Page 8 of Seduced By the Squire (Diamonds in the Rough #1)

The following day Cwtch came back from his run in the forest almost as dirty as he’d been the day before.

“Oh no! Where have you been, you devil?” Llinos exclaimed in despair, as she watched him rush back to her, his face covered in mud.

“Incorrigible, isn’t he? What did I tell ye? Once a mongrel, always a mongrel.” Duncan smirked. She could tell her was enjoying her discomfiture.

“Lady Llinos!”

“Oh no,” she muttered under her breath, while Duncan retreated to the stables. As ever, they were careful to avoid being seen together.

“I thought you had bathed your dog last night?” Lord Masterson asked, arching a brow in Cwtch’s direction.

“I did but he fancied a run this morning again and well, we both know how irresistible a puddle of mud can be,” she said, smiling in the hope to forestall any further criticism. “I will take him to the river this time. It is a hot day, so I think he will like to play in the water after I wash him. ”

He rolled his eyes at her attempt to minimise the inconvenience of having to wash a dog twice in as many days. “If you insist… After all, it is not as if you had anything else to do here at Pitcairn Castle. Davies!” He called to the man cleaning a saddle on the side. “You will accompany the lady to the river while she washes her dog.”

“It shall be my pleasure, my lord.”

The man sounded eager. Suspiciously eager. So eager that Lord Masterson’s eyes narrowed.

“On second thoughts… MacQuarrie, you will go. Davies will finish cleaning the tack.”

Llinos forced herself not to smile when the tall Scot walked towards them and gave a mental thanks for Cwtch’s love for mud. Once again the pup was providing her with the perfect excuse to spend some time alone with a man she would otherwise have no reason to see. When Duncan didn’t betray any emotion at the idea of accompanying her Lord Masterson nodded, satisfied that nothing untoward would happen. She bit the inside of her mouth not to betray her delight.

“Take her to the clearing beyond the bend. The water is slow there. And keep your eye out for outlaws.”

“Very well.” Duncan sounded unusually tense, as if he feared betraying any unseemly complicity between them. After what had happened the day before, it was hard to blame him. She did feel as if it was branded on both their foreheads for all to see and she found it incredible that no one seemed any the wiser.

A moment later they were out of sight and he visibly relaxed.

“Do ye ken why Masterson changed his mind about Davies going wi’ ye to the river?” he asked while Cwtch bounded ahead with as much enthusiasm as if he had not just spent the morning running around.

“I think it was because he seemed too eager to accompany a lady who might get wet while she washed her dog,” Llinos replied cautiously.

“And why might that be, I wonder?”

“Because then he would be able to… ogle me while my clothes cling to my body, shall we say?”

“Verra weel,” Duncan said with a nod. “Ye’re learning.”

She was. Only a week ago she would not have understood Lord Masterson’s sudden change of mind. She was also getting bolder.

“I think he was happy to send you because he saw from the disinterested way you looked at me that you had no intention of doing the same,” she added with a grin.

He snorted. “Lass. Unlike that oaf Davies, I am clever enough not to let my intentions show on my face!”

“Does that mean you do not intend to take advantage of it if I happen to get wet?”

“Och, I intend to take advantage of ye all right, and I will be the one getting ye wet, not that mangy cur! Believe me, it will be no accident but a deliberate, thorough attempt on my part.”

Llinos would have tripped had Duncan not caught her by the elbow. “You cannot mean that you will…” She hesitated. She was getting bolder, but she still had a long way to go to be his match.

“Splash ye while ye wash the wee beast? Nay, that’s not what I mean at all,” he answered in a dark voice. “I have other ways of making ye dripping wet, ye ken I have. I cannae believe ye’ve forgotten what happened yesterday?”

Oh she had not forgotten anything. But…

“We can’t, not in front of the dog!”

Duncan threw his head back and laughed, a rich, evocative laugh that sent tingles all the way to her toes. “Why not? Ye did not complain about it the last time.” Llinos realised only then that indeed she had not thought about who or what might see them yesterday, man or beast. She had let Duncan tumble her into the grass and expose her body as eagerly as if they had been in her private bedchamber. “And it’s not as if he had not copulated in front of humans before,” Duncan finished.

