Slaine shifted uneasily at Angus’s praise and then stood up.
“The innkeeper was kind enough to offer us another bedchamber on the house. Seems like he’s grateful the bandits’ camp has been abandoned. And so I’m off to make good use of it if ye dinnae mind.”
Anna grasped his hand and kissed it as he bid them a good night. Blair gave him a cheeky grin and a wink, and Angus raised his goblet in a toast.
Before leaving, Slaine cleared his throat and said, “I owe each o’ ye me life’s grace. I swear I will keep ye safe forever. Now, let that be an end to all the thanks there is to be said.”
“Hear, hear!” Angus cheered. “A fitting ending to our adventures.”
20
Union and Reunion
When Blair pushed open the door to Slaine’s bedchamber later on that night, she was not surprised to find him waiting for her, seated by the fire in his usual casual fashion.
He looked up when she entered the room, but said nothing. His expression was inscrutable.
“Are ye going to turn yer back on me again, love?” she asked him, and went to sit on the bed. She enjoyed watching Slaine brooding in the firelight. His hair was freed from its knot at the nape of his neck and his untied shirt laid bare his suntanned chest. His eyes reflected the flames, showing him to be deep in thought.
Finally, he spoke. “I’ve been alone in this world since I was a wee child, fighting every day since I can remember. Fighting to escape the cellar where me sister hid me from murderin’ bandits, fighting for affection from a bitter auld woman who hated taking care of me, and fighting to earn a living since she died.”
Blair said nothing, but he knew she was listening.
“It never bothered me having to earn me living from wielding a sword. It was an honest trade and helped me eliminate people like the men who killed me parents. And then I met ye...we’ve had our fair share of fighting, have we nae?
“Aye,” Blair said in a small voice.
“So, I’ve come to the conclusion that nae all fighting is bad. In fact, it sometimes helps to clear the air and make folks say things to each other they would otherwise be too shy to say.”
He got up from the chair and joined Blair on the bed. He tilted her chin up so he could gaze upon her gorgeous face to his heart’s content.
“But let’s try nae to do too much of it in the future, lass,” he said, and kissed her.
Blair felt her body open like a flower in the summer heat when Slaine’s mouth hungrily tasted her lips. Her passion, always held back with light restraint whenever she was with this man, flamed deep inside her. She fell back onto the bed, almost swooning under the intensity of his fierce ardor.
Slaine was impatient to reach fulfillment, but knew it would take more time for Blair to ready her body for him.
He began kissing her neck, shoulders, and breasts. She shuddered and arched her back as she felt sparks of desire pulsing down to her thighs and hips; already, she wanted him inside her. But Slaine was happy to take his time; he had been thinking about all the things he wanted to do to Blair since the first time he saw her stand up to the men at the alehouse. She was so beautiful, so spirited, and yet as untouched and untrained as a wild mountain sprite.
And now, here she was, giving herself to him with hungry eagerness. Slaine fought back the urge to take her immediately. He wanted to see her undressed first: no shift, no petticoats, not even a pair of stockings to show off her coltish long legs.
He ripped the flimsy shift dress off her shoulders and pulled the light fabric down. Then, very gently, Slaine untied her stockings from above her knees, rolled them down to her ankles, and pulled them gently off her feet. Then he kissed and sucked her toes, ankles, knees, and legs, all the way up to where her inner thighs were grinding together with desperate yearning.
He knew she was ready.
Slaine stood up and removed all his clothes. His skin glowed deep bronze, throwing the rippling muscles into stark contrast with the leaner parts of the body. His chest, shoulders, and arms were massive, sharply different to his firm, taut stomach and lean hips. The thigh muscles and calves of his legs were powerful and as well developed as his arms.
When Blair looked at him standing naked next to the bed, she felt as though there could never be such a fine looking, perfectly proportioned man in the world.
Slaine’s body was as heroic as his nature and fighting skills—and he was all hers tonight.
When he lowered himself onto her, she opened her legs willingly to receive him. This was the life-changing moment; beginning as a girl and ending as a woman. The warmth inside her most intimate parts blazed with an aching, burning impulse that felt as though it would spread to the rest of her body. But then Slaine fell back, spent, on top of her, and the impulse subsided back down, lying simmering within her belly.
Later, as Slaine lay beside her, before sleep, he murmured, “Next time, it will be even better.”
And from the way he said it, Blair knew it was true.
Angus had the foresight to send a messenger ahead of them, so it was no surprise to Ainslee Carmichael when the gig arrived with Anna and Angus, Slaine and Blair following behind riding Maximus and Pooka.
