Page 106 of The Highlander's Auctioned Virgin
CHAPTER 28
Elinor wokeup to a rather bright room just as the sun began to slowly rise into the sky, casting a golden glow over the courtyard.
For some reason she could not explain, no matter how hard she tried, her room felt different.
Was it bigger? Shinier? Did it smell more like flowers than before? Or was she so happy this morning that the only way she could properly cope with it was to find something physical to be happy about?
She turned a little, feeling the sheets twist around her legs. For the briefest moment, she fell silent, letting the fact that it was a new day sink in.
Then, flashes of the events of the previous night flooded her mind, and she felt her face grow unbearably hot. She placed her hand over her mouth, as if she could push down the vivid memory that flashed bright behind her eyes.
His mouth on her lips. The heat of his palm between her legs. The way he had looked at her when the pleasure crashed over her.
She exhaled rather slowly and pushed back the sheets. The floor was cold under her feet, but she did not mind one bit. She stepped into the bathing chamber, poured the water herself, and stepped into the tub, feeling her heart rate slow. Like she was the epitome of calm this morning.
The heat seeped into her body, yet she refused to ponder over it or let it slow her down the way she usually did.
She realized that she did not want to spend as much time as she usually did, thinking about her life and the future of her clan, in the bathtub. Not today. It was her wedding day. Whatever else might come, no one would steal that from her.
She washed her hair and her body. The scent of bathing oils filled her nostrils, presenting another welcome distraction. She rose from the water without waiting for it to completely cool and reached for the towel, which lay by the door, waiting to be used.
She was taking note of everything today more than she used to; it immediately dawned on her.
She rubbed the towel across her body, feeling excited and ready to tackle the day. She felt more alive than she had in years.
Soon, Anna and Katherine would step into the room and prepare her for the day. They would tuck all sorts of accessories into her hair, and her dress would shine just like the sun. She would feel even more alive than she had earlier because, for the first time in her life, she was marrying a man she liked.
She had only just set the towel aside when a knock sounded at the door. She did not think.
“Come in,” she called, her voice carrying easily through the hush.
When the door opened, she turned around with a smile, expecting Anna’s face.
Thomas stood there instead.
He looked completely embarrassed, and his eyes darted away as soon as he saw the towel wrapped around her.
“Well,” she drawled, arching an eyebrow, “if ye have come here to give me a wedding gift, I hope ye would let me receive it while I’m fully dressed. Would ye?”
“Aye,” he responded and closed the door immediately, letting the hush settle once more over her.
Elinor reached for one of the dresses in her wardrobe that was easier to put on and take off. Something about the look on Thomas’s face told her that he was not here to give her a gift.Even now, as he stood outside the door, she could almost feel the tension radiating from him.
Whatever he was about to say, she was certain she would not like it.
“Ye can come in now,” she called as the hem of her dress dropped to her ankles.
The knob twisted, and Thomas stepped in once more, the sullen look still lingering on his face.
“Dinnae worry, ‘tis me wedding day. I am nae going to war—or getting thrown into the dungeons after taking off me wedding dress,” she said, hoping that would at least earn her a laugh. It did not.
Thomas did not respond.
“Ye’re scaring me, Thomas.” She wrung her hands. “And that is the last thing ye want to do to a bride.”
He nodded and cleared his throat. “Forgive me, M’Lady. I thought… I thought ye might want to ken.”
She cocked her head, studying him. “If it is about the fair-haired kitchen maid, ye can bring her to the wedding. Her alone. Nay others.”
