Medieval Mischief Read online

  MEDIEVAL MISCHIEF

  An Ellora’s Cave publication written by

  MYLN HURN

  MS Reader (LIT) ISBN # 1-84360-608-9

  Other available formats (no ISBNs are assigned):

  Adobe (PDF), Rocketbook (RB), Mobipocket (PRC) & HTML

  © Copyright Myln Hurn, 2003.

  All Rights Reserved, Ellora's Cave.

  Ellora's Cave Publishing, Inc. USA

  Ellora's Cave Ltd, UK

  This e-book may not be reproduced in whole or in part by email forwarding, copying, fax, or any other mode of communication without author/publisher permission.

  Edited by KARI BERTON

  Cover Art by DARRELL KING

  Certain images contained within this e-book have been digitally marked by Digimarc Corp. If you purchased this e-book from a source other than Ellora's Cave or one of its known affiliates, contact [email protected] immediately. Please note that reading this e-book without first purchasing it through legitimate means is illegal and can result in heavy fines. As always, our authors thank-you for your support and patronage.

  Warning:

  The following material contains strong sexual content meant for mature readers. MEDIEVAL MISCHIEF has been rated HARD-R, erotic, by three individual reviewers. We strongly suggest storing this electronic file in a place where young readers not meant to view this ebook are unlikely to happen upon it. That said, enjoy…

  Chapter 1

  “Steady, Angel! No!”

  The horse reared wildly in protest to her abrupt stop. The woman atop the mighty beast attempted to calm her, but it was to no avail. Within seconds, she was thrown into a grassy cushioned area and knocked out cold.

  Avalon awoke slowly from her unconscious state. She could feel her muscles groaning in protest as she moved her head. She cautiously moved her arms then her legs, and everything seemed to be okay. “Thank God above,” she whispered, as she struggled to her feet. She shook her long blond hair back from her face, and then turned to look for her horse. She looked around, moving very slowly, but she couldn’t see the huge white stallion anywhere. She prayed silently that he had been uninjured, and was off somewhere munching on some tall grass, or taking a long drink. Avalon didn’t relish walking back to the encampment.

  She had not gone very far when she heard a noise off to her right. She froze instantly, all of her instincts on full alert. She knew she had not fallen terribly far from the castle, and the last thing she needed was to be found by the castle’s outriders. Before she could react though, she realized that a tall man now stood before her, sword drawn. He resembled a shaggy wolf, or some such creature, with his long, dark-blond hair and full beard.

  Avalon’s breath caught in her throat at that moment. All of her worst fears came rushing at her. She often tested the boundaries of her sheltered existence, but her father’s knights had always been nearby to protect her. And now, due to her own foolishness and bull-headedness, she was alone in the forest, and night was rapidly approaching. All of her mother’s dreaded stories of what could happen to a woman followed quickly and her hand moved to seek her weapon, never far from her reach. But she found that her sword had been knocked loose during her fall and wasn’t hidden at her back as usual.

  * * * * *

  The tall, blond man opposite her laughed when he saw her move for a weapon, and realized it was not there. Lord Brandeis had come into the woods unaccompanied by his knights in order for some peace and quiet, and to gather his last minute thoughts and concerns before the meeting tomorrow. His father had made all the arrangements, but at the last minute, he was chafing at the bit. He knew a man of twenty-eight was usually settled with a wife and children, especially one with his responsibilities.

  To date he had never had the urge to settle with one woman, and the only reason he had agreed now was because his father’s health was fading rapidly. An allegiance between his lands and those of Sir Arundel would enrich both of them beyond any other holding in the realm, save that of king. He knew also that many other lords would fear such power, and some might try and stop the marriage.

  Brand moved closer to the woman, taking in her manly clothing. He had never seen a woman wearing leggings before, and he admitted that her legs did them more justice than any man’s. He could see her full round breasts heaving beneath the thigh-length over tunic she was also wearing. Her hair, blond, he could see still in the rapidly diminishing light, was falling down about her face and shoulders.

