Rachel awoke with a start and kicked the bedclothes off. She was hotter than a firecracker, and the sheets were wet with sweat. She sat up and scrubbed her face, breathless and heart pounding like a jackhammer. Never had she had such a dream. So real. So erotic. So— “Breathe, Rachel, breathe.” She fanned herself and stared up at the ceiling. “My self-imposed celibacymust be kicking me in the hormones to conjure up a man like that!”
She raked her damp hair back from her face and held it up off her neck. Wherever her mind had found that sexy Scot, he was better than any romance novel hero she’d fantasized about as she’d read through the pile of books on her dresser.
His handsomeness, his body, but most of all that deep voice with that lyrical Scot’s burr that turned her insides to a gooey mess. The way he’d held her. The way he’d touched her—the orgasms. Her body still vibrated with the aftershocks. She hadn’t known she was capable of exploding into that many shards of ecstasy.
“Heaven help me.” She blew out an amazed huff as she swung her legs off the bed. “Time to shower to get that Highlander off my mind, or I’ll get nothing done today.”
As she stepped up to the bathroom sink, she frowned at herself in the mirror. Her lips were red and slightly swollen, as though they had been kissed and enjoyed—repeatedly. “You’re imagining things,” she informed her image. “You probably chewed on your lips while you were dreaming.” She peeled her threadbare nightshirt off over her head. The reflections of her breasts halted her. Her nipples were tight andextremelyrosy as though they’d been nipped in love play, and the skin of her breasts was still slightly reddened as though they’d been fondled and nuzzled by a lightly whiskered face.
“I am losing my mind,” she informed her reflection. A shiver ran through her as she remembered lying in his arms. “I wish real life men were like that.” After a heavy sigh, she turned on the shower, selecting the coldest temperature she could stand.
Grabbing her soap and sponge, she lathered up, scrubbing vigorously as the cold water pelted her skin. But no matter how hard she scrubbed or how cold the water was sluicing down her body, she still couldn’t shake the image of the man in her dream.
He’d been perfection itself. His body had been hard and unrelenting, as they’d both taken and given from each other. His shoulder length hair had fallen forward as he’d loomed over her.
She could still feel the smooth rippling muscles of his back as she’d raked her fingers down to his buttocks to pull him harder into her. Another shiver stole across her at the memory of how he’d buried himself inside her, filling her as she’d never been filled before.
“This is so not working.”
She clenched her teeth and turned the water to a colder setting, standing directly under the showerhead to douse the fire of her smoldering body. Finally, giving up as her teeth started chattering, she flipped off the water and reached for her towel. Side by side, patiently waiting for her to finish, Sam and Maizy sat on the rug staring up at her.
“I know it’s time for breakfast, but trust me, I had to have a shower first.” As she toweled dry, the dogs did their best to help by licking the water off her feet.
“Quit now that tickles!” Giggles took her over as she hopped from foot to foot, trying to dodge the helpfulness of her two friends.
With another towel wrapped tightly around her body, she hurried into the kitchen and filled their bowls with food.
A loud knock rattled the front door, making her jump. Both dogs lifted their heads from their bowls, then dashed to the door, bouncing against it and barking to let her know they were ready to defend her.
“I'll be right there!” she bellowed over the barking dogs, hoping it wasn’t a bill collector. Because if it was, she had just been stupid enough to reveal she was home. She scurried back into the bedroom and grabbed the pair of jeans she’d tossed across the chair. Hopping up and down as she pulled them onher still slightly damp body, she cringed as another hard knock shook the front door again.
“Just a minute! I’m coming!”
She found a sweatshirt and jerked it on over her head, hoping it was thick enough since she wasn’t taking the time to put on a bra. She ran barefoot across the hardwood floors, made her way down the hall, and crossed the living room to the front door.
After whipping her wet hair out of her face and shoving both dogs aside, she tiptoed to peek through the narrow window. A gasp escaped her, and she couldn’t breathe as she fell back hard against the door.
“It can't be,” she whispered. “That’s not possible.”
Outside on her doorstep was the very man with whom she had just had the most amazing sex with in her life.
CHAPTER 3
Rachel pressed her hands to her flaming cheeks while staring down at the dogs patiently waiting for her to open the door so they could check out the intruders on the porch.
“This cannot be happening,” she whispered to them.
Both Sam and Maizy perked their ears and cocked their heads, then Sam scratched on the door and grumbled a hurry up and open it, “Woof!”
She tugged at her sweatshirt, smoothing it as much as possible as she pushed off the door and faced it. Hand trembling, she clutched the knob and silently cursed as she fumbled with the deadbolt and chain. She opened the door barely wide enough to speak through the crack.
Both dogs shoved around her, jostling with each other to get their noses into the small opening to catch the scent of the stranger. Immediately, Maizy thumped her thick tail in an excited wag against Rachel’s leg, letting her mistress know she heartily approved of the visitor.
Sam bared his teeth and vibrated with a low, throaty growl. Much like Rachel, his trust was harder to win.
“Can I help you?” she said while trying to sound sure of herself to the enthralling man.
“Aye, mistress. We’ve come about the room ye placed in the paper? The one ye said ye had to let?” The handsome Scot shifted his weight from foot to foot as though uncomfortable about something—which made Rachel even more twitchy.
