by Connie Mason
Pierce gazed at Cully through hooded eyes. Why did he feel like such a heel? “I reckon I’ll be moving on soon, but not quite yet. I have some unfinished business.”
“That business ain’t Miz Zoey, is it? It better not be what I’m thinking it is.”
“What if it is?” Pierce challenged. “Zoey and I are husband and wife. She’s old enough to make up her own mind.” Though bedding Zoey wasn’t what Pierce meant when he referred to unfinished business, Cully’s words came too close to the truth.
“Don’t get all hot under the collar, Delaney. I know Miz Zoey is a grown woman, but she’s been protected by her pa most of her life.”
Pierce snorted in derision. “You could have fooled me. She was the one who used threats to force me to marry her. I would have been on my way a long time ago if she hadn’t involved me in her problems.”
“She saved your life,” Cully reminded him.
“I’m aware of that. Why do you think I’m still here? Words spoken over us by a preacher wouldn’t keep me around if I didn’t feel I owed Zoey for saving my life. You’re a good man, Cully. Zoey could have no better protector. Well …” He stretched and yawned. “Reckon I’ll turn in.”
Though the night was young, Pierce had plans to make. Tonight he was going to make another stab at breaking into Willoughby’s office and stealing the mortgage.
Her eyes burning with unshed tears, Zoey peered into the darkness through her bedroom window. Her land, the land upon which she’d been born, the land that her father had toiled to hold for her, was lost. Rich grasslands, fertile valleys, bubbling springs, rushing rivers against a backdrop of majestic snowcapped mountains. God, she loved this land and the house upon it.
Zoey’s musing turned to Pierce—he was never far from her thoughts—wondering if he was relieved that this whole mess had come to a head so soon. He could leave now, without guilt or recriminations. He had remained her husband long enough to thwart Willoughby’s plans for her, and that was all she could ask of him. She had to let him go just as she’d promised. He had problems of his own to resolve.
Zoey knew Pierce well enough to realize he would never beat a woman. Getting Cora Lee with child was another matter. If the way he’d tried to seduce her was any indication, Pierce was fully capable of planning and carrying out a seduction. She hoped all would end well for him even if her own situation was beyond help.
Suddenly her gaze fell on the nightgown Pierce had given her. She had folded it and left it on her bureau where she could admire it. She touched it reverently, wondering how she would look in it. Her skin tingled and her fingers itched to try it on, even if no one but her ever saw her in it. She needed comforting, and for reasons she didn’t understand, the nightgown offered that. The thought that Pierce had picked it out and bought it for her brought renewed tears to her eyes.
She’d lost the land, the house, and now she was going to lose Pierce. She was a wife without knowing the real meaning of the word. She was a woman without having experienced the joy of becoming one. Would she ever know a man’s love?
Determination tautened her jaw; her blue eyes darkened with resolve. She might never know a man’s love, but she could know his passion. All she had to do was walk out one door and into another … to Pierce. She didn’t know if she loved Pierce, and he obviously didn’t love her, but she needed someone tonight, someone who understood what she was going through. She gazed at the nightgown with longing and came to a decision she hoped she wouldn’t live to regret.
Zoey stripped off her clothes, washed thoroughly, and slipped into the gossamer gown. Slowly she turned and gazed at herself in the mirror, her eyes widening at the way the material hugged her figure, as if specifically created with her in mind. Her hair didn’t look right, so she pulled out her braids and ran her fingers through the silken strands, releasing it into soft waves that hung down her back. Dimly she wondered if Pierce would like the way she looked in the nightgown. She’d never know if she remained in her room staring at her image.
Dragging in a shuddering breath, Zoey opened the door and stepped into the hall. Light flowed from beneath Pierce’s door, drawing her like a moth to flame. She reached his door and paused, her hand on the doorknob. She was shaking from the inside out, frightened yet strangely elated. Anticipation had set up a clamor inside her only Pierce could quell.
Gathering her courage, she turned the knob, opened the door, and stepped inside. A single lamp was turned down low, casting the room into a dark and mysterious haven. She didn’t see him immediately and feared he’d left without her knowledge. Then she saw a movement and turned her head just as he stepped out from the shadows. He was dressed all in black.
