Cowboy’s Rules: Brides of Juniper Junction, Book Three

by Jones, Celeste

  "Such a good girl, my sweet Lizzie," he said and her heart warmed at the praise, though she was unsure what she'd done to deserve it other than stand there and enjoy herself while he touched her.

  Regardless, she lapped up his kind words and the rumble of his deep voice. He laid her down on the bed and she whimpered when she found herself alone. She missed the feel of his arms around her, protecting her. Keeping her near.

  She gazed up at him, his beautiful eyes taking her in and she felt a flush realizing that he could see her. All of her. She reached for a blanket but he stilled her hand. "No, Lizzie. Let me look. You are my wife and it makes me happy to look at you. See you happy and relaxed. In my bed. Our bed." He sat on the edge and she felt the mattress dip beneath his weight. She longed for him to join her and she made to move over to allow him room, but he put his hand on her hip and held her in place. "You just rest a few minutes, sweetheart, and I'll put on the liniment. Then," he leaned down and kissed her, "we'll see how you are feeling."

  "I feel really good now," she said, her voice husky. "I don't feel any pain at all."

  Matt chuckled and she thrilled at the sound of his happiness. "I'm sure you don't. But, we don't want you to feel any pain tomorrow either, so let's follow the doctor's orders." He kissed her again, his hand sliding carefully along her hip and she arched toward him when he released her. He chuckled again. "Oh, you are an eager one. I'd best get that liniment before I lose my last thread of common sense."

  He stood and she watched him stroll across the room, hardly able to believe he was her husband. For always.

  She closed her eyes and enjoyed the lethargy.

  "Matt," she said, "what—what was that? What happened to me?" It was easier to ask the question with her eyes closed and while he was a few steps away. Still, she was shocked when the words came out of her mouth. She was so relaxed, her well trained instincts had relaxed too. She'd need to be careful about that.

  But not right now.

  Matt returned and sat on the edge of the bed again.

  “That, my sweet bride, was a climax. Sometimes it is called an orgasm. It is when your body reaches the peak of lovemaking. It is the height of ecstasy. Is that how it felt for you?”

  “Oh yes,” she said, nodding her head. “Definitely. I’ve never felt anything like it.”

  “Good. I am glad to give you your first one. I’m sure there will be many, many more.”

  “I hope so,” she said, then clapped her hand over her mouth. Just like that and all those years of decorum had vanished.

  “I hope so too,” he said with a smile.

  She took hold of the front of his shirt. "Why are you wearing this? I'm na-naked." She giggled. It was as though she was intoxicated. Maybe she was drunk on love. She giggled again.

  "Yes, you certainly are," he replied, his eyes flaring with desire as he gazed at her. "But we have to take care of you and then we will discuss my shirt."

  "As you wish," she said. "Do you know what I wish?"

  "I'm afraid to ask," Matt said, scooping out a bit of the ointment and placing it on the bruised area on her side.

  "Oh, that's cold!" She tried to pull away, but Matt rolled her onto her other side and gave her bottom two smacks with his palm.

  "Hold still. Or you'll get more swats. Is that how you want to spend your wedding night? With a bruised side and a red bottom?"

  She gasped and looked at him wide-eyed. "You wouldn't dare!"

  "Oh, wouldn't I?" Though he smiled and appeared playful about it, there was something underlying his tone that told her he was not kidding at all. "When it comes to your safety and well-being, I will dare to do whatever I need to do. You're my wife. I've vowed to protect you and keep you. And that's exactly what I intend to do."

  She wasn't so sure she liked the idea of spankings, but she did like the protective way he talked about her. No one had ever cared too much about her well-being, as long as she was available for her father to parade around in front of his business associates or to drag to a society gala, he didn't care if she was sick as sick could be, as long as she could get into a dress and walk upright while smiling.

  And, that was a skill she'd developed expertly.

  But she set those thoughts aside as Matt's strong fingers worked more of the liniment into her skin. It was definitely sore, but less so since their visit to the doctor and she felt confident the liniment would do the trick. And soon, she hoped.

