Authors: Patricia; Grasso
Rob dressed hurriedly and emerged from the lodge a few minutes later without her dog. “I couldna rouse Smooches,” she said as they started down one of the paths.
The day was simply perfection, an exact replica of the previous one. Blue skies blanketed the tops of the trees, and warm sun shone down on them.
A feeling of security permeated Rob’s senses. Was the rare perfection of this Highland weather a good omen? she wondered. Was there hope for Gordon and her after all? She flicked a sidelong glance at his incredibly handsome profile and could hardly believe that he belonged to her.
And how many others? the voice of insecurity intruded upon her buoyant feeling.
“So, where do we bathe?” Rob asked, trying to banish the disturbing thought into the netherworld other mind.
“The pool in the valley is only a ten-minute walk,” Gordon replied. “’Tis beautiful at this time of day.”
Rob stopped short. When he turned around, she shook her head and said, “I canna do that.”
“Do what, angel?”
“Bathe in the pool.”
Gordon snapped his brows together. “But why?”
“I dinna care for the water,” she answered. “I’d rather be dirty.”
“And stink too?” he teased her.
Rob didn’t smile. Her heart was beating rapidly, and her hands at her sides already trembled with her fear. He wouldn’t force her to do this, would he?
“There’s nothin’ to fear,” Gordon assured her. “I’ll teach ye to swim.”
“I know how to swim but dinna like deep water,” she cried.
Gordon waited in silence for her to continue.
“I had a verra bad experience once,” Rob explained, praying he’d be understanding. “A crofter’s daughter nearly drowned.” She touched his forearm and pleaded, “Please, Gordy. Dinna force me to do this.”
Gordon put his arm around her and drew her close against his body. “Angel, have I ever forced ye to do anythin’ ye didna want to do?”
“Ye did so,” Rob answered, nodding her head like a young girl. “Ye forced me to leave England, ye forced me to sleep outside on our journey to Inverary, and —”
“Enough,” Gordon said with a smile. “I willna force ye to do this.” He thought a long moment and then suggested, “We could take a pigeon bath in the stream. The water is only as high as yer waist, but if we sit, we’ll get wet.”
“I’d like that much better,” she agreed.
Hand in hand, Gordon and Rob retraced their steps and followed another path that led away from Glen Aray. Dew still dropped lightly from the woodland trees, and the scent of heather wafted through the air. Sparkling sunbeams danced across the top of the water.
At the stream’s edge, they sat down on the rocks and removed their boots and their stockings. Gordon stood first, pulled his shirt over his head, and then dropped his plaid.
Great Bruce’s ghost, the man’s naked, Rob thought as she stared with wide eyes at his back. Without thinking, she began to admire his broad shoulders, his tapered waist, and his wonderfully tight buttocks. What would it feel like to have his strength pressing her down in their bed?
When he moved to turn around, Rob snapped her eyes shut.
“Are ye goin’ to sit there blushin’?” Gordon asked. “Or were ye plannin’ on bathin’?”
Rob heard the laughter in his voice but couldn’t quite summon the courage to look at him. “Gordy, yer naked,” she whispered in a choked voice.
“’Tis how I usually wash,” he replied. “Do ye bathe with yer clothin’ on?”
Rob shook her head but kept her eyes closed. “Ye promised ye wouldna force me,” she reminded him.
“Angel, I’ll never force ye to do anythin’,” Gordon replied. “Besides, this water’s so cold ’tis certain to shrivel me.”
“I dinna ken. What do ye mean?”
Gordon chuckled. “Never mind, my innocent angel. What if I sit down so my privates are na exposed?”
“’Twould help.” Rob opened her eyes when she heard the splash of water as he sat. He looked so silly sitting in the stream and smiling at her, Rob was unable to suppress the giggle that bubbled up in her throat. The picture he presented reminded her of that night in the tavern when he’d bathed in a tub built for a dwarf.
“Yer turn, my love.”
My love. Were those special words merely a sophisticated courtier’s figure of speech? Or did he actually mean what he said?
“I’m waitin’.”
