Free Castle of the Heart by Flora Speer

“I want to see you when I make
you my wife,” he said.
    The two young people sat in the bed, side by
side, looking at each other. Selene felt frozen, unable to move or
speak or even close her eyes to shut out the sight of Thomas’s
handsome, serious face. The moment drew out, longer and longer,
until Selene, had she been capable of sound, would have screamed.
She saw Thomas swallow hard, and bend his face toward hers.
    “I think I should kiss you,” Thomas said. His
mouth covered hers, gently at first, but then with growing warmth,
and his arms went around her.
    Selene continued to sit bolt upright, her
arms braced behind her, eyes wide open, her lips unresponsive as
she coldly fought back the feelings awakened by the touch of his
warm, naked body against hers. After a while, the kiss ended.
    “Selene,” Thomas murmured, one hand caressing
her cheek, “I know you are frightened. Any young girl would be.
I’ll be gentle, I’ll try not to hurt you. Please trust me.”
    “My lord, I know I must allow you to
consummate this marriage.” Selene’s low-pitched voice was husky
with tension. “I have been told what will happen. I will be an
obedient wife, and allow you to do what you wish. I ask only that
you finish it quickly.”
    “Quickly? No, my sweet love, it will be slow,
and tender, and you will find pleasure in it, too. I promise.” His
lips brushed hers again. “It is not only I who will consummate this
marriage. We will do it together. With love.”
    “No, my lord.” She choked, feeling she could
not bear the awful waiting any longer. “Do it and be done with it.
Please.”
    Thomas said nothing to this. He took Selene
by each shoulder and gently pushed her down onto the pillows and
held her there. Then he kissed her again, a firm, warm kiss that
was entirely too pleasant. His mouth caressed hers, pressing
harder, then withdrawing a little, only to return more firmly a
moment later. His upper body lay half across hers, and the golden
hair on his broad chest tickled her breasts as he moved closer.
Selene twisted, trying to get away from the tantalizing prickling
that was making her nipples tingle and harden, but she found she
could not escape. His arms held her securely. Her breasts began to
ache, and Selene, who had been determined that she would feel
nothing at all during this encounter, knew the beginnings of
panic.
    She moved her hips and legs, trying to
wriggle out from under him, but only succeeded in kicking off the
bedcovers, and when she moved again, one of his bare legs slid
between hers. Her startled outcry at the sensations this aroused
was lost in his mouth. She managed another wriggle, and a hairy,
muscular thigh surged upward between her own thighs. It felt
wonderful. Selene gasped, and had to suppress an urge to move
against him. Instead, she clamped her legs tightly around his,
preventing further upward motion. Unfortunately, her movements only
heightened her growing tension. Thoroughly frightened at her own
reactions, she put her hands up to push frantically at his
shoulders. Thomas broke off the kiss, but his lips remained only a
breath away from hers.
    “No!” Selene panted, struggling against him.
“Let me go.”
    “I cannot. This is what we must do, Selene.
Let me show you how sweet it can be.”
    “I don’t want it to be sweet. This is lust,
and it is evil.”
    “This is love. I love you, Selene. We are
married. There’s no evil here, no harm to anyone. You are afraid
now, but you won’t be for long. Come, kiss me back.”
    “Please, my lord, no.” She was close to
tears.
    “Do you suppose that you could possibly call
me Thomas?” he asked.
    He did not wait for her answer. His mouth was
on hers again, moving slowly and tenderly. Selene reminded herself
it was her duty to please him in all things. She stopped fighting
him, and just for a moment she let herself begin to feel how
pleasant was his nearness. Thomas was strong and clean, his
youthful body hard muscled, and he