She rolled her eyes. "Well... it's something you've been wanting."

"I've got it! You bought me that stallion I've been hoping to talk Claymont into selling."

"Better than that."

"What could possibly be better? That horse is remarkable. He'll sire a line of Thoroughbreds that will make our racing stable famous."

She gave him a playful smile. "What else have you been wanting?"

"Right now, I'm wanting to throttle you-or better yet, drag you down in the grass and make love to you until you're too tired to give me any more trouble."

Lee laughed. Slowly the laughter faded. She walked closer, slid her arms around his neck. "I'm giving you a son, Caleb. Or perhaps it will be a daughter."

His heart stopped beating. He had to take a long deep breath to get it started again. "Sweet God, Lee." The kiss he gave her was fierce and yet he hoped she could feel the tenderness. "I'm going to be a father." He could hardly believe it. As much as he wanted a family, he had never really believed it would happen. "That's the very best surprise I've ever had. Thank you, my love."

They talked of the future. She told him the child would not arrive for six more months, and they began making plans for its arrival. All the while, he kept glancing down at the soft curve of her belly and thinking that she carried his babe. Caleb didn't care whether the child was a boy or a girl; he simply wanted it to be healthy.

They picnicked in the small copse of trees, well out of sight of the house, and when they were finished, he stretched out on the blanket and pulled her down on top of him.

"I'm still hungry," he said, nibbling the side of her neck. "The chicken was delicious but I want you for dessert."

Lee laughed softly. She didn't resist when Caleb began to unfasten the front of her riding habit. He filled his hands with her breasts and noticed how full they were, wondered why he hadn't noticed before. He kissed her deeply, wildly aroused, wanting her even more than he usually did. She was his wife, soon to be the mother of his child. He wanted to imprint himself upon her, claim her in some primitive fashion and so, as he kissed her, he rolled her beneath him and dragged up her skirt.

"I want you, Caleb," she said, coaxing his mouth down to hers and kissing him again.

Caleb opened the front of his breeches and freed himself. "God, you are so sweet," he whispered. He slid himself inside her, felt her close around him. Like a schoolboy, he found himself fighting for control. Beneath her skirt, he cupped her bottom, lifted her against him, and slowly started to move.

Her soft flesh surrounded him, took him even deeper.

"More," Lee whispered, meeting each of his thrusts, urging him deeper still. He took what she offered, gave back what he could. He didn't stop until she reached release, then he allowed himself to follow. She was his. He wanted her to know it. She smiled at him as if she did.

It was late afternoon when they returned to their horses and started back to the house, a lovely sprawling stone mansion built in the shadow of what had once been an ancient keep.

"I never thought that in just eight months I would feel so utterly tamed," Caleb said with a feeling of contentment.

Lee just laughed. "I doubt, my love, that you will ever be truly tamed-and I wouldn't have it any other way."

Caleb just smiled. Under that sweet exterior, there remained a trace of Vermillion, just enough to keep things interesting. Caleb thought how much he loved her and hoped she never knew exactly the sort of power she held over him.

"Are you up for a race?" she asked, casting him an impish smile.

"What about the babe?"

"He is yet some months away. It isn't a problem."

Caleb grinned. "All right, then. Anytime you are ready."

Lee grinned and leaned over her horse. At breakneck speed, they set off down the hill.

end.