Hmm, was he coming on to her now?
He walked to the far side of the tower and lounged in a gold brocade Louis XVI chair that was dwarfed by him, crossing his legs at the ankles. “Do you want a sinful story?” he asked. “Are you interested in murder and intrigue? Or do you want a combination?”
“A combination would be lovely,” she said, handing him a tumbler of whisky. He wrapped his fingers around the glass, careful not to touch her, but still she could feel his heat, could feel the tension that crackled between them as they watched each other’s every move.
“Are you hungry?” She used her most seductive voice when she asked.
All he did was nod, his eyes glancing from her face, down the curve of her throat, to her breasts, and then he looked up at her through his dark lashes and smiled. “Starved.”
She sincerely hoped so!
She went to the table across the room and heaped a gold-bordered white china plate with a variety of cold finger foods like asparagus and cheese rolled inside thinly sliced ham and plump mushrooms stuffed with spicy marinated shrimp, giving him many tempting tastes and textures to dine on.
“I hope you’ll like what I’ve prepared for you.”
“I’ve enjoyed everything so far.” His voice deepened. “Everything, Emily, particularly you.”
“Enough to touch me?”
He shook his head slowly. “You know I can’t do that. The honor of the Dunbar name is at stake.”
She laughed. “I didn’t think there was much honor to be found in your family’s past.”
“It’s starting with me. New traditions, you know.”
“Too bad. I rather like the lusty nature of your ancestors.”
“And I rather like this new you.”
“How much?”
A smile tilted his lips. “Have patience, Emily. When our week is over, I’ll show you just how much.”
“Can you wait that long?”
“I’m doing fine. How about you?”
She circled his chair, threading her fingers through his hair, sliding them gently over his cheek and lips, before she walked toward the table where their dinner awaited. “I’m doing fine, too.” It was a bald-faced lie, of course. The fact that he wouldn’t touch her made her want him that much more.
She selected one of the fattest shrimp-stuffed mushrooms from a china plate and walked toward his chair. “Try this.”
He absentmindedly licked his lips before opening them slightly and biting into the succulent canapé. A small smile of delight danced in his eyes as he chewed.
When she pulled her hand away, she couldn’t help but notice that a tiny speck of shrimp had caught between his lips. Unable to stop herself, she leaned forward and slowly licked it away with the tip of her tongue.
Shocked at what she’d done, by her sudden display of wanton hedonism, she backed away, feeling the heat rise in her cheeks.
“Don’t stop, Emily. There’s nothing in our rules that says you can’t touch me.”
“I’ve been in a one-sided relationship before. I’m not willing to go there again.”
“When did this become one-sided?”
“When you decided not to touch me.”
“Didn’t anyone ever tell you not to touch something—your mother’s best crystal, your father’s autographed baseball?”
“Of course.”
“And remember how it felt? The more forbidden it was, the more often you were told no, the more you wanted it.”
“I remember.”
“That’s what I’m feeling right now. That’s what I’ve felt since you moved in here. Every morning and every night I walk by your bedroom door, and I imagine you in bed. I wonder what you’re wearing. If you’re naked, in flannel, or in silk.”
She drew in a deep breath. “You could always step inside and find out.”
“I’ve rarely been curious about anything in my life. I’ve had almost everything handed to me. Money. Women. There’s been little to dream about. To want or desire. Until you.” His gaze searched her eyes. “Kiss me, Emily.”
As if he’d hypnotized her, she walked toward the chair where he sat, slipped her hands around his neck and threaded her fingers into his hair, then leaned forward and touched her lips to his.
His chest rose as he drew in a breath. His legs parted, and she stepped between them, pressing her body close to his. He was hot. He was hard, and she could feel the tension straining in his muscles as he fought the desire to touch her.
