Page 53 of The First Taste

“Ella.”

His voice sounds strange, low and husky. It echoes through my dreams, making me want him even more.

“Ella.” A hand on my shoulder wakes me up. I open my eyes and find Keir staring down at me, his expression unreadable. For a second, I think about reaching out, pulling his face down, and continuing things where my dreams left off. But then he shakes my shoulder, looking a bit annoyed with me. “Are you listening?”

All of a sudden, I become aware of the fact that I’m wearing nothing but a big white T-shirt and a silky thong. The covers on my bed have been thrown aside and are out of reach. It’s just a single layer of cotton between my warm body and his hands.

My mouth opens, my face blushing, and unspoken plea on my lips. For a second, I think he is going to kiss me. A certain kind of knowledge hovers in the air between us, electric and lustful. Our gazes clash and he leans in, as if he is going to touch me or kiss me or do anything at all. My heart pounds. My skin tingles.

My body tightens and my pussy grows damp just thinking about it, anticipating the weight of his body against my own.

He looks down at me, his expression contorting. Then he gives his head a single shake and it seems to shatter this spell. Whatever was building between us ceases to exist and he steps back, muttering a curse.

“Christ. Will you get up already? I shouldn’t have to come in your room. You should be downstairs already by the time I come down from my room.” He backs up a step, bends down to pick up my comforter from the floor, and then flings it over my naked body.

I flush beat red and sit up on my elbows, my brow drawn down as I scowl at him. "What are you even doing in here anyway? Get out! Get out!” Keir looks me up and down, drinking me in. He raises a hand and points right at me. “Be downstairs in five minutes. And dress appropriately. We’re going to Isla’s school.”

With that, he rolls on his heel and marches out of my room, slamming the door behind him.

I let out a ragged breath I didn’t know I was holding. Raising a hand, I can see that my fingers are shaking, left over from the jolt of adrenaline at realizing that Keir was here in my bedroom, watching me sleep. Or rather, trying to wake me up. Either way, I feel a little bit violated.

Especially considering the fact that I only threw on the T-shirt that I am wearing in the middle of the night last night in order to pad to the bathroom. If it hadn’t been for that strange coincidence, I would have been completely naked before Keir’s hungry gaze.

A rush of nervous excitement shudders up my spine and I can do nothing about it. I push out another breath and then sit up all the way, throwing aside the bed clothes.

I root through my clothes, deciding on a green velvet dress that lands just above the knee and hugs my figure quite well. It’s the closest thing that I have to a truly modest garment and at least it has long sleeves, although it does show a surprising amount of cleavage. If Keir doesn’t like it, he can buy me something else to wear to Isla’s school. Or hey, he can just let me leave and go back to New York. I’m not even sure why I’m here at this point, to be honest.

The patina of flying overseas and landing in Glasgow has definitely worn thin by now and I’m pretty much ready to end this little adventure at any moment.

I just have to inform Keir of the fact that I am going to leave him here.

After messing with my hair and dashing on a bold red lipstick, I clatter down the stone stairs to find Keir waiting for me at the front door, his arms crossed. Keir is dressed to kill, in a dark gray suit and a crisp white button up. He straightens his black silk tie and regards me, his gaze staring me through and through. Damn, the man can wear a suit.

When he sees what I’m wearing, a scowl appears on his face. He opens his mouth to say something but I hold up a hand.

“I am not interested in whatever is about to come out of your mouth. If you want me to come with you, this is what I’m wearing. Deal with it.”

That seems to shut him up. He clamps his mouth shut and takes me by the arm, hurrying me out of the castle and into a white Range Rover. I raise my brows at him when he climbs in the driver’s seat beside me.

“I thought you would definitely have a chauffeur waiting to drive us to the school,” I say, my eyes darting all around to take the vehicle in.

Keir shrugs and focuses on the road, pulling the SUV around to face the road ahead. “I wanted to handle this as discreetly as possible.”

My eyebrows shoot up. “What exactly are you handling? Did Isla misbehave or something?”

He darts a glare at me. “It’s hardly Isla’s fault if everyone around her is incompetent.”

Letting that sink in, I purse my lips. I am starting to notice a pattern. Keir doesn’t seem to like to enforce any rules or boundaries where Isla is concerned. And he doesn’t give a second thought to anybody that says anything even slightly negative about her, either.

Crunching my face up, I pick my words carefully. “Are we going to her school to because they requested it?”

One glance at Keir’s expression lets me know how angry he is. “I pay top price for this damn school. For them to call me and demand that I come down and deal with my daughter’s petty squabbles… I want to pull her out of the school entirely, but it’s the only decent school within thirty miles of Drumman Castle.”

I nod slowly. “Have you thought of homeschooling?”

He shakes his head. “I can’t keep a tutor around for more than a month, it seems. Every single one of them has a problem with Isla's ‘lack of discipline and focus’. Believe me, we’ve already delved into that world quite extensively. Basically, the school is the last good choice that Isla has. And you had better believe that I am not going to let that fucking twit of a principal tell me that Isla needs to change in the slightest.”

I nod again, noting the tension with which he clutches the steering wheel. His knuckles are white and his jaw is clenched as he stares straight forward. If I had any plans of trying to talk to him and disrupt this narrative that he clearly has going about how Isla is perfect, now is definitely not the time for it. Not when he is so emotional and close to the edge.