Total pages in book: 134
Estimated words: 126485 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 632(@200wpm)___ 506(@250wpm)___ 422(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 126485 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 632(@200wpm)___ 506(@250wpm)___ 422(@300wpm)
Maybe Gulliver was in on it. He thought Mum was a sinner, and Imogen too, and after the auction—if he knew about it—he must see me as a sinner as well.
I needed to stop thinking about it or I’d be a terrified mess tonight, and I didn’t want that. I didn’t want Lorcan to know I was equal parts terrified and turned on by him. And more than that, I wanted to enjoy my first time, despite who my husband was. Patrick was probably enjoying himself tremendously, and I would too.
When I came out of the bathroom, Lorcan was in bed and he was considerably less dressed … if my eyes didn’t trick me. The thin sheet was draped over his pelvis, revealing a trail of dark hair between his belly button and the hint of pubic hair peeking out. He had a delicious six pack, wide shoulders and strong arms. His chest hair was trimmed and made him look manly in a rugged way that sent a new wave of heat through my body.
“Come closer,” he said roughly, hardly giving me time to get over my shock and arousal at the sight of him.
Every sane fiber in my body urged me to take flight, but I wasn’t a runner and I wouldn’t back down until I found Imogen, or the person who was responsible for her disappearance. However, after that I’d run as fast as my short legs could carry me and I’d hide with my family in the farthest corner of the world where even a Devaney couldn’t find us.
Nerves almost crippled me as I approached my beast of a husband. He lounged against the headboard, his clothes carelessly strewn about the floor. The thin blanket left absolutely nothing to the imagination. The shape of a shockingly big penis was quite defined. It wasn’t even erect yet, only resting on his left upper thigh.
I had seen Patrick naked a couple of times, and he had nothing on Lorcan. And I had seen boys and men in swimwear before, so I had seen the outline of the occasional penis, and I’d even seen a few without underwear when drunk guys pissed out in the streets, but they looked comically small in comparison to what Lorcan Devaney hid beneath the covers.
In my white nightgown, I felt like a virginal sacrifice about to be slaughtered. Lorcan watched me like a hunter as I moved closer to the bed. My knees hit the mattress, and I stopped. My heart was beating so fast and my pulse pounding so fiercely I was sure Lorcan could hear it. Suddenly the thought that Imogen might have been in this very position not too long ago and then disappeared without a word pulsed through my head like a nerve-racking mantra.
He sat up and slid to the edge of the bed, causing the sheet to slip even lower, revealing his pubic bone covered in trimmed dark hair and the base of a thick cock, which was slowly filling up with blood. I took a step back out of instinct and cursed myself for it. Lorcan tilted his head.
“Like a little birdy about to take flight,” he rumbled. I couldn’t stop seeing the blood splatter on his hands and face. He parted his legs and set his feet down on either side of me, caging me in with his massive thighs. Only the edge of the blanket now covered his cock. His head came up to my chest. It was strange looking down at a man like him. He didn’t seem to have any trouble looking up to me though. Lorcan didn’t lack confidence.
“Are you scared of me, Aislinn?”
The way he said my name in his deep drawl still gave me goosebumps.
“Is anyone not scared of you, Lorcan?”
“Mmmmm,” he hummed as he gripped the hem of my nightgown and began to pull it up over my head. Even as anxiety gripped me, I lifted my arms to make it easier for him. I had agreed to this. I couldn’t risk getting on Lorcan’s bad side if I wanted this to work. This was for Imogen, for the truth, even for Mum.
“Your uncle assured me it’s God’s will for a husband to consummate the marriage on his wedding night. It’s the husband’s duty.”
Gulliver was such a bastard. Why did he care if Lorcan and I slept together?
“Are you as religious as your uncle?” he asked.
“I believe in God,” I said.
“So you would agree that it’s my duty before God to claim you tonight?”
I gritted my teeth as a wave of anger crashed down on me. Mankind had used God’s supposed will on too many occasions to pursue their own desires. “Do me a favor and don’t pretend you’re doing this out of piousness when we both know you don’t believe in God and are only doing it out of your own desire.”