Rob stood slowly. She dropped her skirt and then pulled her blouse over her head. She felt horribly awkward wearing only her chemise while he sat there and stared at her.
“Could ye close yer eyes until I’m sittin’ in the water too?” she asked. “I’d feel ever so much more comfortable if ye werena watchin’ me take my chemise off.”
Gordon smiled and closed his eyes. He’d been about to tell her to leave her chemise on, but if she was willing to strip, he wasn’t about to stop her. A long, silent moment passed. He heard her wading into the stream and then sensed her beside him.
“Great Bruce’s ghost, the water doesna cover my —”
Gordon opened his eyes and looked at her. Her perfectly rounded breasts with their pink-tipped nipples rose above the water. When she moved her arms to cover her bared breasts, he reached out and stayed her hands.
“Angel, dinna hide yer beauty from me,” Gordon said, his voice husky with long-denied need.
Rob dropped her arms and stared at him through emerald eyes large with wonder.
“Och, lass. Yer lovely.” Gordon lowered his head and covered her mouth in a gentle, probing kiss. “I didna purposefully lie this time,” he whispered against her lips. “I merely misjudged the water level.”
That made Rob smile. And she relaxed against him.
Gordon put his right arm around her shoulder and kissed her again. He slid the top of his tongue across the crease between her lips, which parted for him. Gently and lingeringly, he kissed her, his tongue exploring the sweetness of her mouth. Caressing her breasts, he ran his thumb across her sensitive nipples and teased them into aroused hardness.
Rob sucked in her breath at the incredible sensation. And she knew desire.
“Yer ripe for me, but I willna take ye here,” Gordon said, staring at her dazed expression. “Ye deserve a sweet memory of our first lovemakin’, and sittin’ in this stream lacks the proper atmosphere.” He kissed her again and whispered, “Tonight, angel. I’ll love ye tonight.”
Noting the high color staining her cheeks, Gordon said, “God’s balls, lass. Ye blush more than any ten women I’ve ever known. I’m goin’ to stand now and help ye up. Close yer eyes if ye dinna want to be startled.”
Gordon smiled when she instantly snapped her eyes shut. He drew her to her feet, lifted her into his arms, and carried her to shore. Ever so slowly, he slid her down the long length of his muscular frame as he set her on her feet.
“’Tis a sinful sensation,” Rob said, gazing up at him.
“’Tis no sin for old married couples like us,” Gordon told her. “Turn around and dress yerself, and I’ll turn the other way.”
“Verra well.” Rob showed him her back and quickly toweled herself dry. Reaching for her chemise, she sensed no movement behind her and said, “No peekin’.”
“Peekin’ is part of the fun,” Gordon replied, admiring the appealing shape of her derriere.
“Ye said we’d —” Rob turned and saw him standing there smiling at her. Instinctively, she dropped her gaze to his groin. “Great Bruce’s ghost,” she cried, whirling around.
Gordon chuckled and reached for his plaid. His bride was an innocent angel and an irresistible temptress. He could hardly wait to initiate her into the ways of carnal love.
“Was that Sorrow or Care we were sittin’ in?” Rob asked to cover her embarrassment.
Gordon grinned and yanked her against the side of his body as they started down the path again. “Lovey, I’m aboot to newly christen it Joy,” he said.
Dewey was waiting for them when they returned to the lodge. With Smooches in his arms, the giant sat in the chair in front of the hearth but stood when they walked in.
“Has everyone arrived in the valley?” Gordon asked by way of a greeting.
“Aye,” the big man answered.
“Good day to ye, Dewey,” Rob said. “Is Gabby aboot?”
“She’s down in the valley. Did ye want her for somethin’?”
Rob shook her head.
Dewey kissed Smooches on the nose and let the pup lick his cheek. “He’s verra friendly, considerin’ he’s English and all.” The giant winked at them and added, “I see ye’ve been playin’ Adam and Eve.”
Gordon flicked a glance at his wife. Her complexion was a vibrant scarlet like a child caught in the act of doing something forbidden. What a blusher she was.
“What can I do for ye?” he asked his man.