“Copulated!” Llinos cried out. For some reason, the word had sent her knees to water.

“Aye. Dogs copulate,” he repeated firmly. “They dinnae make love, lass.”

“Neither do some men apparently.”

Yes. He had warned her about it.

I will not kiss ye, I will not pamper ye. I will just fuck ye.

Duncan stopped and glared at her. She whimpered, fearing he would not allow this impudence to pass.

“Weel, as to that, it is as ye said. Men are only two-legged dogs after all. So they dinnae make love either. Now. Shall we?” To her relief the ice in his voice melted. He would not hold her remark against her. “Someone is in need of a bath.”

“Oh,” she teased him, sniffing at her sleeve. “I had hoped you wouldn’t notice the rotten fish smell.”

“Rotten fish!” He scoffed. “Lass. Ye smell like a bouquet of roses.”

Llinos went red to the roots of her hair. Oh no, now she would look like a bouquet of roses as well… crimson roses.

At the river, it took a lot more time and effort than she had anticipated to get Cwtch back to his original shade of brown. The dog was so excited he kept running away and dirtying himself all over again. It had been a whole lot easier in the bucket. During the whole operation Duncan, the wretched man, did not lift a finger to help her. The twinkle in his eyes clearly said: ‘Ye made yer bed, now ye lie in it.’

Talking of which, he had still made no move to touch her. She refused to think it was disappointment churning in her gut.

“Getting wet yet, lass?” he purred, as she wiped her brow with her sleeve.

“Not too bad,” she replied with commendable bravado.

Was he going to pounce now?

He did not. In fact, he started the walk back to the castle.

“The mongrel will need a good run now, to dry himself off,” he said as if to explain his decision. Llinos was not fooled. He did not care a fig about the animal. There had to be another reason for his sudden decision to leave the riverside, but what could that be?

As they entered the wood, the answer came to her. Because he did not want her. He considered his task done and didn’t want to have anything to do with her anymore. Certainly he had not volunteered to accompany her to the river, he’d been made to by Lord Masterson. But then why had he spoken to her so provocatively earlier?

I intend to take advantage of ye all right, and I will be the one to get ye wet, not that mangy cur! Believe, me, it will be no accident but a deliberate, thorough attempt on my part.

She had taken it to mean that he wanted to tumble her into the grass but perhaps that had been wishful thinking. Perhaps that was just what she wanted. What would she do if he refused to see her again? She could not pursue him, not after what he had revealed about his mother. She would not have him believing him her as cold and dismissive as that woman had been.

Llinos risked a glance at Duncan and saw his jaw clenched. He was steeling himself for an unpleasant task. Namely telling her they had to stop seeing each other.

Heart heavy as lead, she stared at the ground, focusing on placing one foot in front of the other.

“Ye remember that my father was a minstrel?”

Relief almost floored her. Thank God she’d got it all wrong, he wasn’t about to announce he didn’t want anything to do with her, he looked grim because he was revisiting his past, that was all!

“Yes, I do,” she answered softly, knowing he was not really asking if she remembered, merely signalling he was ready to talk about something he found painful. That he wanted to talk about his past with her warmed the part of her soul who’d gone cold when she had thought he was about to take his distance from her.

“Weel, about a year after their meeting, he and his troop were called back to the castle – to play at Lady Eileen MacDonald’s wedding.”

“Oh no!” Llinos’ hand flew to her mouth. “The poor man!” Forced to attend the wedding of the woman who had used him so casually!

“The day after the ceremony she went to find my father, saying that she would like to make the most of a virile young man while he was here. Apparently her distinguished husband had failed to give her satisfaction in bed and she could not forget their nights together.”

If Duncan’s father had looked anything like his son then it was hardly surprising the woman would have wanted more of… Llinos bit her lip before the shameful thought could fully take form.

What was she thinking? The man’s appeal was no excuse. Lady Eileen had shamefully used him and had not even felt any qualms about it.

“She never dared!”

“Och, she did. My father refused, as ye can imagine,” Duncan carried on, staring right ahead. “Out of spite, the lady revealed that their week together the previous year had borne fruit. When he asked to see the bairn she told him to forget about it, that she had abandoned it and he would never get to see it.”

“’Tis monstrous!” Llinos’ guts twisted.

