Stealing the Bride

by Mary Wine

  “Mistress Elspeth! Mistress Elspeth!”

  One woman ran from her home, her voice rising above the others. Her husband followed her, their daughter sitting high on her father’s shoulders. The others made way for them and Elspeth pulled up on the reins of her horse.

  “Thank ye, ma’am, I can nae thank ye enough for saving my daughter.” The man’s eyes shone with gratitude and he shifted his attention to Hayden when he rode up beside her. “Laird Monroe, I owe ye too large a debt to ever pay.”

  “Seeing ye together is payment enough.” Hayden reached down and gently cuffed the child on the side of her face. She laughed with the carefreeness of a child.

  “May ye be blessed with many children.”

  Elspeth had to move forward because of the number of men trying to reach the tower. Her horse wanted to seek out its feed too and began to move along with the others. Elspeth didn’t think she had ever been so happy to see the courtyard. Dirt or not, it was home.

  A pair of hands cupped her waist and she looked down to find Hayden lifting her from the saddle. He had barely placed her feet on the ground when Dunmore swept her up into a hug. He clasped her so tightly she feared her ribs might crack.

  “Good God, man, I never thought ye’d bring her back so quickly.”

  Her brother set her aside and offered Hayden his hand. Elspeth felt the women gathering around her and pulling her toward the tower.

  It was much easier to do as they liked, and following them she soon found herself being bathed while they tried not to whisper about the undergarments beneath her wool clothing.

  The sun set completely, leaving her seeking out a fire to dry her wet hair. Elspeth sat down in front of the small fireplace in her chamber and began brushing her hair. Wearing only a clean chemise and loose surcoat, she drew her comb through her hair, lifting it up so that the heat might hit it.

  “Ye are beautiful, Elspeth.”

  Hayden wore a small smile that looked very genuine. He cast his gaze around the chamber and frowned. “But that bed is too small.”

  “It has served me very well.”

  Hayden offered her a smile that was no longer appreciative but one that looked hungry.

  “We will not fit in it.” He scooped her up and cradled her once more in his arms. “Besides, I have something else to show ye.”

  He carried her out of the chamber without hesitating even for a moment. She found herself battling tears again, but angrily pushed the impulse aside. It was only a chamber, one that it was coming time to leave. But there was still a tiny part of her that felt the parting keenly. She understood why Lot’s wife had turned around in spite of being warned not to look back. She was tempted to cast a longing glance back at the chamber she had spent so many years in.

  “I know it is a day late, but I hope ye shall enjoy it.”

  The chamber Hayden carried her to was sweetly scented with heather. Candles flickered inside it, but not common candles. These were expensive beeswax ones that normally only burned in the church.

  Or in wedding chambers.

  Elspeth gasped because the chamber was indeed set with all the finery she would have expected to find the night of her wedding. The bedding was turned down and fresh rosemary scattered across it. Heather was lying on the table, and there was even a garland of spring greenery hung from the pole where the bed curtains were attached. It must have taken quite an effort to dress the chamber when there had been so little sunlight left when they arrived. Hayden hadn’t had to do it. That idea sent two tears down her cheeks. It was tender and kind beyond anything she had dared to expect. A true sign of affection even if he had not voiced any words. She tried to stifle a sniffle but failed.

  Hayden snorted.

  “I meant to soothe away yer tears, not induce more.”

  Frustration edged each word and she cupped his face to keep him from looking away from her.

  “Sometimes women cry because they are happy.”

  He cursed and put her down and aimed a hard look at her.

  “The chamber is beautiful, thank you.” Elspeth wiped the two tears away and smiled at him.

  He crossed his arms over his chest, still not content. Suspicion clouded his face.

  “You weren’t crying this morning from happiness.”

  Elspeth propped her hands onto her hips. “Well, ye certainly don’t need to yell at me, Hayden Monroe. I know I wasn’t crying from joy this morning but I was tonight. And I thanked ye for the kindness, so can we not be content?”

