Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
The thought grew in her mind and she began to feel restless and worried. What if Bear was sitting in his study right now, wondering why she hadn’t come to offer herself to him yet? Might he be waiting for her and all the while, she was lounging in the tub and reading a naughty novel? That would be inexcusable behavior!
She got out and wrapped herself in a towel. She’d been half afraid he might already be waiting for her in the bed chamber, but it was empty when she went in.
Aleena dug through her bag once more, feeling glad she wouldn’t have to wear most of what it contained. All of these old clothes could be thrown away now that she had the lovely new outfits Bear had bought her. But there was one special garment that she still needed—her Joining night outfit.
It was something she had scrimped and saved to buy back when they still had money. She had hoped that one day she would get Joined, and she wanted to be ready. And now, years after she had bought it, she would finally get to wear it.
Aleena pulled it out and held it up to admire the scrap of fabric in the soft, golden luminescence of the wall glows. It was a short little dress that barely reached her thighs and it was made of white, nearly transparent lace. Thin straps at the shoulders held it in place and there was a deep V neck-line that tied at the throat with a silk string. Once untied, it would fall open, revealing her bare breasts completely to her husband.
She had a tiny pair of lace panties that barely covered her pussy to go with the little lace dress and she slipped them on, feeling naughty when she saw how little they covered. Why, the soft mound of copper curls and the top of her slit were visible above the little triangle of lace! She wondered with a shiver that was half fear/half anticipation if that would tempt her new husband to take her.
Well, there was only one way to find out. Taking a deep breath, she left the bedchamber and went to knock on the study door.
16
BEAR
Bear was about to give up work for the night. The start of the negotiations was tomorrow, but he truly felt that he had familiarized himself with as much of the Karpsians’ laws as he could absorb. Plus, he reminded himself uneasily, Aleena was probably waiting and wondering where he was. This was supposed to be their Joining night, after all—she would be expecting him to “change the color of her eyes.”
He wondered how he was going to handle that. He wasn’t going to take her virginity from her—that much he had already decided. But how could he explain that he wasn’t going to do what she expected him to do? How could he—?
A light knocking came at the door and a soft voice said,
“Excuse me, but may I come in?”
Bear took a deep breath. He would just have to put her off—that was all, he told himself. Anything else would be wrong. He knew he couldn’t take her with him when he went back to the Mother Ship. It would be better just to let her know that nothing was going to happen between them.
He turned off his work lamp and rose from the comfortable office chair to go stand in front of the fireplace, where a low flame was flickering. It sent a golden glow through the room, bathing the rows of leather-bound books as well as the comfortable and sturdy, leather padded couch across from it in warmth.
“Come in,” Bear called in a low voice. He was determined to tell his new bride immediately that they were just going to go to bed and sleep beside each other without doing anything else. He wasn’t going to be swayed by her beauty. He wasn’t—
And then the door opened and he sucked in a breath.
Aleena was standing there, dressed in a thin, lacy little scrap of nothing. The white fabric hugged her full curves and stretched over her ripe breasts and wide hips. When she turned a little to the side, he saw her luscious, full bottom as well. Her long hair was loose in long, copper waves around her lovely face and her eyes were fearful and hopeful at the same time.
“My Lord Husband?” she asked softly. “I hope you don’t mind but I thought maybe you might be…might be waiting for me.”
Bear cleared his throat, trying to think what to say. To be honest, it felt like his brain wasn’t working at the moment—probably because all of the blood in his body had rushed to his shaft, which was suddenly achingly hard.
It seemed strange to be so intensely aroused. For the past five years he’d had no sexual inclinations at all. He knew human males still longed for sex, even after losing a spouse, but it wasn’t so for Kindred. For them, the loss of a beloved mate often left them sexless—simply because they couldn’t even imagine making love with anyone but their lost beloved.