by Eliza Knight
A crooked smile turned her lips, and she tried not to laugh. “I should have warned you—soda is not like any other drink you’ve ever encountered. Take another sip.”
“I think not,” he snarled. “You will not be able to off me that easily.”
She laughed, took the bottle from his hand and gulped. “See, just fine! I’m not trying to off you.”
He narrowed his eyes at her. “’Tis not poison?”
She shook her head. “No.”
A measure of relief relaxed his features. “Your world is so different than mine.” His gaze had locked on hers, his steely eyes intense with desire, intrigue, mystery. He stepped forward, advancing toward her—much like a hunter stalking his prey. There wasn’t murder in his eyes, but something else entirely. He stopped in front of her, his soft-booted feet touching her nurse’s clogs. “Did ye find your answers?”
She nodded, glancing down at the folded piece of paper in her hands. “You really are from another time.”
His jaw muscle ticked, and his gaze flicked away for a moment—but not before she saw the heart-wrenching pain filling their depths. Oh, how she hated to see him in pain. What misery he must be feeling. Her chest clenched, and she reached out to him, stroking his cheek, his stubble tickling the pad of her finger.
“I’m sorry, Fin.”
“There is no need for ye to apologize, lass.”
“I know, but all the same, I wish things were different, that we’d met under other circumstances.”
He laughed bitterly. “I do not think ’twould be possible.”
Kari loathed seeing him in pain. Wished she could take it away. There was another way that she could make him forget—as he had on the beach. She’d been his cure then for his fear, his confusion. She wanted to be that again.
She took his hand in hers and led him through the maze of stacks, the books smelling mustier and mustier the deeper they went, lights fading from bright to dull. Now, the only sound heard was their breaths, short and filled with anticipation.
Kari’s heart beat rapidly in her chest, and her whole body tingled with what she hoped would happen next. She did not have to wait or make another move, for before she could take her next breath, Fin whirled her around, his lips capturing hers in a demanding and carnal kiss. And she let him, sinking against him. He needed this escape from his pain.
With his thick muscled body, he edged her against the stacks. His arms braced against the books, trapping her in his embrace. His mouth tantalized hers, while his knee nudged her legs apart. His hard cock pressed against her hot little bud, creating tendrils of radiating pleasure. She arched her back against him, wanting to be closer, wanting to be one.
She slid her hands over his back, feeling the rippling muscles beneath her fingertips, and then down over his ass, gripping firmly, hugging him tighter before she edged lower.
Kari knew what she wanted.
She lifted his kilt, letting her fingernails glide gently over his thighs until she reached the center—and his cock. She wrapped her fingers around his thickness, stroking up and down. Her other hand palmed his sac, massaging and tickling. He growled into her mouth and pressed his cock more firmly against her palm.
His hands moved to her hips, where he roughly tugged her pants down to mid-thigh, his lips branding a path over her neck. Her body was on fire, instantly alive. A feral need took over. She could wait no longer for him to be inside her—to claim her. She wriggled the rest of the way out of her pants, curled her leg around his hip and guided his cock to her wet slit.
Fin took over from there, gripping her ass with one hand and his cock with the other. He slipped the head between her folds and thrust home.
Both cried out at once, their shouts muffled amongst the stacks of books, but even still, their lips sought one another to silence their ecstatic cries. There was no way they wanted this delicious moment to be interrupted.
Their movements were frenzied. He thrust in and out with quick, shallow pumps, and then deep and slow. Back and forth, he teased her, bringing her nearly to the brink, before stopped to draw out her pleasure.
Kari had never had a man take control of her body as Fin did. No one had been able to make her feel this way. He filled her up, stretching her to the point of exquisite pain, and yet she was so wet, so hot for him, that each stroke made her quiver and shake and want to scream.
He whispered hot, erotic words in her ear that made her delirious. Told her how beautiful she was and how much he liked being inside her. “What are ye doing to me, lass? I want to stay buried inside ye forever,” he breathed against her ear, nipping and licking at the lobe.
