Zeus limped up to Morgana’s chair and put his head in her lap. Smiling, Morgana reached down and stroked his ears lovingly. His wound still had a long way to heal, but he was doing much better. Soon he would be able to go outside again and follow Morgana like he usually did.
After making sure he was only wanting a cuddle and not needing medical attention, Morgana turned her attention back to the chess table. Gregor had won the last two games, but she was determined to win the third one. As she looked over the board, her smile turned mischievous.
Since moving into the castle, she had been smiling a lot. While Zeus had been recovering, Morgana was too. Though she still felt unease over not knowing where Fordun had disappeared to, she had to admit that moving into the castle had been the best choice for the both of them.
With guards, or Gregor, or sometimes both, surrounding her constantly, she felt a type of safety that was until then unknown to her. And then there was the kindness. No one, not a single person in the castle was rude to her or Zeus. Nor were they afraid of her, despite Fordun’s attempts. Of course, there were some villagers that had been shaken by Fordun’s brutal appearance, but that was to be expected.
As for staying in Gregor’s rooms, she found the circumstance quite pleasant. Even though Ava came in and changed the bedding often, the big furs held his scent. Somewhat of a mix of man and forest, it was one that drove her senses to giddiness. Whether it was the comfort of the bed or the safety or the appetizing scent, Morgana had never slept so well in her life.
“Your move,” Gregor told her, sounding overly confident. She looked up and saw he had a smug look on his face, and it took all she had to feign a look of annoyance. Seeing her opportunity, Morgana moved her knight to take his rook. As she did so, Gregor’s eyes widened and he cursed under his breath. The expression on his face made her burst into giggles, and she picked up her wine glass to take another sip.
She had come to very much enjoy spending time with Gregor in the evening hours. After the day was over, their time was filled with private dinners, long conversations, and target practice; which she particularly enjoyed. During practice Gregor gave her praise for her marksmanship, and it pleased her to know that Gregor was impressed.
During the day they were both busy with their responsibilities. Gregor was always out and about running the village in some way or another, and she and the McDougal twins worked on a new field within the castle grounds and visited daily with patients. Both brothers were interested in her practice, and she happily taught them. Though she was sad that her crops had been destroyed, she was thankful for the opportunity to start over.
Toward the very end of the day after they retired to his rooms, they often shared more conversation, games, and sometimes even a comfortable silence with the other’s company. When it was time for bed, Gregor would retire to the day bed while she and Zeus had taken over the large canopied bed.
At times, when her nightmares were too vivid, she’d wake up in a trembling sweat and forget where she was. Then she’d look over and see Gregor sleeping across the room, his body between her and the door, and everything within her would settle. She’d never slept in a room with a man before and had thought it would be terrifying. Instead, Gregor felt protected, safe.
“Check,” Gregor murmured, moving his rook.
Morgana smiled widely. “Checkmate,” she replied giddily, making her winning move. Morgana took Gregor’s King and dangled it over the table. “I win!”
“Cheater!” Gregor roared in false fury, making Morgana erupt in giggles.
“I demand a rematch,” he insisted, trying his best to look at her with a scowl. It didn’t last long, and soon he was chuckling along with her.
“Why, so I can beat you again?” she teased, already setting the board up again.
“Well done, lass,” he praised, pouring them each more wine.
Morgana accepted the glass and took another sip. Her body was feeling warm and relaxed, and she was genuinely enjoying her night. As she drank her wine, she couldn’t help but notice the look in Gregor’s eyes as he watched her.
“What is it?” she asked, smiling. Suddenly feeling warm, she untied her dressing gown and shrugged out of it. As she did so, a gust of cool summer night air blew in from the open windows. The breeze tickled her flesh and hardened her nipples. She watched as Gregor’s gaze flicked down to her chest approvingly before raking back up to her eyes.
“It’s nice to see ye relaxed is all,” he replied, smiling out of the corner of his mouth. “I daenae think I’ve ever seen ye this at ease.”
Morgana laughed softly, her gaze sweeping down as she blushed.
“Well, I don’t think I’ve ever been this at ease,” she admitted, leaning back in the chair. As she said it she knew it was true. Not since before her parents had died had she felt so safe.
“Thank you for that,” she told him. Gregor smiled, raised his glass, and nodded.
“Aside from the circumstances that brought ye here, it has been a pleasure having ye here. Ye are always welcome.”
Even if the danger passes and we no longer need this lie?
The question popped into her head, but she kept her mouth shut. There was no doubt she had feelings for Gregor, but since the night Fordun had rushed in, he had yet to kiss her like he had before. At first she had been appreciative of the distance, but now it was beginning to annoy her. Did he no longer want her? If not, she couldn’t blame him. The danger surrounding her was impossible to ignore.
Suddenly feeling self-conscious, Morgana moved to put her dressing gown back on. As she went to grab it, it slipped off the back of her chair and fell to a puddle to the floor. She cursed under her breath and went to pick it up, but as she did so she twisted her right foot and slammed her toes into the table.