  He assumed she was from Sir Arundel’s castle-keep because he was well acquainted with all the young, beautiful women of his lands, and he had never seen this one before. He wondered if the lass would be amenable to a quick tumble. He thought that perhaps a last fling might be in order.

  * * * * *

  Avalon glared at the handsome man standing a few feet from her. He was quite tall and very broad across the shoulders, with muscular arms and chest. She could tell he was wealthy by the sumptuous clothing he was wearing. While it wasn’t velvet, she had been taught to tell finely woven fabrics from cheap imitations. She glanced quickly to the left, and then to the right, weighing her chances of outrunning the man in front of her.

  Brand laughed softly as he saw her looking around. “You’ll never make it, my sweet. My legs are longer than yours.” He lowered his sword, returning the impressive weapon to its scabbard. “There is a small cottage near here, sweet thing. Come with me and I’ll make it worth your while.” He withdrew a small leather bag and jingled it.

  Avalon realized he thought she was a whore, and anger surged through her. What a bastard! She turned frantically, and started running as fast as her small feet would carry her. She saw the small cottage in the distance and thought if she could reach it, she might be able to bar the door…

  * * * * *

  Brand launched himself and took her to the ground easily. He rolled with her, over and over. After several minutes of tussling about, Brand raised himself above her and held her legs easily with his own. Avalon managed to raise one hand and rake her fingernails down the side of his face. Brand howled angrily in pain. He fiercely and quickly subdued her struggles and pulled her to her feet. He pulled his belt free and bound her slender wrists together.

  He pushed her inside the ramshackle cottage that was used for overnight hunting expeditions at times. He shoved her down onto the straw mattress that sat in a corner of the small room. Seeing that wood had been left in the fireplace, he lit a fire with a modicum of effort. Slowly, brushing his hands free of any dirt or soot, he turned to face the angry woman sprawled on the mattress.

  Even with dirt smudged on her face and her disheveled hair adorned with twigs and leaves, she was quite a beauty. Turning away from her glowering look, Brand wasn’t sure if she was truly scared, or just angry at his besting her? Surveying the hunting cabin, he could tell it was rarely used. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a rope was hanging from a sturdy beam in the ceiling. He turned back to the woman and grabbed her hands, which were still bound in front of her. Without a word, he pulled her upwards and over to the hanging rope.

  Avalon struggled to free herself, but he quickly exchanged the leather for the rope. In less than two minutes, Brand had her arms pulled above her head. He tightened the rope just enough so that she was stretched to her tiptoes. If she tried to kick him, she would only spin uselessly on the rope. He had never forced a woman, and he decided he would let this one go, after he had a bit of fun at her expense, of course.

  Moving across the room, he squatted down in front of the fireplace and took his time stoking the fire. He considered his plan carefully. While he was not an inordinately proud man, he had received more than enough proof, since the age of twelve, that women found him attractive. The only protest he
ever heard from a wench he had bedded was “don’t go!” If he used his usual seductive techniques and she succumbed to his usual persuasive ways, then he wouldn’t be forcing her after all, he told himself.

  * * * * *

  When he stood and began walking back toward Avalon, he casually pulled a knife from its decorative scabbard at his waist. He pulled his shirt off, setting aside his weapons for the moment. Her dark blue eyes widened with fear, and something else, as he moved over to her. The firelight glinted off his broad, tanned and lightly furred chest. His muscles rippled with movement, and he looked as if he were a well-trained knight of the realm, instead of the usual vagabond-type frequently caught plundering her father’s forest. His clothing could be cast-offs and therefore belie his true position in life as well.

  Avalon felt her body responding, as it had when he had wrestled her struggling body into submission when he caught her. She had been aroused, and she didn’t want to admit it then, or now. Logically, she argued that she shouldn’t be feeling such things. She angrily kicked out at him, and lost her footing and spun on the rope. This only made her angrier, with herself and at the handsome stranger.

