Page 25 of Healing the Highland Sinner (Tales of the Maxwell Lasses #7)

CHAPTER 25

E llair was the last of the men Rosalind tended to. His wounds weren’t mortal, but she was sure they hurt like hell, so she’d made him wait and suffer. He deserved it. When she was done tending to the rest of her men and had deemed that he’d waited long enough, Rosalind made her way to Ellair’s room. She opened the door without knocking to find him shirtless and sitting on the edge of his bed, his head down, his face painted with regret.

He looked up as she came in. “Rosalind, I?—”

“Ye will nae speak until I tell ye tae speak,” she snapped. “I have questions and ye’re goin’ tae answer every bleedin’ one of them.”

He sighed heavily. “Aye.”

Eyeing him warily, she set her basket of medicines down and pulled a chair over to where he sat. Rosalind dropped into the seat in front of him and looked him over. She pulled out her pots of herbs and ointments and spent some time silently cleaning his wounds. The air between them grew thicker than syrup, heavy with a tension.

“How long have ye kent me braither is alive?” she asked.

“Just a night,” he replied.

“What the hell were ye thinkin’, sneakin’ intae Sinclair’s compound like that?” she hissed. “Ye could have gotten me braither killed!”

“I didnae ken yer braither was there, Rosalind. I swear it.”

“Then why did ye go there in the first place?”

“I heard through a contact that Sinclair had a hidden compound at the edge of town. I went there tae see what he was gettin’ up tae. I wanted tae ken what he was plannin’.”

“And why would ye dae that? What business is it of yers what Sinclair is doin’?”

“Because I ken he’s the one forcin’ ye tae dae this work ye dinnae want tae be daein’, because he’s got leverage on ye,” Ellair said. “I was hopin’ tae find somethin’ ye could leverage him back with. Maybe somethin’ ye could use tae force him tae release Blaine. I never actually expected tae find yer braither there.”

“Why did ye nae tell me what ye’d learned? Why did he keep this from me?”

He sighed. “Because I ken ye well enough tae ken that ye would have done somethin’ rash if ye kent Blaine was bein’ held there?—”

“’Tis nae fer ye tae decide. He’s me braither.”

“And ye likely would’ve gotten him killed if ye’d gone off half-cocked and stormed Sinclair’s compound,” he said. “Ye also would’ve gotten yerself killed and that’s somethin’ I couldnae abide. I didnae tell ye, tae protect both him and ye, Rosalind.”

She paused and lowered her gaze. As much as she wanted to refute his words, he was right. If he’d told her he knew where Blaine was, she would have very likely gathered her men and stormed the compound. Or she might have just gone on her own. Either way, it would have likely resulted in bloodshed and death. She hated that he was right.

“How did ye ken about the compound?” she asked.

“I told ye, I had a contact?—”

“Is that who ye were sneakin’ out tae meet tonight?”

“I wasnae sneakin’ out,” he replied. “But nay. I was goin’ tae meet somebody I thought might be able tae help us out of this situation.”

“Who?”

“A friend.”

“Who is yer friend?”

“’Tis nae yer concern. He’s somebody I trust. That’s all I’ll say about it,” he replied gruffly.

“Ye owe me an explanation?—”

“Which I’ve given. I dinnae owe ye a name,” he growled.

Her fingers trembled as she wrapped a bandage around the cut on his forearm. Rosalind swallowed hard and tried to bite back the emotion welling up inside of her. If she was going to get the answers she sought, she needed to keep her wits about her.

“H—how did he look?” she asked, her voice trembling as much as her hands.

“He was… alive,” he answered slowly. “Sinclair and his men have treated him roughly.”

Rosalind’s breath caught in her throat, and she had to fight to keep the tears that welled suddenly in her eyes from falling. The thought of her brother in pain shattered her heart and scattered the pieces to the winds.

“For what it’s worth, he’s still puttin’ up a good fight,” Ellair said. “He’s nae lettin’ Sinclair cow him and is givin’ them as good as he’s gettin’. He’s a fighter, that one.”

A wan smile creased her lips. “Aye. Sounds like Blaine. He’s always been a stubborn one.”

A moment of silence passed between them as Rosalind cleaned and bandaged his wounds. Her fingers lay on his hard, toned chest as she felt her heart thumping hard against her own. She raised her gaze and found herself paralyzed as she stared into his icy blue eyes. She licked her suddenly dry lips and tried to swallow the lump in her throat as her belly twisted over on itself.

Without thinking about it, she leaned forward and pressed her mouth to his. Ellair’s lips parted, and she slipped her tongue past his teeth, kissing him hungrily. Greedily. She grabbed his hair and pulled him closer to her, as if trying to devour him. She felt his hands slide around her waist then slide up her back. He tangled his fingers in her hair and pulled on it gently as their kiss deepened. Her head was swimming and she felt lightheaded, but she leaned into him harder anyway.

She pushed him back onto the bed and straddled him. Rosalind planted her hands on his chest and stared down at him for a moment before leaning forward and kissing him again. Their tongues swirled around each other slowly at first, but as his skin warmed beneath her, so too did their urgency. They kissed and pulled at each other with a frantic, animalistic energy. It wasn’t just desire. It was need.

Rosalind felt him growing stiff beneath her and ground her sex against him, moaning softly as she did. Pleasure rippled through her body, sending waves of goosebumps marching up and down her skin and she closed her eyes, reveling in the sensations for a moment. She was on fire and dripping wet. She stared into Ellair’s eyes and saw the same hunger she felt reflected back at her. She wanted to forget about everything and this seemed like the perfect thing to get her mind off Blaine, and Sinclair, and everything she was forced to do.

