“What if Ah dinnae want tae?” She asked.
“What?”
“What if Ah dinnae want tae forgive ye?”
“Lenore, please, I—”
“What if Ah want tae be th’ tonic ‘at soothes ye?”
He felt his eyes widen. He must not have heard correctly. “Lenore, that’s kind of you to say, but—”
He wasn’t entirely sure what he intended the remainder of his argument to be, the words dissipated the instant Lenore raised up on her toes, using the palm of one small, warm hand against his back to anchor herself to him while the other slid up over his bare torso, around the back of his neck, and settled behind his head, pulling him down toward her.
Her heart raced fast enough to send her head spinning, but Lenore refused to back away from what she started. Daniel’s words rang with such heartfelt anguish, an immediate need swelled in her to hold and comfort him, provide the solace and escape his weary soul longed for. Perhaps she rushed in, as fools so often did, but she’d pined for him so long and the bewitching night, caught somewhere in that silent hour between darkest midnight and early dawn, cast a haze about them. All she saw or cared to see at that moment consisted of the silent plea in the depths of Daniel’s clear blue eyes.
Shoving any lingering thoughts of propriety from her mind, she pressed up against him, one palm splayed wide at his back, the warmth and smoothness of his skin seeping into her consciousness, entrancing her. The hardness of his torso, the steadfastness of muscle honed against the sea and all its uncertainty, remained unmovable as she closed the space between them, but his skin heated at her proximity, the vigorous pounding of his heart pulsing beneath her own breast as her lips searched out the sharp angles of his jaw.
A slight hiss, the smallest of gasps as her lips brushed feather-light across the shadowy stubble. Her mind shouted at her to retreat, replayed all her aunt’s warnings, but in the end are you willing was all she heard, to which her heart shouted, yes! Now and always, I’ll stand by him...
Her lips shifted, her palm found the curve of his cheek, lightly pressing, encouraging, until he turned his face toward her, and she took what she desired. She’d been too surprised in their previous encounters to take proper note of the sensations running through her, but this moment belonged to her. She luxuriated in the warmth of his lips, tasted their honeyed sweetness, devoured him as he had her, desperate to take possession of that which her heart had so long coveted.
Something sparked, ignited between them, sending Daniel into motion. With a low groan his arms tightened about her, crushing her against him as he returned her kiss, deep and hungry. She wound both arms around his neck, allowing full rein to the heat they restrained in the clerk’s office and the garden, feeling the rush of it sweep through her, weakening her knees and pooling at the crux of her thighs. The sensation overwhelmed her, and she leaned her head back with a gasp, never loosening her embrace.
Daniel’s lips found the soft, sensitive skin just below her jaw, pressed deceptive, light kisses along the length of her throat, her skin tingling as his breath heated the course in short, shallow puffs alluding to masked restraint. A restraint he let go of as he found the hollow there where her neck met her shoulder. Opening his lips, he latched onto the spot and suckled, hot tongue first laving, then tracing circles along her skin until Lenore let out something between a moan and a whimper.
Her fingers curled into his hair and her muscles contracted at the ripples of pleasure coursing through her from head to toe and back again. She wanted to curl herself into him, wrap herself around him, but lacked the knowledge of how to go about it.
He knew. His arms loosened their grip just enough to allow his hands free movement to roam over her back, along the curve of her hips, and take hold of her backside, kneading greedily, just shy of painfully. Her knees faltered and she clung to him.
“Hold onto me,” he whispered at her ear. Happily, she complied, tightening her grasp about his neck.
In the next instant he lifted her up against him, wrapping her legs about his hips. She comprehended they were moving, but paid no heed, far too consumed by the conflicting desires to both nuzzle into the warmth of his neck and tear off her wrapper and nightshirt, both becoming far too warm. As she could do nothing at present to adjust her clothing, she settled for mimicking the delights he introduced her to, nibbling and tasting the wind-and-salt-roughened tendons of his neck. His step faltered and they swayed.
“Careful, darling,” he rasped at her ear. “Allow me a few steps more.”
