That night, Scotty entered his room as he was undressing. She stood, her fists on her hips, and watched him. Sweet excitement washed over her like sunshine. Aye, she loved this bonny man.
Catching her perusal, he merely shook his head. “Kind of brazen for a married woman, aren’t you?”
She gave him a lazy, lopsided smile. “You know I think you’re the bonniest man alive. Why does it surprise you that I love to watch you?”
He slipped out of his trousers and held them, as if he didn’t know what to do with them. “It doesn’t surprise me anymore.” He gave her a heady smile. “It pleases the hell out of me.”
Glancing at the crotch of his union suit, she noticed the heavy bulge, and there was immediate heat between her legs. “Here,” she said, crossing to where he stood. “I’ll play Winters tonight.”
Chuckling, he handed her his trousers. “He probably saw you come in and wonders if he’ll soon be out of a job.”
It hadn’t occurred to her that by doing things for her husband, she might displace Winters. “Oh, I don’t want him to think that.”
He laughed quietly again. “I was only kidding, Scotty. There’s plenty for him to do around here besides hang up my trousers.”
“Oh,” she answered, still befuddled by his teasing. He was a man of such contradictions. Smiling and sullen. Gentle and angry. Teasing and indifferent.
Tossing a somewhat nervous glance around her, she asked casually, “Did you and that other woman share this room?”
He stopped and gave her a dark look. “Let’s not talk about her tonight or any other night.”
Scotty ignored his request. “I met her today. I wanted to tell you earlier, but you seemed so … so distracted.” She hung his trousers in his paneled wardrobe, then turned to look at him. “Is your work bothering you?”
He glanced away. “Yes. I’m trying to wrap up the situation in the valley.”
She tried valiantly to dismiss his curt response and took another casual turn around the room. She touched his things, familiarizing herself with what was his. Even so, it wasn’t possible not to think about her, for Alex and that woman had slept together in the massive bed with the beautifully carved walnut headboard.
She scolded herself for letting the woman’s presence in San Francisco bother her. Even though she hadn’t thought much of the woman, Scotty still felt a niggling sense of anxiety now that the woman was back in town. There was a tiny bite of jealousy stirred in with her apprehensions, a feeling so foreign to her it almost made her sick. “She’s very beautiful.”
Alex swore. “Scotty, I said we won’t talk about her, all right?”
She turned away so he wouldn’t see her distress. She wanted to know why it bothered him to talk about the woman, hoping that it wasn’t because he still felt something for her in spite of what she did to Katya. She wanted him to say he no longer loved the woman, that she shouldn’t worry her head about her. But she also didn’t want to ruin the evening.
With a heavy sigh, she changed the subject. “I know you think it’s fashionable, Alex, but I don’t want separate rooms.” She had a panicky sense of possession about him now that that woman was back in town.
After taking off his underwear, he came to her, naked, pulled her into his arms and led her toward his bed. “All of your gowns won’t fit into my wardrobe, little wife.”
She bristled a moment, remembering that the other woman had called her “Alex’s little wife,” then she realized Alex had no way of knowing that. “I dinna mean we have to have everything in one room, but I … I …”
“Say it, Scotty.” He pulled her nightgown off over her head and carefully fondled her breasts, rendering her nearly incapable of speech.
She shuddered, following him down on the bed. “How can I talk when you do that?” Sighing with content, she pressed him close and ran her fingers through his hair.
“What don’t you want, Scotty?” He continued to make love to her breasts, kissing her nipples, licking them.
“I … I dinna want to sleep in that other room ever again,” she finally said. “At least, not alone.”
“Done,” he answered softly, licking the skin along her neck. He continued his progress downward, between her breasts and on toward her navel. He’d never been down that far with his mouth before.
She felt wanton. Reckless. “What are you going to teach me tonight?” She was wet and ready for him, but wanted to savor every moment. He’d quickly taught her that drawing out their lovemaking made it that much more satisfying.
“Ummm, something very special,” he answered, moving his tongue from her navel.
She shuddered with delight, waiting. As he moved lower, his breath fluttered the hair that covered her, and she gasped, wildly curious. “I dinna know what you’re doing, but I think I’ll fly into pieces if you stop.”
His husky chuckle reached her ears as he raised her knees, spreading them wide. She was open for him. And wet. And swollen. And shaking, shaking with desire.