  Biting back the curse words she wanted to hurl at him, she took a deep breath, thinking that perhaps she could reason with the stranger. “If you let me go, I won’t tell anyone. I promise,” she told him haughtily.

  Brand laughed as he moved his hands forward to her slender waist, stopping her spinning. His strong hands felt hot through the thin material as he turned her to face him. He paused to remove the twigs and leaves caught in her hair.

  “I don’t care if you do tell anyone.” He raised his right hand and stroked it lightly down the side of her face, cupping her chin. His eyes fixed on her full, parted lips. Avalon watched his eyes deliberately move down her body. They stopped and stared at her heaving, large, round breasts as she struggled to calm her rapid breathing. He saw the flash of anger in her eyes.

  “My words anger you, do they not? I bet if you could just get one hand free you would scratch my eyes out, wouldn’t you?”

  Avalon nearly spit at him. His words were just taunting her! He was toying with her, damn it! He would regret this day…

  “You are very beautiful.”

  Avalon stared in disbelief as the handsome stranger reached out to lightly caress his hand down the side of her face. He stroked one finger across her lower lip, but pulled it back suddenly when she tried to bite it. Avalon growled in frustration, which grew as the man grinned down at her.

  “Are you afraid of me?”

  Avalon shook her head vehemently in reply, not wanting to bandy words with him. The more he spoke, the more Avalon realized that he probably wasn’t a vagabond or a peasant in spite of his overgrown hair and beard. Perhaps the clothes were not cast-offs from his employer, as she had thought earlier. But why was a well-spoken, finely dressed man who was hairy enough to be a hermit rambling about in her father’s woods if not poaching?

  Brand moved his hand to rest over her heart. Avalon felt the heat of his hand, the weight of it. Her heart was pounding wildly beneath it, and from somewhere deep in hidden womanly places came the unbidden desire for him to lower his hand, and possess her breast. Her eyelids drifted down, as her senses were bombarded by sensual and erotic overload.

  His hand though, moved back up to cup her chin. Her eyes flew open and she met his gaze. “Very beautiful,” he murmured softly. “How many men have told you that before?” he whispered to her, just before he covered her lips with his own.

  Avalon felt his hot mouth capture hers, his tongue forcing its way inside her wet, hot mouth. She tried to bite him, but he withdrew, as if sensing her plan. He stepped away for a moment, his next words both alarming and arousing her.

  “I think you need a bit of taming, my sweet.”

  Avalon shook her head, trying to clear it of the sensual fog. Brand moved to stand behind her. He didn’t speak or move for several moments and then she felt him grabbing her top; the next second she heard the fabric tearing in the silence of the room. Instantly, she felt the cool air against her skin.

  With her heart racing even faster, Avalon shouted over her shoulder to the man. “If you hurt me, my father will kill you! And he won’t make it an easy death either. He’ll torture you for hours—no, days—on end until you weep for the relief that only death could bring!”

  Breathing heavily, Avalon became aware that her shirt hung limply, held in place by her uplifted arms. A moment later, instead of a whip, or a striking blow of some kind, she felt his strong hand, with its slightly roughened skin, gliding lightly downward, from neck to waist, over her soft skin.

  “Such lovely skin, my sweet. It would be a shame to mark it.”

  Avalon gasped at his words. His touch aroused her senses, and his words aroused her even more. What was wrong with her, she wondered in confusion. She had to get out of here, before she did something she would regret. She couldn’t keep the pleading tone from her voice as she spoke. “My father will pay you, if you let me go.”

  She felt the man’s hand pause at her waist. Perhaps the temptation of money would be greater than his lust. But Brand put both hands on her hips and moved to stand close behind her. He pulled her tight to his body, letting her feel his hardness pressed against her soft buttocks. Avalon tensed as she felt his hard body pressed so intimately against hers. His movement made her totally aware of the hard cock moving against her fully rounded ass cheeks. There was no way that Avalon could stop the soft moan that escaped her lips at the same time her ass wiggled and pressed against him.

