How Miss West Was Won

by Lexie Clark

  “Let me do the talking,” Eli said to her.

  “I will,” she replied.

  “And no smacking,” he said with a grin.

  “You mean slapping,” she returned, trying not to laugh.

  “Exactly.” They were standing very near each other, and Cordelia wanted to reach out and pat his hair. Stray strands of it were curling upward, toward the area where he had removed his cowboy hat when they came into the office.

  She could not help but once again notice how very handsome he was, with his dark hair and eyes. The temptation grew too strong, and she put her hand on his head to smooth his hair. “We want to make sure you are presentable,” she said, softly.

  “Thanks,” he said. When she was done, he took her hand in his. He rubbed his finger along the palm of her hand before he lifted it to his lips.

  “Eli,” she whispered. “This is not the time, nor the place.”

  “I disagree,” he said, seconds before he kissed her.

  Her lips were soft under his, and they tasted slightly of the honey she had put in her tea that morning. Before she could pull away and object, Eli put his hand on her neck and pulled her closer.

  Was it his imagination that he heard a soft moan escape her mouth? Yes, it probably was. It was more likely she was telling him to stop, and he just couldn’t make out the word. He broke the kiss and stared down at her. Damn but she made him hard, even standing in the marshal’s office with Stuart seated nearby.

  “Why did you do that here?” she asked. He loved the thought that her voice shook just a little.

  “Because I wanted to,” he said. “I always want to kiss you, Cordelia, even when you’re slapping women who are causing trouble.”

  Cordelia giggled, and the hard cock in Eli’s pants pulsed with need.

  “You know, there’s a room back there with a cot in it,” Stuart said. “It may be surrounded by bars, but I’m sure the two of you could make good use of it before Jacob gets back with your other wife.”

  “Shut up, Stuart,” Eli said just before he claimed Cordelia’s lips again. This time she didn’t fight him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and gave into the kiss, pressing her lips hard against his.

  Eli let his hand roam down her back, almost to the sweet bottom he’d spanked. He remembered the feel of her over his knees, how she’d struggled to get free. Afterward, he’d been angry with himself for doing it on the porch. He should have taken her upstairs to his bedroom, and he should have spanked her much harder than he had.

  But that was over now. The only thing that mattered right now was the woman standing in front of him. She pushed away the thoughts of what was about to happen, the reality of the problems facing him.

  If he could just bury himself inside her, feel her warmth and wetness around him as he pumped. Something told him Cordelia would be a wonderful lover, once she had a little bit of schooling in the department.

  “Well, isn’t that sweet,” a voice broke into his thoughts. Eli lifted his head to see Constance standing near them, a frown marring her features. Jacob was next to her, and he was smiling.

  Eli stepped away from Cordelia, but he took her hand and squeezed it. She returned the gesture.

  “Mrs. Bannister, I believe we should start this with an apology,” the marshal said as he propped his behind on his desk.

  “Indeed,” Cordelia said. “Constance, I was wrong for striking you. Please accept my apology.”

  “I do not.” The woman shook her head. “I have come to talk with Eli about what I wanted to talk with him before. I would appreciate it if you would leave.”

  Her voice was calm, and while Eli appreciated her obvious control, there was no way he was letting Constance manage the meeting.

  “My wife stays,” he said.

  He saw Constance’s lip tremble. “I am your wife.”

  “You want to be. I understand you think the papers you have give you the right to...” ‘The right to what,’ he thought, unsure how to end the sentence.

  “We married by proxy before I left England,” Constance said, and Eli felt as if someone had kicked him in the stomach.

  “What?” the word came from Cordelia, Stuart and Jacob at the same time.

  Constance held up a piece of paper. Eli took it. It was a marriage license, with unfamiliar seals on it. There were signatures he didn’t recognize.

  Eli shook the paper. “I don’t care what this says. I am not married to you. I didn’t agree to any proxy marriage.”

  “But you did,” she said, as tears started to fall down her face. She opened her bag and took out a folded sheet of paper.

  Once Eli took it, he could see it was another sort of legal document. His name was at the bottom, but it was not his signature.

  “I didn’t sign this,” he said. He glanced over to Stuart. “Run and get Nathan. Tell him I need him here right now.”

  Stuart bolted out the door, and Eli turned to the woman who claimed to be his wife. Behind him, the woman he had hired to play the part of his wife was rigid. He looked at her. Cordelia’s face was ashen, her eyes wide with surprise.

  “This isn’t true,” he said. “I swear to you, I didn’t sign any papers that agreed to a proxy marriage.”

  “I believe you,” she said.

  “It does not matter what you believe,” Constance said. “The fact of the matter is you are sleeping with my husband. I could have you arrested on adultery charges, I believe.”

  “Now hold on right there,” Jacob said. “This is unlike any situation I’ve ever faced before, but we’re going to have to find out the law on it before we go slinging words like arrest and adultery around.”

  Eli turned his back on Constance and Jacob. “I am so sorry you are going through this,” he said to Cordelia. “It will be straightened out somehow.”

