MAIL ORDER BRIDE: Bought By The Cowboy, Read online

  Finn walked out of the door, unwilling to take his eyes off her. He had been unable to stop himself from standing there shamelessly, staring at the back of her thighs, her flesh inviting and smooth. He had seen a flash of her breasts and he wished she hadn’t turned away. She was going to be his wife tomorrow and he couldn’t wait to explore her body and all its curves.

  He had been mad at her for falling asleep. He had been excited to get to know her and he felt she had shown no interest in him. He had waited for her to emerge from her room, but after a couple of hours he just left to complete his rounds of the estate, seething with anger.

  But after he had told her that he’d dine alone, the servants had brought in a beautifully set up tray, which made him feel slightly sorry for the tone he had taken with her. And now, he couldn’t help but wait for her to join him, unsure of what to say to her, his soon to be wife.

  Irene walked into the dining room, in her demure dress, her cleavage hidden and her body masked by the fabric that he wanted to tear off her. She sat in front of him, her eyes unable to meet his.

  “I was slightly busy then, I hope you weren’t offended.” Finn asked.

  “No, I understand. You have a vast estate to run.” She didn’t know what else to say to him.

  “The pastor will reach at ten in the morning. I have no family or friends that I wish to invite, so there will just be the staff in attendance. Is your wedding dress in order?” Finn wanted to say something about his walking in on her, to see how she reacted.

  Irene just blushed and nodded.

  They both ate in relative silence, waiting for the other person to start a conversation. Their impending wedding and the chance encounter was all they had in common for now, but etiquette made them both unable to bring those up. Irene was still reeling from the scolding she had received in the study and the intrusion in her room. But he seemed kind to the servants and she couldn’t decide how to feel about him just yet.

  Finn walked her up to her room after they had finished eating.

  “I hope everything in the house is to your satisfaction. I look forward to tomorrow.” He turned and left.

  Irene got into bed and thought about her day. He seemed to talk at her, not to her. She told herself she would wait for the wedding, and then she as sure she could make things better. He had just been alone too long. Men with a solitary life on a ranch, wouldn’t really know how to act with a woman, she told herself.

  Chapter 4

  Next morning, Irene woke up to Sally’s knocks on her door. She asked her to enter, and sat up in bed.

  “I was going to ask madam, if you wanted me to draw you a bath.”

  Irene nodded; it was seven in the morning. Life in her house started even earlier, everyone needed to use the outhouse, and the earlier you rose, the less you had to wait. The cooking and cleaning started real early too, with more than ten mouths to feed every day.

  Sally led her to the bath, and she sat in the copper tub, her tired and aching body loving the warm water. Sally had added some flower petals to the bath.

  “I wish I had some perfume to add to it ma’am. It is your wedding after all.” Sally was scrubbing her back with a rough towel.

  “Where’s your master?” Irene asked her.

  “He rode out early; he’s bringing the pastor himself. Our pastor Williams was a dear friend of sir’s father and he’s taken the carriage. They’ll return at nine.”

  Irene suddenly remembered that there would have to be some form of a wedding feast. She hadn’t given it any thought and she was suddenly panicking.

  She gave the servants instructions, and finally, it was almost nine before she could go and get dressed. Sally helped her get dressed; her gown was beautiful, with delicate lace, which her mother had salvaged from an old dress of hers. Her hair was coiled in a neat bun and she had no jewellery to add to it, but her dress didn’t seem to need any embellishment.

  Sally brought a white veil to Irene, “Sir’s mother’s, this was. He wants ma’am to wear this.”

  Irene took the delicate net in her hands and fixed it to her hair. She finally felt like a bride and all the butterflies in her stomach found new life.

  She admired herself in the mirror. Finn and the pastor were downstairs and she knew she had to hurry. The wedding was going to be under the oldest biggest tree on the ranch, and Finn told a servant to tell Irene that he and the pastor were heading to it. Irene was to cross the small distance on the buggy.

