by Donna Grant
As soon as the words left his mouth an image of Kate, her head thrown back in abandonment as he plunged into her, filled his mind. His balls tightened and his cock thickened.
She hesitated a moment. “That thought has crossed my mind.”
“But no more?”
She shook her head and let her gaze fall.
“Why?” he asked and rose from the bed to walk to her. “Am I not pleasing enough for you?”
“You please me fine enough.”
She was uncomfortable—that much was obvious by the way she refused to meet his gaze. Her arms crossed under her breasts, drawing his gaze to the full swell of her chest. He wondered what her breasts would feel like in his hands and if she would like it when he suckled and pinched her nipples.
His cock jumped just thinking about sinking into her slick heat. A few moments ago he had been angry at having her as his wife, and now he wanted her with an intensity that frightened him.
Women had always come to him, eager for him to love them. But there had never been a woman that he had desired above all others. Not once had he lusted after a wench so desperately that she was all he thought about.
There was something about Kate that brought out the primal urge in him to claim her, to throw her on the bed and seduce her one kiss, one touch, at a time until she screamed his name, her body shaking with her climax.
His hunger for her grew with each moment he looked at her. It gnawed at his gut, urging him to take what was rightfully his.
She shifted from one foot to the other. Ewan tore his gaze away from the swell of her breasts and forced himself to think of something else—anything other than bedding her.
Because if he stayed near her, he was going to do just that.
“When did you arrive?” he asked when he noticed the dirt on her gown.
“Just after midday.”
“Was your journey difficult?”
She shrugged. “Not terribly. My cloak kept most of the chill from me.”
Ewan clenched his jaw as suspicion gnawed at him. “And what did you do while you waited for me?”
“I gathered the women and we cleaned the castle.”
Just as he thought. A slow, steady stream of anger sizzled through him. Bridget had lied. Most likely she hadn’t even helped with the cleaning.
“Thank you,” he murmured. “I’ve needed a wife for some time to keep up with the duties of the castle.”
“Any number of women could have taken that duty until you found a wife.”
Bridget had assumed that role, a role he should never have allowed her to have. Ewan licked his lips as he stared at Kate.
“You’ve never been to the Highlands before, have you?”
Her head swiveled to him. “Nay.”
“’Tis much colder here, and living next to the sea will make it even colder.”
“I’ll survive.”
He had no doubt that she would. With a grin, he turned and headed to the door. “I’ll have a bath sent to you. I must give my men orders, then I’ll have our supper brought up so we can be alone.”
Her brow furrowed as she took a step toward him. “We are going through with the annulment, aye?”
He stopped and looked over his shoulder at Kate, his hand on the door handle. “We’ll talk about it more over supper.”
Ewan left before she could argue. As he walked down the corridor, he found he wasn’t as disappointed as he had first been upon finding Kate as his wife. The hunger she elicited in him was enough to make him contemplate keeping her.
You want quiet, though.
But with Kate in his arms, he wouldn’t care about anything else. She was passionate, and that passion could burn him as no other woman had. How he’d longed to find a woman whose passion met his own, but he’d given up that hope long ago.
Maybe, just maybe, he had that woman now.
By the time Kate finished with her bath, she had no more calmed herself than when Ewan had left the chamber. She had been so sure he would give her the annulment since he wasn’t happy to find her instead of her sister as his wife, but there had been something in his blue gaze that made her blood burn and her body ache with an unfamiliar need.
There would be no annulment if she let him bed her. But, oh, how she wanted to feel the weight of him atop her, to taste his kiss and run her hands over his broad back. She’d heard from her friends that sex could actually feel good for a woman. The few times she’s experienced it, it had brought her either pain or…nothing.
She would stare at the ceiling and think of the next day’s meals or she would bite her tongue to keep from crying out in pain. She hated bedsport as much as she hated being married. It was just one more way a man ruled a woman.
As Ewan’s wife, he had every right to take her, sealing their marriage. She shuddered as she recalled the gnarled, shaky hands of her previous husbands as they pawed at her body.
Ewan’s hands didn’t shake. They were large, tanned, and calloused. A warrior’s hands. A laird’s hands.
She swallowed and licked her lips as she wondered what his hands would feel like on her body. She had seen his anger, knew he was quick to rile, but he hadn’t raised a hand at her. He had shouted enough to alert the entire clan of his ire, but she would rather that than be struck.
Her first husband had often backhanded her, but it didn’t make her cower as he had hoped. Instead, it gave Kate the strength she needed to get through each day. Those six months had been like six lifetimes.
There were many differences Kate could see already between Ewan and her first two husbands. But it wasn’t enough to make her change her mind about the annulment. Besides, it hadn’t been her he had chosen. It had been her sister.
Her father had known it, too. Why had he done it to her and Ewan? Why trick such a powerful laird and risk so much? Why put her life in danger?
He’d had desire in his eyes.
Kate had seen the desire for sure in Ewan’s eyes, but that didn’t change anything. Though, she wondered if Ewan would be a different kind of man—a man who let her be herself.
