The Wicked Game (A Wicked Game Novel) Page 10

  “Then how…” Andrew was now the confused one.

  Angela shrugged. “Mary.”

  Andrew just said, “Oh.” For some reason he was not surprised. “So then, what is it?”

  “Oh it’s nothing really. I don’t want to bother you with my troubles and worries.”

  Andrew gently took hold of her shoulders and look directly into her sad eyes. “Your troubles and worries are my troubles and worries now. We are married.”

  “Oh. Well Yes. I suppose you are correct,” Angela responded as the hint of a smile flickered in her eyes. “If you must know, I am feeling homesick and I miss my family, the wretched beings. Even so I’ve never been away from them before and now I shall never see them again.” The last line was no more than a whisper and Andrew could tell that she was struggling to not absolutely break down.

  He pulled her close to him and wrapped her up within himself. “Now listen to me. We are family now, you and I, and I will never leave you.”

  And with this the tears flowed.

  Andrew gently lifted his wife and carried her to their bed. He laid her down carefully and then lay down next to her. He held her safe within his arms until at last her sobs ceased and they both fell asleep.

  ***

  Angela woke up in the middle of the night and she was scared, but then she realized that she was not alone. Of course she was not alone. She had just been married and she was in bed with her husband. It was a comforting feeling to know that even in the midst of her sadness and her separation from her biological family she would not be alone. She would never be alone again. Andrew had promised her that much.

  There was a small pang of fear in her mind and she thought about how Andrew had acted with her when they arrived at the inn. He had treated her with kindness and warmth and understanding; almost as if his feelings for her were much deeper than he let on… much deeper than she wanted. She knew that he was different than the men she had grown up surrounded by. He had not married her because of whom society thought she was, as any other man would have done. She had no reason to distrust him or to be cold towards him, but it was something she could not help. The years of being ignored, at least in any way that mattered, had created hardness inside of her. She had built a wall to her emotions and the night of her birthday party, the final stone had been laid. She could not love anyone and she could not let anyone love her. No, she could not let that happen. She could not let his feelings for her be more than respect and understanding. It would only turn out bad for him because she could not, and would not, return the feeling. She respected him for what he had done for her and so she never wanted to see him hurt.

  But most important in all of this, she now had a say, the say, in her life. She refused to give it up. Ever. Husband or not, she would never relinquish this freedom.

  She would have to be careful how she acted around him. She could not deny that she was attracted to him physically. At times she had a hard time keeping her hands off of his body, but physical attraction was not the same thing as love. Even an inexperienced woman such as herself knew that. And she was sure that Andrew knew this as well but there was no reason to tempt fate. She would interact with him as much as necessary for a husband and wife but no more.

  Angela took a deep breath and the scent of his skin put butterflies into her stomach. She would have to learn how to fend of that feeling. But not right now. He was sleeping, so she snuggled in closer to him and a sense of calm flooded through her body and brought a warmth to her skin.

  She was safe.

  She was happy.

  Chapter Eleven

  “So how exactly did you end up with my horse?” After days of riding, the question had only just dawned on Angela. “That is, without the law trailing you!”

  Andrew lowered his head. “Your father gave him to me.”

  “You lie!” Angela was in absolute shock. Her father would never do such a thing, especially not for Andrew.

  Andrew shook his head. “No. I tell the truth.” He paused. “I’ve just left out some of the details.”

  Angela playfully hit her husband. “Well get on with it then! You have sparked my interest!

  Andrew cleared his throat. “Well you see as soon as you left I packed all my things together to leave, but before I could get out the door your father caught me and dragged me down to the stables. I told him that I was perfectly capable of walking and that I preferred to do so but when I turned to leave he grabbed me tightly by the arm.”

  At this point Andrew’s voice slightly cracked and Angela looked at him with concern. “You see at this point we were alone and I really thought that he might have changed his mind and he was actually just going to kill me right here. But instead he just said, ‘Walking is too slow.’ and pulled a horse out of the stable. He told me I had to ride it and get off of his property before he changed his mind.”

  Angela was getting impatient. “And?”

  “Well he told me to drop it off in the first town I came to and send a messenger to tell him where to pick it up.”

  “But,” Angela began, “here we are, still in possession of the horse.”

  “Yes,” Andrew repeated, “here we are.”

  Angela didn’t say anything but Andrew could tell that she was not satisfied with his answer. “It’s really not important.”

  “If you don’t want to tell me then it is important. I’m strong. I can handle it.”

  And Andrew knew she was right. It was important and she could take it. “I was just about to ride off when your father realized which horse it was…”

  It suddenly dawned on Angela and she just simply said, “Oh.”

  “So he told me to keep it.”

  Angela squared her shoulders and sat up straight. “His loss.”

  The pair didn’t talk for a while following this conversation. There really was nothing that either of them could say. It was at this point that they came upon a village over a crest on a hill and Angela felt her voice rise up from her body as she said, “Let’s stop here. This feels like home.”

