Page 7 of Katherine the Vixen

“My, you’re as cold as a fish,” Siaspar said, almost to himself. “It will be a miracle if I manage to do anything with you lying there like a corpse.”

Well, what else what she supposed to do? Throw herself into his arms?

Without warning, he placed his hand between her thighs. Despite her promise not to say anything, Katherine could not prevent a gasp and she closed her legs tighter, trapping his fingers perilously close to her intimate folds. She had to bunch her fists to stop herself from pushing him away. He let out a frustrated noise but her reaction did not seem to surprise him. She was behaving just as a reluctant, frightened bride would do and it wasn’t hard to guess that Lady Malpas would have been just as skittish.

Slowly, he ran a finger along her most intimate place, the place no man had ever touched before. In truth, she had rarely touched it herself, at least with some sensual purpose in mind. Katherine bit her lip, but despite her apprehension could not help but notice how warm and gentle his touch was. Far from reassuring her, it only added to her confusion. Was he not supposed to pounce on her?

“Mm, I see that you are no more ready than I am. What a fine pair we make…” His mirthless laugh sliced through the tense silence. “We will have to try something else if I am to do my duty by you.”

He gave another sigh and flopped onto his back.

Katherine’s eyes flew open in surprise. Nothing was going the way she had imagined. Where was the animal she had been warned against? Lady Malpas had led her to believe that she would be bedded by a lust-crazed man, only focused on his pleasure, oblivious to her feelings. But Siaspar seemed even more reluctant than she was to consummate the marriage.

“First, I’ll need to remove your shift,” he said, his deep voice disembodied in the darkness. “Your modesty is misplaced, in this instance. It is pitch dark so I won’t be able to see anything, but I will need some help if I am to get aroused.”

It was a good thing Katherine was not supposed to say a word for she had no idea what she could have replied. Half of the things he was saying did not make sense to her. How would undressing her help matters if he could not see her, and what did he mean by “get aroused?”

Before she had time to ponder any further, he started to gather her shift up. Soon, he had removed the garment completely. They were now both equally naked, equally at a loss. Katherine willed herself still. Now would he pounce?

A hand landed on her breast with unerring accuracy and she heard a soft groan when his fingers closed on her nipple. This man knew his way around a woman’s body, the dark clearly did not hinder him in any way. He stroked her with surprising gentleness, then moved to her waist and hip. After a while he started muttering under his breath in Welsh. She had no idea what he was saying but suddenly he sounded a lot less irritated. Then he kissed her other breast and, a moment later, shockingly, closed his mouth around her nipple.

He started to suck, in long, luxurious pulls, taking his time—and the sensation was… indescribable.

Katherine let out a moan. How could she not? Her whole body seemed to have been plunged into warm honey. The hand at her hip kneaded her flesh gently, adding to the delicious sensation. Siaspar carried on in this manner a moment, then moved up to nuzzle at her neck.

So far, the experience had been nothing like the ordeal she had dreaded and Katherine’s diffidence started to melt away. After a while, Siaspar’s hand found the place between her thighs once more and he seemed satisfied with what he felt there. She had no idea why that might be, but he gave a grunt and a heartbeat later she felt something hard press against her leg.

Of course, that was what he had meant by “get aroused.” Despite her lack of experience, she knew that men needed to be hard to enter a woman’s body but she’d had no idea that men could will it—or, more pointedly, find it impossible to do it when needed. She had assumed their bodies were always ready to perform. Now that she thought about it, she realized how silly that was. Of course, they could not command their desire for a woman, just like women could not command theirs for a man they felt nothing toward.

“That’s better,” he said gruffly.

It seemed that stroking and suckling her had awoken his need for her. And, in truth, it had also awoken hers. This had to be what he had felt between her legs. She did feel different, slightly swollen and tingly. Ready to be possessed.

“I’m going to take you now.”

With those words, Siaspar came to position himself above her, the woman he thought to be his wife. He never tried to kiss her, for which Katherine was grateful. This was not love and she was glad he had the honesty not to pretend otherwise. Instead, he buried his head in the crook of her neck and resumed his delicious nuzzling.

Then the hardness he had coaxed out of himself came to probe at her entrance.

“This will hurt I’m afraid,” he said, less unkindly than she had expected. “It cannot be helped.”

Yes, Katherine knew that. She whimpered, expecting him to ram inside her without further ado. Instead, he pushed in slowly and although it felt odd—and indeed slightly painful—she could not have said that it hurt beyond bearing. Siaspar stilled. She inhaled slowly. Was there worse to come? Surely that could not be it? But no, the second thrust was no worse, on the contrary. The third went in a lot more easily, as did the next one, and the one after that. Soon she forgot that it had been a struggle for him to penetrate her.

Siaspar mumbled something in Welsh, a praise for her courage perhaps, a permission to let go, and started to move in earnest. Something loosened inside Katherine. A man was inside her, taking his pleasure within her body. The notion was hard to fathom, and the sensations it created, almost pleasurable. Then, before she could make the most of this new experience, Siaspar stilled, buried deep inside her.

There was a shudder, followed by a soothing, warm sensation. His seed, she understood in a sudden bust of clarity. He had reached satisfaction. Then he ground his hips against her and let out a long exhale.

By the time he rolled off of her, Katherine had forgotten about the pain.

Her first reaction was one of gratitude toward this man who had shown her patience and kindness when he could have possessed her without worrying whether she was ready or not. She still had no precise idea of what he had done to prepare her body to accept him, but it seemed to have worked.

He stayed a moment next to her, and then got off the bed, walking over to the place where his clothes were. She heard him shrug on what she imagined was his undershirt.

“I guess we really are husband and wife now.” He sounded neither pleased nor displeased by the fact. “I bid you good night, my lady.”

With those words, he left.

As soon as the door closed behind him, Lady Malpas walked into the room “So, is it done?”