Godiva: Unbridled (5 page)

Chapter 6

Thomas noticed the rain as he roused awake, the crow from the rooster on the other side of the barn alerting him to the rising sun. Atop him, the full weight of her delicate body draped across him, the Lady May slept, her face turned away from him in the pale morning light, golden hair strewn about, tumbling onto the bed, wrapped around her arm. As his sleeping member became aware of her slippery heat, still so close against him, it began to stiffen in earnest, already firm in its usual morning state, but stimulated more by the wetness of a woman so close by. She sighed and moaned softly in her sleep, moving just enough so he could see her face. Deep inside his core, something stirred. Her beauty and her trust in him was disarming, and caused him to hold her against him despite the nagging duty of his chores and of his body that needed to visit the
toilette
. The horse whickered from across the barn, and the cock crowed again. Thomas kissed the top of the lady’s head, and with a gentle embrace, slid her off him and into the softness of the blankets.

As he stood in the bathing alcove, Thomas pumped some water into the washbasin. His erection reminded him of what he’d left behind in the bed, and the scent of their lovemaking still clung to his body, providing for a strong stimulation. He dipped a rough cloth into the cold water and allowed it to run over his body, gasping at the shock of it, but he had to bring the desire from his groin, had to remind his female-loving member that it had other functions to perform besides sliding into the depths of a woman. His thoughts and memories of her heat, her lingering smell, the sight of her quaking breasts in the pale light of morning all kept him erect almost to the point of pain, and finally he stood inside the bathtub and poured the entire cold basin of water all down his front. Gasping, whimpering aloud at the freezing shock, this finally had the effect he needed it to have, and he was able to bring his mind out of the memory of their lovemaking, and he could at last think, at least partially, about his chores and what this new day would hold.

Fetching a wire basket, Thomas first visited the hen house, spreading some cracked corn on a corner of the barn floor, since the chickens would probably not like to go out into the garden in this rain. From the nest boxes, he collected half a dozen eggs, plenty to prepare for breakfast. The cow needed milking and she was impatient, for Thomas knew that she and her calf would go out in any weather, so he tended to her before the horses and goats. Once his tasks were completed, he brought in the fresh milk and eggs, and went to the corner that served as his pantry, a cupboard next to the fireplace where he’d already put on water for tea, and began heating stones for the lady’s bath. From the breadbox, he withdrew the last of his loaf. He would need to go into town after all. With the rain and the idea of a meal and a day wrapped in a blanket with this mysterious, beautiful woman, Thomas had indulged in the thought of simply doing his chores and spending the day eating and making love. It was a fantasy to be sure, but it was a happy one to indulge in. But despite the weather, he needed bread, he needed some other pantry supplies and much as he didn’t want to, he needed to check with the Coventry town officials again, to make sure that nobody had reported their wife or daughter missing.

Thomas had checked every day since he’d found the lady May, being careful not to offer any information, but only to inquire about recent news, as a missing person would certainly qualify as that. But there was no news, nothing out of the ordinary, only that a farmer down the road was having trouble with his goats getting out of his fence and the usual grumblings about the Earl of Mercia's outrageous taxes that were making it hard for people to afford their horses and their food. But he would go today and hope as he always did that no news would come. He sliced the bread for toast, poured hot water over the tea leaves, pulled the iron skillet from the fire and cracked the eggs onto its sizzling hot surface.

Carrying the tray over to the bed, Thomas noticed that the lady was awake, and looking at him. As he approached, she moved to sit up and the blanket fell from her chest. Her breasts swayed lazily beneath the veil of her yellow hair, their upturned nipples blushed and pointing at him. Unashamed of her nakedness, she leaned back against the pillows, finding a comfortable spot before rearranging the blanket over the rounded swell of her bosom. Beneath his breeches, Thomas already felt the stir of his hardness, remembering how those nipples has felt between his lips, the soft fullness of her breasts against his face. But he managed to set the tray down on the bed, and she looked eagerly at the breakfast he’d made.
 

“Oh, tomatoes,” she said, reaching for the plate he offered, filled with fried eggs and griddled tomatoes. “You have them this early in the season?”

“These are the first,” he replied. “Not very big yet, but plump and ripe.”

