Maiden and the Monster

by Michelle M. Pillow

  Two fortnights was too long a time to go without the sweet caress of her body. He wondered how he managed so long. The only answer that he could claim was that he’d spent years perfecting the art of self-deprivation.

  The duke rested his hand on her leg, all too aware of her body and her heat. Her skin was as soft as fresh cream and just as white. He was surprised that she’d actually fallen into a faint in the passageway as he’d merely been playing with her a bit, teasing her for her fear. Had he known she would’ve taken his dark accent so seriously, he would’ve lightened up a bit—or at least he liked to think he might have. Vladamir had plucked her from the passage and carried her to his private haven, setting her on a soft bed of grass. He couldn’t help smiling as she continued talking, babbling nervously.

  “And I’m smart, if you’d but teach me.” Her voice cracked. “So tell me, m’lord, what did I do wrong?”

  After that earnest speech, Vladamir was dumbfounded. “You did naught—”

  “I know you don’t want to look at me,” Eden interrupted. “I understand. I seem to be bruised quite a bit of late and I look like a maidservant and not a wife. Lizbeth told me Raulf faces her and you didn’t wish to look at me and that is all right because we can lie in the dark and—”

  “You seem to have talked quite a bit to the servants,” Vladamir broke into her guilelessness confession with a smile. Lazily, he lifted his hand and moved his finger on her leg in slow caressing circles. He felt her stiffen beneath the subtle gesture. She was stirring to him, her chest deepening with her breaths. Keeping his voice soft, he asked, “What else did they tell you?”

  “That I should learn my body so that I can please you with it.”

  Vladamir suppressed a groan. Her big, innocent eyes almost made him come in his braes. Just thinking about her discovering the passions in her body caused his arousal to lift a full size. He wondered if she would be willing to show him these self-pleasuring lessons she’d been giving herself in his absence. Grunting, he asked, “What else did they tell you?”

  “Naught about you m’lord, I swear. Haldana told me the day my father was here that fourteen times is unusual, and I got the impression that I had done something else wrong that day but she wouldn’t say what. And Lizbeth, oh you won’t be angry with her for bedding Raulf, will you? I know you like her.”

  “Shhh.” Vladamir shook his head. He couldn’t bear the raw hurt in her eyes as she said the words. “Enough of that. I don’t want Lizbeth. The king sent her here to be my bedservant and I sent her away the first night. We were never together.”

  “Oh.” Eden blushed. She bit her lip and looked away.

  Now, about these lessons of yours…

  “Did the servants tell you anything else? Did they tell you how to pleasure yourself to please me?”

  Eden shook her head in denial and Vladamir wanted to scream in frustration. So much for getting her to talk dirty to him, not that he needed the mental stimulation.

  Vladamir kept himself on the ground, moving his hand from her leg to place it behind his head as a pillow. He looked up into the trees. All this talk of coupling was making him hot and he couldn’t keep his eyes from straying to her full, quivering lips, remembering how good they’d felt wrapped around his shaft. “There are many ways for a man to be with a woman. The way we were together was one.”

  “And?” She looked way too eager, her big eyes staring at him.

  “And the way Lizbeth explained was another.” The duke lowered his lashes to hide the roaming intent of his gaze as he stared at the gentle rise and fall of her generous breasts. Damn, but they’d felt nice and soft against his hand.

  “And when I took you in my mouth, that was another,” she offered.

  Vladamir’s cock throbbed painfully at the reminder. “Yea, and beyond that there are many others but they are hard to explain without demonstration.”

  “Then fourteen is a reasonable number?” Eden concluded.

  Vladamir tried not to smile. He rolled his eyes inwardly and swallowed back his uneasiness with an internal groan. If he were not careful, his pretty little wife would be asking him to teach her that trick next. May the gods help him, he’d be willing to try it. “Mayhap on a very good night.”

  “So what do you think?” Eden’s eyes shone brightly with a shy hopefulness. “Do you think ‘tis a good idea?”

