Page 39 of Savage Kilted Highlander

She let out a little scream when he buried his face between her legs, prising her open with his fingers, his hot, flickering tongue exploring her delicate folds, drinking from her as though to sate his thirst. “Mmm, ye taste so good,” he murmured, flashing her a heated glance as she looked down at him in wonder, amazed at what he was doing to her. The look of enjoyment on his handsome face told her that he was revelling in caressing her moist folds. She moaned his name loudly as he strummed her rosebud with his thumb and then kissed and sucked it to a stiff peak.

The sensations coursing through her were so powerful and bewitching, Constance could only cling to him, mewling and writhing helplessly beneath his intimate touch, her need for him growing ever more urgent. This was all a revelation to her, she had never dreamed of doing anything like this with a man, of feeling anything like this. She did not know what else was in store for her, so when Bane’s thick fingers entered her and delved gently inside her, she was completely unprepared for the rapturous pleasure that shot through her. She only knew she wanted more of him.

Soon, as he continued his caresses, the pleasure began to coalesce into powerful waves that gripped her as they rose up from between her legs until it was almost too much to bear. “Oh, yes, yes, Bane, I never guessed it could be like this!” she cried out, her fingers tightening on his hair, her entire body shuddering as she reaching an intoxicating peak such as she had never suspected was possible.

When her climax subsided, he rose up and rolled them over on their sides, so they were face to face. He held her close around her waist, kissing and caressing her face, pushing her long hair from her forehead and looking deeply into her eyes. She tasted her own juices on his lips with a sense of wonder. “Ye dinnae ken how beautiful ye are, Constance,” he told her, his voice soft and deep. “Ye cannae imagine how good it feels tae touch ye at last.”

“I think I can,” she contradicted him. Resting in his arms in a state of exquisite happiness, she smiled and kissed his lips, her fingers trailing across his stubbled chin. She was slightly puzzled because she could still feel his erection jutting into her, just as hard as before. Even though she had just experienced her first sexual climax, the yearning between her legs had not abated but was rather growing more intense. She craved more of him, and she knew he was still excited. An intention crystallized in her mind that would not allow her to end things there.

Emboldened by their intimacy and a feeling of joyful liberation from the old rules that had governed her body, she pressed her belly against his erection and wriggled, enjoying the way his eyes suddenly widened. “But what about you, Bane? Is there not something I can do for you so that you can share in my pleasure?” she asked, surprised by her teasing, coquettish tone as she looked into his beautiful hazel eyes.

“Dinnae worry about me, Constance. I’m as happy as a lamb in spring.”

He certainly looked happier than she had ever seen him. Smiling, his face relaxed, he looked appealingly boyish. But she was not about to give up her intention.

“But why?” she asked, disappointed.

“Because if we go any further then that’ll mean I’ll be taking yer maidenhood, and I dinnae wantae do that. Ye’ve told me many a time how precious yer reputation is as a lady. I dinnae wantae ruin that fer ye. This way, when ye marry, ye’ll still be a maid,” he patiently explained.

“I am not planning on marring anyone,” she said, noticing the glimmer of sadness in his eyes as he spoke.

“That’s nae what yer stepfaither says. Who is this earl he wants ye tae marry?” he asked, his dark brows beetling.

“He is the reason I ran away. And I have already told you, I am not going back to England whatever Lord Ashbourne wants. I… I don’t want to be anywhere without you.”

He regarded her sadly. “It’ll break me heart tae loose ye, Constance, but yer faither too is nae gonnae take kindly tae his daughter consortin’ with a lowly blacksmith. He’ll be lookin’ fer a suitable husband fer ye as well before long, someone rich and powerful like him.”

“But that is even more reason why I want you to take me, Bane. It is the only way to take control of my own life and future. I do not want to be a pawn in their games any longer. I refuse to! My stepfather will always see me as a means to an end. But I want to choose the man I give myself to, and I want that man to be you.”

He still looked uncertain. “Are ye sure, Constance?” He said, cupping her face tenderly. “Once ’tis done, there’s nay goin’ back.”

She kissed his lips and murmured, “I choose you, Bane, and I do not wish ever to go back.”

“Then yer wish is me command, me lady,” he whispered back, his mouth descending hungrily upon her lips. Constance answered him with all the unleashed power of her womanly desire, her passion enflamed by the feel of his rock-hard manhood hard pressed against her. He seized her thigh and pulled it up to his waist, opening her wide and positioning himself to enter her. “This might hurt a little at first,” he told her.

Constance did not care, she only knew she hungered for him, and when he slid his whole length inside her, she gasped and clutched at him in a daze of intense pleasure, happy to be full to the brim with the man she knew she had fallen in love with. He was careful and slow in the beginning but when he sensed her tension subsiding, he turned up his speed. She revelled in each thrust, meeting each one with her hips to intensify the pleasurable sensation of him going deeper and deeper inside her. They frantically clutched at each other, kissing, nipping and nuzzling at any bare flesh in reach. Bane’s pace increased further, filling her, stoking the fire within her with each low groan that came from his lips.

Faster they went, and before long, the blissful sensations lifted her to a peak of irresistible, maddening intensity. Constance shuddered in ecstasy against him, and a few moments later, felt him reach his climax too, his hot seed spilling inside her. She held him as they panted to catch their breaths, smiling to herself, infused with a sense of contentment and security she had never felt before and knew that only he could give her.

In the afterglow of their lovemaking, they snuggled together beneath the blankets by the fire. She loved the sensation of having Bane’s strong arm about her and being able to rest her head on his chest, listening to his heart beating solidly beneath her ear.

“Tell me more about this earl yer stepfaither wants ye tae wed,” Bane asked, his nose buried in her hair close to her ear.

Constance sighed. “He is the Earl of Belton. He is very rich and has many connections at the royal court, which is why my stepfather is so bent on me marrying him. It would bring him more riches and more power. But he is old enough to be my grandfather and repulsive as well. He looks at me as though I were a piece of meat, ugh!” She shuddered to recall it.

“And did ye nae have any choice in the matter?”

“Of course not. I am no more to them than a prize cow. I had to sit there and listen to them decide my fate between them. They had planned the wedding should take place in six weeks’ time. Until then, I had been putting off going to find my father and Agnes, not knowing how to escape from my stepfather without being caught and punished.

“But when I heard their plans, I knew I had to get away as quickly as I could. The thought of that horrible man laying a hand on me made me feel sick. I left that night, but I could never have done it without help from Henry and Amelia.”

He hugged her. “I’m grateful tae them both. Without them, I would never have found ye, and kidnapped ye.”

She stroked his cheek lovingly. “I never imagined saying this, but I am so glad you did!”

“And ye can forget all about this earl now.”

“Thanks to you, Bane, I am of no use to them now. I am ruined, and I could not be happier about it!”

“Me too,” he agreed, kissing her hair. “But ’tis nae gonnae be plain sailin’ when we reach the castle, Constance. There’s still yer faither tae deal with.”

“Hmm, I am all too aware of that. I am still very uncertain about meeting him. I am worried that he might try to separate us, and I do not want that. I’m afraid he may not be the good person I had imagined him to be, given he has imprisoned your brother for seemingly no reason.”

“We should reach the castle tomorrow sometime, so it willnae be long before we find out. I’m worried as well. I dinnae want tae be parted from ye, Constance.”

Constance sighed against him, feeling the pull of her uncertainty. She was desperate to see Agnes. But her father? That was altogether something different, and she was really not looking forward to the meeting as she once had. “Yes. It will not be long before we find out.”