The Cowboy's One Night Bride (8 page)

“And I like them hairless.”

She bristled. “And what do your misogynistic preferences have to do with the craziness that has been this evening?”

He cocked an eyebrow at her. “That’s a big word for a little woman.” He got up and lit one of the tea candles of his tray with a match. Mocking her with his eyes, he held the pot of honey over the flame. “I didn’t know they taught you about men in Catholic school.”

Gianna silently cursed herself as she took the bait. “I had an education; I was training to be a governess in New York,” she snarled.

“And yet, here you are, in Nevada with me. My very own catalogue woman.” Anthony smirked as she threw all of her vehemence into her glare. Suddenly, she sagged. That brute had a point.

Glancing at her, Anthony set down the pot of honey and leaned over. He brought his face closer to hers.

“I know you hate being called that. I’m sorry,” he kissed the tip of her nose as she stared at him in surprise. He met her gaze solemnly. “You are my woman now, for better or worse. Definitely for better: you look goddamn delicious.” He appreciatively ran his eyes over her naked form. She shivered under the sudden intensity of his reverence.

“And now,” his wicked smirk returned, “for some fun.”

He lowered his mouth to the fold of her thigh, blowing softly on her pelvis. He sought out the folds of her vulva with warm, insistent kisses. Gianna squirmed, feeling the heat pool between her legs. A seed of hunger grew deep inside her as she longed for his lips to search out her most sensitive spot. He was merciless though, his mouth carefully avoiding the hot center. As her breath quickened, he touched her opening with a finger, gently separating her inner lips.

“My, how wet you are,” he crooned. He lowered his face to her mound and inhaled deeply. “And you smell divine.”

“You’re disgusting,” her half-hearted censure came out in the form of a moan. His breath was tickling her neglected clit, mocking it. After a final kiss on her vulva, he sat up, leaving her bereft. He laughed to see the crestfallen expression on her face.

“Don’t worry, my love, I’m just getting you started.” He lifted the honey pot over her and poured a steady stream of honey over her vulva. Heated by the candle’s flame, the liquid was warm and thick as it flowed across her pubic hair, trickling down towards her opening. Awakened by his teasing, the nerves on her delicate area delighted in the sensation. It was like molten lava over a volcano’s edge, sensuous and intoxicating. He rubbed his hand over her mound, spreading the honey evenly. Around and around, his touch moved in slow circles over her pubic bone, down towards her lips, but always avoiding her clit. She moaned as her need grew stronger and stronger.

“Steady, pet.” He examined her with a satisfied look. “Now that’s good and even.”

Reaching for a strip of cloth, he laid the soft muslin over a patch of hair. As he rubbed the cloth firmly down, he leaned over and closed his hot mouth over a nipple. She gasped as a frisson of pleasure shot through her.

“You are so sensitive,” he chuckled lustfully. He swirled his tongue teasingly over her hardening tip as he massaged her pelvis. She arched her back in pleasure when all of a sudden, he yanked the piece of cloth upwards, taking a good amount of hair with it.

“Ouch!” she yelped. But before she had a chance to wrap herself around the pain, he sucked hard on her nipple. Gianna found herself lost in a confusing swirl of pain and pleasure.

“The ancient Egyptians call this sugaring,” he murmured around her breast as he poured more honey over her mound. The warmth of the honey soothed the sting as he rubbed it gently over her.

“Sugar— what now?” Gianna slurred, the pleasurable haze making it impossible to enunciate her words.

“It’s a hair removal technique, much more fun than plucking you like a hen, I must say,” he laughed as he brought his mouth down to her pussy lips and slurped up the excess honey before it flowed onto the sheets. Once again, he brought his tongue close, just shy of her clit so that she could feel the warmth.

“Stop teasing,” she protested. Anthony’s eyes glittered wickedly as he looked up at her.

“You want something, my wife?” he asked innocently. He slipped a finger all the way into her and stroked the walls of her inner cavern. She cried out, her muscles clenching around him.

“Where do you want to be kissed?” Anthony looked at her breathless face with a guileless expression. She blushed in spite of herself.

