Great Protector (29 page)

Seeking
the hard little nub, he manipulated it fiercely, watching as Arissa's eyes flew
open with surprise. In the next moment, she pealed off a loud shriek that
echoed against the very walls of the chamber and he could feel her passage
throb and spasm as her own pleasure was attained.  Not only could he feel the
delicious convulsions of her gratification, he deeply sensed it like nothing
else.

From
pain to pleasure, gentleness to the heights of ferocious desire, Richmond
introduced Arissa to a world where they would cease to exist as two separate
beings. A world where the only matter of import was the love and emotion they
held for one another, binding them together more tightly than any other
circumstance. It was done.

Enfolded
in the protective warmth of his massive embrace, Arissa was not sure if she was
dead or alive. Her body was limp, her mind a warm void of satisfaction as she
felt the remains of Richmond's arousal twitching within her tender folds. It
was the most remarkable, private sensation she had every experienced and she
would have been perfectly content to remain as they were for the rest of
eternity.

"Are
you all right?" he whispered against her ear.

Weakly,
she nodded. "I do believe I am close to dying from contentment. Is such a
thing possible?"

"I
hope so," he murmured, snuggling closer. "But I am truly sorry that
there was pain for you, Riss. It couldn't be helped."

She
raised her head to look at him. "Stop worrying so. I have already
forgotten about the discomfort. It.... it was an amazing experience. Much more
than I ever imagined."

He
smiled faintly. "You are incredibly brave, my lady. I should possess such
courage."

She
returned his smile, pressing herself against him tightly. The fire in the
hearth was dying, casting a heady chill about the shadowed room. But against
Richmond, Arissa had never been so warm or so loved.

"Will
you stay with me all night?" she asked softly, her delicate fingers
lingering on his chest.

He
stroked her black hair, watching the distant flames. "That would not be
wise, Riss. We cannot allow anyone to become suspicious of our relationship.
Moreover, I promised Gavan I would take the watch tonight since he’s been
occupied all evening with Lambourn's security."

She
knew what his answer would be, but was disappointed nonetheless. She sighed
faintly. "I do not think I like the idea of being alone. Now that I have
experienced you in my bed, I never want you to leave. I shall be empty without
you."

He
kissed her forehead. "You fail to consider my feelings, kitten. Do you not
think that I will miss you, too?"

She
rolled onto her back, gazing up at him with bright eyes. "Did you know
that you are a silly, sentimental fool? Not only do you love me, but you miss
me when I am not by your side. I thought only women had such ridiculous,
romantic thoughts."

"Then
I suppose I am a ridiculous romantic."

They
continued to gaze at each other warmly as Richmond toyed with a tendril of
silken dark hair. He was so caught up in Arissa's delicious vision that he
failed to notice the slight movement in the giant wardrobe at the opposite end
of the chamber.

One
of the carved paneled doors inched open, paused, and then slowly closed. After
several moments, it inched open again, wider. As Richmond kissed Arissa's cheek
tenderly, the door proceeded to yawn even further. When he moved to cover
Arissa's body with his massive frame once again, giving in to the rejuvenated
desire flooding his veins, the door flew open wide with a resounding crash.

"You....
you
hypocrite!
"

Richmond
bolted out of the bed faster than he had ever moved in his life. His natural
protective instinct was surging as he flew over the mattress, feet to the cold
floor, fully prepared to do battle with the unknown intruder. Only when his
hands closed over the dark, indistinct figure did he realize the shadow was a
weaker being, non-threatening to a man of his incredible strength and size. His
grip met with fleshy soft arms, struggling furiously within his iron grip.

"You
are a liar and.... and a deceiver!" Regine raged, wrestling viciously in
Richmond's mighty grasp. "You punished me for the very same action you
have just committed with my sister!"

Bedcover
clutched to her breast, Arissa watched in horror as Richmond yanked Regine into
the weak light. Regine's face mottled an ugly shade of red, her eyes full of
venom, and all of it directed at Richmond.

"I
knew you were an overbearing brute, but I had no idea you were a fraud as
well!" she raged. "How could you have spanked me for sampling the
identical pleasure you and my sister have just tasted? How?"

Richmond
was as naked as the day he was born, standing before a ranting twelve-year-old
girl. With a long, hostile glare, he forced himself to calmly retrieve his breeches.
Regine twitched and quaked in her anger, completely ignorant of his nudity and
glowering at him as if he were the Devil himself.

"Why
were you spying on us?" his voice was amazingly steady as he secured his
hose.

Regine
clenched her teeth so hard that she bit her cheek. "I was not spying! At
least.... it had never been my original intention. But you proved to me that
you are a deceiver and I shall...!"

"And
you shall
what
?" he put his hands on his hips, his voice as ominous
as Arissa had ever heard it. He took a step, towering over the enraged young
lass. "Do not ever threatening me, Regine. You shall not like the results,
I guarantee it."

Regine
may have been furious, but she was not daft. It did not matter that Richmond
had taken Arissa's virginity while she watched from her hiding place in the
wardrobe; what mattered was the fact that Richmond had punished her for the
very same offense not hours before and she was outraged by his double standard.

Richmond,
however, was gravely concerned for quite another reason; should Regine tell the
earl all she had seen, the consequences would be severe.  To become angry with
her would only inflame the situation and he fought to keep his calm;
nonetheless, a natural fury bubbled within his chest as he faced off against
the foolish young wench.

It
took him less than a second to carefully analyze the situation, the results,
and the hazards. And it took him less than a second to realize there was little
he could do to alter the course of a most distressing circumstance.

