Though she did not quite understand the shift in Aaron, she welcomed the change. She’d witnessed a lighter side of his character, one not as heavily encumbered by his past. ’Twas none of the false flattery he affected at her brother’s wedding, nor the infuriating temperament he’d displayed since her arrival. For once, he seemed more at ease in his own skin.
And yet, while she reveled in his attentions, he’d not once broached the subject of his feelings for her again as he’d done the first day of her illness.
Stretching over the rim, she grabbed the cake of soap and scrap of linen Kate had placed on the stool beside the tub. She lathered the cloth with soap and scrubbed away the remnants of sweat, noxious poultices and sickness from her skin.
Of course, another matter perched in her mind right alongside thoughts of Aaron.
When Connor paid her a visit earlier that morn, the young man had spoken of the shift in weather. As she’d wished for the day of her argument with Aaron, the winter winds had tamed and the warm sun shone bright over the land the past few days, quickening the earth’s thaw. Soon, the passage would open, permitting safe travel to rejoin her kin.
’Twas what she’d desired from the start, was it not? Except, why did the thought of leaving unsettle her?
Honestly, she’d missed her family fiercely. She craved the sight of their familiar, loving countenances, yearned to feel their strong embraces and itched to hold Arabella and Nora’s bairns in her arms. ’Twas not her kin she dreaded facing but rather, the man that she agreed to wed.
More especially when she confessed her wish to end their agreement.
Would Patrick despise her for the decision? And what of her brother?
To be honest, she’d known since the day they’d struck the agreement that she’d not go through with the wedding. How could she when her heart would always belong to another? Saints, she should’ve followed her first instinct and politely declined Patrick’s offer.
A soft knock at the entrance tugged her from her musings, and the cake of soap slipped from her grasp, plopping in the water with a splash.
“Blast!”
The door cracked open and she squeaked in alarm.
“Mairi, are you all right? I heard you—”
“Nay, wait!”
Aaron’s dark head poked inside and swung to face her. His brown eyes widened in shock and he sucked in an audible gasp of air.
Scrambling for cover, she stretched over the rim and made a grab for the linen wrappings on the stool the same moment her foot slipped on the cake of soap that sank to the bottom of the tub.
Flailing her arms for purchase, she released a shrill cry and plummeted backward in the tub. Water rushed up her nose and filled her open mouth. In the next instant, a strong pair of arms yanked her from beneath the surface and lifted her from the tub. Unfortunately, Aaron lost his footing in his haste and tumbled to the floor with her in his arms.
Rubbing her burning eyes, she sputtered and coughed out excess water. Cool air brushed over her damp skin. Sprawled atop Aaron’s solid frame, she pushed herself upright from his chest. When she grew increasingly aware of her nude position, her gaze flew to his in panic.
Faster than she imagined possible, Mairi clambered backward off the man to snatch for the linens on the stool. In a flash, she folded the material tight around her body, shielding her private areas. Panting from her dunk in the water and mad dash for cover, she sank down on her arse while her face burned from her mortification.
Oh, Sweet Mother in heaven. He must’ve spied every bare inch of her!
Lying on his back, Aaron leaned on his elbows for support and gawked at her in stunned silence. His sodden tunic and braies clung to his body. For several long, excruciating moments, neither of them muttered a sound. No doubt, he’d no more notion of what to say than she did.
’Twas a mercy, he recovered from his shock first.
Springing to his feet, he stalked to the bed and tugged off a pair of furs. With measured steps, he approached with caution and laid the coverlet over her shoulders, padding her with a layer of warmth. He extended a hand toward her.
Still reeling from her shock, she remained seated on the floor, blinking at his offering, until she shook herself from her stupor. Accepting his hand, she allowed Aaron to help her to her bare feet.
He nudged her closer to the fire. “Wait here.”
With moments, he hauled the large, wooden high back chair from the bedside and placed the seat in front of the hearth.
