[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
new freedom, Elena ate with apparent gusto. She didn t meet his eyes or speak, but she
sat beside him docilely, oozing what he would have liked to have imagined as a state of
wary contentment. And as the hours passed and wine lightened the mood of the hall,
her mood seemed to lighten as well.
She seemed to have accepted her fate.
Tossing back his tankard of wine, Ranulf slid a long glance at her. Tonight would
end it all. The years of painful longing. Of torture. She was finally his. He wanted to
sing it, shout it to the rafters.
He couldn t wait to fuck her, to complete the bond he had forged by marrying her.
The bond he d always intended to forge. His prick had been rigid with anticipation
almost constantly since he d called for the priest this morning, and now it was past
midnight.
It was time.
Rising abruptly, he announced that he and his wife would now retire. Amidst
cheers and catcalls, he nodded at one of his guards to follow them from the hall.
Walking into his chamber, he turned in time to watch his man push her over the
threshold and follow her inside, gripping her arm roughly.
She stood before him, as meek as a kitten. For once, she did not sneer with
superiority nor strain and fight against the man who held her. Finally, Ranulf had the
chance to look her over from head to toe. Could it be true? Had she actually resigned
88
Sins of the Knight
herself to her fate? Ranulf couldn t help but be a little surprised he hadn t expected
this.
Yet perhaps he should have expected it. She understood her duty. After all, she had
been a loyal, docile wife to Hugh, a brute of a man, for ten solid years.
She still wore the tattered garment she d worn the night he d abducted her from
Winchester. Not appropriate attire for the lady of Fordhaven, certainly. A pang of
something certainly not guilt flashed through him. He had striven to look his best
today, and she looked like a serving wench. Perhaps he should have allowed her to
bathe and dress in something more appropriate for their special day.
He snorted aloud, thinking of the raging madwoman his guards had carried
downstairs. It would have been impossible to try to bathe her or to wrangle her into
anything else. In any case, it was for the best. The woman didn t deserve fresh clothing
until she d proven herself.
Beyond the wrinkled, soiled clothing and tangled hair, Elena was still a beauty. Her
hair coiled into a black mass, framing her pale, oval-shaped face perfectly. Her eyes
were wide such a rare, clear color and surrounded by long, dark lashes. Dirt
smudged over her brow, somehow accentuating the beauty of her eyes. The robe
couldn t hide her feminine curves and rounded breasts a little small for his tastes, but
he d touched them before, years ago at Loxburn, and had discovered them to be just the
right size to twist in his palm. Her arms and face were covered with scratches, and a
particularly nasty bruise bloomed over one of her cheekbones, the only color in her
otherwise deathly pallid face. His cock twitched in eager anticipation. God, he d waited
so long for this one.
He licked his lips and glanced meaningfully at the bed. Here we are, Lady Lewes.
She winced at the title but met his gaze, brave creature that she was. He d always
known she was no coward.
Yes. Her voice was just above a whisper.
I ll make you forget. You will abandon your thoughts of that knight and all those
notions of courtly love and propriety. He sneered, thinking of that uppity prig.
Curious about the man Elena thought so honorable, he d watched him from a distance
at Winchester. The man was so upright, he must keep a stick jammed up his tight arse.
The honorable Sir Stephen wouldn t want to sully his flesh by touching yours any
more than absolutely necessary to spurt his load into you. He d probably fuck you
through a hole in the bed linens.
She lowered her head to stare mutely at the floor.
Yes. The docile wife. Ranulf liked this new side of her.
He took a step toward her. But I won t fuck you through the bed sheet, wife. Oh
no. You can look forward to all sorts of fleshly pleasures, and pains, when I bed you.
He flicked his gaze from her to the bed. Understanding the order, the guard moved
forward and grabbed Elena s arm, prepared to forcibly toss her on the bed and tie her to
it, if necessary.
89
Dawn Halliday
No! she cried, staring directly at Ranulf, her eyes wide with terror. Please,
Ranulf, please!
He held up his hand and the guard froze. This was the first time she d begged him
for anything.
Come now, Elena. You have been attempting to prolong the inevitable since we
have arrived. But your struggle is over. It is finished. We are husband and wife.
But it s not that, my lord.
His heart surged. She d called him my lord .
Victory.
You have two choices, my lady, he said, fighting a smile. You can lie on the bed
of your own accord, or my man can hold you down. Either way, you know what is to
happen next.
He watched her throat convulse as she swallowed. Someday not tonight, for he
intended to come in her cunt tonight he would watch her throat move as she
swallowed his seed.
