Chapter Sixteen

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

H e wasn't sure he was doing it right.

God help him, he'd never done this before, as he'd been forced to admit to Andia, and every time he thrust into her body, she groaned. Twice, she'd even cried out, as if he was causing her great pain, and that had brought him to an instant halt. He'd apologized profusely, but she had assured him they were cries of pleasure, so he struggled to resume what he needed to do.

It was the most awkward, yet the most pleasurable, thing he'd ever done.

It was also messy and hot and lusty. It was their wedding night, after the priest from St. Mary Magdalene that Stefan had procured prayed over them and announced they were married. Stefan hadn't wanted to attend, understandably so, but they'd needed a witness along with the two female servants of Lockwood and Emile, so he had to suffer through a marriage ceremony that had been completely disheartening. The whole situation had been made worse when Torran told everyone to leave the manse because he wanted to be alone with his wife. Stefan knew why.

To consummate the marriage with the woman Stefan had hoped to woo.

Of course, Torran really didn't know all of this for certain, but he suspected. He could read it on Stefan's face. But that didn't prevent him from taking Andia up to his mother's bedchamber and, for lack of any real knowledge of sexual intercourse other than what he'd been told or what he'd seen on occasion, he stripped Andia of her clothing, stripped himself, got her into bed, and then resumed where they'd left off that day in his father's solar.

This time, he was going to let nature take its course.

He suckled, he kissed, he touched. That much, he knew. It was inherent. The actual penetration of his manhood into her body had been uncertain, and awkward, but they'd managed to join. Somehow, he made headway, but slipped out a couple of times, and then tried again before he was fully seated. After that, instinct took over and he started thrusting, but he'd climaxed so quickly that neither one of them really knew if that was how it was supposed to be, so they simply started kissing again.

The second time was better.

Much, much better.

Torran went slower the second time, drawing out the experience and learning from it. Andia's eyes were closed as he nuzzled her neck, the hand on her belly moving gently to her ribcage. His seeking lips found her mouth and he kissed her with the greatest of passion. The hand on her ribs moved to her breasts, feeling the silken texture, experiencing the feel of her. He squeezed gently, fondling her, and Andia groaned softly because it felt so good.

Torran heard her groan and resumed his kisses with force. He couldn't seem to kiss her enough, taste her enough, and the hand on her breast grew bolder. A pink nipple, soft and taunting, rubbed against his hand and, with a growl, his hot mouth descended upon it, suckling furiously.

Again.

He very much liked her breasts.

Andia cried out softly as his hot, wet mouth pulled her nipple into a hard little pellet. He wedged himself in between her legs again, his big body overwhelming her, and Andia welcomed him. In fact, she seemed more confident about this than he did, and when she put her hands down between them, timidly touching his erection, he had about all he could take.

It took a huge effort not to spill himself again.

In truth, Torran was in a haze of passion and desire. Her flesh was sweet and delicious and he nursed hungrily at her breasts, first one and then the other, but there were other fruits to be sampled. He knew how a man should pleasure a woman, in theory, though he'd never done it before, so there was no time like the present to give it a try. He slid down her body and grasped her buttocks with both hands, envisioning her beautiful pink woman's center, like a flower unfurling. His mouth descended on the sweet pink folds and he feasted.

But that was when things grew painful.

Startled by his action, Andia jumped and slammed her knee into the side of his head. Torran saw stars, trying to shake them off and keep going. If he hadn't been so inflamed by her, he might have just walked away. But he didn't, and when his fingers probed her, she jumped again, but at least she didn't kick him in the head. That was progress.

In fact, they were both making progress.

Overwhelmed with it all, Andia panted softly as she became acquainted with Torran's touch on a level she could have never imagined. She could feel heat building in her loins, something that promised pleasure should she only surrender, and she remembered the same heat in the solar when Torran had had his way with her. A heat that had built to an explosion of sparks. Torran was making her feel something she'd never felt before, and although, by his own admission, he'd never done this, he was certainly doing a good job at it.

As long as she didn't kick him again.

