“I think one of the women ran off with him.” Josh eyed the Knit Or Die women, who were laughing raucously as they tried to line-dance in the middle of the room. “I feel sick thinking about what they’re going to do with him. It can’t be good. I’m going to miss that doll. I used to take him on tour and use him as a paparazzi decoy.” He grinned. “There are photos out there of a rubber doll that people think are me.”
Kirsty wasn’t sure that was a good thing. If you were interchangeable with a rubber doll, then you should be worried. Apparently Josh wasn’t.
“I’m sorry about the castle,” Kirsty said to Caroline.
“Why? It wasn’t your fault.” She looked bewildered.
Josh kissed the little worry lines that appeared on Caroline’s forehead.
“I don’t think I can sleep in my bedroom anymore, though,” Caroline said. “There are bullet holes in my walls and my bathroom was destroyed. What wasn’t killed by the gunmen was ruined by the fireworks. There are black burn marks on my ceiling.” Her eyes went wide at the thought. “Plus, I can’t get the sight of Dimitri tied to my bed out of my head.”
“We’ve got plenty of other rooms,” Josh reassured her.
“And holes can be fixed,” Kirsty said. “Furniture can be replaced. You’ll have the place sorted in no time and all this will just be a bad memory. You love this castle. Heck, you got married just to get your hands on it.”
“There is that,” Caroline said. “But I’m not sure if I’ll ever believe the children will be safe here.” She placed a hand on her stomach.
“Yes, you will, because you’ll make sure this place has security to rival Buckingham Palace when you’re through with it.” Kirsty cuddled close to Lake. Although he wasn’t showing any outward signs that he was amused, she could feel his body tremble and knew he was doing that silent laughing thing. “I know you, Caroline McInnes. You’ve been keeping a mental list since the lights went out. As soon as you’re able, the castle will be fitted with a generator. There will be independently powered satellite phones. The windows will have discreet metal shutters that appear from nowhere at the touch of a button and there will be at least two snowmobiles in the garage.”
Caroline almost smiled. “We don’t have a garage.”
“There you go, something else to add to the list. You love lists. This will be great. It’s been ages since you’ve had a decent project.”
Caroline’s shoulders relaxed slightly. “I had a project. I helped plan your wedding.” She bit her bottom lip. “I’m really sorry it was a complete disaster.”
“It wasn’t a complete disaster.” Kirsty looked around at the room filled with people she loved. “It was perfect. I couldn’t have planned a better wedding.”
Lake leaned down and kissed her softly in agreement.
“Even with the castle in such a mess?” Caroline worried her bottom lip.
“It looks beautiful from where I’m standing,” Kirsty said.
“Don’t worry, baby,” Josh said. “We’ll throw some money at the castle and it will all be fine.”
Caroline frowned at him. “You and money. It isn’t the answer to everything.”
Josh’s famous blue eyes twinkled as he looked down at his wife. “Name one thing it can’t fix?”
“The weather,” Caroline said solemnly.
“You win.” Josh kissed his wife, making her blush as everyone else laughed. “But for everything else, there’s money.”
As Josh ushered his clearly exhausted wife over towards the food, Rainne came up alongside the couple. “I’m leaving in the morning. I just wanted you to know that I am really happy for both of you. The wedding was perfect. Even with Betty’s dress.”
Kirsty frowned in the direction of Betty, who was dancing with four young men Kirsty had never seen before. When she’d asked about them, Betty had said they were her dates, then cackled.
“We’ll miss you.” Kirsty hugged her sister-in-law. “Are you sure you don’t want to stay a couple of days? See Alastair when he gets out of hospital?”
“This is for the best.” Rainne’s smile was forced. “Besides, I need to get back to work.” She gave her brother a hug, kissed his cheek and made excuses about needing some champagne before she rushed off.
“I worry about her,” Kirsty said as she rested her cheek on Lake’s chest.