When his tongue touched her, she gasped again and lifted her pelvis off the bed. Never, ever had she felt such exquisite pleasure! It went beyond description, the lovely, tender yet seductive things he could do to her with his tongue.
He moved the wet, swollen length of her, then settled over the bud he’d shown her before. Fires of heaven, she could feel the thing tingle and grow, sending sparks of heat everywhere, leaving her helpless. She grasped his hair and pulled him closer, guiding his mouth, and he allowed it, giving her the chance to show him exactly what she wanted. On the volatile fringes of her thoughts, she realized she was becoming greedy when it came to their pleasures.
Suddenly she felt it come. That heaping helping of pleasure and pain she’d discovered so recently. Her breathing changed, deepened, shook … Her legs tightened around him and she lifted herself up off the bed again, shuddering over and over as the waves of desire licked through her.
Finally spent, she gazed at him as he moved to her side and kissed her. He tasted different. Kind of … mossy.
She pulled away, frowning. Curious. “Is that what I taste like?”
His eyes softened and he smiled. “Yes. Delicious, isn’t it?”
She pulled him to her and kissed him again, running her tongue over his lips and the skin beyond, where his beard was harsh. She drew away and touched his face, tracing each feature with her finger.
“Would you taste that way, too?”
His hard root twitched against her. “I don’t think so. I don’t think I’d taste as good as you.”
She moved her hand down and stroked him, loving the various textures of him. Reaching beneath, she cradled him, running her fingers over the fine, silky hair. Momentarily distracted, she moved her hand up to the hair that surrounded his root.
“The hair covering your sac is softer, finer than this hair,” she murmured, working her fingers through the coarse, curly hair at his groin. She moved her thumb to his tip, shuddering with delight at the moisture that spurted out.
He cursed … mildly. “What-what’s your point, little wife?”
She gave him a lazy glance. “Just … just an observation, big husband,” she answered, watching him smile at her name for him. She kissed him again. She could still taste herself on his mouth. “I want to find out.”
“Find out what?”
His question was a bit wary, although it held a note of arousal. “If we taste the same,” she answered, hoping she wouldn’t have to explain further. The idea of what she was about to do sent her heart beating wildly—with anticipation and delight.
He gave her a shaky sigh and caressed her breasts. “Are you sure?”
Squeezing him lightly, she said, “I’m sure. But, Alex, you’ll have to show me what to do.”
He did. And the moment she realized how much pleasure she could give him, the moment he ground out her name as he reached his own peak, she knew it wasn’t possible to love him any more than she did at that moment.
When she finished, she moved up and kissed him as he had kissed her. Pulling away, she eyed him lazily. “You’re right. We don’t taste the same. But,” she added, cuddling his more relaxed penis, “you taste better than I do.”
He pulled her close, chuckling into her hair. “Ah, my little wife. That will always be a topic for debate and a matter of opinion.”
Sighing with contentment, she snuggled against him. “I do love you so much, my big husband.” Again, she waited for his answer, and again, there was only silence. With a forlorn sigh, she drifted into sleep.
Scotty continued to move about in a sensual haze. The only time she was able to quell it was when she was deeply involved in Katya’s and Basil’s lessons.
While her two students were doing their sums, Scotty let her mind wander to thoughts of Alex. The nights with him were wonderful. But that wasn’t really the right word. They shared something special as they made love, giving and taking pleasure. So often she’d thought about how perfect they seemed for each other and how lucky she was that he’d stumbled into her cabin, wounded and exhausted.
But lately, he’d seemed more distracted … ever since “that woman” had come back into town. Her stomach took a brief dive, sending anxiety into her chest. It had been four days now, and each time she tried to talk to him about her, he silenced her. And he was quieter and more brooding at mealtime as well. When he went into his study after dinner, he told Poppy he wanted no one to disturb him.
This change made Scotty feel like she had before they were married. Merely an employee. And it hurt her as much as it frightened her. She still had no idea how he really felt about the woman. How could a man not still love the woman who gave him a child as lovely as Katya? And this Marlena was so very beautiful, and Scotty, with her ever-enlarging abdomen, felt like a bloody elephant.
The back door slammed, jarring Scotty back into the present.
“Papa!”
Alex? Scotty froze, then spun around to find him standing just inside the back entry. He gave Basil, who sat with his mouth hanging open, a piercing look before settling the same look on Scotty.
