Page 23 of When a Highlander Vows (Enemies to Lovers #1)
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L ucas drank more ale than he’d meant to, and his mind was a bit hazy. But when Caitlin’s lips touched his, even if by accident, his awareness sprang to life. He leaned over her as she fell back to the bed, her soft fingers still clutching at his shoulders and not letting go.
He was sure it was wrong to want a woman this much, especially a woman as kind and good as Caitlin. But in that moment, he hadn’t the power to stop, not when she pulled him close, making sounds of want and desire. When his tongue slid against the seam of her soft mouth, it opened to his, and he plunged inside, desperate to explore her again. It had been too long since last they’d touched, and each day only made his desire for her worse. It was like a burden he’d been carrying without realizing its true weight.
A hungry groan filled the air, and he realized it was him, desperate for her taste, for the warm wetness of her mouth, for the silky feel of her tongue. She pulled on his clothes, silently asking him to join her on the bed, and he followed the path down, laying atop her as their mouths tasted one another.
He pulled away only to taste and touch more of her. Caitlin’s soft moans in his ear had made him hard as a rock as his hips lay between her thighs. He moved forward a little, tempted to feel her against him, and she moaned again.
His mouth slid down her neck, kissing and nipping along the way. “Lass,” he breathed, “I cannae get enough of the taste of yer skin on me tongue.”
She smiled at him, her eyes bright. “Stay,” she said quietly, touching the sides of his face where his beard had begun to grow.
His fingers flew to her bodice, untying the laces that kept it together. She arched up when her bodice was open enough to free her breasts. With reverence, one hand slid inside to grasp one, and he leaned down.
Putting the nipple to his lips, he slid his tongue around it, looking up at Caitlin’s face. Her eyes were closed as she arched up into him, and she whispered his name. He moved to the other, sucking and laving his tongue on her soft, supple skin, pulling gently at her nipple until she made that sound again.
God, she was beautiful, and with her opening up to him, he wanted nothing more than to take her, and bring her to her fullest pleasure, showing her just how wonderful and perfect she was.
But a sudden pang of guilt went through him, and he sat up on his hands looking down at her pink skin and her glowing eyes.
“Caitlin, I am sorry, Lass, but we are drunk. We shouldnae be doin’ this.”
His body screamed otherwise, but his mind was set. This was his best friend’s sister, and on the eve of his funeral. It wasn’t right. Besides that, he had promised himself he wouldn’t get attached to anyone. His father had been a brute to both his child and his wife, and Lucas firmly believed he could do the same, if the same blood flowed in his veins.
Caitlin sat up on her elbows, her lips swollen from their kisses, her breasts still open to his view.
“I am sorry, nay, it is I. I should have kenned ye wouldnae want me. I pushed ye to it. I understand, Lucas. Ye are right.” She laid back and turned on her side.
Lucas was shocked. How could a woman like Caitlin think herself to be undesirable when his every fiber wished to be inside her, to hear her scream his name with ecstasy?
“I daenae ken what ye mean, Lass,” he said. “How could ye think that I wouldnae want ye?”
Her words slurred a little as she said, “Me eyesight. It will keep me a spinster for I can dae nothin’. I cannae have a normal life.”
“Bloody Hell! What does that matter?” he cried. “Sunshine, ye are the bonniest lass I have ever laid eyes on. Ye are perfect in every way, good and pure. Can ye nae feel it in me kiss and in me body? That I want ye more than I have ever wanted anyone?” He realized he was shouting a little, but she had to know this.
He added more softly, “It is I who am nae good enough for ye, and I need ye to remember that. Bad blood flows through me, and it is best if ye keep yer distance. I wouldnae wish ye to be hurt or tainted by me.” He paused, breathing slowly.
His hand trailed along her arm, and he saw that her breathing was steady. “Sunshine?” he said, turning to look at her face, but she’d fallen asleep.
He leaned back to lay on the other side of her, putting his arms above his head, staring up at the canopy of her bed.
Dear God, I hope she dinnae hear all.
He wanted her to hear that she was beautiful, that he wanted her, but he did not wish her to hear the dangerous yearning in his voice. How every moment in her company was drawing him closer to the edge, and he wouldn’t need much convincing to topple over the side.
Caitlin awoke at dawn, and instantly, her head ached, and she made a small sound of pain, cursing aloud at her foolishness in drinking far too much.
But she jumped at the sound of a throaty chuckle. “I like the way dirty words sound on yer tongue, Lass,” he said, and Caitlin whipped around.
“Lucas,” she said, looking him up and down, trying to think how he could be in her bed, with her.
He sat up on one elbow facing her. Being this close to him, his face a little swollen from sleep, his hair and beard a little unkempt, his chest bare, Caitlin wanted him more than ever. Her fingers itched to touch the bare skin.
“What are ye—” she stopped herself when her memory sparked.
When the image of their kisses the night before flashed through her mind, she put a hand over her eyes. It was too embarrassing. She’d begun the kiss, and he’d stopped it. She was humiliated, showing herself to want him with a desperate passion that was not returned.
