The commander shook his head. ‘But he is on edge. All of us can see it.’ With a wry expression, he added, ‘Your presence may do him good.’
Lianna hoped he was right. After thanking the commander, she returned to the keep and found Joan waiting upon the stairs. The young woman appeared uncertain and warned her, ‘It is unusual for a Norman lady to speak with soldiers.’
Lianna understood her concerns, but they were unfounded. ‘These men guarded me upon my first journey here. They are good soldiers,’ she explained.
‘That may be true. But my father and Rhys would not be pleased at your interference.’
Lianna could hardly call it interference when it was merely sending additional food to the men. She decided to be discreet about it. ‘I understand.’ She kept her voice quiet and demure, though she had no intention of ignoring anyone in need at Montbrooke.
They crossed through the inner bailey, and she stopped a moment to watch Rhys. As the commander had said, he was sparring with a group of soldiers, wearing full chainmail armour. And yet he moved as if he were unfettered by the weight. Three men opposed him, and he used both a sword and a shield to deflect their blows.
Lianna stepped closer and chose a place upon the stone stairs that led to the battlements. Rhys fought like a demon, lashing out at the men, his sword biting through their wooden shields. He poured his efforts into the fight, and Lianna’s skin warmed at the sight of his strength. He moved swiftly, attacking their defences and winning.
And when the sparring was over, his face gleamed with sweat. She imagined him removing the armour, revealing his hardened muscles. The urge to touch him was strong, and it was only with great effort that she retreated from the training grounds.
He had a way of tempting her, and she pressed back the desire rising. From behind her, she heard footsteps. When she turned, she saw Rhys approaching her. His face held annoyance, and to his sister, he said, ‘Leave us, Joan.’
The young woman obeyed, and Lianna suddenly sensed the caged anger rising within him. His blue eyes stared hard at her, as if he were angry for the interruption. ‘What did you want, Lianna?’
She was fascinated by the brute strength of her husband. In her mind, she imagined him lifting her up and carrying her away, like a conquest of battle. The idea interested her more than it should.
‘You fought well,’ she said softly. ‘I wanted to watch.’
‘You were a distraction I didn’t need.’ His anger radiated from him, and though she ought to be bothered by his harsh words, it occurred to her that he might be feeling frustration.
‘I will order a bath for you, if you want,’ she offered. ‘It might ease your aches.’ Her pulse quickened at the thought of washing Rhys.
‘I have no need of it.’ He strode past her, and his abrupt dismissal should have angered her.
Yet, he had been unable to ignore her presence, and the thought pleased her. She had her own battle to fight, and she refused to surrender until she won his forgiveness.
* * *
His wife’s presence unnerved him. Just as she’d done at Eiloch, she had begun giving orders here. She had sent extra rations to his soldiers, and he had overheard the men praising her. Whether she knew it or not, Lianna MacKinnon had gained their affection, and they would now obey her orders without question.
Rhys did not join her at the noon meal but simply took extra food from the kitchens. He suspected she would attempt to share his bed tonight, and he had not yet decided what to do. While his body welcomed the idea of lying with her, he had not forgotten the way she had shied away from his touch.
He retreated above stairs to his chamber and was startled to find a tub of water waiting for him inside. Once again, she had ignored his wishes. But when he touched the water, he found that it was still hot.
‘Do you want my help?’ a female voice asked.
He spun, unsheathing his dagger out of instinct. Then he relaxed his grip when he saw Lianna emerge from behind the door.
‘No.’ He sheathed the dagger again and opened the door. ‘You can leave me now. Joan will share her chamber with you.’
She paled and went towards the door. But instead of leaving, she closed it behind her. ‘I am not going away, Rhys.’
‘You will if I command it.’
She crossed the room and stood before him. ‘I travelled a long distance to be with you.’
‘Because it is your duty to be here?’ he questioned. He removed his gauntlets and then reached for his coif. The heavy chainmail was a punishing weight, but it was a reminder of the battles they still might face.