“Aye, weel, I believe that Lady Eileen was a monstrous woman.”

She noted that he always called her by her title, never ‘my mother’. Considering what she had done, it was hard to blame him.

They walked in silence for a moment.

“My father never gave up on me. Travelling the length and breadth of the country as he did, he could ask questions, so he enquired everywhere, and eventually, he found out about my whereabouts. The nuns were only too happy to allow a man who actually wanted his bairn to take me away. I was about a year old then.”

At the thought of Duncan as a clumsy, golden-haired toddler Llinos’ heart melted. He would have been utterly adorable, even if it was hard to imagine him as anything other than tall and self-assured. “I’m glad you two were reunited,” she murmured.

“My da raised me. As soon as I was old enough to take an interest in lassies he made me promise ne’er to be as foolish as he had been, and keep a cool head where noble ladies were concerned.”

Never had Llinos felt so sheepish. How had he not lashed out at her the night she had so crudely accosted him? He would have thought history was repeating itself, would have been reminded of what his father had endured.

“Duncan, I’m really sorry,” she said, taking a step to the side. How could he even bear the sight of her? Simply being with her was disloyal to his father. Sleeping with her would have felt like the ultimate betrayal towards the man who had raised him in such sad circumstances. “If you preferred to — ”

“Nay, lass.” He caught her elbow to force her back to his side. “’Tis not the same wi’ye. Ye dinnae mock me for my lack of refinement, ye dinnae behave as if everything we did was owed to ye. ‘Tis not the same at all.” He shook his head in disgust.

“Is that how it was for your father?” Llinos was dismayed. How vicious of his mother to go to a commoner and then making him feel below her dignity!

“Aye.”

He didn't say anything else and she did not insist. There was nothing she could say that would help .

“So you were raised by minstrels?” she asked eventually.

“Aye.” He sounded diffident, as if he thought she would think less of him for having had such a childhood.

“Then… you must know how to sing and dance, mayhap even play an instrument!” The idea made her insides flutter.

Duncan stopped and stared at her as if she had just grown another head. “Is that all ye have to say? That I can sing?”

He didn’t seem to think it was anything worthy of note. Oh, but it was! She was not even surprised. His voice, so deep and resonant, was already musical when he spoke. Hearing him sing would be thrilling.

“Well, can you sing?”

“Aye,” he said cautiously.

“Oh! Then you — ”

“Nay.”

She bit her lip. No, of course not. There would be no singing, just like there would be no kissing. That was not part of the bargain. He was not here to woo her, but to fuck her. She could tell he was thinking exactly the same thing.

I will not kiss ye, I will not pamper ye. I will just fuck ye .

And suddenly it was not enough. How could she have even pretended otherwise? Cwtch gave a sudden bark and bounded ahead, cutting through the tension.

“It seems that you were right,” she mumbled, grateful for the respite. “He did need a good run.”

“Aye, weel, it wasn’t difficult to guess. A man can only endure so much petting afore he has to expand energy in one way or another.”

She could not help a giggle. She loved Duncan’s dry humour, and even more the fact that he was not afraid to use it with her.

“Cwtch is not a man,” she told him sternly. “He’s a dog. I assure you, he can ‘endure’ petting. That’s what he likes best. Along with rolling in mud, of course.”

“Is it now?”

Just then a series of grunts and yelps caught her ear, followed by growling, and soft barking. Llinos’ smile instantly froze.

“Cwtch, no! He’s being attacked!”

“Nay!” Duncan hissed, catching her by the waist as easily as he would catch a child. “I willnae have ye assaulted by outlaws because ye ran after a dog! Yesterday ye gave me the slip, but it’s not going to happen again.”

“We have to help him! Please,” she whispered, unable to bear the idea of her dog being injured .

“Let’s go and see if he needs us first.”

Slowly they crept towards the scene of the commotion.

Llinos almost collapsed at the sight meeting her eyes. Her dog was enthusiastically pumping away into a slender white dog almost twice as tall as him.

A hand at her elbow lifted her back to her feet. Then a chuckle reached her ear.

“Weel… Someone’s getting assaulted all right! It would seem that the laddie’s found a better way to expand his energy than running around. Good on him! And his tastes appear to run to the refined!” Indeed the white dog appeared to be pure bred, nothing like the animal a farmer would keep. “An ambitious lad, yer Cwtch!”

