"Then why don't you start now?"
She knew that saying it was risky, that it could shatter the delicate balance between the two of them. But she didn't care. She thought, perhaps, she wanted to push it to the point of breaking, to see what lay at their feet after they'd taken each other apart.
Hugh didn't bother with a response. He was back on the mattress with her in an instant, his hot mouth pressed against hers. She squeaked with surprise before returning his kiss with just as much enthusiasm.
One of his hands came to cup her cheek and hold her steady as the other began roaming her body over her nightshift. Each place he touched felt as if it were being claimed by him. Thecurves that sometimes felt like a burden were now the parts of her that Hugh desired most.
When his touch slipped under the soft linen fabric, it was as if the entire world became brighter. His exploration was firm, but not rough. Fingertips tickled parts of her that had only ever been touched by a flannel and her dresses.
He mapped the underside of her breasts, the soft expanse of her stomach, and the ticklish curve of her waist. Anna whimpered into his mouth, arching into the contact. Then, the calloused pads of his fingers inched over the swell of her chest.
His fingers clamped down on the pebbled nipple. It was as if she'd been shocked, her body jerking violently as the sensations tore through her. A mounting pressure gathered between her legs, impossible to ignore.
"Hugh," she gasped against his lips, breaking the kiss as her head fell back onto the pillows. "Hugh!"
"Ye like this," he said. A statement, not a question. "I'll bet ye like this, too."
He shoved the shift up, the fabric collecting atop her breasts and scrunching in her armpits. As he shifted away from her mouth, he kept the burning hot eye contact. Slowly, seemingly watching for her reactions, he lowered his head, his tongue flicking her dusty pink nipple.
The sound that escaped her lips was so foreign to her own ears. It was a mix between a cry of relief and an overwhelmed yelp. She pressed harder into him, her body begging for more before her brain even registered what was happening.
Hugh took the permission, taking the entire bud into his mouth. He sucked softly, the tip of his tongue swirling around the center of nerves. And, when her hips twitched upward, the hand that was still holding her cheek steadily snaked down between her legs.
Fingers stroked through the slick wetness gathering between the silky folds, a sensation she hadn't even realized was building. Desire crackled through her, and the last fragments of her conscious mind slipped away. It felt as if she were no longer in control, as though she'd handed herself over entirely to Hugh.
She supposed that she had. Ever since this massive Highlander had appeared on her father's doorstep, she had let him have her. Even before then, when she first wrote the letter that brought them together, she had handed herself over to him.
Hugh's fingers plunged deeper, two of them pressing into her tight heat. The stretch was delicious, and surprisingly not enough. She wanted more. She wanted all of him.
As he pistoned his digits in and out of her, he lifted his head from her breast. His handsome, chiseled face tilted up toward her, a smirk stretched over his mouth before he blew hot air over the pebbled nub. She shivered hard, a rush of wetness flowing fromher. The sound of his fingers stimulating her grew louder with the additional lubrication.
"Ach, ye're the most delectable thing that I've ever seen, Anna," he growled, shifting to position his mouth over her other breast.
This time, his mouth isn't as gentle. His teeth grazed the oversensitive flesh, making Anna writhe beneath him. Then, he shifted his hand inside her, bringing his thumb up to rub against her clit.
Delight coiled in her belly. The sensation from when he had knelt before her and worshipped her with his mouth came back with a vengeance. The intensity of his mouth on her breast and his hand between her legs was nearly too much.
"Hugh," she whimpered, rolling her hips up before pulling them back when it was too much. "Please."
"Go on, me Lady," he growled against her skin. "Let me hear ye. Ye can let go. I've got ye."
His encouragement was all she needed. Her body released, a shaking and intense orgasm gripping her. The air was sucked from her lungs, and her limbs locked up, her fingers tangling in the sheets beneath her.
Hugh guided her through it, his mouth still on her breast, his fingers and thumb still working her most private places. She felt his gaze fixed on her face, drinking in every flicker of herreaction. It went on longer than the first time, waves washing over her again and again, and he was the one conducting it.
As her climax began to wane, he withdrew his fingers. Slowly, letting Anna have a moment to catch her breath, he pulled himself up to loom over her. When his lips met hers, a new kind of bliss settled in her bones. She knew, without a doubt, that this was precisely where she was meant to be.
"Now," Hugh murmured, his voice husky. He lowered his hips, letting her feel the depth of his arousal. "I'm goin' to properly claim ye. Ye're mine, Anna. And now ye'll feel it."
But, before he could do a thing, there was a sharp series of knocks on the door of her chambers.
Hugh nearly roared with frustration at the interruption. It seemed that every chance he had to be alone with his wife was snatched away. Forcing himself out of bed, he imagined all the ways he would punish whoever had dared to disturb them.
"What do ye want?" he demanded as he opened the door, before he even saw who was standing before him.
Callum looked entirely unimpressed, though it was clear that Hugh's tone did inspire a bit of fear. The man leaned slightly to the side, taking in the appearance of Anna, who had hastilycovered her body. When he straightened, he raised an eyebrow at Hugh.
"I was comin' to check on ye," Callum stated. "Ye drank quite a bit last evenin'. I wanted to make sure ye werenae dead."
