The Highlander's English Bride
Page 29
“I beg your pardon, my lady.”
He cast a quick glance over his shoulder at the bed.
Bad idea.
However . . . “I think I have a solution for your wobblies.”
She perked up. “Yes?”
Letting her go, he strolled to the club chair and settled into it, shifting to accommodate the now-massive erection straining against the fall of his breeches.
Sabrina stalked over, looking adorably stern. “And what am I supposed to do, pray tell?”
“This.”
He wrapped his hands around her waist, picked her straight up, and plopped her onto his lap. She squawked, landing in a bit of a sprawl. Graeme carefully positioned her to straddle his thighs, which hiked up her gown and brought her pretty breasts to his eye level.
Even more delightfully, her round backside was now snug against his erection, with nothing between them but the fall of his breeches and her thin gown. The temptation to slip a hand under that gown and play with her dainty feminine flesh was, again, almost irresistible.
He would resist that, at least for now. But the thought of her tight channel clenched around him was so enticing that he flexed his hips, nudging against her once more. He couldn’t hold back a groan as her bottom pressed onto his cock.
Sabrina’s eyes popped wide. “My . . . my goodness.”
Graeme trailed a hand down to her thigh to play with the top of her garter. “Does this position take care of your wobbly knees?”
Her laugh was shaky. “Not really, but at least I won’t collapse onto the floor.”
“I’m hoping you’re going to collapse on me.”
He gently cupped her chin and brought her down for a kiss. With a happy sigh, Sabrina draped her arms around his shoulders and nestled close. Her mouth was honey and heat, and Graeme knew he could spend hours just kissing her.
But right now he had other plans, ones that included her breasts. To his way of thinking, it was long past time he got a good look at them.
When he gently bit her lower lip, she wriggled her delicious bottom, which did tremendous things for his erection. Leaving her mouth, he nibbled his way along her delicate jawline, gently nudging up her chin as he moved down her throat.
He paused to kiss and lick the tender hollow where her pulse fluttered. When she swayed, he slipped an arm behind her back to hold her steady. With his other hand, he gently tugged on her bodice. The tops of her breasts plumped up over the lace trim, delicious treats ripe for his mouth.
And just below that trim were her nipples. Already stiff, they pertly thrust against the fabric of her stays.
“Och, lass,” he murmured. “That’s the prettiest sight a man could ever see.”
When he curled a hand around her breast, Sabrina let out a sweet whimper that turned into a moan when he tweaked her nipple through the layers of clothing. God, she was responsive. He couldn’t wait to get her naked and underneath him.
She dug her nails into his shoulder. “Oh, Graeme!”
He rubbed his palm back and forth across the tight point. “Does that feel good, my darling girl?”
When she gave a frantic little nod and again wriggled her bottom, Graeme felt a lascivious grin curl up his lips. He tilted her back over his arm. Her breasts popped out even more, both nipples almost fully in view.
Bending over her, Graeme dragged his mouth over her plump curves. He dipped his tongue beneath the trim of her bodice to lick the taut point of one of her nipples.
Sabrina trembled in his arms. “Oh, oh,” she gasped.
She clamped a hand to the back of his head, keeping his face nestled against the swell of her breasts. Graeme could hardly breathe, but it was a sacrifice he was more than willing to make.
He’d hooked his fingers into the top of her bodice, about to tug it fully down, when a knock sounded on the door.
“Laddie, are you awake?”
Sabrina jerked in shock, toppling sideways. Graeme caught her as she instinctively flung out an arm, hitting the small table next to the chair. It crashed to the floor, along with the branch of candles and a half glass of whisky.
Royal banged again. “Graeme!”
“Oh, God,” Sabrina gasped. “Don’t let him come in.”
“Royal, stay—”
His brother barged into the room.
“What the—” Royal stopped dead. “Oh, hell.”
Graeme kept a firm hold on Sabrina as she started to scramble off his lap.
