Rogue of the Highlands: Rogue, Book 1 (24 page)

His glance swept the swells of her breasts before he looked back into her eyes, the corner of his mouth quirking up in a devilish way. “Aye. Ye are definitely a woman. Ye dinna answer me. Are ye attracted to me?”

She had the feeling she was heading into deep, dangerous waters. As much as she wanted to deny any such feelings and remain safely on solid land and behind locked doors, she couldn’t bring herself to lie. She swallowed hard. “I’m attracted to you.”

A look of pure male satisfaction crossed his face. “Enough to finish what we started the other night?”

She gave him a startled look. He had
seen
her back. She had heard the coldness in his voice. “Why would you want to do that?”

His diabolic grin widened and his eyes hooded. “Why? Ye are a lovely woman, Jillian Alton, and I want to make love to ye.”

“But you’ve seen my…disfigurement. It’s hideous.”

His smile disappeared. “’Tis not your back that is hideous, but the mon who did that to ye.”

“But I heard your voice…it was so cold. You loathed looking at me.”

“Never.” Ian gathered her in his arms and held her close, nuzzling her hair. “The coldness in my voice was from anger, my love. If Rufus were still alive, I would kill him twice. What kind of a beast whips a woman who canna give him a bairn?”

Jillian stiffened and pushed away from him. “That fact hasn’t changed.”

“It doona matter to me,” he said as he drew her close again and laid her head on his shoulder. “Let me show ye the pleasure in bed that ye’ve never had.”

He felt so good. So solid and strong, but his hands were slow and gentle as he stroked her back. Jillian nestled against him. She should not be doing this. Nothing would come of it, for Prinny would still expect Ian to wed a young woman who could provide him an heir. And Ian, when his lust was gone, would want a son for his clan as well. She knew that.

But her body was burning for him. She was slick and wet between her legs, her nub pulsating and muscles deep in her stomach clenching. Just once—just this once—she wanted to know what it felt like to satisfy this need she didn’t even know she had until she met Ian. She wanted to be a woman in every sense of the word.

She looked up at him and opened her mouth to speak, but he covered her lips with his in a kiss that said his need was as great as hers.

Silently, he rose from the couch with her in his arms and carried her into the bedroom.

He laid her down on the bed and then went to bolt the door. She watched as he kicked off his boots and removed his shirt. The soft glow from the oil lamp cast him partly in shadow, defining the contours of his muscular arms and chest, making him appear to be a bronzed sculpture.

Jillian started to scoot over as Ian joined her on the bed, but he reached out to pull her back and nestled her in the crook of his arm, his other hand stroking her hair.

“Doona be afraid, Jillie. I wilna hurt ye.”

She wanted to believe him. But what if she didn’t please him? Would he change his mind if she couldn’t make him hard enough to complete the act? That was when Rufus had always lost his temper.

“If you’ll open your pants, I’ll pull on it for you,” she whispered.

Ian blinked. “Pull on it?”

She was glad the room was only partially lit so her embarrassment didn’t show. “On your…your thing. I know it’s a woman’s duty to make it stand up.”

Ian raised himself on one elbow and looked down at her. “Your
duty
?”

“Well, yes.” Why was he looking at her like that? “I’ll admit, I may not be very good at it, but I’ll try to make it harden for you.”

The look of incredulity changed slowly and his mouth began to twitch. His eyes crinkled at the corners and his shoulders began to shake. Jillian wanted to roll onto the floor and under the bed. He was trying not to laugh at her. Then her temper began to simmer. “I don’t see what is so funny.”

His grin broke loose then and he gathered her to him once more. “My little
sassenach
,” he said and scattered kisses across her forehead. “Ye are worried that I might not be able to do the deed?” He continued to chuckle as he took her hand and placed it over his erect shaft. “I doona think it will be a problem, lass.”

Jillian snatched her hand away as though she had been burned. It felt like he had a long, thick piece of steel under his trousers, but she couldn’t fathom why he would do such a thing. “What…what is that?”