  He snorted but looked at her with eyes that were full of a need to understand her. He drew in a deep breath.

  “I did nae mean to hurt yer feelings this morning.”

  “You didn’t.”

  “Then why did ye cry, woman?” He was back to demanding, which made her smile because this was the part of him she was drawn to. He was a man who was used to being obeyed; there was nothing courtly about him. Plain spoken words were his preferred style. Hayden growled when her lips curved up. He pointed a finger at her but a naughty little idea blossomed inside her mind before he figured out what he wanted to say.

  “Are ye going to tell me I need a spanking again, Hayden Monroe? Well, I believe we are in the correct setting.” Loosening the tie that held her robe closed, she shrugged out of the garment. Only her chemise remained. And she propped her hands on her hips while glaring at Hayden. “Well then. I’ve little tolerance for a man who cannot follow through with what he says he’ll do.”

  She was pushing him. Something drove her to challenge the man. It wasn’t the wisest thing she had ever done; in fact it might be one of the most insane, for he looked frustrated enough to take the chance to work out his ire on her soft bottom. But it was better than returning to the churning confusion that had seen her eyes flooding with tears. How could she explain it when she did not understand it herself?

  So she stuck her chin out and challenged him, hoping they would end up between the rosemary-strewn sheets.

  One dark eyebrow rose in rakish question. “Is that a fact, lass? No tolerance at all?” He pulled his belt loose and her breath froze in her throat, but he gathered up his kilt and draped it, along with his belt, over a chair.

  “Ye don’t need to disrobe in order to spank me.” But now that the belt was set aside, her mind offered up an image of his bare hand connecting with her bottom. He was already missing his boots, so the only garment left was his shirt, and his cock was standing hard and ready. She could see its shadow cast by the flicker of the candle set on the table.

  “Ah, but I do, Elspeth, because there is more than one sort of spanking that a man does with his wife.” He rubbed his hands together, his eyes gleaming with mischief.

  “Is that so?” Her voice had become husky and heat flickered in his eyes when he heard it. Behind the linen of her chemise, her nipples drew into hard, round beads. Arousal wasn’t slow, it was quick and hot. Her body craved another taste of what it had enjoyed so much last night.

  “We’re still not married, so you cannot spank me.”

  He chuckled and spread his arms out wide. Her heart rate quickened as she recognized that he was preparing to spring at her.

  “I assure ye I can, Elspeth, and that ye will enjoy it.”

  He jumped toward her before the last word crossed his lips. She turned to run but shrieked when his arms closed around her. It wasn’t really a frightened sound, but one borne of the excitement swirling around in her belly. Her passage was heating up, becoming eager for another taste of his hard flesh. She could feel his cock against her lower back, thick and hard. He didn’t lift her up but pushed her forward until she was bent over the table. One hand pressed her down and Hayden used his legs to keep her thighs in place against the edge of the table.

  But he began to rub her back, using his fingers to work the muscles. A soft moan crossed her lips and then another because it felt so good. He worked her shoulders and then down to her lower back before continuing on to her hips. She lay content on the tab
le, her entire body enjoying the motion of his hands.

  “The body can feel so much pleasure. I think we should do our best to experience as much as possible.”

  “Yer words are so wicked, Hayden. We’re nae on yer land ye know. Father Simon Peter might have ye locked in the stocks.”

  “So long as I am allowed to lie with ye tonight, I will take this punishment.”

  She turned her head to look at him. “You will not. There is nothing submissive about ye.”

  His hands gently kneaded her bottom, sending need through her passage that made her mouth dry. She licked across her lower lip and watched his eyes follow the tip of her tongue.

  “Yet now that I think upon it, ye were rather submissive when I was handling yer cock.”

  His lips split into a roguish grin. “Now that’s a fact, lass, one I won’t quibble with ye over.”

