Mail Order Prairie Bride: (A Western Historical Romance) (Dodge City Brides Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page B

watch her face in the darkness as he held himself there, inside her.
    The dreamlike trance she had been enjoying moments ago was all gone now. She was alert and aware of the physical sensation of his body inside hers, without the pain she had known last time. But what was he thinking?
    Heart racing, Sarah clutched at her husband’s broad shoulders, waiting for him to say something. Seconds ticked by. Did he even know?
    Then he spoke softly, without emotion, and her heart sank.
    “I’m not the first,” he said, his body perfectly still.
    Suddenly, Sarah was overcome with regret for having succumbed to her desperation, for having led this man to believe that she was an innocent with no past. She was ashamed of herself for the letter she had written, the lies she had told.
    “No,” she replied simply, for she couldn’t possibly begin to explain. Not now, when he was so deep inside her and he was breathing heavily and beginning to perspire, fighting to hold still.
    But what else was there to say? The whole story was sickening and complicated, and there were things she still didn’t want him to know. Things she hoped he would never know.
    All that mattered in this moment was that she was not a virgin, and now he knew that part of it, at least.
    If he wanted to annul the marriage, so be it. She wouldn’t protest, for she owed him that. But she hoped he would not wish to send her away, for she was feeling things presently that she had not expected to feel. Passion, for one thing. And a desire to go with him to his farm on the prairie. To feel safe in his protection. If only he could forgive this part of it.
    Growing uneasy, Sarah shifted slightly on the bed, which caused a hint friction down below where their bodies were joined. Everything was so hot and wet down there. It felt like liquid fire.
    She wiggled her hips slightly beneath his weight, and Briggs let out a small groan. Then he closed his eyes, bowed his head, and began to move in a steady rhythm, in and out, slow at first, then gradually faster. She told herself the worst was over and it was alright to relax now and enjoy the sensations. He was her lawful husband, and he had kept his promise to be gentle.
    Most importantly, he knew . About this part, at least.
    Soon, the ecstasy returned and her muscles loosened and tingled, her skin seemed to melt into his as they made love in the darkness.
    She realized in that moment that her previous experience had been nothing like this. Nothing at all. Tonight, it had been hurried, for Briggs had taken the time to pleasure her, to soften her and help her relax, before he entered her.
    The sensations reached a heady, overwhelming pinnacle, and she shuddered unexpectedly as physical delight poured through her body. Briggs tensed and went rigid in her arms. A sound escaped him—a sound that could only mean pleasure as she had just known it. He throbbed within and she knew they had completed the marriage act. It was consummated. Perhaps he had even planted a child in her womb. That thought filled her with hope.
    He relaxed on top of her, heavier now, but surprisingly, she didn’t mind. Her heart was no longer racing with anxiety. Their bodies seemed glued together with heat and perspiration as they lay in silence, until Briggs withdrew and rolled off her, leaving her suddenly exposed to the chilly bedroom air.
    * * *
    Briggs lay motionless in the dark, listening to his wife’s breathing. He draped his wrist over his eyes. He had thought….
    Hell, he didn’t know what he had thought. Why was he so surprised? He knew nothing about this woman in bed beside him. She had answered an ad in a newspaper, for pity’s sake. Why should he have expected her to be a virgin, and what did it even matter? She had never promised such a thing in her letter, not specifically, nor had he asked, or implied that it was a requirement. He had simply assumed it because she had said she attended church regularly and lived with her parents until