“Mairi?”
Her gaze jerked to his.
“We do not have to continue.” A note of concern layered the grate of his voice. “We can stop whenever you wish.”
The words tumbled around in her diverted mind for a moment before she comprehended them entirely. Why the devil should she wish to stop? She wanted this more than anything.
“Nay,” she asserted in a firm tone. “I’ve dreamed of this more times than I can count.”
A slow smile chased away the worry from his handsome features. “Aye, so have I.”
The mattress dipped with his weight as he shifted onto the bed and stretched on his side next to her. At once, the heat of his body warmed her cool skin. His large hand rested over her stomach, and she trembled at the gentle touch. He eased his thigh over hers, settling his knee between her legs. The thickness of his arousal pressed against her hip and she repressed a shiver. With his elbow and forearm propping him up, he stared down at her.
Affection swam in his dark eyes. “That first night when you arrived…I dreamed of you.” His callused fingertips skated over her skin. “Holding you in my arms, I could not believe how real the dream felt.” His lips brushed over her cheek. “That is, until your swift kick to the bollocks assured me ’twas no dream at all.”
At the time, she’d not found one shred of humor in the situation. However, the memory of that eve pulled a laugh out of her. “I was startled.”
“Startled?” He snorted. “Spitting mad, more like.”
Laughter bubbled out of her, her unease lessening more and more. As his traveling hand slipped to her breast, her humor faded.
Shifting upright on his arm, he leaned over her chest and covered one stiffened tip with the warmth of his mouth. His tongue laved at the sensitive flesh, rousing her desires, and a moan fell from her lips. Lost in the feel of his mouth, she lifted her hand to his head, threading his thick hair through her fingers. A slow burn ignited low in her belly, anticipation coiling tighter.
His knee shifted higher between her legs, pressing firmer against her sex. His hand slid along her body to the juncture of her thighs. As soon as the tips of his fingers grazed over her heated center, she gasped and tightened her fingers in his hair. Her body moved of its own accord, as if seeking the pleasure of his touch.
Releasing her breast, he trailed his lips over her chest and up her throat until he reached her lips. He seized her mouth in a demanding kiss which she readily accepted. Immersed in the flood of sensation, she shifted restlessly against him. Itching to touch him, she wedged a hand between their bodies to the stiffened length pressed against her hip and brushed her fingertips over the warm flesh.
His movements stilling, he groaned against her cheek. “Christ, Mairi.”
“Am I hurting you?”
“Saints, nay. Please, touch me.”
Emboldened by his gritted reply, she shifted onto her side and wrapped her hand around the hardened flesh. His eyes slid closed as she explored the silken heat of him. She swiped her thumb over the swollen tip and a shudder racked his frame. He placed a hand over hers, halting her movements.
“Stop.”
The guttural command drew her questioning gaze to his. Passion darkened the richness of his brown eyes. In the next instant, he pushed her onto her back and his large body covered hers. His strong thighs nudged her legs apart for him to settle between the cradle of her hips. His thick arousal brushed her core and the thread of anticipation building deep inside her wound tighter.
Bearing his weight on his forearms, his intense gaze speared through her. “This means forever, Mairi.”
“Forever,” she agreed in a breathless whisper.
His hand slipped between their bodies and he guided the swollen tip of his length to her slick entrance. He stared down at her as beads of sweat formed along his brow. She sensed he waited for confirmation, some sign to continue. As if she would deny him or herself any longer.
Mairi cupped his flushed cheek in her palm. “Do not force me wait any longer, Aaron. Claim me as your own.”
Requiring no further urging, he leaned closer and snagged her mouth the same moment his hips thrust forward, seating himself deep inside her with one swift motion. A gasp of surprise left her throat, but he captured the sound with his commanding kiss.
The bold stroke of his tongue kindled the fire within her, the awkward feeling of his intrusion soon forgotten. With slow, measured movements, he slipped out of her and eased back inside, heightening the desire thrumming through her body.