  Avalon gasped again, feeling wetness gathering between her pussy lips at being treated so roughly. After a lifetime of being catered to, this man’s roughness should have been alarming her, scaring her into hysterics and swoons. Instead, she felt her breasts swelling with her arousal and could tell her nipples had budded into tight awareness as well. She knew that she was losing control and running out of time. It was time for a final plea.

  “I am a maid, sir! You must not take from me what belongs to my future husband!”

  * * * * *

  Brand smiled behind her, and then without warning he jerked at her leggings and pulled them all the way down to her knees. Listening as the woman gasped in surprise, he inhaled deeply. There was no missing the sweet scent of her womanly desire in the air. There was no doubt in his mind that if he probed between her thighs, he would feel her pussy nicely wet and eager.

  Her words and her demand did not surprise him. If anything it aroused him even more. The thought of penetrating her hot little body for the first time, ever, was almost too hot to handle. Instead of replying, he moved his hands to cup her round, full buttocks. She couldn’t stop the soft moan that escaped her lips, and Brand felt his own tension and need escalate. He squeezed the flesh firmly when he heard her soft cry, which was followed by another soft sound, this time a definite moan of womanly arousal.

  Brand released her flesh and moved around to face her. Her top hung limply, but it concealed her full breasts and the tops of her thighs from him. He moved his hands to shift the fabric slightly. It was much more exciting to explore her flesh first and then view what he had been handling, he decided.

  “Like this, your shirt still maintains your secrets,” Brand told her softly. His hands lightly touched her soft belly and then moved upward. “What will I find hidden beneath a man’s tunic?” He cupped her large breasts in his palms, squeezing the sensitive globes.

  “Oh, dear God!” Avalon cried out involuntarily.

  Brand felt her taut nipples beading up even tighter as he squeezed her. He watched her face, which she had turned to the side. But she couldn’t hide her reactions to his touch that easily.

  Brand could see the woman struggled to fight her own emotions as she felt his hands on her body. He held her breasts firmly, kneading them, squeezing them. He stopped to jiggle them slightly, as if weighing them. He softly praised her hard nipples when he moved to touch them with his
fingertips. Each nipple was squeezed lightly and then more firmly. Avalon cried out at the sensations overwhelming her young body.

  Without warning, his one hand deserted her right breast, and moved down over her soft belly. Brand stroked and caressed his way slowly, feeling no need to rush through this seduction. He couldn’t hide the shock of surprise he felt a moment later as he cupped his hand over her womanly mound.

  He’d been imagining what her bush might look like. He’d seen many different types since the kitchen maid initiated him at the age of twelve. Serving in the Crusades, he’d even enjoyed several dark-eyed beauties. Their surprise had been their completely hairless mounds. Thinking about a blond shaggy rug to drag his fingers through, he was more than a little surprised to find her completely hairless.

  Brand looked up into her wide, dark blue eyes. His fingers were stroking her shaven lips. “You are full of surprises, sweet. I can hardly wait to discover what other secrets you hold for me.” He moved his fingers and found her flesh was wet with her arousal fluids. He stared into her eyes as he stroked the wet skin folds, insinuating his fingers between them. “I see you like playing around.”

  He pulled his hands from her soft, warm body. For a moment he paused to look at the wetness covering his fingers. Then he looked up and smiled at her. His smile turned into a grin when Avalon blushed brightly. He put his hands at the neckline of her shirt and ripped it downward. He pushed the material to the sides and gazed at what had to be the most magnificent pair of breasts he had ever seen.

  Her breasts were large for her small body, and perfectly round. They were firm, full and still pert, jutting proudly from her chest. Her nipples were a soft pink color, and tightly distended, begging for his mouth to suck them. He didn’t pause but leaned down and took her right nipple deep inside his mouth, sucking and pulling on the sensitive nubbin. He cupped her left breast while he sucked the right. He licked the tight nipple in his mouth, and when he bit it lightly, she cried out in desire. He lifted his head and gave her left breast a quick fondle and a squeeze before stepping back to stare at her lush body.