She nods, and quickly scurries past me. I stifle a fucking groan. Why the hell did I have her sleep naked? I’ll be hiding a fucking hard-on like a goddamn teen-ager going downstairs.
She pauses, then sends me another quick message.
Will we return here to your room to talk later tonight?
Jesus. As if I could let her stay apart from me for another night.
“Yes. Leave everything here. Just get dressed to go downstairs.”
I head to the toilet and stand by the sink, splash water on my face, then go to my dresser and grab a clean shirt. I tug off the one I slept in and toss it in the clothes basket, when I realize Cairstina is standing in the doorway, staring at me.
I freeze, my t-shirt still bunched in my fists, and watch her expression. She’s nothing short of enraptured.
“What is it?”
She takes her mobile and sends another text.
You’re amazingly muscled and handsome.
I look down at my chest as if seeing myself for the very first time. We’ve dwelt in the mountains all of our lives, doing hard, back-breaking labor as a matter of routine. Every one of us is large and muscled, inked with the trademark ink of the north, like the McCarthys of Ireland.
I give her a sheepish look. “Thank you.”
She giggles and covers her mouth with her hand. I’m surprised to see she’s already dressed, but she’s missed a button at her neck. “C’mere,” I murmur, quirking a finger at her.
She walks over to me, her head bowed shyly. I gently spin her around, brush her hair off her shoulders, and fasten the little button. Before I release her, I bend my head to her neck and give her a little kiss. She closes her eyes at the feel of my mouth onher neck, her fingers gently grazing her collarbone as if to hold onto this moment so she won’t forget it.
I don’t want to take her downstairs. I don’t want to share her. I want to keep her in my room, all for myself. I want to get to know her better, ask her more questions and have our odd but blatantly honest conversations the way we do.
But I have obligations. We need to go.
“Tonight, you’ll spend the night in my room. Back in my home,” I whisper in her ear. She lifts her mobile and her response is nearly immediate.
I'd like that.
CHAPTER TEN
Cairstina
I don't even knowwhat to do with myself. My attraction to Leith baffles me, but it’s something so refreshing, so exciting, I don’t want to overanalyze it to death.
I want toenjoyit, for what it is, for however long this lasts.
I shouldn't be attracted to this man, but how could I resist someone like him? It isn't just that he's hot. I mean, I’m a typical red-blooded female and even the most discriminating would find it hard not to find that large, powerful body and dark, brooding eyes sexy as hell. He’s intriguing and complex, and I knew it from the very first moment I met him. People like me learn to observe, to really trulyseepeople.
He wars within himself, so much so that I wonder why no one else seems to notice. He's torn between his duty and wants, between what he should be doing and what he wants to do. He's curious about me, but hesitant. I wonder why. Is he afraid? If so, what is he afraid of? That he’ll hurt me?
Wounded people recognize one another. We know when we look into the eyes of someone who’s been hurt, and deeply. And I know, without a doubt, that Leith is wounded… like me.
It's almost like recognizing someone from your home country when traveling abroad. Because you speak the same language, even when no words are spoken aloud. Because you understand each other's language, when others around you don't.
“I believe I don't need to tell you how you are expected to behave down there,” he says, resuming his naturally stern demeanor and expression.
I barely refrain from rolling my eyes as I shake my head. I’m not sure what he thinks I would do, but “misbehaving” isn’t really my thing. I give him a grim smile and send him another text.
I’m mute, remember? Not sure how I’d misbehave.
He gives me a wry smile. “That’s almost too bad,” he mutters. “Because wouldn’t I bloody love another opportunity to punish you.”