Ian looked puzzled. “’Tis
me
.”

She gazed back with widened eyes. “Rufus never felt like that. Not once, even after he made me—”

“Shhh.” Ian rolled partially on top of her and covered her mouth with his hand. “Ye’ll not mention that bastard while we make love, ye ken?” He lowered his hand so that it rested on the swell of her breast above the neckline of her gown. “And I’ll not make ye do anything. Just let me pleasure ye.”

Jillian’s eyes were dark with apprehension and Ian cursed silently. Whatever her husband had done to her, it had definitely not been making love. He was going to have to go easy and slow with her and his painfully engorged cock only wanted to plunge into her wet, hot core and claim her for his own. He groaned inwardly. His pleasure would have to wait.

Ian showered kisses across her face and closed eyelids and breathed lightly into her ear before nibbling on the tender lobe. He trailed kisses down her neck and back up her throat before claiming her lips with his. He made light sweeps with his tongue across her lips until she moaned and parted them for him. It took every ounce of his restraint not to savagely devour her as his tongue explored the sweet taste of her mouth. The rose fragrance of her hair floated around him, sheltering him like a cocoon. He could get totally lost in her essence.

He rubbed his thumb over her still-clothed nipple and was rewarded when she made a mewling noise deep in her throat. Encouraged, he slipped the gown off her shoulder and filled his palm with her bare breast, kneading gently. Jillian arched into his hand with another soft moan.

“That’s it, lass. Just enjoy.” Ian bent his head to lick the areola, swirling his tongue around the tight little peak and teasing it with a flick or two.

“That feels so good,” she whispered and then gasped as he took the nipple into his mouth and began to suckle, lightly at first and then with deeper suction. She raked her fingers through his hair, pressing his face closer to her, and he obliged, drawing long and deep on the hard bead.

Jillian began to pant. “My body is on fire.”

Ian grinned. “Just wait.” He sat quickly to remove his pants and then moved to join her again on the bed, but not before he saw how big and round her eyes got at the sight of him fully erect. A moment of sheer masculine smugness washed over him. He’d had his share of compliments from women about his size, and this should put Jillian’s fears to rest that he wouldn’t get hard.

“That will never fit inside me,” she said in a trembling voice. “It’s too big. You’ll tear me apart.”

Not exactly the words he wanted to hear, and if he had not been so besotted over her his proud member might have shrunk. But it didn’t. He did, however, have a problem on his hands.

He lay down beside her. “It will fit, lass. Your body will stretch. It willna even hurt, I promise ye.”

Jillian looked at him doubtfully. “What if it does?”

He really didn’t want to think about that, but he needed to put her fear to rest. “I will stop if it does. Ye have my oath.” He nuzzled her neck. “Trust me, lass.”

When he felt her shoulders relax, he turned her over on her stomach and began to unfasten the many buttons of her gown. He slipped it down and off and undid the laces of the short corset and pulled it out from under her. She stiffened as he eased the sheer fabric of her chemise down to expose her skin, and he stroked his hand over the scars.

“Doona fash,” he said as he leaned down and began a series of kisses along her spine. “I find ye beautiful.” His hands made slow, circular motions across her back until he felt her begin to relax again. He slid his tongue along one of the slightly raised welts that went nearly to her buttocks, squeezed her bottom and then gave the rounded cheeks little nibbles that brought a satisfying shudder to her.

Ian slipped his hand between her legs, pleased to find that she was already wet. She whimpered as he glided his fingers along her slick folds and found that little nub of pleasure. Jillian shifted her hips instinctively to give him better access and began to moan in earnest as he increased the pressure, alternating between stroking and circling.

He let his fingers slide back and then he slipped two of them into her core. She gasped and bucked against him, but his hand on her nicely rounded arse held her firmly in place while his fingers continued their rhythmical thrusting. He felt her inner muscles contract around his fingers and he increased his pace until, with a cry, her body convulsed, and then she lay still, hands fisting the bed sheets.