When Torran couldn't take any more of her sweet musk, he lifted himself up and, with less awkwardness this time, guided himself into her tender walls. Thrusting gently with his hips, he seated himself halfway on the first thrust and then completely on the second. Beneath him, Andia groaned with pleasure at the sensation of his enormous member inside her body, her hands making their way down his back, timidly grasping his buttocks as he thrust into her. It seemed like the most natural of things, his body buried deep within hers as it was always meant to be. The more he thrust, the more she found herself pulling him toward her, forcing him deep.

Andia was so highly aroused that by the third or fourth thrust, she cried out at the delight of a powerful climax. Torran could feel her wet heat throbbing around him, pulling at him, and he understood his second release when he hadn't really understood his first. A release where a man would plant his seed, creating children, but most of all, display his feelings for a woman that was very quickly coming to mean a good deal to him. Someone who was the future he never thought he'd have.

At this moment, he simply wanted to savor the event of their first coupling.

His thrusts were measured and deep even as he climaxed, his fingers in the crack of her buttocks feeling the moisture from their bodies running onto her flesh, dampening the linens beneath them. Messy, hot, and sloppy… but as it turned out, he rather liked it this way. He liked feeling the moisture from their bodies as it mingled. He continued making love to her, feeling another climax wash over her in short order, less powerful than the first.

Finally, it was over, and as he lay on top of her, still joined to her body, he knew without a doubt that it had been the most miraculous experience of his entire life. Nothing he had ever sampled had come close, not ever. The priesthood may have had its merits, but after this, he would never look at the secular life the same away again.

There was something to be said for making love to a woman.

"How is your head?" Andia mumbled.

He started to laugh. "I am still seeing stars."

She grinned as she felt him laugh against her. "I am truly sorry," she said. "I guess I'm not very good at this yet."

His head came up and he looked at her, his handsome face alight with mirth and wonder. "You must be jesting," he said, sounding as if he were verging on scolding her. "You were wonderful. This entire thing… It was wonderful. Do you not feel that way?"

She nodded quickly. "I do," she said. "Truly, I do. I suppose we'll get better with practice."

He grinned wolfishly, lowering his head to kiss her tenderly on the lips. "I have never looked forward to practice more in my life," he said. "And you? Are you well? I did not hurt you, did I?"

Andia shook her head, reaching up to run her fingers through his dark hair. "Not at all," she said. "At least you didn't kick me."

He chuckled. "True," he said. "I did… other things."

She snorted. "You certainly did," she said. "You did quite well for a former priest."

"How would you know I did well?"

"How much should I know in order to know I liked it?"

He cocked his head. "You have a point," he said. Then he eyed her. "Did you really like it?"

"Couldn't you tell?"

"I want to hear it from your lips."

"Aye, I very much liked it."

With a smile, he shifted his body weight off her and lay beside her, taking her in his arms. Her warm, soft, naked body pressed against his was like something out of a dream. He never knew anything could feel so breathtaking.

"I must say, this was one of the more pleasurable orders I've carried out for the king," he said, his lips against her forehead. "I will have to thank the man."

Andia snuggled up against him. "I'm glad you feel this was a pleasurable order," she said. "I suppose it could have been worse."

"True," he said. "Every knight has had to carry out unhappy orders in his lifetime, but this wasn't one of them."

"Not even when he first told you about it?"

He sighed faintly, thinking back to that very moment. "I suppose that I was more shocked than anything," he said. "But once I thought about it, I wasn't shocked. I was actually quite happy. Surely you knew that I was already fond of you."

"Fond enough to marry me?"

"That would have come with time, even if the king hadn't ordered me to it."

She lifted her head, suddenly serious. "Do you mean that?"

He looked at her, pushing a piece of stray hair out of her eyes. "I do," he said. "I've met many people in my life, Andie, both men and women. Sometimes, you meet a man and you know you are going to get on with him. You simply know you are going to be friends. But I've never met a woman who struck me the way you did. From the start, I knew there was something special about you."

"Even when you were transporting me to London in the back of a provisions wagon?"

A smile tugged at his lips. "I would have made anyone else walk."

She grinned. "Then I should be grateful."

"You should."

She giggled softly. "So you felt kindly toward me from the start," she said. "But you also mentioned knowing the same thing about men. Who did you mean?"

