Dropping to the floor, he tapped her left foot and she lifted, using his shoulders for balance, his hot skin searing her fingers. He slipped off her boot, then reached up and grasped the lip of her stocking, pulling it down her leg. He paused at her ankle and bent, placing a kiss on the sensitive skin, before slipping the material off her foot. He did the same for her right leg.
He looked up at her from his position sitting at her feet and waggled his eyebrows, causing her to giggle. Pushing off the floor, he stood, dragging his hands up her body, sending shivers from the tips of her toes to the top of her head. His eyes never leaving hers, he slipped her dress off one shoulder, then the next, and she held her breath as he pushed the material down, letting it pool at her feet.
Her cheeks flushed as she stood there before him in naught but her chemise, her chest rising and falling and his eyes, dark with desire, drinking her all in. He dipped his head and his lips scorched a trail from her ear down her neck to her collarbone, feathering little kisses along the way.
Throwing her head to the side, she gave him all the access he wanted, savoring in the feeling that was so foreign to her. His tongue licked his way up her neck and his lips found her mouth once again. As they kissed, he grasped the soft material of her chemise, gathering it up, exposing her legs, then her most private parts, drawing it up further and further, until he had tobreak the kiss so he could lift it over her head and throw it to the floor.
Cool air caressed her heated skin, and her body shivered. Finlay pulled back and his eyes roamed over her body, a smile of satisfaction breaking out on his face.
She smiled back. “The water will grow cold,” she whispered.
“Well, let us no’ let it go to waste. Shall we?” He gestured toward the tub, furls of steam still rising from the water. He held out his hand and she accepted it, allowing him to pull her to the basin. Offering his arm to keep her steady as she stepped in, he waited until she was in the water to kick off his own boots.
She waited with bated breath. She had seen him undress multiple times since they’d married, but never once had she seen the front of him. When he pulled his trousers off and faced her, she couldn’t stop the smile of pure ecstasy that drew her mouth wide.
Finlay Primrose did not disappoint.
Catching her looking, he laughed as he climbed into the tub behind her, nuzzling her neck. He sat and pulled her down with him, causing water to slosh over the sides.
“We are going to make a mess,” she exclaimed.
“Shhh. I shall tip them well in the morning.” He nipped at her neck, causing her to shudder.
Washcloth in hand, he dipped it into the water and then dipped the bar of soap under and worked it into the small square of cloth before rubbing it over her back in slow circles. “Give me your arm.”
She did as he asked and he held her wrist while he brought the cloth up and down her arm, dipping into her underarm before asking for the other and doing the same. Pulling her back so she rested against his chest, he dipped the cloth once again before bringing it up and letting it drip drops of water on her breasts.
Her breath caught and she sucked her lower lip into her mouth as he brought the cloth to her skin and drew lazy circles of suds around each nipple, drawing them into tight peaks. She blew out her breath on a sigh, and he chuckled close to her ear. “Like that, do ye?”
She nodded, reaching back and snaking her hand around the back of his neck. The feelings he was eliciting in her were erotic and nothing like she had ever felt. She would let this man do whatever he wanted to her.
A touch of sadness entered into her mind when she thought that this night would have to last her a lifetime of memories, but she shook it off. She didn’t want to think about the morrow. Only the here and now.
When he dragged the cloth below the water and touched it against her most sensitive area, her hips nearly bucked out of the water. He chuckled again, and said close to her ear “not yet, love” before continuing to bathe her with deft and experienced hands.
“All done,” he announced, kissing her neck. And she was glad he hadn’t insisted on washing her hair. It was so thick it took forever to dry and she didn’t like to go to bed with it wet. Whenever she did, she woke up with it being one big knot that took much too long to brush out. “Grab a linen and dry off. I will wash and join ye momentarily.”
She spun around, causing even more water to slosh out of the tub and land on the floor. “I should pay back the favor and wash ye.”
He shook his head, his eyes dark. “Nay, lass. I am strung tight as a bow right now. Your fingers on my body will put an end to this much quicker than I want.”
She flushed, but nodded, and used his shoulders as balance to get out of the tub. He watched her as she picked up the cloth from the nearby table and wrapped it around herself, patting herself dry.
His eyes followed her every move as he quickly finished bathing. When he stood, her eyes widened. She was pleasantly surprised when he had undressed earlier, but now, he had grown even larger. She didn’t think it was possible. But her eyes did not deceive her.
With a moan, she licked her lips. She couldn’t help it. Couldn’t stop her reaction. Grabbing the other linen, she closed the distance between them and began to pat him down. He threw his head back on a hiss.
“Mina…” he didn’t say anything else. Just let her name hang in the air between them. But he didn’t let her continue for long. He snatched the cloth from her and quickly dried himself the rest of the way before scooping her up and carrying her over to the bed and laying her down, his body covering hers. “I have had dreams of this.”
“What?”
“Aye. From the first night I met ye in the maze, visions of this exact moment have played in my mind.”
He kissed her lips. A soft kiss, not one to conquer all her senses, but yet it still had the same effect.
“Just one thing.”
When she looked at him questioningly, he reached out for her hair, pulling the pins free and splaying her tresses over the pillow.