Linos flushed crimson. “We must… perhaps we should…”

“Avert our eyes? No need,” Duncan scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest. “I told ye, he doesnae care who watches him. Besides…”

Before he could finish Cwtch stepped down from his conquest and trotted in the direction of the river. The other dog shook herself and disappeared in the opposite direction.

“Oh,” Llinos said, not impressed by the perfunctory quality of the encounter. “That wasn’t very… ”

“Verra what, lass? Gallant?” Duncan suggested, coming to stand right behind her. “Romantic?” he murmured in her ear. “Considerate?”

“I was about to say ‘satisfying’.” She could barely talk. Having him behind her put a picture of such lewdness in her mind that she knew she would not be able to say anything else. Could men mount women in such a way? She had never wondered about it before but after all, why not? Dare she ask Duncan? He would know. Perhaps he could even show her how it was done…

“How do ye ken it was not satisfying?” He brushed a strand of hair from her neck. She almost swooned at the sensuality of the gesture.

“Well, it was so fast…”

He chuckled again. “Aye, that it was. Shall we show that mutt of yers how it should be done?”

Relief washed through her at the same time as arousal scorched her veins. He still wanted her! He wasn’t finished with her yet. And he was about to do what she’d been hoping he’d do and tumble her to the ground.

“But I’m dry as bone now,” she said, running her hands along her dress, making sure to follow her every curve.

Where had that urge to provoke him come from? She was getting bolder… Mercifully, Du ncan seemed to love it. With a roar he drew her flush against him.

“Dinnae worry about that, lass, ye won’t stay dry for long. I will make ye wetter than ye’ve ever been.”

Heavens. She already was.

“You know there is no need to take me a second time.”

Something flashed in the green eyes. “Och, aye lass, there is every need.” He pressed her harder against his manhood. “I told ye. I will have ye any time I want. And ye agreed,” he reminded her.

“Yes,” she said hastily, not wanting him to think she meant to push him away now that she’d had what she wanted from him. Teasing him had been a stupid, thoughtless thing to do, considering what he’d told her about his parents. “But if you want me, why did you not pounce on me by the river?”

“Pounce.” Duncan winced and she cursed herself at her choice of words. She had meant it as a compliment, because she liked his predatory ways but she could see why he would not like it. Why did she have to be so clumsy around him? She should leave the taunting to him, he wielded the weapon far more efficiently than she ever would. She felt as stupid as if she had rashly seized a sword, thinking she could spar with a seasoned warrior and launched herself into a fight she had no chance of winning.

“I mean… That’s not what I wanted to say, I just…” He must have realised she had not meant to offend him because the expression on his face softened.

“I see. Ye like it when I ‘pounce’,” he said in a purr.

“Yes,” she said, grateful for his indulgence. “But by all means, don’t take my word for it. Why don’t you do it now and see for yourself? My gown might be dry but you’ll find me all wet underneath.”

Llinos was rewarded for her boldness when Duncan groaned and lifted her into his arms. But instead of throwing her onto the floor, as she had expected, he started to walk away, holding her like a prize.

“Not here,” he said, answering the silent question in her eyes. “Yesterday I took a great risk. I should ne’er have taken ye out in the open when I ken there are outlaws roaming about. I’m not going to make that mistake a second time. There is an abandoned cottage at the foot of the hill. I sometimes spend the night there when Masterson sends me on errands. That’s where we’re going.”

She melted against him. Wild with need, he was still placing her safety above his desire. Even more importantly, he had just revealed that he too had been overwhelmed the day before, forgetting where they were because of his need for her.

“I can very well walk!” she felt compelled to say, even if the last thing she wanted was for him to let her go.

“Aye, and I can verra weel carry ye.”

With a snort he gave her buttocks a light tap. The gesture, both playful and proprietary, stole the breath from her. She’d been aroused before, she was now positively scorched.

Once they reached the cottage he kicked the door open so hard it almost splintered against the stone wall. Without a word, he deposited her onto a surprisingly clean straw pallet. Llinos briefly wondered if he sometimes brought women to the cottage during his nights of respite before pushing the uncomfortable thought away. Today was for them.