She ripped her mouth free with a moan and gripped his waist, sinking her nails into his flesh. His parted mouth rested against her cheek, his breathless pants heating her skin. The wave of tension mounting within her drove Mairi to move against him. Drowning in overwhelming sensations, she raised her knees to urge him deeper.
Lost in the unity of their bodies and their colliding passions, she banished every thought from her mind and focused solely on the man she loved with her whole heart. As his thrusts quickened, she closed her eyes and clung to him. Bowing her back, she raked her nails down the taut line of his spine.
With a hand beneath her bottom, Aaron lifted her hips as his strokes deepened. The shift in position pressed against the sensitive bud at her core, dragging a moan from somewhere deep in her throat. Sweat slickened their bodies and she hardly cared a twig. Instead, she climbed higher toward bliss with each of Aaron’s powerful thrusts.
His rough pants lengthened to throaty groans while his driving movements grew unsteady. The burgeoning pressure below her belly snapped, unleashing a torrent of pleasure. Overwhelmed by the flood of release rushing through her frame, she held him tighter as a hoarse cry tore from her lips.
His fingers dug into the flesh of her hip as he plunged inside of her, over and over, until he pressed forward with one final, hard stroke. He ground himself against her sensitive center while a shudder coursed through his large frame. With a harsh, guttural groan, he growled her name against her cheek.
Elation pushed through Mairi’s limbs, leaving her boneless and floating on a blissful cloud. As she held his heated body flush against her own, she reveled in the intimate bond forged between them. She smiled at the knowledge the man in her dreams could not hold a candle to the real man in her arms.
Shifting to rise on his elbow, he gazed down at her. The depth of love present in his eyes swelled her heart to thrice its size.
“Forever, angel,” he reaffirmed with a slow quirk of his lips.
“Forever,” she agreed.
In truth, she would accept no less.
Chapter Twenty-Two
AARON HAD NO notion of the time of morning, nor did he truly care. He’d awoken earlier with Mairi wrapped in his arms while she sought her much-needed slumber. Content to simply hold her, he raised a hand to her tussled, raven hair, running his fingers through the silken mass. With her leg draped over his thigh, he savored the feel of her smooth skin blanketing his body. He might’ve thought their night of passion naught but a dream, were she not in his arms.
He grinned at the memory of her bold responses and sweet moans. His fiery lass had stripped away the last measure of his defenses, shattering his resistance altogether. He’d lost himself in the welcoming heat of her body, claiming the woman he loved for once and for all. Despite the dawn of a new day, the knowledge still managed to shake him to the core.
’Twas odd how the course of his life had shifted within a fortnight of her reappearance. For the past year, he’d never considered encountering Mairi again. Aside from the solace of his dreams, everything else stretched beyond the realm of possibility. But now, what had initially seemed so far out of reach was there, lying snug against his chest. The wee spark that had drawn them together in the beginning had woven itself into an enduring thread tethering him and Mairi together for the rest of their lives.
He meant the word he’d spoken to her—forever.
As he cuddled her closer, she stirred in his arms. Trailing hi
s hand from her hair, he brushed his fingers back and forth over her arm, lulling her to sleep.
Of course, forever shifted his mind to another pressing matter—the same hulking one that never ceased to pose a problem where Mairi was concerned.
Her blasted brother.
Long after his lass had fallen asleep, he’d lain awake and pondered his next course of action. Letting her go was wholly unacceptable. He’d rather rip his heart from his chest with his bare hand than let her walk away from him. Not again. Not after the amount of anguish and longing they’d both borne in the last year.
Saints, she’d confessed her love and he his. She’d given herself freely and he’d taken without a moment’s hesitation, eager to claim his heart’s desire. In his eyes, ’twas an unbreakable bond. One that he intended to honor with the sanctity of marriage.
To hell with MacGregor.
Aaron would take Mairi as his bride. When she returned to her clan, she would do so with him, together, as husband and wife. Surely, the knowledge would provoke the man, but there was little her brother could do at that point.
