THE WARLORD (14 page)

"As well you should. You would do well to remind me of that later. There will be a better time."

"Aye," she whispered, feeling the fear snake its way around her heart.

Kenric patiently allowed her to play with his hair, thinking this would surely be the longest bath on record. He finally leaned back to duck under the water again when it became obvious that she would happily massage his head all day.

"I've had seven long days to dwell on what punishment I will receive," she began, when his head emerged from the water. "Though you may wish to hear my apology at another time, milord, I wish to learn my punishment now."

Since she was standing behind him, Kenric knew she couldn't see his smile. Lord, she was bold. After he'd left for Greshan, it had occurred to him that she would spend every day of his absence worrying over what his return would bring. He'd even laughed aloud on occasion at the image it brought to mind.
Served her right for putting him to such trouble.
He'd lost four precious days of training with his soldiers while he played sickmaid. Her escape had simply made him look foolish. Aye, she deserved every single moment that she'd terrorized herself. "So you want to know what punishment I deem fitting for trying to escape
me?
"

"Aye," she said firmly.

Kenric took his time wiping the water from his face. "You want to learn the payment I will exact for returning to my chamber, only to discover that my new bride had fled?
For rousing an entire castle at dawn to search every square inch of the place?
For inconveniencing myself and fifty other men who rode after you? And for refusing to return with your husband after you were found?" He shook stray drops of water off his hand with a flick of his wrist. "At the point of an arrow, I might add. Is that about the whole of it?"

"Aye," she answered, hesitantly this time.

"I would imagine you had many long hours to think over your foolishness this past week," he mused. "Have you come to regret your actions, Tess?"

"I have." This answer was firm again.

"And do I have your promise that you will never attempt to escape me again, no matter what you think I might have planned for you?"

Tess hesitated as one hand reached for her braid, the silence just long enough for Kenric's suspicions to be aroused. "Aye, you have my promise."

She was lying and Kenric knew it. She didn't trust him, no more than he trusted her. Still, he could ensure that she kept her promise even if she didn't want to. If Tess needed a keeper, then she'd have one.

"I have little doubt that the tortures you dreamed up for yourself this past week were quite colorful. It pleases me that you dwelt on them often, for you surely deserved one of them. Yet I am willing to consider that your fevered state contributed greatly to your folly. No woman in her right mind would have attempted such a foolhardy venture, knowing there could be naught but dire consequences with success or failure. Therefore I have decided that the week's confinement will suffice for this offense." Kenric watched her face closely; he looked for some sign of gratefulness. He supposed she was too overcome with gratitude to express her feelings. She simply stared at him, her face blank with shock. "Do not mistake me, Tess. If you do anything so foolish again, the punishment will be carried out. It will be one you remember not for a week, but forever. Something so vile that no gently bred lady could conjure it up in her wildest imaginings. Remember that if you ever again consider defying me."

Satisfied with his speech, Kenric began to splash water on his arms and shoulders, eager to finish a much more pleasant task.

"That's it? I am to be punished no further?"

"You have some wish to change my mind?" he asked mildly.

"Nay," she answered quickly, looking bewildered.

"You may proceed with my back," he said, when she made no move to continue the bath. She picked up a linen cloth, but he snatched it away and casually tossed it aside. "I want you to use your hands to bathe me."

Tess didn't reply, but he felt her soapy fingers glide across his shoulders. She was soon doing just as thorough a job as she'd done with his hair, working her way down his back muscle by muscle. The smooth, erotic strokes made his breath quicken and his heart beat harder. A shadow of doubt began to form in Kenric's mind about the wisdom of this bath.

Tess was too caught up in her own thoughts to realize the effect of her ministrations. Kenric was a puzzle, to be sure, a man known for cruelty who could kiss her with such sweet poignancy that she could scarce remember her name, a man who didn't want a wife yet spent four days nursing her back to health. Even when she betrayed him, he seemed to forgive her without
so
much as a slap. How on earth had this man ever gained a reputation for being the most bloodthirsty warlord in
England? Was the Butcher of Wales truly capable of justice tempered by compassion? That was something to think about.

The longer Tess smoothed the soap over Kenric's back, the less she feared him. He truly intended her no harm. Not now, anyway. But he did intend to bed her. She was not so naive to be fooled by this bath business for an instant. This was surely his means of working up to a seduction. Yet she was the one doing all the caressing. She stared at his back with new awareness, watching his shoulders and muscles flex to follow the path of her hands. He was enjoying this.
Thoroughly.

"Will you want me to do this for your other knights?" she asked, absently experimenting with a circular stroke.

"Nay!"
Kenric growled. "If you are ever asked to assist a knight at his bath, you will politely refuse. Tell them your husband forbids such and they must gain permission from me." The thought of his wife's hands on another man's body resulted in a scowl. "I will not give it."

"Oh, good
. 'Tis not that I mind assisting you, milord.
I just don't think I would like to touch another man so…" Tess glanced down at her hands. They looked so small against his broad shoulders. His skin was much darker than hers, tanned by the sun, golden brown even now in the dead of winter. She wondered if he took his tunic off in the summertime on the practice field. What would he look like then? How would she react to seeing him bare-chested in public, knowing she'd caressed him so intimately in private? "So…"

"I know what you mean," he said, and urged her on to his arms. His muscles seemed to contract wherever she touched him. Tess was soon fascinated by the reaction. Her fingers traced each ridge and contour. She became enthralled when she washed his chest, swirling her ringers around the light covering of hair, tracing small circles around his hardened nipples. She spread her fingers wide across his chest and drew her hands down until they reached the water that lapped against his flat stomach, too caught up in her exploration of his body to notice her husband's gasp.

