My Daring Highlander (14 page)

She shoved the fake knife backward
again, driving it against what seemed to be his lower abdomen.
’Twas like trying to drive the stick into granite.

“Again. Harder,” he
commanded.

She let loose and did it three more
times.

Finally, he released her. “Well
done.”

“Did I bruise you?” She glanced down
at his trim waist.

“Nay. Don’t worry about me. I simply
wanted you to know how it would feel if you stab a man, trying to
make him release you. If you’d had a sharp blade, you would’ve done
some damage.”

“I did hurt you, then?” She
wanted to see if she had left horrible red marks on his bare skin.
“You kept saying
harder
.”

“Seona.” He shook his head and took
her hand. His warm fingers surrounded hers, filling her whole body
with comfort. “Nay, you did not hurt me.” Taking the wooden knife,
he stroked his thumb across her open palm, sending tingles up her
arm. “Now, I want you to practice slashing. You would do this if
the attacker is coming at you from the front. This will give you a
little extra time to escape him.” He stepped back and swung the
knife in a half circle at arm’s length. “If he is extending his
hand to grab you, you may cut his hand or his arm. You
try.”

She took the knife and mimicked his
movements several times.

“You’re a quick learner,” Keegan
said.

“’
Tis because you are a
gifted teacher.” Moving forward, she offered the wooden knife to
him.

Instead of taking it, he encircled her
hand with his larger one. A heated sensation poured from where he
touched her. “And you are a beautiful, resilient woman who has
bewitched me,” he murmured, his deep voice the most seductive sound
she’d ever heard.

Her breath halted and she couldn’t
think what to do or say next. The knife slipped from her fingers
and thumped to the carpet. He ignored it and stared intently into
her eyes.

What was he thinking? Would he kiss
her? Her heartbeat accelerated in anticipation.

Slowly, he moved closer until they
were standing toe to toe.

His eyes darkened, entrancing
her.

He leaned down and touched his lips to
hers.

She knew she shouldn’t allow him to
kiss her, but how could she stop him when she craved him more than
food when she was hungry? The months she’d secretly watched him
across a crowded room had whetted her appetite.

And each time he kissed her, she
understood more about what he wanted, how she should respond and
kiss him in return. She opened her mouth, inviting him to deepen
the kiss. She’d never guessed she would be an enthusiast of carnal
kisses. But when he brushed his tongue over hers, she wanted to do
naught but eat him up. He tasted of whisky and man.
Intoxicating.

She entangled her hands in his hair,
loving the silky feel of it between her fingers.

He moaned, taking her mouth in another
slow, luscious kiss and gently tugging her against him. His hard
chest pressing against her breasts, even through their clothing,
made her body sing with need.

She noticed something hard against the
lower part of her belly. At first, she thought it was a weapon
hilt, but then she realized it was that most male part of his body
that she had glimpsed when he’d waded from the loch. Isobel had
said a man’s shaft would become hard when his desires were
aroused.

As a lady, she should be shocked. But
she wasn’t. His arousal awoke something within her on a primal
level. She loved knowing she affected him in such a way. She felt a
liquid warmth in the lowest part of her belly. She didn’t
understand it, but it was incredibly spellbinding.

His shaft nestled against her through
his plaid and he groaned. Some part of her deep inside tingled and
ached for him.

She craved his touch on every inch of
her skin.

He tempted her. Captivated her. And
made her want to do sinful things. This was why her aunt was such a
ferocious chaperone, glaring at any man she deemed unsuitable who
glanced her way.

But carnal relations outside of
marriage had to be dangerous. ’Twas how bastards were conceived,
she realized. Imagining having to face her father and tell him she
was with child but unwed sent fear lancing through her. She turned
her head aside, breaking the kiss.

“Damn,” Keegan whispered, his
breathing more labored now than it had been when he’d rescued her
from the horse days ago.

“Pray pardon,” she said, mortifying
heat rushing over her skin.

“I’m the one who should apologize.” He
drew in a deep breath. “I am sorry. I should not have.”

“Nay. Don’t apologize.”

He remained close, and she
felt torn, wanting to press her body against his again and kiss
him, but knowing at the same time this would be dangerous. His
manly scent tempted her to bury her nose against his chest, but she
didn’t move. She imagined, quite wantonly, what he would look like
if he removed his shirt and plaid.
Oh
heavens
. And if she was naked… their skin
would brush and slide together in a very carnal way.

She was suddenly aware of an abundance
of moisture between her legs. It had to be female arousal,
something she’d only experienced when near Keegan. The tingling and
yearning only intensified.

He stepped away, bent and took up his
sporran, sword and baldric.

Nay
. She wanted to protest. His body against her had felt better
than anything she’d ever experienced.

“’
Twas what I wished for,
too,” she whispered, torn between need for him and shock at
herself. Had she truly said that aloud?

He paused in putting on his sporran
and turned his head toward her. “What?”

She should keep her lips sealed tight.
Confessing her thoughts and feelings would only make the situation
more precarious. At the same time, she would never have what she
wanted if she didn’t show courage. “’Twas what I wanted…. You are
the only man who has ever kissed me.”

Chapter Eleven

Keegan halted, Seona’s words spurring
fierce desire within him.

’Twas what I wanted…. You
are the only man who has ever kissed me.

“Saints,” he hissed. Of course, he’d
expected that she was an innocent, but to know he was the first and
only man to kiss her sent possessiveness pounding through his
blood.

She was meant to be his… had to
be.

His first instinct was to kiss her
again, but he forced himself to be rational. Truth was, he wanted
to do far more than kiss her… but he couldn’t seduce
her.