He stared at her and prayed he wasn’t dreaming. He hadn’t heard the door open, merely sensed her presence. She was dressed in shimmering cobwebs, her beauty rivaling the moon and the stars. Bathed in lamplight, her body withheld no secrets from him. The world paled. His heart and mind were filled with the woman he’d lusted after with every fiber of his being. He faltered over the word lust, but could think of no other explanation for the way he felt about Zoey.
Zoey trembled. She felt alive as never before, seared by the green fire of Pierce’s eyes. She returned his stare, shivering as she felt the sensual heat of his gaze roam over her. Her nerves were drawn taut. She was on the verge of fleeing when she heard Pierce’s whisper.
Pierce tried to speak, but managed only to whisper her name. All of him turned to stone. He’d fantasized about seeing Zoey in the nightgown, but his imagination did not do her justice. She was exquisite. Her body was perfection. From her high, firm breasts crowned with delicate pink nipples to the dark blond patch shielding her womanhood, Zoey was the kind of woman men dreamed about. Her legs were long and shapely, her ankles delicately turned. Her hips flared out gently from a minuscule waist. He wanted her with a passion unequaled to anything he’d ever felt in the past.
He reached out to her, and the gesture unleashed the words building inside him. “Zoey, you’re lovelier than I ever could have imagined you’d be.”
“It’s the nightgown,” Zoey replied nervously. “I shouldn’t have come.” She took a hesitant step toward the door.
“No, don’t go!” He reached her in two strides. “It’s time for us to be together.” Unfortunately Zoey had picked a most inopportune time to come to him. In a few short hours he’d be on his way into town to break into the bank.
Zoey licked moisture onto her lips, which had suddenly gone dry. Abruptly her reasons for being here seemed inappropriate. “The nightgown is lovely,” she said, stalling for time. “Thank you.”
“What’s inside it is lovely.” He pulled her against him, smiling down at her.
Zoey shivered; the raw, exciting power emanating from him lit fires within her. She wanted this, she told herself. She wanted him. She wanted to have something to warm her lonely nights when Pierce was gone.
“You surprise me, love,” Pierce said. He gave her a slow, sensual smile. “Tell me I’m not dreaming. I’ve wanted you for a very long time. What made you decide to come to me tonight?”
Zoey shrugged; her reasons no longer made sense. “Perhaps it wasn’t a good idea.”
“It was a very good idea,” he whispered against her lips. His tongue traced the line of her mouth, and she trembled. He nibbled at her bottom lip, and she whimpered. Then he covered her mouth and his tongue dipped inside, and she grasped his shirtfront for support.
His hands roamed over her body, the silken nightgown creating an arousing friction along her flesh. He deepened the kiss, his palms touching lightly upon her breasts. When his mouth left hers at last, it was to travel to her earlobe, where he whispered how delicious she tasted, and how he’d like to taste her in other places. Then his mouth was on her breast, laving the nipple through the gauzy material of her gown. Suddenly she was free of the gown as it floated to her feet.
Sweeping her high in his arms, Pierce carried Zoey to his bed, then stepped back to admir
e her.
“Why are you dressed like that?” Zoey asked, suddenly aware that Pierce was dressed differently than he had been at supper.
“You talk too much,” Pierce hedged as he dropped to the bed beside her and kissed her again, driving all thought from her mind but this man’s arousing kisses.
“Do you want me, Zoey?” His hands skimmed her body, his touch promising unimaginable delights.
Zoey swallowed reflexively. She couldn’t lie. “Yes, I want you. Are you gloating now?”
“Not gloating, love, elated.” He rose abruptly and tore off his clothes. Then he stood very still, allowing her gaze to traverse the length of his body slowly.
Despite the languorous haze she was in, her mind registered his arousal, the beauty of his naked body, and she ached in that place where she wanted him to be.
“You’ve seen me before, love,” he reminded her softly when he saw her mouth fall open in wordless wonder.