“Don’t.” He kissed the top of her head. “Alastair won’t let her go this time. It will be fine. Now, how about a dance for your husband?”
Kirsty beamed up at him as she wrapped her arms around his waist. This was it. Her happy spot. The place she always wanted to be.
As the music played, Kirsty and Lake swayed together on the spot they’d said their vows. Lights twinkled over the snow. Laughter and conversation formed a cocoon around them. With Dougal in charge of the food, everyone was well fed and happy. And Lake and Kirsty danced into the early hours of March the first.
Husband and wife at last.
32
* Rainne and Alastair *
Five long days they’d kept Alastair in Fort William hospital. All because of one tiny little infection. He’d begged to be sent home with some antibiotics, but no, that wasn’t allowed. Instead he was hooked up to an IV and had to listen to Mitch wax lyrical about his near-death experience. If Alastair heard the word “epiphany” one more time, he was going to lose it and massacre his way out of Scotland just to get away from the American.
By the time he made it back to Invertary, he discovered Lake and Kirsty were married, and Rainne had gone back to Glasgow. He’d figured as much when she’d failed to appear at the hospital. Alastair demanded her address from her brother and packed a bag for his trip south. This time, he wasn’t going to skulk off back home when she closed the door on him. This time would be different.
She’d said she loved him.
She’d said she wanted him.
Well, she was bloody well going to get him.
It was raining in Glasgow. Alastair couldn’t remember ever visiting the city when it wasn’t raining. The further he got from the Highlands, the more the scenery dulled. The green hills around Loch Lomond gave way to grey high-rise housing, red sandstone tenements and concrete-covered ground. Alastair wondered why Rainne would want to live in a place crawling with people. A place where you had to go to a park to see some greenery. It made him feel claustrophobic just driving through the busy streets, with their buildings squeezed together until there was no space left to think.
Alastair sent up a prayer of thanks for GPS as it led him through the narrow streets in Glasgow’s West End. It took three turns around the block until he found a place to park his truck. He grabbed his bag from the back seat, pulled up his collar against the relentless rain and ran up the steps to Rainne’s tenement building. The old building had been modernised to include a security door with an intercom beside it and a button for each flat. Not that it did any good to keep out strangers. Someone had propped the door open with a brick.
Shaking his head, Alastair climbed the stairs to the fourth floor. Rainne’s door was the middle of three. His stomach roiled as his system fought between nerves and anticipation. He’d had a three-hour drive to think about how best to tackle this meeting with Rainbow. After great consideration, taking into account all the things they should discuss, he’d decided the best way forward was to keep his mouth shut and let his actions do the talking.
He lifted his hand to brush his hair off his face and smacked himself with his fluorescent green cast. Great start. He put the cast to good use and thumped the door with it.
“Just a minute,” Rainne shouted, and the sound of her voice had the blood rushing through his system at warp speed.
Without checking the peephole, or even asking who was there, she threw the door open. Her eyes went wide and her mouth fell open. Perfect. Alastair threw his bag into the hallway behind her, took two steps into her house, placed a hand on each of her cheeks and took her open mouth with his.
Home. He
was home. The anxiety within him fled at the taste of her. He’d missed this. He’d missed her. Not just this past week, but these past three years. He felt her melt against his body. Heard a tiny mewl of need escape from the back of her throat. Her hands clutched at his hips, her fingers clinging to him as Alastair walked her backwards, further into the flat and kicked the door shut behind them.
He pressed her up against the wall, feeling the soft curves of her body flatten against him. He kissed her until they were both panting with need and his lips felt bruised. Keeping their bodies touching, Alastair leaned back to look down at her. Her eyes were heavy-lidded, her cheeks were pink and her lips were red. Need surged through him. It was a living beast that couldn’t be tamed. He had to have her. Now.
She was wearing purple leggings and a purple and yellow striped oversized sweatshirt. There was a pair of thick woollen socks on her feet, also yellow, and her hair was up in a high, messy ponytail. He wrapped his left hand in the bottom of her sweatshirt and tugged it up.