Apparently the rules didn’t apply to his mouth, because he nearly devoured her. His tongue swept around hers and danced, his teeth nipped her lips, his hot moist breath mingled with hers. She could barely breathe with a thousand and one tastes and sensations sizzling through her body, tormenting her, pleasing her. All with a kiss. An incredible kiss.
Warm. Sweet. Hot. Powerful.
Somehow she dragged herself away and drew in a ragged breath. “Touch me. Please.”
“I can’t. Not yet.”
“I don’t want to do this all alone.”
“You’re not alone. I’m here with you.”
She knelt between his legs and lifted his sweater, pressing firm, moist kisses over his stomach, his chest. With her hands pressing against him, she looked up at his eyes and saw the desire, the passion, the need.
“Don’t stop, Emily. Please. Don’t stop.”
She pulled his sweater up and over his head, tossing it aside as she kissed him again, his mouth joining hers in a dance that made her sigh.
Seconds ticked by. Minutes, as she luxuriated in his mesmerizing, soul-searing kiss. She wanted more, needed more, but even though he didn’t touch her, she touched him, pressing her leather-covered breasts against his chest, so close his heartbeat became one with hers.
He sighed against her mouth and she knew he wanted just as much from her as she wanted from him, yet still he didn’t reach out for her.
Tearing herself from the sensual feel and delectable taste of his mouth, she whispered kisses slowly down his corded throat, over his chest, which rose and fell heavily as if he labored for breath. Her tongue teased his hard, flat stomach, his belly-button, and traced the edge of his waistband. Slowly her trembling fingers touched his belt buckle, and she looked up at Colin and smiled.
Suddenly his hands were on her face, his palms cupping her cheeks and dragging her mouth toward his again. “God, Emily. Forgive me for touching you, but I can’t hold back any longer.”
“Forgive you?” She laughed with delight. “Touch me everywhere, Colin. Please.”
In only a minute he had her out of the leather dress, and she had him out of every stitch of clothing. They stood in front of the stained-glass windows and looked into each other’s eyes for just a moment, just long enough for her to see the longing in his eyes.
Slowly her gaze drifted lower, lower, and she saw what she wanted and desired, almost as much as she wanted and desired his love. He was blazing hot and ready. So very, very ready. Her gaze flicked back to his face, and she smiled. “I came to Scotland to find lust, seduction, and sin. I think I just found something a whole lot better.”
“And it’s all yours for the taking.”
His fingers suddenly slipped under her bottom, and he lifted her till her legs straddled his waist. “Kiss me, Emily. Kiss me hard.”
Even though he’d begged her to kiss him, his mouth was on hers first, capturing her, tasting her, his tongue dancing with her tongue, making her sizzle and burn with fulfilled desire.
Heat spread to her fingertips, to her toes, and blazed at the very center of her, heat that he’d ignited with his potent and powerful kisses. For a week she’d felt like she was starving, desperate for a taste of him, and now he was giving her so much more than she’d ever expected.
At last he laid her down on the oriental carpet, and his lips, his tongue, the moist heat of his breath, caressed the curve of her neck, the hollow of her throat, moving first to one breast then to the other, suckling and teasing,
pleasantly torturing her nipples with nips of his teeth and the swirl of his tongue.
Her body had never tingled this way, had never been caught up in a torrent of such wicked and luscious emotions. She wanted to cry, she wanted to laugh, she wanted to pull him into her so she could know him fully and completely.
He rolled onto his back, and she straddled his hips, making herself comfortable, while Colin produced a condom from his pants pocket. With fast, fumbling fingers, they stretched it over him, then Colin’s powerful arms all but lifted her up and set the hot, blazing center of her body on the hard, masterful length of him.
And then his hands went to her breasts, kneading them gently, drawing them to his mouth, as she lowered herself onto him. She moaned. Sighed. Gasped for breath as she took all of him inside her.
Then she rose slowly, smiling down on him as they moved together in synchronized time, as if they’d loved each other again and again throughout time and knew each other’s needs, wants, desires.