She swatted at him. “Let go.”
“You’ll fall on your arse if I do.”
“I will do no such thing,” she huffed.
After Graeme set Sabrina on her feet, she turned and glared at Royal. “And you, sir, should not barge into rooms without permission.”
“My apologies, Lady Sabrina,” he dryly responded. “All that crashing about gave me the wrong impression. I feared someone was attacking my brother.”
“Someone was attacking your brother,” Graeme said as he stood. “Quite nicely, I might add.”
“Honestly,” Sabrina huffed.
“Sweetheart, you might want to . . .” Graeme pointed at her disheveled bodice.
She glanced down at herself and let out a horrified squawk. Turning her back, she went about setting herself to rights.
“What are you doing here, anyway?” Graeme asked his brother.
“I was just checking on you.” Royal narrowed his gaze. “And not a moment too soon, apparently.”
“Mr. Kendrick and I were simply discussing the arrangements for our arrival at Lochnagar Manor,” Sabrina tossed over her shoulder.
“And you both had to sit in the same chair to do so?” Royal asked.
“That was an accident,” Sabrina said.
Graeme pressed a hand to his mouth, trying to stifle a chuckle.
“Don’t you dare laugh,” she threatened, turning around to glare at him.
“Indeed, my lady,” said Royal. “This is hardly a laughing matter.”
“Well, maybe just a little bit,” Graeme said.
For a moment, he thought Sabrina would belt him, but she stalked right past him.
“Good night, Mr. Kendrick,” she snapped at Royal. “In the future, I suggest that you wait to be invited into a room.”
She stormed out.
“She has a point,” Graeme said. “You do have an unnerving tendency to barge in at the most inconvenient times.”
His brother righted the table. “You must be thinking of Angus. Besides, it would appear my timing was excellent. Not that I blame you, but that was not the way to go about it, lad.”
Graeme closed the door. Now that Sabrina was gone, he felt deflated—in more ways than one.
Even worse, he was ashamed to have embarrassed the sweet girl and put her in such a dodgy position. “Royal, what are you doing here? It’s almost midnight.”
“Ainsley was worried about you.”
Graeme retrieved the candlestick and picked up the glass, which had managed not to break. Sad waste of whisky, though. He could use a dram.
Or ten.
“Worried she’s not driving me completely insane?”
Royal sat on the padded bench on the other side of the fireplace and absently rubbed his thigh.
“Ainsley loves you and worries about you, Graeme. We all do.”
That made his heart pinch, so he decided to ignore it. “Is your leg all right? I knew this trip would be too much for you.”
“My leg is fine, and stop trying to change the subject.”
“I don’t even know what the subject is, so how can I change it?”
His brother rolled his eyes. “Idiot.”
“That does seem to be the general opinion around here.”
“You do realize you’re going to have to marry the lass now.”
Graeme scowled. “But nothing happened.”
Royal ticked up an eyebrow.
“Well, nothing much.”
“Nothing much is more than enough.”
“Sure about that, are you?”
Graeme frowned. “Why would she say anything?”
“Because you love each other?”
Graeme shook his head. “In this case, it’s not a good enough reason.”
“You mean that you’re not good enough,” Royal gently corrected. “Or so you think.”
Those words clawed at his guts. Graeme sank into the club chair, struggling to manage his emotions. It was hellishly hard, because a hint of wildflowers and passion still lingered around him.
“I know I’m not,” he tersely replied.
“You don’t know a bloody thing. Of course you’re good enough for Sabrina. Why you fail to see that is beyond me. Whatever minor sins you’ve committed are long in the past.”
“Not according to—” Graeme bit off the words.
“According to our father?” Royal quietly finished.
“They weren’t minor sins, either, as our esteemed parent made clear.”
Royal frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“About Mother. It was partly because of me that she . . .” Again, he couldn’t say the words.
“What?”
“That she died.”
