The Farmer's Reluctant Bride (4 page)

Hank had told her she shouldn’t
venture out on her own, but Mandy just couldn’t bear to wake him. He was
sleeping so soundly and he worked so hard. The cabin was toasty warm, too. Hank
must have been waking every few hours to feed the fire. Mandy didn’t think it
necessary to wake him for what would simply be a quick trip to the outhouse and
back. He’d never even know she’d gone.

She opened the back door to pure
white. Everything was covered with snow and it continued to fall, blocking view
of all that lay beyond the frame of the cabin’s back door. Mandy had never seen
anything like it in her life. They certainly didn’t have snow like this in the
city. She figured she’d better move fast if she wanted to get out and get back
before Hank woke up to feed the fire.

Grabbing the rope close to where it
was attached to the cabin’s wall, Mandy stepped out into the blinding snow and
pulled the door closed behind her. She moved carefully yet as quickly as
possible, holding tight to the rope as she went. It didn’t take long to get to
the outhouse and take care of her business.

But getting back was a different
story.
How could it have gotten so much worse in the minute or two she had
been in the outhouse?
Mandy wondered. And it had been bad enough going from
the cabin to the outhouse. Mandy began to question her decision to not wake
Hank.

But it wasn’t that far, she
reminded herself. The thing that worried her was that, when she had closed the
outhouse door, she was still able to see the cabin through the snowfall. When
she opened the door again, all Mandy could see was white.

Nothing but white.

She couldn’t stay here in the
outhouse. It was too cold. Also, she knew when Hank woke up to find her gone,
he would come looking for her. What if something happened to him? It would be
her fault. She really should have woken him up. Mandy knew that standing in the
cold dark outhouse wasn’t going to solve anything. And the snow wasn’t getting
any lighter. She had to just move.

Mandy opened the door and reached
for the spot where the rope was tied. Grabbing tight to it with both hands, she
put one foot in front of the other.

Three steps away from the outhouse
door, the wind, so strong now that Mandy could hardly keep from being blown
down, took that door right off its hinges.

Mandy screamed as the door flew
right past her head, missing her by inches. Her scream was swallowed by the
snow and she screamed again when the wind whipped the rope she held onto for
dear life right out of her hands.

Mandy felt the wind gusts push her
down into the snow. She was powerless against the storm. The last thing she
recalled was feeling cold, so very cold.

*  
*   *

Hank was dreaming that Mandy was
lost in the corn rows, like she had been on that first night when he brought
her home. He heard her scream. She wouldn’t stop screaming.

He woke with a start and sat
upright. Something was wrong.

A quick look around him and Hank
knew right away what it was. The bed was empty, the covers pulled back as if
the occupant was coming right back.
Mandy
!

Hank’s mind was working faster than
his feet would carry him as he pulled his boots and coat on and reached for the
back doorknob. It wasn’t very far from the cabin to the outhouse, which is
exactly where he figured her to have gone, but she could be anywhere. In a
whiteout, a body couldn’t see even one foot in front of itself.

Hank opened the back door and
quickly located the rope. It hadn’t snapped so at least he could make use of
it. Hank moved as quickly as he could through the blinding snow. If Mandy had
gone down for any reason, she wouldn’t last long in this. He had to find her
fast or he knew he would lose her.

Hank had nearly reached the
outhouse, which he could just make out through the white, when he felt his left
foot bump up against something. He dropped down to his knees and dug through
the snow that covered the large lump on the ground. It was Mandy.

Hank managed to pick her up and
drape her over his shoulders. It was the most efficient way to carry her since
he still need to hold fast to the rope. He quickly made his way back to the
cabin and secured the door behind him.

Working quickly, Hank placed her
gently down on the bed. He took a deep breath to steel himself, then placed two
of his fingers on her neck. He breathed out a sigh of relief when he felt her
heartbeat. It was weak but it was there. He proceeded then to remove every
frozen snow covered pieced of clothing from her body.

Hank threw the sodden clothing to
the floor and then covered Mandy’s naked body with every blanket and quilt that
they had in the cabin. He moved the bed close to the fire and added firewood
until it was blazing. She still hadn’t come to.

He knew of only one other thing to
do. Hank stripped off his clothes and climbed under the covers. He pulled
Mandy’s cold body up against his in an attempt to warm her with his own body
heat. He wrapped himself around her and covered her naked flesh with as much of
his own as he could manage.

They lie together on the bed for
awhile, Hank rubbing her wherever his skin wasn’t actually pressed against her.
After a bit, he felt her begin to warm. She even began to move a little. It
almost seemed that she was snuggling up against him, enjoying the warmth of his
body.

