Chapter Sixteen

Her eyes searched his and she smiled and leaned forward to press a devastating kiss to his lips. “Yes, I’m sure.”

“Ye deserve a better place than this.” He looked around the cottage, and her heart clenched that he cared so much.

She cupped his face, bringing his gaze back to her. “The place doesn’t matter. Only the person I’m with.”

“And ye are aware who ye’re with?” he asked with a wry grin.

Her laughter pealed out, and she kissed him again. “Yes,” she said, rocking against the hard length that was pressed between them. “I’m sure.” His hands tightened on her waist, and he groaned against her mouth.

“Are you?” she asked.

His deep chuckle sent waves of pleasure through her body, and this time he pulled her against him. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. I have been waiting my whole life for a woman as perfect as you. There is no one else I’ll ever want.”

He kissed her until she whimpered under the onslaught of his lips.

“I’m not perfect.” She kissed his neck. “Not even close.” She nibbled at his ear and he pulled at the neckline of her bodice to kiss a path along her collarbone.

“We’ll have to agree to disagree.” His teeth lightly scraped the delicate skin behind her ear and she grabbed at his shirt, carefully pulling it over his head and then tossing it to the side.

“We can’t stand each other, remember,” she said, running her hands down his chest, though she took care to stay away from his wounded side.

“Aye. Ye’re stubborn. And opinionated. And ye talk too much.”

She gasped, not sure if it was in outrage or pleasure. He dragged her against his thigh again and a moan escaped her lips. Pleasure. Definitely pleasure. She’d be outraged later.

“But ye’re still perfect. And I’m the luckiest man in the world,” he said as his hands slid up her thighs and pulled her as close to him as she could get before returning to her bodice. “You, however,” he kissed her again, his fingers making quick work of her bodice laces, “could do much better.”

That startled a laugh out of her that was immediately choked off when his lips closed around her breast.

“Oh,” she said, though the sound was more of a choked breath than a word. “I think you underestimate yourself.”

He chuckled again and took her hand, pressing it to the hard length beneath his kilt. “Och, there’s nothing underestimated about me, lass.”

Her hands closed around him, and his head dropped back, his breath hissing from his lips. She released him long enough to remove his belt and unwind his kilt, leaving him bare to her gaze. She’d seen him before, of course, as she’d tended to him when he lay dying. But this was different. So very different.

She stood and pulled off the rest of her bodice and skirt. He looked up at her like he was seeing the sun for the first time. Then he reached for her.

“Lie beside me, lass.”

She sank down next to him as he carefully rolled to his side. She hitched her leg over his hip, taking care not to brush against his wound. And when he finally entered her, he gasped at the twinge of pain as much as she did.

“Did I hurt ye, lass?” he asked.

“Not much. Did I hurt you?”

“Not much.” He chuckled and she gasped again, though not from pain. “We’ll have to take this slow, aye?”

She nodded, wanting to touch him everywhere but afraid to at the same time. He grasped her hip, guiding her as they slowly rocked together. The discomfort melted away as they moved, building into something more wonderful than she’d ever dreamed existed.

She grabbed his hip, her fingers digging into his flesh, and he answered her unspoken demand. Some small part of her remembered his wound, worried for it. But the intensity building in her wiped all other thoughts from her mind. There was nothing but him. Moving with her. Through her. Branding himself on her forever.

She’d never be the same again. Even if she walked out of that room and never saw him again, he’d be a part of her soul until the day she died. She’d always been so sure of herself and what she wanted. And with a final stroke, he shattered everything she thought she knew. Her world was gone and a new one, more incredible than anything she’d ever dreamed, was in its place.

He was only a moment behind her and then they held each other, shuddering and gasping for breath.

She finally regained enough presence of mind to remember his side. “Are you hurt? You aren’t bleeding again, are you?”

Will laughed and pulled her close for a kiss. “My sweet Rose. I dinna care if I bleed to death right here in this bed. I’d die a happy man.”

“Well, I’d care very much.” She tried to untangle herself from him, but he held her tight.

“Let it bide, lass. I’m fine. I’ll be sore later, for certain. But it was well worth it.”

She settled back into his arms, content to believe him. She’d be sure to check his bandages later. But now, she wanted nothing more than to wrap herself around him.

They spent the rest of the day laughing, talking, eating, and exploring all the ways they could enjoy each other. They were both too sore to fully make love again. But Will showed her there was more than one way to find pleasure in each other.

When night fell, they cuddled up together, both lost in their thoughts.

Rob would return, if not the next day then probably the day after. And they would have to return to the world outside their little cottage. A few weeks ago, even a few days ago, there had been nothing that Rose wanted more. Now, she wished they could go on together, just the two of them.

“What are ye thinking about so hard over there?” he asked, pulling her back against his chest.

She sighed happily. “About how much things have changed. And how much they’ll change once we go back.”

“Why must things change?” he asked, his forehead creasing in a frown.

“Well, they must, mustn’t they? Here we’ve been kind of sheltered from the world. Once we return, we both have responsibilities and obligations…”

He shifted to his back and gazed up at the roof. “I havena given much thought to what will happen when we return. I didna think I’d return at all. Until ye found me and nagged me into living.”

She lightly slapped the uninjured part of his chest and he chuckled, taking her hand and bringing it up to his mouth for a kiss.

“Will you stay on at Kirkenroch?” she asked.

“I dinna ken. I lived at Glenlyon before going to England. Then I was with my laird John. Did ye ken he was the Highland Highwayman?”

“I did. But only because Lady Alice likes a bit of gossip, and there was no one else she could trust that bit of information to.”