She tossed a terrified glance at the guard. Please, my lord husband. Please make
him go.
Why?
You are right I cannot struggle anymore, she said meekly. As the priest
decreed, we are married. You are my husband. I must endure whatever you choose to
make me suffer, so there is no point in fighting. I belong to you now. I am yours.
Yes. Mine. Another surge of triumph welled through him. She was a waif, tiny and
helpless. If, later on, she changed her mind about this newfound complacency, he could
easily subdue her. Ranulf crossed his arms over his chest. Oh really? And you prefer to
fuck in private?
I shall be& naked, my lord. It would be& it would be immodest.
Ranulf hesitated. The woman had a point. He d often seen his men looking at her
with lust in their eyes. Damn them. An image of his mother crossed his mind. His
beautiful mother, so much like Elena.
Ranulf had never known the identity of his father for certain.
He d skewer anyone who touched her.
And yet one of his men was touching her now.
Release her! he bellowed.
Instantly, the guard backed away.
He waved a hand at the man. Yes, it would be better if the guard wasn t present, if
he didn t get any ideas about sinking his cock into his lovely wife. She was for Ranulf
and for him alone, goddamnit.
Go, he grunted. Go back to the hall.
90
Sins of the Knight
Eyebrows raised in surprise, the man asked, You don t wish one of us to stand
guard, my lord?
Ranulf scoffed. Was the bastard implying that he couldn t handle Elena on his own?
No. Go away.
When the man disappeared down the hall, Ranulf kicked the door shut. Is that
better, my dear?
Elena s eyes watered. Thank you. Hugh, he&
He what? Ranulf asked sharply.
He was never so kind. Thank you, Ranulf. I never expected&
The sound of her voice shimmied a caress down his prick and over his balls, ending
with a little hair-raising tweak deep in his arse. He shuddered.
That voice. When he d visited Loxburn to visit Hugh, her voice had made him
tremble with longing. But she d looked at him with such coldness, such disdain.
He never understood it. All he d ever wanted was her.
Take off your clothes.
I am afraid, she whispered, taking a step backward. Will you hurt me?
Of course not, he heard himself saying soothingly.
What in hell had provoked him to sound like that? Of course he would hurt her. He
wanted to hurt her.
Didn t he? [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl freetocraft.keep.pl
new freedom, Elena ate with apparent gusto. She didn t meet his eyes or speak, but she
sat beside him docilely, oozing what he would have liked to have imagined as a state of
wary contentment. And as the hours passed and wine lightened the mood of the hall,
her mood seemed to lighten as well.
She seemed to have accepted her fate.
Tossing back his tankard of wine, Ranulf slid a long glance at her. Tonight would
end it all. The years of painful longing. Of torture. She was finally his. He wanted to
sing it, shout it to the rafters.
He couldn t wait to fuck her, to complete the bond he had forged by marrying her.
The bond he d always intended to forge. His prick had been rigid with anticipation
almost constantly since he d called for the priest this morning, and now it was past
midnight.
It was time.
Rising abruptly, he announced that he and his wife would now retire. Amidst
cheers and catcalls, he nodded at one of his guards to follow them from the hall.
Walking into his chamber, he turned in time to watch his man push her over the
threshold and follow her inside, gripping her arm roughly.
She stood before him, as meek as a kitten. For once, she did not sneer with
superiority nor strain and fight against the man who held her. Finally, Ranulf had the
chance to look her over from head to toe. Could it be true? Had she actually resigned
88
Sins of the Knight
herself to her fate? Ranulf couldn t help but be a little surprised he hadn t expected
this.
Yet perhaps he should have expected it. She understood her duty. After all, she had
been a loyal, docile wife to Hugh, a brute of a man, for ten solid years.
She still wore the tattered garment she d worn the night he d abducted her from
Winchester. Not appropriate attire for the lady of Fordhaven, certainly. A pang of
something certainly not guilt flashed through him. He had striven to look his best
today, and she looked like a serving wench. Perhaps he should have allowed her to
bathe and dress in something more appropriate for their special day.
He snorted aloud, thinking of the raging madwoman his guards had carried
downstairs. It would have been impossible to try to bathe her or to wrangle her into
anything else. In any case, it was for the best. The woman didn t deserve fresh clothing
until she d proven herself.