“Please, take a seat,” he urged. “Dry yourself in front of the fire before you catch cold again.”
Releasing a shuddered sigh, she mumbled her thanks. A notion struck her and she darted a quick glance at him. “What of you?”
Snagging the stool by the tub, he plunked the item down beside her and tugged at his damp cloths. In the next instant, the man peeled the sodden tunic from his body and lifted the wet material over his head, leaving him bare-chested.
Apparently, neither MacRae brother had a scrap of modesty or sense of propriety between the two of them. Mairi might’ve said as much if she could’ve dislodged her tongue from the roof of her mouth.
Her gaze was riveted on the dark sprinkling of hair along Aaron’s well-formed chest down to his lean stomach. She observed the flex of his broad, muscled shoulders in the firelight as he reached for the fur at his feet. Her cheeks warmed for an entirely different reason than her discomfiture. Too soon, he wrapped the coverlet around him and bent to sit on the stool, warming himself before the fire.
With a peek in her direction, he motioned to the tub. “I’m sorry for…well, you know.”
He glanced away with an awkward shrug as crimson colored his cheeks. At least, she was not the only one uncomfortable with what had just transpired between them.
He sucked in a breath. “I suppose ’tis only fair.”
Perplexed, she craned her neck to peer at him. “How so?”
“If you remember, you’ve had a thorough glimpse of my private parts.”
The remembrance yanked a peal of laughter from her. Saints, how could she have forgotten that? ’Twas the same eve she’d kneed him in the groin. Had she not discovered Connor’s lie and taken a painful knock to the head, she might’ve teased Aaron about the matter.
“I’m sure ’twas not the same.”
“Trust me when I say that I was utterly mortified at the time.” Snorting, he shook his head. “Briefly, I wondered how I might ever face you again.”
Thankful for a break in the awkward tension, she shifted in the chair to face him. “Truly?”
“Of course, I was embarrassed,” he asserted. “I’ll have you know, I’m an exceptionally modest man.”
Another laugh slipped out of her. “That, I do not believe for one instant.”
“Well, ’tis truth.” He lifted with his chin with an affronted air.
“Nay, not with a brother like Connor. The lad’s as bold as a slap to the cheek. Not to mention, his lack of decorum where ladies are concerned. I’m certain he must’ve learned from you.” She narrowed her eyes. “Especially after the way you just removed your tunic without the slightest hesitation.”
“What would you have had me do?” Aaron frowned. “’Twas soaking wet. I’d rather not catch a cold as well. Besides, ’tis naught you’ve not seen before. You have a brother after all.”
She could not deny the truth of his words. Raised primarily in the presence of men, she’d received more than an eyeful in her lifetime. In general, most men were not as unassuming as women. Granted, she was not as unassuming as most women.
“But, Calum’s different,” she argued. “I do not see him in the same manner as I do you.”
As soon as he lifted an inquiring brow, she cursed her loose tongue.
“Oh?” He latched on to the slip. “How do you see me?”
Mairi rolled her eyes in annoyance. “Not as a brother. That’s for certain.”
“If not a brother, then what?” he continued to
prod.
Glancing away from the avid interest in his dark gaze, she studied the fire, debating whether or not to reveal that much of her true feelings to him. Of course, she was never one to hold her tongue. In fact, she’d never had any trouble speaking her mind.
Meeting his expectant gaze, she stated with a simple twist of her lips. “As a man.”
A playful grin edged over his lips. “’Tis good of you to notice.”
Snorting, she confessed, “Oh, I had no trouble noticing the first day we met in the garden.”
His smile slid into a drawn line. He ducked his head to gaze at the stone floor at his feet. “I suspect I shall always regret my actions after your brother’s wedding. ’Tis truth, I’ve no notion why MacGregor spared my life that day. If anyone had taken my wife and sister, I fear I would not have been as forgiving.”
“Calum’s an understanding man.” She studied Aaron’s strong profile in the firelight. “I assure you, if anyone threatened to end my brother’s life, I fear I would’ve stolen another man’s bride to save him as well, or worse.”