They feasted on crunchy, buttered toast and juicy tomatoes and eggs, and the rain subsided, and by the time their meal was done, the sun had broken through the clouds.

“My lady May,” Thomas said as they sipped their sweet, warm tea at the finish of their breakfast. “Today I must go into town. I need some supplies and also… I must inquire if anyone has been looking for you.”

Her eyes flickered for the first time that morning, losing the joy and happiness and now shadowed by something he couldn’t identify. Was it fear? “I don’t want to go,” she said, her voice shaking. “Are you insisting that I go with you?”

“Oh no, certainly not,” he replied. “It’s still far too much exertion for you. The walk into town is about two miles, and the horses aren’t mine to ride. I have stones heating on the fire for your bath and a basket of toiletries that my uncle brought back from his last trip to France that you might enjoy. You can stay here and rest and bathe and spend time with Niklada. I won’t be long, a couple of hours at most.”

Relief passed over her face and she nodded. Thomas reached out a tender hand and touched her cheek.

“You are so magnificent,” he whispered. “All morning, I’ve thought about being with you, how you felt against me. I want you right now, just remembering it.” He paused, looking into her round, gray eyes, steady, searching. “I’ve lived here for five years and I love this barn, these animals, this place. But it never felt quite so full as it has since you’ve been here. Even when you were passed out asleep, it’s like before you were here there was something special missing that I didn’t even know I lacked. And now, the walls feel full to the brim.”

The corner of her mouth twitched into a tiny smile, but she had no words for him. Her brow knit together for a brief moment, then smoothed away, as though she were trying to think of something, remember something. Content in his happiness, he only wanted her to feel the same.

“I’m glad that I found you. And I hope that you stay for a very long time.” He leaned in to kiss her then, tenderly, on the lips then on the cheek. When he drew back, he stood and rose from the bed. “I’ll put the hot stones in your bath now, and while I’m gone, rest and relax. Have you any needs? Perhaps I could pick up something for you while I’m in town.”

 
She shook her head, still savoring his kiss and his words. When she looked up at him, she forced a smile despite the nagging dreams that stayed so close to the surface of her mind. “Thank you, Thomas,” she said. “I’ve got everything that I need.”

Chapter 7

As Thomas sloshed over the dirt road at the entrance of the town, he noticed that quite a few people were out, milling about the waterlogged streets. Though the thick rain clouds still hung heavily in the sky, the sun managed to creep from behind them, and everything looked fresh and vibrant. The smell of baking bread and pastries wafted toward him, as the bakery was near the edge of town, but Thomas walked past the buttery temptation of the baker’s doors to first make his way to the Coventry town center. Here, people could send and receive packages, take care of legal matters, and read bulletins of local news. It also tended to be where the town’s most respectable people gathered to talk to Mrs. McFarland, the woman who ran the office. Though she seemed a sensible and conservative woman on the outside, Mrs. McFarland knew everyone’s business, because everyone stopped in to gossip with her. Thomas felt his stomach tighten as the strap of bells attached to the front door jingled in announcement of his arrival. What would he do if he found out that his Lady May belonged to someone else?

“Aye, Thomas ‘morning to ya,” Mrs. McFarland offered a friendly wave from where she stood, deep in conversation with a man who Thomas didn’t know.

“Good morning, Mrs. McFarland.” The man’s voice dropped to a lower tone and Mrs. McFarland leaned in to hear what he was saying. Thomas perused the edge of the office then headed to the community bulletin board. Holding his breath, he scanned it for anything new since the last time he had been there. A litter of sheepdog pups were now available, and someone had put up an advert offering their services in teaching piano. But all the other posts were old, and there were none that mentioned a missing woman. Thomas exhaled with relief. When he turned around, he noticed Mrs. McFarland looking at him, as the man she was standing with had stopped talking.

“Getting a bit lonely up there on your own, eh Thomas? With both your uncle and your master away, it must seem rather quiet on the farm.”

“Quiet, yes. But there’s always plenty to do.” Thomas walked to join the two where they stood at the counter. “I’ll need to repair the fence at the north end, otherwise the cow and her calf will join farmer Tucklow’s goats, I’m afraid, running unchecked throughout the fields.”

