“You do?” How incredible. “Can you sense their emotions now?”
“Iain’s are the strongest, the most ecstatic, and I’d say he’s abed with Isla.”
“Oh dear, you can tell when he’s—” She pressed a hand to her mouth, her cheeks flushing with heat. “What of Kirk?”
“Kirk’s curiosity is strong. He can sense my sudden contentment since it’s no doubt blasting down our line.” He swept her golden hair back and exposed her neck. “I’m also the most competitive of the three of us, as well as the most level-headed.”
“You are hardly level-headed, no’ when you wish to tangle with me.”
A low growl rumbled from his throat and his claws sliced out.
“Your bear doesn’t approve of my estimation?” She fluffed her pillow and tucked it more securely under her head.
“Ignore my bear.”
“Your bear is impossible to ignore. He’s both sizeable and pushy, as is the man.”
“I haven’t even begun to get pushy with you yet.” He leaned closer, claws retracting as he touched his nose to hers. “But when I do, you’ll know, because I intend to enjoy a bite or two of you.”
Gilleoin was always biting Aunt Sorcha, and now Kenneth, her cousin and Gilleoin’s firstborn son, had mated with Elizabeth, a good friend of hers from the village and since that day, her friend too had sported red marks on her neck. Love bites, Elizabeth had called them.
“Have you ever bitten a lass afore?” she asked him.
“When a shifter bites his mate and his mate bites him, it is a mark of claim. It’s also an aphrodisiac to both the giver and the receiver.” His hungry gaze slid to her neck. “The need to bite you is strong.”
“An aphro-dis-iac?” She stumbled over the unknown word. “What exactly do you mean?”
“Our bite excites sexual desire, which means we only ever bite our chosen ones.”
She smoothed her palm over her neck and her now throbbing pulse. Warmth rippled out from the spot and made her heat in places she had no wish to heat. “Biting sounds barbaric.”
“Would you like to see if it is?” Another glimmer of challenge lit his eyes.
“You are a terrible tease.”
“As are you.” He curled his hand more firmly around her hip and sighed in complete contentment. “Thank you for allowing me in your bed.”
“I hardly had a choice.”
“And that likely won’t change.”
Goodness. How was she to argue with him when he was like this?
Instead, she closed her eyes and breathed out, silently seeking a much needed reprieve.
“Rest well, my sweet.” His possessive hold tightened. “I shall be here when you awaken.”
Since she couldn’t argue with him, she allowed the dark to envelope her and slowly flittered toward sleep, his hold so heavenly warm. How frustrating.
* * * *
The early morning sunshine beamed through Arabel’s narrow window and stirred her from her slumber far sooner than she wished. She stretched and burrowed her nose deeper into the covers, which had suddenly become more like firm flesh with a delicious pine and fresh water scent. She lifted one eyelid and gasped.
Her legs were tangled with Finlay’s and she lay half over top of him. She should move away, only her heat hadn’t arisen at this very intimate contact when it should have. Unable to help herself, she spread her hand fully over his solid chest and reveled as his muscles flexed under her touch. He looked so rumpled and delicious with a razz of stubble on his jaw and his black hair catching the morning light and gleaming like silk. “Finlay?” she whispered.
No answer. He slept soundly, his tunic gaping at the top and half off his shoulder. A stunning Celtic mark etched upon his bicep peeked out.
She slid her hand under the fabric and eased his sleeve farther down his arm. With one finger, she gently traced over the woven mark. So beautiful. Oh, and so was all the golden skin she’d exposed. She caressed his flesh, her heartbeat pounding as she did. ’Twas wonderful to touch him so freely. She leaned in, pressed her lips against the woven mark then nibbled up and over his shoulder toward the delectable looking hollow where his shoulder met his neck. Mmm, he tasted delicious too, an intoxicating mix of hard man and smooth skin. She razzed her teeth back and forth over his flesh then sucked his skin between her lips.
“Arabel?” He spoke her name, so softly, so sensually. “Hell, I love the feel of your mouth on me. Do it.”
