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“You didn’t give me a choice last night,” she said softly, the accusation trembling on her lips, though her voice betrayed a breathy uncertainty.

His fingers still stroked her, drawing shivers from her depths. “Didn’t I?” he asked, his deep voice firm, winding through herlike a whispered sin. “If I recall, ye begged me to fill ye. Or have ye forgotten?”

Her cheeks flamed at the memory, heat rising beneath her blindfold. She turned her face away, grateful the darkness gave her some sense of being hidden, though the pulse beating in her throat surely betrayed her.

Broderick chuckled, the sound rich and warm, as if he could see right through her. “Ah, ye look delicious when ye blush, Blossom.”

“That’s not fair,” she snapped weakly, her voice tinged with embarrassment. “You used my body against me.”

“We made the best of our circumstances,” he countered, his tone growing serious. “But regardless, ye gave yerself to me willingly.” His mouth kissed a path to her other nipple, where his tongue flicked rapidly and strummed her arousal to a fevered pitch. “I’ve never stolen a kiss from ye, nor a touch, nor a climax that ye didnae want. And I willnae start now.”

His words sent a shiver down her spine, not of fear, but of something deeper, something that made her heart ache.

“When I promised ye’d only feel pleasure at my hands, I meant it,” he continued, his voice softening. “I’m not that brute ye married, lass. And if that bastard had still been alive when I arrived in Stewart Glen, I’d have made ye a widow meself.”

Davina’s breath shuddered at the protective growl in his voice.

“I’ll kill any man who tries tae harm ye or anyone ye love.”

His words sent a delightful shiver across her breasts as he leaned over her, his hard cock brushing lightly against her thigh. His lips captured hers again, the kiss deep and sensual, claiming her completely. She moved her thigh to enjoy the caress of his shaft.

His fingers returned to stroke a slow exploration of her quim,stroking her with devastating precision.

“Ye’re so fucking wet for me,” he murmured against her mouth, his voice thick. She groaned softly and felt his lips curve into a smile.

She reached for him again, needing to hold him, but he caught her wrists and guided them back to the latticework above her head.

“Not yet,” he whispered.

“Why?” she asked breathlessly, reaching again despite his warning.

“Do ye want me to tie yer hands down, then?”

The question sent a spike of fear through her belly, but the fear wasn’t unpleasant. If anything, it thrilled her.

Broderick chuckled, his hands encouraging her body to roll onto her belly. He guided her knees apart, pulling her hips up so she was kneeling on the bed. Davina froze and reached for the blindfold, but he stopped her.

“What’s wrong, lass?”

The grip on her wrist was gentle but firm. When she straightened, her back against his chest, his arm encircled her waist, holding her close.

“Yer heartbeat is thumpin’ like a rabbit,” he whispered in her ear, his breath warm, soothing the cold bite of old fears. “Tell me.”

“I…” Davina flexed her jaw, fighting the nightmarish images trying to invade her mind. Shadows of her past clawed at her, but Broderick’s closeness dulled their reach. “Ian…”

“Did he take ye like this? In this position?” Broderick’s voice softened, a velvet caress that curled around her frayed nerves.

She nodded, her throat tight.

His hand loosened, gliding up to cradle her shoulder. Slowly,he traced the tender stretch of skin where her neck met her shoulder, his touch reverent. “Listen tae me, Blossom.” As he spoke, she felt something beneath his words—a subtle hum, as if his voice stroked not only her ears but her very soul. “We can stop now if ye wish, but I’m goin’ tae promise ye…I aim to give ye so much pleasure, ye’ll forget that man ever existed.”

A warmth, gentle and insistent, began to spread through her mind, wrapping around the dark memories like silk threads pulling them away. She felt the tension in her chest ease, her heartbeat slowing, her breath coming deeper, steadier. This was Broderick. He was doing this to her. Somehow, his mind-reading abilities went beyond gleaning thoughts. And she invited it. He wasn’t influencing her in a harsh, forceful way, but like a balm, guiding her mind away from pain and into the heat of the present.

The sensuous promise of his lips worshipping her skin soothed her pounding heart, and Davina bent forward, pressing her palms into the mattress. The coolness of the linens grounded her, a contrast to the rising heat within.

As she did so, his cock brushed the crease of her ass for a teasing moment before his fingers returned to stroke her slick heat. She gasped, her back arching, lowering her shoulders to the mattress to give him better access, her breath catching as waves of desire washed away the remnants of fear.

“Grab the lattice,” he said again, his voice firm but laced with a wicked tenderness.