“Aye!” This seemed to get the attention of the man standing with Mrs. McFarland. “Those goats came all the way down to my farm at Northend fork. Climbed up my hay bales and wouldn’t come down. I told ‘im, Stanley, keep your goats off my land else I’ll be having goat stew for dinner! I think he’s got ‘em in a proper yard now, with a gate ‘round it.”

“Mind, now Henry there’d be a tax on that goat meat, don’t fool yourself! The earl would smell the stew miles away and send the collector right to your door! Nothing for free, even if it jumps over your own fence!”

“Aye,” Henry nodded bitterly. “That’s the sad truth, Mrs. McFarland.”

“Thomas, did you hear the announcement from the Earl? Came through just yesterday.”

“No, hadn’t heard. New tax? On what, the air we breathe?”

“Aye, wouldn’t surprise me, but no. The Earl’s wife, the Lady Godiva, has spoken out against her husband’s overtaxing. She believes the people shouldn’t have to pay so much and they’ve had words over it.”

“Indeed! Well how kind of her as she sits in her golden hall, breathing all the free air and eating all the free meat and milk she can. How can her words help us?”

“It’s not the words that will help, it’s the wager.” Mrs. McFarland raised an eyebrow and cocked her head, motioning for Thomas to come closer. “The lady feels so strongly on the topic that she made a bet with her husband. She said that she would ride naked on horseback through the town, if only he would lower the taxes! He practically dared her to do it! So yesterday he announced that in a fortnight, the lady will ride bare through the streets of Coventry in defiance of his tax laws!”

“Is that so?” Thomas considered this information, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. “So the Lady Godiva rides naked through the town for all eyes to see, all for the sake of the village? And what does she receive in return?”

“Ah, don’t be so quick to make judgment, young man.” The older man said. “The Lady Godiva is unlike her husband. She’s said to be a compassionate soul, concerned about the hardship and strife these taxes have caused. She disagrees with her husband in earnest, but he won’t allow this to be a show of lustful debauchery. All windows have been ordered shuttered and all doors closed and latched at the time of her ride. Her modesty will be not lost, but her point will be well-made.”

“Well then, in a fortnight, plus one day, I shall have to check back to see if the deed was done, since I’m sure one of the Earl’s men will make certain that I keep my shutters closed. If we don’t after all, I’m sure he’ll find a way to put a tax on open windows as well.”

“Ach, you’re too young to be so jaded, Thomas!” Mrs. McClintock said, giving him a gentle push. “Go stop over at the mill. Aggie Smithton got a big haul of fleece, maybe something to your liking.”

“Aye?” Thomas raised his brow. “Where from?”

“A caravan of tinkers got caught stealing up in County Clare, where her family’s from in Ireland. Had the law on ‘em and one of them took a blade to the constable. That’d be Aggie’s brother. Then the whole lot of ‘em just ran off, left their treasures behind.”

“Was he wounded badly? The constable?”

“A wee slash to the chest, but on the wrong side. Missed his heart and his lung. Kept him off the job for two months. He’s a strapping man though, he’ll be all right. But after the caravan was gone through, and all the stolen items returned to their rightful owners, the rest was sold, and some of it given to the constable for all that he’s endured. So he took all the fleece and the fabric they had and shipped it to his sister.”

“Oh, well that’s a gift,” Thomas said, his eyes lighting up.

“I thought you’d like that. Now go on. We’ll be seeing you.”

Chapter 8

Thomas arrived back at the barn, his bundle of fabric tied up with string and pantry items in the pack on his back. He slipped into the side door, stowed the fabric away in a trunk that held his own spare blankets and bedding. A fine garment it would make for his Lady, deep burgundy red, and the length of gold tassel fringe he’d also been able to procure from Aggie Smithton would make for a beautiful cloak or something of the like. He didn’t want her to see just yet though, wanted this to be a surprise.

When he found the Lady May, she was in the stable, grooming Niklada. She was wearing the oversized dress he’d given her the day before, and the way it hung so loosely on her troubled him as he approached.

“We shall have to get you some suitable clothes,” he said as he walked into the stable. She glanced over her shoulder, where the gown had drooped and fell down her arm. “I can’t very well go into town and buy dresses, when everyone knows me to be an unmarried man!”