“Do what?” she murmured.
“I want your mark.” His long black lashes swept up and his golden gaze met hers, so smolderingly hot. Then slowly, succinctly, he palmed the back of her head and brought her mouth back to his neck. “Bite me, my sweet. There is nothing you need to be afraid of.”
“I wasnae about to bite you.” Drat it. There she went again nibbling on his flesh. She needed to pull away, only everything within her cried out at the thought of stopping.
“Harder,” he pushed. “Don’t deny me what I want.”
Beyond frustrated, she bit him, just as he’d asked and the moment she released his skin, he flipped her over onto her back, buried his head at her neck and pressed his entire body against hers. Every inch of him was aligned with every inch of her and his manhood, so very hard and hot, dug into her belly. “You make me lose my mind,” she gasped. “We must cease this nonsense.”
“There is no stopping the mated bond when it takes form.” He licked her skin, right over her pounding pulse. “My bear is raging at me, demanding I take you and make you ours.”
“Wait.” She gripped his shoulders, fingernails digging into his flesh. She wanted to push him away, but she couldn’t, actually whimpered when she tried to. “Demanding this bond will ensure your death, Finlay, and I will never take the life of another, especially yours.”
“You’ve given me a reason to live, not taken my life away.” He tipped her head back farther, exposed her entire neck and scraped his teeth back and forth over her flesh. “Say aye. I need to mark you as you just marked me, but I need your permission first.”
“’Tis sheer luck my fire has no’ yet flared. Usually I cannae handle this much touch with another.” She shuddered in his arms and heat rippled through her and pooled between her thighs, the wrong kind of heat.
He breathed deep with one sensual grin. “Mmm, you smell like honey, one of my favorite treats. It’s like liquid gold to my bear and I could eat it by the tubful, just as I could eat you.”
“I want to say aye, but there is too much danger in doing so.” She couldn’t deny the need that had rolled through her to mark him, and the sheer pleasure that had taken hold once she had.
“Those who are soul bound to one another can’t harm each other. I can guarantee you your fire will never singe a hair on my head, ever. It’s impossible.” He licked down her neck to the top rise of her breasts and her nipples beaded into hard, pulsing points. “There has also never been another woman I have ever touched as I’ve touched you, and even without the aid of the current full moon, everything within me screams that you’re my mated one.”
His words touched her heart and his heavenly hold made her crave more. “Touch me, but be careful.”
“I’ll take the utmost care.” He cupped her breasts through her thin cotton shift, lifted them higher until the upper swells were fully exposed then swept his tongue across each rise.
Sweet heaven. His touch was glorious and made her want so much more. She arched into him and heat sizzled under her skin in a swift flare she couldn’t contain. Nay. She wouldn’t burn him. She shoved him back, rolled free and scrambled out of the bed. A bolt of pain speared through her. Moving away from him hurt, as if her very soul had been wrenched away from his. “I’m sorry, Finlay.”
“No, this is my fault. Clearly I didn’t take enough care.” He was out of the bed in an instant and crouching in front of her, his thumb moving in a slow circle over the mark she’d given him.
* * * *
Finlay mentally ber
ated himself. The thought of hurting Arabel in any way pained him.
“Is there still heat coming from me?” She shoved up a hand. “And stay right where you are while you check.”
“There is heat but you haven’t burnt me, and you won’t.” The last thing he wanted to do was make her feel uneasy, not when she was his to care for. “You are the first fire-wielder to mate with a shifter and I agree that makes things difficult, but perhaps we’ve been bound together for a greater purpose. Certainly I can handle a higher degree of your heat as none other can.”
“You cannae handle a full blast. Please, step aside.” He moved and she nodded her thanks. “Where there’s heat, there is fire.” She dunked her hands into the pitcher of cold water on the side table and steam plumed. “See, heat. Fire is just a blink or two away.”