“There, just there,” she murmured, bucking her hips to bring her pelvis to his mouth.
Just a little closer
, she thought hungrily.
Just a little more
.

“Here?” He shifted his mouth upwards so that it was right next to her clit. She nodded profusely. “Closer, just closer,” she urged him.

“Oh, you mean here.” He cruelly moved away from her sweet spot, laughing as she hissed in frustration.

“Well, be specific, woman!” he mocked her.

Gianna half screamed in frustration as his finger continued to probe inside of her. She could feel the pleasure building but it was just beyond her reach. Oh, dignity be damned, she was so close.

“Kiss my clit, you brute!” she cried out. Anthony grinned wolfishly.

“With pleasure.”

As he closed his mouth around her clit, Gianna moaned, “Oh yes, yes, yes.” She continued her litany of pleasure as he laid a second piece of cloth over her. Nipping and sucking hard at her clit, he tore the cloth off and the intensity sent her over the edge. Tears rolled down her face as her orgasm rocked through her quivering form.

“There’s my girl,” Anthony murmured encouragements as he continued to deforest her pubic area. Gianna pulled hard against the restraints as the agony of pain merged with the agony of pleasure. Each sting as the hair left its follicle was followed up with waves of electrifying joy.

“We’re almost done,” Gianna heard Anthony’s voice dimly through her sexual reverie. “Just one more time.”

His final tug felt especially vicious as it removed the hairs closest to her sensitive outer lips. She screamed in pain and thrashed against the cloth and metal holding her in place.

Anthony rose up and unbuckled his jeans. Tugging them off, his erection sprang free. Hard and dripping with pre-cum, it looked almost threatening as the veins popped and pulsed.

“And now, I’m going to fuck you. Hard.”

With that declaration, he pushed himself into her in one hard thrust. He was so big that her tight pussy was stretched with each violent thrust. Utterly at his mercy, Gianna took him as his cock hit pleasurably against her inner walls.

“You. Are. So. Beautiful.” He grunted as he pounded inside of her. His fingers sought out her sensitive clit and rubbed her to yet another earth-shattering orgasm. As she screamed in pleasure, Anthony leaned over and kissed her deeply. Her tongue hungrily explored his mouth as his motions got increasingly frantic. Chasing his climax, he grabbed her breasts and pinched her nipples hard as he pounded into her with an almost unbearable force. Deep in her mind, Gianna knew she would feel all sore in the morning, but at the moment, she clenched her muscles around his cock, welcoming his every thrust.

“Oh my God, Gianna, yes. Yes, yes, YES!”

Anthony bit her neck savagely and she felt him erupt deep inside her. She felt a deep rapture as her insides clenched around his cock, milking him as she felt his hot seed entering her in spurts.

++++++++

Releasing her from her restraints, Anthony gathered a very sleepy Gianna in his arms and carried her to the tub. Keeping her head above the water, he gently washed the honey off her skin, taking care to pat gently at her freshly pruned area. She mumbled incoherently, resting her head heavily against his shoulder.

Once satisfied that she was clean, he lifted her out of the tub and dried her carefully. She giggled as he wiped the towel over her feet. “That tickles,” she laughed cutely, her eyes barely open. Anthony marveled at the guileless expression on her face. In her tiredness, Gianna’s natural self-defense mechanism was off, allowing him to see the soft innocence beneath.

He planted a soft kiss on her head as he scooped her up and then laid her carefully on the bed before going to fetch his pot of arnica cream. When he returned, he found her curled up into a ball and snuggled against the pillow.

“I’ll sleep now,” she mumbled into the fabric.

Anthony was exasperated and chuckled against himself. After some coaxing, he finally got her to turn around and gently applied the cream to her pelvis and buttocks. As he was tucking her in, she whispered.

“I like you this way.”

Surprised, he turned to her. In her exhaustion, she was revealing things that he knew she normally wouldn’t and he strained to listen.

“What way, sweetheart?”

“You’re tender.”

“Tender?”

