Onyx (12 page)

“Nay,” she said. “My husband died two months ago.”

“Och, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” she said. “He was forty years my senior and we never talked. He had a mistress and hadn’t even touched me in the last seven years.”

“Well, he was a damned fool,” said Onyx under his breath. “I dinna ken how any man could treat ye so horribly. If ye were me wife I’d . . .”

“You’d what?” she asked, looking up at him again, and suddenly he realized how foolish he sounded. She was English, and he was a Scot. And they were enemies because of what happened to both their fathers.

“It disna matter,” he said. “Tell me, how old is yer son and what is his name?”

“His name is Charles and he is seven.”

“Where is he now?”

“He is being f
ostered by an earl, and I miss him dearly.” Her eyes started closing when she spoke, and he knew she needed to rest. He took his hand and gently held her head against his chest. Then he wrapped his arms around her tightly, and closed his eyes as well.

He knew this was all wrong, but yet it felt so right. It felt so good to be holding their naked bodies together that he knew he wouldn’t be able to control himself from coupling with her if they stayed this way much longer. But her body was still cold and he needed to make sure she was warm and would heal. He needed to stay here a while longer, so he just closed his eyes and slept so he wouldn’t be tempted to do something they would probably both regret in the morning.

Chapter 8

Lovell
e awoke feeling warm and happy, at first thinking she was at home in her bed, until she realized she was on the ground. Her eyes sprang open and her heart thumped wildly as the events from yesterday came barreling back into her mind.

Falling through the ice – Onyx saving her life – lying naked together to get warm. Naked! She didn’t move, just looked around and realized she was naked, pressed up to Onyx’s naked body and trapped under his arm as well as his leg that was over her. Her initial reaction was to push away from him and jump up and put on her clothes, but he was sleeping and looked so peaceful that she just wanted to look at him for a moment.

She barely remembered what happened, and wondered if he’d taken advantage of her. Then, she felt his hardened manhood poking against her and knew that he hadn’t been sated in the least. She owed this man her life. He was her enemy and had every reason to hate her, and no reason at all to keep from bedding her, especially since they were naked and pressed together. Yet he hadn’t. He was a barbaric Highlander, yet he acted like a refined English gentlemen. She didn’t understand him at all.

She liked the intimacy of lying here with him. This is something she missed in her life. And she was attracted to him. He was strong and had a pleasing body, and his lips were sensuous
. . . and so close to her mouth. Before she knew what she was doing, she leaned over and kissed him.

His eyes opened slowly and stared at her, and this time, in the dimness of the cave they weren’t so shocking, instead they drew her in.

“What was thet fer?” he asked in a low voice, reminding her of their conversation last night.

“That w
as for saving my life,” she said softly, then reached over and kissed him on the lips again. His hand went around the back of her head, and he pulled her even closer as his other hand reached up and caressed her hair. The kiss lingered and she felt a new warmness taking over her body, a feeling she’d never had with the late baron.

“And what was thet one fe
r?” he asked again, after they broke from the kiss.

“I – I’m not sure,” she said. “I just felt like . . . it just felt right, that’s all.”

“I agree,” he said, kissing her again. He was gentle and caring, and this time as they kissed, his hand wandered down her back and rested atop her buttocks. She felt his hesitation, and then his fingers caressed her slowly, and his kisses trailed down her neck.

She reached out bravely and rested her hand against his hardened manhood, causing a surprised gasp from his lips.

“Ye do ken what yer doin’ dinna ye, Lady Love?” he asked, about driving her mad with want every time he called her Lady Love. She had told him she didn’t like it, but actually, hearing it from his mouth in his low Scottish burr, it excited her to no end.

“Onyx, I don’t understand my attraction to you, but all I know is that it feels so right to be in your arms.” She
reached down and kissed him on the chest and when she looked back up she noticed his eyes were squeezed closed. “What’s the matter?” she asked. “Don’t you like this?”

“How could I no’
like it?” he asked her. “I ken I’m considered a madman, but ye, me dear temptress, are drivin’ me madder than I’ve e’er been in me life.”

“Do you want me to stop?” she asked, hoping he wouldn’t turn her away. She was feeling alive for the first time in a long time and she really wanted to explore this feeling further.

“I dinna want ye tellin’ yer king I defiled ye when we get back te England. I canna jeopardize me mathair’s life, if ye ken what I mean.”

“I admire your loyalty to your mother, Onyx. And I must say I’ve never met a man that was such a barbarian and such a gentleman at the same time. I want to make love with you, Onyx, and if we do I swear this will be our
little secret. No one needs to know what we’ve done. And if you agree to it, than I have no qualms of moving forward.”

“I willna tell a soul, me
lady, I promise ye thet. No one will e’er ken we’ve coupled except us.”

“Good then,” she said, tracing her finger around his nipple in a circle. “I am looking forward to this, and only hope you are too.”

“I didna get te drink in yer beauty last night. And I’ve been achin’ te taste ye since I met ye.”

“You just did,” she said. “We’ve just kissed.” She reached out and kissed him again, and this time he rolled atop her, straddling her with his strong thighs.

“I wanna taste e’ery bit o’ yer bonnie body and won’t stop until I hear ye scream out with passion like a banshee on the moors.”

“The way that triplet was going to scream when you took her in the stable?” she asked.

“Nay,” he answered. “She woulda screamed out in lust. I wanna hear ye scream with passion, and I intend te please ye in e’ery way possible.” He lowered his mouth to her breast then, running his tongue around in slow circles until her nipple peaked. She arched her back and felt her breathing labor. Then he did the same to the other side, and with his hand teased her other nipple.