Reaching down, she quickly untied his breeches and slipped her hand inside. Ellair groaned as she took his thick staff in her fist, making her smile. She gave him a few strokes, never breaking eye contact with him before pulling her skirts up. Rosalind raised her hips and slipped the head of his cock between her wet, velvety folds. She teased herself with it for a moment, quivering as she brushed it against her button, a soft sigh passing her lips.

Unable to deny herself any longer though, she nestled the tip against her opening, then lowered herself down onto it, taking Ellair into her inch by glorious inch. She sank down on to him with a long, lusty moan, and when he was fully sheathed within her, she bit her bottom lip hard as she was battered by waves of pleasure. His slid his hands up her legs and grabbed hold of her waist, his eyes burning with a near maniacal light.

Slowly, she began to roll her hips, sliding up and down on his staff, her body tightening around him. He was so long and thick he filled her up completely and stretched her open. The brief pinch of pain of having him deep within her was quickly offset by the pleasure that rushed through her body like a river. She threw her head back and moaned as she rode him.

“Ye’re so tight,” he gasped. “Ye feel so good.”

“Aye. So dae ye.”

Leaning forward, she put her hands on his chest, bracing herself, as she started to bounce up and down on him harder. Faster. The sharp crack of their bodies crashing together rang in her ears and blended with their breathy moans to create an erotic symphony that only fueled her lust. She held his gaze, the eye contact making the sensations coursing through her even more intense as she thrust herself up and down on his staff, sinking him as deep into her as she could take him.

Ellair’s face reddened and his breathing grew ragged. His veins stood out on either side of his neck, and he looked as if he was straining, perhaps trying to hold himself back. She tightened her center around him even more, making him gasp and lose his rhythm. With a sly grin, he gripped her waist and spun her off him. Before she could object though, he pulled her to the edge of the bed and bent her over. Pushing her skirts up around her waist, Ellair stepped forward and sank himself into her wet, snug sex once more.

Her gasps burst from her mouth in short, sharp cries as he pounded himself into her from behind. Ellair’s fingers found her hair and he yanked her head back viciously as he drove himself as deep into her as he could manage. Rosalind’s eyes grew wide as saucers and her mouth fell open, a long, breathy moan escaping. She felt weightless for a moment and then her entire body began to shudder. A loud, lusty cry echoed in the air around them as her climax washed over her, its strength and power threatening to take her legs out from beneath her.

With his hands on her hips and his fingers pressing into her flesh, Ellair continued to pound himself into her, even as she orgasmed. The rush of sensation was unlike anything she’d ever felt and it only made her hotter. Wetter. Only made her want even more of him, as if she was some insatiable harlot. But it felt so good that she felt like she was losing her mind, lost in the pleasure of it all.

As her climax ebbed, Rosalind pulled away from him and climbed up onto the bed. With a wicked little smile, she crooked her finger. Ellair kicked off his breeches and climbed onto the bed with her. She parted her legs as he climbed on top of her, bracing himself on his arms above her, his icy blue eyes filled with his arousal. Rosalind slipped her hand around the back of his neck and pulled him down, their mouths crashing together, their kiss desperate and crazed.

Ellair moved his hips, the tip of his organ pressing against her opening. And with one hard thrust, he buried himself all the way to the root, within her. Rosalind’s eyes opened wide, and she gasped, the sudden feeling of him filling her up so completely almost overwhelming, her heart raced and her skin tingled, the hair on her arms standing on end.

“Yes,” she moaned. “Oh, me God, yes.”

He kissed her hard as he started to slam himself into her, pounding with a wild abandon that took her breath away. She shivered and writhed beneath him, begging him to keep giving it to her harder and faster, which he obliged. Rosalind locked her ankles behind him, raising her hips to take him into her even deeper, relishing the feeling of his stalk sliding along her slippery inner walls.

She felt like she was floating on air, filled with the breath of life and a heat that was hotter than the sun. It felt like it was consuming her whole and she was happy to let it. When she looked up into Ellair’s eyes, she didn’t just see the lust and desire, she saw something more. She saw a depth of feeling for her that matched what she felt for him—feelings she had been denying, even to herself. Now, she felt like she could no longer hide from them.

He was so deep inside of her, Rosalind felt dizzy. She clenched her center, gripped him harder, and felt him stutter as he gasped. A moment later, she felt him twitch and he threw his head back, a long, ardent cry ringing in her ears like the clarion call of passion.

A moment later, she felt him erupt. He fell forward, the tip of his nose mere inches from hers as his staff quivered and pulsed, shooting his thick seed deep within her. She clung to him tightly and he kissed her again, softer this time.

Slowly he rolled onto his back. Ellair pulled her to him, and she nestled in the crook of his arm. Their bodies were hot, glistening with a thin sheen of sweat, and their breath was shallow and ragged. But as she lay in his arms, the passion of just a moment before beginning to ebb, Rosalind felt herself cloaked in something else. Something sweet and pure. The feelings that enveloped them both were lighter than air and brighter than the sun.

She raised her head and looked him in the eye, as if to be sure she was not alone in feeling her heart grow lighter as it filled with emotion. She saw Ellair’s eyes and she smiled. Neither spoke of it as she lay back down. But she was content in the knowledge she was not alone in those confounding and unexpected emotions. Ellair gently stroked her hair as she listened to the slow, steady beat of his heart.

Whatever this was between them was sure to be complicated. But for the first time in a very long time, she welcomed it. It was the last thought she had before drifting away into a sleep more peaceful than she’d had in longer than she could recall.