  Vladamir smiled at her unable to remember what her “good idea” was. She’d said so much and he really didn’t know what she was asking of him. But when she looked at him expectantly, he nodded his head. At that moment, he would’ve granted those chestnut eyes anything.

  “Kiss me,” he commanded huskily.

  “Oh.” Eden gasped, smiling with pleasure. “You mean to start the lessons now.”

  Eden moved to her hands and knees, seemingly unmindful of their surroundings as she looked at him. Tentatively, she crawled forward, putting her hand lightly on his chest. That touch was all it took. She fell onto him, her mouth eagerly seeking his.

  When their lips touched, the resulting moans escaped their heated bodies in a loud testament of mutual need. Eden fell to the ground. His hand shot like a striking serpent from behind his head, to wrap around her. Vladamir took over the kiss as he rolled her to her back, making sure to cradle her head as he did so.

  He urged her pliant mouth to open with the tip of his tongue. Her legs parted naturally to allow for his weight. The movement caused his thighs to pull her tunic tight against her legs. The material trapped her to him.

  Placing his hands on either side of her head, he kept his mouth against hers. He kissed her passionately, tearing at her with his teeth, deepening the caress when it could get no deeper. His length pressed her into the soft ground. Her breasts peaked and strained against the imprisoning garment she wore.

  The heaviness in his arousal pushed for release and he ground his hips to hers. Her hands ventured over his shoulders to find the heat of his taut back. Eden moaned. He pressed his hips harder into her.

  “Kiss me,” he groaned, pulling away.

  “But…?” She blinked. “Aren’t I?”

  “Kiss me as you did in the hall. I’ve longed to feel your mouth wrapped around me again.”

  Eden smiled, pushing him onto his back. She explored his hard chest, running her hands over his tunic as she worked her way down to his waist. Vladamir was already pulling the braes free by the time she straddled his legs. He pulled out his cock, stroking it, putting it to her mouth.

  Parting her lips, she kissed his shaft. It was a small kiss, a chaste kiss. Vladamir moaned to see it, as every fiber in his being strained to unleash his full passion onto her.

  “Suck me,” he urged. “Take me deep into your mouth.”

  He fitted his hands against the back of her head. When she moved to kiss him again, he pushed down while thrusting upward, slipping his arousal between her lips. Groaning loudly, he pulled her up by her hair. From his position on the ground, he got a perfect view of her mouth taking him in. The erotic show was almost as good as the feel of her lips rolling along his tip. She kissed his shaft’s head, teasing it with her perfect mouth.

  “You taste good,” she said, almost shyly as she pulled him in deeper. Vladamir resisted the urge to again force her head down his shaft.

  “Ah, by all that is hallowed, take me deeper,” he commanded.

  Eden obeyed and sucked him deeper, nearly gagging herself on his size. The large shaft hit the back of her throat a few times and still didn’t fit in halfway. Her teeth grazed the sides as she pulled up.

  Suddenly, he stopped her, knowing if he didn’t he would find release down her throat. As much as he wanted to watch her swallow his seed, he wanted to hold off his desire even more. This time, he wouldn’t be selfish. This time, he wouldn’t act the complete beast.

  “What?” Eden gasped in puzzlement. Tears of uncertainty welled in her eyes and she tried to move away. He grabbed her, keeping her from getting up. “I have blundered already. I can
be quiet. I swear to it. I didn’t mean to moan like that.”

  Vladamir brought his fingers to stop her flow of words. He took harsh, deep breaths. He couldn’t bear to see her so dejected. However, he didn’t know what to say to ease her worry. The sounds she made were innocent and fearless at the same time. She returned his kisses with untried fervor and obeyed his orders without question. So instead of trying to explain that he stopped because he realized he was about to treat her like a whore, he stood, pulling her up with him. In one swift movement he cradled her up into his arms and walked with her to the pond.

  “Where…?” She settled her hands about his neck, shyly kissing the flesh she found by his jaw. With her free hand, she touched his scars.

  “I’m in need of a bath,” he said simply.

  I’m in need of cooling off.

  “But our clothes,” Eden protested as he neared the water. “You only have the one pair of shoes and I don’t think we can afford more.”