Graeme winced at the stunned expression on his brother’s face, then looked away. But at least the secret was finally out. He’d promised Grant that he would speak with Royal and tell him the truth. He’d kept to his promise, and the deed was done.
All that now remained was for the final blow to fall.
“Graeme, look at me,” Royal said.
When he reluctantly met his brother’s gaze, he saw only compassion and affection.
“That’s errant nonsense, laddie,” Royal said. “Please explain to me how a little child was responsible for Mamma’s death.”
“I was a hellion. Even as a lad, I caused trouble.”
“We all did.”
“Not like me.”
Royal scoffed. “Have you met our brother, Logan?”
“You know I was the worst.” Now that he’d pulled down the dam, it all wanted to come out, like an ugly, raging torrent. “Mamma was delicate. She needed peace and quiet. She didn’t need a little bastard cutting up the peace and causing trouble. And that’s exactly what I did. It was a strain on her nerves and on her health.”
“Father actually told you that?”
Graeme thought back to that horrific night. He had been seven, and it had been a few weeks after Mamma’s death. He’d cried himself to sleep, then awakened from a nightmare. He’d turned to Grant, seeking comfort. But his twin, who’d barely been able to sleep for days, ill with grief, was finally slumbering. Graeme had found his little robe and had gone to look for his grandfather. But Angus wasn’t in his room, so Graeme had wandered about until finding himself in the library.
Where his father sat, disheveled and bleary-eyed, behind his desk.
Father had always been a tower of strength, a laird and clan chief who never wavered from duty. But on this night, he’d seemed just a weary old man, riven with sorrow. Graeme had wanted to comfort his da and receive comfort in return.
Instead, the earl had unleashed a verbal hammering so ugly it had nailed Graeme to the floor. It only ended when Angus rushed into the room. After exchanging a few sharp words with Father, Angus had swept Graeme into his arms and taken him up to bed. He’d tucked him in and stayed by his side, holding his hand until he fell asleep.
From then on Angus had appointed himself Graeme’s special protector, never again mentioning what had happened that awful night.
“Laddie?” Royal’s gentle prompt brought Graeme back to the present.
“Father told me exactly that.” He tried to sound like he didn’t care.
Royal leaned forward, his gaze intent. “Listen to me, Graeme. Our father was a stern man, but a good one. But after our mother died, he became as angry and bitter as arsenic. He fell into a whisky bottle and never climbed out. And his anger poisoned everyone.”
“Not Nick.”
“Even him. That’s why Nick wanted Angus at Kinglas. We needed someone to love us, and that was Grandda.”
“But I was—”
“Did you know Father also blamed Kade for Mamma’s death?”
That was another punch to the gut. Poor, wee Kade had barely survived the birthing and had then been robbed of his mother.
“That’s insane,” Graeme said.
“As insane as blaming a little boy like you for her death.”
Graeme frowned into the peat fire. His brother patiently waited him out.
“But before that,” Graeme finally said, “Father claimed I drove Mamma crazy with my antics. Said I was too much for her.”
Royal snorted. “We all got that lecture, especially poor Logan. Father tore a strip off him on a regular basis.”
“I . . . I don’t remember that.”
“You were very young. And I think you’ve forgotten the way things were before our mother died.”
“Like what?” Graeme cautiously asked.
“Like who taught you to ride?”
His father.
“And how to fish.”
“Father,” he slowly said.
“And how were those times? Did he act like you were a burden then?”
Graeme reached through the haze of time and sorrow to recover those moments. He remembered the praise from his father when he tied his first lure and caught his first pike. He remembered the rides on his little pony, Father patiently teaching him how to properly jump a fence. Memories lurked in that haze. Dim, but there.
“No, they were . . . nice times.”
“Father wanted us to be good men, good Highlanders. You were a bit of a challenge, so he was harder on you, although not as hard as he was on Logan. But Father loved us, laddie, in his own way. He truly did.”