“Oh yes,” she crooned back, very much wishing this moment would never end.
He gripped the backs of her thighs, lifting her higher, and she hooked her ankles behind his back.
“Harder,” she gasped as he tormented her with more slow strokes.
“As ye command.” He groaned and drove deep, faster and faster.
She could no longer breathe, only pant as he took her to a place she didn’t even know existed.
His mouth was on her neck, her breasts, and she wrenched her scrub shirt up over her head, yanked her bra down, so he could take a nipple between his teeth in earnest. When his hot, velvet mouth closed over her stiff nipple, and he thrust deep, hitting that special spot inside her, Kari’s entire body exploded in sensation. She floated in an ethereal dimension, riding out the waves of her orgasm, gasp after precious gasp.
She bit down on his shoulder to keep herself from screaming out her pleasure, but Fin did not hold back. He roared his orgasm, his body pumping into hers, his arms shaking as he held her, his head falling back.
Damn if he weren’t the hottest thing she’d ever seen.
How the hell had she ever lived without him?
6
After leaving the library, Kari took Fin back to her place—which thankfully, her dumbass boyfriend had vacated. The only thing that remained was a picture of the two of them Steve conveniently left in full view on the dining room table.
“Ye are spoken for?” Fin looked angry for a moment but quickly clouded his emotions.
Kari shook her head, gulped hard. “It’s over.”
“He hurt ye?” Fin came close and stroked his hands over her arms. “I will avenge ye.”
She stroked his arm. “Only my pride.”
“I see there are some things that have not changed. Arseholes still exist.”
Kari cracked a smile. “Yes, and he is not even worth remembering.” She picked up the picture and tossed it into the kitchen trash. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”
The next two hours were spent introducing Fin to modern plumbing—and the pleasures of shower sex. She got onto her knees, took him into her mouth as water cascaded down on them both, and that knocked him into next week. He promptly returned the favor by thrusting his tongue deep inside her slit until Kari thought she would die of pleasure.
When they had finally exhausted themselves, she ordered a pizza, which they ate in bed—and he declared it his new favorite food. She showed him how the television worked. She was surprised that he took to it so easily, to which he replied that he’d traveled through time and that if he could accept that he could accept little people in a box.
The following morning, they awoke early, the sun splitting the curtains with blinding light.
“Kari,” Fin whispered, nuzzling her neck. “I need money.”
She blinked open her eyes and stared into his gorgeous but serious face. “Money?” For a moment, she thought perhaps she had thought up the whole thing, and maybe he was a male hooker.
“Ye said things cost money, not much unlike where I come from. But there we worked as a team. We helped each other. I had a coffer of coins. Here, I have nothing. I need papers.”
She nodded. Yesterday had been a good day for having fun, for letting his new reality sink in, but today they had to get started on a plan. He couldn’t just languish in her apartment. A man like h
im needed a purpose. He was used to taking care of people, being in charge. The one people looked to when they needed help. A protector. His soul would only shrivel until there was nothing left if he didn’t have something meaningful to do.
Kari pushed herself up, and reluctantly out of bed. “Let me call my cousin.”
“Your cousin?” Fin sat up too, following her with his gaze.
She glanced away, embarrassed. “He makes…papers…for people who otherwise don’t have them.”
“Ah, aye. Well, in this case, I think we can overlook that what he makes is forgeries.”
She chuckled. “Thank you.”
Kari made the call to her cousin, who told her to send a picture of Fin to him via email, and that he would get started right away. There was a likelihood he’d even have the papers sent overnight when he finished—which could take about two days.
“Time to get you a new wardrobe.”
“Wardrobe?”
“You can’t walk around in a diner t-shirt and a kilt all the time.” She laughed, coming close and wrapping her arms around his waist. She whispered throatily, “No matter how much I love your kilt.” She proceeded to show him just how much.