Reluctantly, she stalled her lips’ attentions, but forgot her disappointment a moment later when she sank back against the soft mattress of Daniel’s bed. The new position allowed him to sink down against her, and she gasped in surprise as the hardened shaft of his arousal pressed into the softness of her belly.
He paused, eyes now a shade deeper than the navy of his uniform, searching hers. Remembering her heart’s cry, she framed his face with her palms and lifted up to kiss him, her thighs regaining their possessive hold around his waist. Another soft moan, and he sank into her, robbing her of breath, but she didn’t care.
Palms skimming down her sides and back again, circling her hip, rounding her bottom, and tracing the curves of her calves and thighs, he soon found the hem of her shift. Clutching it, along with the edge of her wrapper, he tugged the material up and over her head with far more ease than their position should have warranted, sinking back into place atop her with a satisfied growl.
Lenore let out a soft moan as his skin touched hers, a blistering heat she had no desire to pull away from. He kissed her again, this time more slowly, languid and soul-driven, reminding her of the soothing his torn heart and mangled confidence required. She responded with every ounce of conviction she could muster, wanting him to feel the dedication she hadn’t yet put into words.
He pulled away from her, blinking, but before she could attempt to smooth away whatever caused him pause, he dipped his head again, this time initiating a long trail of kisses along every part of her skin he could reach. In an instant she lost her awareness to the heady sensations he evoked.
So much so, she remained unaware of the movement of his hand skimming along her collar bone and down over her upper chest until the weight of his palm settled securely over her breast. Her eyes flew open and for a brief moment the temptation to retreat rose, but before the fleeting sentiment could take root, Daniel banished it with the press of his hand and the pinch of her hardened nipple in time with the onset of languid suckling at her other breast.
A long, low, moan rumbled through her throat, enveloped by the stillness of the room as Lenore shut her eyes against the flashes of light erupting in her vision. She clutched Daniel to her, arching into his delectable ministrations, her breaths shortening into gasps.
The purity of her pleasure flew far beyond anything Lenore could have imagined, yet a lingering need bloomed in her, spiraled and amplified even as Daniel worked to heighten and extend the tenor of her sensitivity.
“Daniel...” she whispered, pleading, at his ear, restless hips pinned beneath his, her body more aware with each passing moment of his hardness pressed uncomfortably between them.
“I know,” he soothed, raising up onto one forearm as he allowed his other hand to stray again down the line of her side, along her thigh, and up again, coming to rest where their bodies met.
Lenore’s breath caught as the heel of his hand pressed gently against her mound, sending a shock of pleasure rippling through her. His fingers traced the landscape of her, dipping to part and caress the folds of her opening. Heat rose to her cheeks, and she ducked her gaze as Daniel watched her, but her eyes flew up to his again a moment later as one daring finger pressed into her.
A small smile met her gaze, at odds with the haggard hum his breathing had taken on, and the turbulence swirling in his eyes. He stroked her slowly, applying pressure one moment, retracting it the next, until she felt herself melting around him, still no end
in sight to the marvelous torture or the building tension within her. She shut her eyes and tossed her head back with a small, frustrated cry.
A cry swallowed by Daniel’s kiss, hungry and demanding. His hand shifted away from her, and he repositioned his weight squarely on top of her, the insistent press of his hardness making itself known at her core. She moaned against his lips, uncertain but needing the pressure of him against and inside of her.
That pressure increased in slow, steady increments until Daniel stretched and filled her, a wholeness she’d never known she lacked. She panted and squirmed beneath him, needing some unknown release. He took hold of her hip, guiding her movements in time with his as he began to stroke her in similar fashion to what his finger had introduced, but with infinitely more fulfillment.
Her hips took on the movement with joy, her heels pressing into him as they rocked together in this wild and soothing cadence. His arms tightened around her, his breath rasping at her ear, and the entire world melted away until nothing existed outside of this beautiful union between them. The reverberation of every groan from his throat coursed through to her heart, shaking her and causing her to cling more tightly to him.