“And now, lass…” he said in a dark voice, coming over her until she was completely caged in. “ Now I’m going to pounce.”

He did more than pounce. He devoured, he consumed, he growled, he panted like a ravenous beast. Llinos revelled in everything. Never had any victim surrendered more readily to her attacker.

It was well into the afternoon when they finally left the cottage.

Llinos was slightly unsteady on her legs but Duncan looked as if nothing had happened, which was probably for the best. If they both looked exhausted and flushed when they came back, questions might well be asked.

“You and the dog should go ahead, my lady,” Duncan said when the castle appeared into view.

Llinos’ heart sank. Not ‘ ye and yer mangy mutt should go ahead, lass ’. Duncan had slipped back into his respectful, attentive, distant squire persona. She gritted her teeth. It was getting more and more difficult to accept the difference between them.

“Very well,” she said dully. Even if Lord Masterson had ordered him to accompany her to the river, it was better if they weren’t seen together too often. But it pierced her heart not to be able to be with him without giving rise to comments, especially now, when she could still feel him in the place between her legs. “You know I don’t think we should not — ”

“I ken it,” Duncan said, looking as miserable as she felt. “Dinnae fash yerself, lass, I dinnae think any less of ye. How could, I after ye allowed me every liberty just now?” He stopped and looked at her with smouldering eyes. This was definitely not the impersonal squire talking but the fiery lover. Oh, the relief! He wasn’t angry at her, only at the situation!

“So I will… see you…” She wasn’t sure what she wanted to say, as she was not sure how or when they could meet again but he nodded all the same, as if he understood.

“Aye.”

With that single word, he disappeared into the forest.

*

Feeling absurdly like Llinos’ dog in need of expending his energy, Duncan set off at a run. Once he started running, he couldn’t stop. As his feet pounded the ground he relieved the stolen moments they had spent together in the cottage.

Had he really fucked her like a beast all afternoon, allowing her no respite?

Aye, he had, there was no going around it. A dark part of him had wanted to make her admit she was regretting her decision, an even darker part had wanted to make her pay for the humiliation he had felt when she had first come to him. A more worthy part had wanted to make the most of the opportunity of holding a beautiful, willing woman in his arms and give her as much pleasure as he could.

And Llinos had revelled in everything he’d done.

She’d welcomed the thoughtful lover and embraced the wild beast with equal fervour. He had touched every part of her body and not once had she raised the slightest objection. He’d pounded into her mercilessly and she had only begged for more. He’d made her kneel at his feet and she had obeyed without hesitation. He could have used every part of her body and she would have agreed. He could have allowed his urges to take over, positioned her in any way he wanted and she would have let him. He could have reached his release inside her mouth and she would have swallowed.

But a last shred of sanity had prevailed, and he had managed to stop himself from showing her just how depraved he could be. Still it was all madness, for where could it all lead?

Nowhere.

It was almost dark when he finally reached the castle, sweating and panting hard. Luck was with him, and he was able to go to bed without seeing anyone. He wasn’t sure how he would have handled having to make small talk in his present mood. He might well have ripped someone’s head off.

The following day Lord Masterson made an announcement while they were all breaking their fasts in the great hall.

“I received a letter from my lady mother yesterday. She wishes to escape the heat by coming to spend a few days in Pitcairn Castle. It is much cooler than her own castle, being surrounded by woods. We shall leave tomorrow and escort her back here.”

“We?” Duncan watched Llinos raise her head as she asked the question.

“But of course. I thought the ride would provide you with a welcome distraction, my lady. Are you not cheered by the prospect of an outing?”

“Yes, of course, only I… I don’t want to leave…” Her eyes flicked over to him briefly and he understood what she could not say out loud. Him. She did not want to leave him. “My dog behind,” she finished in a breath.

“That mongrel!” Lord Masterson scoffed, amused. “God only knows what you see in the creature!”

“He’s my mongrel,” she said quietly, but with undeniable pride.

What was that loosening sensation in his stomach, Duncan wondered? She was talking about him – and the notion brought a warmth to his chest he had never experienced before, never known he wanted to experience.

Lord Masterson laughed. “By all means, take the mongrel with you. I don’t mind. But he will have to run after us.”