“Dae ye remember, Lass?” he asked, one finger moving down the bare half of her arm. “Last night?”
“Aye,” she said with a nervous swallow. She was still turned away from him, for she noticed her bodice was undone, and she flushed with new embarrassment.
He’d kissed her and not just on her lips. He’d practically feasted on her breasts, and she’d wanted him to do more, so much more, but she had not been enough.
“I’m sorry,” she stuttered.
When his hand fell to her waist in a gentle grasp, he said softly, “Sunshine, I daenae ken what ye are sorry for.” She saw a corner of his mouth lift up in his usual smirk. “Dae ye still think I daenae want ye?”
Her mind told her that he did not want her, that he was merely giving into foolish passions or being kind to her because of how much she wanted him. But the look in his eyes as he stared down at her was different. It spoke a different message.
“Aye,” she said weakly, wanting to follow the logical path.
Logic was the best way to keep her heart safe. If he left now, she could repair it and be whole again. They could put all of it behind them, and they’d never have to speak of it ever again. He could find a woman truly worthy of his heart and his kiss.
“Well then,” he said, turning her so that she lay under him, encased between his strong arms that he placed on either side of his head. “If ye will allow me, I will show ye just how much I want ye.”
Her eyes moved from his face down his bare, muscled chest, to the swell at the front of his kilt. She had felt that last night and even before. There’d been a hardness between his legs that pressed into her as they’d kissed. When her gaze returned to his eyes, she saw he was awaiting her answer.
This is a far better sight to wake up to than the bed canopy.
Unable to utter the words, she merely nodded before Lucas’ mouth found hers once more. Quickly, her desire rose as if it had only been waiting in the background, and her hands clung to his neck as he angled her head to deepen the kiss.
A longing awoke from deep within her, and she wanted to press him closer to ease the ache throbbing from between her legs. His kiss moved from her mouth down her neck and chest, where he kneaded first one breast, then the other, suckling a little on each.
“Such beauties,” he said before moving lower, gathering her heavy skirts up to a point high on her legs, reaching underneath to remove the layer of underclothing until it fell into a heap on the floor.
Was this what it meant to be taken?
With his eyes on her, he reached between her thighs, and she gasped when she felt his fingers at her entrance, moving over her seam with an unendurable slowness.
“Lucas,” she said, arching against his hand, not knowing what he was doing but wanting more. “Please.” The entreaty surprised her for she did not exactly know what she was asking for.
Grinning, his thumb brushed the tip of her opening, and she jerked a little at the wave of pleasure that ran through her. He slid first one finger and then another inside her until she lay back on the bed, eyes closed, a near scream ripping from her throat. Never had she been touched this way, not even by herself.
“So bonny,” he said in a thick voice, leaning closer to where his fingers moved in slow strokes, going in and out of her, curling as they slipped inside.
But when the ache began to swell, and her pleasure nearly peaked, he removed his hand, and she let out a moan of unfulfilled desire, leaning up to face him.
But she had barely time to react before he buried his head between her thighs, his tongue coming out to taste her. Wetness gushed from her, eliciting a male groan of pleasure, and she felt ashamed that such a thing could happen. Her hands trailed to his hair, moving through its softness as his mouth worked its magic against her.
His hands lifted her buttocks, angling her up so that his mouth could cover her more fully, and she slammed her head back against the pillows, crying out as her orgasm tore through her body, surprising her with the level of pleasure and heat and suddenness. It was a feeling like no other, making her feel both powerful and weak at the same time.
Her hands pushed against the headboard, hoping to quell the trembling in her muscles, as her mind slowly returned from its pleasurable haze back to Earth. Lucas held her close, laying one more lick across her center before he lifted his head from under her skirts. His smile was shining from her wetness, and she breathed hard, watching him.
He’s smiling now. Really smiling.
The sight of it made her breath still in her lungs. She had never seen anything more beautiful.
One brow arched upward as he said, “There is proof now, Lass.” He wiped his hand over his mouth and kissed her.
Still shaking a little, Caitlin leaned up into his kiss, not wanting to lose the feel of his mouth or his body. His kiss began to awaken fresh feelings in her heart. When he pulled away, a new ache emerged. He leaned back and stood on the edge of the bed.
With a regretful look, he said, “I need to go, Sunshine. It wouldnae be wise for someone to see us together, ye ken.” He pulled on his clothes, and Caitlin sat up, holding her unlaced bodice together with one hand.
His face was beginning to blur as he moved farther away from her, and she wanted to ask him to stay again, to tell him it didn’t matter. But she could not.
“I’m sorry, Sunshine. I wanted to show ye that I wanted ye, but it shouldnae have happened.” He backed away until he left out the door hurriedly.
She watched the closed door for a few seconds, and then laid back on the bed and sighed with confusion and hurt. Percy jumped on the bed and curled up next to her. His little kindness made her want to cry.