Hank very reluctantly rose from the
bed to add wood to the fire, which had gone down quite a bit. Mandy had warmed
up some and Hank knew she was out of the woods now and would be alright. He
checked her over quickly for frostbite. She seemed okay, but he would do a more
thorough check first thing in the morning, along with taking her over his knee
and giving her a sound spanking for disobeying him. That one act of
disobedience could very well have cost her her life.

He climbed back under the covers,
anxious to enjoy every last bit of this contact with Mandy. Even if he couldn’t
do anything more than hold her close, Hank was still grateful to do that and
grateful that she was alright.

He pulled her close and she turned
over in her sleep so that her front faced Hank’s. When Hank felt the hard tips
of Mandy’s peaked nipples rub against his chest, he knew he wouldn’t be able to
resist her. He immediately bent his head down and caught one in his mouth,
sucking and licking as if it was the first breast he had ever had. Mandy
moaned. Hank lifted his mouth off her nipple for only a moment in order to
soothe her.

“It’s all right, Sweetheart.” Hank
kept his voice low and gentle. “Let me love you, Mandy. It’s all right.” Then
he went right back to suckling.

God, he had been too long without a
woman! Hank felt himself get hard as a rock in record time. He had already been
hard but had kept it under control in case Mandy stopped him. If she really
wasn’t ready, he had no intention of forcing himself on her. But now he was painfully
hard. And she seemed receptive. She seemed to be enjoying the attention her
breasts were getting.

Mandy moaned and writhed beneath
him and Hank didn’t know how long he would last. He didn’t want to rush this
first time either. He wanted Mandy to have a good experience even though he
knew it was going to hurt her, no matter what he did or how gentle he did it.

But at the very least, Hank could
make sure that she was ready for him. He reached a hand down between them and
slipped one finger inside Mandy. She was hot and tight and slippery wet. Hank
smiled to himself. The sucking and playing on her nipples must have been doing
the trick.

She was responsive. He was grateful
for that. He would have hated to have to deal with a frigid wife, always
wanting and never getting. Always having to force himself on her instead of
having her meet him halfway and enjoy herself too. It made all the difference.
The difference between just a marriage and a happy marriage.

“Mandy? Sweetheart?” Hank wanted
her awake and aware of what was happening. “I want to make love to you, Mandy.
Is that what you want too?”

Mandy opened her eyes and stared
into Hank’s. She had never looked more beautiful to him than she did at that
moment. She slowly nodded her head.

“Yes, Hank. I want that too.” Her
voice was no more than a whisper.

Hank stroked the side of her face
as he leaned over her. “It will hurt this first time. I’m sorry, Mandy. That’s
just how it is.” He kissed her gently then. “But just the one time, then it
won’t hurt again.”

*  
*   *

Mandy nodded, even though she
wasn’t sure she believed Hank. She had been told different by every married
woman she had ever known. But she didn’t want to argue right now. She just
wanted to feel close to him. As close as she could feel. And it felt so good to
be lying in the bed with him like this, to have his body so close and warm.

It made her feel good in a way she
had never felt before and she didn’t want it to end. He kissed her then, a lot
less gently than the first time. His tongue was in her mouth and his hands
roamed her body. Mandy moved beneath him, unable to control her reaction to his
attentions.

Hank’s mouth moved from her mouth
to her breast again, his teeth gently tugging at her nipple while his fingers
tugged at the nipple of the other breast. It was almost more than Mandy could
stand. Mandy ran both hands up Hank’s arms and gripped his shoulders tight,
throwing her head back and moaning.

She wanted something, wanted more.

She wanted more of him. She tried
to pull him closer from where her hands gripped his shoulders, but Hank was
pulling back a bit.

 “Open for me, sweetheart.” He
coaxed, using one hand to gently push her knees apart and slip his own between
her legs. Hank kneeled on that one knee between Mandy’s legs and slipped each
of his arms under Mandy’s legs, hooking each one of her legs over the crook of
each of his arms.

As he leaned onto the bed with one
hand on each side of her, Mandy’s legs were spread and her knees pulled back
almost near her head. Before she even had a chance to protest—Mandy wasn’t sure
that she liked being spread apart this way, she felt like she couldn’t move—she
felt something down near her woman parts. The next instant Hank entered her in
one swift hard thrust.

Mandy screamed. She felt a sharp pain
inside and an incredible fullness. He had forced his manhood inside her and it
hurt!

