Page 24 of Tempting the Highland Devil
“Laird Dune,” she stammered breathlessly as his hand slid down her waist and pressed her against his hard body. “It is indeed a pleasure.”
“I must say ye are more beautiful than I remember. I cannae wait to win yer hand and…”
Yvaine switched dance partners when someone pulled her out of Laird Dune’s reach. She smelled the familiar earthiness around him even before she lifted her gaze to his face.
The hard set of Arran’s chin made her heart topple downward fast.
Yvaine’s breath hitched in her throat as he twirled her around and skidded across the dance floor with her.
“When dancin’ with a man, ye dinnae ever let him touch ye like that.”
“Like what?” Yvaine challenged.
“Disrespectfully. How many times do I need to teach ye this?”
Arran’s hand was on her waist, and it did not move from the spot even though her body tingled with the urge to have him touch more of her.
“I can handle meself,” Yvaine said when she found her voice. “Ye are the one who seemed to be enamored by that woman in yer arms earlier. Ye definitely did touchherdisrespectfully.”
His lips twisted at the corners. “What I do is nay yer concern.”
“Neither is what I do yers,” she defended and flushed when he pulled her against his body then began a more intimate movement.
Her eyes clung to his, the rest of the world faded, and Yvaine was lost in his eyes. She loved the rush of blood that filled her head and the delicious throb in her lower region when she stared at his lips.
Arran’s hand moved up her back, and he also stared at her lips like he too was drawn in the trance that kept her bound to him.
Her fingers circled around the back of his neck before she even realized it. His warm skin made her draw in a deep, shaky breath.
“Dinnae do that,” he growled in her ear as he bent forward. His lips were so close to Yvaine’s neck that she felt her heart might jump out of her chest.
“Do what?” Yvaine whispered. “It is ye who—” She stopped herself from saying the words in her mind. Yvaine remembered her mother’s words about choosing a man who wanted to be with her.
A man who cherishes me.Laird Loughty came to mind next, and she shuddered in Arran’s arms. She did not feel this way when she danced with him though.That means he is not right for me, right?
Arran brushed his lips over her neck, and she stiffened. They danced together for the Highland clans to see, and he was not even competing in the games.
“Yvaine…”
“It is ye who must stop,” Yvaine said, finding her courage as she drew back from him a little. “I watched ye with that lady. Ye seemed enamored by her, unable to take yer eyes off her for a minute even after ye kissed me last night!” Her words were a hushed whisper, and she hoped no one heard.
“Dinnae confuse me, Arran. Dinnae make me think that ye want me when in reality, ye want every woman in the Highlands.”
“Yvaine…”
“The games start tonight, and I need to focus on that. My braither was right; ye need to stay away from me, Arran. I cannae have ye confusin’ me even when ye are so clear about what ye want. It is nay me, so please…”
She ignored the twist in her guts tightening as she poured her heart to him. “Stay away…” Yvaine said just as the dance ended. She drew back from him, curtsied, then stifled the sob raging to the surface inside her.
Yvaine avoided his eyes as she spun around and rushed away from the dance floor, needing fresh air—needing to breathe. Thankfully, he did not come after her. She did not know how she would react if he did.
I cannot let him toy with me.Arran acted as he pleased. One minute he kissed her and stared at her like he could not breathe without her, and in the next, he acted like staying away from her was all that mattered.
Yvaine needed more than that, and she intended to focus on finding the right man hence forth.
13
Arran stayed in the grand hall long after Yvaine and everyone else retired to their bedroom. He had consumed so much liquor; he could barely see properly.
