Page 34 of Bound to a Scot (Sins in a Kilt #2)

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

W hen they awoke the next morning it was late and, the day was still gray and drizzly, but the storm had blown itself out. Seeing her looking back at him wearing nothing but the furs, Maddox had smiled and felt his arousal stirring once more. He kissed her tenderly and felt her shudder as he ran his hands down her soft, smooth body. Emmeline gasped as he slipped his hands between her thighs and strummed her button with his fingertips.

Her cleft was already hot and wet, ready to receive him. Emmeline smiled as she rolled onto her back and parted her thighs as he climbed on top of her, bracing himself above her on his arms. They shared a soft, tender kiss as Maddox slipped himself into her tight, warm sex. Fingers of heat raked his body as he moved inside of her, sliding his rigid staff along her slippery walls. He closed his eyes and groaned, reveling in the way being inside of her made his entire body tingle and flush with a pleasure he’d never known.

They moved together slowly, Emmeline receiving him deep inside of her with small whimpers of pleasure that stirred his arousal even more. He could tell the way he worshipped her body was a new experience for her. That in all her years with Burchard, he had never taken care to pleasure her. That didn’t surprise him. Burchard was selfish. He was not the sort of man to understand that pleasing your partner was pleasing in itself.

Emmeline clung to him tightly as he thrust himself into her, her eyes wide, her lips slightly parted as breathy groans spilled from her mouth. He kissed her all over, gently biting her earlobe and collarbone. Their tongues swirled languidly in her mouth, and she moaned his name softly as he ran the tip of his tongue down her neck and teased her stiff nipples with his mouth.

“Yes, Maddox,” she whispered. “Oh, me God, yes.”

He rolled his hips, savoring the sensation of plunging into Emmeline’s tight, wet sex. For him, it wasn’t just the physical. There was a mental and emotional connection he felt—one that seemed to have grown even stronger overnight. He had tried to fight it before, but they shared a bond, and being together seemed to have solidified it.

Maddox rolled over onto this back and pulled Emmeline on top of him. With a sultry smile, she climbed on top of him, reaching down to grab hold of his staff and squeezed it hard. He groaned as she teased herself with the tip and he felt her shudder. Biting her bottom lip with a lascivious gleam in her eye, Emmeline guided him to her opening, nestling it between her folds, then sank down on top of him. Maddox groaned as he watched his staff sinking into her, disappearing from view entirely when she’d sheathed him inside of her.

His hands on her hips, Maddox watched as she started to move up on down on him. He relished the way her full breasts swayed and the feel of her velvety skin beneath his fingertips. Maddox sat up and kissed her belly, then her breasts, working his way up to her neck and mouth as she rode him. Her soft whimpers rang in his ears as she impaled herself on him, moving herself up and down harder and faster.

Maddox slipped his hands around to her backside, guiding her as she moved. Their mouths crashed together, and he felt his body growing tight as the sensations coursing threw him were quickly growing overwhelming. He knew she was pushing him to the brink, and he wasn’t going to last much longer if he didn’t slow down. A small, mischievous smile played across her lips as if she already knew she’d brought him to the brink and was determined to finish him off.

Emmeline’s sex tightened around him even more, drawing a moan from him. Their voices blended together, creating an erotic chorus as he clung to her while she slid up and down on his staff, taking him deep into her. Emmeline’s breath quickened and he felt her body tense as she neared her own climax. Holding onto her hips, Maddox spun her back down onto her back, making her squeal in surprise, then giggle.

On top of her now, Maddox thrust himself deep into her, groaning at how tight she was. Their gazes met, the eye contact making everything more intense as they writhed together, pushing each other toward an explosive climax. As he buried himself to the hilt inside of her, Emmeline shuddered and pressed her head back against the furs, a long, breathy cry bursting from her mouth. She shook wildly as she clung to him, her eyes wide and an expression of pure rapture on her face.

“Finish inside me,” she moaned. “I want tae feel?—”

“I cannae,” he grunted.

As his body clenched, Maddox pulled out with a long groan and burst all over her belly again. Emmeline reached down and took hold of his staff, squeezing and stroking him hard, milking every last drop of his seed out of him and onto her skin. He knew she wanted to feel him empty himself inside of her, but Maddox couldn’t bring himself to do it. The fear of getting her with child, after what happened with his first wife—it was a pain he couldn’t stand to bear.

She looked up at him with a flirty smile on her lips. “I could get used tae spendin’ me mornings like this.”

He grinned. “Aye. I could too.”

She frowned. “But I suppose we need tae get back tae the castle.”

He felt a shadow cross his heart. “Aye. I suppose we dae. But honestly, I’d rather stay here with ye.”

“It’d be nice,” she agreed. “But?—”

“I ken. I ken,” he said. “The danger has probably passed, so let’s get ourselves cleaned up and find our way back.”

“All right, just wait here and be sure ye stay out of sight,” Maddox said.

“Aye. All right,” she replied with a nervous quaver in her voice.

He reached out and took her hand, giving it a squeeze. “It’ll be all right, lass. I promise ye.”

She swallowed hard and nodded. “Aye. I ken.”