“It hurts.” Mandy cried and looked
at him imploringly.

“Sh, sh, sh,” Hank soothed. But he
didn’t move. “Just give it a minute and the pain should ease. I’m big and it’s
your first time. You’ll stretch a bit and it won’t hurt so much.”

Mandy tried to move but couldn’t in
the position he had her in. Hank pulled out just a bit and slowly reentered. He
did that a few more times and it began to feel good.

Hank smiled down at her. “Better?”
he asked.

Mandy was surprised at how the pain
at eased and almost completely disappeared already. “Yes.” Mandy smiled back at
him and he kissed her. “Better.”

Hank started into rocking in and
out of her and Mandy could feel every inch of him on every thrust. She watched
his face as he made love to her and thought he had never looked more handsome
to her than he did when he was working his manhood in and out of her.

She didn’t recall ever seeing the
look on his face she was seeing right now. Maybe this was what love looked
like. She still really couldn’t be sure.

Hank started picking up speed,
going faster and faster, until he let out a loud groan, slammed hard into Mandy
and then collapsed on top of her. She immediately put her arms around him and
held him tight. She didn’t even let go when he rolled to the side, moving with
him as he held her tight too. The snow was still falling hard outside the cabin
and the wind still whipping about.

Hank and Mandy both fell fast
asleep in each other’s arms, in bed together for the first time since their
marriage.

The silence at the table was
deafening. Hank ate silently while Mandy tried to focus on her plate. The tears
were already gathering in her eyes and making it hard to see. Hank was more
than halfway through his supper when he looked up to see that Mandy hadn’t
touched a bite.

“If you’re not going to eat, then
you can go stand in the corner until I’m finished.”

Mandy rose slowly at Hank’s command,
swiping quickly at both eyes with the back of her hand, and picked up her plate
to put in the wash bucket.

“Leave it be—I’ll clean up.”

Mandy put her plate down without
meeting Hank’s eyes.

“Corner. Now.”

“Yes, sir.” Mandy’s voice was no
more than a whisper, but even with that weak response it was all she could do
not to burst into tears. She walked slowly over to the corner and pressed her
nose into it, trying to keep hold of herself until the actual punishment began.

It wasn’t the spanking itself that
Mandy was crying over. She pretty much knew what to expect as far as that went,
since Hank had been pretty consistent to this point in their marriage. He
hadn’t ever punished her more harshly than she was able to bear.

Oh, it hurt. Hank had a very hard
and large hand, calloused from all the work he did. He was a lean man, but his
trim physique was deceptive. He was powerfully strong. And his spankings hurt.
She usually couldn’t sit for any length of time for at least a day or two.

No, if he decided that a spanking
was in order then he did it right and proper every time. And so far Hank had
never used anything other than his hand to hit her. No belt, or hairbrush, or
switch, even though he had threatened those things a few times. Nope, only his
big hard hand. That was more than enough for Mandy.

Mandy was crying over the fact that
she needed to be punished in the first place. She had let him down and his
disappointment was unbearable to her. She wished he would punish her a bit more
harshly this time. Maybe it would wash away the guilt that she felt.

She hadn’t meant to lose her
temper. And at a church function to boot. She had embarrassed Hank, she knew he
was ashamed of her and she had truly started out the day with every intention
of doing him proud.

When Hank had first mentioned going
to church the previous Sunday, Mandy had been apprehensive. Her experiences
with the church and those who attended with fervor had been negative. Mandy had
never failed to feel that she was being judged whenever she attended church by
those whose circumstances in life were much more fortunate. In the eyes of the
church, Mandy had always been a “lost soul.” She resented the label put on her
by those people and turned away from the church and its teachings.

When she expressed doubt at
attending services, Hank had explained to her that he didn’t expect her to
share in his beliefs. She was allowed her own. But it was something he enjoyed
and wanted his wife to experience it with him. She liked the sound of that, and
felt flattered rather than forced or offended.

Plus, Hank had explained that there
was a potluck dinner after every Sunday service so that folks could socialize.
It was a chance to talk to other families in the area, especially at a time of
year when most folks hadn’t gotten out much due to the weather. It had been a
long cold winter and the idea of going somewhere, anywhere, was mighty
appealing. They both had cabin fever and needed to get out. And so Mandy had
actually been looking forward to services and the chance to meet some folks
afterward.

She had planned to prepare her best
dish, Hank’s favorite, a shepherd’s pie. She rose early that morning so that it
would be done in plenty of time. Mandy had made an apple pie to go with it the
night before. Hank teasingly complained that morning when he came in from his
chores for breakfast.

