Page 38

“I dreamt of ye while I was gone,” he admitted.

Her brow furrowed. She reached up and tenderly glided her fingertips along his temple, tracing the scar he bore with a gentle stroke. “I’ve been counting the days that you’ve been gone, always hoping that today was when you would return. And finally you have come back.”

She had missed him? The revelation snapped the thin thread of Gavin’s control. Unceremoniously, he grabbed the soft globes of Fiona’s buttocks and lifted her closer to him. She trembled and shook, but he would not be denied.

His questing fingers found her nipple and he rubbed the tip of his finger over the peak until it hardened. With a strangled cry, her hips rose to meet his. She gripped his shoulder and thrust herself upward. He slid one hand between them and brushed the pad of his thumb over her pulsing flesh.

The moment she started to climax, Gavin knew he could hold back no longer. Mindlessly, he thrust and drove himself deeper, pumping furiously. His climax caught him hard and fast, racking his body with deep spasms, nearly blurring his vision when it came upon him.

Gavin could feel Fiona’s body tighten around him as he pumped his seed inside her womb. Shuddering, he collapsed on top of her, fearing he was crushing her but feeling too damn satisfied to move a muscle.

The scent of their passion mingled with the damp air. He inhaled the fragrance, pleased to feel a slight stirring of his cock. With just a wee bit of rest, he’d be primed for a second round. And maybe a third.

Feeling more than a tad smug at his virility, Gavin rolled to his side, taking Fiona with him. Playfully, he pressed his face into her golden hair and lazily stroked her back. She sighed and snuggled closer.

And in that moment, Gavin’s burdens eased; the worries about his bastard half brother, Gilroy, the uncertainty of Robert’s kingship over Scotland, and the fate that awaited them, all slipped away.

With a contented, satisfied sigh, Gavin allowed sleep to claim him.

Gavin’s lax body and gentle snores let Fiona know he was asleep. This meant it was the best time for her to quietly return to her chamber. She squinted in the darkness, trying to locate the door, deciding how she would navigate around the furniture without disturbing Gavin. Avoid the chair, watch out for the table, step around the tub. Yes, that should work well.

’Twas a solid, practical plan. Having a plan was always a comfort for her. A necessity, really. Yet Fiona never moved.I’ll leave in a minute. Or maybe two.

She snuggled closer to his broad strength, burrowing her head into his shoulder, not daring to think too hard on why she wanted to stay. Gavin’s warm breath whispered against the top of her head, the steady, even rhythm a strange comfort.

So this is what it means to make love.Saints preserve her, he had acted as tender and considerate as a besotted bridegroom. Was that how all men treated their mistresses? If so, that would certainly explain why women took lovers.

Fiona shook her head, marveling at the experience. She had shared more with Gavin in a few hours than ten years of marriage with Henry. And it wasn’t only physical. They had laughed, he’d teased and flirted with her. He had made her feel like a woman. Adesirablewoman.

If only they could have a future together.

Fiona sat up immediately, as if struck by a bolt of lightning. No! She must never allow those thoughts to creep inside her head, to burrow in her heart. It would be her undoing, a heartache that would forever haunt her. Mind racing, she turned to leave the bed, but Gavin caught her at the waist, holding her tight.

“Where are ye going?”

“To my chamber.”

He made a noise deep in his throat that sounded like a growl. She started to protest, then realized she had no right to refuse him. Her emotions in turmoil, Fiona allowed herself to be pulled into his embrace. She could feel the rough hair on his legs brush against her thigh beneath the covers. It was a ridiculously erotic sensation and her body responded with trembling need.

Gavin’s kiss was hard and seeking, his hand traveling immediately between her thighs. Fiona gasped, intoxicated by the feeling, admitting the very last thing she wanted was to leave his bed.

It went much faster this time, but felt even better. Within moments she was on her back and spread out beneath him, like some pagan goddess, a virgin sacrifice to appease the gods. His hands and mouth were everywhere, stroking and suckling her bare flesh, exciting and torturing her at the same time.

“Now,” she panted. “I need you now.”

Gavin grinned wolfishly. “As milady commands.” Her blood flowed hot and raw when he thrust inside, claiming her as his own. Sobbing with restless passion, she held him close, moving her hands over his shoulders and the corded muscles of his biceps, bucking beneath him with blind compulsion. Arching and shuddering, she moaned loudly, feeling the whole length of him buried deeply inside her.

Close, she was so close.

Sensing her need, Gavin slipped his hand to where they were joined, his clever fingers knowing precisely where to stroke. Instantly, the sensations within her spiraled out of control. Higher and higher they climbed and Fiona stretched and strained to reach the pinnacle, to achieve the passionate bliss she now knew awaited her.

A keening wail burst from Fiona’s throat as the raw hunger inside her finally crested, shattering into a million pieces. She locked her legs around Gavin’s waist and let the pleasure engulf her, surround her, possess her. When it subsided, she lay gasping beneath him, still feeling the ripples of sensation deep within her.

“Open yer eyes, Fiona.”

The commanding voice reached through her hazy bliss and Fiona obeyed. His fiery gaze was straining with need and unfulfilled passion.

Just a few hours ago, the sight of his intense desire would have frightened her, for she had no experience with it and knew not how to appease him. Yet now she understood exactly what he needed, how to bring him the satisfaction he craved.