  Elspeth pushed herself up and off the surface of the table. “We’ll see about that, Laird Monroe, for I have noticed arrogance in ye.” She turned and her hand closed around his length. His eyes glittered with hunger, moving to her mouth. He captured the back of her head, his fingers sliding into her unbound hair. He growled softly, pulling his fingers along the strands all the way to the ends before cupping the back of her head once more. His mouth claimed hers a moment later, his lips slipping across hers before pushing her mouth open for the smooth thrust of his tongue. He invaded every one of her senses. It was intoxicating and she allowed it to sweep her away without argument.

  The hard flesh in her hand twitched when she began teasing it with soft sliding motions of her hand. Beginning at the base, she pulled her hand up to the crown before releasing it and reaching for the base again. But the memory of what he’d done last night brought a question to her mind. She broke away from his kiss.

  “Do women place their lips on a man’s cock?”

  His eyes widened and flared up with desire so bright it was nearly blinding. She was already dropping to her knees before she thought too much about it, her hands holding his cock still so that she might place a kiss against the head. He jerked and his hands landed on the table with a loud slap.

  “It seems to meet with yer approval.”

  “As much as ye enjoyed my lips sucking on yer pearl, lass.”

  That poured oil on the flames of her confidence. She wanted to rise up and be his equal when it came to their private moments. Somehow that defined the idea of lovers to her. Lovers shared in pleasuring one another.

  She sent the tip of her tongue along the slit that sat on the top of his cock. Her hands wrapped around his girth and her thumb gently stroked the underside of his member. She listened to his breathing, trying to judge what he liked more.

  “Open yer mouth and take the head inside it.”

  His voice was both commanding and needy, the closest she had ever heard to him pleading. She opened her mouth and followed his dictate, enjoying the way he sucked in his breath. It was harsh and rough, and she recalled that sound from those moments when he was riding her and nearing his release. Pulling her head up, she relaxed her jaw before taking his hard flesh between her lips once again. This time more of his length filled her mouth and she experienced the salty taste of his seed. His hips gave a jerk, as though he were fighting to control them and losing the battle. She liked the idea that he had to struggle to maintain his grip on reality just as she did. What she really enjoyed was the fact that her actions were pushing toward that point where he would be surrendering to her actions.

  Hayden suddenly stiffened and pulled his member from her mouth.

  “Enough, lass, else ye’ll unman me.”

  He reached down and hooked her beneath her arms, lifting her to her feet.

  “You didn’t stop when you were … were …”

  “Sucking yer pearl?”

  He clasped her waist and lifted her up to sit on the table. He stepped forward, parting her thighs with his body. Her cheeks turned hot at the frank way he spoke, but there was no denying that her body liked hearing it. Her clitoris throbbed with anticipation, eagerly waiting the moment when he would act upon his words.

  Hayden chuckled and stroked one scarlet cheek. “Yer blush is charming, Elspeth. How can I know what pleases ye if I do not ask ye plainly?”

  He pressed her thighs farther apart and the folds of her sex separated. The night air brushed them and the sensitive little nub they had protected. But Hayden only stroked her thighs, rubbing his hands up and down the inside of them, urging them wider apart.

  “Shouldn’t we go to the bed?”

  He smiled but it was not a kind expression. It was full of rakish intention.

  “We’ll get there later. For the moment, I can think of nothing else that I would like to dine upon than yer sweet flesh.”

  He gently pushed her back, his hands running up her body until she lay across the table.

  “Ah, now that is a sight to behold. Every feast should be so magnificent to look upon.”

  She felt awkward. The tablecloth was smooth and cold against her bare skin. Never once had she thought that her spread body might be pretty, but Hayden was looking at her, every bit of her, and there was wicked enjoyment in his eyes. That drove away her misgivings.

  “There are so many places to enjoy a tumble, Elspeth, and I am going to enjoy making sure ye experience them all many times.”