Pain exploded in her foot and she gasped. Immediately Gregor was out of his chair and kneeling in front of her, pulling her foot onto his knee to inspect it.
“Ye all right, Luve?” he asked, his fingers moving gingerly over her toes and arch.
Pleasure wound its way through Morgana’s body as his hands tenderly massaged her foot, and suddenly she had trouble forming words.
“I, erm, mhmm,” was all she could reply. She watched him glance up at her, as if he knew how had made her body melt, and grinned. Slowly his hands moved to continue their massage, kneading small circles over her heel and pads of her toes.
Giving in to his ministrations, Morgana let her head fall back and her eyes close. Tension had building up in her body for so long that she had at one point simply embraced it as part of her life. To feel it being released, even from such a small part of her body, was heavenly.
Gregor took his time massaging her, moving from one foot to other. When he was finished with both, he lifted her right foot up to his mouth and kissed the top of it. It was an innocent kiss, much like the one he placed on her knuckles, but what it did to her body was anything but innocent.
“Better?” he asked, staring up at her.
Morgana struggled with her words. It was better. So much better, but she didn’t want him to stop.
“Actually,” she rasped, wiggling in her chair. “My ankle feels a little twisted too.”
Gregor chuckled as he stared at her, his fingers already moving there. “We can’t have that now, can we?” he asked.
Chapter 21
Gregor wasn’t sure when he had stopped massaging and they had started kissing, but he wasn’t going to stop and ask. One minute he was massaging her sinewy legs, trying his best to control himself, and the next he was sitting on the floor with her on his lap and their lips devouring one another.
Arousal coursed through him as she pressed herself tight against him. Through the thin silk of her nightgown he could feel her body responding to his kisses, begging for more. Ever since Fordun had shown up and ruined everything he had wanted nothing more than to keep her in his arms and in his bed where nothing could hurt her.
It had been hell keeping his di
stance, but the last thing he had wanted was to make her feel pressure and compare him to the monster that had been chasing her. Each night as he grappled with sleep he had been achingly hard just watching her slumber in his bed.
Now Gregor was kissing her greedily, nibbling at her lips and suckling her tongue until soft, breathy moans started to pour from her lips. He adored the sounds she made as they kissed, and he wondered just how many different kinds he could procure from her if given the chance to explore her fully.
“God’s teeth, woman,” he groaned, his hands moving to explore her body. As he did she did the same, her fingertips driving him crazy as they traveled over his back, across his shoulders, and through his hair.
Wanting more, Gregor tore his lips away from hers only so he could lift her curtain of hair from her shoulder and kiss his way down her neck. Morgana’s body trembled for him when his teeth sank gently in the sweet spot at the base of her throat, and he couldn’t stop the rumble of pleasure that erupted from his chest.
Greedily his mouth continued lower, kissing and lapping down her chest as his fingers tugged at the shoulder straps of her nightgown. On his lap, Morgana’s body had begun to undulate, teasing his hardened member with each movement of her hips as they began to brush him back and forth.
“Gregor, I–,” Morgana moaned, her voice deliciously needy.
“Aye, Luv?” he asked, his mouth moving to her breasts. He drew her right nipple into his mouth without further pretense, and felt her dissolve into his arms.
“Should I stop?” he asked, his teeth plucking gently at her nipple between wicked flicks of his tongue. As he did so his hand traveled up her leg, gently stroking the flesh that stretched from her knee to her inner thigh.
She looked up at him nervously with pure blue eyes so innocent that it sent him reeling all over again.
“It’s–it’s just, I’ve never, erm, been intimate with a man before,” she explained, her body beginning to tremble beneath him. “I–I don’t know what to do.”
Morgana’s admission to being pure filled Gregor with a great respect for her. He had no idea how a lass so fair was able to protect her maidenhood in the cruel world that she came from, but he immediately understood how powerful the moment was for her.
“I’m honored ye chose me lass,” he rasped, his need coursing through his veins wildly. “We daenae have to do anything yer nae ready for,” he promised. He leaned up and ran a shaky hand through her hair.
“No,” she whispered, reaching for his shirt. Her eyes raked hotly up and down his figure before resting on his eyes, then he watched her as she innocently pulled her lower lip into her mouth and began to nibble on it.
“I just–I wanted you to know,” she explained, her voice ringing with honesty. “I’ve never let a man touch me the way I’ve let you,” she confessed.
“I’m honored,” he replied truthfully. “And how do I make you feel?”
Morgana blushed and bit her lip again, setting him on fire once more. He loved how her perfectly-straight teeth pressed down into the soft pillowy flesh of her mouth, and he often yearned to take them into his own mouth and have a nibble himself.
How could someone look so innocent and so tempting at the same time?
He groaned inwardly, and a wicked smile spread across his face. He had to admit, he was thoroughly enjoying the conversation. Despite her being on her own, she had fought tooth and nail to keep ahold of her purity and he found it incredibly arousing.