“Nothin’, I’ve come to do for ye.”
Gordon cocked a brow at the giant.
“Ye forgot yer supply of whiskey and yer golf bag,” Dewey told him. “The whiskey’s on the table and the bag’s in the corner.”
“Thank ye,” Gordon said with a smile. “Would ye care to stay a while and share a cup?”
“Gabby would kill me if I did,” Dewey answered, shaking his head. “I promised to help settle the cattle and prepare for tonight’s celebration. Are ye comin’?”
Gordon turned to Rob and explained, “’Tis Beltane Eve. Everyone gathers around the campfire at sundown. Would ye like to go?”
“If ye wish,” she agreed.
“Good, I’ll share the whiskey with ye tonight,” Dewey said, heading for the door. As he passed Rob, he dropped the pup into her arms and disappeared out the door.
“Tomorrow mornin’ the men will build Beltane’s twin fires,” Gordon said, standing beside her. “Before the women walk the cattle between them, lovers can leap together over the fires.” His voice dropped to a husky whisper, “’Tis an ancient fertility ritual and brings good fortune to the lovers. Will ye leap with me over the Beltane fire, angel?”
“My lord, I can think of nothin’ I’d rather do,” Rob answered, casting him an unconsciously flirtatious smile.
“Yer verra temptin’,” Gordon said, planting a chaste kiss on her lips, “but I must clean that fish or we willna eat.”
A golden glow spread across the western horizon as the sun set behind the mountains and lavender twilight descended upon the Highlands. With Smooches in her arms, Rob walked beside Gordon down the path that led to Glen Aray less than a mile away.
Advancing on the pool formed from the mingling of Sorrow and Care, Rob saw the area around the campfire crowded with women, children, and a small group of men. Every two weeks, the Campbell men returned to their duties at Inverary Castle and another contingent arrived in the glen. By the summer’s end, each man at Inverary Castle had passed some time at the shieling.
“Da! Da!” two voices shouted.
Rob spied Duncan and Gavin running toward them and glanced at her husband. With a warm smile of greeting on his face, Gordon crouched down and gathered his sons into his arms.
Standing beside them, Rob was uncertain of what to do. She feared the boys would reject her in front of their father and hoped they would refrain from crossing themselves and calling her a witch. Had attending this Campbell gathering been a mistake?
Feeling like an outsider, Rob looked toward the women and saw Kendra and her babe sitting in the midst of the female crowd. Gordon was talking with his sons, and she had no friend with whom she could speak. Rob knew she should be accustomed to being alone, but somehow that knowledge failed to lessen the ache in her heart.
Rob glanced at her beggar bead necklace as the last of the day’s light faded away. Her star ruby remained placid. Apparently, the only danger to her was the awkward position of being conspicuously out of place with old friends who didn’t trust her, the stranger among them. She was Inverary Castle’s lady but hadn’t earned their respect, and no one thought her worthy of their acknowledgment.
“Lady Rob!”
Rob turned in the voice’s direction, and relief surged through her. Here were two friendly faces happy to see her.
“I hope ye are na angry with me,” Gabby said, rushing to her side, leaving Dewey to follow behind. “Gordy swore me to secrecy aboot where he was takin’ ye.”
“I could never be angry with ye,” Rob told her.
Gabby lifted Smooches out other arms and handed the pup to Dewey, ordering, “Make yerself useful.” She grabbed Rob’s hand and led her to the circle around the campfire, announcing, “Inverary’s lady is here. Make space for her.”
Rob blushed as the faces around the campfire turned in her direction. She sat down with Gabby on her right. Only a moment passed when Gordon sat down on her left. Gavin ensconced himself on his father’s lap and gave her a sidelong glance.
“Good evenin’, Gavin,” Rob said softly.
The boy cast her a little smile, so devastatingly similar to his father’s that the sight of it tugged at her heartstrings. She shifted her gaze to his older brother who stood just behind Gordon.
“Good evenin’, Duncan.” Rob said.
The boy looked at her but made no reply.
“Say hello to Lady Rob,” Gordon told the boy. “Then sit here beside me.”