‘I came to apologise,’ she said. ‘Not out of duty.’
She took the armour and set it aside neatly, kneeling before him to help with his boots. He removed his hauberk, then the linen undertunic. She averted her gaze, and he reminded her, ‘You may go, Lianna. I have no need of your help now.’
‘Get into the tub,’ she ordered, ‘and I will tend to your bath.’
Rhys wanted to deny her, to force her to leave. And yet, the thought of hot water upon his skin was a welcome idea. So be it. He stood before her, waiting until he had captured her gaze. And then he stripped away his remaining armour and underclothing until he stood naked before her.
She didn’t move from her place, but her face flushed at the sight of him. He stepped into the tub, suppressing a groan of satisfaction. It did feel good to ease the pain of training with the hot bath.
Lianna went to fetch a linen cloth and soap. He watched as she returned and dipped the cloth in the water, lathering the soap in it. Then she brought the cloth to his back and began washing him.
‘Use your hands,’ he ordered.
She did, and from the moment her fingers glided over his skin, he grew erect within the water. She rubbed his skin, and then she began massaging his shoulders. Her touch affected him strongly, and frustration tightened inside.
‘I spent time walking through the grounds today,’ she said. Her hands moved to his chest, rubbing in slow circles.
‘And what did you see?’
She described a broken wall and the masons who had begun fixing it. Then his mind drifted away while she spoke of the soldiers and their defences. Rhys lay back in the tub, and she helped him wash his hair. When he sat up, water dripped over his face and down his neck. She was leaning over the tub, and her face was flushed from the heat of the water.
‘Why did you follow me?’ he demanded. ‘I want the truth.’
She bit her lip and lowered her gaze. ‘There were many reasons. But I did not want you to go. My place is at your side.’
‘For over a fortnight at Eiloch, you lay beside me and did not want my touch,’ he accused. ‘Because you were forced to lie with me.’
She frowned at that. ‘I was never forced.’
Rhys rose from the tub, water spilling over his naked skin. He made no effort to hide his arousal, and just as he’d expected, Lianna appeared uneasy about it. She gave him a linen drying cloth, and he commanded, ‘Dry me off.’
She moved in closer and obeyed, wiping the water away. He cupped the back of her neck, and when she bent lower to dry his legs, he felt her breath against his shaft. His need grew fierce, and he clenched his hands to keep from touching her.
Rhys refused to let himself fall beneath her spell. She would not seduce him, leaving him powerless. Right now, he intended to show her just who was in command. Though she might have drawn the bath, hoping to lure him into her bed, he would not let her use him in that way.
After she had finished drying him off, Lianna stood and began folding the cloth into neat squares.
‘You pulled away from me the last time I touched you,’ he murmured. ‘Will you pull away now?’
She did shudder when his hand moved over the curve of her breast. But she admitted, ‘I was sensitive to your touch. You startled me.�
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‘Why did you prepare this bath?’ he asked. ‘Did you think I would succumb to temptation and let you seduce me again?’
She shook her head. ‘I only thought you would find it soothing after your training.’
‘Then you do not want me at all, do you?’ He let his hand trail from her nape down to her spine.
She swallowed hard. ‘Rhys, don’t play games with me. I will do what I can to be the Norman wife you should have had.’
He didn’t understand her at all. ‘You think to change yourself?’
She shrugged. ‘I don’t ken if that’s possible, but I will try.’ She rested her hands upon his shoulders, sliding them down his arms.
His suspicions darkened, for that wasn’t Lianna’s way at all. She was a Scot and had always spurned Norman ways. ‘Why?’
‘Because you are the husband I want,’ she whispered. ‘And I believe we can build a good marriage between us.’
Though her words were the right ones, he could not surrender his disbelief. If that were true, what had changed her mind? Or was she only saying what he wanted to hear? He couldn’t understand her reasons for returning to Montbrooke. But if she did want a better marriage, there was one way to find out if she was telling the truth.