  Vladamir didn’t show his delight at the wifely concern. He had many pairs of shoes but didn’t wear them, as he liked the worn comfort of his old ones. Obligingly, he set her on the ground, letting her body slide suggestively next to his as he did so.

  She took a step away from him and gestured to a nearby tree. “Should I, ah, wait over there while you bathe?”

  Vladamir chuckled, the noise low and seductive like the laugh of a wild beast. “Nay, m’lady, you’re in need of a bath also.”

  “Oh.” Turning slightly, she sniffed to see if she was unpleasant. He pretended not to notice.

  The duke pulled off his shoes, throwing them carelessly into the softened dirt. All the time he kept his eyes trained on her, waiting for her to disrobe for him. His stockings, which had become caked with mud, were soon to follow his shoes. Settling his bare feet into the muddy shore, he turned to her expectantly.

  He smiled as she stood still, watching him. The smell of flowers was stronger by the water, encompassing them with their heady scent. The sound of the crashing leaves grew louder as a stout wind blew overhead.

  “Come,” he ordered.

  She shook her head, backing away. Vladamir’s expression darkened when she didn’t obey him. Intent on following her and dragging her back to him if needs be, he moved after her, but the same time he was hurt by her standoffishness. “Let me help you.”

  Eden had watched her husband in fascination, wishing he would continue disrobing. Dangerous sensations unfurled within her. She longed for more of him.

  She trembled at the promise in his eyes as he stalked toward her. His chin lifted with a natural elegance and his eyes glowed with an unearthly light. His hands lifted as if to rip the tunic from her willing body. Protectively crossing her arms over her chest, she took a quick step out of his reach, moving onto the drier shore. She shook her head, denying him. “Nay!”

  “Come here, Eden.”

  “Nay, you cannot tear this gown.” She took another step away from him. Vladamir stopped and placed his hands on his hips. He looked so handsome in his dark tunic and bare feet. “‘Tis the only gown I have left. If you tear it I’ll be left naked.”

  Vladamir’s frown turned into a provocative smile.

  “Then take off your clothes,” he answered, keeping his eyes steadily on her.

  “Go over there.” Eden shooed him modestly. It was one thing to rip them off in passion, another entirely to strip as he watched from a distance—able to see everything.

  When the duke grudgingly obeyed by walking back to the water’s edge, he turned his back to her. Eden quickly slipped out of her gown, careful to keep an eye on him to make sure he didn’t try to peek. Gingerly, she lifted her thin chemise over her shoulders.

  Vladamir’s hands stayed on his hips, just above the firm line of his butt. The black linen hugged his masculine body so that Eden could see the defined lines of his spine. The braes’ laces were loose and the material would be easy to pull off his legs.

  She dropped the chemise to the ground. Then as the air hit her naked body, she took off running for the water. Her feet splashed carelessly at the pond’s edge and she quickly dove under the cool liquid. The glistening water slithered over her body with reckless abandon before she surfaced to turn back to her husband on the shore. Treading water with her limbs for it was too deep to touch, she smiled triumphantly back at him. Not bothering to remove his clothes, he stalked after her into the water. Diving under the surface, he met her in two strokes.

  Eden gasped in pleasure. She felt his hands on her body before he came up for air. His strong fingers went straight to her waist, gliding with the aid of the water over her flushed skin. Her hands found his wet overtunic as he surfaced. The water trickled down his wet hair in rivulets, beading to glisten on his wet skin peeking from his neckline. She wound her fingers into his long locks, drawing him immediately to her lips. His kiss impatiently greeted hers.

  Eden opened her mouth without prompting, daring to touch her tongue to his lips first. Vladamir groaned and pulled her more fully to him. Her naked body pressed tightly to his wet tunic. The material tickled her skin and the hardened length of his arousal pushed at her from its watery vault.

  “I want to feel you,” she whispered, unsure how he would take her words.

  “How do you want to feel me?” he asked against her lips, his voice louder than hers, more confident.

