Her sex contracted at this pronouncement, even as she continued to fighthim on removing the underclothing. Why did he need constant access to her body? What else did he intend to do to her? Her eyes traveled down to his crotch, where they widened at the sight of his substantial cock bulging beneath his leggings.
“I will honor my promise, little one,” he assured her.
Her eyes skittered around the room, as if the answer to her dilemma would appear, but nothing surfaced. Reluctantly, she relaxed her arms, allowing him to tug the chemise over her head.
“Good girl,” he said, scooping her up as if she were a baby and carrying her to his bed. He pulled the covers back and settled her on the mattress.
She gasped at the sensation and looked up at him with wide eyes.
“It’s goose-down. Do you like it?” he asked, crawling in beside her.
The feather mattress cocooned her in soft poufy warmth. “It’s incredible, my lord. How—” She stopped and flushed, realizing she might offend him by asking how he came by such a luxury. All the finery of his room spoke of the highest breeding, and yet, he had told her he came from an illegitimate birth.
“I have made quite a bit of silver with my mercenary endeavors. I lead my brother’s men when he needs me, and when he gives me leave, I have a troop I gather to go to battle for hire.”
“And that was how you ended up at Hohenzollern?”
He gave a faint smile. “No, I’m afraid my brother sent me with a small troop to represent Rothburg in the attack on your home.”
“Just a small troop?”
“It was symbolic. We had no doubt Hohenzollern would fall, but Erik wished to show our support for the cause.”
Her chest had tightened at the thought of Hohenzollern’s fall and it must have showed, because he touched her cheek. “You’ve lost everything twice now, haven’t you?”
Abruptly, she burst into tears. She tried to hide her face, but he pulled her against him, tucking her into his chest and stroking her head. She sobbed until all her tears had gone and she collapsed against him, exhausted.
“Daisy?”
She lifted her head.
He pushed her onto her back and leaned on his elbow, brushing the wisps of hair back from her face. “Did any part of what I did with you remind you of your rape?”
She stiffened at the word ‘rape,’ but something about the matter-of-fact way he discussed it—the thing she had kept locked inside as her dark secret for so long—released some of the darkness around it. She considered, then shook her head. “No,” she answered honestly.
“Good,” he said. “Because I never want you to experience those feelings with me.”
She swallowed, not sure if that was possible. After all, his game was clearly seduction, and hers was to avoid coupling at all costs.
“Sex is like a language. In its highest form, we use words to praise God. In its lowest, we hurl them to insult or harm those around us. So it is with coupling. It can be used in love, in worship, for mutual pleasure. And also for violence.”
She eyed him warily. His words made sense, but she didn’t want to let go of her armor and believe.
“I only want to teach you pleasure, Daisy,” he said. “Can you believe that?”
She sucked her cheek between her teeth and looked away.
When her eyes returned, Barrett was inches from her face. She jerked as his mouth covered hers, pushing her hands against his chest in a moment of panic. He lightened the kiss, releasing her mouth and claiming it again, stroking and caressing her lips until she began to move her lips against his, returning the kiss. He lifted his head and smiled down at her, brushing his thumb across her cheek. “Sweet wife. I know you didn’t want to be taken away or to marry an oaf like me, but I promise I will do my best to make you happy here.”
She turned her face into his chest and buried it there. “You’re not an oaf,” she said into his ribs.
He blew out the lamp and kissed her hair. “Good night, angel.”
Chapter Three
Waking for the first time with his naked wife beside him made his staff so hard it tented his leggings. Just the smell of her skin would have been enough, but she looked so beautiful lying next to him. The tension in her face had disappeared and her long lashes fanned out on her cheeks, making her look as delicate as a flower. He slid his hand along her side, stroking down to her hip, then returning up to cup her breast.
She tensed.