  “I know,” she replied. He was amazed to see that she was back to being the strong-willed woman that had taken over the scene in the store the other day. Gone was the woman who was mad about being spanked. Her eyes flashed with a hint of anger, but she was looking behind him, and he knew the anger was not directed at him.

  He wanted to kiss her again, feel her soft body against his as he hugged her. Her eyes flashed one more time and Cordelia stepped around him.

  “Marshal, might you have a piece of paper, a quill and some ink?”

  “I do,” he replied. He produced the items without being told.

  Cordelia turned to Eli. “Write your name, please.”

  Eli took the pen and signed his usual signature. Cordelia took what he’d just done and compared it to the paper Constance had produced.

  “They don’t match,” she said as she handed the papers to Jacob.

  The marshal looked them over. “You’re right, Mrs. Bannister, they don’t.”

  Constance sniffled. “He could have written his name a different way to produce that affect. Eli, why are you doing this to me? Your letters were full of such love.”

  “Letters?” Eli said, shocked.

  The door banged open and Stuart and Nathan came in. Both men were breathing heavily.

  “Why is this not taking place in my office?” Nathan demanded.

  “Because Constance threatened to have Cordelia arrested,” Eli told him.

  The room grew silent for a moment before Nathan spoke again. “We need to move it to my office where we can talk and I can examine the evidence. This office is too public. Anyone can come in here and listen to what is happening.”

  “The lawyer has a point,” Jacob said. “Let’s all go there.”

  “Marshal, your services are not needed for this,” Nathan said.

  “Like hell,” the marshal replied. “There’s already been a little violence where these two women are concerned. There is no way I am not going to be there to make sure everyone minds their manners.”

  Nathan started to object again, but Eli held up his hand. “I don’t mind him being there, Nathan. Let’s just go and get this over with.”


  Constance sniffled, and Eli wanted to yell. His supposedly real wife was about to cry, and his fake wife was standing rigid next to him.

  Could this day get any worse?

  * * *

  “Are you out of your mind?” Eli practically flew out of the chair in the library in his home. The meeting had been hell to sit through. Nathan had produced papers that Eli had signed long ago that showed the signature on the proxy paper was not his own.

  Constance had started to cry, her tears flowing so hard and fast that Nathan had put his arm around her to comfort her. Cordelia had stared at the whole scene in disgust, and Eli had just prayed some miracle would happen and it would all be over.

  But now, sitting in his library with Nathan standing in front of him, Eli knew things would not be over for a long time.

  “I think you should ask Constance to come and stay at the house, until we get things settled,” Nathan said. “Then, when the time comes, you can send her back to England with a little money in her pocket.”

  “There is no way that is happening,” Eli said. “That is about the dumbest idea you’ve ever had.”

  “Really?” Nathan started to pace. “The longer she stays in town, the more likely it is she will start to spread ugly rumors and ruin your reputation, Eli.”

  Laughter bubbled out of his mouth. “Ruin my reputation? And what would having both my ‘wives’ here do for things?”

  His friend and lawyer opened his mouth to respond, and then closed it again. He shook his head. “Hell, Eli, this is a huge mess.”

  “No kidding.” Eli sat back down. He wasn’t sure what to do now, but he knew it was late, and Nathan had to get back to town. “We’ll discuss it later. In the meantime, we have the party to host, and the ranch to run.”

  “Cancel the party,” Nathan said.

  “There is no way that is happening, either,” Eli said. “I won’t look like I’m running from things. It makes it seem as if I’ve done something wrong, and I haven’t!” He pushed up from the chair again, running his fingers through his hair.

  “We’re getting nothing done tonight,” Nathan said calmly. “I’m going back to town. I will see you sometime tomorrow.”

  “Maybe,” Eli replied. “I’m not sure I’m coming in or not. We have a great deal to do out here. Just look up laws, Nathan, and find a way out of this for me.”

  Once Nathan was gone, Eli shut the door and locked it. He trudged up the stairs like he was walking up to a hangman’s noose. He felt as if the world was crashing down around him, and there was nothing he could do about it.

  He went to his room and once he was inside, he washed his face and opened the buttons on his shirt.

  There was a soft tap on the door that connected his room with Cordelia’s. “Come in,” he said as he pulled his shirt loose from his trousers.

  Cordelia appeared in the doorway. Her hair was plaited down her back, and she wore a nightdress that looked to be made of some very soft material. Eli’s cock hardened.

  “What can I do for you?” she asked, her voice gentle. It was so different from the episode they’d had yesterday.

  “Nothing,” he said, even as he thought, ‘You can let me make love to you.’

  She closed the door behind her as she stepped into the room. “Tomorrow I can go and help Nathan search his law books. One of us might be able to find a law that pertains to this situation.”

  “The situation?” Eli chuckled. He sat down on his bed. “You mean my fake wife will try to find a way for me to get rid of my real wife? It’s quite a pickle, isn’t it, Cordelia?”

  “Yes,” she said. She crossed the room to him. “I’m so sorry. I wish there was something I could do to make it better.”

  She stood right in front of him now. Eli opened his legs just a little. “How about a hug?” he suggested.

  She considered it for a moment, and then she stepped between his legs, putting her hands on his shoulder.