Gianna nodded, her eyes closed as she stifled a yawn. “I don’t feel dirty.” And with that, she fell asleep, leaving Anthony to make sense of that.

Chapter 8

“Catch me if you can, old man!”

Gianna called back over her shoulder, laughing as her windswept hair flew over her face. Leaning forward, she urged her horse on as she dug her ankles into the animal’s side. “Come on, Jenny,” she whispered to her piebald filly. “Let’s lose ’ em!”

Whinnying, Jenny tossed her head as she picked up the pace. Gianna whooped as she left Anthony’s disgruntled calls trailing behind her. They gracefully flew over the prairie and as always, Gianna felt the exhilaration build up in her as she gazed upon the open sky. The sun was setting in the distance, casting a red glow on the horizon. As they neared the stream, Gianna pulled on the reins, slowing the horse to a trot.

“Whoa, girl,” she murmured as the horse came to a stop. She lightly leapt off the saddle and passed Jenny a lump of sugar. The filly nuzzled against her as she gobbled it up. Gianna stroked the gentle horse and planted a light kiss on her snout.

Scanning the horizon, she saw the silhouette of Anthony and his horse in the distance and grinned. “We showed them, slowpokes!” she called triumphantly to Jenny.

Lying down on the soft grass next to the water, Gianna allowed her mind to wander. It had been a wonderful month thus far. Even though the night of the honey waxing still made her blush when she thought about it, there had been a little shift in their relationship since then. While Anthony still had the tendency to be bossy, his actions were always softened with genuine concern or gentle teasing.

He had shown her around the town and introduced her to the smiling folk, who all seemed genuinely happy to meet her. Gianna smiled as she ran through their names in her head. Charlie and Thomas were brothers who ran the General Store and Trading Post together. Both were jolly and friendly and always threw in a little something extra when she did her shopping there. Roger Forbes, the current sheriff, was suave and polite and seemed to hold Anthony in high regard. She found out later from her husband that he had been his deputy and still went to the older man for advice. Then, there was Polly at the tailors, Scott at the bank … and Lily at the saloon.

Gianna pursed her lips as she thought about the fiasco regarding the saloon. Lily had been perfectly nice, and being Gianna’s senior by two years, she had often invited Gianna down for a round or two. “We oughta introduce you to the young’ns,” she had drawled in her mellow accent. However, when Anthony found out about this invitation, he had frowned and expressly forbade her to spend too much time there.

“The saloon is a complicated place,” he had insisted. “You can always invite your friends over to the hotel bar instead.”

No amount of pouting or teasing was enough; Anthony simply refused to budge. Gianna had refused to talk to him for the rest of the day and sulked in the bedroom instead. Thankfully for both of them, the impending storm was avoided when he brought Gianna down to the stables with him the next day.

Gianna smiled as she breathed in the sweet scent of the wildflowers mixed with the fresh scent of the brook. She remembered her excitement as they neared the stable that day. Frisky, the white sheepdog, had taken to her immediately and shadowed her as Anthony led her through to meet the horses. They had spent a most enjoyable afternoon as he introduced the horses to her. The pride on his face was clear as his love for his animals was apparent. It had melted her heart and Gianna knew that they reached a turning point in their relationship that day. Ever since he found out about her love for the horses, Anthony had started giving her riding lessons. Although he had the tendency to cop a feel from time to time, mostly when he was riding behind her; he really was an excellent teacher. Under his tutelage, Gianna felt at home on a horse, which pushed her to carrying out daring stunts and pulling high speeds that left Anthony dismayed.  

As if mirroring her thoughts, a reproachful Anthony descended upon her, waking her up from her reverie.

“Gianna,” he snapped, pulling her to her feet and checking her over for bruises. “Are you alright? Did you fall?” His face was taut with concern and barely-concealed irritation.

Laughing, Gianna pulled him close for a kiss. “What took you so long, old man?” she teased. Determining that she was not physically hurt, Anthony relaxed and leaned into the kiss.

“Mmm,” he grumbled against her lips. “I ought to chain you to my saddle.”