Wife.
The mere thought of wedding his Mairi resonated through his heart and brought a satisfied grin to his lips. The impossible hope he’d clutched at had somehow blossomed into a certainty overnight.
Rousing from her slumber, Mairi shifted against him and her fingers glided over his chest before she pushed up on her elbow. The dark fall of her hair swept over her cheek and he brushed the curls over her shoulder. Her sleepy gaze met his and a tempting smile lifted the corners of her mouth.
Stretching over his chest, she fused her mouth to his with a sweet kiss that never failed to throw him off balance and incite his desire to a boil. He tugged her higher over him and the soft mounds of her breasts pressed firmly against his chest. Unable to resist, he deepened the kiss, his ardor for the comely woman in his arms overwhelming him.
As she drew away, she murmured against his lips. “Good day, my lord.”
The huskiness in her voice darted over his skin, drawing a shiver.
He caressed the length of her spine. “Good day, my lady.”
As Aaron stared into the brilliant gems of her eyes, a notion struck with startling clarity. Naught had ever felt more right or complete than holding Mairi in his arms. ’Twas as if every moment of his life—the good, bad or indifferent—had somehow guided him to this one single, defining moment.
“Marry me.”
For several heartbeats, she stared at him with parted lips.
“What?” The word was little more than a puff of air.
“Marry me, Mairi.”
At once, her entire body stiffened over his. He sensed the shift in her mood as easily as he spied the wariness in her widened gaze.
’Twas hardly the response he sought. In fact, the hair along his nape rose in trepidation.
Shoving off his chest, she shifted to sit upright. She grabbed one of the furs from atop the bed and wrapped the coverlet around her nude body while her brow pinched tight with agitation. Glancing over her shoulder, she reached for the gown he’d tossed at the end of the bed during the night.
As she donned the material, she diverted her gaze. “You know I must return to my family.”
“Aye, I know.” Eager to soothe her worries, he hoisted himself upright and swept her tussled hair from her shoulders. “Allow me to speak to your brother.”
With a roll of her eyes, she snorted. “Saints alive, Aaron. He’ll trounce you in the dirt.”
Slightly irritated, he frowned at the comment. “I’m not certain I appreciate your lack of faith in my abilities to handle the man.” In truth, her reaction bewildered him. “What’s amiss? Do you not wish to marry me?”
Christ, he failed to take that into account. He’d naturally assumed the subject of marriage would please her as much as it did him.
“Of course, I wish to marry you,” she rushed to assure him. “’Tis just that I must return home to take care of matters first. Leave my brother to me. I know how to handle the man.”
The statement made little sense to Aaron. Why the devil would he send the lass on her way to deal with her brother on her own? And what if MacGregor forbade her from returning? Had he not done the very same the year prior?
“Then, we shall wed and face your brother side by side as man and wife. ’Tis little he can do once we are married.”
At least, he hoped. He hardly knew the type man that MacGregor was.
More unsettling, his suggestion only served to heighten Mairi’s distress. The blood drained from her cheeks and her taut frame practically vibrated with tension. Closing her eyes, she ducked her head to stare at her lap.
For several, excruciatingly long moments, he held his tongue and carefully watched her, unsure how to ease her fears until she spoke of what troubled her. When she lifted her gaze, traces of sorrow reflected in her light eyes. At once, a sick foreboding seized hold in his chest with a firm press. Holding his breath, he waited for her to explain her reticence.
Wringing the fur in her hands, she released a shaky sigh. “I cannot marry you…at least, not until I put an end to an agreement.”
He strained to comprehend the mumbled words over the ringing in his ears.
“Agreement?” He ignored the crack in his voice. Surely, she could not mean…
Reluctant to meet his gaze, she swallowed hard. “I agreed to wed another.”
The words had the same effect as a forceful punch to the gut, ramming the air from his lungs. He was not sure what he expected her to say, but ’twas not that. Absolutely naught could’ve stunned him more.