"The personal guard I serve with come to mind."

"Did you know you were going to get on with them from the start?"

He nodded. "I did," he said. "Right from the very moment we met. Each man is unique and brings something different to our group. We have similar manners and characteristics. As Henry's personal guard, we all have exceptional value."

"You did mention once that you were part of his personal guard once," she said. "How many of them are there?"

"Six," he said. "That is why we are called the Guard of Six."

She cocked her head curiously. "That does not seem like enough men to guard the king."

He smirked at the insult she didn't realize she'd dealt him, running his fingers through her hair, more focused on how beautiful she was and not particularly on the conversation. He didn't particularly want to speak of his cohorts on his wedding night, but she was asking.

"We are an army of six," he said. "Trust me when I tell you that we are enough. We guard the king personally to ensure his protection, in all things. Prince Edward appointed us from the king's ranks before the Battle of Lewes when the king's life was threatened by de Montfort, and we were instrumental in his defeat at Evesham. It is a position of great trust and great reward. But also of great responsibility."

"Fascinating," she said. "And each of you are a perfect knight. You must be if Prince Edward personally selected you."

Torran thought on how he would explain the men who comprised the group. "We are not perfect," he said. "Far from it. But we all have similar backgrounds, similar upbringings, and each of us has a unique path that brought us to this moment."

"Like being a former priest?"

"Exactly," he said. "My unique path is memorialized in the sword I carry."

"Is it?" she said. "I've only seen your sword in its sheath, I think. I've never really looked at it."

He pulled her back to him again, holding her snugly. "It is not in the sword's appearance," he said. "It is in the name. Our swords all have names to reflect something in our background, something that has made us who we are and something that has brought us to this point in our lives and in our careers. My sword is called Absolution."

She tilted her head up, looking at him curiously. "A holy name?"

"I can kill a man and give him Absolution at the same time."

"So… your sword delivers last rites?"

"The very last rights my enemy will ever receive."

She wasn't sure if he was serious or not. "I am not a warrior, so I do not know what to say of such a thing," she said. "But… Torran, are you proud of your past as a priest? I mean, is it something you look back upon as time well spent, even if you did commit yourself to the cloister out of spite?"

He shrugged. "Everything in my life has shaped me in one way or another," he said. "I am not ashamed of anything if that is what you are asking."

"Nay, that wasn't what I was asking," she said quickly. "I am not exactly sure what I am asking, only I want to know if speaking of your past as a priest is upsetting to you. You are the man I have married. I want to know everything about you and I want to know what pleases, and displeases, you."

He kissed the top of her head. "There will be plenty of time for that," he said. "But to answer your question, nay, speaking of my past as a priest does not upset me, but it is not something I really speak of much. The entire situation with Lady Norbury and her husband is wearisome to explain, so I would rather not do it."

"I understand," Andia said. "Thank you for telling me."

"You are welcome."

"Since we are speaking of the past, may I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"When do you plan to sing for me?"

She laughed softly. "Someday soon, I promise."

The conversation faded after that, but it wasn't uncomfortable. In fact, it was very enlightening because Torran was able to hold a nude woman against him for the first time in his life and could easily see what all of the fuss was about. In fact, the entire evening had been enlightening as his eyes were opened in many different ways, not the least of which was the joy and pleasure between a man and a woman.

That part was a revelation.

In Andia's case, it was much the same. For the first time in her life, she was feeling true peace and contentment. She had a sense of belonging, which was very strange. She wasn't really sure if she'd ever felt as if she'd belonged, anywhere. Not in Okehampton, not even her own home. But Torran made her feel… wanted. She was so warm and comfortable in his arms that she drifted off to sleep almost immediately. Her deep, even breathing made Torran smile when he realized that exhaustion had finally claimed her.

And damn… how he loved this moment.

He, too, was just drifting off to sleep when a knock on the door caught his attention. Andia, however, did not wake up even when he tried to rouse her. She simply rolled over and began to snore. Grinning, he got out of bed, found his breeches, and pulled them on as he went to the door. Finishing the last tie, he cracked the door open to see who it was.

It was a recognizable face standing in the darkness.

And he did not look pleased.