“Need help,” he said. “Cast.” He held up his broken arm.
“Help?” She blinked up at him.
“I want this off.” He tugged at the shirt again. “I want you naked. Now.”
A low moan escaped her lips. Alastair felt it go straight to his crotch. He took a step back.
“Strip, Rainbow.”
“Alastair?” Rainne opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, clearly unable to figure out what to say next. Those little lines appeared between her brows.
Alastair turned and locked the door. Then he toed off his boots, along with his socks. With his eyes on Rainne, he unzipped his wet leather jacket and let it fall to the floor. Rainne’s eyes went wide at each move he made.
“Take off the sweater, Rainbow.”
He yanked his own sweater over his head and threw it to the floor. He wasn’t wearing anything underneath, and he almost lost the little self-control he had left when she licked her lips at the sight of his bare chest.
“Rainbow.” It was a growl.
She didn’t move. It was as though she was dazed. Her fingers slowly lifted to touch her lips.
Alastair glanced around. They were in a tiny hallway, painted in a tasteful cream that made him think Rainne hadn’t gotten around to decorating yet. On the left was an open doorway into a small living room/kitchen. The lamps were on in the room and he could see an open novel on the sofa. Straight ahead was a closed door—he assumed the bathroom. To the right was another open door, this one to a dark room with a double bed under the window.
Now he had his destination.
His hand went to his belt and he unbuckled it, watching Rainbow’s eyes as they followed his every move.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
“Sorting things out between us.” He unbuttoned the top button on his jeans.
“Shouldn’t we talk first?”
“Talking doesn’t work for us. This is better.”
He stalked towards her, pressing her back against the wall, hip to hip. Letting her feel every hard inch of him. Letting her know how much he wanted her. No. Needed her.
He placed his forearms on the wall beside her head and leaned forward to rub his cheek up the side of her throat. Her head fell to the side to give him access. He nibbled on her earlobe, letting her hear his breath, gratified when it made her shudder. She smelled like sherbet. He ran his tongue down the smooth column of her throat to bury his nose in the curve at her shoulder. She tasted like sherbet too.
“Do you want this, Rainne?” He asked the words against her skin, nipping gently at her when he paused. “Do you want me to make love to you?” He honestly thought he might collapse and die on the spot if she said no.
Her fingers hooked into the waistband of his jeans, holding tight.
“Yes,” she whispered.
It was all he needed to hear. He grabbed her sweater at the bottom and yanked it up awkwardly.
“Help me,” he pleaded.
She released her hold on him long enough to tug the top over her head. She wasn’t wearing anything underneath. Alastair groaned as he fell to his knees. Without pausing, he took one of her perfect pink nipples in his mouth and sucked hard.
“Alastair!” It was a plea.
Her fingers wound into his overgrown hair and held him tight against her. He vowed never to get it cut short again. He kissed and licked and bit. Teasing her nipple until her gasps were feverish and her fingers tugged tight at his scalp, making it sting perfectly.
He turned his attention to her other breast and lavished it with the same attention, flicking his tongue rapidly over her nipple until she arched her back and pressed her breast into his mouth. He sucked it deep. Delicious. She was delicious.
Her soft, panting moans were music to his ears. He could listen to them forever. If he had his way, he would listen to them forever. He’d spend morning, noon and night making her writhe with pleasure just to hear those sounds.
Using his good hand he tugged her leggings down, taking her underwear with him. He sat back on his heels and his mouth watered at the sight before him. An expanse of soft, milky skin leading to paradise.
“Off.” He pulled the leggings and socks.
Swaying, she placed a hand on each of his shoulders to help kick off her clothing. At last she was naked. He felt like a starving man at a banquet. He didn’t know where to start first. Slowly, his eyes travelled up her body to find a desire-filled gaze looking back at him.
“Spread your legs,” he ordered.
