He slid one hand under her gown and slowly stroked the inside of her thighs, inching closer and closer to the hub of her womanhood. She shuddered when he stroked her slick folds. Angus looked up to find her face flushed and her head tossed back, a look of pure ecstasy on her face. Eyes closed, he sucked once more on her nipple and pressed on her at the same time. Her mouth formed an “O” and Angus found himself entranced watching her. He wanted to give her a sweet release, but if he didn’t stop soon he would have to take her. So glorious was she that he became rock hard and ready, wanting nothing more than to feel her body clench around his erection when she reached the climax he was now determined to give her.
Angus slowly slid a finger inside her quivering, wet flesh. He pressed on her hardened bud with his thumb and made circles, which encouraged her to rotate her hips in counter action. She pressed harder into his hand and he tugged on her nipple once more.
“Oh!”
She was very close now. Angus slipped a second finger inside her tight sheath and hooked them while he pressed into her and onto her, flicking and sucking her nipple at the same time. He looked up just as a red flush spread across her neck and chest, and her thighs tightened around his hand. By God, she was the most intoxicating thing he had ever seen.
She pulsed around him, her body quaking. In that moment, Angus knew that somehow, someday, she would be his forever.
After a time, her body relaxed again, and Angus slipped his hand from her heat.
He looked up at her as he then put his fingers in his mouth and tasted her sweetness. She was like honey on his tongue. Her eyes were wide, and her expression was raw and untamed. In that moment, he saw who she truly was, and he had never been more drawn to a woman in his life.
When she looked down to see her exposed breasts, she gasped and immediately tried to dress herself. Angus slowly pushed her hands away. “You are beautiful, Lady Annabella.”
He could see the shame and mortification forming on her face. He would not regret what they had shared, and he would not allow her to regret it, either.
“I—what have we done?” she asked, her voice barely audible.
“We have done nothing unnatural, Lady Annabella.” He gently slid her gown up to cover her breasts, and slipped it back up over her shoulders. He then brushed his lips across hers. “You possess much passion, and that is nothing to be ashamed about.”
“We are not married, nor will we ever be,” she said, and stepped back from him. “I cannot risk my virtue for something as irrelevant as passion.”
She could not be serious. “How can you even say that? Life is nothing without passion.”
“That may be so for those of you living up here, where courtship and advantageous marriages do not matter, but where I live, a lady does not tryst with a man to whom she is not married.”
“You do not know a thing about who we are and what we are about. You think that because we are removed from your society we do not treat honour and virtue in the same manner. As for courtship, we have that, too, though I expect our young men and women are a little freer with their affections than you Sassenachs.”
“There is nothing wrong with decorum; do not mock me for my standards, MacDonald.”
“Mock you? I just shared a very intimate moment with you.”
She turned from him and stood by the window. Angus shook his head. He would never understand women.
“You have taken something from me that I can never get back or share with my future husband.”
“And what is that? Surely you know that I did not penetrate you and claim your maidenhood.”
She whipped around, “I am not a daft child. What I am talking about is far more delicate than that.”
Angus did not understand. He stepped closer, and was encouraged when she moved toward him as well.
“You have taken my innocence, MacDonald. Before now, I knew relations between men and women meant intercourse, but I did not know about the passionate side of it. No one ever told me.”
Angus wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. He did not know how to respond to that, and in truth he did not know what to make of their encounter, either. He had never taken a maiden before, and though her virtue was intact, she was right. He had taken something she could never reclaim. The question now was, could he ever allow another man to touch her?
He then noticed the letter on the table. “Do you wish me to send it now?” he asked.
Annabella folded it quickly and passed it to him. “I won’t bother sealing it, since you will need to read it before sending.”
“Aye, I will do that.” Angus searched her expression, but little could be gleaned by her emotionless countenance. He walked to the door and lifted the latch to leave, but then turned back once more. “We have done nothing wrong here, Annabella,” he said softly. When she would not lift her gaze to meet his, he left the chamber. Just outside the door, he opened the letter and held it to the light. A smile spread across his face.
CHAPTER TEN
Annabella folded her hands in her lap to keep them from shaking while the maid, Cora, braided the sides of her hair. Annabella had seen that, here, maidens were permitted to let their hair go uncovered, while married women always covered their hair with a wimple. She had only seen females who were servants up to this point, and so could not help but wonder if there were any noblewomen nearby and if this was the fashion for them, too.
She was becoming more curious about these people with each passing day. The maid who now attempted to tame Annabella’s hair was a quiet young woman with a shy smile. So soft-spoken, in fact, that Annabella had to ask her to repeat herself three times before understanding that she had come to help prepare her for her evening meal with the MacDonald. It seemed that though Gaelic was the common tongue, most also spoke Scots. She had learned that the MacDonalds had always taken education of any age, sex, and income very seriously. Education was offered to all those who worked at Finlaggan. The MacDonald was certainly unexpected in many ways.