“Like my entire body comes alive anywhere you touch me,” she confessed. “Even if you kiss my lips, I can feel it everywhere else.”
Arousal stirred through Gregor as she made the admission. “Is that so?” he asked, his eyes raking down her person. He reached out and gingerly laced his fingers around her wrist, bringing it up to his lips.
“What about here?” he asked, laying a gentle kiss on the inside of her wrist.
Morgana gasped and nodded her head. “Yes,” she confessed, her cheeks flushed.
“Interesting,” he murmured, pulling her close once more. “What about here?” He leaned in, placing a kiss just beneath her left ear.
“Definitely yes,” she gasped.
Pleasure shot through him as his lips continued to make a slow trail down her long, elegant neck. He took his time, reveling in the way she trembled for him with each new kiss. When he reached her breasts this time, he caressed them more softly, taking his time to pull each delicious shiver out of her with the stroke of his tongue.
“I want ye,” he rasped, slowly pulling her left breast into his mouth. “But I have no issue whatsoever keeping ye here on me lap all night and nae taking ye to bed.”
Moaning, Morgana shook her head and pressed her body further into him, letting him know she was ready for more. Ready to oblige, Gregor swept her up into his arms and carried her to the bed. Once there he laid her down gently among the pillows and took a moment to drink her in.
“Look at ye,” he breathed in awe, taking in her goddess-like beauty. With her half-open dress and her fiery red curls splayed among the pillows, she looked ready to be painted by one of Italy’s finest artists. In that moment he felt privileged to have such beauty all to himself, and he felt his like for Morgana turn into something deeper. Much deeper.
In response to his intense perusal, Morgana’s vivid blue eyes glowed up at him, bright with heated arousal. With her gaze locked on his, she tilted her chin up slightly and parted her lips, giving him permission to kiss her. The gesture drove Gregor wild, and he leaned down take over the job for her.
“Gregor,” she moaned, her arms going around his neck as he pressed his weight into her. At her hips the fabric of her nightgown had bunched up, exposing her legs enough so that she could wrap them around his.
Her needy moan was all the encouragement he needed to continue. Gregor rose up to tear his shirt away from his torso, then greedily moved back down to kiss Morgana’s neck and exposed shoulders. As his tongue and teeth played over her sensitive flesh, his fingers worked at the ties of the nightgown until they were loose.
He gripped the gown with both hands and pulled it slowly down her body, giving her time to stop him if she wasn’t ready. Delight coursed through him when instead of stopping him, she lifted her hips to allow him to peel the fabric away. When the gown reached her feet he tossed it blindly from the bed, his eyes already feasting on her figure.
Morgana’s tear-shaped breasts tapered down to a narrow waist that flared out beautifully to hips that led to a pert backside. Between her legs, which were parted so he could kneel inside them, rested a nest of bright red, dewy curls. His fingers itched to part them and find the delicate bud that rested above her lips and tease it, but there was so much more he wanted first.
Wanting to take his time though, Gregor’s mouth returned to her breasts. There he lavished attention on her, teasing her nipples and massaging the tender flesh until he was satisfied enough to travel down her ribcage. Morgana trembled as he skimmed his lips from her abdomen to her hips.
There, he scraped his teeth back and forth teasingly and covered them with kisses as his fingers moved to perform magic. Between her thighs he began stroking the sensitive flesh until she was spreading her legs even farther. When she was practically begging him, he parted the petals of her sacred flower with his thumb and slowly eased his finger into her.
Her wet, hot, quaking walls clamped down on his finger as he thrust inside. Immediately Morgana gasped at the intrusion, but quickly dissolved into moans as he began to move rhythmically. The tightness of her sheath made him weak with need, and his swollen manhood ached for what was in store.
“Gregor, please,” Morgana begged, her entire body trembling on the precipice. What she was begging for she wasn’t quite sure, but if he didn’t make the need swelling inside of her go away soon she was sure she would explode. All she wanted was for it release, whatever it was.
Arousal had turned her into a simpering mess the moment Gregor had started to massage
her aching foot. With each gentle touch, her body seemed to tighten more and more. The closer his exploration got to the apex of her thighs, the more her body had tightened. Then, when he reached between her legs and thrust his finger inside of her, she was sure she was about combust.
Instead it only added to her heat, and she whimpered for more. Her hips began to rock automatically around his finger, as if her body knew what to ask for. At first she felt embarrassed for her need, but her excitement only seemed to please Gregor more.
“Relax, Luv,” he groaned, his mouth nibbling on her ear. “Let it come.” She had no idea what “it” was until Gregor shifted his fingers and began to massage the sensitive bud of nerves that rested above her mons. Under his ministrations Morgana felt the intensity of her first release rush up, making her tremble and moan as liquid heat gushed out from her and over his attentive fingers.
Unable to control her body, Morgana bucked her hips and rose off the thick mattress as wave after delicious wave crashed over her. Instead of slating her arousal however, the orgasm only made her want for more. Gregor, sensing her need wasted no time in parting her thighs wider so he could rest his hips between them.
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