Regine
had witnessed something she most definitely should not have. In lieu of
strangling her simply to keep her from spilling the secret, Richmond was greatly
pressed to emphasize the confidentiality of what she had seen without making it
known that she literally held their lives in her hand. God help them, their
very balance hung in the slippery palm of a shallow, peculiar young girl.

"I
was not threatening you," Regine said after a moment, her rage dampening
in the face of his intimidating expression. "But you were unfair to punish
me for experiencing adult pleasures when you and Arissa did the very same
thing."

The
tension filling the room was thick enough to cut. Smothering, encompassing.
Arissa's breath caught in her throat as Richmond eyed Regine grimly. "What
did you mean when you said spying had not been your original intent? What,
pray, was your original intent?"

Regine
swallowed, the first flicker of uncertainty kindling in her blue eyes. "I....I
followed Bart from the gallery, but he did not want to speak with me. So I came
up here to wait for Riss to return from her party. I was waiting when I heard
your voice in the hall and I did not want to see you because I was mad at you.
So I hid in the wardrobe," she swallowed again, her gaze moving to her
sister for the first time. A shade of genuine remorse crossed her features.
"I saw you kiss her, and hold her, and I became curious because I did not
know you and my sister were.... well, together. I could have come out of the
wardrobe after you left, but I did not. I wanted to see what happened when you
returned."

Arissa,
sheet still clasped to her breast, suddenly found her tongue. She was not embarrassed
in the least that her sister had witnessed her first experience with ecstasy;
she was damn well furious for the invasion.

"So
you spied on us!” she hissed. “Regine, how could you? After all I have done for
you, defended you, made excuses for you, and even lied for you! I know you have
spied on Penelope and Daniel, but how could you spy on me? How could you do
this to me?"

Regine
turned to her sister, fury fading and being replaced by genuine penitence.
"I.... I do not know. I have seen the serving wenches couple with the
soldiers, but it seemed to be rough and over quickly. And this afternoon when I....
it was not as wonderful as I thought it would be. I suppose I wanted to see....
it was wonderful for you, was not it, Riss? Is that was coupling is supposed to
be like, always?"

Richmond
stood with his fists on his hips, his gaze moving between Regine and Arissa.
His anger began to dwindle as he came to understand that Regine, although her
motives had been selfish and sly, was still in the process of trying to
understand what went on between a man and a woman. Her experience that
afternoon had been abrupt and unpleasant, and the curious, obsessive girl was
still looking for her answers. Even at the expense of her sister's privacy.

But
Arissa was unable to see Regine's curiosity for what is was. She was furious
and shaken at being betrayed by her own sister, and furthermore terrified that
Regine would tell her father what she had seen. Clutching the linen to her
breast, she leapt out of the bed and wound the sheet about her body as she
approached her youngest sibling.

"You
will listen to me, Regine Margaret," she hissed. "If you mention one
word to father, I shall tell him of every offense you have every incurred and
every crime you have ever committed. His anger at me won't be half as powerful
as his shock and fury towards you. Do you understand me?"

Regine
looked hurt, confused. She opened her mouth to reply, but in light of her
sister's fury she simply nodded her head.  "Aye," when Arissa whirled
away and moved towards the wardrobe, Regine's gaze followed. "Are you
terribly angry with me?"

Arissa
let out an un-ladylike snort. "Terribly, indeed! If I had a dagger, I
would use it on you!" she veered away from the wardrobe, returning once
again to rage in her sister's face. "This goes beyond what I ever thought
you capable of. I should run to father right this instant and tell him of the
serving wench to kissed, of the stable boy you fondled simply to know the
feeling of male genitalia, or the soldier you coerced into taking your
virginity this afternoon. Sweet St. Jude, Regine, when is this going to
stop?"

Regine's
expression was guarded, fearful. She opened her mouth, but her sister cut of
her stumbling answer. "Well?" Arissa demanded sharply. "This
must stop this instant or I will tell father everything!"

"I
do not want him to know anything. You always promised me you would never
tell."

"That
was before you spied on Richmond and I!"

Regine
was staring at the floor as her sister's angry face loomed before her. She was
wise enough to know that Arissa'a anger was a direct result of the fear that
her liaison with Richmond would be discovered. And there was only one way to
quell her fear. "I.... I shall bargain with you then.  I won't tell father
about you and Richmond if you agree that I do not have to tell him what
happened this afternoon with Richmond's soldier."

Arissa
gazed at her sister’s fair head a moment before turning her apprehensive gaze
to Richmond. He had given Regine several months to make her confession; now,
she was throwing a most clever twist into the deal. Richmond's impassive gaze
lingered on Arissa a moment before turning his attention to Regine.

"A
bargain?” he repeated. “Does it stand to reason that if I do not agree, you
will carry out your implied threat?"

In
spite of her anger toward him, she was still deathly afraid of the man who did
not hesitate to punish her for the slightest infraction. She shook her head,
hard. "Nay, no threat. But I will know that my secret is safe, as I will
keep your secret safe."

Richmond's
hard gaze lingered on her a moment before slanting a glance to Arissa; he had
no choice in the matter. As they both had powerful secrets to be kept, there
was simply no other alternative but to agree to the terms. Turning away from
both ladies, he moved for the remainder of his clothing. "Your proposal is
accepted, Regine. You had better pray that your word of honor is as good as
mine."

Regine
watched the massive knight lumber across the room. Pensive and somber, she
meandered to the mussed bed, perching her sore bottom on the mattress. As
Arissa dropped the linen sheet in favor of a heavy brocade robe from the
wardrobe, Regine pondered the predicament her curiosity had gotten her in to.
However, her thoughts once again turned to the apparent double standard between
herself and Arissa, and the harder she thought, the more indignant she became.