  The tree had ribbons tied to it, with some ranch hands and servants in attendance. As she got off the buggy, the wedding party took their places. She walked up to Finn, who was wearing a brown three piece suit, his hair slicked to one side. He looked very handsome, and she wished her family and friends could see her now. She was marrying a rich, good looking man and she had finally proved all her mother’s doomsday descriptions of her life wrong.

  Finn lifted her veil, and she looked up at him, her new husband who she would now belong to. They said their vows, and the pastor announced them man and wife, this couple that had just met, who knew next to nothing about each other. The strangers that now belonged to each other.

  The wedding party went over to the house and Irene and Finn barely spoke to each other during the whole affair.

  Finn had ridden home and left the buggy for Irene and the pastor. During the meal, they were both sitting next to each other, but Finn hadn’t spoken a word to her. Irene felt slightly troubled but she played the demure bride’s part well, talking with Pastor Williams but keeping quiet most of the time.

  Once Pastor Williams left, Irene and Finn were left standing alone in the house and neither of them could muster up any real conversation. Finn had been trying to ignore the thoughts of lust that filled him. He had been upset when she wasn’t at the door to greet him and the pastor. But, she was the blushing bride and it could have been appropriate for her to be late. Finn felt confused and powerless, he had lived his entire life trying to be a self fulfilled man. He wanted to feel a lot less nervous about this union than he did.

  “I should go and take my round of the ranch. We don’t want the ranch hands to have had too much to drink in celebration.”

  Irene nervously fidgeted with her hands; she wanted to tell him to stay. She wanted to feel some sort of affection from him. She hadn’t quite expected romance, but she had expected companionship. It hurt her pride to ask him to stay, so she just nodded.

  “You should get dinner started; I will be back in a couple of hours.” Finn left, his mind still figuring out how he wanted to handle this. He felt lost in this relationship. He found her attractive, but he didn’t feel connected to her. He didn’t want to put out a false front; he didn’t want to pretend to be a loving husband. He just wanted her to know he would want his space and he expected her to be comfortable with it.

  His ranch needed him; he looked over his life stock and went to the living quarters of his workers. It was after sundown and the men were drinking as he had expected. He was greeted with whoop, the men toasted to his wedding and invited him to sit with them and have a drink.

  Finn felt he could do with some liquid courage, his wife was back home and he wanted to feel less pressured to put up the husband act. He wanted her in his bed, but they had just met and he knew he should make her feel comfortable for now. He couldn’t jump her on their wedding night, a day after they had met, it could scare her.

  He left the impromptu celebrations feeling slightly drunk. He rode back home and found Irene sitting in the study, back in her regular dress. His ride back had been spent taking off her wedding dress in her mind and he felt a stab of disappointment.

  “Dinner is ready.” Irene got up, vacating his chair.

  “I’m not really hungry right now.”Finn sat down heavily on the chair.

  Irene stood in front of him, her mind furiously working out what to say to him. She could tell he had imbibed and that didn’t really bother him. But she had slaved with the servants on her wedding night, jus
t to be able to be a dutiful wife. And he didn’t seem to care about any of that.

  “I have to go over some bills. I shall send word to you for supper, or you could eat now, if you so desire.” Finn felt his head spin. He needed to breathe a little before he could formulate a strategy on how to talk to her.

  Finn sat and finished some bills, drinking water to quiet the thudding in his head.

  He called for Sally to find out if Irene had eaten. He had asked her to be Irene’s maid, and he had hoped the young girl would help him keep a check on his new wife. Sally told him Irene had retired to her room without food, so she sent him to call her.

  Irene came down in her wedding dress. She had thought long and hard about this, and she needed to be able to win his affection. She decided to wear the wedding dress to dinner, to remind him of their nuptials.

  Finn had almost taken an audibly sharp breath in when she walked in. He stood up as she entered, taking his seat after she sat down.

  “I’m glad you decided to change back into that dress. You do look lovely.”

  Irene blushed, happy at her little success.

