Page 154 of Dirty Discipline, Vol. 1

The minister said the words over them and they replied with the correct responses. In no time at all they were declared husband and wife. Jake barely kissed her, pecking at her cheek. Since Verity was extremely conscious of the entire town watching them, she was grateful for his consideration. She thought that he was protecting her reputation and it seemed that her assumption was correct because once outside the church, he whisked her behind the building, took her in his arms and kissed her passionately until she was giddy.

Mrs. Campbell came up trumps again and offered to have the twins stay with her overnight. It meant that they could begin their marriage in complete privacy. The landlady explained she had no children of her own, at least none which still lived, having lost both her husband and children to a cholera outbreak some years back. She seemed delighted to take on a grandmotherly role with Grace and Mercy. The girls responded to her kindness by holding her hands and bestowing kisses and hugs on the dear lady, their affection appeared to delight Mrs. Campbell. She fondly suggested the twins call her Aunt Mary.

It was a jolly group that sat down to dinner in the boarding house that evening. Mary Campbell prepared a magnificent meal for them all. Her homemade steak pie, served with roasted potatoes and green beans, covered in rich gravy was declared delicious by Grace; they all echoed her praise. That was followed by a peach cobbler and thick golden cream.

Later, Jake took Grace and Mercy upstairs to settle them for the night in Verity’s old bedroom. Verity followed to say her goodnight.

“Love you, Pa! I am so glad you are our new mother, Miss Lasse,” Mercy said.

She bent to kiss each child. “I am too, Mercy, but now that I am your stepmother, please just call me Aunt Verity. Mrs. Campbell will be here if you need anything, and we’ll be back to collect you both tomorrow night. Sleep well, girls!”

“Pa?”

“Yes, Grace?”

“You won’t forget about us, and leave us here, will you?”

Verity’s heart constricted with pity. She vowed to be the best mother she could be to these two grieving children.

Jake dropped to his knees beside his daughters. With a palm caressing each daughter’s cheek, he calmed their fear. “You two are the most precious things in our lives. Neither of us will ever forget either of you. This arrangement is for one night only. It is so that we can get to know one another properly, without any interruptions. I promise you; we will be back to collect you both tomorrow.” He kissed each girl in turn and left the lamp turned low.

As Jake and Verity prepared to leave, Mary presented them with a basket of baked goods to take out with them to the ranch.

While they travelled, Jake pointed to various trees, describing where they marked the boundary to his land, their land, she realized with surprise. Other than that, the ride was silent.

When they arrived, Jake lifted her down from the buggy but instead of setting her on her feet, he held her in his arms, carrying her up the porch steps. At the top he deftly swung her up and over his shoulder with Verity squealing as her head hung down over his back. The position enabled him to free up his hands and unlock the door into the house. He lifted her over the threshold and then set her down carefully upon her feet. Kicking the door closed with his foot he didn’t take his eyes off her for a single second. He stood studying her for a moment, his eyes soft, and expression gentle. A smile twitched at the corner of his mouth as she squirmed under his scrutiny.

“Mrs. Calhoun, you sure are a tempting sight. I’m gonna give you plenty of sugar tonight, even though you’re already as sweet as any candy.” Before she could react to this endearing, if odd declaration, he reached for her. Cupping her face between his palms he lowered his head to hers in a searing kiss. She moaned against his mouth.

Scooping her back up in his arms he carried her through the main living area to the back of the house where she’d never been before. He walked down a passageway, past three closed doors to a room at the end of the hallway.

Chapter Five

Opening the door into the bedroom with a push of his boot, he carried her inside and placed her on her feet.

Immediately he began to pull the pins from her hair, placing them into a small porcelain pin dish resting on the vanity table. Her curls began to fall, tumbling in disarray about her shoulders. With parted fingers he pushed his hands through her soft tresses. “I have wanted to do that for such a long time… I love your hair.” Placing a kiss on her forehead, he turned and shrugged off his waistcoat. Verity accepted the breathing space gratefully. It gave her a chance to glance about her new bedroom.

It was spacious, like the rest of the ranch house. A large carved wooden bed, covered in a beautiful homemade quilt, stood against one wall and her eyes lingered there for a moment. Suddenly aware of Jake watching her, she flushed and kept her glance away from his. Casting her gaze around the rest of the room, she took in pretty rose floral curtains, stirring gently in the breeze from the open window. A pretty basin and ewer set atop a chest of drawers and a wooden closet stood next to that. An upholstered chair sat beneath the window. She wondered if Megan had created this pretty chamber… Perhaps she had died here, in this very room. A shudder of unease travelled down her spine.

Brought back to the present by the feel of a warm hand upon her shoulder, she looked up at Jake and saw his reassuring smile and then he moved to undo the back buttons on her gown. She shivered as his lips caressed her neck. Gently he slipped the gown down over her front; he pushed the material over her hips, with a whisper the gown dropped to the floor. Next, he unhooked her corset. Once she was free of that, his hands grazed over her shift tracing her nipples which hardened into aching peaks. All thoughts of the past and Jake’s first wife dissipated as her blood sped through her veins.

His mouth descended on hers, gentle at first, but as their tongues met, his mouth became more demanding. When he pulled back from her, he left her reeling. Verity’s lips felt swollen, her body ached with unexplained need. He tugged the lace of her shift, stopping only to kiss and nibble the area around her neck. The small caresses caused her insides to melt, while her breath caught in her throat.

She’d read many a romance and yet she had no idea that the small touches of a man could render a woman utterly powerless in his arms. Her inexperienced body had no defence against the sensations of his touch. A heated rush of wet hunger flared between her legs, an area that had never awoken in such a raw and primal way before which both scared and excited her in equal measure.

Jake pushed her shift down so it fell to join her petticoats and gown. Lowering his head to her bosom all those raw feelings narrowed to her breasts and nipples. Gasping aloud she gripped his thick hair as he suckled the hard, aching tips of her now fully exposed breasts. A small cry of delight escaped her as he drew a pebbled bud deep into his mouth, his teeth grazing the hardened peak. She writhed against him wanting more, so much more.

“Please...” she begged, but for what she pleaded, she knew not. Verity had no idea what it was she needed from him. She only knew that it had to be more. He murmured something about how lovely she was as his hand tugged at the ribbon of her drawers. Warm hands pushed them downward over her hips until they fell in a puddle at her feet.

“Step out of the dress and petticoats,” he ordered gruffly. She sidestepped out of them. He bent to remove the garment and placed it over the chair, then turned her to face him.

He embraced her, pulling her against his hard masculine form. He placed his leg between her own, deliberately forcing his thigh up against the apex of her thighs.

His head lowered to hers and again they kissed. Heated need arose in her core which soon became an insistent ache, a powerful overriding yearning for something she knew only he held the key to. She found herself rubbing her cleft against his leg. The pressure felt so good.

“Please...”

“Hush,” he murmured, gentling her with work roughened hands which skimmed her naked flanks, up her back and down again, drifting down over the curve of her buttocks. His body pressed hard against hers. Goose bumps rose, a reaction to his caresses.

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