  When Matt finished with the liniment, she started to feel a little awkward about being naked. "Um, Matt. Maybe I need to get under the covers?"

  "Are you cold?” His eyes were fixed on her bare breasts and she glanced down to see the pink tips were hard as pebbles. But, she didn’t feel cold. No, if anything, she felt warm all over.

  “It’s just that...well...I…” She closed her thighs and put her hands over her breasts. “I’m not sure of the … um… protocol in a situation like this.”

  “Protocol?” Matt’s eyes sparked with amusement, as though he found her utterly delightful. He moved her hands away and replaced them with his own. “Sweetheart, the only protocol is whatever we decide it is.” He kneaded the globes of her breasts and she had trouble breathing. “Does this feel good?”

  She swallowed hard then nodded her head. “Y-yes,” she squeaked out.

  “It feels good to me too.” He continued to work his hands over her breasts until she squirmed from side to side atop the bed.

  He paused and looked down at her. “Did that hurt?”

  “What?” she asked, not understanding what he meant.

  “You just shifted from left to right. Did your injury hurt when you did that?”

  She thought for a moment and then repeated the motion. “No!” She smiled up at him. “I feel good as new.”

  Matt probed her skin with gentle fingers. “Are you sure? Close your eyes and tell me if I touch a spot where it hurts.”

  She did as he instructed and it was like a miracle, no pain at all. She’d honestly been skeptical about the doctor’s remedy, but it had worked. Fast.

  Thank goodness because now that she’d experienced her first taste of what married life was like, she wanted more.

  And more.

  * * *

  The way she looked at him. Holy cats. He knew she was a virgin, her reactions and her question about orgasms made that clear, but he'd never expected her to be so responsive. So eager.

  But before he stripped off and got down to claiming her, he needed to reassure himself that she truly was feeling better and not in pain. Because he planned to give her a workout.

  Oh, he'd be gentle. He'd be sure of that, but oh how he longed to put her up on all fours and slam deep into her waiting wet pussy, his balls slapping against her again and again before he let loose his seed into her depths.

  He took a deep breath. Steady, Matt.

  Still fully dressed, he climbed onto the bed and braced himself above her on his hands and knees. He peered into her beautiful blue eyes. "You're sure you're not in any pain?"

  "I do have some strange aches," she replied, chewing her bottom lip. Her eyes darted to the side, not looking at him. "In my... you know... um... down there," she finally managed to say though her face heated in an adorable way.

  "Look at me, sweetheart." Slowly she turned back to him. "There is nothing to be ashamed of, remember? We are married. Your body is meant to be shared with me and mine is meant to be shared with you." He kissed the tip of her nose and she giggled. "I'm glad you have some aching 'down there.' It means you are eager for me to claim you. Make you mine. Is that true?"

  "Y-yes," she said. "Oh yes. I don't know what all these sensations are, Matt, but I know that it feels wonderful and I keep wanting something and I don't even know what it is."

  "All in good time, my sweet girl. All in good time." Reluctantly he got off the bed. He hated parting from her, but he was also desperate to shed his clothes.

  He kept his back to her as he unbuttoned his shirt and pants,
then pulled off his boots and left everything in a careless pile. This was not the time to worry about tidiness. It was a relief to remove his pants and allow his cock to spring free from the constraint. It seemed he'd been hard for hours waiting for this moment.

  When he turned back to the bed, his bride's eyes were on him and her brows rose as she took in the view of his erect manhood. "Oh," she gasped. "Oh, my." She licked her lips and seemed unable to take her eyes off his cock.

  Nothing wrong with that. It was flattering as hell. He felt the same way about looking at her. She was smooth and creamy and soft. Just like he'd imagined. Better, actually since she was here in his home and bed and not in his imagination.

  He stood next to the bed for a moment as she watched him, then she shifted a few inches, making room for him next to her. It was all the invitation he needed and he climbed in next to her. Slipping his arm beneath her shoulders, he rolled her to her side so they faced each other, his hand trailed along the curve of her hip and up her arm. He watched as her breathing sped up, shallow gasps of air coming from her mouth.