  “I thought the ceremony was lovely. Pastor Williams was really nice.”

  “I thought so too. I joined in a celebration with the workers just now. We drank a few toasts to you.” He said with some trepidation.

  Irene smiled in response. The dinner was going better than expected. Finn ate heartily and she caught him eyeing her bosom more than a dozen times. He had complimented her on the food and she felt more at ease.

  After they were done eating, there was some lull in the conversation, and Irene knew this had to do with the knot she felt in her stomach every time their eyes met. She knew Finn desired her and she couldn’t decide whether she wanted to try and give him encouragement or not. She wanted to be modest and encouraging him would exempt him from all the strangeness of his behaviors.

  He had to make all the moves, she decided. She was going to show him tenderness and he would have to let her in. This aloofness would end up making her scream.

  She walked up with him, as they went up the stairs. Finn paused outside his room.

  “You could stay with me tonight. If you so desired.”

  Irene felt the butterflies in her stomach flutter.

  “I would love the company.” Irene entered the room, walking around and looking at his racks of papers and books.

  Finn stood behind her, his breath hot on her neck.

  “It’s been rather lonely on the ranch. I am glad of the company.”

  Finn brushed his fingers along the nape of her neck, kissing her neck lightly. Irene shuddered, her breath catching in her throat. Finn felt her relax a little and slump backwards, her body pressing close to his.

  Fin held her by her waist; he couldn’t stop his hands from travelling up her body, cupping her breasts as he kissed her neck. This was a lot further than he had planned to go on their wedding night, but he couldn’t control his lust. He felt his erection grow in his pants and he tried to turn away from her. But she felt him, and pressed herself against him. Irene felt her corset restrict her movements and she wanted to be free of it. She had never felt lust like that, the urgency of Finn’s groping fingers left her breathless. She wanted to show him, she wanted him too, but she didn’t want to seem too eager. She reached back her arm and buried his head into her neck. He kissed her deeply and clawed at the back of her dress.

  Irene suddenly broke free. She turned around and stood in front of him, taking off her many layers of clothes with as much urgency as she could muster while looking graceful. Finn kept his eyes on her and hurriedly took off his shirt, observing her unravel her body.

  He felt his erection throb as she took off her corset. Her breasts sprang free, her nipples small and pink, hardened to a point. She lowered her eyes and dropped her hands awkwardly to her sides in a most endearing gesture. Her hands busied themselves with her underskirt, and two glorious minutes later she was standing naked in front of him. Her legs awkwardly pressed together, her eyes downcast.

  “You look beautiful.” Finn looked at her body. The roundness of her belly was inviting and soft. Her thighs were broad and her hips had a delicious curve. Finn walked towards her, hearing her shallow breathing quicken.

  He placed a hand on her bosom, his fingers around her nipple. He lifted her head up with his other hand, kissing her deeply. Finn let his tongue enter her mouth, running circles in her mouth, taking in the sweetness of her breath.

  Irene pressed herself into him, feeling his hard cock between her thighs. He started to move, grinding his hips and kissing her as they stood near his bed. Irene ran her fingers down his chest, feeling his soft and sparse hair.

  He had the hard body of a working man, his muscles taut and hard to her touch. He placed a hand between her legs, pressing his hand into her pussy lips and stroking her as he kissed her.

  Irene began to moan, her mind was completely blank now and she was being driven solely by her sexual impulses. Her pussy felt wet and ready for him, and she didn’t care anymore about how she seemed. She needed him and he seemed to need her too.

  Finn led her to the bed and lay her down. He knelt between her legs, on the floor, parting her thighs, he started to kiss her legs, just as he had envisioned when he had seen her partially dressed in her room.

  He couldn’t contain himself anymore and he unbuckled her trousers, standing in front of her, his cock pointed at her, his eyes hungrily taking in her body.