“She shouldna have told anyone. Of course, she must have discovered it from Lady Elizabet. Do lassies do nothing but gossip about that which they shouldna?”

“Oh, and you’re one to talk. I’ve heard the things men say around their campfires. Women aren’t nearly so bad.”

He snorted. “We’ll have to agree to a differing of opinions on that, lass.”

“What did you do after being a highwayman?” she asked, steering the conversation back to the relevant matter at hand.

“When John was exiled and his lady ran away with him, I stayed behind and befriended a man in Ramsay’s employ. He introduced me to Ramsay and I’ve been with him ever since. Watching and waiting. Being the eyes and ears for my laird.”

“And now that Ramsay’s gone?”

He sighed deeply. “I dinna ken. I could go back to Glenlyon. There’s always work to be done at the castle. Or most likely I’ll stay at Kirkenroch and help them rebuild. John will be in need of good men, and I have been his man since I could swing a sword.”

“You’ll stay in Scotland then.” Rose rested her cheek against his chest, fighting against the sadness settling in her heart. Will hadn’t said anything that surprised her. And yet, she had hoped perhaps he might want to return to England. A foolish hope.

“Aye. Will ye no’ be staying then?” he asked. “I thought ye’d want to stay with the Lady Alice.”

“Of course, I do. But I assumed she’d want to return home. At least at some point. I know that she and Philip…well, I’m not sure what is between them, to be truthful. There was no time to discuss anything after we arrived. But her family is in England. They must be worried for her. And you have to admit, her experiences in Scotland have not been…ideal.”

He frowned. “Perhaps not, but that doesna mean she’ll wish to abandon her husband and return to her family.”

“You are assuming she considers him her husband.”

“Why would she not?”

“The way they were married is not a custom that is recognized in England. Her family certainly won’t consider her wed, though they may pretend for decency’s sake. I’m certain they’ll want her to return to them. And if she wishes to go, I must go with her.”

“And if she doesna wish to go? If she wishes to stay in Scotland?”

Rose frowned. “I don’t know. I’ve never considered staying. Of course, my place is with Lady Alice. But…I have family in England as well. I…I don’t know. I’ve always been certain Lady Alice would return home. And even if she stays, she’ll go where Philip goes. What if he doesn’t wish to remain at Kirkenroch? Or even Glenlyon? He might have his own place somewhere else.”

Will didn’t say anything to that, merely tightened his arms about her and held her close. And Rose didn’t say anything else, either. She didn’t want to disturb their happy bubble. Because no matter what Will said, Rose didn’t see a future in Scotland. She belonged with her lady. And they both belonged back home in England.

Even if her heart yearned to belong to Will.

…

They lay in each other’s arms, watching the sun rise through the small hole in the cottage’s roof. Will brushed Rose’s hair off her forehead and pressed a kiss to her brow.

She snuggled in to his chest. “Part of me hoped morning wouldn’t come.”

He took a deep breath. “It doesna have to be only one night, ye ken.”

She sighed. “Will,” she said, pressing a kiss to his chest before sitting up. “Nothing has changed since last night. I’m still going back to England with my mistress.”

“If she’s going. We dinna ken what’s transpired between her and my cousin. They are married.”

“But not really.”

“Aye, they are. And they may wish to remain so.”

Rose’s slight frown was full of skepticism. “I find that difficult to believe.”

“Why?” He tried to ignore the burst of anger that statement created. “Is it so hard to believe an English lass would want to marry a savage Scot, as ye seem fond of calling us?”

Rose chewed at her lip and then sighed again. “Once I would have said yes. But now…” She laughed, but there was little amusement in the sound. “I don’t know, Will.”

He sat up and cupped her face, drawing her to him for a soft kiss. “Ye dinna believe our two sides can live together in peace?”

“In peace? No.”

He laughed and kissed her forehead, pulling her onto his lap so he could wrap his arms about her. “Ye ken well enough what I meant.”

“Yes, I know what you meant,” she said, playing absently with the hairs on his chest. “But it’s not just the two of us. You and I, if we were alone in the world. Yes. I think we could make it work. I hope we could.”

His arms tightened about her, though he sensed she wasn’t done with what she had to say. And he knew he wouldn’t like the rest.

“But we aren’t alone. And me in your world, or you in mine… I don’t see how that works.”

“Malcolm and John and their ladies are happy enough.”

“Yes. But they are in a much different station. They are more at liberty to break the rules.”

Will opened his mouth to argue but she shook her head. “No, Will, you know I’m right. You saw how it is yourself when you were with Ramsay’s men. You were never really trusted, were you? Never quite one of the group. And I’ve seen how people are since I’ve been in Scotland. Even at Kirkenroch. The maids stop laughing when I enter the room. They are polite enough, but they make it clear I’m not one of them.”

Will frowned, wanting to argue. But she wasn’t wrong. Then again, he didn’t care if she was wrong or not. He cared only about her.

“They would grow used to ye in time. They’d see ye could be trusted, no matter that ye’re an English lass. Or if ye canna bear to be away from yer home, then I’d find a place there.”

“In England? Away from your clan, your kin? Philip, John? John can’t ever return to England. And Philip…well, he’s better off not returning, either. If you wish to remain in their service, then your place is here.”

“My place is with ye,” he said, smoothing her hair back and drawing her in for a kiss.

“Will,” she murmured against his lips.

“No more talking, lass. Let’s leave the world behind for a little longer.”

She threaded her fingers through his hair and held him fast to her. “Make me forget then, Will. I want to think of only you.”

“Yer wish is my command, my lady.”

And he spent the next couple hours showing her exactly how wonderful their world together could be.