She shook her head. “They’re exactly what I needed.” A teardrop rolled down her cheek and she stared at the table.
He didn’t know why on earth she was weeping. She couldn’t do the intricate shadows on the faces without the right tools. “Why are you crying?”
“I don’t know,” she sobbed.
“Are you tired or hurting?”
She wiped the tears away. “No. I don’t know what’s the matter with me.” She stood up, holding the brushes in her hands. “It was kind of you to give these to me.”
He didn’t know what to say, so he gave a nod and started to leave. Laren caught him by the hand before he could go. Her fingers laced in his, and she came closer. “The keep will be finished tonight, won’t it?”
“Aye.” He held her fingertips lightly. “The men worked on it, day and night, to finish early.”
“Because you’re afraid of another attack,” she predicted.
He inclined his head. “We all know it will happen. But we don’t know when.”
Laren paled and he said, “I’ll do whatever I have to, to keep you safe.” His hand moved to the back of her neck, in silent reassurance.
She raised her eyes to him and they grew shadowed with suspicion. “You wouldn’t give yourself over to Harkirk, would you?”
“It’s not what I want.”
But she saw through his words and started to shake her head. “Don’t even consider it, Alex.”
“I’ll have to confront him, soon enough. This can’t go on.” Though he had no intention of being a martyr, he didn’t want his clan or family to be hurt on his behalf.
“What will you do?”
He made no reply, not wanting to upset her more. Instead, he caressed the tension from her neck, wishing he could soothe away the worry.
“I don’t want anything to happen to you, Alex,” she murmured. “Our daughters need you.” She lifted her blue eyes to him, winding her arms around his neck. “I need you.”
He held himself motionless, her quiet confession reaching beneath his skin in a way he didn’t understand. He could feel the softness of her body pressing close, and it sent a rush of sudden desire through him. The last time they’d been together she’d seduced him, sending him past the brink of reason until all that existed was her.
Laren took his hands and drew them around her waist, bringing their bodies close. She tilted her head up, and in her eyes, he sensed her desire. He wanted her now, so badly he was shaking from it. But she was so pale, so fragile, he didn’t want her to think that she had to yield to him.
“Will you kiss me?” she whispered.
He cradled the back of her nape and shook his head. “If I touch you right now, I won’t stop.”
“I don’t want you to stop.” She pressed the length of her body against him and he couldn’t have stopped his response if he tried. His hands moved down to her hips and when she moved against him, it was a sensual caress against his arousal.
As his mouth claimed hers, she yielded sweetly, her tongue meeting his with its slick warmth. Alex drew it into his mouth, caressing her with his own tongue, mimicking the act that he wanted to do with her.
When he pulled back from the kiss, he was fighting to keep his breath steady. The temptation to remove the layers, to feel her bare skin against his, was taking him apart. “You’re not feeling well,” he said, letting go of her. “I’ll send Ramsay to tend the furnaces, and you can come home and rest.”
But Laren stepped in his path. “I don’t want you to go, Alex.”
Herhusbandwassotaut with sexual need, she sensed that he was on the edge of losing control. Beneath her fingertips, his heartbeat was hammering.
Laren reached beneath his tunic, using her bare hands to touch his skin. “I haven’t seen you the past few nights. You’ve gone back to the way things were before.”
“Our defenses aren’t finished yet,” he argued back. “If the English or anyone else attacks us again—“ He broke off, shaking his head. “I have to be certain everyone is protected.”
“How long will it take?”
He shook his head. “I don’t know. The outer framing of the keep is finished, but the stone will take many more months.”