  "You're so beautiful, Lizzie. Thank you for answering my ad. For making the trip and agreeing to be my bride. I don't know if I've ever been happier and I want to make you happy too."

  She sniffled and tears moistened her eyes. "Thank you," she whispered. "You sure say the nicest things. I-I'm glad to be here too. And I'm proud to be your wife."

  He cupped the back of her head in his palm and held her steady while he lowered his face and kissed her. It started out tenderly but it didn't take long for their mutual attraction and passion to ignite. Her hands, tentative and unsure at first, touched his shoulders and slid down over his chest, grazing his nipples and then over the flat of his stomach.

  He explored her mouth with his tongue and she arched her body closer to his. Rolling her onto her back, he held himself over her on his hands and kissed along her throat then lower until he pulled the pink tip of one breast into his mouth.

  "Oh. Oh my. Oh my oh my." She covered his head with her hands and held him in place while she continued to mumble incoherently.

  He moved over to the other breast, giving it the same attention while he kneaded the first in his hand. They were perfect, round and firm and filling his hand.

  Shifting, he supported himself with his knees on either side of her hips and used his hands to caress her breasts, teasing the nipples with his fingers while she writhed her head from side to side and called out his name.

  Finally, he could stand it no longer. He'd meant to go slow and be gentle with her, but her cries of eagerness and the way she bucked her hips against his thighs did away with his resolve. Slipping his hand between her legs, he stroked a finger into the wetness of her core.

  Her eyes shot open and she stared down at him. "Matt?"

  "Hush now, sweetheart. Nothing to be worried about. I didn't hurt you, did I?"

  "Oh no. Not at all." Her hair was loose and wild around her shoulders and her eyes had gotten large like she was concerned.

  "Now, remember how much you liked it when I touched you here after your bath? And gave you a climax?"

  She blushed. "Yes, I remember."

  "Well, I'm going to touch you here some more. It makes your inside passage wet and ready for me."

  "Ready for you to do what?" She propped herself on her elbows and looked at him.

  Oh good heavens. Was she that much of an innocent?

  "Um. I'm going to put my cock," he gestured toward the appendage, "inside you, here." He pushed a finger deep inside her and worked it around the walls. "Feel how wet you are? That means you're excited. Do you feel excited?"

  "I-I feel something and I-I l-like it. It makes me feel kind of unsettled."

  "That's it, sweetheart. That's your arousal building up."

  He shifted again and placed his cock at the opening of her sex. Good lord it was perfect. Pink and glistening with her arousal. The lips swollen and ready for him. Carefully he slid his cock into her. Oh god. He didn't know if he could hold back, but he had to. For her, it had to be perfect.

  After a moment, she began to whimper and move her hips. "Good girl," he said and slid in another couple of inches. He repeated the process until he reached the barrier of her maidenhead. She gasped and looked at him with alarm.

  "It's all right, Lizzie. That's your maidenhead. It might hurt a bit when I break through, but that's what I need to do to claim you. Make you mine."

  She nodded her head. He covered her mouth with his and kissed her hard until she clasped her hands around his head to hold him in place, then when she was absorbed in the passionate kiss, he gave one final thrust. She held still for a moment and then he began to move in and out, slowly at first and as she relaxed and continued kissing him, he moved faster and faster.

  The room filled with the sounds of their breathing, her exclamations and the slap of his cock into the wetness of her core. He felt her stiffen and the walls of her sex clung to his cock, contracting around it and he ended the kiss and leaned back to watch her as she came. She called out his name and her eyes were kind of wild. She bucked her hips against him and pounded her fists on the bed and when she finally cried out her release, he pumped in and out of her two more times before letting loose his essence into her, the hot seed filling her passage. He groaned with satisfaction.

  A thin layer of sweat coated his body and he stared down at her. "Oh, Lizzie, " he said. "You are just perfect. Perfect for me."