‘Remove your gown,’ he ordered.
For a moment, she appeared shocked at his orders. He waited for her to refuse him, the way she had during the past few weeks. But instead, Lianna faced him, her expression holding an uncertain emotion.
She was wearing a bliaud that laced up the front, and she stood before him, loosening the bindings. She peeled back the gown with its tightly fitted sleeves, until she was clad only in her shift. The sight of her curves evoked a strong desire, but he wanted to know her purpose in coming to Montbrooke.
He reached for her shift and pulled it away, revealing her bare skin. Her breasts were fuller than he’d remembered, and the nipples puckered in the cool air.
‘Lie down on my bed,’ he commanded. ‘Open your legs to me.’
Her expression turned startled, her cheeks flushed with colour. Yet she obeyed him, lying down naked upon the coverlet, though he could tell that she was feeling shy.
Rhys had no intention of joining with her. He wanted to drive her into madness until she admitted her reasons for travelling this far.
He knelt at the edge of the bed, pulling her closer until her legs rested upon his shoulders. For a moment he waited, watching as the gooseflesh rose upon her skin. This position made her vulnerable, and he sensed her nervousness. He rested his cheek against her inner thigh, and when he breathed against her, she shuddered.
‘Rhys, what do you want from me?’
‘I want answers.’ Without warning, he touched his tongue to her intimately. Lianna cried out in shock and arched her back. His anger and frustration drove him to torment her in this way. She had journeyed here against his orders, and he didn’t know why she had disobeyed him. But no longer would he let her freeze him out. He intended to prove that she did want him, despite what she’d claimed to others.
‘Am I forcing you against your will?’ he demanded.
‘N-no,’ she breathed.
He licked the seam of her, finding the raised nodule that drove her towards madness. And when he suckled against it, her breath came in ragged gasps. But he could not stop his own rigid response. Her arousal and needs made him long to thrust inside her, taking her until she seized around him in the throes of release.
Rhys drew her to the edge of the climax, using his tongue and his mouth to pleasure her, fully aware of Lianna’s yearning. ‘Should I stop?’
‘Please don’t,’ she begged.
Rhys continued to taste her, sliding his tongue against her folds and nibbling against the centre of her pleasure. ‘Why did you come to Montbrooke?’
She was breathing in rhythm, her body squirming as he drew her closer to the edge. ‘I needed to see you.’
‘But you had another reason, didn’t you?’
She rested her hands upon his hair, lifting her hips as he tasted her intimately. When she said nothing, he reached up to caress her breasts. Though he’d only meant to repeat his question, the barest touch shattered her. Lianna released a keening cry, her hips rising with the tide of her release. Her body trembled violently, and her hands dug into the coverlet as she came apart.
His own body was roaring for fulfilment, but he tightened the bonds of control. He would not give her this now—not when she’d refused to answer his questions. Instead, he simply moved away and pulled the coverlet over his wife’s naked body.
Lianna sat up in confusion. ‘What about you, Rhys? We haven’t finished.’
‘We have.’ He reached for his braies and chausses, and then withdrew clothing from one of his trunks. She had given him no answers, and her silence irritated him. He didn’t at all believe that she had come here to be a Norman wife. Lianna remained loyal to Scotland and always would. His mood hardened at the awareness that he’d deluded himself into imagining she had feelings for him. And when her kinsmen had accused her of switching sides, she’d admitted her own truth—that she had been forced into their union and into his bed.
It abraded his pride that she would think that. And he had needed to prove to her that he would never, ever force her into his bed...he would only tempt her.
Lianna sat up, clutching the coverlet to her body. ‘Why did you do this?’ she demanded. ‘Were you trying to punish me?’
He eyed her flushed skin and met her gaze evenly. ‘I hardly think you were punished just now, Lianna.’ But despite her claim that they were not finished, he wondered if she truly wanted him. After all this time apart, he had his doubts.