“Not like this.”
The longer she stared at that male part of him, the larger and harder it grew. It rose now like a solid column of marble against his stomach, amid a forest of dark, curling hair. The air about him seemed charged with vitality. There was no denying the extraordinary power of his chest, arms, and thighs, for they rippled with muscles. His stomach was whipcord-lean, and his legs long and sturdy. Yet there was a grace about him despite the latent promise of incredible strength.
Zoey had always admired Pierce’s features, and she did so again. Strongly chiseled, rugged, implacably handsome, his face was graced with vivid green eyes that seemed to plumb the depths of her soul.
Those eyes were now crinkled with amusement. “Do you like what you see?”
A spreading warmth tinged Zoey’s cheeks. “As you said, I’ve seen it before.” She looked away, focusing on anything but Pierce’s daunting erection.
“Don’t be frightened, love, I’ll try not to hurt you.”
The bedsprings creaked as he stretched out beside her and took her into his arms. Zoey’s breath caught in her throat; she was surprised at the softness of Pierce’s body beneath his muscles. She’d never felt anything more satisfying than her flesh meshed with his.
His hands caressed her as he stared into her eyes, telling her without words that he wanted to please her. His head lowered and he took her nipple into his mouth, laving the taut bud with his tongue, sweeping it into his mouth, grazing it with his teeth. Zoey grasped his head, not to push him away but to bring him closer. She surged against him, moaning softly as he plied his mouth, lips, and tongue to her other nipple, lavishing it with the same attention.
He licked a trail of fire between her breasts, traveling down the length of her belly, planting his weight firmly between her legs as he kissed the insides of her thighs.
“Dim the lamp,” Zoey said anxiously. “It isn’t right for you to … to look at … me.”
His eyes were glazed with passion as he raised his head and gazed into her eyes. “I want to look at you. You’re beautiful all over.” Then his strong hands slid beneath her thighs, parting them as he began to slowly caress the moist petals of her womanhood. He moved his hand gently, massaging and pressing and plying his fingers in the most amazing ways.
Zoey shuddered. His touch was light, exploring, thoroughly intoxicating, so seductive she could deny him nothing. She arched upward, and he obliged the sweet demand of her body by taunting her with the swift thrust and withdrawal of a finger inside her tight sheath.
Zoey cried out, consumed by raw, arousing feelings she’d only imagined in her dreams. Deep within her secret being she knew that this kind of overwhelming desire could only be experienced with one man. No other man but Pierce could make her feel like this.
Pierce removed his finger, smiling when Zoey uttered a cry of protest. Then he placed his mouth where his fingers had been and kissed her there. Zoey nearly flew off the bed. After several agonizing minutes Pierce abandoned his succulent meal and moved upward along her body. Soon he’d kiss her more fully there, but not now. He was too hot for that kind of play. Unless he wanted to disappoint Zoey, he had to keep a cool head about him. He wanted her first time to be memorable.
“You’re hot and wet and nearly ready,” he murmured as he rose above her.
Lost in pleasure, Zoey moaned a senseless reply. She wanted to touch him, to feel his warm flesh against her hands and mouth. Raising her head, she pressed kisses against his chest, his neck, his shoulders, anywhere she could reach, while her hands roamed over his body from his shoulders to his buttocks. Now it was Pierce’s turn to moan.
“You’re driving me crazy, love,” he gritted from between clenched teeth.
“I want you, Pierce, all of you.” Cupping his face with her hands, she brought his lips to hers, touching them with a sweeping, savage kiss. Doing as Pierce had earlier, she flicked her tongue seductively against his lips, then delved past the barrier of his teeth, to stroke his tongue.
A guttural groan escaped him, shattering the silence of the night. “Enough!” He raised himself slightly and guided himself to the portals of her sex, where he was welcomed by the sweet moisture of her arousal.
Zoey tensed, fear gripping her. He felt hard, and much too large. He wouldn’t fit! He’d tear her in two. She should have thought about the consequences instead of acting impulsively.