Breaking away from the kiss, Gianna pulled back and looked into his eyes. “Anthony,” she enunciated carefully. “I’m fine.” She stroked his floppy hair out of his eyes. He touched her cheek softly and held her gaze for an intense moment before he cleared his throat.

“Yes, well,” Anthony grabbed her hand and planted a kiss on it. “We’d best be getting back. I’ve got an early morning tomorrow. I need to check in on Christine; I think she might be in labor.” Christine was a sweet-tempered dapple gray mare who was pregnant with her first foal. Gianna raised her eyebrows in surprise.

“I thought it was Madison’s duty to watch over the horses.” Madison was the father of Jack, the young stable boy who had picked her up from the train station just over a month ago. As the head stable hand, he had always been the one responsible for the horses’ wellbeing.

“Yes, but his mother is ill, so I gave him the week off to visit her in California.”

Gianna gently threaded her hand through his hair. “That was really nice of you.”

Pleasantly surprised at the sudden praise, Anthony grinned. “Just doing my job, being a good boss.”

“Ooh!” Her sudden surge of enthusiasm made him jump. “Can I come along?”

“Are you sure?” Anthony wrinkled his nose. “Birth isn’t a pretty thing. It’s messy and smelly.”

“But it’s such a beautiful thing,” Gianna tugged at his vest and whined winningly. Her eyes sparkling with mischievous intent, she stood on tiptoe and whispered in his ear.

“If you let me come, I’ll let you do that thing you like tonight.” Anthony whistled softly.

“That thing with the handcuffs?” Gianna blushed a little, but she nodded enthusiastically.

Anthony eyes darkened with lust. “Well, I’ve never been a strong man when faced with temptation,” he groaned deliberately. Scooping her up in his arms, he carried her over to Nutsy, his chestnut mare, and plonked Gianna on the saddle.

“You’ll ride with me I think, so I can keep my eye on you.” He whispered into her ear, his breath down her neck making her shiver in delight. He whistled to Jenny and the piebald followed them obediently.

“Now, off to home,” Anthony reached around Gianna for the reins, deliberately letting his arm rub against the side of her bosom. Gianna pretended to gasp in outrage.

“Brute!” She shook her head at him and then squealed as he nipped down on her neck.

“Wait till we get home, little wildcat. I’ll show you how much of a brute I can be.” His words were thick with promise and Gianna squirmed in anticipation.

It was going to be a fun night.

++++++++

Anthony groaned as an insistent hand kept tapping on his shoulder, breaking into his consciousness.

“Come on, wake up, wake up!”

Grumbling, he opened his eyes blearily and was surprised to see that Gianna was already dressed. The room was still dimly lit, the flickering embers of the oil lamp being the only source of light since the sun hadn’t risen yet.

“Good Lord, woman,” he grunted, pushing himself up with his elbows. “What ungodly hour is this?”

“You said we would set off for the stables at dawn. It’s dawn!” Gianna hopped off the bed and flung the window open. Anthony could see the dim silhouette of the sun as it lazily rose above the horizon.

“Gianna,” he groaned. “When I said dawn, I didn’t mean literally the crack of it. Besides, it’s too early. Christine is probably still asleep. Pregnant horses tend to sleep longer, pregnancy being tough on their bodies and all.” He slumped down onto his pillow and buried his nose in it.

“Oh! Right,” Gianna said thoughtfully, drumming her fingers idly on his shoulder.

“Yep, that’s right. Go back to sleep for an hour or two, Gianna.”

“I’m already dressed! But alright, I guess I’ll lie down for a while.” He felt the mattress sink a little as Gianna plonked down beside him. He had barely snoozed for a minute when he felt her eager hands on his face again.

“Then again,” she started excitedly. “Hey!” She punched his shoulder when he flopped his pillow over his head. “How rude. Anyway, don’t you think we should have breakfast first? It’ll save time, and we can set off sooner.”

Anthony growled and pounced on Gianna, causing her to squeal. He loomed over her, taking in her breathless, excited face and felt a tug of affection … and something more primal.