Movements quickened, the rush of her pulse incited a drunken dizziness, and the swirling, intensifying tension inside of her pulled taut until, with an almost pained expression, Daniel let out a cry and plunged into her, setting off an explosion within her even as his embrace tightened, his muscles contracted in a mirror of hers, and she arched against him, muffling her own shout against his shoulder.
A long while passed before their breaths settled and their muscles began to loosen into the deepest, most satisfying relaxation Lenore had ever experienced. Even once they came back to some semblance of normalcy, they clung to each other. Just before Lenore sank into a deep, dreamless slumber the thought occurred to her she would never be able to walk away from Daniel again or release him from her embrace.
Chapter 11
Daniel wandered through the labyrinth of halls comprising the MacAllister castle, making his way toward the study where he hoped to find Lenore at work. Two days had passed since their unplanned interlude, and he feared he might go mad from the echoing silence around him. Lily kept to her rooms longer than usual and Lenore avoided him, not that he blamed her. She likely realized, as he did, the ramifications of their actions. Things had gotten out of hand, and something had to be done about it. Whatever else Daniel might be at present, he remained a man of action and this uncertain waiting weighed on him.
He and Lenore would marry, he nodded to himself, no other option remain to them. And though a significant portion of his heart jumped at the idea against all the mental confusion and arguments, his mind still won the match with an ever-growing list of reasons why a life together with any woman at present wasn’t feasible. Therefore, he must converse with Lenore about the seriousness of the situation and hope they might find some arrangement which would maintain both her honor and her happiness.
That thought caused his heart to sink, knowing he asked too much to think they would build a life together of mutual respect in which she could be happy. The only way to go about it, would be to find a way to maintain distance between them. For the first time in memory, his profession, perfect for these circumstances, caused him regret.
The sound of voices somewhere ahead of him startled Daniel. Looking up, he realized he had arrived in the main hall and stood only a few feet from the study. He slowed his pace, listening to the muted conversation. The familiar tones of Lenore’s voice drifted out to warm his ears, and the initial, instinctual tension he experienced eased somewhat with the relaxed tenor of her words, though he still stood too far away to note with any clarity what they referenced.
When she paused, the second voice took up, this one a male voice, thankfully unfamiliar to him. Upon reaching the doorway, Daniel paused to take in the scene. Lenore sat behind the desk in regal fashion, sifting through some paperwork, her eyes angled downward with one ear poised in the direction of her visitor. That visitor sat in the chair across from the desk, perched on the edge of the seat with stiff posture. Daniel didn’t know the man and was only privy to the back of his head. Observation indicated only that the man was of fairly small stature and must be of middling to later years, as evidenced by the significant amount of gray in his hair. In his lap he clutched his hat, fingers curling about the brim.
Daniel had no wish to interrupt Lenore, and decided to turn and seek out the sitting room for a few minutes until he could reasonably expect the man to be gone and check again on Lenore’s availability. As he initiated his retreat, however, Lenore looked up and caught sight of him.
“You’re welcome tae come in, Captain, this is Mr. Brown,” she explained nodding toward her guest. “He works at th’ magistrate’s office an’ is here tae relay some paperwork an’ our appointment time fur th’ land claim at th’ beginnin’ ay next week.”
Daniel returned to his initial trajectory and entered the room, greeting Mr. Brown, who stood at his entrance.
“It’s a pleasure tae meet ye, Captain Langdon,” the man, who was indeed in his middling years, brass rimmed spectacles perched atop a long, thin nose, nodded. “Miss. MacAllister informs me ye will be takin’ on th’ defense ay this estate in Mr. MacAllister’s absence. Mah congratulations an’ well wishes fur yer marriage,” he acknowledged Lenore with a smile which she barely returned before ducking her eyes again to the paperwork in front of her. “In point ay fact, Ah hae just completed relayin’ all the information Ah came here tae,” he informed Daniel somewhat apologetically. “If ye like, Ah can gae over it again wi’ ye.”