  Andrew just nodded. Anywhere with you will feel like home.

  ***

  It wasn’t hard for Andrew to find them lodgings in the village of Beldon. There was a large inn at the center of the town and to Andrew’s surprise it was not only affordable but rather quite cozy. He looked at his wife and smiled and to his pleasure he found that she was smiling back. Yes, perhaps this would make a good home.

  And a good home needed to be broken in…

  In one swift movement he scooped up Angela in his arms and took off up the stairs. And Angela didn’t protest, she giggled, and damn it, he was giggling too! Andrew picked up the pace and in no time they were at the doorway of their new home. Andrew hesitated.

  “What’s wrong?” Angela managed to say through her laughter.

  “I can’t open the door!” he yelled.

  “Oh well let me do it!” Angela turned the doorknob and nearly fell to the floor because it was locked. She blushed. “Oh. I suppose that’s what you meant.”

  Now Andrew was laughing too. “The key is in my pocket… Well go ahead and get it out!”

  Angela was feeling suddenly devilish. She started to reach her hand forwards to his pocket but then quickly pulled it away.

  “Oh I’m sorry. You said you want me to hurry did you?”

  She had suddenly found something very interesting about her fingernails and began to pick at them. Andrew tried to set her down.

  “Oh bloody hell! I’ll do it myself!” But Angela would have none of it.

  “No, no dear husband. I’ll get the key. It’s in your pocket you say?” She reached her hand towards him but then pulled it away again. “Now which pocket was that again? Right? Or was it left?”

  “By God, Angela! You may be my wife but I swear…”

  “Now, now no need for that. Right pocket was it?”

  “Are you trying to torture me?”

  “Or was it left…”

&nb
sp; “Right damn it! Right!”

  Angela giggled and this time when she reached out her hand she did not hesitate. She gently pushed her hand into his pocket and took hold of the key. But before that she took hold of his…

  He squirmed and yelled, “Open the door this instant or I shall make this hearth our marriage bed!”

  Angela gasped but it was not the kind of gasp one gives when one was upset. It was a flirtatious gasp, a gasp with a purpose.

  “Coward,” was all she said.

  And that was all it took. Suddenly Andrews’s lips were on her. They were all over her. They were on her face and then her neck and then trailing gently down to her collar bone. She was folding into him, becoming enveloped in his passion for her. Angela fumbled with the key in the lock as his warm breath trailed down her arm and ended in a soft kiss on the inside of her wrist. The door swung open and they both fell into a heap on the floor.

  Andrew was on top of her now and he placed his hand firmly behind her head pulled her to him.

  “Are…are you ready? Are you sure?”

  “Yes. I’m sure… but I am not quite sure what I should be ready for…”

  Andrew was now nibbling on her earlobe and she shivered though it was not cold.

  “You shall know soon enough…”

  And he scooped her up and went to the bed.

  ***

  The bed sheets were cool. It was a strange but pleasant feeling against the warmth that was swimming in her body. He was hovering over her now with his body weight lightly pushed against her. She could feel every thrilling muscle of his body as he pressed against her. She could feel the pace of his heart, it matched hers, and she could feel the strength of his need pressing against her leg. She needed him too, she didn’t know what she needed but she knew that she needed it now. He was nibbling and kissing along the curve of her jaw, his path ending softly at the sensitive spot behind her left ear. She felt her muscles tighten and a pleasurable tingle soared from her head to the tips of her toes.

  Andrew’s beautiful face had stopped directly in front of hers and as he placed yet another kiss on her lips as he asked her, “Are you sure you’re sure?” He kissed her again. “How about now?”

  Yes she was sure! Dear God in heaven she had never been so sure about anything in her life. But the words wouldn’t come out and so she just threw her arms around him and pulled him closer into her. Andrew understood and rested more of his weight onto her. She lost her breath. Was it the weight of him? No it was the moment. This moment.

  She could feel his need even more now and she felt her own need gaining strength inside of her. He began to rhythmically push his body against hers and she followed his lead; thrusting her hips intensely against his.

  Their movement was becoming more intense and she could feel his desire increasing. As his desire increased so did hers, until her body was riveted by tremors that sent an echo of thrills through her body.

  “Oh Andrew,” she moaned, “this is, this is…”

  “Only just begun,” he teased.

  She looked surprised but not upset. “There’s…more?”

  Andrew laughed devilishly. “Oh, so Mary did not tell you that did she?”

  Angela could not speak and simply shook her head no.

  “I thought not. So we shall practice (he kissed her) and practice (he kissed her) and practice again (he kissed her once more) until you are satisfied that you know everything that you need to know.”

  With that he stripped both his clothes and hers. The many layers of her dressings came off as if she was only wearing one, and her fastenings undid as if they had not been tied or hooked at all.

  “Let me look at you! Just for a moment.” His voice was strained but he looked overjoyed as he hungrily trailed his eyes from her head to her toes.

