Page 12 of Scot of Seduction

She dropped her fork in alarm at his words. It made an almighty clatter, so much that the soldiers who were guarding them looked around, one of them even reaching for his belt, before they saw all was fine and settled down again.

“If ye intend on dropping all yer food on the floor, tell me now so I can rescue it before I speak of sex again,” Tad said with that mischievous glimmer in his gaze.

“Tad!” she hissed. “Enough. We arenae talking of this now.”

“Why nae? I find it most interesting that ye turn intae the color of a tomato whenever I say the word se –”

“Och, thank ye fer that.” She waved a hand at him, cutting him off before he could finish the word.

“Shall I call it something else instead then? Sharing yer bed with another, perhaps? Making love,” though he wrinkled his nose at calling it that. “Rutting, or even shag–”

“Tad!” This time she managed to silence him for just a beat before he began to laugh hard. He raised his tankard of ale to his lips and gulped it down. “We arenae talking about this anymore.”

“Why nae?” he said between his rumbling laughter. “Cat, it’s one of the most natural things humans do on this planet. Animals do it too. Ye could nae talk of anything more normal.”

“I cannae bear this.” Her face felt like it was on fire as she stared at her plate.

“Is it because ye dinnae ken much about it?” he said, pushing on. “Is that true?”

“I am nae having this conversation with ye.”

“Oh aye, because I’m the worst person tae have this conversation with, arenae I?” he pointed out. “Only the man ye ken with probably the most experience who could tell ye everything ye needed tae ken.” She looked at him with arched eyebrows and he paused in his eating. “I didnae mean that as a brag.”

“Ye most definitely did.” She even managed a small smile, which made him chuckle again.

“The point is I ken things, if ye want tae ken them too. If it would make ye feel more comfortable about hearing the word again. Sex.” He added quickly, and she glowered at him.

“I just…” She stared at her plate, suddenly feeling numb all over. Of all the people in the world, talking to Tad about such things felt strange indeed. “I dinnae ken much about it.”

“Why nae? Has nay one spoken tae ye? Have ye nae had…?” He trailed off. The laughter vanished from the air abruptly as he sat back in his seat, the chair creaking beneath his weight. “I was going tae ask if a woman in yer family hasnae told ye what tae expect that.”

“Aye, funny that, isnae it?” she said harshly, abandoning the last of her food and pushing the plate away. “Nay maither, and nay other woman tae speak tae me about it. All the things I learned, I have learned from Kira and… Ilyssa.”

“Ah, stop.” He held up his hands in sudden surrender. “I dinnae need tae hear what me sister gets up tae with yer braither.” He shivered, as if the mere thought made his bones quake. “Well, did Kira and Ilyssa tell ye much? Or are ye still… in the dark?”

She didn’t say anything. The fact she was so reluctant to have this conversation had made her mind wander onto other matters. She was thinking of her mother, of what it might have been like to have learned such things from her mother. Yet her poor mother had passed giving birth to her and Dunn. Her mother had birthed Catreena with ease, but when Dunn came a few minutes later, it was too much. Her body, weakened, could not put up the fight it needed to make to survive.

“Ye are thinking of yer mother, arenae ye?” Tad said, with such a knowing tone that she jumped in her seat.

“Nay.” She lied, though she wriggled so much, it must have given it away. Abruptly, he pushed one of the tankards across the table, encouraging her to drink, but rather than retracting his hand again, he slid her fingers over hers. The sudden soft and delicate touch was not something she had expected. A man like Tad, strong, tall, overbearing with muscle, every touch was usually firm. The gentleness made her mouth dry. “Dunn still blames himself, ye ken,” she whispered, finding the confession falling from her lips. “He was a bairn. It wasnae his doing, but still…” She sighed, unable to utter anymore words on the matter.

“It wasnae his doing,” Tad seconded the feeling. “In time, he’ll see that, Cat. Even if it takes him longer tae realize it.”

Catreena slid her hand out of his own, worried that such a gentle touch of his fingers would make her reveal other things she had not intended to speak of.

“Let’s talk of something else,” she pleaded.

“Aye, very well.” He cleared his throat as he ate the last of his pie. “Let’s return tae our earlier conversation. Is there anything more that ye dinnae ken but would like tae ken?”

Catreena choked on the ale. She managed to splutter half of it across the table as Tad chuckled and passed her a napkin. She slapped his hand away as she snatched the cloth and mopped her damp face.

“Ye are unbearable.”

“I ken. It’s a curse,” he said with self-mocking pride. “Come on, there must be something. I dinnae imagine ye havenae pressed Kira and Ilyssa fer too much information when ye would just be hearing about yer braithers.”

“Of course, I havenae!” She felt humiliated at the mere thought. The last thing in the world she wanted to hear about was Alec or Bran described in their most intimate of details.

“I am nae yer braither. Ye willnae have the same embarrassment with me. So, ask me anything ye’d like.”