Page 25 of The Laird's Secret Bairn

Then he lowered his face to her sex.

She couldn’t believe that she was doing this.

The first swipe of his tongue against her had her nearly crying out. She had already climaxed once, now that she feared it wouldn’t take much to make her climax again.

Egged on by her moans, Dougal pushed his tongue into her sex, and her inner muscles clamped around him. She felt something building inside her. With the persistent thrusts of his tongue and the press of his thumb against her bud, he was pushing her closer and closer to the edge.

“Please,” she whispered, her desperate tone shocking even her.

She rarely begged. She didn’t quite know what to do with herself. All of this was new to her, but she wanted to see it through.

When he sucked hard on her bud, she finally came undone. She threw her head back with a loud moan, her hands. But he didn’t stop. He kept lapping at her, pushing her closer and closer to another climax.

Her cheeks were flushed from more than embarrassment. Dougal had said he wouldn’t kiss her, but then he placed his lips somewhere far more intimate.

She wondered, distantly, what else he might consider fair game if a kiss on the mouth was off the table.

9

When the tremors finally ceased, Dougal shifted, settling into a sitting position on the rug. He watched her with a quiet satisfaction he didn’t bother to hide. She had melted into his ministrations, moans of pleasure escaping those kissable lips that she tried desperately to smother.

“Was that enough inspiration for today?”

“More than enough,” she managed, her breathing still uneven, color high in her cheeks.

He stood, helping Skye to her feet so he could fix her skirts, his fingers brushing hers as he smoothed the fabric back into place. The tenderness felt strange, coming from him after everything. It surprised him as much as it seemed to surprise her.

She caught his hand before he could pull away.

“Be careful,” she said, half-teasing, “or I willnae want to leave at the end of the month.”

The shift in him was immediate. He straightened, putting careful distance back between them, the warmth draining from his face like a door closing. “I shouldnae have confused ye, then. I cannae give ye what ye’re hoping for.”

“Why nae?” She stood as well, unwilling to let him retreat so easily. “Is it because yer former betrothed died? Were ye so in love with her that?—”

“If I were ye, I’d stop talking about things I daenae understand.” His voice was hard and low.

“Then help me understand. Ye cannae close a door and expect me nae to wonder what’s behind it.”

“Nae if it puts ye or anyone else in danger.” He turned toward the window, his jaw tight. “Go to yer room. We daenae need to make this month harder than it already is.”

“Nay.” She crossed her arms, gathering what remained of her composure. “If ye wanted a lass to order about, ye picked the wrong one. What reason do I have to stay here at all? Ye’ll have wasted the journey for nothing.”

“Bold words, coming from someone hiding her true identity from the whole Highlands.”

“That’s because men cannae handle women who write and who think for themselves, nae because I want to hide who I am or because I’m ashamed of it.”

“Is that so?”

“It is.” She lifted her chin, refusing to let him see how badly her hands were shaking. “I’ll see ye tomorrow, me Laird.”

She left with her head high, her skirts sweeping across the floor behind her.

Dougal stood alone in the room long after the door had shut behind her. Her words hung in the air, circling in his head.

“Were ye so in love with her that?—”

She had no idea what she was talking about. Couldn’t understand what he felt towards Elsie.