His aching and rebellious body told
him he was wrong.

He drew in a deep breath and held it,
trying to smother his carnal yearnings. Aye, he’d played with fire
when he’d kissed her, but to know she felt the same, to hear that
she wanted his kisses… it near destroyed his resolve.

Still, he had to wait and ask her
father for her hand.

“Seona, I would love naught more than
to kiss you again. To kiss you all night, but ’tis not something I
should do.”

She stared at the floor. “You’re
right.”

“You’re an innocent lady, and I would
never want to do anything to ruin your future.”

She nodded. “You’re an honorable
gentleman,” she whispered. “Besides, I wasn’t suggesting you kiss
me again. I only wanted you to know there is no reason to
apologize.”

Was she angry with him? Or had he hurt
her feelings? Hell, what did he know about women? Keegan’s stomach
knotted as he tried to figure out what to say. “Aye, well, I simply
wanted you to know how I felt. You tempt me beyond reason. And to
know that you enjoy my kisses…” He blew out a sharp breath. “Makes
me near insane.”

Her dark blue gaze lifted to his. The
emotion and passion he saw there was like a punch to the
gut.

“Iosa is Muire
Mhàthair,”
he muttered, grinding his
teeth.
How could she affect him so
profoundly? He wanted to forget everything and kiss her… lay her on
his plaid before the hearth, then make love to her for the rest of
the night. He’d have to start off slow and gentle so as not to
frighten her.

But he couldn’t. Not until she was
his, in truth. Forever. Because once he had her, he’d never let her
go.

“I bid you goodnight,” Seona said,
then hurried out the door.

“’
Slud,” he muttered in the
silence and sucked in a deep breath. He could hardly think for the
arousal flooding his veins. He should be glad she’d left—’twas best
for them both—but at the same time, being without her made him feel
lonely and empty.

After blowing out the candles, he
exited the room, heading out to check on the guards and see if the
outlaws had shown their faces.

***

Seona slipped back into the chamber
where her aunt was sleeping. The fire in the hearth provided enough
light for her to see what she was doing. Millie, one of the maids,
arose from the small cot in the corner and helped Seona
undress.

“I thank you,” Seona whispered.
Wearing her smock, she climbed into the big bed beside Aunt
Patience. She was glad to see her aunt hadn’t moved. Her deep
breaths puffed in and out in the steady rhythm of sleep.

Seona, on the other hand, was too
excited to sleep. She turned onto her side, her body still burning
from Keegan’s touch, from his kiss, and the words he’d spoken to
her.

You tempt me beyond
reason.

Her heart sped up. Indeed, he tempted
her beyond reason, too. In fact, she’d been shocked at her own
courage when she’d confessed she wanted his kisses and that he was
the only man who’d ever kissed her. He’d tried to hide his reaction
to that, but she’d sensed he was suppressing something powerful.
Arousal? Emotion? Or a potent combination of both?

Prior to her talk with Isobel, no one
had seen fit to educate her on what to expect in bed with a man.
Even though she’d recently learned a lot, Seona remained curious
about every aspect of lovemaking. She suspected it might be
something she could enjoy. Isobel did; so why not? With the right
man, of course.

Before she’d met Keegan, she couldn’t
have imagined being so tempted by a man. She’d always thought the
marriage bed was something to be dreaded and feared. Something
violent, painful and humiliating for the woman. And something a man
could crow about.

Now she knew different.

Earlier, when Keegan’s erection had
pressed against her, clear evidence that he wanted her, a primitive
need for him had come over her, as if he was her mate and she
wished to please him.

She relished his desire, but she
admired his restraint and honor just as much. He was a good man,
putting what was best for her ahead of his own needs.

She well knew, for ladies and lairds,
passion and marriage were rarely experienced with the same person.
But wouldn’t it be hell on earth to be married to one person and in
love with another? She couldn’t fathom it, nor would she be able to
endure it.

Her heart had never yearned for
anything or anyone like it yearned for Keegan.

But she didn’t know how she could
marry him, or even if he wanted to marry her. Her father would
never permit a match between them, anyway, even with Keegan’s new
position as tanist. ’Twas a waste of time to even contemplate it…
but she did. She couldn’t help herself.

Seona couldn’t imagine all the things
Keegan would teach her in bed. He would kiss her and undress her.
He might caress every inch of her skin. He would guide her hands
and show her how he liked to be touched.

Recalling his broad shoulders,
muscular arms, trim abdomen and intriguing masculine attributes as
he’d strode from the loch, she envisioned him walking just that
way, stripped of clothing, toward her in a bedchamber. Her
breathing paused, and heat rushed over her skin. What would that
dusting of hair on his chest feel like beneath her fingers? How
would his hard shaft feel against her bare skin?

Heavens, I am a wanton
lass!

She tried to put Keegan from her mind
and sleep, but he walked into her dreams and taunted her with
smoldering kisses.

She hoped she did not talk in her
sleep.

***

The next morn after breaking their
fast, Keegan and the whole of the MacKay party proceeded the short
distance to the docks on foot, the guards surrounding the women and
their injured chief. Several of the guards had already scouted the
village, looking for the outlaws, and seen naught.

Seona’s hand rested securely at the
crook of Keegan’s elbow as they walked along the cobbled street.
Feeling protective and ’haps a wee bit possessive, he placed his
hand over hers and scanned their surroundings—the mix of gray stone
and whitewashed buildings, the green hills, and Loch Broom
reflecting the cloud-flecked blue sky.