Timeless Tales of Honor (57 page)

He moved slowly, wrestling against the natural instinct to ram into her like a rutting stallion. He worked carefully, gaining headway bit by bit, feeling her tightness draw him inward. She was so slick that it would have been terribly easy to simply thrust into her and be done with her maidenhood in a flash of pain and power, but he unsteadily refrained. Better to allow her to become accustom to his intrusion before the sting of losing her innocence cast a measure of reality upon their union.

In spite of the approaching truth of pain, Arissa was amazingly calm beneath him, gripping his massive biceps for support as he forged into virgin territory. Beneath her hands, she could feel his body quivering, straining to maintain control in the face of his most raging desire. She, too, was quivering with anticipation.

As he laboriously made his way inside her, she smiled bravely, silent words of joy and encouragement conveyed upon the green depths. Although she felt as if his manhood was stretching her beyond the limits of physical endurance, she refused to reveal the apprehension she was coming to encounter. Apprehension she was attempting to ignore, without much success.

She was unaware that she did not have to say a word about her anxieties. With every tiny thrust, her body tightened with uncertainty and Richmond knew that her courage and determination would only last so long. He was buried within her nearly half-way, a remarkable achievement in itself considering her petite size, when he felt the resistance of her maidenhood. When he paused and withdrew completely, her entire body went limp with relief.

But he would not allow her the chance to renew her apprehension. Falling atop her, he grasped her breast firmly and descended upon a peaked nipple. Suckling furiously, Arissa forgot her fears and responded to him with the low moans and pants that he had come to expect. Her cheeks began to flush with desire as her fingers wound themselves in his thick brown hair, and he knew the time was upon him to act. With Arissa properly distracted, it was time to take her.

Pulling her knees up, he continued to nurse against her breast hungrily. Arissa was hardly aware of his hands on her knees, his manhood pressing against her tender threshold once again. The next she realized, he was thrusting into her harder than she ever thought possible, driving himself the full long length of his throbbing manhood.

Arissa gasped loudly with surprise at the savage action, a sharp sting of pain rippling throughout her loins. He was seated to the hilt in less than a second and she felt all of the fullness and maleness of him that she could have ever hoped for. The pain, coupled with his closeness, brought tears to her eyes as she clutched his shoulders with white-knuckled intensity. In spite of her vow of bravery, his swift movement had startled her and she couldn't help the soft sobs that escaped her lips.

Fully sheathed within her delicious tightness, Richmond struggled to remain still as Arissa writhed and panted beneath him. When he heard the faint sobs of fear and pain, however, he raised his head from her swollen nipple in a brief return of control and reality.

"I am so sorry, kitten," he whispered huskily. "I would not have hurt you had there been another way."

She wiped at her eyes daintily. "It's not.... I mean, ‘tis not the pain, but... but the closeness. I never knew it could be like this."

She trailed off, attempting to regain control of her sobs. Folding his arms about her slight body, he began to move gently within her. Slowly at first, relishing the feel of his erection embedded within her unbelievably slick folds. She clutched him tightly, wrapping her legs about his hips and clinging to him with an instinctive need.

Richmond's pace increased, quickening his thrusts as he was blinded to all else but the feel of her flesh encompassing his maleness. It was the most satisfying and amazing thing he had ever experienced. Against him, Arissa's resumed pants of passion told him that she was beginning to experience the same pleasure that had so easily engulfed his senses. Now, they were experiencing it together as it was always meant to be.

But it was a pleasure that was building to a scalding peak faster than he ever thought possible; in fact, nothing on earth could have prepared Richmond for his lightning-quick climax. With a roar, he spilled deep into her womb, feeling every last spasm of his spent desire with the greatest of pleasure. But even as the evidence of his passion erupted, he continued to move within her, wanting her to experience the same searing joy that would erase the sting of her innocent pain.

He shifted his weight, gazing down at her flushed face as he continued to thrust. Her eyes were closed, her head thrown back, and he found his gaze drawn to her magnificent breasts as they bounced against every thrust he delivered. One hand trailed down her neck, encircling a breast tenderly before moving toward the junction where their bodies were joined in passion. Where the magic of her pleasure pulsed and throbbed, begging for release.