“Would you like to explain what’s going on here?”
Scotty recovered quickly. She raised a reassuring hand to Basil, who had come up out of his chair so fast, it had fallen over, clattering to the floor. “Basil, stay where you are. Alex,” she said, turning to her fuming husband, “I’ll talk to you in your study.”
With more bravado than she felt, she took her husband’s arm and hauled him out of the room.
“What in the hell are you doing with that big, overgrown oaf in my kitchen?”
She’d never found the right time to tell him she’d been helping Basil learn to read. It had just never come up. She also hadn’t told him Basil was now sleeping in the tiny room off the pantry…. That would come later. Right now, she had to do some fancy dancing to explain why she hadn’t mentioned Basil’s lessons before. She pulled Alex into the study and closed the door, watching his mood carefully.
“Now, I know I should have gotten your approval first, and I meant to, really I did. But … but you were never home when I thought of it, and, well, it’s good for Katya to have the competition, and, Alex, the poor laddie didn’t even know how to read. Can you imagine such a thing?”
With a brusque turn, Alex crossed to his desk. “How long has this been going on?”
Scotty frowned. “Let me think. Before we brought the kittens home, maybe. Or was it after that? Oh, I can’t remember exactly, Alex. What does it matter?”
She cringed at the look on his face, for she was sure he was remembering that he’d asked her to find homes for the kittens weeks ago, and she just hadn’t had time. She was sorrier than sin that she’d dragged the poor wee things into the conversation; she sensed their impending doom.
He pulled open a drawer, took out some papers and put them on his desk. “Have you found homes for those kittens yet?”
She winced, wondering if he’d read her mind. “Well, no, but I—”
“Scotty, you know we can’t keep five kittens and a mother cat in this house. One of these days, those five will be as big as their mother, and then no one will want them.” He eyed her slyly. “Or, was that your intention?”
Her dignity slightly injured, she huffed and frowned at him. “Well, of course not.” Although she didn’t see the problem, actually. A home just wasn’t a home without a few critters lying about.
“I won’t pass the guilt on to Katya, but, Alex, would it be so harmful for her to have just one of the kittens for her own? And … and maybe the mother?” She saw his look of judgment, and continued quickly. “Now, really, Alex. Who would take her in? No one wants a mama cat, it would seem. And really, what’s the harm?” She gave him her sweetest smile and felt a heap of gratitude when his look softened.
He swore under his breath. “I don’t believe I’m saying this, but … all right. She can pick out one kitten. Just one, do you hear me?”
Sighing with relief, she nodded. “And … and the mother? For me, maybe? As a wedding present?”
He glanced at her, then quickly looked away. When his gaze returned, he seemed overwhelmed. “All right. But I want the other kittens out of this house by the end of the week. Like I said before, soon they won’t be cute anymore, then no one will want them.”
He looked up and shook a finger at her. “And that doesn’t mean you’re not to try to find them homes, thinking that if you can’t, they can stay here. They won’t be spending the rest of their natural lives in this house.”
Even though she detested his scolding, she was relieved at his response. Rushing around to where he sat, she kissed him full on the lips, touching his mouth sweetly with her tongue. “Oh, thank you, Alex. And … Basil? Can I continue to teach him to read? It would hurt him so much if I stopped now.”
He gave her a measured look. “My patience is wearing thin, Scotty.”
“Well?” She ignored his “thin patience” and batted her eyelashes at him sweetly. Although she had never really learned the art of flirting, she discovered that gazing at him with longing, which was no act, really worked. “Can I? He’s such a nice young man, Alex. Really, you should get to know him a little better. And he’s very capable. He’s young and strong, and can work very hard, and—”
“Are you insinuating that I am no longer young and strong, and can’t do my fair share of work around here?”
“Oh, no, no. My sweet, darling, big husband.” She slipped onto his lap and put her arms around his neck. “You are everything to me.” Her flirting, teasing facade vanished. Running her fingers through his hair, she gazed into his eyes. “I can’t imagine what my life would be like without you and Katya in it.” She caught her lower lip with her teeth, for it had begun to tremble.
But her whole mood changed as his hand snaked beneath her clothing and glided effortlessly up the insides of her thighs. She relaxed her legs, spreading them so he’d have easy access. When he reached the top, he sucked in a hissing breath.
“Still wearing the drawers I bought you, I see.”
