Page 55 of The Tempest
Payne smiled at her memory. “What became of him?”
She smiled in return. “He went off to battle and never returned,” she said. “I remember seeing his wife weep and his friends sob. I always wondered if people would weep for me when I was dead, but I do not think so.”
His smile faded. “Why would ye say that?”
“Because I have no family to speak of and no friends. There will be no one left to grieve for me.”
“Ye have me,” he said softly. “I realize we’ve only known each other a short day, but it is, nonetheless, a day. The first of many. Do ye know what I know of ye so far?”
“What?”
He pulled off his undertunic, revealing his magnificent, naked torso. “That ye’re lost,” he said. “I’ve never seen someone so lost.”
Her brow furrowed. “Why would you say that?”
“Because it is true,” he said. “Ye had no home when ye were young. Ye were simply one of many in yer father’s family. Then ye married an old man who treated ye like an object. Ye were a possession tae him and nothing more. Ye tried tae become useful by taking control of his family’s business, but that really belongs tae the man’s son. Ye tried tae take back what legally belongs tae him and then my mother captured ye. Now, ye find yerself in England and the wife of a Blackchurch trainer. Ye’re not lost anymore, but it is going tae take ye some time tae realize that. Ye canna always be a bit of flotsam in the sea, Astria. At some point, even the flotsam settles tae the bottom and becomes part of it.”
Astria.
That was the first time she’d heard him use her given name. Her first name, Maria, was something commonly given to royal women, but it wasn’t meant to be used. It was simply given in tribute to the mother of Jesus. She’d gone by Astria her entire life, but she’d never heard it used in a tone that made herstomach quiver. But his words seemed to incite something in her, something confused and resistant.
“You speak as if this was an arranged marriage and it was something agreeable to both of us,” she said. “Do not tell me I belong here, because I don’t. I was brought here as a captive, forced into marriage, and now you are trying to tell me that I belong. I do not mean to offend you, but you are presenting a pleasant picture of an unpleasant situation. I did not ask to come here. I did not ask to be married to you. I am not lost. I simply do not belong.”
She lowered her head, going back to removing her clothing and having no idea why his words had irritated her so, but they made her want to weep. Weep because she had been forced to come here against her will and Payne was trying to make it sound like everything was sunshine and roses. Well, it wasn’t. It never had been. But most confusingly, she’d never had such a lovely day in her life with Payne and then Athdara and Elisiana. So perhaps therewassome truth to what he’d said.
Perhaps shewaslost after all.
“I understand that ye feel like that now,” he said after a moment. “But be patient. It takes time tae find yer footing.”
She looked at him. “Why are you so confident about this?” she said. “Your life is in upheaval, too. You’ve had a wife forced on you. Are you not upset about this?”
He shrugged. “I had tae marry sometime,” he said. “Why not marry ye?”
That wasn’t helping her angst. The shock of the captivity and marriage had worn off and now she was feeling some emotions about it. Perhaps it was the fact that this important moment was upon them and she was helpless against it. In any case, she removed her surcoat and hose, sliding them off her legs, before climbing into the bed and pulling the coverlet up to hershoulders. She simply lay there, staring at the ceiling, waiting for him to come to her.
Removing his breeches, he did. The moment he slid into the bed, she pulled the coverlet up to her chin.
“I will again remind you that I do not know too much about what we are supposed to do this night,” she said. “You will have to tell me what you want me to do.”
The covers were pulled up so tightly around her that he was fairly certain he’d have to pry them away with an iron bar. He lifted himself up beside her, propping himself up with an elbow upon the soft bed as he gazed down at her.
“I want ye tae simply lie there and enjoy it,” he said softly. “But I canna do anything with the coverlet pulled over ye like a shield. Ye’ll have tae lower it, and it would be best if ye removed yer shift.”
Astria was a brave woman under most circumstances. But at the moment, her bravery was faltering. Hesitantly, she lowered the coverlet.
“Like this?”
It was barely down to her chest. “More,” he said.
It went a little lower. “This?”
He couldn’t help it. He snorted with mirth. “May I help ye with it?”
Astria nodded, and he climbed out of bed and walked over to her side. Astria could immediately see that he was naked, his entire pelvic region, including his flaccid manhood, exposed in her full view. Startled, she looked up at the ceiling again as he pulled the coverlet down to her knees, took hold of her arm, and pulled her into sitting position.
God help her, this put his manhood right about eye level at this point, and she was trying desperately not to look at it. It was wagging in her face! He grasped both of her arms, pulled them straight up, and made her hold them there. Then he grabbed thesides of her shift and lifted it up, over her head, nearly lifting her off the bed in the process. She gasped in surprise as the shift was yanked off her body and then placed neatly on the stool. As she sat up in the bed, naked from the waist up and her arms covering her breasts, he pushed her down by the shoulders so she was lying down again and then climbed back into the bed, resuming his spot beside her.
“May I begin?” he asked huskily.
