Even still, after he finished his ale, he did not order another. Nay, instead, he found himself making his excuses and climbing the stairs. As he did so, it wasn’t his room where he went, but to Kinsey’s.
He rapped gently.
And received no reply.
“Kinsey,” he called in a quiet voice.
Nothing.
He rapped again.
Still nothing.
He knocked yet again, and the door flew open. Kinsey grabbed him by the leine and dragged him into the room before slamming the door shut.
Her cheeks were scarlet, her eyes flashing a brilliant blue. She was vivid with life and rage.
Dear God, she was beautiful.
And he was hard as stone.
“Why can’t ye just leave me be?” she demanded.
He stepped toward her. “Because I havena stopped thinking of ye.”
“Ach, aye.” She nodded with apparent disbelief. “’Tis why ye’ve barely looked at me all day, let alone spoken to me.”
He frowned. “So the men wouldna suspect us. I thought ye dinna want them to know…”
“I don’t.” Hurt blazed in her eyes. “But ye didn’t have to be so damn convincing.”
The need to ease her pain consumed him. “I did it for ye.” He reached for her, wishing to soothe her troubles. “What would ye have me do, Kinsey?”
She tilted her face toward his and met his eyes. “Why don’t ye go downstairs for more of Scotland’s sweetest ale?”
Ah, so that was it. She was jealous. That was an emotion he could handle.
“Who wants ale when there is whisky?” He cupped her face, determined that she see his longing for her. “Fiery. Intoxicating,” he murmured. “Leaves ye craving more and more.”
The ferocity in her eyes softened. “William.” She said his name with resignation, with wanting.
A wanting that simmered keenly in his own blood.
He lowered his mouth to hers, uncertain if she would respond to his affection with a kiss or a bite. Regardless, it was worth the risk.
She was worth the risk.
Her lips parted for him, and her arms curled around the back of his neck. His hands glided down her body and pushed her against him. She gave a desperate whimper.
“I was trying to protect ye,” he said between kisses.
She leaned away from him and regarded him with an anxious expression.
He dragged her back toward him and ran his mouth down the smooth warmth of her neck. “What is it, my Kinsey?”
Her head fell back, exposing the graceful column of her throat. Which would lead him down to where her bosom heaved up and down. But it was nothing he would force on her.
He hesitated and regarded her. “Do ye want me to leave?”
She stared at him, panting, her eyes wide, and for the span of a moment, he feared she might actually tell him to go.
* * *
Kinsey should tell William to leave.
She stared into his worried brown eyes, and her heart slipped deeper into him. Her head spun with giddiness, and her pulse hummed with a delicious heat throughout her body.
These were the sensations he aroused within her that she loved. The others, the bitterness of jealousy, the wounded uncertainty at his indifference, those were the ones she hated. Aye, they could tell the men of their affair and end the secrecy, but what would it matter when he would eventually wed another?
She held tight to him, their eyes and souls locked together. Pain and pleasure blended as one, a need to tell him to leave and a greater pull for him to stay. She couldn’t allow this to continue.
This would have to be the last time.
Rather than reply, she drew him back toward her and kissed him. He groaned into her mouth as their passion exploded.
It was a wild, desperate coupling, both so eager for the other, they couldn’t bother with removing all their clothing. William pushed her to the wall, pinning her there with his body as his hands worked at her trews, which were hastily shoved away as she undid his.
He had her there against the wall, with hard, frantic thrusts that had them both crying out. They reached climax at the same time and sagged against one another.
Kinsey’s legs trembled with the force of her release, but her racing heart ached for what would need to come next.
“I can’t do this again,” she said quietly.
He regarded her with alarm. “I’ll protect ye from the men. They willna find out.”
She shook her head, tears forming in her eyes as the haze of lust burned away, leaving her with the stark reality of their circumstances. “The only protection I need is from ye.”
His brows drew together in a pained look as if she’d physically wounded him. “Have I hurt ye?”
“Not yet.” Emotion rose in her throat, unexpected and unwanted. “But ye will.” Tears welled in her eyes, but she turned away so he couldn’t see them. “I thought I could do this. That I was stronger…”
He lifted her face to look at him. “Kinsey…”
“If I keep on like this, I…I…” She couldn’t force the words out, but they echoed within her, visceral pangs of agony.
He rested his forehead on hers. “I dinna want to hurt ye.”
She dragged in a ragged breath and closed her eyes, unable to look at him as she made her final request. “Please leave.”
He gave a hard exhale that recalled her attention to him as he drew away from her. Beneath his untucked leine, his fingers worked at his trews to secure them once more.
“I’m sorry,” he said hoarsely.
She knew he was.
He stepped back from her, his handsome face lined with a disappointment that tempted her to change her mind. “I’m so damn sorry.” Then he unlatched the door and was gone.
If she’d thought his departure would make her feel better, she was wrong. Her body glowed with the aftermath of their shared pleasure, his seed still within her. The scent of him lingered on her skin.
An ache settled deep in her chest and expanded until it was nearly choking her. Tears welled in her eyes, and she finally succumbed to
