Page 18 of Married to the Icy Highlander
This time, he didn’t pull away. She rose on the tips of her toes to close the gap between them, but she needn’t have bothered. His arm banded around the small of her back, and he nearly lifted her off her feet as he kissed her.
Whatever nerves or thoughts swirling around in her head before he kissed her evaporated. He kissed her softly at first, brushing her lips with his as if learning her. His tongue traced the corners of her lips before sweeping across the seam, asking permission, which she happily gave him. Her lips parted in invitation, and he lifted her higher. Her hands trailed over the hard planes of his chest and his shoulders, and then tangled in his hair, fisting into the loose locks as she surrendered herself. There was no fear, no apprehension about moving with him as he wrapped her thigh around his waist.
It was such a strange thrill that coursed through her as his length settled between her thighs. It almost felt second nature, being in his arms, pressed up against him. It was almost frightening, the way her stomach fluttered as his hands kneaded her flesh.
She didn’t know if they were moving toward the bed or somewhere else, but she didn’t think it would matter much. He consumed her, as if he had always known just how to touch her and how to kiss her to make her toes curl.
His hands pushed up her skirts until he could grab bare skin, and then he lowered her onto the edge of her writing desk. Ceana heard things rattling and falling to the floor, but she paid them no mind. There wasn’t a single thing in this room that wasn’t replaceable.
Neil’s hands dropped between them, fumbling with the laces on the front of her dress as she trailed her hands down his chest and pulled at the tartan sash over his shirt. She’d never undressed a man before, so her movements were clumsy, as she wasn’t sure if there was a pin, if kilts were knotted or tied… but her enthusiasm didn’t waver.
Once he loosened her corset, he quickly parted the folds of her shift. He kissed his way down the side of her neck, a low groan of what she presumed to be hunger escaping his lips and vibrating into her skin. She was drunk on wine and sensation. Every place his lips touched seemed to tingle. His calloused palm closed around her breast, massaging it as his thumb teased her erect nipple. His other hand left her thigh just long enough to pull her dress down her shoulders and free her arms.
Ceana had never been a shy woman, but she had thought that baring herself to a man might make her blush. Right now, though, all she could think about was baring more of her body so that he would kiss it too. The hard length under his kilt kept pressing against her core, and she was nearly desperate to explore that feeling.
Impossibly strong, he lifted her with an arm around her waist to push her dress down her hips and kicked it aside. But something must have caught his eye, for he stopped suddenly.
“What? What is the matter?” Ceana gasped as she attempted to bring his mouth back to hers.
She tried to copy his motions, cupping his chin in her small hand and guiding him back to her lips, but he grabbed her wrist, halting her.
Neil bent, leaning to the side as he scooped up a folded piece of paper that she hadn’t even realized was in her dress. She must have put it in one of her pockets when she had been rushing around, getting ready this morning.
He turned the thing over in his hand, his eyes widening as he recognized his brother’s broken seal on the back.
“What is this?” he asked. All the lust seemed to have evaporated from his voice, leaving the hard, commanding tone of a laird.
Embarrassment flooded Ceana. Her skin cooled rapidly without the warmth of his touch, and she found herself pulling the folds of her shift over her breasts. “It is a letter?”
“Dinnae play me for a fool, wife,” Neil warned, his gaze hardening as he thrust the letter toward her. “Did ye have all of this planned then? Were ye both plannin’ to steal me fortune?”
What? Ceana could not properly voice her shock. Of all the conclusions to jump to, why did he think her capable ofthat?
“Nay! Of course nae!”
“What is it, then? Do ye still love each other? Did he regret leavin’ ye? Because I’ve never heard of a groom runnin’ awayfrom his wedding only to reach out to his bride again,” Neil pressed, his voice becoming more grave with every word.
Ceana had been totally honest with him. There was no romantic love between her and Blaine. “I told ye, it was nothing like that! He’s mefriend. Of course, I have love for him in me heart. I miss him and want him to be well… like abraither!”
Neil scoffed—actuallyscoffedin her face as he stepped away from her, shoving her skirts back down over her legs as he did so. “I find that rather hard to believe. Why would ye tuck his letter in yer dress, on yer wedding day, if ye didnae wish for him to be here instead of me?”
Rage and indignation bubbled up inside of her, and she thrust the letter back toward him. “Read it, then! I’ll nae let ye accuse me of something I didnae do!”
Being called a liar by her husband?Thatshe would not tolerate.
“Go ahead!” she insisted, waving the letter toward him.
Neil’s eyes dropped to the letter, and for a moment, she was certain that his curiosity was going to get the better of him and that he was going to read it—but he didn’t.
“There’s nay need for this,” he said finally. “We will just revisit our terms. Ye might prefer me braither, or maybe nae. But now ye’re me wife, and ye’re stuck with me. I willnae claim ye until I’m sure I’m the only man ye think of.”
His lip curled as he walked back toward her. The fire in his eyes should have intimidated her, but it only further stirred the arousal that she was still reeling from.
“I’ll have ye desperate for me, wife. I dinnae like sharin’. If I’m wrong, prove it. Ye must beg for me.”
He leaned so close to her that she could have kissed him. It took far more effort to refrain from kissing him than she would have liked to admit.
In a single heartbeat, Neil’s gaze dropped to her lips before he stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him so hard that the damned walls almost shook.
