Page 31 of The Lyon and the Lass

Once her breathing returned, Kerrigan placed his warm, large hands on her waist and picked her up, sliding his engorged cock into her opening. She bucked at the invasion, welcoming the fulness. It was his turn to moan.

This was truly an interesting position and odd at first, but she soon understood what he wanted her to do. He moved her up and down until she caught the rhythm and soon was bracing herself on his shoulders with her hands as she covered his mouth with hers.

It didn’t take him long to grunt and pour his seed into her. Christine collapsed against him as they both struggled to catch their breath. “We never took our bath,” she panted.

Limply, he lifted his hand and grabbed the piece of linen draped over the edge of the bathtub. “Here. I’m too weak to move.”

She took the cloth from his hand. Kerrigan rested his head on the rim of the bathtub, his eyes closed. He’d told her about his push to get home, so she knew he was worn out. She rubbed soap on the cloth and began to wash his large body. By the time she had finished, he was asleep.

She grinned and began to wash herself before the water got too cool. She dipped her hair into the water, washed it and dumped the jug of water she’d had from before over her head. This time she knew enough to place it within reach.

Growing cold, she leaned forward and kissed her husband awake. He opened his eyes and smiled. “Did ye enjoy your bath,mo leamman?”

“Aye.” She stood, water dripping down her body. Looking up at her, Kerrigan seemed to come awake. He reached for her, but she stepped out of the tub. “Time to sleep, husband.”

Two large linens rested on the floor next to the tub, fortunately not where water had splashed during their lovemaking. She rubbed her body, enjoying the feel of being clean.

Kerrigan climbed out, took one of the linens, dried himself and dropped the cloth to pick her up. He walked over to the bed and dropped her. She laughed, as she bounced up and down, enjoying the silly interaction between them.

He climbed in and pulled the bedcovers over them. They cuddled together. Clean, tired, and happy in each other’s arms.

Chapter Fifteen

Rupert was amazedhow easy it had been to get so close to Carl’s niece, Christine. Everyone in the village had been friendly and talkative. It appeared the young woman was well-liked and apparently nothing like her uncle, who was trying to marry the young woman off to one of his sleazy friends to get his hands on her money. If he had a conscience, which he lost years ago when he’d worked as a mudlark at no more than five years of age, it would trouble him. But a man had to eat. Now he knocked at the door to the kitchen, ready to put his plan into place.

A young man with hands coated in flour opened the kitchen door. Appearing casual and as if he’d belonged had always worked for him in the past, so he relaxed his body and smiled at the young man.

“I heard in the village that the castle is looking for workers.”

The boy nodded. “Aye. We are still needing people. Lady Lindsay has many projects going on. What kind of work do ye do?”

“Anything you need done. I’ve worked for years doing both inside and outside jobs.”

The young man’s jaw dropped. “Yer English!”

Rupert smiled and stuck out his hand. “Yes, I am. I hear your lady is English, also. They talk a lot about her in the village. My name is Rupert Sanders.”

“I am Edward Lindsay.” He waved in the direction of a long table where several girls sat chopping vegetables. “If ye’re looking for work, ye need to speak with Lady Lindsay. She was here a few minutes ago, but she just left to break her fast in the great hall. Ye can wait here, and I’ll send word that ye wish to speak with her when she finishes.”

Rupert nodded and took a seat, smiling at the young girls.

He still could not believe how easy access to the woman he’d been paid to bundle off to Edinburgh had been. It was obvious from his experience so far that neither the laird or his wife expected any trouble, so people came and went to the castle and even now, the young man he just spoke with didn’t look suspiciously at him at all.

Good. He liked the jobs that were not messy. Just gain the woman’s trust, ask her to accompany him wherever it is he was assigned a job to answer a question. The little bit of laudanum he carried would go far to silence her as he rode away. This was definitely one of the easiest jobs he’d ever done.

His only concern was getting the second half of his money off Allenby. He’d hate to have to hold a knife to the man’s throat to receive the agreed upon amount.

Edward returned to the kitchen. “My lady said she will see ye as soon as she is finished. She offered a meal and drink to ye if ye want it.”

“Yes, that would be nice.” Anything that would prevent him from having to spend the travel expense money Allenby gave him was a grand idea.

He enjoyed bannocks with butter and honey, a bowl of porridge, a slice of warm bread and a chunk of cheese, enoughfood to hold him all day. He sat back and sipped on the cup of tea Edward had given him.

A young woman hurried into the kitchen. She was a beautiful woman, but from the clothing she wore and her hair, which was already in disarray, she was obviously not Lady Lindsay. Most likely the woman had sent her personal maid to deal with him.

“Mr. Sanders?”

He stood, even though he doubted a maid deserved such treatment, but it might be a good idea to get on the good side of this woman. She might be helpful. “Yes, I am Mr. Sanders.”