Snowbound With the Sheriff (5 page)

Chapter Eight

Waiting to become Mrs. Chayston Williams was torturing Violet. Some nights, as she lay in bed, she pinched herself to make sure she wasn’t back in Ohio, dreaming all this. The wedding she’d once feared approaching was now a charmed event. Chayston visited every night, and the kisses they shared had her anticipating their wedding night with such eagerness she could barely stand the wait.

The ranch house was once again filled with guests she’d watched roll in, but this time, when a knock sounded on the door, she excitedly bid entrance.

“Ready?” the General asked.

Fluffing the long veil Anita had cascaded over her head a few moments before, Violet nodded. “Yes, I am.”

“You look beautiful,” he said, holding out an elbow.

“Thank you,” she said. “And thank you for, well, everything.”

“I couldn’t be more proud—”

The way he sniffed had her glancing up. Though tough on the outside, the General was all mush on the inside. A lot like his son. She squeezed his elbow tighter and when he nodded, they strolled along the hall and down the sweeping staircase to where her handsome groom awaited.

The ceremony was held at noon on Christmas Day, next to a perfectly decorated pine in the front parlor, and though her eyes were filled with mist, Violet reveled in the love shining in Chayston’s as they repeated their vows to one another. She’d always enjoyed Christmas, but now would cherish it completely, knowing it really was a time of miracles.

Later that day, after a meal was served, her new father-in-law caught everyone’s attention when he announced, “I’d now like to present my gift to the wedding couple.”

Violet turned to Chayston, who grinned adorably, but shrugged.

“As you all know,” the General said, “before Roy left town he deputized Chayston as acting sheriff and me as deputy sheriff. As of today, I’m moving to town to fulfill that role, giving my son and his new wife the next couple of weeks alone here at the ranch.” He turned to them and grinned. “Just know I’ll be back.”

The crowd laughed, and in the General’s commanding way, he soon had everyone making their departures, including his. As soon as the door closed for the final time, Chayston swung around and hoisted her into his arms.

She grasped his neck and returned his kiss, but when he started walking, she protested. “Put me down.”

“Why?” he asked and then loosened his hold slightly. “Afraid I’ll drop you?”

“No,” she said, laughing. “There’s no reason to carry me.”

“I carried you before,” he said, walking toward the stairway.

“Only because I didn’t have any boots.” She flayed her feet so he could see beneath her hem. “I have shoes on, see?”

“Oh, where is that porter when I need him?”

Having been caught up in her happiness, Violet had forgotten about her stolen boots. “Did you investigate that because you thought I was lying?”

“No. I wanted to prove your innocence.” He kissed the tip of her nose. “Someday we’ll have to visit Ohio, just so I can personally thank Eleanor for the scheme that put you in my arms the very first time.”

The love she felt for him was so strong, there was no longer room for resentment in her heart, but, Violet had to admit she felt sorry for her stepsister. “Eleanor thinks the only way to have love is to hoard it. I hope someday she’s learns that if you give it freely, it comes back tenfold.”

Chayston looked at her, deeply, profoundly. “You,” he said reverently, “are so...perfect.”

“No, I’m not.”

He’d climbed the stairs and walked down the hall, and now stood outside his bedroom door. “Fine, you’re not. Now, turn the knob, you’re getting heavy.”

“And you’re a brute,” she teased in return, while opening the door. “No gentleman would say that to a woman.”

“I know.” He dropped her onto the bed playfully. She was still bouncing when he landed beside her. “I told you I’m not a gentleman.”

Violet wrapped her arms around his neck. “I know, but I love you anyway.”

“Good,” he said, nibbling on her chin. “Because a gentleman would leave the room, let you get undressed and ready for bed.” His hands ran down her arm and then over and up her stomach, coming to a stop on her left breast. “But I’m going to undress you myself.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

His voice was low and husky, his breath hot against the quivering skin of her neck. The line of kisses he trailed along her neck was infinitely tender, and his caresses, how he explored her torso, created an intense excitement. With each kiss, each gentle pass of his hands, her need increased, and when his lips finally glided over hers, Violet met them passionately.