  Eli wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. She was so soft, so inviting. His cock, already hard, throbbed painfully. Using his hand was no longer getting him the satisfaction he wanted. He knew the only way he was going to get any real release was to plant himself inside Cordelia, and that wasn’t going to happen.

  He pulled her closer and she stroked his hair. Instinctively, Eli closed his eyes and put his head on her breasts. They were large and so welcoming. He opened his eyes and saw a hard nipple pressing against the nightgown she wore.

  Eli’s mouth watered, his need deepening. Without thinking, he leaned over and kissed her nipple.

  “Eli,” she whispered. “I should—”

  “Should what?” he asked as he lifted his gaze to hers. She was looking down at him, her eyes full of need and desire.

  “I should go,” she finished the sentence.

  “Do you want to go?” He kissed her nipple again. Her sharp intake of breath told him that she wanted to be with him as much as he wanted to be with her. The sharp turnaround shocked him, but he wasn’t going to push things and ask why she was welcoming his advances.

  “If you want to go, do it now,” he said after he’d pulled back. “I want you, Cordelia. I need you. So if you are not planning on letting me inside you tonight, then go back to your room and let me do what needs to be done.”

  She took a step away from him, and at first, Eli thought she would leave. But then she started to unbutton her nightgown. She worked slowly and Eli wanted to shout at her to hurry.

  When the top part was undone, she moved back between his legs. Eli pushed the material away to reveal her breasts. They were large and so beautiful. He cupped one of them, his gaze on hers as she looked down on him.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.”

  That one word was all he needed. Eli leaned over and captured her nipple in his mouth. It was hard, and it hardened more as he sucked. It was like the sweet nectar of the gods, sinfully pleasurable to him, and just what he needed right now.

  Eli moved his mouth to her other nipple, sucking it deeply into his mouth. Cordelia’s soft cries of pleasure were incredible to him. She stroked his hair as he moved his mouth back to the other nipple.

  The one certainty of the day, he knew, was that Cordelia West, aka Mrs. Eli Bannister, was about to lose her virginity.

  Chapter 9

  Cordelia knew she should push him away, but somehow she could not. Eli’s mouth on her hard nipples was the most wonderful thing she had ever felt. It felt even better than the times William had done it.

  When she had been in her room yesterday morning, with her bags packed, she had never thought this would happen. But Cordelia knew the moment the tide had changed in Eli’s favor. It had been today when they were in Nathan’s office, and Eli was looking over the paperwork that Constance insisted meant she and Eli were married.

  The look of utter despair on his face had made Cordelia want to wrap her arms around him, hold him close to her and tell him things would work in their favor.

  He had been silent on the way home, and had skipped dinner, something he never did. Afterwards, Cordelia had looked for him in the library for their usual night’s events, but he had not been there. Eventually, she had found Stuart, who told her that Eli had gone out for a ride. When she finally heard him come up the stairs, she had already been dressed for bed.

  There had been a war in her mind about what to do next; she could leave things until morning, or she could go into his room and try to offer some comfort. Cordelia had selected the latter, and that was why she was standing with Eli, his warm mouth settled over her nipple.

  The material that covered her hard buds was now soaking wet as Eli moved his mouth from one to the other.

  “Take it off,” he whispered gruffly.

  “Eli, I…”

  “Take it off,” he repeated, the desire in his voice making her needs skyrocket. The spot between her legs tingled with anticipation, and Cordelia knew if she took off her nightgown, she would not leave this room
a virgin. She closed her eyes and remembered how angry she had been with him just yesterday morning after he had spanked her so unceremoniously.

  She waited for the anger to take root, so that she could push him away and tell him there was no way she was going to give him her body. She was just there to offer solace after this afternoon’s events.

  She waited.

  And waited.

  And waited.

  Still, the only thing she felt was desire, and the need to be with him.

  “Take it off,” he said again, his voice deeper and more commanding.

  “Eli, I do not think—” Her words turned to gasps as Eli grasped the neckline of her gown in two hands and ripped it right down the middle.

  “No!” She stepped away from him as she tried to hold the material together. The material was still joined around her navel. Her heart was beating so fast she thought it would explode.

  Cordelia could not understand why she was standing there staring at him, instead of running back into her room and trying to barricade the door.

  “Cordelia, I need you. I want to be inside you, to feel your warmth around me. Please.”

  He sounded so sincere that Cordelia did what she never thought she would do. She let go of the gown, and pushed the straps off her shoulders. It fell to the floor in a heap around her ankles. Eli’s sharp intake of breath made the juices inside her flow even heavier.

  Eli licked his lips as his gaze raked over her body. She kept her own gaze locked on him. “Just so we’re clear,” he said. “I’m going to take you tonight. You understand that, don’t you?”

  Cordelia nodded. Eli put his hands on her hips and drew her nearer to him. His mouth once again found her nipples and started that sweet dance he had been doing earlier. This time, though, the sensations were intensified, and made Cordelia feel as if the room were spinning. She weaved her fingers into his hair and held him close to her.

  “Eli,” she whispered. “This makes no sense. Yesterday I did not even like you.”

  He nibbled on her hard bud before he released it. “You liked me, you just didn’t like the spanking.”