  “I want your member inside me. I want you to take me like you did in the dusty bedchamber.” As she fiercely returned his kiss, Vladamir drew back in surprise. Eden let him breathe, only because it allowed her to further her cause. Her long hair floated about them, mixing with the ends of his. As his lips parted for a ragged breath of air, she pulled at his tunic, struggling with the wet weight of it and unable to get grounding with her feet. Her head went under water as she pulled up.

  Surfacing quickly, she swam backward pulling him with her by a fistful of tunic. Vladamir didn’t protest as she led him to more stable ground. When she had her footing, she went to him and once again set to work on disrobing him.

  “I want to see you.” Though she was excited, she trembled with nervous fear. Beads of water gathered on her lashes and she blinked them off. Her naked breasts bobbed on the surface hardening her nipples, the cool liquid making waves in their valley. When he didn’t answer, she slowly reached her naked arms to his shoulder.

  Vladamir hesitated but as her hands slid over his muscled chest, he didn’t stop her. She kept her eyes steadily on him, glancing shyly at his lips. The duke grabbed his own tunic with an animalistic growl and yanked it over his head. Flinging it to shore, he turned back to her and let her keep the lead.

  Eden was instantly in his arms, pressing herself to his nakedness. She gasped in pleasure at the feel of him but she didn’t kiss him. Instead, she allowed her hands to run a course through the ridges of his toned flesh as she explored his body freely for the first time. Her peaked nipples rubbed against his smaller manly ones. She didn’t think of his scars as she touched him, though her fingers ran lightly over them. He was gorgeous—so hard and hot, his body molded as if from stone. The blood in her veins quickened and raced through her with a feverish yearning. He held her fast in his grip as she moved to explore his neck with her lips.

  “You taste so good.” Eden groaned. She ran her fingers over his naked shoulders, his back, his neck with a burning need to consume him. “And you’re so hot.”

  Vladamir moaned, throwing his head back with abandon. She held only a desire for him, no rejection, no fear, no accusations—just budding desire. Trailing her lips over his brawny chest, she licked him only to sigh in pleasure. She ached everywhere for him but no place as much as between her thighs. Squirming to get her hips closer, she couldn’t feel enough of him.

  “Please,” she begged, knowing what was to happen as she tried to free his shaft once more. The material of his braes was much easier to push off and she slid it over his hips. Cautious, she moved to feel the taut flesh of his hard butt, working her
hands over the tight flesh.

  “Now you,” she urged, pulling his hips closer to her wet slit. His hands explored her firm butt as she lifted up to grind against him. “Tell me what you like, what you want.”

  “I want you.” He took her hand in his, teaching her how to stroke him, urging her to run her delicate fingers over his shaft. The water made them glide together. When she had the rhythm and pressure just right, he let go and slipped his finger into her slit. “I want to take you here.” She jerked as he parted the slick folds of her body, finding her clit. He slipped a finger up into her, stretching her as he rolled it in small circles. She bucked against him and tried to ride his hand. Vladamir groaned, pulling back. Then, sliding back to her ass, he said, “And I want to take you here.”

  Eden was stunned by his admission, but as he rimmed the tight rosette, she couldn’t think of a single reason why she should deny him. His finger slipped inside her ass and she tensed.

  “Oh, yea,” he groaned. “Your ass is so tight. I’ve imagined it around my cock so many times.”

  He probed deeper, rimming the hole in widening circles. Eden bucked, wiggling before him in the water.

  “Yea,” she moaned.

  “Ah, that’s it, try to relax. Take my finger, oh yea, just a little deeper. I’m going to leave it inside you as you take my cock.”

  Eden cried out in surprise as he slid the finger deep. Then, urging her up, he angled her sex to his cock. In one solid thrust, he entered her ready body. His claiming didn’t hurt her as it had the first time and she automatically wrapped her legs around his hips to spur him on. The tight muscles of her passage stretched to accept him, holding him deep. The finger slipped almost completely out of her ass at the position. He moved slowly in her, thrusting powerfully up after pulling to the entrance of her sex. Then, keeping himself inside of her, he moved himself in small strokes near her core. She jolted in pleasure and rotated her hips.