  “You have seen me before…” Angela tentatively began.

  “Oh but not like this! Not when I could just drink up your beauty…and have every right in the world to do so!” He paused. “You are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid my eyes on.”

  And then he was on her; kissing her, caressing her, devouring her, savoring her, every inch of her being as if she was an absolute goddess. Angela nearly exploded with pleasure. There could not be more to this. She just could not imagine that it was possible. How could she possibly feel anymore satisfaction than this?

  “Angela, my Angela I cannot wait anymore! I just cannot wait to have you!” His words were punctuated with his nibbling of her earlobe.

  “There’s more?” She was breathless. “How? It cannot be possible!”

  He went back to nibbling her ear. “Oh there is more… much, much more…”

  He slowly trailed his hand down her body until he found the inside of her thigh and then the soft and slippery flesh of her woman hood. He gently caressed her sensitive spots until she moaned and screamed with a closeness of satisfaction and when he was sure she was ready he plunged his fingers inside.

  “Oh!” she flinched but she did not pull away. Instead she pressed herself into him.

  And then when he was absolutely sure that she could take it, he moved himself into position and readied himself to make the last move.

  “This may hurt. I’m so sorry but this might hurt you at first.”

  She did not talk, she threw her arms around him and kissed him, and he knew that she was just as ready as he was. He touched his manhood to her essence and then with one longing look from his wife, he immersed himself deep within her.

  She let out a whimper but it was most definitely not one of pain and they began to move together in the ancient rhythm that is innate inside of us all. Angela was surprised with herself. How had she learned to move her body this way? Where had she learned how to please her husband…and herself? Andrew noticed too.

  “You make me feel as I never have before!” He clutched her face intimately. “How? How is it possible?”

  The words came to Angela as instinctively as the movements. “It is you. You bring this out of me.”

  This answer seemed to please her husband because he immediately thrust his body deeper and stronger into hers. She could feel his body strengthen and then she felt her own body begin to quicken in a way she had never felt before.

  “Something is happening to me,” she managed to gasp.

  Andrew pressed his lips to her and murmured, “I know.” In that moment her body shuddered beneath him as she found her release. She shuddered. Shuddered. Had he ever really felt a woman do that before? Had he ever really cared?

  With that he found his release as well.

  And they were one. Truly one.

  ***

  The next day Angela sold the horse.

  They were not desperate for money but Angela had sold the horse anyway.

  Andrew was confused when she told him what she had done.

  “But we might need a horse!” he had bellowed in surprise.

  All she had managed to say was, “Not his horse.”

  And Andrew understood.

  Chapter Twelve

  Village of Beldon, England

  June 1814

  As she did on most days, Angela found herself walking peacefully through the downtown market in Beldon. Despite the time of the year, the morning air was slightly chilly and so she pulled her shall around her more tightly. She had her wicker basket on her arm and it was already almost full with her daily selections of fresh meats and produce. Walking through the market had become one of her favorite routines. In her other life she had never been able to do such a thing, and so she now cherished for the fresh air, the crisp scent of the variety of food, and the hustle and bustle of the many people who flooded the market on a daily basis. But most of all she enjoyed the freedom.

  Today there was something different about the market. On most days the streets were crowded to capacity and it was not uncommon to have to push and shove to get from one place to the next. But today, somehow, the streets were more crowded than Angela had ever seen.
She could hear some sort of commotion happening up at the street corner but wasn’t able to see exactly what it was. She could hear laughing and gasps of “ooo” and “aww” as she weaved her way through the masses. At last she reached the corner and could see what everyone was looking at. Parked at the corner was a large, elaborately decorated wooden wagon. The side panels of the wagon had been painted with bright stars and moons and the entire décor had a somewhat mystical appearance. The wagon’s occupants were standing next to the wagon but it was the beautiful woman who caught Angela’s eye. Her skin was the color of olives and her hair was a long silky black. There was a brilliant red scarf tied around her head and her dress was nothing more than several layers of rugged, brightly colored and patterned wrappings. It suddenly dawned on Angela exactly what was going on; this was a band of traveling gypsies.

  How exciting! Angela had heard about such people before but of course, she had never had the opportunity to see them in person. She was sure that these people were exactly the types that her family would have made her avoid before, and so she deliberately pushed herself further through the crowd until she was standing at the front of the group mere inches from the mysterious visitors.

  One of the gypsy men pulled down a side panel on the wagon so that it was sitting in a horizontal position. Then he took some other heavy boards, put them under the panel for support and climbed up on this make-shift stage. The crowd was in awe and when he finally spoke, everyone cheered.

  “Good morning my good people!” he bellowed. The crowd went wild. “Today we come to you from a far away land to bring you insights into the world around you and insights into your own life!”

  More ooos and ahhhs arose from the crowd.

  “We shall need a volunteer!”

  There were more cries from the crowd as everyone began to call out and beg to be the chosen one.

  I wonder what they might say about my life! Even I haven’t figured it out yet!