His finger pressed through the split in the undergarment, against her wet, yielding flesh. “Y-yes,” she murmured around an excited gasp, unable to keep the anticipation from her voice.
He pressed deep, stroking the cleft, caressing her love-bud with his finger. It made her squirm, made her hot and itchy. She didn’t care that everyone was just beyond the study door and could enter at any moment. She couldn’t have cared less if someone had walked in.
Spreading her legs wider, she urged him to continue. His finger moved the length of her, dipping inside, back out and up to the now pulsing center of her. Oh, she would die, just die if he ever decided to stop making love to her.
Finding his mouth, she stroked him with wet kisses until she was too absorbed in sensation to go on. It came. Oh, how it came, that galloping ecstasy that sprinted toward the fringes of her being. She clung to him, alternately bucking and becoming rigid in his arms. When it was over, she tumbled against his chest, working hard at getting her breath.
She sat up lazily and gave him a look of contentment. “I thought you were going to scold me and tell me that Basil had to leave.”
Alex cleared his throat and briskly lifted her off his lap. “All right, he can stay. Now that everything’s settled, you’d better get back to your lessons. I have work to do.”
Disappointment careened through her, then she was angry. “Just like that?”
“Scotty,” he began, sounding exasperated, “we can’t spend every moment of every day satisfying your lusty little urges. There’s work to be done, and I suggest you get to it.”
His words sent waves of humiliation over her anger. “My lusty urges? Mine? ’Twas not my hand that forced yours up my skirt, you toad.” That she couldn’t have stopped him if she’d wanted to wasn’t the point.
“That’s right. But you didn’t stop me, did you?”
She shook with mingled fury and embarrassment. “Well. Maybe I should. One of these days, maybe I will.” She knew she never would. “You seem to think you can fling my skirt up over my head whenever you get horny.”
He gave her a hard, studied look, then he smirked. “That’s what a wife is for, isn’t it?”
Understanding sank in slowly, and she felt nauseated. Of course. Leave it to him to remind her of the reason for their marriage in the first place. She kept forgetting it, because she loved him so blasted much.
“You are a bastard, you know,” she answered with quiet rage.
He began examining the papers on his desk. “I know. If not by birth, then by actions. Now, let me get to work, Scotty, and I suggest you do the same.”
He could have just as easily punched her in the heart. “Of course, master. Thank you for letting Basil stay.” At his brusque nod, she left the study. She refrained from slamming the door behind her.
He watched her leave, then slumped back into his chair. It was getting harder and harder for him to remember his promise to keep her at a distance, especially when she always seemed so eager for him. But that would probably change once the baby was born, just as her love and concern for Katya would change.
He pressed the heels of his palms against his eyes. Strangely, he hadn’t been angry about her teaching Basil to read, just surprised—and a little disappointed that she hadn’t mentioned it to him before. Did he still threaten her so much? Hell, probably. It wasn’t any wonder. One minute he was kissing her, shoving his hand up her skirt, the next he was nearly pushing her out the door. For her own good, she should leave and keep on walking. But dammit, that would only be for her good, not his. No, not his …
His thoughts turned to Basil. He was a human stray. There was no way in hell his wife could not bring him into their home. After all, hadn’t he, too, been a stray, and hadn’t she taken him in—under duress and against her will—and nursed him back to health?
Actually, he’d been aware of Basil before Scotty had brought him to their home. He’d seen him lurking in alleys for weeks, one of many guttersnipes roaming the streets of the city, rummaging through garbage barrels, shuffling down the street at night, perhaps looking for warmer shelter.
Alex knew that had he not met Scotty, and become even slightly aware of his surroundings, he wouldn’t have noticed the lad at all.
“Oh, now are you sure you can’t take one?” Scotty stroked the last kitten, the tan one with the crooked tail, and held it toward Camilla. “Listen to it purr. It’s a bit adventurous, I’ll admit, but it’s a sweet thing, really.”
Camilla’s smile twisted into a grimace. “I’ve never had a pet, Scotty. The only time I’ve ever held one was that day you and Alex got married. I wouldn’t know the first thing about caring for one.”
Scotty gave her a dejected sigh and continued to stroke the kitten. “Truth to tell, I’ve left you for last, because I feared as much. You don’t like cats? This one might keep your bats at bay.”