“And when there’s a mated bond, there are two souls entwined and two people who can’t live without each other. You are the only woman I will ever live for, the only one who’ll make my life complete.”
“I—” She gaped at his bare legs. “When did you take your kilt off?”
“During the night. I got hot, and my shirt covers me adequately, not that I have any issue with being unclothed before you. I was nude in the pool last night.”
“The waters were dark and you well know that.” She tossed him his bag from under the table. “Please, don some clothing.”
“As you wish.” Whatever would make her feel more ease, he’d do. He flipped the flap open and removed a pair of black leather pants and a tan colored shirt. He changed, rolled the billowy sleeves of the shirt to his elbow and donned his pants. “Is this better, my mate?”
“Nay—I mean aye. Much better.” She set her hands on her hips. “We need to have a talk, a serious one.”
“We do.” He caught one of her long golden-blond locks, wound the length around his finger then released it. It bounced and caught the tip of her cute nose. Everything about her intrigued him.
“Finlay!” She flicked the lock away. “Cease playing with my hair. I need you to understand just how much danger you’re in when you insist on touching me.”
“I apologize, but the need to touch you rages through me.” He backed her against the wall, slid one hand behind her head and the other behind her shoulders so she’d not scrape her flesh on the rough stone. Then slowly, he bent his head. “May I kiss you?” He longed to taste her lips. “One single kiss. I need this, Arabel. I need you.”
“There shall be no kissing.”
“Then I shall just have to steal a kiss.”
“There shall be no stealing of kisses either.” She ducked under his arm, gone in the blink of an eye as she darted to her golden curtained ambry across the room. She nabbed a blue and gold colored gown and disappeared behind her dressing screen. “Perhaps you should leave.”
“And go where?”
“Anywhere but near me.”
“That is an impossible request.”
“I also have much to do this day, my sister to find and further preparations to make for any of the villagers who I hope will be seeking shelter from the coming battle behind these walls. I’m sure you have plenty to do to keep you occupied too. There is a village to save, and all.” Velvet swished.
“So you intend to ignore the fact we’re mated and a bond has formed?” Something he wouldn’t allow. Boots in hand, he pulled them on then strapped his wrist daggers and sword belt in place. From the side table, he picked up the pitcher of water and poured some into the basin. Steam curled into the air. Nice. “Thank you, my sweet, for heating the water.”
“You are completely impossible,” she grumbled from behind the screen. “I didnae heat it for you.”
“Aye, but I still appreciate it all the same.” He chuckled. His woman had a fiery temper, one that made him gloriously happy. He’d always hoped his woman would be as feisty and strong-willed as he was, and she was no disappointment. With the bar of soap in hand, he built up a good lather and before the looking glass propped on the table, smeared the suds over his jaw. Dagger unsheathed, he gently ran the blade in one slow stroke from his ear to his chin, thankfully only nicking his skin the once. He sure missed the modern conveniences of his own time.
Arabel strode out, a radiant vision in long layers of blue that matched her eyes to perfection. Even the gold lace at her wrists and along the hem of her full skirts matched the flecks in her eyes. Such a sight to behold. “You look beautiful.”
“Please watch what you’re doing. If you slice your throat and bleed all over my floor, I willnae be happy.” She stepped in behind him, lifted his shoulder-length hair, her gaze meeting his in the glass. “What are your intentions for this day?”
“To find my brothers and Isla. I need to speak to Isla about those who’ve held your skill over the centuries. She’s from Kenneth’s line and her clan live right here in the future. There is also little that passes her by. If there’s a way to get around this intimacy issue of yours, I need to find it, and right now she’s my best option.” He pulled his collar to the side and exposed the mark she’d given him. “I will of course inform them all I’ve found my chosen one.”
“Careful with that blade. You’re waving it all over the place. Allow me.” She turned him by the shoulders to face her, pressed him down until his backside rested on the table then held out her hand for his dagger. “I’ll shave you, otherwise we shall be here all day.”
“I’d love to be here all day.”
“I’m sure you would. Dagger, now.”