“Doesn’t seem right that a man’s
got to eat plain biscuits from last night’s supper for his morning meal while
smelling all that good cooking that isn’t even meant for him!”

Mandy laughed at him. “You’ll
survive. Besides, Hank, it
is
meant for you. I’m making your favorite!”

“Well, I’d best get some then.
You’ve never seen Hermann Johansson eat. If I don’t get mine before he gets to
it, they’ll be none left.”

Mandy laughed again.

“Honest, sweetheart, I’ve been to
these socials before and yours will be the best dish and pie there.” He leaned
over and gave Mandy a quick kiss on the cheek before heading back out to hitch
up the team for the ride into town.

Mandy watched him go out and the
realization hit her. Of course, he’d been to the church social before.
With
Susannah
! All these people had known his late wife and she was meeting them
for the first time.

Mandy got a sick feeling in the pit
of her stomach. Would they all compare her to Susannah? Would they dislike
Mandy if they had liked her? Why hadn’t she realized this until just now?

Maybe she could claim to feel ill
and beg Hank to let her stay home. She did feel a bit queasy all of a sudden. But
it was too late now to try to make an excuse for herself. She knew Hank well
enough by now to know that he wouldn’t fall for anything she could conjure up
at this late hour. Mandy decided to muster what courage she had and face
whatever the day had in store for her.

*  
*   *

Hank wanted an answer and intended
to spank Mandy until she gave it to him. She was being awful stubborn.

“Now, young lady,” Hank emphasized
his words with a hard smack to Mandy’s round, bare behind, which to Hank’s
satisfaction had filled out nicely since she had come to live with him, “I want
you to tell me what those two women said to you.” Hank raised his arm and
brought his hand down firmly on her backside right where her thighs creased
against her buttocks.

Mandy cried out but remained silent
otherwise.

“Now, Amanda.” Hank’s voice became
sterner. “Or I’ll take off my belt.”

Mandy squirmed at the threat of
being spanked with Hank’s belt. But she still didn’t answer him.

“I’m not telling you that whatever
they said to you justifies what you did. It doesn’t. But I still want to know
so I can put a stop to any further problems.” Hank brought his large hand down
hard on Mandy’s left thigh first and then her right. Then the left again.

“I guess I’m not making myself
clear enough.” Hank stopped spanking then in order to lean back a little and
remove his leather belt from where it was threaded through the loops of his
wool britches. He saw Mandy glance back and catch sight of the belt. Hank felt
his resolve waver for but a moment at the look on Mandy’s face when she saw he
meant to spank her with the belt, even though he had spanked her bare behind to
a bright red already with his hand.

She just looked so dejected and
forlorn, in addition to the fact that she wasn’t speaking to him about what
happened. That was definitely a curious thing, as far as Hank was concerned. It
must have upset her some, that was for sure, and that fact only strengthened
Hank’s resolve to get some answers.

After the service, Hank had been
standing and chatting with some of the other nearby farmers when they all heard
a high-pitched shriek. Turning toward the sound, Hank and the others saw Jenny
Atwater and Millie Connors covered in pie and screaming and crying. The men
started to chuckle at the sight. Several of the other women stood back a bit
from the hysterical scene, but his Mandy was right there front and center,
looking madder than a wet hen and glaring at the two women. It was obvious at
first glance who did what to whom.

Hank had just sighed with
resignation, plopped his hat on his head as he wished his neighbors a good day
and headed over to gather his little troublemaker and set out for home. He had
pulled Mandy from the scene without so much as a word. In fact, neither of them
spoke a word the entire trip back home.

Now he steeled himself to Mandy’s
tears, which always bothered him, and folded the belt in half as he questioned
her once more.

“Now, Amanda Rose, are you going to
tell me what was said at that church social that elicited such a response from
you?”

Mandy started to struggle, bucking
and squirming, on Hank’s lap and he had to readjust her, moving her forward a
bit and then locking her legs under his right leg to keep her still.

“Amanda?” Hank’s arm pulled back
and brought the strap down on her red behind.

Mandy cried out.

“Tell me right now, young lady.”
Hank strapped her again, raising a puffy red stripe across the center of her
bare buttocks.

“Stop, please.” Mandy begged
through her tears. “It hurts so.”

“As soon as you tell me, I’ll stop
this lickin’ you’re getting. But I intend to strap you until you talk to me.”

“Please, Hank, please.”