There was no shyness, no fear where Chayston was concerned, and she embraced the freedom his love released inside her. Arched into his caresses, she let her hands roam where they may over him, and when he softly suggested they undress, she beat him off the bed. He laughed and, sitting on the edge of the mattress, turned her around to unfasten the long row of buttons running down her back.

“Can’t you hurry?” she asked, trying to tug the gown off her shoulders.

“Maybe if you’d hold still,” he replied.

The dress finally gave way and as she pulled it off her arms, letting it fall to the floor, he kissed the very bottom of her back. Her stomach muscles tightened and an intense heat flared deeper. His hands made their way around to her front and slid along the line where her stomach met her legs. Everything inside melted and she leaned back as he stood, resting against his solid frame.

His hand roamed upward, fondling her swollen breasts and teasing her hard, overly sensitive nipples.

“Is this a form of torture?” she asked after a long moan rumbled around in her throat.

“No, it’s a form of pleasure,” he answered, kissing the side of her neck.

“Then don’t stop,” she whispered. “Don’t ever stop.”

He didn’t, even after they were both completely bare and stretched out on the bed. She’d been as adventurous as him, discovering pure pleasure by touching him, exploring parts she’d only allowed herself to be curious about. She hadn’t yet touched him there, where she was most interested in, but when one of his hands went between her legs, she reached down to grasp him. It was as if they were each trespassing, but a welcome trespass, that had them grinning at one another.

So caught up in the wonders of it all, Violet didn’t question the changes in her body. Every stroke had her wanting more. Holding nothing back, she followed instincts that had a savage yet earthly promise spiraling up from her very spirit.

Her breathing was uneven, catching in her throat and chest. When Chayston shifted, rising above her, she grasped his neck, pulling his mouth to hers for a wild, uncontrollable kiss that had their tongues swirling with one another.

When she needed air, she dropped her head deep in the pillow and shuddered with delight as his lips found one of her breasts, kissing it much as he had her mouth.

He continued, moving to the other one, and Violet wondered how much more she could take. Her center was throbbing and wet and a massive yearning burned inside her. “Please, Chayston,” she begged. “I can’t take much more.”

“Sure you can, darling,” he said. “Lots more.”

As he spoke, he guided himself forward, making her hold her breath as the end of him probed her opening. His entrance was slow, meticulous, and Violet curled her toes at the anticipation racing over her. Her hips rose up to meet him, and though he tried to pull back, she wrapped her legs around his.

A quick flash of pain caused her to hiss.

“Aw, sweetie,” he whispered, “I’m sorry, we needed to go slow the first time.”

The pain had already dissipated and Violet lifted her hips again, this time relishing the way his length glided inside her. “Why?”

“So it wouldn’t hurt,” he whispered, pulling out yet again.

Unable to even comprehend pain at this precise moment, Violet released a pleasure-filled moan. “That does not hurt.”

The pace of their coming together assembled a plethora of sensations into a massive culmination so great Violet couldn’t imagine what might happen next. Until it happened—a burst of freedom so encompassing she felt as if she was falling from some nonexistent cloud in the heavens.

Chayston moved faster. She held on to his shoulders, meeting each of his thrusts with a final burst of energy. He let out a growling groan, and she glorified in imagining he’d hit the same high she had.

Violet relished the way her entire being filled with something so astounding she knew it could be nothing but undying love as they held on to one another for several long and wonderful moments.

She smiled, fully understanding she wasn’t a jezebel, just a woman in love.

Their separation, the way Chayston slowly pulled out and rolled off her was as sweet as everything else had been. So was the way he slid an arm under her neck and pulled her close.

“I love you.”

“I know,” she said, letting out another sigh of contentment. “And it’s quite marvelous, isn’t it?”

He laughed and kissed her forehead. “Yes, it is.” Tilting her head up with his other hand, he kissed her lips. “As a child, I loved Christmas,” he said. “One year, your stepfather gave me a knife. I still have it.”

She smiled. “He did?”

“Yes,” he whispered, “but nothing will ever top this year. He gave me a bride for Christmas.”

* * * * *

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ISBN-13: 9781460323618

SNOWBOUND WITH THE SHERIFF

Copyright © 2013 by Lauri Robinson

All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.

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