“Quite all right,” Daniel said. “I’m sure Miss MacAllister will be able to share the information with me in perfect detail.”
Mr. Brown nodded in response, casting a dubious gaze in Lenore’s direction before addressing her. “In ‘at case, Miss. MacAllister, if ye hae nae further questions...”
“Nae, Mr. Brown, Ah dinnae. You’ve explained everythin’ quite clearly.” She stood from behind the desk and walked around to offer her hand. “Thank ye fur comin’ by an’ Ah wish ye a good rest ay yer day.”
“Thank ye Miss,” the man bowed over her hand. “Captain Langdon,” he gave a short bow in Daniel’s direction before removing himself from the room.
“It sounds as though things should be straightforward.” Lenore began instantly before Daniel had a chance to address her with so much as a greeting, let alone his concerns. She whirled around, retracing her steps to her seat at the desk, though she didn’t sit but took up the papers she had been studying. “Th’ magistrate will sit wi’ both sides, an’ provide equal time fur each ay us tae present our supportin’ documentation an’ information. Wi’ any luck, it shouldnae tak’ much time at all an’ we can get this whole blasted mess behind us.” She slapped the papers down on the desk with undue ferocity, leading Daniel to wonder if it were really the land dispute she had in mind. He decided to proceed with caution.
“That’s wonderful news,” he began. “Lenore, I wonder if we might discuss—”
“Beg pardon, Captain,” a voice sounded from the doorway. Daniel turned, restraining a frustrated growl, to see the butler standing in the doorway with an apologetic aspect and a small platter in his hand displaying a folded note.
“Yes?”
“Aam sorry tae interrupt, but this just arrived fur ye as Mr. Brown was leavin’. Th’ messenger said it couldn’t wait. He is waitin’ fur me tae let him ken ‘at ye received th’ note.”
Daniel approached the butler, irritation growing. He peeked over the man’s shoulder toward the front entry, where a young, disheveled looking man stood impatiently. Taking up the note from the platter, he nodded at the butler. “Thank you. You may let him know I’ve received it.”
The butler gave a bow and turned, returning Daniel and Lenore to their privacy.
Slipping the note into his pocket, Daniel began again. “Lenore, I wonder if we might discuss—�
�
“Arenae ye going tae read it?”
He hadn’t managed to complete his movement before Lenore questioned him. “I’m sure it can wait another few minutes.”
“Who is it frae?”
“I haven’t—”
“Ye ought tae at least look, if it’s important enough fur Smith tae interrupt us fur,”
He gaped at Lenore a moment before remembering his manners. Normally brash and insistent by nature, in this case her behavior smacked of avoidance. She clasped her hands in front of her, restless eyes scanning the room but blind to him standing in front of her. Pressing his lips together, he took hold of the note again, removing it from his pocket and inspecting the seal. He blinked. “It’s from the Admiralty.”
“Th’ Admiralty?” She repeated in amazement. “They wrote tae ye all th’ way out here?”
“It appears so.”
“Well?” She moved a step closer to him, a hint of her more familiar curious nature showing. “What dae they want?”
Despite his continued desire to ignore the note and speak to Lenore about their future, he couldn’t deny his own curiosity and concern as he looked down at the ominous seal. Admitting defeat, he opened the missive and stood a moment skimming over the words within. Once he finished, he read them again, head shaking in confusion or denial, he couldn’t tell which.
“What? What is it?” Lenore insisted, looking as though it took all her strength of will to keep from snatching the correspondence out of Daniel’s hand.
“They’re summoning me to Inverness.”
Her eyes shot up to his. “What on earth fur?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “It doesn’t say, only that it pertains to some questions brought to their attention and I’m to leave immediately.” Refolding the note, he again shoved the paper into his pocket. This news was inopportune, but he would consider the greater meaning in the summons later. Right now, he must speak with Lenore. He got so far as to take in breath this time before she interrupted him, this time with a flurry of motion.
The Captain's Surrender (Currents of Love Book 6) Page 10