Sarai, Mary's best friend, had just turned 16, and was summoned before her father, Levi. “I've found a suitable husband for you, my daughter. You will be betrothed to him soon.”
Two weeks later, after the end of the Sabbath, Sarai was swiftly guided through the courtyard, her heart pounding as a glimpse of a chuppah—a beautifully adorned canopy—caught her eye in the yard. Sarai was led to the main room, where her mother, Rebekah, and Aunt Martha dressed her in a soft ankle-length tunic with long sleeves. Over it, they draped a deep blue mantle with brightly colored embroidery along the edge. Sarai had seen her mother embroidering this on the roof when the weather was nice. The mantle was tied at the waist by an intricately woven cord that Aunt Martha had brought with her. A large cream colored wool scarf with fringed edges was draped over her head and pinned with two fibulas to frame her face; a cloth band sewn with small copper coins was put over it to symbolize the worth she would bring to her groom's family. A glass bead necklace completed her ensemble.
A light dawned in her mind and illuminated her thoughts. Today must be the day of her betrothal! But to whom? Left alone in the stillness of her room, Sarai pondered this profound possibility as her mother and Aunt Martha rushed out to finalize the preparations. She paced, fingered the fringes of her mantle, and listened as the coins on her headband jingled against each other.
Sarai’s mother, Rebekah, entered the house and spoke gently, yet with urgency. “It’s time. We have found the perfect husband for you, and it is time for your betrothal.”
With that, they stepped into the courtyard, where a man waited, dressed in his finest clothing. He had light brown hair and brown eyes. His shoulders were broad and his hands rough from working with stone, but Sarai was not displeased with what she saw. In his hands, he held a carved stone perfume flask. “This is your betrothal gift,” he said, his voice warm and inviting. “I am David. You are to be my bride.”
Sarai felt a thrill of disbelief and delight as she gazed at David's thoughtful offering. It would be perfect for the perfume she had received in a clay flask from Mary for her birthday. Her heart swelled with gratitude at the fortune of being betrothed to such a diligent and caring man. Her father was a wise man for choosing a husband who could provide a good living for them.
Once they had signed the marriage contract, and David presented a mohar of 50 denarii to Sarai's father, Sarai and David shared a cup of wine to seal the covenant. David handed Sarai a small coin and said, “Behold you are consecrated to me with this coin according to the law of Moses and Israel.” The ceremony concluded and the celebration burst forth with joy. David’s father had generously provided a lamb for the feast, while baskets that brimmed with fresh figs, sun-ripened dates, and luscious grapes were set upon tables. A separate basket filled with creamy goat cheese stood beside hearty loaves of bread, each item a symbol of abundance and shared joy.
As the festivities wound down, David departed to his father's house where he was building a room in the courtyard. It seemed that some Roman official or another was always needing a new building or house, so he always had steady work.
Sarai would continue to live with her parents for a year, when David would come to claim her.
In the days that followed the betrothal, Sarai and David found themselves in each other’s company almost daily, after he completed his work as a stonemason. Under the watchful gaze of Rebekah or Levi at Sarai's house, or the watchful eye of Job when Sarai went to see the progress that David had made on the house he was building for them, they learned about each other’s joys and dislikes, layering their relationship with a foundation of intimacy and trust. Sarai committed every cherished story and preference David shared to her memory, nurturing a silent hope to be the perfect wife when they began their life together.
Several times, when David was working on the room he was building onto his father's house and Job, his father, had retired to take an afternoon nap, Sarai and David had sneaked into the woods where they kissed and explored each other with their hands. Sarai would feel the lump growing between David's legs, and would press against him before drawing back. A year seemed like an eternity to wait, yet it passed very quickly.
A year after her betrothal, Sarai saw that the kad (water jar) was empty and she hefted it to her shoulder and headed to the spring to fill it. As she left the house, her friend Mary joined her, also with a kad. “I see we're heading in the same direction,” she said. “It's so good to have you home.” She looked pointedly at Mary's large belly, but didn't ask questions. This would not be the first baby ever born in the village less than a year after a betrothal, and Mary had already been claimed as a bride by Joseph. She did, however, ask Mary about her wedding night, and what it felt like to be with her husband. All she got, however, was a cryptic answer. “You will find out soon.”
When she returned with the full jar of water, Rebekah, Sarai's mother, came to her and put kohl on her eyelids. She and Aunt Martha put olive oil on Sarai's face, rubbing it in until Sarai had a beautiful glow. She stained Sarai's hands, the bottoms of her feet, and her fingernails with henna. This was normally done the day before the wedding, but it had been the Sabbath so it couldn't be done until just before the wedding. Mary came in and helped Rebekah dress Sarai in her best red tunic and a cloak, cinched with an elaborate leather belt. A delicate woolen veil was put over her hair and face, and a metal headdress much like a crown, adorned with glass beads and small coins, was placed upon her head. Sarai was happy, knowing that David must be coming for her. It had been a year, and today was the day of her nissuin (wedding)! Her heart beat fast with anticipation.
She dabbed a tiny bit of perfume on Sarai’s wrists before stepping back, giving her the once-over, and saying, “Now we wait.”
At dusk, a great commotion was heard in the courtyard. Sarai heard a rustling around her as Rebekah, Mary, and Aunt Martha lit the oil lamps.