  His fingers found her sex, trailing down the center of it and she gasped with pleasure. Sensation spiked into her sharply. He teased the entrance to her body, his finger penetrating her easily, for she was already wet.

  “I believe this table is the perfect height.”

  “For what?”

  The head of his cock clarified what he meant. It pressed against her spread body, splitting her open once again. He thrust slowly into her, his hands holding her hips in place while his member burrowed into her passage again. She was sore, her skin protesting with a dull ache as it was stretched wide. But it did not sting with true pain, not as it had the night before. Instead she found herself eager for more of his flesh, the desire to be impaled refusing to be ignored, driving her to lift her hips up to meet his thrust.

  But he held her hips steady until his length was completely lodged inside her. On his face she read his impatience, the tic had returned to the side of his jaw.

  “I am not fragile, Hayden. Give me what ye did last night, for I crave it.”

  The hands holding her hips tightened and excitement flared up in his eyes.

  “Is that so, lass?”

  “It is.”

  He slid his arm around her body and pulled her up against his while his cock was still deep inside her.

  “I want to see ye take it from me.” He turned and sat on the table. Her knees hit the solid top as well. His hands cupped each hip and lifted her up until only the head of his cock was still inside her. Then he allowed her own weight to slide her back down his length and lodge it completely inside her passage once again.

  “Clasp me with yer thighs and ride me like ye did that stallion the first time I saw ye.”

  The anticipation in his eyes made her bold. She grasped his neck and lifted herself up. His hands cupped the curves of her hips and began pushing her down when only the head of his cock remained inside her. It was a combination of efforts, but the pleasure that surged through her was reflected in his expression. A soft moan passed her lips as her clitoris slid against his length all the way down, and then she was rising up once more, hungry for more of that delight. The table creaked and the candles wobbled, but she refused to slow down. Hayden reached over and pressed the wick on one to kill the flame. It died in a taper of smoke before he pinched out the others.

  It left them in darkness but that only made her bolder. She rose and fell, riding him just like the night they had met. It was hedonistic and Elspeth decided that there was nothing more perfect. She could feel his heart racing so close to her own, hear his breath becoming raspy and harsh. Her own was a string of tiny moans that betrayed how m
uch she wanted release. The tension was balling up in her belly, demanding that she ride him just a bit faster.

  “That’s it, my lovely, take what ye want.”

  One of his hands left her hip and landed on one side of her bottom in a sharp slap.

  “Hayden!”

  “Faster, my beauty, yer master says faster.”

  The sting from that slap somehow added to the growing pleasure inside her.

  “I’ll show you who is the master. I am the rider.” She increased her pace, working her body faster.

  Hayden growled at her and she felt his hand leave the cheek of her bottom. Anticipation tightened along that cheek as she waited for his next smack. It landed and she cried out, climax rippling throughout her passage. The pleasure was blinding, stealing the rhythm from her motions. Hayden snarled and turned her back onto the table top, his hips driving his cock into her while the pleasure raced through her. His hands clamped around her hips, holding her in place while he growled and she felt the hot spurt of his seed flooding her. That set off another wave of delight. It was deeper, and it felt as if the walls of her passage were trying to draw every last drop of seed from his cock.

  She collapsed back onto the table, her lungs burning as they tried to pull in enough breath to feed her racing heart. Hayden lay over her, the crisp hair on his chest gently teasing the soft skin of her breasts and belly. Her senses were full of him, full of the male scent that trigged something inside her mind that she did not understand but knew she enjoyed. His hands toyed with her hair, smoothing out the curls that framed her face.

  When he did move, Hayden picked her up and placed her in the bed that he’d had so carefully prepared for her. The rosemary smelled sweet, but she nuzzled against her lover, more interested in knowing that he was close.

  “Tell me what brought tears to yer eyes this morning.”

  His voice was a mere whisper in the darkness, but there was such tenderness in it that she could not sleep.