Rhys finished dressing himself and prepared to leave. It was still afternoon, and he had other duties that required his attention.
Lianna kept the coverlet wrapped around her body and stood from the bed. ‘You’re not leaving, are you?’
‘I am.’ He was glad to see that he’d evoked a response from her at last. ‘Besides, you never answered my question about why you travelled here. I don’t believe it was only about wanting to be my wife.’
‘You are right,’ she admitted. ‘I had another reason.’ She tried to walk towards him, but the coverlet was tucked beneath the mattress and would not budge. Then she muttered a curse and let it fall, striding towards him naked.
He could not help but be aroused by the sight in front of him. Her red hair spilled over her breasts, and her skin was rosy from his earlier touch.
‘You asked me why I came this distance,’ she said, reaching for his hand. Then she brought it to just below her stomach, where he felt a hardened bump, barely visible. His veins seemed to flood with ice, and he stared at her in disbelief.
‘I came to tell you that I am with child,’ she said. ‘And I do not want to be abandoned at Eiloch when I give birth.’
* * *
If she had struck him in the heart with an arrow, her husband could not have appeared more surprised. Lianna had the satisfaction of his gaping expression and his loss for words.
He kept his hand upon her womb, and she added, ‘That was why I pulled away when you touched my breasts. They were so sensitive, it hurt.’
‘When did you first learn of this?’ Though his words sounded demanding, there was a tone of concern within them.
‘I suspected it a month ago, but now I am certain. The baby will be born in the spring.’
If I survive the birth, she thought, but didn’t say it. She was trying not to think of her mother. It was easier to force back the fear, pretending it wasn’t real.
Her husband still appeared perplexed by her confession, and Lianna decided to get dressed again. She reached for her shift and then donned her gown. All the while, Rhys was staring at her, saying nothing. She had rather hoped he might be happy about the child, but he appeared mo
re confused than anything else.
‘You do not seem pleased by this,’ she said.
He shrugged and seemed to shake off his reverie. ‘I am surprised, but I suppose it was inevitable.’
And there it was, the shield closing down again. Of all the things he could have said, it was the last thing she’d imagined. She pulled her laces tight, her anger growing hotter. ‘Is that the only thing you can say?’
Was he not pleased about the child? The slightest movement of the babe, rather like a butterfly’s touch, was a fragile gift to her heart. She loved this child already, though the thought of giving birth frightened her. But instead of dwelling on the possibility of death, she could only live each day and pray that both of them would survive.
‘You caught me unawares,’ Rhys said. ‘I did not think it would happen so soon.’
She wanted to throw a shoe at him. This was a child, a flesh and blood being, conceived in their marriage bed. And yet, he showed no happiness at all, no joy at an heir. His response was not at all what she’d expected.
Instead, she finished dressing and tightened the command over her hurt feelings. If he intended to behave as if it were of little consequence, so be it.
Lianna followed the spiral stairs down towards the Great Hall, but Rhys did not follow. Her heart felt brittle, as if the slightest emotion might shatter it. She pushed her way through the people, nearly running into Joan. The young woman was taken aback, and her face held sympathy. ‘Are you all right, Lianna?’
The kind words made her burst into tears. Humiliation washed over her, but she let Rhys’s sister guide her outside towards the garden where she could weep in private. It seemed that the pregnancy caused all manner of emotions to spill over, no matter how she tried to contain them. Joan embraced her, rubbing her back while Lianna sobbed out the story. When she had finished, she pulled back and saw the rueful smile on Joan’s face.
‘That sounds just like my brother. He must have been utterly stunned by your news.’ Her eyes held amusement, and she added, ‘But I am very pleased for you both. A new baby is such a blessing.’
Lianna wasn’t so certain, but she didn’t say so. She rested her hand upon the swelling at her womb, feeling so uncertain. ‘Rhys doesn’t seem to think so.’
Forbidden Night with the Highlander Page 19