She rose from the water and began to dry herself. Her hands grazed her breasts and her nipples puckered and sent a stab of longing between her legs. Her sex throbbed, and for a brief instant she thought of allowing Ewan to bed her, to see if he could bring about the wonderful feelings a woman could experience.
Yet, did she dare to give into her own desires? She wasn’t the bride he wanted. He had chosen her sweet, beautiful, biddable sister who was the exact opposite of her. Kate didn’t think she could stand to see his disappointment again.
She dressed and took the MacDonald tartan from atop the bed, wrapping it around herself in a vain attempt to find warmth. She couldn’t stop shaking. The bath water had been hot, but the castle stones soaked up all the warmth, leaving little for her. Even the fire she huddled in front of couldn’t generate enough heat.
The only warning she had that Ewan approached their chamber was the sound of his voice. Kate rose and braced herself for his arrival. He opened the door, barely sparing her a glace, and motioned in Beth who carried a tray of food. He moved the table and chairs that sat beside the window nearer to the fire and motioned for Kate to take a seat. Kate sat and curled her legs beneath her skirt.
She noted Ewan’s damp hair and fresh saffron shirt beneath his kilt. Beth gave her a grin as she set out the food, but Kate was too nervous to return Beth’s smile. Kate kept her eyes on her food instead of Ewan, for that would make her think of other things, things that made her sex ache and her breasts swell.
The sound of the door closing told her Beth had left. Now she was alone with Ewan.
“You really want out of this marriage?”
Kate’s gaze snapped to Ewan. “Don’t you? I’m nothing like my sister. Besides, my father deceived you. That in itself is enough to get an annulment.” She speared a bit of meat, smiling inside at her quick thinking.
“I might have been a wee hasty in stating my anno
yance at being tricked.”
She nearly choked on the delicious roasted meat as he lowered himself into the chair opposite her. “You don’t even know me. How can you say you might have been hasty?”
“Exactly my point,” he said casually as he ate. “Let’s get to know each other. Maybe we’ll see that we are definitely meant to be apart.”
Or meant to be together.
He hadn’t said the words, but Kate realized his intentions. His blue gaze met hers. He smiled and reached over to fill her goblet.
She chewed and swallowed before she trusted herself to answer. “All right. What kind of woman are you looking for?”
“I thought I knew. Now, I’m not so sure.”
A look of pure desire centered on her, scorching her with its intensity. Kate’s stomach fell to her feet with a thud. She couldn’t catch her breath, and her heart pounded loudly in her ears.
“What do you want?” he asked.
You.
Thankfully, she didn’t blurt it out. “I want the impossible.”
“What might that be?”
“A man who understands me, a man who will laugh with me, share his life with me, and grow old with me. I want lots of children so their laughter can fill my home. I want a man who will let me be me.” She shrugged and took another bite. “As I said. Impossible.”
She couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but she knew no man could ever live up to what she dreamed of having, especially not this Highland laird who was used to commanding everyone. There would be no compromising with him.
“The weather will take some time for you to become accustomed to it.”
His words were like a bucket of ice water doused on her. She knew then that her hopes of being free were gone. “You won’t give me the annulment?”
“In truth, I don’t know. I want you in my bed first.”
4
Ewan watched the dismay, then anger, flash across Kate’s pretty face. She wanted out of the marriage, and he would let her go if he was wrong about the passion he sensed between them. But if he was right, he would do anything to hold onto her forever.
“You can’t be serious.” Her voice came out in a strangled whisper, but he saw the flush on her cheeks.
She was tempted.
A slow smile pulled at his lips. “I would never jest about something so serious.”
Her hands, which shook slightly, moved to lie atop the table. “I’m begging you. Give me the annulment.”
“What are you afraid of, Kate? My bed? Or what I’ll do to you in that bed?”
“Please.”
“Were your two previous husbands that lacking?”
She rose from her chair and made a dash for the door. Ewan was quicker and put his hand against the door so she couldn’t open it.
Kate spun around to glare at him. “You would force me?”
Her pupils dilated, and her chest rose and fell quickly, drawing his gaze to her lovely, full breasts. By the saints, he couldn’t wait to see them bared, her nipples straining for his mouth.
He moved closer to her, pinning her against the door with his body. His other hand came to rest beside her face, her hair teasing the back of his hand. “I won’t have to force you.”
At his words, her mouth opened in surprise…and her amber eyes darkened with desire. Ewan leaned down and gently ran his mouth over hers. When he could take it no more, he gave her lip a tiny lick.
She moaned softly, and his control snapped. He claimed her lips in a kiss meant to prove the depth of the passion between them. He wasn’t prepared when her lips parted, but he didn’t waste any time slipping his tongue inside her mouth.
Her body sagged against his. Ewan’s arms instantly came around her, molding her to his chest as he pushed her against the door. His body hungered for more of her enticing body.
She returned his kisses with as much ardor as he had expected. What he hadn’t anticipated was his body’s instant, and ravenous, response. The longing, the craving, consumed him, demanding he take her and make her his own.
He lifted her in his arms and carried her to his bed, a place he wanted to keep her for the next fortnight. Once he reached the bed, he let her feet drop to the ground, and he broke the kiss.