“I guess I’d forgotten that.”
“There have been many rough years since, Graeme. It’s a wonder we can remember any good times.”
Graeme gazed at his brother, the kindest man he’d ever known. Royal had given up so much for his family. “You remember.”
“I’m too stubborn to forget. And what I also haven’t forgotten is how much Mamma loved you.” Royal stood and pressed a hand to Graeme’s shoulder. “You were never a burden to her, my boy. Our mother loved us with all her heart and soul. That was her gift to the family. Do not dishonor her memory by thinking otherwise.”
He winced. “That’s what I’ve been doing, is it?”
“Aye, and running away from the rest of us.” Royal snorted. “All this spy business, lad. Time to give it up, ye ken.”
Graeme scowled, grateful for the chance to shove down the emotions that were choking him. He felt like he’d been drowning in bloody feelings since Sabrina had bulled her way into his room.
“It’s what I’m good at, ye ken,” he sarcastically replied. “What else can I do?”
“Sabrina might have a suggestion or two.”
“Oh, sod off.”
Royal laughed and headed for the door. “Actually, I’m off to bed. Dawn will come early, followed by another spectacular day on these deplorable Highland roads.”
“This mad scheme wasn’t my idea, remember?”
His brother paused, a hand on the doorknob. “One more thing.”
Graeme rolled his eyes. “Yes?”
“You’re good enough for anyone, including Lady Sabrina.”
Chapter Twenty
Sabrina winced as they rattled through another patch of dreadful road on the approach to Lochnagar Manor. Even their well-sprung carriage couldn’t smooth out the ride on lanes more suited to donkey carts.
Graeme peered out the window into the darkening gloom. “I see a stone gate up ahead. Looks like the entrance to a courtyard.”
Ainsley, leaning against her husband’s shoulder, sat up with a grimace. “Thank God
. My backside has been screaming at me for hours.”
“You’ll feel better after a nice bath,” Royal said. “Then I’ll give you a soothing massage, if such treatment is necessary.”
“Darling, your massages tend to be rather more stimulating than soothing,” Ainsley flirtatiously replied.
Royal winked at her. “Exactly.”
“You two are revolting,” Graeme said.
“Ridiculous. We’re simply an old married couple,” Ainsley said. “Not even remotely revolting.”
Graeme cast Sabrina a sideways glance. “Her ladyship might think otherwise.”
“Oh, I’ve been too busy reading my book to notice anything out of the ordinary,” Sabrina replied in a bright voice.
She had no intention of appearing a buttoned-up prude, especially not in front of Graeme.
“You might try to spare my blushes,” Graeme complained to his brother. “You know how shy I am about this sort of thing. A veritable babe in the woods.”
Sabrina started to laugh but bit her tongue when the carriage hit another enormous hole. She almost slid off the seat.
Graeme latched on to her. “Hang on, lass. Don’t want ye hurtin’ yerself.”
“Thank you,” she breathlessly said, righting herself.
He let her go as the coachman slowed down after the horrific bump.
“Best keep hold of her, Graeme dear,” Ainsley said with a twinkle. “These roads are dreadful.”
“I should be happy to hold on to her as long as required,” Graeme said, “but I believe we’re at the gates of Lochnagar Manor.”
“You’re no fun,” Ainsley said.
Graeme snorted. “I am devastated to hear that.”
Ainsley rolled her eyes. “We’re on holiday. Remember?”
“Is that what we’re calling it?”
Sabrina mentally sighed. Graeme’s mood had considerably improved since that exciting interlude in his bedroom, but he’d still not mentioned a word about it. Although, when she’d come down for breakfast, he’d pulled out her chair and given her a wink before fetching her tea and scones. It was a remarkable change from his previous attitude.
The carriage passed under a high stone arch into a spacious courtyard. When they came to a halt, Sabrina tried to get a look at the manor house through the gathering dusk.