Hank could barely understand her
she was blubbering so much and trying to speak at the same time. “Tell me,” he
ordered.

“I can’t. I just can’t.”

“You can and you will, young lady,
if I have to spank you all night.” He stopped questioning and focused on
spanking.

Mandy cried and Hank spanked. The
only sounds in the cabin were Mandy’s sobs and the strap slapping down on her
swollen behind. It took several more licks from Hank’s belt before Mandy spoke.

“They said I wasn’t pretty like
Susannah!” Mandy cried it out then practically choked on the words, coughing
and sputtering afterward.

Hank immediately stopped the
strapping at Mandy’s words.

She continued relaying the hurtful
comments that were laid upon her that morning. “I don’t behave proper like
Susannah did.” She seemed to be crying harder as she spoke.

“I don’t dress as nice. My shepherd’s
pie wasn’t so good. Susannah made it better once for the church potluck.” Hank
was lifting her up and turning her to sit on his lap. Mandy hissed at the
contact with his rough woolen britches.

Hank cradled her on his lap. He was
careful to place her on his left thigh resting on the backs of hers, with her
punished and tender behind not pressed against his leg. She pressed herself
against his chest and just cried.

She did the same thing each and
every time she was spanked. And Hank did the same thing each and every time
too. He held her and stroked her hair and spoke softly to her until her crying
stopped and her breathing had evened out a bit.

“I’m sorry that those ladies acted
so hurtful toward you.” Hank spoke in a low voice. “I had hoped that you would
have a nice day and maybe make a friend or two.”

This statement just seemed to renew
Mandy’s tears.

“No,” she cried, “I’m the outsider
here just like I’ve always been.” She paused to catch her breath.
“And...and...it sounds like Susannah was p...p...perfect.” Mandy was coughing
her words out because she was crying so hard again.

Hank shook his head, as much to
himself as to negate Mandy’s comment. He had loved Susannah with all his heart,
but she had been far from perfect.

“Mandy, sweetheart, no one is
perfect. No one.” Hank readjusted Mandy a bit on his lap in order to get her
full attention. “Now I want you to understand something. I loved Susannah. She
was my wife. But she wasn’t perfect.”

“But they liked her. They don’t
like me.” Mandy sounded forlorn.

“You just need to give them some
time, sweetheart,” Hank assured her as best he could. “It may be they’re still
missing her. I know it’s a difficult thing to do, but try to be patient with
them. And if they don’t come around to liking you eventually, well that’s their
loss as far as I see it.” Hank smiled at her, but Mandy answered him with a
frown.

“Oh, no,” she shook her head at
him. “No, I’m not going to any of those functions ever again. Ever.”

“I’ll be the one to say whether or
not you go and you will be going.”

Mandy was shaking her head at him
as Hank spoke.

“Yes, Mandy. You will go again next
week, and the week after. If I’m going, you’re coming with me.”

“No, Hank, please. I don’t want to
go ever again. I don’t want to see those women ever again!” Mandy’s voice held
a hint of desperation, but Hank was adamant.

“It’s not open for discussion,
young lady. You’ll come with me.” He knew he couldn’t waver on this point. He
had to be firm and not allow her to hide from Susannah’s memory, as hard as it
may prove to be for her. And him.

“Sara wasn’t there today. Hermann
told me she’s been feeling poorly. Otherwise, she would have been a friend to
you.”

Mandy perked up a bit at Hank’s
words. “Sara is Hermann’s wife, right?”

“Yes’m. Hermann said she’s been
looking forward to making your acquaintance,” Hank assured her.

“Why is she not feeling well?”

“She’s expecting a child soon and
Hermann says she’s just real tired.” Hank paused. “It’s their sixth child.”

“Goodness, that’s a lot,” Mandy
said, sitting up a bit straighter now and wiping her wet eyes on the backs of
her sleeves. Hank reached into his chest pocket and produced his handkerchief
for Mandy to use. “It’s no wonder she’s tired. Maybe I could go over to their
place one day this week and help out.” She blew her nose and looked at Hank
hopefully.

“That’s a real nice idea, Mandy. 
I’m sure Sara would appreciate it and then you two would get to meet each
other.” Hank was struck by her thoughtfulness. She really was a sweet thing.
“I’ll figure which day would be all right for me to take some time away from my
chores.”

Mandy continued. “I could help with
the birth too, if need be.”

Now Hank was intrigued. “Really?
You have some experience with those things?”

“Yes sir,” Mandy replied, her voice
full of assurance. Hank couldn’t recall hearing this exact tone from her lips
before now.