  Irene saw his member and gasped. He was quite large; his cock thick and long, curved a little to the side, ready to enter her. She was suddenly afraid; she had explored her pussy with a finger once or twice during baths. But she didn’t think she could accommodate something so big.

  Finn lay on top of her, his cock sliding between her thighs as he kissed her, his hand cradling her face, as he stared into her eyes.

  “I won’t hurt you.” He said quietly, they were the only words that had been said in their lust filled time, and they took the breath out of Irene. She nodded, her lips quivering, her eyes closing to escape his intense stare. She slowly spread her legs, and he took his hand to her mound. He used his fingers to spread her soft pubic hair apart. He guided his cock to her wetness, and she shivered.

  “Shhh…” He whispered into her ear, his cock slowly sliding inside her. He suddenly felt the barrier of her virginity and simultaneously felt Irene’s body tense up under him. She bit her lip, and her eyes closed tightly shut as Finn thrust into her suddenly, he could see that she was in pain, but he was too crazed in his lust to take it slow anymore. Irene was moaning lightly as she put her arms around him. He found himself enveloped in her body, her warmth making him thrust deeper into her soft flesh.

  Irene was rocking back and forth with him, her mouth now open as her thighs parted further, to accommodate him. Finn was sweating now, he saw Irene’s hand move to squeeze her breast as he fucked her and he couldn’t contain his lust any longer. His face contorted a little, as he felt himself pour into her, his cum filling her up.

  He lay spent on top of her, feeling her breathing normalize slowly. He got off her, and went for his clothes, leaving Irene on the bed naked and still quivering.

  He looked at her lying there, with a faint blood stain between her legs and she suddenly got up, her knees huddled in her arms, staring at him. Finn suddenly felt like he had nothing to say to her and he couldn’t decide on what to do next.

  He went and sat down next to her.

  “I have been used to sleeping on my own as I assume are you. So I was wondering if you’d prefer to sleep in your room.”

  Irene heard “your room” loud and clear. She knew she wasn’t really wanted and he wanted to be on his own. She got up quietly, her cheeks flushed in embarrassment and she got dressed as quickly as she could manage. She left the room quietly, leaving Finn standing in the middle of the room.

  The next day Finn announced that he was leaving for the city. He had some business to cond
uct and he went to Irene and gave her money and the freedom to go to the local market with the servants if she desired.

  Irene was responding to him in nods and he knew he had offended her. He found her in a sullen mood, and he thought about staying back but he had made that decision because of the way his lust had taken over him the night before.

  He knew he felt nothing but lust for her; she was behaving like a petulant child now. He had given her the option of staying; he hadn’t ordered her to her room. And she had left wordlessly on her own.

  He didn’t want to encourage petty behavior like that. It was precisely for this reason that he had wished to remain unhitched. He knew if he stayed at home the desire for her body wouldn’t let him stay away from her. And he wanted to take things slower now, find a rhythm in their daily lives before he let the lust control him.

  He didn’t want a child just then either and he couldn’t decide if his decision had been the right one.

  He left after saying a goodbye to Irene and receiving a formal curt reply in return. Irene felt utterly dejected, she felt like Finn had married her for the physical part of the relationship and to take care of the house maybe.

  But he wasn’t going to let her in. She saw that now, he didn’t want the companionship, and she decided to not pretend to be okay with his behavior. She had left her house for him, travelled to a far away land to become his wife. He couldn’t treat her like a convenient body to lie with. She felt ashamed at how much she had wanted him, how her body had reacted ho his and how she had moaned for him.

  She saw him disappear from view, his hat on his head, his broad shoulders disappearing out the door and her heart finally sank. She went up to her room and cried her heart out. She had so many expectations, and he had just snuffed all her hopes out. She wasn’t in a marriage with a handsome loving man; she was in a business agreement with a rancher who wanted nothing to do with her heart.

  After he came back the next day, Irene kept her contact with him to a bare minimum. She got busy with the decoration of the house and the cooking and cleaning routines, only talking to Finn when she needed to, eating her food without him when he told her he would be late.