Mysty McPartland (7 page)

He gave a slight shake of his head, w
hy wasn’t he surprised to see the light of battle glowing in her glorious eyes. Hell, she could fight all she wanted to; it wasn’t going to change anything. She was his wife now and whether she accepted it now or not she would one day. And tonight, after the wedding feast he planned to show her just what it meant to be his wife.

Bending down he swept her lush mouth with his own before he straightened away and started to lead her towards the keep. He stopped abruptly when she spoke and shook his head over her words. Aye she was going to be stubborn and fight him to the very end.

“I doubt our life or future together will last very long. Ye being the debaucher that ye are it willna belong before ye are sniffing under some other woman’s skirt.” She spat out contemptuously, how dare he tell her she had to accept him and their life together.
He could go to hell and sup with the devil for all she cared
.

His teeth ground together,
he fought down his temper, aye the wench had a nasty razor sharp tongue. It sliced a man to ribbons. “I am nay debaucher, lass.” He growled out and when she scoffed he struggled not to grab hold of her and shake her. He wondered just where in the hell she heard such things about him. Well, it did matter what she thought of him, she would soon come to learn what he was really like and hopefully the insults would finally stop.

The evening
’s celebration seemed to go on forever, now she only waited for the last woman to go through the door and leave her alone. When it finally closed behind them, Dalla hurried to the trunk at the end of her bed and lifted out a small vial. She stared down at it in her trembling hand, biting her lip she was swept with an immense wave of guilt. Never before had she ever done such a cruel or nasty thing as she was about to do. However, the fact remained she could not let the despicable man, the depraved stranger who was now her husband, bed her.

She fought
to remind herself continuously throughout the wedding supper that he slept with her cousin just days before he was to marry her. Just because he had been pleasant and attentive during the meal didn’t change the fact. With this in mind, she shoved the feelings of guilt aside, moved over to the table where sat two goblets and a jug of wine.

Quickly e
mptying half the contents into one of the goblets before she could change her mind, she poured the wine into the both cups and after returning the flask to the trunk she waited nervously for the fornicating rat to join her. Too soon she heard the heavy footsteps approaching and she knew her time had run out and all she could do now was pray that her plan would not fail her.

No matter what punishment she would have to face tomorrow, it would be well worth it.
She could only hope that after he’d beaten her, he might be so disgusted and furious with her he’d leave her here and seek an annulment. What man, after all, would want a wife who loathed him so much that she drugged him on his wedding night?

Her heart racing in trepidation, she tried to stop herself from trembling. All she needed was enough courage to face the next few minutes and whatever happened tomorrow
, she would worry about later. No sense making herself daft now and if she didn’t stop fretting she might give herself away.

Nervously t
urning around when she heard her door open, she swallowed the fear that started mounting inside of her. She felt a shiver run up her spine as his eyes seemed to burn through her nightgown and singed her skin. He stared at her with hot, naked lust, like a hungry wolf waiting to devour her. She spun around; reaching for the two goblets, then turned back, and held one out to him.
Please, please take it,
she silently pleaded and gave a soft sigh when he stepped forward and took it from her hand.

After many attempts by the clan to keep him downstairs, Tarrel laughed them off and headed upstairs, with each step he took the excitement building inside of him increased. Within minutes, he was going to be lost in the passion of his beautiful wife. Opening the door to her bedchamber, he at first didn’t see her and stepping into the room, he closed and bolted it before he turned and searched for her.

He found her standing across the other side of the chamber and once again, her beauty staggered him. Her hair hung in thick soft waves to her hips. She wore a gown of white, it was so sheer his gaze drank in every inch of her perfect little body that had been driving him insane since he first saw her naked at the pool.

With a great effort shaking himself out of his daze when she turned away, he was about to go to her, but stopped when she whirled back to face him and offered him a goblet. With pleased tilt of his lips, he didn’t hesitate in accepting the offering. “To our future, may we both find contentment with each other.” He raised the cup, bought it down and drank the wine.

Contentment indeed, never in this lifetime or the next.
She watched through lowered lashes as he drank deeply and took a few sips of her own. It wouldn’t take long for the sleeping draft to work, and she prayed that she would get through the next few minutes without being violently ill.

His goblet now
emptied, he reached round her and placed it on the table, his gaze on the top of her head he lifted her cup out of her hand and placed it down beside his own. His arm wrapped around her waist and drew her up against his body.

“Ye were a lovely bride
, but now ye are temptation itself, wife, and I canna wait a moment longer to taste that sweet mouth again.” Lowering his head, he brushed her lips tenderly with his own. From that mere touch his body went up in a blazing firestorm of lust and he lost his control.

With a hunger that needed to be fed, he deepened the kiss and his tongue roamed the inside of her velvet warm mouth. He was becoming intoxicated by the sweet warm taste of her; he deepened the kiss even more. His big hand cupped the side of her face gently as his mouth plundered and devoured hers.

Dalla knew that she would have to put up with his pawing until the sleeping draft worked
, but much to her shame she didn’t expect for her body to react and she could feel herself slipping into the flames of passion that were consuming her. She could not help slipping her arms around his neck, couldn’t stop herself from leaning into him.

Her tongue dueled with his and her plan and everything else disappeared from her mind, her fingers stoked his hard hot skin beneath his shirt, his calloused hand burned a trail of fire over her own flesh and his kisses sent her up into sizzling inferno of desire.