  She beamed at him in her post-climax lethargy. Gently he slid out of her and then laid next to her on the bed. He pulled her close and settled her head over his heart. No doubt she could feel the way his heart beat for her. For her and no one else.

  Chapter 7

  “And there’s Millie and Josie. They’re cousins. Millie’s parents own the general store and both girls live there with them. Josie’s parents died on the trip out here when she was just a girl. Josie is the best seamstress and dressmaker in the area so if you ever need a new dress, she’s the one you should see.”

  They were walking down the street toward the church. Posey, as the first girl Lizzie had met in Juniper Junction and also because she was Lizzie’s bridesmaid, had taken a particular interest in making her feel welcome and had offered to stop by and take her to the Juniper Junction Quilting Society meeting.

  “Of course, your dresses are so pretty, Josie might ask you for some advice. You sure dress nice for a girl who was a maid.”

  Lizzie was a bit taken aback by her statement, though she’d noticed that the clothes she’d thought were her oldest and plain looking still stood out from the usual clothes worn by the ladies of Juniper Junction.

  “Um. Well, thank you. The young lady that I … um… worked for gave me some of her dresses that she didn’t want. I was lucky that we are nearly the same size.”

  Posey took a moment to gaze at the dress Lizzie had on. “Wow, that was really nice of her. Those are some pretty good-looking hand-me-downs. What was her name?”

  “Who?”

  “The girl you worked for, who gave you the clothes, what was her name?”

  “Oh, um. Her name was...is … um, Minnie. Minnie Pendleton.”

  “Was she nice? Did she treat you well? I guess so, since she gave you such pretty clothes. Did you live in a big fancy house?”

  Fortunately they arrived at the church and met up with some other young ladies, including Josie and Millie that Posey had mentioned already. Everyone was eager to say hello and welcome her to town and soon she was ushered into the church and found herself seated around a quilt frame between Posey and Josie.

  * * *

  “Oh my,” Josie said, glancing over Lizzie’s attire. “What a nice dress. Is that the latest style in St. Louis?”

  Without thinking, Lizzie laughed. “Oh no. This is hardly the latest fashion.”

  Josie’s face drooped a bit and Lizzie realized how offensive her response must have sounded. “Oh dear. Please forgive me. I didn't mean to sound s
o flippant. This dress is several years old.”

  “The girl she used to work for as a maid gave it to her. Can you believe it?” Posey leaned across Lizzie and spoke to Josie directly.

  “I’ve never known any rich people to be that generous,” Josie said.

  “Mr. Conners is rich and he’s been awful nice to me,” Posey piped up.

  “Well, that’s true,” Josie allowed. “But I think Mr. Conners is the exception. Mrs. Ryan is tight as can be with her money. Millie and I called on her to talk about donating to the church fund for the poor and she couldn’t have been ruder. Didn’t even offer us a cup of tea. And when Millie finally screwed up the courage to mention a donation to the church fund, Mrs. Ryan looked at us like we’d gone mad.”

  Millie joined in. “And if that wasn’t bad enough, then she lectured us for a quarter of an hour about all the evils of the poor and how we ought not to be out asking for handouts and people needed to work for their money.”

  “But then Millie, who has more nerve than anyone, said, sweet as you please, ‘Oh, Mrs. Ryan, how did you earn all the money you have?’ even though she knew good and well that it was all inherited.” Josie giggled and Millie did too. Their laughter was infectious and everyone around them joined in, even if they hadn’t heard the whole story.

  Lizzie laughed as well and looked at the two cousins. I’d trade every fancy dress and piece of jewelry I have for a bosom friend like these two seem to be.

  True riches weren’t kept in a bank.

  She glanced down at her dress and she was grateful no one had noticed the fancy stockings she wore. She felt quite the fool for her frivolous attire. For all the education she’d received, she felt like there was so much for her to learn about life.

  “I hope we make more money from the dance next Saturday night than we did from our in-person efforts,” Josie said. “Mrs. Ryan wasn’t the only one who turned us down, but at least most of the others tried to be nice about it.”