He lifted his gaze to hers. Surprise flickered in his brown eyes.
“’Tis the unbreakable bonds of kinship, Aaron.” She smiled. “We would travel to the ends of the earth for those we love.”
For long moments, she was caught in his dark stare, as if he thought to decipher a long-sought answer in her features.
“Is that why you left with Connor?”
The keen observation caught her unaware. Her spine snapped straight upright and she shifted in her seat, uneasy with his sharp perception.
She muttered, “That was different.” At his raised brow, she asserted, “He told me you were dying!”
He snorted out a sardonic laugh. “So, you had to make certain I met my demise?”
Affronted by the suggestion, she permitted her tongue free rein. “Nay, you arse. ’Twas because the thought of never seeing you again nearly ripped my heart out.”
Her own words echoed in her ears and around the quiet chamber. Unable to stand another moment of his dismantling stare, she shifted frontward in the chair and shrugged the fur tighter around her body.
Within the next heartbeat, his solid form blocked the hearth from view. Grasping the chair arms on either side of her, he leaned toward her, leaving his face within an inch of hers. In such close proximity, his unyielding gaze held her captive.
Leaning closer still, Aaron brushed his nose against hers. “I am tormented with the same fear.”
The words ceased the air in her lungs and her heart swelled with emotion. His warm breath heated her cheek while the hoarse rasp of his voice raised gooseflesh along her arms.
He closed the remaining distance and seized her mouth with a searing kiss that took her breath away. Her lips parted with a moan as his tongue slipped inside to tangle with her own. Emboldened by her ardor for the man, she returned his kiss in equal, heated measure.
Each bold stroke of his tongue enflamed her passion. A furled hum centered in her belly, increasing her longing to touch him. Slipping her hands beneath the fur, she pressed her fingertips against the hard flesh of his chest.
Sweet Mother help her. She’d never felt such overwhelming desire for any man. Since the day they’d parted, she ached to feel his lips against hers while he enfolded her in the strength of his embrace.
The interwoven threads that somehow tethered them to each other were anything but commonplace. She’d realized that from the start. The undeniable fact was that she loved Aaron MacRae. ’Twas hard to remember a time when she did not. She would surrender everything to him. He need only ask.
Aaron released her mouth with a low groan and leaned his forehead against hers. Their warm breaths mingled. As she stared into his eyes, she longed to kiss him again.
“My sweet, fiery lass. We must stop.”
Containing a groan of her own, Mairi wanted to protest but, alas, he was right. Nodding her assent, she removed her hands from his chest.
“Aye,” she agreed with a shaky grin. “Hie yourself away before I steal your virtue.”
Shaking his head, he straightened away from her. “’Tis not my virtue that concerns me.”
Chapter Nineteen
Over the course of the next few days, Aaron relished each moment spent with Mairi. In fact, after their last heated encounter in his bedchamber, ’twas nearly impossible to drag himself away from the woman. Not when she consumed every damned thought in his head. Little by little, more of his buckling resistance crumbled in her presence.
Now that her health had improved, ’twas customary for the lass to join him in the hall, sharing meals with his clan and stories of her own kin. Her thoughtful words and infectious smiles wooed him and the rest of the MacRaes without a lick of effort. Despite Mairi’s bold, fiery nature, a sheer goodness inside the lass shone through like a beacon of strength, affecting everyone she encountered with her goodwill.
Even when he retreated to his solar, intent to finish the tables and benches he sought to replace in the hall, the lass often joined him. While he toiled away the hours, she’d worked on her sewing and embroidery, or merely played with his spoiled cat before the fire. ’Twas satisfying, having her there with him in such a familiar, ordinary setting, as if she’d always belonged at his side.
Of course, he was hardly any better.