His sapphire eyes blazed as he watched her, sending red-hot lava flowing through her breasts, through her heart and soul.
And just when she thought she couldn’t go on any longer, he pulled her beneath him and thrust deep and hard. The first spasm hit, then the second and third. It was chaotic. It was bliss. It was potent and passionate, and she didn’t want the impulsiveness of this act ever to end.
Colin smiled down at her, kissing her, and when every nerve in her body began to shout with joy, she watched his eyes slam shut. His body jerked and quivered, and a powerful smile broke across his face.
Slowly he wrapped her in his arms and pulled her against him, face to face, their legs entwined, still holding on to the love they’d just shared.
“I love you,” she whispered.
His gaze flickered away from her for a moment, and a frown passed quickly across his face, then disappeared. She’d seen in his eyes and face everything that she’d feared. He didn’t love her.
It wasn’t supposed to happen this way. Not again. Definitely not with Colin. She tried to push away, but he held her in his arms.
“Love me, Emily.”
“I do, but I want love in return. I told you before I don’t want something one-sided.”
“I don’t know how to love,” he said. “It has nothing to do with you. If I could love you, I would.”
This time she did manage to pull away, the tears flowing from her eyes as she snatched up her clothes and stood in front of him, feeling naked and hurt.
He was beside her, trying to pull her into his arms, but she kept backing away, farther from him all the time.
“Stay, Emily. I want you here with me.”
She laughed. “What, as some unloved mistress?”
“I’d care few you, Emily. I’d give you everything you ever needed or wanted.”
“I want your love.”
He laughed. “Dunbars don’t love. They never have, and they never will.”
“That’s a myth, and you’re a fool to believe it. A heartless fool who’s made of stone.”
“Then change me! Make me something else, because I don’t want to lose you.”
She didn’t want to lose him either, but if she stayed, it would be too easy for him to accept things just the way they were. If she left… well, he’d have to decide what he really wanted.
Without thinking any further, she ran away, hoping he’d make the right decision about what he wanted.
Because she wanted him desperately.
6
“Drink up, lass,” Meg said, leaning her pudgy arms on top of the bar. “That whisky might not cure your ills, but it’ll put a fire in your belly and take a wee bit of the pain out of yer heart.”
Emily lifted the tumbler to her lips and took a sip of Dunbar whisky’s next-to-the-best blend. “I’ve gotten attached to this stuff in the last week or so. Think you could send some to the States for me every so often?”
Meg shook her head. “Ye know good and well I canna do that. That whisky’s poured at the Devil’s Cup and nowhere else. Ye’ll just have to pay us a visit every now and then if ye want a taste.”
“As good as coming back here sounds—Oh, who am I kidding? You and everyone else knows what happened between Colin and me, and you also know I won’t be coming back.”
“If ye ask me, yer giving up far too easy.”
“The man’s got a heart of stone, not to mention ice water for blood, and he’s not interested in me. It’s been two days since I ran off, and he’s made no effort whatsoever. I’m getting on that plane this afternoon, and I won’t be coming back.”
“Want to bet on that?”
Emily turned at the familiar sound of Billy’s voice.
It didn’t surprise her that they were wagering on her troubles again. “I’m not going to bet on the inevitable.”
“The entire village has wagered on this one.” Iain popped up from the table to pour himself a stout, while Seamus smoothed out a piece of paper on their regular table. “Of course, everyone voted the same way, so there wilna be much to win.”
“And how did everyone vote?” Emily craned her neck to get a look at the paper.
“That Colin wilna let you leave the Highlands. The man’s stubborn as they come, but he’s no fool.”
“No, he’s not.” It was a voice from the near-distant past.
Emily choked on her whisky and coughed as the tall, swarthy Highlander pushed through the pub door.
“Give the lass some more whisky, Meg. It’s on me.”