Her gasp made him soar. He helped push her legs apart, and without hesitating he leaned forward to taste her.
“Alastair!” She tilted her hips towards him, making him growl with approval. He wanted all of her. He grasped her backside with his good hand and pulled her tight against his face. Her taste was addictive.
He glanced up her body to find her head flung back against the wall, her lips open and her cheeks flushed. Beautiful. He licked deeper into her, flicking his tongue over that little bundle of nerves until he heard her incoherent begging. Her fingers curled into his hair again. He felt the sharp bite of her nails. It spurred him on. He wanted more. He wanted all of her. He sucked the tiny nub hard and heard her scream his name.
Her body bowed against him as she shuddered, racked by the pleasure he’d given her. Pride surged through him and he pushed to his feet. He took her mouth in his and kissed her with a desperation that bordered on pain. She writhed against him, her soft, naked body a sensuous playground.
With one hand on the small of her back, and his mouth fused to hers, he walked her backwards into her bedroom and pressed her into the bed. The room was dark, lit only by the glow from the hallway. Alastair came down on top of Rainne, bracing his weight on his arms, wishing the damn cast wasn’t in his way. Wishing he could have carried her to bed. Another time. There would be another time.
She hooked her leg around his hip, wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pressed up into him.
“Need you,” he said into her mouth.
“Your ribs!”
Her worry made him smile. “I’ll be careful.
Her answering kiss was out of control. Making it clear she wanted all of him.
Her hands smoothed down his back, around his waistband, until they met the buttons on his jeans. She popped them one at a time in agonisingly slow motion.
“Please.” She tried to get his jeans over his hips using her hands and leg.
Alastair pushed up off the bed, keeping his eyes locked with hers. Desire made them heavy and heated. Nothing made him more desperate than watching her want him. He pushed his jeans and underwear down his legs and stepped out of them.
“Gorgeous woman.” He needed her to know how he saw her, what she did to him, but the words wouldn’t come. “My woman,” he said instead, hoping she understood. Hoping she knew it was more than a claim. It was a promise.
Rainne pulled him down on top of her and wrapped both legs around his hips, h
er heels digging into the backs of his thighs.
“Alastair.” Her voice was a low, begging rasp. “Please. I can’t wait. Don’t tease me.”
“I won’t, Rainbow.” He braced his weight on his good arm and with one move thrust into her.
They groaned together. Rainne’s fingers dug into the flexing muscles of his back.
“I have missed you so much,” he said.
“I need you,” she whispered.
“You’ve got me.” He moved his hips until there were only moans of need. “Love you, Rainbow,” Alastair said against her ear. “Love you. Only you. Always you.”
She shuddered, calling his name as she clenched around him, taking him with her into the oblivion of pure, glorious pleasure.
33
* Rainne and Alastair *
Rainne woke slowly. She was lying on her stomach and there was a heavy weight pinning her in place.
Alastair.
She smiled into the darkness, taking a moment to enjoy the feeling of his naked body beside hers. His skin against hers. His body heat making her burn, and comforting her at the same time.
His hand caressed from the small of her back to between her shoulder blades, making her press herself into the mattress and moan her pleasure.
“Hey, gorgeous,” he said. “Thought you’d never wake up.”
She smiled at the husky timbre of his voice as she blinked open her eyes to look at her alarm clock. It was three a.m.
His hand smoothed back down to curve around her behind.
“You have a backside that brings a man to his knees.” There was awe in his voice.
Rainne turned her head so she could look at him. The light was still on in her hall and her bedroom door was wide open. He looked good in the soft glow. He looked even better in her bed. Her stomach clenched. He might look edible, but she wasn’t sure he should be there.
“Alastair,” she started, but he silenced her by leaning forward and kissing her gently.
She sighed as she sank deeper into the bed.
He pulled back slightly to look at her. “So, here’s the thing,” he said as he ran his thumb over her bottom lip. “I’ve decided I’m moving in.”
Here Comes the Rainne Again Page 22