A few hours later, Kari drove Fin to the local mall and was completely surprised that what she thought would take hours only took half an hour. Fin was extremely adaptable, and after shifting uncomfortably several times in the snug jeans, trousers, polo shirts and button-downs, he smiled and smoothed the fabric over his body, admiring his physique in the mirror.
He wasn’t the only one admiring. Kari had to remember to keep her mouth closed. With each movement he made, she recalled just how the muscles of his body rippled as he worked her into a sexual frenzy, sliding on top of her, pumping inside her.
She sent a wicked smile in the clothing shop girls’ directions. It was obvious what they were thinking, drooling over Fin. And she couldn’t help admitting to herself that it was satisfying knowing this man was going home with her. To end their shopping spree, they picked up a few pairs of shoes, socks, boxer-briefs, undershirts and toiletries. She rarely used her credit card, preferring it to be for emergencies only, and in this case—it was an emergency.
When they arrived back at her apartment, Kari lined Fin up against a plain white wall and snapped his picture several times using her phone.
“Almost there, Fin.” She peered into the phone screen, zooming in on his features for the perfect identification photo. “Okay, I think we’ve got it.”
He relaxed his stance. “What will I do when the papers come in?”
“I guess, then we’ll have to find you a job.” Kari showed him his image on the screen, and noted his quickly indrawn breath.
“What is this magic?”
“It’s your photo, the camera captures your image on the screen, and we can print it out. Like the photo you found of me and what’s his face.”
“Incredible. Where I’m from images could only be recreated with paint.” He touched the screen, sliding his finger over the image of his face.
“We still have painters nowadays, too, but photographs have replaced painted portraits for the most part.”
Fin nodded and walked toward the window, staring out at the garden below. “What do ye think I can do for money?”
She shook her head and pursed her lips. “I don’t know. What are you good at? What do you like?”
“I am good at fighting. I am a warrior. I am a leader. I take care of my people.”
Images of him boxing in a ring popped through her head. That wouldn’t do. As a warrior he was probably also well-versed in triage. Maybe an EMT? But as a warrior, maybe he wanted to continue in that vein as a soldier. But was it possible for a Scotsman to serve in the US military? She supposed he could, but maybe he wanted to go back to Scotland…
Sudden clarity snapped her out of her dream world—what made her think he wanted to stay?
“I suppose you had better decide where you want to live too…” She trailed off. Her heart felt as though it was leaping into her throat, and her gaze jerked up to meet his. She didn’t want him to leave, and as impossible as it may seem, somewhere in the last twenty-four hours, she had fallen for him.
Silence filled the space between them. Fin studied her, the slowly setting sun forming a magical looking halo around his form. She was sure her soul was bared for him to see.
Finally, what felt like an eternity later, he spoke. “I want to be right here. With ye.”
She shook her head. As much as she’d wanted to hear those words, as much as she wanted him to stay, she couldn’t in good conscience force him into it. He didn’t belong here, and she couldn’t be selfish, keeping him in her time when he belonged back in his. Or at the very least, his own country where he might have a chance to start over. “No. You can’t. You don’t even know me. The whole world is laid open at your feet. You can do anything, go anywhere, be with anyone.”
His lip quirked up at the side, and a twinkle came into his eyes. “I was a laird, Kari. I know what I want.”
Still, she denied him. She wouldn’t let him stay with her simply because she had tripped over him in a parking lot and bought him some clothes. Not to mention the incredible, earth-shattering sex. “Keep your options open. The grass is always greener.”
“And there are always more sheep in your neighbor’s field,” he said, sounding a little frustrated. “But that does not mean I want them. I may have only been in your world for two days, but I’m a man, a grown man. I’ve been with many women. I know the ways of people and the workings of a connection.” He stepped forward and pulled her into his arms. “I’ve made my decision. I want ye for always.”