The lass had turned him into a blasted lecher. Once she sought her bed each eve, he continued to sneak into her bedchamber to check on her. In some way, he’d slipped into a habit, building a fire strong enough to burn throughout the night, tucking the furs tighter around her and capturing a final glimpse of her sleeping form that would carry him over to the next day.
Aye, he was a pathetic wretch, and he knew it.
In spite of the amount of time the two of them spent in each other’s company, the lass had laid claim to his restless nights as well, absorbing his every thought. Over and over, his mind returned to the passionate kiss they’d shared. Nor could he shake the sight of bared flesh he’d glimpsed after her mishap with the bathing tub.
Between her coy smiles and innocent touches, his feelings deepened with an intensity he wrestled to control. How he’d not pounced upon the woman yet was a sheer testament of his will. At times, he wondered if that was not her intent all along—to shatter his waning composure. If so, then the lass was winning the battle.
Reaching for his tankard of ale, Aaron swallowed a deep drink of the cool liquid, soothing his parched throat. Throughout the hall, good-natured chatter floated on the air around him, while his clan enjoyed the meal Glinda prepared that eve. By leaps and bounds, ’twas a marked improvement over the previous fare. Mayhap, he might’ve appreciated the food more had a distressing matter not claimed his focus.
For the past hour, he’d scarcely tasted a bit of food that passed his lips. Heedless of the conversations around him, he sat in relative silence, immersed in his thoughts and increasingly aware of the woman seated to his right.
How could he not be? He was attuned to everything about Mairi—from the slightest movement to the timbre of her voice. Hell, even her breathing attracted his notice.
“Gertie, please tell Glinda she’s outdone herself this eve,” Mairi declared with a wide grin.
Thrilled with the praise, the clan healer beamed from ear to ear. “I shall, my lady. She hoped the fare would please you and the laird.”
“Please?” Mairi exclaimed. “’Twas more than pleasing. Truly, the meal was divine.”
A sharp jab beneath his ribs caught Aaron by surprise and the half-filled goblet almost slipped from his hand. He shot a quick glance at Mairi who stared at him. With an expectant lift of her brows, she angled her head a slight fraction toward Gertie, a silent signal for him to speak.
Reminded of his manners, he shifted his gaze to Gertie. “Aye, she’s right. ’Tis been a long while since such fare has graced our hall. Please express my gratitude for such a fine meal.”
The healer’s ruddy cheeks deepened a d
arker shade. “She’ll be delighted with the praise, Laird.”
Despite his willingness to accept his duty as laird, he suspected the title might never cease to catch him off guard. After a final sip of ale, he placed the tankard on the table and glanced at the occupants seated around him. Across the way, Niall leaned his thick arms forward on the edge, snagging Aaron’s immediate attention.
His friend’s piercing stare conveyed a message Aaron had no trouble reading. With a faint shake of his head, he answered the unspoken question which gained him a frown from the redhead. Not in the mood to deal with the Niall’s stern-faced reminder, he shifted to face Mairi, ignoring his friend altogether.
Scraping his chair over the stone floor, he stood and extended a hand to Mairi. “Allow me to escort you to your chamber.”
A smile blossomed on her features as she accepted his hand. “Thank you, my lord. ’Tis kind of you.”
He tamped down the derisive snort on the tip of his tongue. Kind?
Not in the least. If the woman learned the full truth, kind would not be her word of choice.
Coward that he was, he merely wished to flee the hall and Niall’s scathing stare.
Once he helped her to her feet, he offered his arm to escort her. Her hand settled over his sleeve, the slight brush of her fingertips along his exposed wrist nearly scalding him.
With wide grins pasted on the faces of his clan, several observed their departure from the hall with rapt interest. Between his brother, Kate and Gertie, the MacRaes discerned his feelings for Mairi. Even Alain and Lachlan had fallen victim to the clan’s wagging tongues. Aaron caught the men’s smirks from the corner of his eye as he guided Mairi toward the stairs. Nudging Mairi ahead of him, he aimed a parting glare at the two guards who dipped their heads to hide their ridiculous grins.
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