Emily slapped her hand over the top of the tumbler and glared at Meg. “I’ve got a plane to catch”—cough! cough!—“and a long drive to get to the airport.” Cough! “The last thing I need is more to drink before I get on the road.”
Colin parked himself on the stool next to her and wedged the glass from under her hand. “She’s not going anywhere, Meg. A little more whisky will stop that cough of hers. At least, it always works for me.”
Emily swiveled around on the bar stool and hit him with a frown. “I didn’t cough till you walked into the pub. I never cough when I’m drinking—unless you’re around.”
“Then you’d better get used to coughing, because I’m not leaving your side.”
That’s telling her, Colin,” Billy hollered.
Meg glowered at Billy, Iain, and Seamus. “Mind yer own business!”
Emily leaned somewhat close to Colin, but not too close. He smelled too good. He looked even better. And he was the devil. “I don’t know why you’re here,” she whispered, “but if you have something to say to me, could you do it in private?”
“Aye. And I’ve got the perfect private place to do it.”
With that, Colin tossed her over his shoulder like a sack of barley and headed for the door.
“Put me down!”
“Not till we’ve talked.”
“Should I pack the lass’s belongings and bring them to the castle?” Meg hollered after them.
“You can pack them,” Colin said, his arms trapping Emily’s legs against his chest so she wouldn’t kick him while she struggled. “But we’re not going to want any visitors for a while. And Emily won’t be needing any clothes, either.”
“That’s what you think!” Emily thrashed about, but it did no good. The Highlander wouldn’t be stopped as he stalked out the door and into the sunlight, to the rousing cheers of the regulars at the Devil’s Cup.
“Do you mind telling me what you’re doing, Colin Dunbar?”
“I’m putting you in the car and I’m taking you home, and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t make it any more difficult than you already have.”
“My home’s in California.”
“Not any longer.” He opened the car door and almost heaved her inside.
“I’m not going to live in that castle as your mistress. I already told you that.” She tried to crawl out the passenger side of his Land Rover, but he latched on to her and pulled her into his lap, clapping a powerful arm around her mi
ddle.
She tried to wrench out of his arms, but he couldn’t be wrenched. “It’s dangerous to drive this way.”
“It would be far more dangerous to drive with you trying to escape.”
“I don’t appreciate being kidnapped.”
“And I didn’t appreciate you running out on me.”
“What was I supposed to do? I bare my soul and you… you—” Tears welled in the corners of her eyes.
Colin’s warm and tender hand cupped her cheek. “I know perfectly well what I did. I hurt you, Emily. I drove you away, and I’ve been miserable ever since.”
She shifted in his lap, turning until their eyes, their noses, and their mouths were mere inches apart. “You’re not just saying that to get me back to the castle, are you?”
He shook his head slowly. “I’m saying it because…” He sighed softly. “Because I love you.”
A searing heat flowed through her veins and into her heart. His confession thrilled her beyond anything she’d ever experienced in life, but it surprised her as well, and just to make sure she hadn’t heard him incorrectly, she asked, “Do you really?”
His eyes sparkled as he caressed away the tears from her cheeks. “Aye.”
Butterflies fluttered in her stomach once again. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”
“Because I didn’t know how I felt until you were gone, until I experienced the worst loneliness of my life.” His lips whispered over hers. “I’ll be breaking a long chain of Dunbar misery if I can make you love me as much as I love you.”
Weaving her fingers behind his neck, she smiled into his beloved face. “Then (he chain’s already broken.”
“It won’t be broken until I take you to the secret bedroom,” he said, kissing the tip of her nose, her eyelids, and then her mouth once again. “Until I make love to you in the mythical bed.”
Emily tightened her arms around his neck and smiled. “Then start the car, Colin, and let’s go break some chains.”
Colin pulled the Land Rover to a halt in the circular drive in front of the castle, and in just a few minutes, his fingers woven tightly around Emily’s, he was tugging her through the great hall, his long legs moving much faster than her short ones.
My Scottish Summer Page 15