More than pleased when
she surrendered to her passion, he continued to kiss her a few moments longer then lifting his head, he gazed down at her and smiled when he saw her big eyes glazed with lust. His breathing labored, he picked her up, carried her to the bed, and once he placed her on the mattress, sat down on the edge and tugged off his boot.

He
wanted this woman with desperation so strong and he wouldn’t wait a second longer to have her. He couldn’t stop himself from yawning and shook his head, as he reached for the other boot he yawned again. Suddenly, he was feeling so tired he could barely keep his eyes open. His brain was growing fuzzy and he could not understand why he was suddenly so drowsy. Forcing himself to stand, he shook his head trying to clear his mind which was becoming cloudy.

Puzzled
, he gazing down at his wife, he frowned and yawned again, He most definitely hadn’t been tired when he came upstairs. His body though was screaming for release and yet as he pulled of his coat his movements were clumsy and he could barely keep his head up. Finally, he untangled himself from the sleeves, through the fog that was consuming his mind, it suddenly hit him.

In utter disbelief h
e glared at his wife, and seeing the guilt written over her beautiful face, he realized that she had drugged him. He bellowed in rage and fell on her heavily capturing her arms and forcing them above her head. “I am going to beat ye for this ye foolish conniving wench.”

Dalla fel
t the guilt of what she had done to him weigh heavily in her heart as she watched as he ineptly tried to undress and keep awake. She knew the drug was taking effect and when he struggled to take of his coat, saw that he finally comprehended what was happening to him. She became truly frightened when he covered her with his massive body, she cringed at the black fury she saw in his sleep clouded eyes. After he growled out his threat, she watched as his eye lids slowly close and he forced them open again.

H
e was struggling hard against the effect of the drug, but it would be a lost battle and after a few moments, he fell heavily on her and was sound asleep. She pulled her wrists free from his slack grip and with every bit of strength she possessed, pushed him off and once he lay sleeping soundly beside her, started to weep over the cruel and terrible thing she had done to him.

He would most likely carry out his threat to beat
her senseless and she knew she deserved it, but still she felt the lessening of remorse since she’d only done it to protect herself. Wiping the tears away, she sat up and stared down at him, she knew he would sleep deeply until morning. She gave a slight shiver of apprehension knowing that tomorrow, she would face hell.

A shiver of
dread rushed through her, turning away she slid off the mattress and, picking up the quilt at the end of the bed, moved over to one of the chairs, and curled up on the seat. Remorsefully, she stared over at the man on the bed until one by one, the candles guttered out and the room went dark.

Chapter Eight

Slowly Ta
rrel opened his eyes and a confused glance roamed around the bright room, it took a few minutes until his mind cleared and when it did, he sat up and roared. Once again, his gaze swept furiously around the chamber and finding it empty, he jumped from the bed, found his boots and pulled them on.

He would kill her, how dare she drug him, the fury inside him was all consuming and he was going to punish her severely when he could put his hands on the deceitful, malicious wench. Once his boots we
re on, he headed out of the bedchamber pulling the door open with such force it hit the wall, but he was already halfway down the passage when it did.

As he raced down the staircase, he saw the hall filled with people and he searched the room for his wife. He found her at the table with her father and cursed knowing that he couldn’t
reprimand her with so many people about. With mounting black rage, he strode over to the table and grasped her arm pulling her to her feet. “Come upstairs with me.” He hissed furiously at her between clenched teeth.

Dalla didn’t have any trouble seeing her husband rushing down the staircase and coming towards her
, he looked like one of Satan’s disciples and she shivered in apprehension. She could see his eyes glowing with anger and swallowed when she was hauled to her feet so roughly. His hot breath hit her and singed her skin; it took all her effort to keep the smile on her face. When he coldly ordered her back upstairs, she shook her head. “Nay, I dinna need to go back up there. Everyone is ready to leave as soon as ye break ye fast.”

He could not believe she was refusing to do as he demanded and his rage nearly strangled him. Before he could order her to do as she was told, her father joined them and he growled softly in frustration.

“Ah
, we have been waiting for ye to join us, Tarrel, come now and eat something. Ye men are eager to return home.” Kevin slapped his back and smiled sadly at his daughter. “While ye eat I would like a few moments alone with my daughter.”

Grateful for her f
ather’s interference, she knew that her husband would probably never forgive her for what she had done to him and even though it was wrong, she wasn’t sorry she did it. Still she trembled in terror knowing she’d only prolonged the punishment she would suffer.

Infuriated and knowing that he didn’t have any other choice,
he let go of her arm and watched her and her father walk through the crowd and outside. The black rage was consuming him beyond anything he’d ever experienced before and it seemed though it would be some time before he could vent it. But no way was he going to let her get away with this, the wench went too far and he would ruthlessly discipline her for what she had done to him.

Only letting a few minutes pass until he was confident enough to keep command over his rage,
he joined his wife outside. He stood on the steps, watching the scene, and snorted in disgust as he saw all the woman and children weeping as they bid his wife goodbye. It was just like the marriage ceremony, he had never known so many tears to fall at a wedding and he knew that they were not from joy. Everyone, it seemed, was not happy that their mistress would be leaving. He wished now he ended the contract when he first found out she’d ran away.

With a grunt of disgust at himself, he moved down the steps and pushed his way through the crowd until he reached his wife. He took her arm and dragged her away until he reached her horse. Putting his hands around her waist, he leaned down and hissed in her ear. “Dinna even think that ye willna be
harshly castigated for what ye have done, wench.”