“You are driving me crazy,” she said through ragged breathing, feeling a newfound warmth and wetness between her thighs.

“Guid,” he said softly, looking down at her, his long hair hanging in front of one eye. “Then we will both be mad.” He lowered his head to her chest, his tongue shooting out to lick her all the way down to her navel. “Ye taste so sweet and succulent.” He looked up and licked his lips. “I canna wait te taste the rest o’ ye as well.”

“The rest?” she asked, not knowing what he meant until his hea
d dipped down below her waist. He brought her legs up and around him, burying his face in her wetness as his tongue worked magic. “Oh!” she screamed out, now knowing what he meant. She felt her resolve diminish, and all that mattered was what she was feeling at this very second.

She felt her womanly passion stirr
ing within, her body tingling, and a moan of pleasure left her lips.

“Thet’s right, lassie,” he said looking up to her from his crouching position, his eyes looking like a wildcat stalking his prey. “Let me hear ye scream out,” he said. “No one can hear ye.” Then his head was lowered again and she f
elt a sensation she’d never felt in her life.

She cried out, finding her release though they
’d yet to actually couple. Still, she could do nothing to stop the feelings that were overtaking her, and neither did she want to.

“Do ye like this lassie?” he asked, his
hands skimming over her hips and back up her body. His actions were slow and controlled, and driving her over the edge.

“I – I do,” she said, and swallowed deeply, not knowing how this could feel any
better until he slowly pushed his hardened form into her, little by little, making her moan in passionate surrender. “I need to feel – all of you. Please,” she cried out, teetering on the brink of another release.

“Then ye shall,” he said, slipping his full, hard length inside her
, awakening a part of her that had been basically dead for a very long time.

She’d never felt foreplay before. And she’d never had the act of coupling last this long.
She’d never been sated, yet she was about to feel that way again for the second time during the same act.

He move
d back and forth slowly at first, taking his time, letting her body get accustomed to his size and also the dance. Then her hips moved on their own, and she felt her inner muscles tightening around him, squeezing him and teasing him the way he did to her.

She looked up and saw him holding himself up so as not to smash her with his weight. His eyes were closed and a deep moan echoed from his throat.
The fire still burned in the cave and she knew he must have tended it during the night.

The firelight danced against their bodies and threw shadows against the cave wall, only exciting her more. Their silhouettes, a man and a woman
making love, danced on the stone walls, the flames of the fire causing their shadows to be very tall. It was magical, mystical, and exciting, and her eyes roamed from the shadows of lovemaking on the wall back to Onyx atop her, his eyes now wide open and staring into her.

“God’s eyes, Lady Love, this feels like heaven.”

“I agree,” she said, climbing higher to the precipice of fulfillment, her body pushing against his harder, wanting as much of him as she could possibly take in.

Then her head went back of its own volition and she cried out
again her pent up passion and desire that had been hidden inside of her for years. The sound of her cries of completion echoed against the walls of the cave, seeming to excite him beyond control. They rutted like animals on the ground instead of in a bed, and she found that a side of her was wild and willing. She’d let go of the proper way she was raised and threw caution to the wind, living the way this wild Highlander lived. It felt good. Damned good, and she wouldn’t change this for anything in the world.

He drove into her now with more force and vigor, his breathing becoming very heavy, a low growl coming from the back of his throat. Then with a few more thrusts, he threw back his head and . . . howled. She laughed inwardly knowing he truly was a Scottish Highland madman after all.

His lifeforce spilled into her and she felt his essence intermingling with hers. Then, when they were both sated, he fell to his back and lay next to her, staring up at the roof of the cave.

She lay against his chest for a while, and when both their breathing had returned to normal, she decided to be the one to say something first.

“That was wonderful, Onyx. Thank you.”

She waited for his words of endearment back to her, but he was silent. She wondered if he was regretting this, and hoped he wasn’t. “Onyx, you don’t regret this, do you?
” she asked. Still, no response. She reached out her hand to touch his chest, and that’s when she realized she couldn’t see or feel him breathing.

“Onyx?” She sat up quick
ly, his arm that was around her falling with a thump to the ground. “Are you all right?” she asked, noticing his eyes were open and staring without blinking. “What’s the matter?” She jumped to her feet, then hunkered back down and shook him slightly. “Say something. Please.”

He didn’t speak, he didn’t move, he didn’t blink and he didn’t breathe. She noticed his skin turning a darker shade, and though she couldn’t see colors in the dimness, she knew without a doubt he was turning blue.

“Onyx!” she screamed, getting to her feet, fear gripping her heart. They had just spent the most magical moments together, the best time of her life, and now . . . now she had killed him. Yes, Onyx was dead and it was all her fault.

She cried hysterically, not knowing what to do, then she heard voices from outside of the cave calling.

“Dagger, are ye in there?”

She knew his friends were coming to look for him and now she would have to tell them that s
he had killed him with her lovemaking. She heard their footsteps coming closer, and turned and grabbed Onyx’s leine and donned it quickly to hide her nakedness from his friends’ eyes.

“Dagger? Is thet ye in there?” Aidan stuck his head inside the entrance of the cave, and then turned around and talked to someone else.

“I found him, he’s in here,” he called out. Then he noticed her standing there and turned his head and shouted again. “And Lady Lovelle is here as well.”

He ducked and entered the cave, his head nearly scraping the ceiling. Ian walked in right behind him, and since he was even taller, he had to bend over slightl
y as he made his way toward her until they were able to stand straight as the cave widened.