"My legs," he said hoarsely, raising one and propping it on the edge of the tub.

Tess washed his leg in long, languorous strokes. She couldn't resist wrapping her hands around his ankle then pushing her hands upward, unconsciously massaging rather than washing, finally stopping where the water met his upper thigh. She had the strangest desire to press her lips against the places her hands touched, to see what his skin would taste like.

Kenric wasn't at all sure he had the control required to carry out this plan. He closed his eyes and tried to ignore what she was doing to him, but he was aroused beyond belief. The feel of her hands on his body was fast becoming unbearable. She made his skin burn and his
body ache
to touch her in the same delightfully tormenting ways. It took every ounce of willpower he possessed to remain still. He tried to brace himself for the most exquisite torture yet to come.

"Now the rest," he said abruptly. He gripped the sides of the tub and stood up, closing his eyes when he heard Tess draw in her breath. He could almost feel her gaze travel boldly over his body.

Patience, Kenric told himself, repeating the litany over and over again in his mind.

Tess stared at her husband in wonder, her gaze drawn unwillingly to the hard proof of his desire for her. She was mesmerized by the sight of his manhood, unable to stop herself from thoroughly exploring that part of him with her eyes. His hardness uncoiled the knot of heat in her belly and it spread like a fire through her body.

She raised her eyes reluctantly, embarrassed at having stared so openly for so long, but was relieved to realize that Kenric probably didn't know. His eyes were squeezed shut, the expression on his face one of pain. His whole body was tensed, hard, each muscle standing out in rigid relief, his fists clenched tightly at his sides.

"You are in pain?" she asked, amazed by the possibility.

"Aye."
His answer was half groan, half laugh.

"Am I doing something wrong?"

He opened his eyes to look down at her. The fierce, raw desire in his gaze made her retreat a step. "You are doing something very right."

He took another deep breath. "I want you to know my body, Tess. I would not have your fear just now."

Tess let her gaze rake boldly over Kenric's body again. He was a giant, his chest at least twice the width of hers, arms bulging with muscles that could crush her in their grip. His legs were as sturdy as tree trunks and just as solidly muscled as the rest of his body. The sight of so much naked strength and power was nearly overwhelming. And there was still a trace of fear, uncertainty in not knowing if he would ever use his great strength against her.

This is my husband
, she tried telling herself. This magnificent male animal was hers to touch, to kiss, to caress…

Her eyes returned to the forgotten soap still clutched in one hand. She moved to his back and slid her hands over his buttocks, certain the smooth, firm skin encased steel. Her hands trembled, lingering at the sides of his hips, trying to work up enough courage to discover him completely.

"Enough," he said hoarsely, pushing her hands away as he turned to face her. "I can stand no more, Tess. Take off your chemise."

Tess's fingers trembled as she worked at the laces, her eyes locked with Kenric's as the garment fell in a soft pool at her feet. She didn't start to blush until his gaze slid downward. Her skin seemed to catch fire wherever his eyes rested. He lingered over her breasts and she felt her nipples tighten in response to the fiery look. He studied her legs and her knees began to tremble.

My body belongs to Kenric now
, she told herself, determined to please him by being as open about her body as he was about his. She forced her arms to stay at her sides, fighting the urge to drape them across her body to shield her nudity.

He stepped from the tub and lifted her into his arms. They both gasped at the feel of so much warm, damp skin touching together. There wasn't time to savor the feeling. He carried her to the bed and lowered her slowly to the floor, sliding her intimately against the length of his body. With one hand braced against the bed, he laid her down and covered her body with his own.

"I don't… I don't know…"

Tess tried to tell him between drugging kisses that she didn't know what to do. She gave up when his lips slid to her ear, his hot breath heating her senses to the boiling point.

"I know, sweet," he murmured. His mouth burned a trail down her neck and across her chest. "I want to touch you everywhere, Tess."

His hands caressed her hips, moving closer to her heat until his fingers slipped between the hot, slick petals. His finger slipped inside her tight sheath, and he captured her moan with his mouth, matching it with his own. The kiss was long, demanding, his tongue mimicking the action of his fingers as he began to move inside her, stroking, caressing,
preparing
her for what would come.

"I will be inside you soon," he told her, raining kisses across her face, his words coming in short, harsh gasps. "But I have to hurt you once before I can give you pleasure. More pleasure than you've ever dreamed of, little one."

Tess didn't think such was possible. How much more pleasure could exist? His mouth burned another fiery trail to her breasts where he used his tongue to caress sensitive, swollen nipples. His hands searched hers out, insistently encouraging them to explore. Caught up in her own desire, Tess had almost forgotten the pleasure that could be gained by touching him. She let her hands roam where they would, delighted by the feel of him, the warmth, the strength, the need that had his body as taut with anticipation as he was making hers.

Kenric accustomed Tess slowly to his touch and the fierceness of his desire. The more he aroused her passion, the stronger his own grew, the raw sensuality of her response a potent drug to his senses as she writhed beneath him, her hips arching to meet his caresses. Finally he found her lips at the same time he positioned himself to enter her.

"Easy, love." He gripped Tess's hips to keep her still,
then
pushed forward carefully. He was trying his damnedest to go slowly, to open her to his desire as gently as possible. He kept her head tucked under his chin, every part of his body straining to keep her pinned beneath him and motionless. The urge to let go, to abandon his precious control and take her with all the sweet savagery he felt was an incredible temptation.