Page 33 of Bound to a Scot (Sins in a Kilt #2)

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

E mmeline shifted and pulled the furs around herself a little tighter. Feeling awkward and uncomfortable sitting there naked beneath the cloak and furs, she looked longingly at her clothing. Maddox chuckled softly. He got to his feet and touched her clothing.

“Shouldnae be too much longer,” he said, trying to sound reassuring. “How is yer arm?”

“Better,” she replied. “Thank ye.”

He sat down beside her again and picked up the bottle of whisky he’d used to clean her wound earlier and took a swallow.

“Would ye like another sip?” he asked, offering the bottle to her.

She hesitated for a moment then accepted the bottle and took a small sip, grimacing as the amber liquid burned its way down her throat. Maddox laughed softly. The air between them was charged with a sense of expectation that set Emmeline’s heart racing. She took another swallow of the whisky then handed the bottle back, trying to push back the feelings raging inside of her every bit as fiercely as the storm outside.

“Dae ye think yer husband might have set this up?” Maddox asked, giving voice to a thought that had already been bouncing around inside her head.

“I dinnae ken,” she replied softly. “It would nae surprise me though.”

If the question itself had put a crack in her emotional wall, her answer brought the whole thing down. Though she hadn’t to speak, Emmeline found herself telling Maddox about her years of misery as Burchard’s wife. She told him about the neglect, about the abuse, about every indignity and cruelty he’d inflicted upon her over the years.

Emmeline didn’t know how long she’d spoken. It felt like hours. But through it all, Maddox had listened attentively. Never interrupting, just listening. When she was done with her tale of woe, she felt spent. Wrung out. Yet, she also felt lighter. Freer. And more unburdened than she’d felt in… she didn’t even know how long.

“I am sorry fer what ye’ve endured,” he said softly. “’Tis nae right. None of it.”

She shook her head. “We’ve all got our own scars tae bear. I’m sure ye’ve got some of yer own. Why dinnae ye tell me about them?”

“I’d rather nae.”

“I shared with ye,” she said. “Share with me.”

He was silent for a long moment and Emmeline didn’t think he was going to. But to her surprise, he began speaking.

“Me wife… she… she was pregnant with a child,” he began, his voice soft. “She died in givin’ birth tae the child, who died as well.”

Emmeline looked down for a moment as a wave of emotions washed over her. The pain in his voice only seemed to amplify the agony she saw in his eyes and her heart went out to him. She wanted to reach out and touch him, to provide some small bit of comfort, but she wasn’t sure how he would take it so she remained still.

“I cannae imagine the pain ye must have felt,” she replied, her voice barely more than a whisper. “Thae pain ye must still feel.”

He nodded. “Aye. But tis nae the worst of it all.”

A dark flutter passed through Emmeline’s heart. She couldn’t imagine what could be worse than losing a wife and child. But the grief etched into his features told her there was something far worse and that was the burden he carried. She wanted to know what it was but didn’t want to press and he was silent for so long she thought he may have changed his mind about telling her. It came as a surprise when he began to speak again.

“The worst of it was learnin’ that me wife had been unfaithful tae me. That the child she carried was nae mine,” he said. “She told me as she died. I suppose she wanted tae go with a clear conscience. Or maybe she just wanted me tae spend the rest of me days in torment. Ot tae spare me the torment of losing a bairn. I dinnae ken.”

He turned eyes brimming with both agony and rage to her. The emotions he must have felt—must still be feeling—were complex and Emmeline had no idea how to make any of it better. She doubted she could.

“That is the scar I bear,” he said quietly.

Emmeline finally began to understand why he was the way he was. Understood his reluctance to marry again—it wasn’t only because Cecilia was so young. He didn’t want to marry at all. And now, she understood the reason why.

“I am so sorry fer what ye’ve endured as well,” she said. “I wish I could make it better but I dinnae ken where tae even begin.

“Like ye said, we’ve all got our scars tae bear.”

A moment of silence followed, and that sense of expectation thickened. Hearing about the scars Maddox had been forced to bear because of the actions of his first wife really helped her understand him better. It also opened her heart to him in ways she didn’t think it could. And she could see by the look of raw vulnerability in his eyes that he too had opened himself up in ways he hadn’t expected to either.

As his gaze burned into hers, Emmeline felt herself beginning to melt inside. She felt the cracks in the wall she’d intentionally kept between them begin to widen as it started to crumble. Desire welled up inside of her like a molten tide. Emmeline struggled to maintain her resolve. Fought to keep that wall intact. It was a fight she lost.

Leaning forward, Emmeline found Maddox’s mouth with her own, slipping her tongue past his teeth. He kissed her back hungrily, pulling her to him. His lips left a trail of fire down her neck, to her shoulder, and when he pushed the furs and cloak off her shoulders, she gasped and ran her fingers through his hair. She gripped his head, writhing against his mouth and tongue as they worked their way down her body.