Kari’s lips quivered, and the places where his hands stroked up and down her arms had gooseflesh following in the wake of his fingertips. She shivered.
“We still have a few more days until my papers arrive. No sense in wasting time waiting. I have need of entertainment. Let us go back to the beach. I want to enjoy this day with ye, and I feel at home on the beach. It is the only place in this odd world that makes me feel as though I did not leave my own time.”
“Did you have a beach where you lived?”
“Aye, my keep overlooked the sea, and I spent many mornings walking in the sand, waves lapping at my feet.” His voice had taken on a nostalgic tone.
“Sounds beautiful.”
“It was. I miss it.”
His sadness was tangible, and Kari wished more than anything that she could take that pain away. “Let’s go. We’ll sit on the beach for a while, and then I’ll take you out for pulled pork sandwiches and beer.”
“Sandwiches? Beer?”
“Aye, Highlander,” she drawled in her best brogue. “A sandwich is usually some sort of meat and cheese between two slices of bread and beer…beer is ale.”
He pressed his hands together in a prayer-like position. “Oh, thank ye gods. I thought ye had no ale in this place, only poisonous sweet beverages.”
Kari laughed.
The drive to the beach was better than the previous time they were in the car. Fin actually looked out the window rather than closing his eyes. Being that it was mid-day during the week in early spring, the beach wasn’t as crowded as it normally was. But at least it wasn’t storming, which had drawn a few small crowds. They rented a couple of chairs and sat down near the water.
They lay in mutual silence, holding hands, smiling at each other every so often. The moment was not awkward but beautiful. Kari had never experienced such peace, such comfort.
She leaned closer to press her lips against his. Fin hauled her over toward him, his hands running over her back. Kari’s body responded instantly. Her nipples ached for him to suck them into his warm, velvety mouth, and her sex clenched with the need for him to fill it.
“Mmm…” he groaned into her mouth. Against her thigh, his cock was hard and heavy.
Too bad they were on the semi-crowded beach. What she wouldn’t give to be lying beneath him aga
in.
Sudden shouts broke their blissful quiet. Fin shifted her to the side and sat up, his body rigid as he scanned the beach. From one hundred yards out in the water, Kari spotted someone in a wetsuit thrashing their arms.
“Fin!” She pointed, but he was already up and running toward the water.
His bare feet kicked sand behind him as he made a dash toward the ocean. His limbs moved with a fluidness that showed he was used to the exertion. He dove beneath the waves and swam as fast as any Olympic swimmer toward the thrashing person, heedless of the cold. Her heart pounded with a multitude of emotions: pride in his skill, desire, need and fear that he wouldn’t get there in time.
From a few feet away, Kari watched the lifeguard on duty run toward the water and splash his way through the waves, nowhere near as graceful or powerful as Fin.
Fin reached the drowning victim before the lifeguard even broke the waves to calmer waters. He wrapped an arm around the swimmer’s middle, turned onto his back and swam toward shore.
When he arrived, he laid the person down gently and checked his vitals. The lifeguard ran up behind them, out of breath. Kari held her hands over her heart. She couldn’t believe what she’d just witnessed, and how much seeing Fin save a life made her want to jump his bones.
“Wow, man, you can swim!” the lifeguard said, his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. “That water was damn cold, too.”
“An easy feat for any man,” Fin replied, although it had been anything but easy for the lifeguard.
The person on the ground, a middle-aged man, gulped for air and spat out water. His chest rose and fell rapidly. “Thank you! Thank you so much,” he gasped. “Lost my board…”
“I only do my duty.”
“Duty? You a lifeguard too? Coast guard? Navy?” the young man with red shorts asked.
“Something like that.” Fin’s jaw tightened, and he looked far away.
Kari realized then and there that this was what he was meant to do. He loved the beach, he loved the water, the crisp salty air, and he loved to save lives, to protect people. He was meant to be a lifeguard.