Dear God. She’d never felt anything like that before. Not even in the maze, as good as that had been. Jillian gasped for air, but even before the warm pulsing inside her had stopped, Ian turned her over on her back and splayed her legs to kneel between them.

He pressed soft kisses to her inner thighs, right above the gartered stockings that she still wore. Startled, she raised up to look at him. “What are you doing?”

Ian glanced up with a smile. “Ye’ll see. Lay back, lass.”

Her head had barely reached the pillow when she felt his mouth press against her core. Flames seared their way through her as his tongue licked her slickness in slow, broad strokes. His hands spread her folds open and her body began to shake again as he teased the still-sensitive nub by flitting his tongue over it swiftly, again and again. A contraction began deep in her belly and when he sucked hard on her, she shattered once more.

Ian slid up the length of her, keeping most of his weight on his elbows as he looked down at her flushed face. The scent of her arousal nearly drove him insane, and he didn’t think his demanding cock would hold back much longer, but he had to know that she wanted him inside of her.

She looked up at him, her eyes so dilated, the irises looked almost black. “I didn’t know I could ever feel like this,” she said with a shaky voice.

“’Tis not over yet, lass.”

“What?”

“’Tis not over, unless ye want it to be.” Fervently, he prayed she didn’t. He hadn’t had to service himself since he was three-and-ten, but he would not violate Jillian. Not after what her husband had put her through.

For a moment, she looked confused and then she flushed a deep scarlet. “Oh. I forgot. You’ll want me to—”

“To do nothing, lass.” Ian pressed his painfully hard erection against her opening and stilled himself. “I want to be in ye, but only if ye wish it.”

Jillian took a deep breath. “I want you to feel pleasure too.”

Ian slanted his mouth over hers, his tongue thrusting and withdrawing in an imitation of what he was about to do, and he slipped the head of his cock inside of her.

Jillian felt the strange sensation of being opened and stretched, but it didn’t hurt. She wiggled a little bit and felt him slide in deeper. She might have gasped at the thick fullness of him, but his mouth and tongue were driving her to distraction. How could a man know to do such sensual things that aroused her whole body? Every nerve ending flamed and she ached to become one with him. When he fully inserted himself with a firm thrust, she could only gasp slightly.

“Are ye okay?” His voice was raspy.

Her lower body thrummed with admitting him. His manhood throbbed and pulsated inside her and she wanted more. Another urge to totally merge with him. She clung tightly to him and wrapped her legs around his thighs.

In response, he began to move, slowly and carefully at first, withdrawing so only the tip of him remained inside of her, making her feel the emptiness of his withdrawal and the deep satisfaction of him filling her again. She began to writhe and he picked up the pace, thrusting steadily until the tension grew in her and she flung her head from side-to-side on the pillow. Need, sharp and insistent, built up inside her. She wanted even more of him.

As if he sensed her need, he drove in deeper and harder, his back and thighs flexing with each movement She raised her legs and dug her heels into his buttocks, allowing him to feel the crown of her womb. In a frenzy, he plunged farther in, again and again. She lifted her hips from the mattress to meet his thrusts.

Her body was shaking so hard, she didn’t know if she would survive. Jillian didn’t know where she ended and he began. A deep inner tremble, like an earthquake rumbling, rose to the surface. In a smattering of multi-colored stars, her body exploded, her orgasm squeezing and milking him. With a huge shudder, Ian spilled his seed into her and collapsed on the bed beside her.

Jillian had not known that the act could feel so good. It was a bittersweet thought, knowing that Ian would have to marry someone else and produce an heir. If she had any sense at all, she’d ask him to leave now and thank him for the experience. But her traitorous body already wanted him again.

He seemed to know what she was thinking, for his fingers brushed over her breast. She turned to him and he gave her a slow, seductive smile.