Seeking the hard little nub, he manipulated it fiercely, watching as Arissa's eyes flew open with surprise. In the next moment, she pealed off a loud shriek that echoed against the very walls of the chamber and he could feel her passage throb and spasm as her own pleasure was attained. Not only could he feel the delicious convulsions of her gratification, he deeply sensed it like nothing else.

From pain to pleasure, gentleness to the heights of ferocious desire, Richmond introduced Arissa to a world where they would cease to exist as two separate beings. A world where the only matter of import was the love and emotion they held for one another, binding them together more tightly than any other circumstance. It was done.

Enfolded in the protective warmth of his massive embrace, Arissa was not sure if she was dead or alive. Her body was limp, her mind a warm void of satisfaction as she felt the remains of Richmond's arousal twitching within her tender folds. It was the most remarkable, private sensation she had ever experienced and she would have been perfectly content to remain as they were for the rest of eternity.

"Are you all right?" he whispered against her ear.

Weakly, she nodded. "I do believe I am close to dying from contentment. Is such a thing possible?"

"I hope so," he murmured, snuggling closer. "But I am truly sorry that there was pain for you, Riss. It couldn't be helped."

She raised her head to look at him. "Stop worrying so. I have already forgotten about the discomfort. It.... it was an amazing experience. Much more than I ever imagined."

He smiled faintly. "You are incredibly brave, my lady. I should possess such courage."

She returned his smile, pressing herself against him tightly. The fire in the hearth was dying, casting a heady chill about the shadowed room. But against Richmond, Arissa had never been so warm or so loved.

"Will you stay with me all night?" she asked softly, her delicate fingers lingering on his chest.

He stroked her black hair, watching the distant flames. "That would not be wise, Riss. We cannot allow anyone to become suspicious of our relationship. Moreover, I promised Gavan I would take the watch tonight since he’s been occupied all evening with Lambourn's security."

She knew what his answer would be, but was disappointed nonetheless. She sighed faintly. "I do not think I like the idea of being alone. Now that I have experienced you in my bed, I never want you to leave. I shall be empty without you."

He kissed her forehead. "You fail to consider my feelings, kitten. Do you not think that I will miss you, too?"

She rolled onto her back, gazing up at him with bright eyes. "Did you know that you are a silly, sentimental fool? Not only do you love me, but you miss me when I am not by your side. I thought only women had such ridiculous, romantic thoughts."

"Then I suppose I am a ridiculous romantic."

They continued to gaze at each other warmly as Richmond toyed with a tendril of silken dark hair. He was so caught up in Arissa's delicious vision that he failed to notice the slight movement in the giant wardrobe at the opposite end of the chamber.

One of the carved paneled doors inched open, paused, and then slowly closed. After several moments, it inched open again, wider. As Richmond kissed Arissa's cheek tenderly, the door proceeded to yawn even further. When he moved to cover Arissa's body with his massive frame once again, giving in to the rejuvenated desire flooding his veins, the door flew open wide with a resounding crash.

"You.... you
hypocrite!
"

Richmond bolted out of the bed faster than he had ever moved in his life. His natural protective instinct was surging as he flew over the mattress, feet to the cold floor, fully prepared to do battle with the unknown intruder. Only when his hands closed over the dark, indistinct figure did he realize the shadow was a weaker being, non-threatening to a man of his incredible strength and size. His grip met with fleshy soft arms, struggling furiously within his iron grip.

"You are a liar and.... and a deceiver!" Regine raged, wrestling viciously in Richmond's mighty grasp. "You punished me for the very same action you have just committed with my sister!"

Bedcover clutched to her breast, Arissa watched in horror as Richmond yanked Regine into the weak light. Regine's face mottled an ugly shade of red, her eyes full of venom, and all of it directed at Richmond.

"I knew you were an overbearing brute, but I had no idea you were a fraud as well!" she raged. "How could you have spanked me for sampling the identical pleasure you and my sister have just tasted? How?"