She was trying to be brave, and he offered her a smile. “All right then. I’ll be right back,” he said. “And if ye see anybody comin’ at ye, be sure tae scream out. I’ll come runnin’.”

“I will.”

“All right. Sit tight, lass.”

Maddox picked his way out of the forest and to the edge of the village. He walked casually, but kept his eyes moving, searching the grounds around him as closely as if he was on a battlefield. The village was abuzz with activity as people went about their daily chores, vendors hawked their goods, and others did their shopping in the market. The air was redolent with the aroma of sizzling meats and vegetables, making his stomach rumble once again. As tempted as he was to pick up something to eat, he knew time was of the essence. They’d eat once they returned to the castle.

His body tense as he listened carefully in case Emmeline screamed, Maddox quickly made his way over to the tailor and picked up Cecilia’s wedding dress—the reason Emmeline had come to the village in the first place. That done, he walked through the crowded streets of the village, making his way to the stables. He didn’t expect to find assassins looking for her lurking about, but he wasn’t going to take anything for granted either. He wasn’t willing to roll the dice with Emmeline’s life.

He watched everybody carefully, searching their faces for anybody who didn’t seem to belong. Anybody who seemed to be out of place and anybody who seemed to be there for nefarious reasons. He didn’t see anybody who seemed to be lurking about. Nobody he’d crossed paths with raised any red flags in his mind and he made it to the stable without incident. After giving the stableboy a few more coins, he led the horses back to the edge of the village, where Emmeline waited for him in the trees.

Cutting a glance around him, just to make sure nobody was watching, Maddox whistled, giving her the signal he’d told her to listen for. He waited and as the seconds ticked by and she did not appear, a cold fist of fear gripped his heart and squeezed. Maddox’s throat grew dry, and he searched the trees in front of him. A moment later, he let out a sigh of relief when he spotted her picking her way through the bushes.

As he watched her coming toward him, Maddox was once again gripped by just how deep his feelings ran for her. And being with her had only served to reinforce them. He needed to be with her. He wasn’t sure how he was going to make that happen, but Maddox knew he had to do everything in his power to see that it did.

He helped her up onto his horse then led her along a path that ran around the village rather than through it just in case there were more assassins lurking about he hadn’t spotted. It wasn’t as if he knew what an assassin might look like, so he thought it best to add the extra time to their trip back to Castle Macfie rather than cut through the village.

As they rode, he noticed her stealing glances at him. The expression on her face though, was unreadable to him. He had no idea what she was thinking. He simply knew that she was thinking about something.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Nothin’.”

“Ye ken ye can talk tae me.”

She sighed and stared down at the reins in her hand. “I just dinnae ken how we’re goin’ tae navigate this. What happened?—”

“Was beautiful,” he said. “’Twas amazin’.”

“Aye. It was,” she agreed. “But we cannae dae that again, Maddox. Nae matter how badly we want tae be. Burchard will never let me go. Especially nae tae ye.”

He frowned, knowing deep down that she was right. No matter how great his enthusiasm to find a way to make it happen, he had to admit that Macfie would never let her go. He was a prideful man who would likely see her dead before he accepted that she wanted to be with somebody else. Especially one of his supposed allies.

As they rode, he found himself thinking back to finding her on the verge of being killed by those three men. Hired swords, if he had to guess. But that led back to the one question that continued echoing through his mind—who had hired them? Who wanted to see her dead? Maddox racked his brain and the only name that came to him was Burchard. But if he’d hired the assassins, why? Why did he want to murder his own wife?

“We need tae be careful, Maddox,” she said. “Ye ken Burchard is a petty, vengeful man.”

“Aye. I ken. And we will be.”

“I am grateful tae ye for savin’ me yesterday. I really thought I was goin’ tae die.”

“We need tae teach ye tae fight back.”

“I ken how tae fight. But the water… it made me freeze up. I was so scared…”

Her voice trailed off and Maddox nodded, understanding why she had put up so little resistance. It was her fear of the water that had crippled her.

“Well, since ye ken how tae fight, we need tae teach ye tae get over yer fear of the water,” he said. “If ye can beat that, ye’ll be unstoppable.”

She laughed softly. “Ye’re goin’ tae teach me nae tae fear the water, eh?”

He nodded. “Aye. I will.”

Emmeline eyed him for a long moment then nodded. “All right. I’d like that.”

“Good.”

A turn in the road took them to the main path into the castle. By then it was afternoon, and the light was slowly fading. As they passed beneath the sallyport though, Maddox saw Emmeline sit up straighter in her saddle, her body tense. He followed her gaze and felt his stomach turn over on itself when he saw Laird Macfie along with half a dozen armed and armored men standing in a line before the main door to the keep.

“He wasnae supposed tae be back until tomorrow,” Emmeline murmured.

“Looks like he came back early,” he said, trying to project an image of calm.

The fear on Emmeline’s face was obvious and he feared if Macfie was to question her about last night, she would fold and tell him everything. If that happened, it would likely end in death for them both. As they reined their horses to a stop and dismounted, Maddox caught the smug, imperious look on laird Macfie’s face and got the idea he already knew everything, sending his heart plummeting into his stomach.

“And where have ye two been then, eh?” Macfie asked with barely restrained anger.