The procession arrived, playing music, and shouting that the bridegroom was on the way. “I have come to claim my bride,” David confidently stated. He was dressed in his best haluk. He had a crown of flowers and leaves on his head.
Rebekah led Sarai out of the house, and placed her hand in David's. Levi gave a final blessing on the couple, and David led Sarai out of the courtyard. The procession, carrying torches, led the couple through town to David's new house not far from the village square. David was careful to make sure that Sarai didn't trip over the nuts and grains that they were being pelted with as symbols of fertility, as she could not see through her veil: it was a symbol of her purity.
Before they entered the chuppah, the room that David had built for them, the village elders blessed a cup of wine, and Sarai and David drank from it before they entered the room. David lit an oil lamp, then let down the curtain that separated the chuppah from the courtyard. His best friend stood guard outside to make sure none of the revelers disturbed them. This was to be their new home.
David took Sarai gently in his arms. “Don't worry, my sweet wife, for you are safe with me. I will be gentle with you.” A comfortable pallet had been prepared for them. They reclined while they listened to the feast outside. He carefully removed the headdress and veil, so he could look at her beautiful hair. She was his at last. They ate a dinner of dates and cheese, which they fed to each other. They drank some wine while they talked about the possibility that the drunken revelry makers would demand proof that the marriage had been consummated.
Their hands explored each other's bodies. His hands ran through her long, dark hair before David asked Sarai to stand up so he could spread a white blanket on the pallet. Sarai, knowing that it was her wedding night, stood up, and in a dance older than time, started removing her clothing for her husband. First, off came the leather belt, which she tossed to David. He caught it and reclined to watch the show that Sarai innocently performed. Next, she removed her cloak, folding it neatly and placing it on the floor next to the wall. David's erection grew as he caught a glimpse of her ankles, and her tunic molded her ass as she bent over. He stood up, and after taking off his tunic, he bent over and took the hem of Sarai's tunic and drew it off over her head.
He bent his head to kiss her and guided her hand to his erect cock.
Sarai's eyes went wide in shock as David put her hand on him. She had never seen a phallus, as graven images were forbidden by the Jewish religion.
“It's ok, you are my wife,” David said. “Together we will learn.”
They reclined on the mat and Sarai's hands again went to David's cock. She was fascinated by the contrast of the stiffness of it, and the silkiness of the skin. As she rubbed it up and down, he groaned, then stopped her. “I need to make you mine, now.”
David pushed her back and kissed her. His hands explored her body. He noted that she arched her hips when he reached her nipples and briefly played with them, before he continued on to push her legs apart. He ran his fingers down her labia and opened them up. She moaned and bent her legs, which opened them wider for his exploration.
Sarai moaned in delight as David briefly explored her nipples before his hands went between her legs. She was wanting more, and bent her legs to give him better access to the delightful things his fingers were doing to her. She moaned in delight as he pushed a finger against her pussy, then winced as he reached her barrier.
David put one finger into Sarai's pussy, and stopped when he reached her hymen. He carefully searched with his finger until he could feel an opening, and pushed one finger into her.
Sarai tensed, then relaxed as she felt a finger enter her completely. A delicious sensation ran through her body, from her nipples to her pussy, as David continued to explore her body with his finger inside and he sucked on her nipples.
Her barrier wasn't yet broken, just stretched so it would be easier for David to break.
David was at his breaking point. He could no longer hold back, and he moved between Sarai's legs, positioning the tip of his throbbing cock at the entrance to her pussy. He put her legs on his shoulders for better access, and bent down to kiss Sarai, then took her nipples in her mouth, one at a time, which excited them both more.
Looking into Sarai's eyes, David slowly pushed the head of his cock into Sarai's wet pussy until he reached her barrier, then pulled mostly out, repeating it until her hips were thrusting up to meet his.
Her pussy was dripping from the excitement. She felt David's cock enter her, and slowly he started thrusting, moving just deep enough to hit her unbroken barrier. Her eyes met his trustingly, and her hips were bucking up to match her thrusts. The feeling was delicious and she was ready for him. “Make me yours, my husband,” Sarai gasped. Her fingers moved to his nipples, which hardened when she fingered them. David groaned and, with one thrust he broke through her barrier and entered her to his hilt. He stopped moving, making sure that Sarai was ok.
Sarai felt David thrust through her barrier. There was a brief sting, then she felt a fullness within her. She felt David stop moving, but her upward thrusts didn't stop. A pressure was building inside her which she couldn't stop.
Sarai hadn't stopped moving under David, so he resumed thrusting into her. He felt a pressure building inside him. He wasn't going to last much longer. He felt Sarai's pussy spasming tightly around him and he let go, shooting his life deep into her body.
Sarai shuddered as she came and her pussy tightened around David's cock.
David slipped from Sarai's body and they lay beside each other in post-coital bliss.
“I have to give my groomsman the blanket, my love.”
He wiped between Sarai's legs, making sure that the blood from her broken hymen stained the blanket, then took it and handed it with a short murmured conversation to his best friend on the other side of the curtain.
Sarai and David heard the celebration start up outside. This revelry would continue for the next seven days, although Sarai and David would not emerge from the chuppah until the following morning. They were occupied for the night in what they had both discovered to be a very enjoyable pastime.
Sarai was content: David was truly her husband and they would spend the rest of their lives together.