Richmond was as naked as the day he was born, standing before a ranting twelve-year-old girl. With a long, hostile glare, he forced himself to calmly retrieve his breeches. Regine twitched and quaked in her anger, completely ignorant of his nudity and glowering at him as if he were the Devil himself.

"Why were you spying on us?" his voice was amazingly steady as he secured his hose.

Regine clenched her teeth so hard that she bit her cheek. "I was not spying! At least.... it had never been my original intention. But you proved to me that you are a deceiver and I shall...!"

"And you shall
what
?" he put his hands on his hips, his voice as ominous as Arissa had ever heard it. He took a step, towering over the enraged young lass. "Do not ever threaten me, Regine. You shall not like the results, I guarantee it."

Regine may have been furious, but she was not daft. It did not matter that Richmond had taken Arissa's virginity while she watched from her hiding place in the wardrobe; what mattered was the fact that Richmond had punished her for the very same offense not hours before and she was outraged by his double standard.

Richmond, however, was gravely concerned for quite another reason; should Regine tell the earl all she had seen, the consequences would be severe. To become angry with her would only inflame the situation and he fought to keep his calm; nonetheless, a natural fury bubbled within his chest as he faced off against the foolish young wench.

It took him less than a second to carefully analyze the situation, the results, and the hazards. And it took him less than a second to realize there was little he could do to alter the course of a most distressing circumstance.

Regine had witnessed something she most definitely should not have. In lieu of strangling her simply to keep her from spilling the secret, Richmond was greatly pressed to emphasize the confidentiality of what she had seen without making it known that she literally held their lives in her hand. God help them, their very balance hung in the slippery palm of a shallow, peculiar young girl.

"I was not threatening you," Regine said after a moment, her rage dampening in the face of his intimidating expression. "But you were unfair to punish me for experiencing adult pleasures when you and Arissa did the very same thing."

The tension filling the room was thick enough to cut. Smothering, encompassing. Arissa's breath caught in her throat as Richmond eyed Regine grimly. "What did you mean when you said spying had not been your original intent? What, pray, was your original intent?"

Regine swallowed, the first flicker of uncertainty kindling in her blue eyes. "I....I followed Bart from the gallery, but he did not want to speak with me. So I came up here to wait for Riss to return from her party. I was waiting when I heard your voice in the hall and I did not want to see you because I was mad at you. So I hid in the wardrobe," she swallowed again, her gaze moving to her sister for the first time. A shade of genuine remorse crossed her features. "I saw you kiss her, and hold her, and I became curious because I did not know you and my sister were.... well, together. I could have come out of the wardrobe after you left, but I did not. I wanted to see what happened when you returned."

Arissa, sheet still clasped to her breast, suddenly found her tongue. She was not embarrassed in the least that her sister had witnessed her first experience with ecstasy; she was damn well furious for the invasion.

"So you spied on us!” she hissed. “Regine, how could you? After all I have done for you, defended you, made excuses for you, and even lied for you! I know you have spied on Penelope and Daniel, but how could you spy on me? How could you do this to me?"

Regine turned to her sister, fury fading and being replaced by genuine penitence. "I.... I do not know. I have seen the serving wenches couple with the soldiers, but it seemed to be rough and over quickly. And this afternoon when I.... it was not as wonderful as I thought it would be. I suppose I wanted to see.... it was wonderful for you, was not it, Riss? Is that what coupling is supposed to be like, always?"

Richmond stood with his fists on his hips, his gaze moving between Regine and Arissa. His anger began to dwindle as he came to understand that Regine, although her motives had been selfish and sly, was still in the process of trying to understand what went on between a man and a woman. Her experience that afternoon had been abrupt and unpleasant, and the curious, obsessive girl was still looking for her answers. Even at the expense of her sister's privacy.

But Arissa was unable to see Regine's curiosity for what is was. She was furious and shaken at being betrayed by her own sister, and furthermore terrified that Regine would tell her father what she had seen. Clutching the linen to her breast, she leapt out of the bed and wound the sheet about her body as she approached her youngest sibling.