Pale and shivering, she finally slept, curled in a pitiful ball beneath every plaid he’d been able to find in the snug little croft. Torin added another brick of peat to the fire and pulled the black iron lever toward the mark that she’d said would make the turf burn hotter.
He had nearly lost her to the vicious storm kelpies. He’d detected the sound of victorious laughter from the Blue Men of the Minch over the raging wind. Torin knotted a plaid between his hands. He twisted the material until it nearly ripped as he watched the orange flickering flames devour the freshly added fuel. He would singe the kelpie’s wicked arses with a righteous blaze the next time their paths crossed. By all the powers of the goddess, he would turn the heartless water demons into clouds of harmless steam.
Torin lowered to his knees beside the couch, easing close enough to feel the warmth of her steady breathing brush against his skin. Her still damp hair curled in chaotic ringlets, tumbling across her shoulders. He wrapped a clinging tress around one finger and brought it to his lips.
Never again.He drew a deep breath. He had promised he would never let her go. An eternity of responsibility echoed inthose words and weighed heavy on his mind. He didn’t belong in this world. Too much of what he’d once known had changed. Too much lost. He would never rest easy in this time. And whether Emma realized the truth or not, neither would she.
Torin traced a finger down the velvet of her pale cheek, reveling in the relaxed peacefulness of her sleeping face. He had to convince her she belonged with him. Emma needed to realize her place.
With the barest of touches, he eased his arm across her, nestling his head close inside the curve of her body and snuggled against her stomach. He pulled another plaid across his weary body and breathed in the sweetness of her scent as he closed his eyes.His.She belonged to him. That’s all either of them need ever know.
Chapter
Thirty-Two
Warm, damp male.Her nose transmitted this information to her brain before she ever opened her eyes. Emma snuggled deeper into the soft folds of the plaid, curling her body closer around the softly snoring inferno pressed against her chest. She opened her eyes to an ebony mass of curls tucked beneath her chin.
He couldn’t be comfortable in that position, sitting on the floor, propped against the couch with a protective arm curled around her. Emma tried wriggling an arm out from under the plaid but quickly discovered that the weight of Torin’s arm had the blanket pinned. Sinking back into the over-stuffed cushions of the couch, she created enough of a gap to free her hand and sink her fingers into the silkiness of his hair. Tempting, masculine musk steamed her senses, stirring a raging heat through her body. Emma might’ve been freezing when they first arrived home, but she wasn’t cold now.
He stirred a bit; shifting his head to what must’ve been a more comfortable spot between her breasts. The rock hardness of his arm flexed then relaxed, his fingers spread between hershoulder blades as though he subconsciously checked to ensure he still held her.
Emma combed her one free hand through his hair and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. Torin’s arm flexed again. This time his hand didn’t relax and his fingers stroked their way to the nape of her neck.
He lifted his face to hers, seeking the sweetness of her mouth. The warm, wet welcome of her parted lips told him more than words ever could. Savoring the flavor of her delicious mouth, he nuzzled his way down the curve of her jaw. His mouth hungered for the silk of her throat. He longed to enjoy the creamy softness of her breasts. Torin inhaled, trapped in sensual delirium as he reveled in the heat of her need.
Emma buried both hands in his hair, arching her back as she pressed her breasts to his face. Her petal-pink nipples tightened and strained toward him, begging for his mouth. He took a slow teasing taste of the luscious nubs, first licking around them in purposeful, tantalizing circles before suckling them into his mouth.
Emma moaned. Her breath came in rapid short gasps as she kicked the plaid into the floor. Torin raised his head, smiling down at her as he slid his arms beneath her body and lifted her off the couch. “Agreed. There is much more room on the floor.”
Lowering her beneath him, he slid a hand down the silk of her belly and found the delightful wet warmth waiting for him between her thighs. “Ah, lass. I’ve missed ye too,” he purred as he slid a finger inside her.
Emma arched against the teasing rhythm of his hand, moaning as she pulled his head down to hers. Opening her mouth, she welcomed his tongue with greedy urgency, her appreciative purrs vibrating against his lips. She raked her nails down his back as he buried another finger in her depths. Torin ached to lose himself in the delights of her body but he neededher to yearn for him just as badly. With the ball of his thumb, he teased her swollen nub while gyrating his fingers deeper into her wetness with a tantalizing rhythm. Emma squirmed, climbing her legs around his body with desperate hungry thrusts.
Placing a hand on either side of Torin’s face, Emma pushed him away with a gasp against his lips. “I have to have you inside me, Torin. You’re driving me insane.”
“Whatever ye wish, my lovely lass. I shall always do whatever ye wish.”
Chapter
Thirty-Three
The silk of her curls tickled against his flank, hardening him in an instant. Torin inhaled a deep, controlled breath in through his nose and blew it out his mouth.No.He scolded his greedy cock. Emma needed sleep. He knew the stubbornness of the lass. The devoted woman would insist on going to the clinic as soon as the sun peeped over the horizon.
Her head rested in the curve of his shoulder. An arm and a leg draped across his body. The scent of the passion they’d shared during the night hung heavy in the room. Swallowing hard, he stared at the darkened ceiling, straining to shift his thoughts to somewhere other than the luscious woman lying against his side.
He couldn’t help it. Emma gave herself completely whenever they loved. She shared both body and soul. Torin connected with her in a way he had never connected with another. Tightening his arm around her in a possessive embrace, he fought against the uncertainty nagging at him like a disgruntled warrior. Would he be able to convince her to come with him? Could he convince her to choose a wondrous life in another reality and leave all this dratted chaos behind?
“Are you ever going to go back to sleep?” Emma’s breath tickled across his chest as her voice echoed in the darkness.
“Did I wake ye?”
“No.” Emma burrowed closer, tightened her leg around him and tucked her arm alongside his chest. “Your breathing and heart beat is faster when you’re awake. I woke up because I need to…well…pee.”
Torin chuckled, kissing the top of her head. The woman didn’t have the guile to hide a thing. “Then why are ye still snuggled against my side if ye need to relieve yourself?”
Her body rose and fell beneath his arm as Emma drew in a heavy sigh. “Because I don’t want to move. I feel nice and warm—and safe.”
A satisfied glow filled him. His heart swelled so much it was a wonder it didn’t explode. “Ye will always be safe when ye’re with me, Emma. I promise I will never let anything harm ye.”