Pierce sensed her fear and tried to soothe her with gentle words as he eased inside her. “It will only hurt for a moment,” he whispered into her ear. “Relax, it will be much easier if you don’t tense up.”
She bit her lip in consternation. “You’re too … I mean, are you sure we’ll fit?”
Pierce chuckled. “Women have been doing this since the beginning of time. Trust me.”
“I—”
He took her mouth in a searing kiss, kissing her again and again, distracting her from her fears, moving down her neck to her breasts, suckling and licking her nipples. He continued his tender torment until she was arching against him, expressing her need without words. When she surged upward again, he thrust into her, breaking through her barrier in one swift stroke.
Zoey screamed and tried to push him away. The pain was nearly unbearable. All the pleasure up to this moment was forgotten as Pierce’s punishing weapon tore into her.
“I’m sorry,” Pierce crooned. “The hurt won’t last long, I promise.” He held her down with the force of his body as she struggled against him. When she had quieted, he began to move slowly.
Pain consumed Zoey. She tried to escape, but Pierce held her down with the sheer strength of his body. But after a few minutes a strange thing happened. The pain began to recede, replaced by something far more pleasurable. She felt him inside her, really felt him. He was huge, but she was stretching to accommodate him. Then he flexed his hips, pressing deeper, creating a friction that wasn’t unpleasant. He moved again, nearly leaving her body, then thrusting into her once more, gently but forcefully.
His whispers encouraged her to move with him, to take him deeper. Strangely, Pierce had evoked something savage inside Zoey. And as the pain turned to pleasure, she offered herself up to him, arching sharply to meet his thrusts, taking him as deeply as she dared. His passion swept her upward and beyond as he gripped her buttocks in strong, callused hands and lifted her.
“Am I hurting you?”
She caught her breath. “No.”
“Then take all of me, Zoey,” he said as he ground himself against her. “Take everything I’ve got.”
She flung her head back as she rode the storm of his passion, cresting the waves of pleasure, one after another, swelling and expanding with each thrust. Higher and higher they flew, each plunge of his hips coming stronger and faster than the one before. Until there was a constant ebbing and flowing, hot, bright, emerging into a need so violent it nearly overwhelmed her.
Pierce was lost to the heat and unexpected violence of Zoey’s response. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine she could be like quicksilver in his arms. She
was everything he could hope for and more than he deserved.
A growling cry strained the tendons of Pierce’s throat, mingling with Zoey’s gasping breaths. Striving for the stars, Zoey stiffened as a light burst inside her, sending excruciating pleasure spiraling through her. She heard Pierce cry out, then knew nothing more as she went from sunlight into darkness.
Pierce dropped his head into the crook of Zoey’s neck, his heartbeat pounding against her breasts. Damp tendrils of hair clung to her forehead, and he brushed them aside with a trembling hand. Then he lifted his head and rolled weakly to his back, one arm flung over his eyes. He felt Zoey stirring and rose up on one elbow to stare at her. Her eyes opened slowly and she smiled at him.
“I didn’t mean to be so rough. Are you all right?”
Tears burned her throat. She hadn’t known it would be like this. She’d expected the pain and hoped there would be pleasure, but she’d imagined nothing like the brilliance Pierce had shown her. How was she ever to live without him now that she’d experienced the splendor he was capable of giving her? She tried to move but found she was too weak to do more than lie limply beside him.
At length she said, “I’m fine. I had no idea it could be like this.”
“Why, Zoey? Why come to me now, when we could have been enjoying one another all these weeks?”
His eyes glowed with predatory brilliance in the yellow light from the lamp. His body glistened with the sweat of his exertions, and his fierce expression told her there was still more to come this night, much more.
“You’ll be leaving soon.” Zoey shrugged, as if that explained everything. “I … I wanted to know what it felt like to be a wife before you left.” Your wife, she thought but did not say.
“You’ll be a wife again one day,” Pierce predicted, wondering why his words sounded hollow. “Some man will come along and sweep you off your feet. In time one of us will get an annulment and you’ll be free to experience this with another man.”
Impossible, Zoey thought. “What about you, Pierce? Will you find another wife?”