When he finally managed to find his voice, the piercing sting of betrayal bled into an incinerating rage. His back snapped straight, the rigidity nearly cracking his spine in two.
He growled, “Who?”
Biting her lip, she shook her head. “Does it matter?”
“Who, damn it?” he roared.
“Patrick MacEwan.” A tear slipped from her eye. “’Tis not what you think, Aaron.”
Oh, aye, he remembered the preening arse. He recalled the way the man watched Mairi.
“What else is it, then?” Heedless of his nudity, he tossed aside the coverlet and swung his legs over the edge, reaching for his clothing on the floor, right alongside his battered heart. “Why did you not tell me?”
The bed shifted behind him as she moved closer. Her cold fingers settled on his shoulder, but he shrugged off her hand, unwilling to fall prey to her soft touches. He clenched his jaw tight enough he might’ve shattered his teeth into a thousand pieces.
“I knew you would not understand,” she croaked out.
Thrusting his legs in his pants, he stood and yanked the material over his backside, hurriedly binding the lacings in front. Grabbing his boots and tunic from the floor, he tossed the linen shirt over his shoulder and spun to face her, allowing a cold harshness to slip over his features.
“What’s for me to understand? You lied to me, plain and simple. Christ, I was a fool to believe that you could ever truly love me.” He snorted a sardonic laugh. “I suppose I should be grateful for sampling your goods before your husband.”
The cruel barb found its desired target. She flinched as if he’d slapped her across the cheek. Her distraught features crumpled and tears leaked from her eyes.
Christ, have mercy. The devastating sight nearly gutted him, but not as much as the wretched ache lancing through his heart. He could not bear another moment. Not when he longed for naught more than to hold her in his arms and soothe her upset. But, what of his pain? Who would mend the jagged wound she’d slashed through his chest?
Aaron grasped for every store of remaining strength in his limited supply to turn his back on the woman he loved. Without a backward glance, he stalked barefoot to the door.
“Wait, Aaron. Please.”
The tearful plea almost banished his resolve but he held firm. Ignoring her altogether, he hastened outside the chamber. He slammed the
door behind him, effectively blocking out her distressed features.
At the end of the corridor near the landing, Connor slammed to a halt wearing an astonished expression. His brother’s gaze swept over him, no doubt noting his state of undress.
“What’s amiss?”
The concern in Connor’s query nearly broke Aaron in two. Disregarding the sting behind his eyes, he swallowed down the surge of feeling jammed in his throat, strangling the life from him. Damn it, men did not cry like foolish females!
Giving himself a hard shake, he grabbed for his anger, permitting the emotion to propel him down the hallway.
As he swept past his brother, he ground out, “Send Niall to me, at once.”
Spinning after him, Connor sputtered, “What? Why?”
Aaron paused on the top step long enough to mutter, “’Tis time to summon MacGregor to fetch his sister.”
*
A SHORT WHILE later, the creak of the door resounded through the silence in the chamber. Mairi’s bleary gaze shot to the entrance, her hopes plummeting at the sight of Connor’s worried features.
Not Aaron.
Devastated, she hung her head as a fresh wash of tears streamed down her face. Saints, she could not speak to Connor now. Not while her heart utterly cracked into a dozen pieces.
“Go away,” she rasped out.
Heedless of her wishes, the door pushed wider and he stepped inside, closing the entrance after him. “Did the two of you…are you…”
The unfinished question spread the raw wound wider.
“Aye,” she cried.
Burying her face in her hands, she wept in earnest. Oh God, why had she not told Aaron sooner? The sheer enormity of what she’d lost destroyed her. The future with Aaron she’d dreamed of was firmly out of her grasp.
The mattress shifted beneath her and Connor’s strong arms wrapped around her shoulders. He pulled her against his chest and her restraint vanished. Her heart ached as the force of her sobs racked her entire body.
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