Page 31 of A Dangerous Highland Affair

“Thank ye,” said Teasag primly. “Well, I cannae remember if I told ye, but my mother was a seamstress for Blackness Castle…,” she paused awhile for Neacal to say something.

He nodded his head vaguely.

“Well, when I was wee, I used to play there sometimes, afore I was apprenticed… an’ there was this big set o’ paints, up in the attics… I think they belonged to one o’ the gentleman lairds…that was where I first got a chance to try out painting… an’ well, I dinnae ken if I was any good or nae, but I would like to find oot!”

The words seemed an effort for Teasag, and turning to look at her again, Neacal saw her with fresh eyes. She looked like something from a painting herself, and he was suddenly enchanted by a vision of Teasag, posing as a naked Madonna, which almost catapulted him from the brown mare.

“Jings!” said Neacal, swerving as the horse stumbled over a boulder in the road ahead of them.

The pretty brown mare whinnied and almost jettisoned the pair onto the makeshift road below. “By God’s bones, the stupid mare nearly did for both o’ us!” he said, grabbing the reins tighter. Then he checked Teasag. “Say, are ye alright, lassie?”

Neacal looked around. The terrain had been shifting for some time, and now they were for traversing through a roughly hewn landscape, which made for challenging riding.

Stealthily, the pretty brown mare picked her way through the muddy terrain, but it was getting harder all the time.

“I think so,” said Teasag, shakily. Neacal brought the mare under control and tugged at the reins to stop. He looked around to see Teasag combing her long, fair hair with her fingers and clinging onto her small backpack tightly. Then she smiled. “I didnae mean to make ye nearly ride us into the ground…”

She glanced quickly at the land around them. The incessant rains had led to a buildup of water in the leas and glens to their side. This, in turn, caused flooding, with rivulets springing up inside the fields and coppices which spilled out onto the narrow dirt track which passed for a road.

“Noo, ye didnae,” said Neacal quickly, before realizing that this was a joke, and Teasag was smiling at him with a self-deprecating grin. “I’d love to see one o’ yer drawings one day!” he added.

Now they had stopped, the urge to lead her out into the open wilderness proved almost too strong. They were literally in the middle of nowhere, with nothing but wind all around to witness their potential liaison.

Despite the mud, Neacal was sure he could find a remote corner of a field that would be dry enough for their purpose…

Neacal had to catch his breath, his imagination picturing all sorts of encounters, all of them frenzied, of him and Teasag, sunk deep into each other’s flesh. He wanted nothing but to savor the taste of her, as fresh and sweet as a ripened fruit. Every fiber of him ached to touch her, to hold her properly, not just as a friend. But of course, he could not.

It took Neacal all his powers of restraint not to kiss her there and then. As he stared deep into her azure eyes, a wrinkle of amusement passed through her.

“An’…maybe ye’ll let me draw ye sometime!” she said, archly,

“Me?” said Neacal, with faux surprise.

Watching his face, Teasag rolled her eyes.

“Aye, yes, ye!” she insisted. “Ye’ve got a Grecian face structure that I’d just love to put doon in paints,” she teased. And then added wistfully. “If I had some…”

“Grecian?” said Neacal, trying to hide his mirth. He assumed a playful pose for half a moment, which almost resulted in him falling off the small horse for a second time. “Well, o’ course, I am, ye ken descended from a noble line!”

His words were light and gay, but inside, his heart reeled with surprise. There was no doubt the lass was interested. And this, in turn, had caused his belly to prickle with uncertainty.

The fact that he was even having a reaction at all was enough of a surprise. What was happening to him? Girls were things to be picked up and disposed of again. Sometimes they gave him a buzz, but never like this.

No, this was different. As Neacal stared into the amused eyes of Teasag, he began to realize that something was not right.

He had never felt like this about a lass before. His entire body was on fire, and the more she sat there, right behind him, with her soft white arms folded about his waist, the worse it became.

There she was, flicking her hair and flirting, tantalizingly just within reach. All he wanted to do was to reach out and touch her. And maybe, if the allure had been a little less, he would have.

Strangely, it was the very fact that he wanted her so much that put him off.

If she had just been some comely wench, whom he liked the look of, he would have dived in by now. But to Neacal’s surprise, he was scared.

Scared of what she might do and how she might react. What if she was just teasing him?

And then, even if she didn’t, and every smile was real. What then? He’d never be able to leave it at just a kiss. Or even a single night of passion. He’d have to take it further and go back for more helpings. He knew by looking at her that this girl was in his veins like poison. And the only antidote was seeing her again, and again.

Which was a problem. Because Neacal’s world was a place she could never enter. Not even for a short while.