Her lips were swollen and her breathing ragged as her lids lifted. She stared up at him with confusion and pleasure mixing in the depths of her amber eyes. “What have you done to me?”
“I’ve awoke the woman inside you.”
He didn’t give her time to speak as he began to undress her at his leisure. He kissed and licked each expanse of creamy skin that he exposed. Her skin was as soft as down, as smooth as the sea on a calm day.
His hands caressed her silky skin, learning the curves and contours of her delicious body. He inhaled the clean, passionate scent of her and groaned as his balls tightened.
Desire, hot and true, burned through him like lightning. His hunger for her overwhelmed him, making his hands shake as he pulled her gown over her head and tossed it aside. When she was finally bared to him, he sat on the bed and pulled her between his legs.
“By the saints, you have a magnificent body,” he whispered as his gaze raked from her rosy-tipped nipples to the swell of her hips and the patch of dark blond curls that hid her sex.
He swallowed and reined in the lust that threatened to drown him. His hands moved leisurely down her sides, enjoying the simple feel of her. He glanced at her face to find her eyes closed and her lips parted, her chest rising and falling rapidly. His cock jumped, eager to bury inside her hot, slick sex.
He cupped her breasts, lightly skimming her nipples with his thumbs. She sucked in a breath and put her hands on his shoulders to stay upright. A soft moan passed her full lips as her head fell back and her hair tickled his legs.
Never had just touching a woman left him with such a burning need before. He bit back a moan as her nipples hardened before his eyes. Unable to wait a moment longer, he covered a nipple with his lips, swirling his tongue around the tiny bud and suckling it deep in his mouth.
She gave a breathy cry and sagged against him. Ewan steadied her, unwilling to release her for even a heartbeat. He moved to her other nipple and glanced at her as he flicked his tongue over the bud. Her pupils dilated as she watched him, and her nails dug into his shoulders.
It was nearly too much for him. His hunger turned into a ravenous craving he feared might never be quenched.
Kate couldn’t breathe. Flames of desire licked her body as Ewan laved her breasts while his hands stroked her back and bottom. Just his touch was enough to make her crave more, but when his mouth began a delightful journey over her skin with his kisses and licks, she came undone.
Her body was no longer her own. She couldn’t control her reaction to him, and all thought fled except one—Ewan. All she wanted was for him to continue touching her, awakening her. The passion and pleasure swirling through her were too much to bear and impossible to ignore.
Her breasts swelled and her nipples ached as he continued to feast upon her breasts. She had never known they could be so sensitive. Ewan gently bit down on her nipple and her sex throbbed in response. Her hands moved to thread into his mane of raven locks, holding him close so he didn’t stop the exquisite torture.
Chills raced across her skin in stark contrast to the blood that pumped like fire in her veins. She couldn’t remember why she hadn’t wanted him to touch her. Not once did it ever enter her mind to ask him to stop. It felt too glorious to think of walking away.
And she wanted to see what he would do to her next.
She arched her back, silently begging him to continue the wonderful agony. Unable to help herself, she ground her hips against his rock hard chest and felt a bolt of desire spear through her.
Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her to place her on the bed. The cool air of the chamber met her nipples and caused her to hiss in a breath, but it was Ewan’s desire filled gaze on her sex that made her squeeze her legs t
ogether in anticipation. She bit back a moan and watched hungrily as he pulled off his boots and unclasped the brooch over his heart that held his kilt.
The tartan fell in a whoosh to his feet. Kate rose up on her elbows when he jerked his shirt over his head. His body rippled with muscles and a commanding power that even a blind woman would see.
She couldn’t wait to run her hands over his wide shoulders and solid arms and chest. But it was his cock, thick and hard, that made desire blur her vision and her sex grow damp.
He placed his hands on the bed near her feet and crawled over her until he was even with her face. Then he settled his weight atop her and took her lips in a slow, sensual kiss that melted any resistance she might have had.
His hands were everywhere, touching every inch of her skin as if he were memorizing her. Kate took advantage and let her own hands roam over his broad back and shoulders. His muscles moved and bunched under her hands, reminding her of his power.
The feel of his rod pressed against her belly spurred her longing. She wanted him inside her to quench the growing hunger, but she could tell by his leisurely kisses that he had other plans.
His mouth moved down her throat and across her chest to the valley between her breasts. Breathing became impossible when he began to thumb her nipples while his hot mouth continued its trail down her body. Raw desire ripped through her and caused her to grind her hips against him as her need grew.
A moan she wasn’t able to stop escaped her lips. He lifted his head to give her a sly, devilish grin. He knew exactly what he was doing to her, and God help her, she loved every moment of it.
His kissed down her stomach to her navel, which his tongue circled before he moved to her hips. He nipped the skin over her hip bone and then ran his hot tongue over it.
Pleasure consumed her, intense and vibrant. There was no turning back now, not that there ever had been. She wanted to know what he would do next, but at the same time, she was frightened of what she might feel.
When his hand covered her sex, she couldn’t stop herself from grinding into his palm. She gasped at the exquisite longing that exploded through her.
