Page 16 of Their Wanted Bride (Bridgewater Brides 1)

I let her sit by the Franklin stove while Justin took care of our horses. Not a moment too soon, we had her upstairs where we could warm her properly—with her naked body between ours.

Justin unlocked the door and lit an oil lamp, revealing a spotless chamber. The bed was more than large enough for all three of us and covered with a patchwork quilt. A wooden dressing screen stood in a corner, and there was even a chamber pot tucked discreetly under the bed. The washstand had a full pitcher of water, and several snowy white towels in a neat stack. A small table rested in the center of the room, surrounded by three chairs. This hotel was well prepared for Bridgewater families.

The shutters were tightly closed against the weather, and a fire was already laid, waiting to be lit. Setting her down on the bed, I knelt in front of the hearth and soon had a small blaze going to warm the room.

Maddy sat on the edge of the bed and twisted her fingers together. “I don’t even have a pretty nightgown to impress my new husbands.”

“Do you want one?” I asked as Justin locked the door. She didn’t seem the type to crave fripperies, but we barely knew her.

She turned to look at me, her eyes glowing in the faint lamplight as she stroked the coverlet on the bed. “Not really. Seems a waste to spend money on something I’ll wear only once.” Grinning impishly, she added, “I wouldn’t say no to a glass of good bourbon if such a thing is available out here.”

Justin laughed softly and shook his head, then walked toward her on bare feet. “I’m afraid it’s too cold for bourbon and a cigar on the veranda. Aside from that, it’s time for us to make you our wife in truth.”

A pretty blush colored her cheeks pink and she blinked up at him. “How? I mean, there are two of you.”

I tipped her chin up for a kiss. “We’re going to show you, sweetheart, but we’re going to have a little chat first.”

6

MADDY

* * *

My belly swirled and I wondered if I was about to need that chamber pot. Had he guessed my secret? Oh, heavens! What if Nathan and Celeste had found me? I needed Caleb to make me his wife in truth. The thought of Celeste trying to force an annulment was unbearable. Daddy’s will said her permission wasn’t required for me to marry, but I didn’t trust her.

“I…” I swallowed hard and willed my hands to stop shaking. “What did you want to talk about?”

“Why did you pay for that wedding ring when you didn’t want it in the first place?” Kneeling, he unlaced my boots, his strong fingers making quick work of the chore before sliding them from my feet.

The breath left my body on a relieved sigh. Although I’d have to tell my husbands the truth sooner or later, I didn’t want to do it tonight. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Caleb Mathis. I did no such thing. You dropped that money on your own accord, and I just picked it up.”

Chuckling, Caleb sat on the bed next to me and hauled me over his lap. “A lady shouldn’t lie,” he advised as he let his hand fall smartly to my upturned bottom.

I shrieked and tried to wriggle away, kicking my feet. Shifting his weight, he captured my flailing legs between his calves and started spanking me in earnest. The thin fabric of my dress was no protection against his punishing hand, and I felt the bulge below his belt buckle swell and press against my hip. He swatted my bottom several more times, roasting my tender flesh.

“Stop it!” I cried. “Ouch!”

My protests didn’t carry much heat. Although his spanks stung a bit, warmth trickled into places it had no business going. I pressed my thighs together and bit back a moan of pleasure. I couldn’t understand why a spanking made me feel like that, but it did. My womanly parts softened and grew damp, making me swallow a whine.

“We’re going to make sure you don’t lie to us again, Maddy,” Justin said.

Caleb spanked me again and I screeched as I tried to cover my bottom. He caught my wrists gently and held them at the small of my back. “It’s Justin’s turn now. We’re going to redden your backside very well so the lesson sticks.”

Justin yanked my skirt free and tugged it over my hips, then pulled my drawers apart. Crying out, I struggled harder, knowing they could see my private shame.

Caleb’s hand stilled, resting on the curve of my bottom, and Justin let out a sharp hiss. “Who did this to you, Maddy?” Justin demanded, lifting me from Caleb’s lap.

He sat me on the bed between them, my skirt still hiked around my hips. My head spun at the sudden movement, but I pressed my lips together and looked away. “It’s nothing. It happened a long time ago.”

“That’s not what we asked,” Caleb replied. “Who whipped you hard enough to make you scar? Aside from that, some of these are new. It wasn’t your father, was it?”

“No! He would never!”

“Your stepmother, then.” Justin wrapped his long arms around me, pulling me to his chest. “Too bad she’s a lady.”

I sniffed and looked down, unwilling to see the pity in their eyes as they each took one of my hands. “Why is that?”

“If she was a man, Caleb and I would go to Kentucky and give her a sound thrashing. Might do her some good to get a taste of her own medicine.”

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