“Forget breakfast,” he nuzzled into her neck suggestively. “I can think of a much better way to spend the time.”

++++++++

As they walked down the path towards the stables, Gianna couldn’t help incorporating a little skip in her steps. It was a cold and cloudy morning, but even the dank weather couldn’t faze her. She was going to help with the birthing of a little foal today! 

Glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, Anthony chuckled.

“Look at you prance. Aren’t you even the tiniest bit sore after last night and this morning?”

Gianna blushed as a series of sordidly pleasing images came back to her. “Well, not too sore,” she said after examining herself. “I think I am getting a little bandy-legged though.”

Anthony threw back his head and laughed. “That’s just how I love my women. Bandy-legged and thoroughly pesky in the morning.”

At this comment, Gianna threw his arm off her shoulder as she pretended to sulk. Still chuckling, Anthony made to reclaim her when a cunning idea entered her head. As he reached out to her, she darted out of reach, her eyes sparkling.

“Oops! Can’t catch me, old man.”

She could see the idea click in his head as Anthony narrowed his eyes. “So this is how you want to play it, huh?”

He pounced at her and she squealed, running swiftly in the opposite direction. He chased after her, his long legs giving him an advantage, and soon caught up to her. She was nimbler though, and skipped out of reach at the last possible second.

“Getting winded?” Gianna teased from a safe distance, as Anthony stalked her like prey.

“Nah, I think I’m just getting started,” he leered. “And now, I think I’ve … GOTCHA!” He crowed in triumph as he lunged forward, catching her by surprise. Gianna struggled against him for a bit before succumbing to his insistent kiss. As her mouth opened against his, she marveled at how much her sexual appetite had developed in just one month.

“Hold up,” Anthony said, suddenly pushing her away. Confused, since breaking away from a passionate kiss was so unlike him, Gianna followed his gaze.

“Something’s not right,” he declared, breaking into a run. “Come on, Gianna.”

As she caught up with him, Gianna could hear the high-pitched whinnying coming from the direction of the stables. Unlike the usual excited noises the horses made when they sensed their humans, this cry was tinged with distress.

“Ah hell, Christine,” Anthony’s voice was thick with dismay as he barged into the stables. The mare was on the ground, panting. Her eyeballs were glazed and her nostrils flared. Gianna didn’t know much about horses, but she knew that this horse was in trouble.

“Help me get her up on her feet,” Anthony called as he attempted to push the mare up to a standing position. Gianna quickly moved beside him and leaned her weight against the horse.

“Come on, Christy, good girl, there we go.” Between the both of them, they succeeded in getting her to her feet. The horse wobbled unsteadily and whinnied loudly. A stream of water splashed onto the ground near her hind legs.

“That’s the birthing fluid,” Anthony noted as he attempted to calm the nervous mother horse. Christine snorted and stomped her hooves shakily. “The baby is coming.”

“What do we do?” Gianna asked Anthony. Her eyes were wide but she kept her voice calm and steady. “There, there, Christy,” she cooed comfortingly.

“Get a bandage; it’s hanging over the stall there,” Anthony pointed. “We need to wrap up her tail so that the dirt doesn’t get over the foal when he emerges.”

Gianna nodded and carried out the act quickly, humming and singing softly to the mare. The horse seemed to like this and her high-pitched whinnies quieted into hushed grunts and the occasional neigh.

Anthony touched the swollen belly of the horse, and noticed the tip of a small nose emerging from the mother’s rear. “Gianna, look!” He gently pulled his wife towards him. Gianna cried out softly.

“It’s happening!” Her eyes glistened. “Oh, good girl, Christy!”

They watched as the shoulders of the foal appeared.

“Let’s give her some space,” Anthony said as he led Gianna out of the pen.

“The mares like their privacy when the birth is happening,” he told her in a quiet voice. “We’ll watch from here; make sure that everything is alright.”

Gianna nodded, watching in wonderment. “This is amazing.”

She slipped her palm into his hand and squeezed.

Half an hour later, a beautiful little foal was born. As Christine lay down on her side to rest, Anthony unscrewed a bottle of iodine.