Beyond the wrinkled, soiled clothing and tangled hair, Elena was still a beauty. Her
hair coiled into a black mass, framing her pale, oval-shaped face perfectly. Her eyes
were wide such a rare, clear color and surrounded by long, dark lashes. Dirt
smudged over her brow, somehow accentuating the beauty of her eyes. The robe
couldn t hide her feminine curves and rounded breasts a little small for his tastes, but
he d touched them before, years ago at Loxburn, and had discovered them to be just the
right size to twist in his palm. Her arms and face were covered with scratches, and a
particularly nasty bruise bloomed over one of her cheekbones, the only color in her
otherwise deathly pallid face. His cock twitched in eager anticipation. God, he d waited
so long for this one.
He licked his lips and glanced meaningfully at the bed. Here we are, Lady Lewes.
She winced at the title but met his gaze, brave creature that she was. He d always
known she was no coward.
Yes. Her voice was just above a whisper.
I ll make you forget. You will abandon your thoughts of that knight and all those
notions of courtly love and propriety. He sneered, thinking of that uppity prig.
Curious about the man Elena thought so honorable, he d watched him from a distance
at Winchester. The man was so upright, he must keep a stick jammed up his tight arse.
The honorable Sir Stephen wouldn t want to sully his flesh by touching yours any
more than absolutely necessary to spurt his load into you. He d probably fuck you
through a hole in the bed linens.
She lowered her head to stare mutely at the floor.
Yes. The docile wife. Ranulf liked this new side of her.
He took a step toward her. But I won t fuck you through the bed sheet, wife. Oh
no. You can look forward to all sorts of fleshly pleasures, and pains, when I bed you.
He flicked his gaze from her to the bed. Understanding the order, the guard moved
forward and grabbed Elena s arm, prepared to forcibly toss her on the bed and tie her to
it, if necessary.
89
Dawn Halliday
No! she cried, staring directly at Ranulf, her eyes wide with terror. Please,
Ranulf, please!
He held up his hand and the guard froze. This was the first time she d begged him
for anything.
Come now, Elena. You have been attempting to prolong the inevitable since we
have arrived. But your struggle is over. It is finished. We are husband and wife.
But it s not that, my lord.
His heart surged. She d called him my lord .
Victory.
You have two choices, my lady, he said, fighting a smile. You can lie on the bed
of your own accord, or my man can hold you down. Either way, you know what is to
happen next.
He watched her throat convulse as she swallowed. Someday not tonight, for he
intended to come in her cunt tonight he would watch her throat move as she
swallowed his seed.
She tossed a terrified glance at the guard. Please, my lord husband. Please make
him go.
Why?
You are right I cannot struggle anymore, she said meekly. As the priest
decreed, we are married. You are my husband. I must endure whatever you choose to
make me suffer, so there is no point in fighting. I belong to you now. I am yours.
Yes. Mine. Another surge of triumph welled through him. She was a waif, tiny and
helpless. If, later on, she changed her mind about this newfound complacency, he could
easily subdue her. Ranulf crossed his arms over his chest. Oh really? And you prefer to
fuck in private?
I shall be& naked, my lord. It would be& it would be immodest.
Ranulf hesitated. The woman had a point. He d often seen his men looking at her
with lust in their eyes. Damn them. An image of his mother crossed his mind. His
beautiful mother, so much like Elena.
Ranulf had never known the identity of his father for certain.
He d skewer anyone who touched her.
And yet one of his men was touching her now.
Release her! he bellowed.
Instantly, the guard backed away.
He waved a hand at the man. Yes, it would be better if the guard wasn t present, if
he didn t get any ideas about sinking his cock into his lovely wife. She was for Ranulf
and for him alone, goddamnit.
Go, he grunted. Go back to the hall.
90
Sins of the Knight
Eyebrows raised in surprise, the man asked, You don t wish one of us to stand
guard, my lord?
Ranulf scoffed. Was the bastard implying that he couldn t handle Elena on his own?
No. Go away.
When the man disappeared down the hall, Ranulf kicked the door shut. Is that
better, my dear?
Elena s eyes watered. Thank you. Hugh, he&
He what? Ranulf asked sharply.
He was never so kind. Thank you, Ranulf. I never expected&
The sound of her voice shimmied a caress down his prick and over his balls, ending
with a little hair-raising tweak deep in his arse. He shuddered.
That voice. When he d visited Loxburn to visit Hugh, her voice had made him
tremble with longing. But she d looked at him with such coldness, such disdain.
He never understood it. All he d ever wanted was her.
Take off your clothes.
I am afraid, she whispered, taking a step backward. Will you hurt me?
Of course not, he heard himself saying soothingly.
What in hell had provoked him to sound like that? Of course he would hurt her. He
wanted to hurt her.
Didn t he? [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]