suddenly filling her.
He raised his head,
looked worried and held himself rigidly still. “This will hurt, but only
this first time.”

Hurt?
Aye, she remembered Abigail telling her about that when Maggie had sought her out last night with a few questions about the bedding. Already, though, her body was adjusting to the rod impaling her.
S
he found herself squeezing him with inner muscles she hadn’t known she had. The sensation was really quite nice. Particularly when he groaned and moved th
e tiniest bit.

“Aye,” she
stated firmly.
“
Be done with it
.”
Again s
he held her breath in anticipation.

He bent further and kissed her, while d
riving his rod fully into her body.

Maggie gasped, but it was absorbed by his
mouth
. He didn’t move, didn’t stop kissing her either. Then suddenly the pain was only a
fleeting
memory. Pleasure such as she’d never experienced swirled through her and he eased back to brace himself on his hands at her sides.

“All right now?” Even as he asked the question, he
moved back and forth, never quite leaving
her body.

She smiled up at him, quivering. “Oh, aye. Verra all right.”

His face pinched in strain and he gritted out, “I’m sorry, Maggie.” He drove faster, deeper. “I’ve wanted you for too long. I can’t… can’t….”

Whatever he was complaining about mattered not to her at the moment. Her body ached, needed, had to have something only he could give her. She drove her hands into his hair
and tugged
him closer. “More! I must have more!”

He gave a raw chuckle and as sweat covered his big body, he pounded into her. Harder, deeper yet. He shook under the strain. “God! Maggie!”
The words came out more growl than anything else.

Her hands left his hair
and
went to his back. She clawed at him, frantic. “Ohhh…please!”

And then, as earlier, she felt an explosion of juices from within her. She stiffened, heart racing, even as he continued to drive over and over into her exhausted body.

At last, his face contorted in what looked like agony
. H
e drove deep a final time and arched backward roaring out in release. Warm juices pumped inside her. His body shook until the last drop poured from him.

“Are ye all right?” she asked worriedly as he remained over her, his arms appearing to tremble.

Warmth lit his eyes
as he looked down at her wearily. “
Aye. And you, my Maggie, are you all right?”

She smiled, squeezing her inner muscles around his semi-hard shaft.
“So that was a claiming?” she teas
ed
, enjoying the many sensations tumbling through her.

“Aye.” H
e eased from her body and collapsed
beside her on the rumpled bed. “Aye, now y
ou
are most definitely
mine
.
”
Still breathing hard,
he closed his eyes.

She turned her head and studied the man who had now completely changed her life forever. As much as she’d enjoyed what they’d just done, she still worried. Part of her wanted to forget how they’d come to be together like this, forget what had brought him to her. Forget that he’d left her brother behind in Tunis. But she couldn’t and a tear slid from one eye. She thought she heard him snore and mumbled to herself sadly, “If only ye hadn’t abandoned Brodie.”

In the limited light coming in through the small windows, Maggie watched her husband ease from the bed and sighed with pleasure. It was truly a wonderful thing to start a day seeing him walk
delightfully
naked around the chamber as he looked for his clothes. Even better was being woken by his hands molding over her bare breasts and snuggling her closer to him. Best of all was having him fully awaken her by showing her the benefits of being married to such a
passionate
lover.

As he strode to his trunk and retrieved his braies, she smiled at Nicholas’ fine ass. “Are ye verra sure ‘tis time to go down and break yer fast?” she asked in a silky purr.

He faced her and pulled on the braies. A crooked grin of male pride slid over his face. “You’ve become a laze-about these last few days. Made me into something of one as well.” He reached for a tunic. “’Tis time I returned my focus to my duties as lord of Middleham.”

She pinched her mouth in a pout. “’Tisna like we’ve spent every moment in bed, my lord husband. Ye’ve practiced daily with yer men. I’ve dealt with some of the keep’s needs, too.”

“Not every moment, but a goodly amount, wife. I’m not complaining about that.” He pulled the tunic over his finely-toned chest and spoiled the last of the view she’d been admiring.

“Ye couldna complain. Ye got yer way with me over and over again.” Her blood heated just at the thought of some of things they’d done. Her woman’s place longed for him once again. It worried her that she felt such strong needs for him. He’d never mentioned the word love in all the time they’d spent together, but then neither had she.
Did she love him?
‘Twas far too soon to tell. But she did love his body and how well he knew how to use it.

Speaking of that… She sat up and let the bed linen slide down to her waist. Her breasts ached for his touch. Her nipples stood out hard and yearning for his mouth. Each of the last three mornings she’d been able to entice him back to bed with a heated look.

She watched his powerful chest rise and fall in a deeply drawn-in breath as he looked in her direction. His eyes darkened. But he shook his head and didn’t walk back to the bed. She could see in his determined
expression
that he wouldn’t give in to his desire this morning.

“Nay, Maggie. You cannot lure me away from my duties this morn.” He pulled on his low leather boots. “’Tis also time you returned fully to your duties as chatelaine. The staff will be expecting as much.”

She slumped against the headboard of the big bed. She knew he spoke the truth. Yet she was reluctant to leave her new role of blushing and much-loved bride to full-fledged chatelaine. Where running the keep had been a temporary duty before, now it was her complete duty. It wasn’t an unfamiliar role since she’d run Urquhart’s keep for years. Still, now she handled the responsibilities as the wife of Middleham’s new lord. The people were still adjusting to him and now they would need to adjust to her ways even more.