Maddox laid her down gently on the furs and cloak that were in a pile behind her, continuing to kiss and lick his way down her body. He flicked her pert nipples with his tongue then took one into his mouth, drawing a breathy moan as he sucked on it. Her mind screamed at her to stop this. She knew it was inappropriate. That surrendering herself to another man, one who was not her husband, was immoral, wrong.

But her body reacted to his touch in ways it had never reacted before. His fingers and his tongue left furrows of fire upon her skin. Goosebumps covered her body and her heart beat so hard, she thought it might burst. The desire in her was so thick, it choked her. And though her mind was telling her to stop, her body drowned out its cries with a powerful sense of need.

Maddox slipped all the way down and parted her thighs with his hands. She watched him as he leaned forward, burying his face in her sex. And when his tongue slipped across her wet, slippery lips, Emmeline threw her head back and cried out. His gaze was fixed on her as he lashed her with his tongue, flicking and sucking her before plunging it deep into her velvety folds.

She gripped his head, pulling his hair tight as she ground herself against his face, her moans loud and breathy. What Maddox was doing was something she’d never experienced before. The pleasure coursing through her body in a torrent was unlike anything she’d ever felt. More than that, Maddox seemed solely fixed on pleasing her. His only goal seemed to be to make her feel good. Her mind spun and her body tingled head to toe.

What Maddox was doing was something that in all the years they had been married, Burchard had never done. Never once had he focused on her pleasure the way Maddox was. He had never probed her with his tongue. Had never licked and savored her nectar. And he had never given her an ounce of the ecstasy that was flowing through her veins.

As Maddox continued to hold her gaze, Emmeline’s stomach tightened, and her entire body tensed in a way she’d never felt before. Her heart raced so fast, she truly feared something was wrong. Her eyes widened and she was just about to push Maddox away when all of a sudden, something inside of her shifted and she felt weightless, as if she was falling from a great height. A moment later though, Emmeline pressed her head back into the furs as her eyes shot wide hope and she cried out as a feeling of pure rapture washed over her.

“Me God,” she stuttered. “Oh, me God.”

Emmeline trembled wildly, her cries shaking as hard as her body. The explosion of sensation within her was so intense, it terrified her at first. She didn’t understand what was happening. It took her a couple of moments to understand she was experiencing her first climax. And when she understood, her fear quickly faded as the rush of warmth and pleasure that followed brought a wide smile stretched across her face. Her face was hot, her cheeks flushed, and she felt so good so quickly, tears sprang from the corners of her eyes.

“Are ye all right?” Maddox asked quietly.

She nodded. “Aye. I feel amazin’.”

Maddox’s chin glistened with her juices and the smile on his face was sultry. He looked at her with a seductive gleam in his eye. Emmeline pulled him up to her and kissed him again, channeling all the passion and desire flowing through her veins into her mouth. Bracing himself above her on his arms, Maddox kissed her back hungrily. His body was taught and his rigid staff pressed against her opening.

Emmeline fiddled with his trews and raised her hips, brushing the freed head of his manhood against her, desperate to feel him inside of her. He pulled back and looked at her.

“Are ye sure?” he asked.

She nodded. “I want tae feel ye inside of me.”

Their mouths crashed together again as Maddox pulled his trews down further and rolled his hips, piercing her with his long, thick rod. Emmeline’s eyes bulged and her mouth fell open as a stuttering cry burst from her mouth as he filled her up completely. She gripped his arms tight, her nails digging into his skin, and when he started to move himself inside of her, Emmeline closed her eyes, reveling in the sensations that exploded within her.

She clung to him as their bodies moved in a sinuous rhythm. Every stroke of his shaft along her slick inner walls brought another burst of sensation that rocked her from head to toe. Emmeline never knew coupling could feel this good. Burchard had been her only experience with sex and he hadn’t shown the least bit of interest in making her enjoy it. Maddox on the other hand, was going out of his way to please her, to make her feel good.

She gripped his arms even harder as that pressure built up inside of her again. She knew she was going to climax and as Maddox thrust his staff deep into her sex, a long, loud cry burst from her mouth as she orgasmed a second time. The ecstasy that gripped her was so powerful, more euphoric tears rolled down her face. Emmeline was caught up in the sensations crackling across her body and almost didn’t notice that Maddox’s body tightened up as well. His teeth were gritted and his eyes narrowed to slits as he seemed to be trying to hold himself back.

“Let go,” she said. “I want tae feel ye.”

He couldn’t hold back, but rather than erupt inside of her, Maddox pulled his staff out of her and burst, casting thick ropes of his warm, sticky seed all over her belly. Emmeline giggled as she looked at his seed on her skin then looked up into his eyes. He stared down at her, an expression of elation on his face. Maddox leaned down and kissed her, gently this time.

He flopped onto his back and pulled her to him. Emmeline laid her head on her chest, their hearts both beating hard, their breath quick and ragged. But they lay in silence, both of them seemingly content. Both of them happy and in awe of what had just happened between them. They lay together in silence and Emmeline simply enjoyed the solid, warm feeling of his body pressed to hers.

She smiled and it wasn’t long before the events of the day caught up with her and Emmeline felt herself drifting off to sleep.