Page 62 of A Bride for the Kilted Beast

Furthermore, she could not even query it with the man who knew him best, for Ciarán was staying back at Castle Kincaid to man the fort in their absence.

After a few hours of traveling, they came to an open area by a large pond surrounded by trees.

“We’ll stop here fer the horses tae rest and drink,” Diarmaid announced. He dismounted along with the rest of the men and lifted Lillie down from the saddle. The horses were led down to the pond to drink, while the men relaxed. “Let’s go a fer a little walk,” he said, taking Lillie’s hand in his and leading her away through the trees.

Lillie could not understand it, for he was so serious and seemed almost sad.

“Diarmaid, is something troubling ye?” she asked him outright, more confused by the minute.

“Nay. Why d’ye ask?” he looked at her strangely.

“Ye dinnae seem tae be yerself. Are ye nae feelin’ well?” she asked, scrutinizing his face for clues, worrying that the beating he had taken could be having delayed effects on him.

“I’m fine. Just a wee bit tired, is all,” he assured her, suddenly putting his arm around her shoulders and pulling her to his side, kissing her hair and cheeks.

“Are ye worried about meeting me braithers?” she tried again, thinking that might be the cause of his peculiar demeanor.

“Nay, ye silly thing.” He smiled, gazing deeply into her eyes, and walked her further into the trees until she glanced round and realized they were now completely hidden from their party.

“This is a pretty place,” he observed softly and brought them both to a stop in a little grassy dell. He pulled her close, cradling her head in his hands, and began kissing her with the same yearning intensity with which he had made love to her the night before. Sensing he was hurting and with no clue as to why, Daisy felt the urge to comfort him as she responded with her usual overwhelming desire for him.

Diarmaid lay Lillie down gently on the soft turf of the glade. She held him close, with her arms around his neck, loving the feel of his powerful body against hers. The dappled sunlight lit the hard angles of his handsome features, while keeping his eyes in the shadow, so she could not make out what was in them.

She began to feel tingles run through her body when he suddenly reached up and pulled loose the ribbon holding back her hair. The shining mass tumbled over her shoulders to her waist, and Diarmaid buried his hands and face in its lengths, drawing in deep breaths. Fleetingly, Lillie fancied that he was committing her scent to memory.

But she had no time to dwell on it because her breathing was quickening and her blood growing hot as Diarmaid’s hands cradled her head, and his warm breath fanned her cheeks as he bent towards her. She eagerly opened her lips to greet him when his mouth descended on hers, her heart fluttering to feel the palpable deep longing in his kiss as his tongue entwined with hers in a sensual dance.

Lillie eagerly responded, her body cleaving to his, thrilling to feel his already-hard manhood pressing against her hip as his kisses became more urgent, plundering her mouth as if he was a starving man and only she could satisfy his appetite. His hands slid to her shoulders, edging the neckline of her dress lower to reveal her soft skin, and she gasped and threw back her head to expose herself to him more readily as his hot kisses trailed lower, nuzzling at her throat, her neck, her ears, sending shivers of desire through her as he grazed her gently with his teeth, his breath coming more heavily as his excitement grew.

“Och, Lillie, ye’re so beautiful,” he whispered, pulling down her dress and the top of her shift so that her breasts were naked to his gaze. “I could never have enough of ye.” The wolfish look in his eyes as he drank in the sight of her breasts, rolling and squeezing them in his large, rough palms, had moist warmth pooling between her legs as her sex began to pulse, craving the touch of Diarmaid’s fingers upon her already feverish, tender flesh.

“’Tis the same fer me, Diarmaid, ye dinnae ken how beautiful ye are tae me,” she crooned in his ear, panting with desire now, feeling him nuzzling and nibbling at her breasts, teasing the sensitive tips with his teeth until they stood to attention. She pressed her hip against his hardness, relishing the womanly power she had to excite him, while pulling undone the leather strap holding his hair atop his head so she could tangle her fingers luxuriously in his long dark locks.

Diarmaid’s mouth continued to devour her breasts, his caresses so hot and enticing, she trembled all over, growing ever wetter between her legs when she felt his hands urgently grip the hem of her gown and push up her skirts. The warm air brushed against her exposed skin as his palms slid up her legs, eliciting a small yelp of pleasure from her in anticipation of his intimate touch on her molten folds.

Overcome by wanting, Lillie moved her hand from his hair and slipped it beneath his kilt, placing her hand over his bulging manhood inside his trews and caressing him in the way she had learned that he liked. He gasped and gave a low, rumbling moan, his eyes wide as they locked on hers. With one arm, he held her waist, while with his other hand, he reached to undo his trews and free himself from their confines. His manhood burst free, and Lillie took it in her hand, stroking the silken hardness of his length, the flames of passion flaring inside her in anticipation of him filling her.

Taking her completely by surprise, Diarmaid suddenly pulled her into his lap, so she was straddling his thighs, his hands roving over the skin of her exposed belly, hips, thighs, cupping her behind in his palms with a groan that sounded as if it had been drawn from the depth of his soul, his mouth still ravaging her breasts with almost frantic excitement.

When Diarmaid’s fingertips glided between her legs and brushed her excited bud, she moaned, pulling up his head and kissing his mouth deeply, opening herself to his caresses. He responded in kind, kissing her with a kind of desperation she had never felt in him before, while his fingers toyed with her, parting the heated, slick folds of her sex and exploring her entrance, driving her almost into delirium.

When she felt his fingers pushing inside her, his thumb toying with her bud, she arched her back and moaned, pressing her breasts against his mouth, craving ever more of him. With three of his fingers sliding in and out of her, she rode his hand as he worked to bring her to a peak of ecstasy, their eyes locked as they panted together.

But even in the midst of the heady pleasure Diarmaid was giving her, Lillie could not help but notice the strange look in his eyes. Yes, they were dazed with passionate hunger for her, but he was not smiling at her with his usual mixture of lust and tenderness. Now she saw something darker too, a sadness, a desperate longing, the reason for which she could not fathom.

But then, all thought flew out of her head, her world exploding into stars as he brought her to a shuddering climax with his fingers. Lillie screamed into his mouth and collapsed against him, spent, her breathing ragged. No sooner had she caught her breath, then Diarmaid gripped her hips and lifted her up, slowly impaling her on his rock-hard member. Lillie sank down upon him, gasping and moaning as he filled her, clinging to him as their hips moved together in an increasingly fast rhythm. Diarmaid’s gaze was fixed on her as he drove into her with gathering force, as if he could become part of her. He held her firmly by the waist as she bounced in his lap, his breathing rapid and ragged as he caught the tips of her breasts in his lips as they jounced with every movement.

But again, despite the renewed desire sweeping over her and quickening her lust once more, when Lillie looked deeply into his eyes, she saw the same sadness and longing as before. More than that, he seemed to hold her closer than ever, with a greater tenderness than he had ever shown himself capable of. There was sense of desperation to his lovemaking, almost as if he feared she would evaporate into thin air at any moment.

Even as the waves of heat rose up her body, and his eyes clouded over with passion, his gaze grew darker, the sadness more intense than before. As they were both gripped by a heavenly euphoria and clutched each other as they reached their climax together, she still could not dislodge that look from her mind.

When they finished making love, he held her and kissed her so lingeringly, she was overwhelmed by the sense that he was taking his leave from her— so much so, that she thought she could almost taste it on his lips. For the first time, she lay in Diarmaid’s arms feeling not sated and content, but worried and confused.

Why is he acting this way? As though this is the last time we’ll ever be together this way, as though he’s saying… goodbye.

Goodbye?

Like an arrow plunging into her heart, it suddenly hit her.