Sorchauttered a soft, low moan as he ceased his teasing and began to kiss herthoroughly. She greedily opened her mouth when he prodded her lips with histongue. The slow, heated strokes of his tongue inside her mouth caused her totremble from the strength of the desire racing through her.
SuddenlySorcha panicked. She tore her mouth from his, stared at him in open-mouthedshock for a moment, then scrambled off the bed. Without another word, she fledthe room. Ruari Kerr had certainly shown her how good he could make her feel.If one small kiss could so enflame her, she was not sure she wanted to discoverany more. Even as she ran away, however, she fought the urge to return to him,to his kisses and his touch.
Ruarieyed the door closing behind Sorcha with speculation. He idly touched his lips,still warm and damp from their kiss. He savored how her sweet taste lingered onhis tongue. Sorcha Hay was all that he considered unsuitable in a bride,despite her good birth, and he had a few hard questions concerning her sanity.It had been a long time, however, since any woman had fired his blood with oneshort kiss the way Sorcha did. He decided his stay at Dunweare could prove tohave some benefits.
Chapter Five
“Yetold himwhat?”
Sorchagrimaced at Robert’s bellow. She had run straight from Ruari’s room to thearmory shed and Robert. For a few minutes she had fidgeted about, babbledaimlessly, and paced the room pretending to watch Robert put the finishingtouches on a scabbard for Dougal’s sword. Robert had finally cursed anddemanded to know why she was plaguing him. She could not tell the man she wasupset because one kiss from Ruari Kerr had her aching to crawl between thesheets with the man. Instead she explained how she had told Ruari the secretsof Dunweare and allowed Robert to believe she was upset about such disclosures.
“Itold him all our secrets. Weel, the ones concerning the spirits leastwise.Euphemia went to his room, and he got a verra good look at the worst of ourcurse. I couldnae even get the door open. The spirits held it closed.”
“Yecould have told him the door was stuck.”
“Robert,we have spent the past three days mouthing such lies. He has heard thecomplaints, the crashes, the thuds, and all the noises that plague us allthrough the night. We have all twisted our tongues into knots trying to explainaway those things. When Effie decided to creep into his room and play thebudding whore, her ill-tempered spirits became quite enraged.” Sorcha sighed andsat down on a stool made from a thick old log. “I fear there was no lie bigenough or clever enough to explain away all he saw.”
“Mayhap,but I am not sure ‘twas wise to tell him the truth.” Robert moved to stoke upthe fire in his forge.
“Hedidnae believe me.”
“Thatcannae be a surprise to you.”
“Nay,yet I wish he had. I fear he now thinks we are all quite mad. Effie telling himall about being a changeling, a fairy caught in a mortal life, certainly didnaehelp.” She smiled faintly when Robert leaned against the wattle-and-daub wallof the armory and started to laugh, although she was not sure what he found soamusing. “I am not sure I see the humor in all of this.”
“Ah,weel, ye would, lass, if ye werenae so heartsore for the lad.”
“Iamnotheartsore for Ruari Kerr,” she snapped, jumping to her feet, butRobert just smiled.
“Oh,ye are. ‘Tis why ye have been hiding from the mon since ye first brought himhere. ‘Tis also why ye came running in here to hide now and looking like aweel-kissed lass. If he is behaving too boldly, ye just tell me. The two of youcan play all the games ye want, but I willnae abide a mon taking advantage ofyou, or forcing ye to do what ye dinnae wish to do.”
Sorchacursed and kicked at a stone, sending it rolling out the door. “The mon willbegin to think we have brought him here to play the stud for a paddock full ofmares in heat.” She ignored Robert’s guffaw. “He holds a strong allure for me,Robert, and ‘tis a dangerous thing.”
“Dangerous?How so? Ye are both gentle born.” Robert moved to stand near her, slouchingagainst the doorframe.
“Ibelieve he is higher born than I.”
“Notby much.”
“Heis also a great deal richer than I. I dinnae e’en have a dowry.”
“Thereis truth in all its ugliness.”
“Andhe thinks we are all quite mad.”
“Hemay change his thinking about that.”
“Hemay or he may even prove to be a mon who finds a touch of lunacy in a lass anattractive thing.” She exchanged a brief grin with Robert. “Howbeit, I havetaken him prisoner for ransom.”
“Aye,and unless he is a verra forgiving mon, that could pour water on the fire inhis heart.”
“Verrastrangely said, but true. Nay, I dinnae think Sir Kerr will forgive this ransommatter verra easily. I am certain that his being taken by two lasses makes thebruise to his pride all the more tender.”
“Doye think he will return to Dunweare armed and eager for battle?”
“Nay,”Sorcha replied and, after a moment of thought, knew she was as confident of herreply as she sounded. “He willnae raise his sword against us o’er this. Ibelieve some of his anger is aimed at himself. Even though his first sight ofme was upon the battlefield as I picked o’er the dead, he began to trust me.”
“Andinstead of rescuing him, ye took him prisoner. Aye, that would make him wonderif he had been a wee bit of a fool. ‘Tisnae a feeling any mon enjoys. Is thatwhy ye are fighting your interest in him?”
