‘He shouldn’t have died.’ Fury blazed in her eyes, the colour turning thunderous. She sank to her knees, her shoulders slumped low. In the shadows, she trembled with exhaustion and grief.
‘Look at me.’ He sat beside her, taking her hand. Her skin was icy. ‘It wasn’t your fault.’
He wanted to take away her pain, to ease it somehow. But words were not enough.
She looked up, her expression that of a broken woman. ‘I keep thinking that, if I had learned more from Kyna. Or perhaps if I’d tried a different combination of herbs. Maybe—’
‘No. You did everything you could.’ He bade her rise and embraced her, offering the comfort of his arms.
‘Connor?’ she whispered. She tilted her chin, her mouth only inches from his. Belenus, he wanted to kiss her. But if he gave into the fierce need, he would not stop. ‘Will you help me to forget all of this?’
Aileen took a step backwards, her dark hair spilling across her shoulder. His mind conjured up sinful images, but he could not pull his gaze away. She pulled her hair to one side, then lifted her overdress away. Clad in the sheer whiteléine, her silhouette tempted him to give into his darkest desires.
His honour held by no more than a breath of reason. ‘I am leaving Banslieve.’
‘So am I. Seamus will force me to leave.’
‘I won’t take advantage of you this way.’
She bared one shoulder, then the other, until herléineslid to the floor. Naked, she looked like an ethereal goddess, beckoning for him to worship before her. Her nipples held the deep red of a woman who had given birth, but her waist was as small as a maiden’s. A silken web of dark hair guarded her womanhood.
‘You said you wanted me, once before. Is it still true?’
His manhood hardened in response. He ached to take her in his arms, to taste the sweetness of her flesh. ‘What are you doing, Aileen?’
He didn’t like the way she was behaving, as though she had nothing to lose. Beneath her bravado lay a woman who had been deeply hurt.
‘You know what I am doing, Connor. What will your answer be?’
He wanted to tell her no. He wanted to take the honourable path and leave her untouched. There could be no future for them.
Instead, he crushed her mouth to his, knowing it was wrong. His hands roamed across her beautiful skin, and he gloried in the ability to finally touch a woman. This woman.
Her tongue reached out to his, in a slow, seductive touch. She yielded to him, her heavy breasts tightening with the same need he felt.
He knew it was wrong to make love with her, when it would only make it more difficult to leave her behind. He broke away, offering her one more chance to end this seduction.
‘Why, Aileen? Why do you want to do something we’ll both regret?’
‘Because I need to feel alive. This night, with you. And then I’ll let you go.’
She untied the laces of his tunic and lifted the moss-coloured garment away. ‘Give me a memory. For we both know this is the last night we’ll see each other.’
Her hands moved over his muscles, tracing the battle scars. His breath caught when she lowered her lips to his chest.
The needling sense of familiarity caught him. Her touch, her body. There was something about her, a memory beyond his reach.
With her hands, she tugged at his trews, pulling them downward until she exposed his nakedness. His manhood jutted forward, long and hard.
‘I need to touch you,’ he gritted out. ‘Do not move.’
She stood before him, and he palmed her bottom, bringing her close until her breasts touched his chest. He took her nipple into his mouth, tasting the hardened tip. A sigh caught in her throat, her neck arching with pleasure.
His own body ached to fill her, to drive his length inside her sweet depths. He parted her thighs, and inserted a finger, feeling her wetness surrounding him.
‘Connor,’ she moaned.
He was losing his mind. Perhaps it was this place, the darkened shadows evoking memories of long ago. But he’d swear he’d made love to Aileen before.
