Page 104 of The Laird's Secret Bairn

“It’s so strange to hear ye say that,” she admitted with a weak laugh.

Dougal grinned. “I can understand why, but ye should get used to it because I willnae stop saying it. I’ll say it every day if that’s what it takes.”

She ducked her head. “Who kent ye had such a way with words?”

“Only because of ye, Skye. I daenae think I’d be capable of such words without ye inspiring me.”

Skye was about to rise on her tiptoes to kiss him when she heard a scuffle outside the door.

Dougal chuckled and stepped aside so she could walk over to the door and open it. There stood Freya and Emily, looking quite shamefaced at being caught eavesdropping.

“Freya. Emily.”

Freya smoothed down her skirts. “Skye, Emily and I were just passing by.”

Skye sighed. “Passing by?”

“Aye, very slowly,” Emily added, not helping in the slightest.

Skye wasn’t truly angry. Freya and Emily just wanted to make sure she was all right. Still, she was not going to let them off so easily.

“For a rather long while,” she drawled. “With yer ears pressed against the door.”

Emily at least had the decency to look down at her feet. Freya, however, lifted her chin. “We heard shouting earlier and came to make sure ye were well. That’s all.”

“There was no shouting.”

“Might’ve been dramatic sighing, then,” Emily offered. “Hard to tell through the wood.”

Dougal, who was standing behind Skye, cleared his throat, torn between mortification and amusement. “I look forward to speaking with ye both at dinner tonight.”

Skye looked over at him.

Skye looked over at him. "I look forward to it as well, though I suspect it'll be more interrogation than conversation."

Kaden had to be convinced to let Dougal stay, but he was no match for his two sisters and his wife.

Skye got ready for bed that night, and Dougal waited for her in the room he had been given. No one was going to interrupt them now. He would make sure of that.

Slowly, the door opened, and Skye stepped inside, looking vulnerable and wanton at the same time. Her hair hung down her back in long waves, brushing teasingly against her thinnightgown. It was so thin that the pink of her nipples was visible through the fabric.

Her cheeks burned, but she tried to hold herself together. She didn’t want to look any more frightened than she already felt.

“I am… nae completely ignorant of what goes on between a man and woman when they lie together,” she whispered, her blush deepening.

“Ignorant isnae one of the words I would ever use to describe ye, Skye,” Dougal replied, his voice low and steady.

He held out his hand to her. She hesitated for a moment, then walked over to him and placed her small, dainty hand in his.

“I will do me best to make it comfortable for ye,” he assured her.

She worried her lower lip between her teeth. “Shall I lie down?”

He chuckled softly. “If ye wish.”

She gave him a strange look but trusted him enough to climb onto the bed. She lay back against the plush pillows, her heart hammering in her chest.

“If ye have any objections, please daenae hesitate to voice them,” he said.