Emma recalled her mother cautioning her never to touch herself there, calling it the sinful, shameful place of her body and threatening her with a dire punishment if she ever did so. Emma had been young at the time, and quite frightened, and not even her kind gentle nurse had been able to soothe her. She now conjured up what her nurse had told her at the time.
"There is no shame in this place though, Emma. It is just the place of your womanhood."
But her mother's frightening words had seemed to drown the reassuring ones her nurse had spoken. She'd never touched herself there, although she'd heard it whispered other women did so, risking eternal damnation. Was she risking eternal damnation now?
Pleasure engulfed her, rich and deep, as Master Archer's fingers did their work, and Emma's whole body seemed to become different than it had been, as if deep, blinding light were coursing through it. She cried in sheer rapture, and at that moment she understood that this thing could never be sinful. It could never be sinful because it simply felt right.No shame. She smiled to herself feeling glad and freer than she'd ever felt. Was this it then? Was this the freedom she'd always sought?
Master Archer let her slide off his lap, and she regained her balance with difficulty. Coming back to herself, Emma understood she was standing naked in front of him but she nolonger felt ashamed. Nor did she feel ashamed of her smarting bottom, which must be glowing red from the spanking he'd given her.
She saw he was watching her with feral, famished eyes, barely keeping at bay his own lust. And she resolved within herself that if he wanted to lie with her she'd let him. Because she had now decided not to ever feel shamed by her strange desire for him.
"You asked for this," he told her and it was plain he was striving to keep his voice level.
She nodded mutely, but the look he cast her now was one of stark, naked hatred.
"It was this you craved, wasn't it? I gave you what you craved," he went on savagely. "But this ends now."
He covered the distance between them in one stride, and Emma waited with bated breath for what he would do next. He pulled her to him, so that she could feel his arousal, cupping her spanked bottom with his rough hand, and making her wince in both pain and rapture. His lips nearly touched hers as he spoke the words, and his own breath was hot against her skin as he spoke, "Listen to me well, woman. Next time you seek to snare me in one of your mad games, you will get to learn the meaning of a true spanking. And we'll see then how well you like the feel of my belt blistering your behind. Though something already tells me you won't be moaning in rapture."
There was no teasing or heat laced in his grim voice, and he swiftly stepped away from her, as if sickened by what his hands had touched. Emma understood he hadn't let go of any of his anger towards the woman he believed his wife. Certainly, Emma knew he was entitled to his anger, but she could not help feeling her own anger rise against him. He was arrogantly stating the boundaries of her behaviour as if he now owned her, and Emma had long decided she was done with the boundaries otherswished to set to her life. Tonight she had resolved to tell this man the truth of who she was and to ask him to stay on as his wife. But at this time she decided she owed him nothing. Lust for him she may have but she was not his puppet, and she would not let him rule over her.
She turned even further away from him, darkly glad to sense that his still famished eyes lingered upon her nakedness. After slipping into her shift, she strived to make her voice calm and unconcerned when she bid him good night, as if nothing untoward had gone on between them.
CHAPTER 8
The spanking she'd received had made her weary, and Emma didn't have time to ponder upon the turmoil of thoughts going through her head, because sleep claimed her almost as soon as she set her head upon the pillow.
She woke up with a jolt when dawn's grey light was rising, and sat up in sheer astonishment to find Master Archer on the other side of the bed, holding a sleeping Robin upon his chest. Arthen's eyes were wide open when he looked upon her, and it looked as if he hadn't gotten much sleep.
"That tooth again," he said wearily. "He was fitful and whimpering all night."
"You should have woken me," Emma chided him with narrowed eyes.
"I had my sleep last night. I let you have yours," he countered, and his voice was mild and not sharp as he said it.
Gently, he shifted the child and laid him on the bed between himself and Emma.
"I think he'll sleep now. At last," he whispered, and there was a tender look upon his face as he glanced upon Robin.
Emma was startled. She never recalled having seen men look tenderly upon their young or tending upon a sick child the waymothers usually did. And she recalled she'd deemed this man useless last night when she'd tended to the child herself. Emma now resolved her sheltered life and her husband's rough ways had not taught her much about the ways of most men. But then she recalled that, from the start, she'd understood Master Archer was not like most men.
At present, Master Archer seemed to have dozed off, undoubtedly weary from having watched over Robin during the night. Through hooded eyes, she watched both the archer and his son, suppressing a smile at how alike the man and his child looked when their eyes were closed. It was only Robin's blue eyes which set him apart from his father, and now that the child was sleeping, the resemblance between them was striking. They made a beautiful picture.
Nearly blushing, she became aware they were sharing a bed together with the child as if they were a true family. But she didn't have time to finish the thought, because Arthen suddenly opened sleepy eyes with a sigh.
"It's dawn," he muttered, and Emma understood he was only talking to himself.
He sat up, stretching, and at last perceived Emma's avid eyes upon him. Frowning, he looked away from her, and Emma recalled she was still angered with him from last night.
"What will you do today?" he asked coldly.
"I'll watch the child," Emma answered, just as coldly, although she knew she could not blame him for not trusting her.
"See that you do," he tossed out in sheer disdain, and Emma told herself there was no reason she should attempt to share her secret with him at this time.
Later, Aunt Royse came to look upon Robin who, just like yesterday, seemed happy and unconcerned as if he hadn't spent a fitful night.
"See there – the tooth. It's finally pierced through. It will not bother him again," Aunt Royse proclaimed in satisfaction after she'd inspected Robin's gum.