Camilla laughed at Scotty’s persistence. “I don’t like them or dislike them. I’ve just never been around them. But if it keeps the bats in the attic, where they belong, it can’t be all bad.”
“Oh, then, you’ll be in for a treat. They can be wonderful companions, Camilla. When you’re feeling blue and sad, they curl up in your lap and rub against you, demanding that you let them absorb some of your pain.”
Camilla laughed again, this time out loud. “Oh, Scotty, really. You’re quite sure about this?”
“Don’t laugh, Camilla. Animals sooth people’s nerves. I know this for a fact. Why, when I lived in the valley and was caring for Papa before he died, all I had to do to feel better was let my pet raccoon, Muggin, curl up with me in a big chair by the fire, and somehow, I felt my sadness and weariness slip away.” She got wistful, thinking about her dear Papa. Suddenly she missed him fiercely.
Fighting back tears, she held the kitten to her cheek and absorbed the deep, soothing sounds that vibrated through its furry little body. She gazed at Camilla and found her smiling softly.
“Well,” Camilla relented, “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to give it a try.”
Scotty thrust the kitten at her. “Oh, you won’t be disappointed, I promise you.”
Camilla gingerly took the kitten. It immediately lifted its paw and drew it gently through her long, tangled curls, then pulled a strand into its mouth, chewing noisily as it purred. “Well,” she said dryly, “it certainly isn’t finicky about what it eats.”
Scotty felt such relief. “Now, if it truly doesn’t work out, of course you can give her back to me.”
“It’s a her?” Camilla held it away and looked at its stomach. “How can you tell?”
“Well, the boy kittens have a little bigger thing there at the back.” She lifted the kitten for Camilla to see. “See it there? It’s hardly anything.”
“Hmmm. Frankly, I’m glad it’s a girl. I couldn’t handle another male around here.”
Scotty studied the beautiful red-haired woman and shook her head. “Really, Camilla. You’re so lovely, and so sweet and nice. I truly wish Milo appreciated you more.”
Camilla cradled the kitten close, learning quickly how to make it purr. “Oh, he appreciates me, Scotty. In his own way.”
“Will he mind if you take the kitten?”
Camilla snorted softly. “He probably won’t even notice her.”
“Well …” Scotty answered slowly, “she might be wanting to sleep with you.”
“Like I said,” Camilla answered, her voice dryly stoic, “Milo probably won’t even notice.”
It wasn’t really pity that Scotty felt for Camilla’s situation, for she truly didn’t understand it all, and she didn’t want to pry. She was learning to hold her tongue. It often seemed the prudent thing to do. She changed the subject.
“Has Marlena been around to see you again?”
“Thank the Lord, no.” Camilla studied her briefly, then asked, “Has Alex said anything about her?”
Scotty poured herself another cup of tea to hide the topsy-turvy feelings she had about her husband. His nasty remarks in the den the other morning still found an open wound to nibble at. “No. I’ve tried to mention her, but he insists that we don’t speak of her at all. By the holy, Camilla, I don’t want to let it bother me, but it does.”
“But why? I told you, she’s a wicked, lying bitch.”
Scotty dropped some sugar into her tea and stirred. “But men don’t always see that in other women, do they? I mean, men are so easily fooled. All I had to do to keep a kitten and the mother cat was bat my eyelashes at Alex, smile sweetly, and he caved in like dirt over a gopher hole.”
She raised her eyes and met Camilla’s warm gaze. “If I can do it so easily, what makes you think she can’t?” She didn’t mention the altercation that had followed in which he’d basically told her she was chattel.
Camilla looked at her for a long, quiet moment. “Are you feeling threatened by her?”
“Lord, just knowing she’s in San Francisco threatens me. She’s beautiful and worldly, and so … so polished. And,” she answered disparagingly, “I’m pregnant and clumsy.”
Camilla sat down with the kitten in her lap. She reached across the table and touched Scotty’s hand. “And loving, caring, giving, guileless and pretty. I wouldn’t worry about Marlena working her wiles on Alex. He doesn’t love her anymore, Scotty.”
Scotty heaved a great sigh. “Oh, but why won’t he talk about her, then? If he’d just tell me …”
But she knew he wouldn’t. She’d given him plenty of opportunities to bare his soul, and he hadn’t. The only thing he was able to do with ease was remind her, in every action he took, that their marriage was trivial and only had meaning because he wanted a bed partner and she carried his heir.