“Aye, but take care. You seem to be in a fierce mood, one I’ve put you in, but still...” He passed her his blade, cupped her hips and held her steady between his spread legs. “Do you shave men often?”
“On occasion, if a warrior has been injured and requires aid.” Turning his cheek with one finger, she held the blade nice and close to his skin and ran it in a smooth line down. Carefully, she drew the dagger along the next portion under his chin and down his throat. “Tell me more about the future, and why you are so terrible at shaving yourself.”
“In the future, we have electric shavers. They are a device which plugs into a power source called electricity and when the shaver is turned on, the device has sharp metal rotating heads that slice the stubble off at the root. No soap and blade is necessary.”
“Oh, I see. And what is this elec-tri-city?” She twisted her tongue around the foreign word. “Is that correct?”
“Aye, and electricity is energy that’s been harnessed and contained. That’s done in various ways and then when the electricity is needed, the energy is dispersed and can do a multitude of things. Like bringing heat and light into a room, powering devices big and small, allowing communication between people all over the world, that sort of thing.
“That sounds farfetched. Surely people cannae speak to each other all over the world, and please, dinnae move. Each time you do you run the risk of being cut.” She ran the blade right under his nose. “I wouldnae wish to nick this beautiful mouth of yours.”
“You find my mouth—”
“Dinnae speak either.” She tapped his jaw shut and giggled. The sound of her laughter lightened his heart. Hell, he adored seeing her smile. She continued to shave him, around his lips then along the last stretch of his neck and after she was done, she dabbed his skin dry with the cloth. “Take a look in the glass. What do you think?”
Observing his reflection, he patted his jawline and traced around his lips. “You’ve done a better job than I ever could have.”
“Wonderful.” She picked up the fine bone comb on the table, brushed his hair until the dark strands curled around her fingers then nodded. “All done.”
“My thanks.” He wiped his blade clean, sheathed it at his wrist then tucked his traveling bag out of the way next to her trunk under the window.
Before the glass, she combed her hair and secured her pale locks at each side with a silver pin. Done, she set it down and faced him. “Are you ready to break your fast, Finlay?”
“Always. I’m hungry this morning, and for far more than breakfast.” He caught her around the waist and drew her closer. “I have a proposition.”
“That sounds dangerous.” She seized his biceps and held on. “We really need to cease touching.”
“Allow me one kiss before we leave. I’ve yet to taste your lips and I fear I’ll be overcome with the desire to do so and at the worst possible time.” He was quite serious. “I’ve been searching for you for the longest time and I can’t seem to hold back any of my desires, which are growing rapidly the more time we spend together. It’s also best we test your limits well away from your kin.”
“That is a terrible proposition.” Yet a glimmer of hope flared in her eyes. She wanted his kiss, and with a little nudge, he might be able to claim one from her.
“We’ll take things slowly. I promise you I will. This time I’ll be far more careful.” He caressed her sides, roamed down and scooped her bottom. Lifted higher, he pressed his hips against hers. “Say, aye.”
“You are one very pushy bear.”
“Is that an aye?”
“One kiss, then you shall see we are a terrible match and hopefully head straight for the hills.”
“Perfect.” He’d take her agreement for a kiss no matter how it was offered. Gently, he carried her to the bed and laid her across the soft brown fur bedcovering then nudged her knees apart and with his legs between hers, sank down on top of her. “I will never desire any other than you.”
“Must we lie down for this kiss?” She wriggled underneath him, her breath catching.
“Aye, that would be my preference.”
“I feel too hot.” She closed her eyes. “And there are butterflies taking flight in my belly. Can we hurry and be done with this?”
“We can, the moment you look at me.”
She opened her eyes and frowned. “You are completely relentless.”
“Because losing you is something I’ll never survive, not now that I’ve finally found you.” He lowered his head a touch and completed the trap. “After this kiss, I want the right to sleep in your bed, each and every night.”
Highlander's Passion (The Matheson Brothers Book 2) Page 4