CursedLaird (15 page)

“Here let me help you with that zipper,” Caledonia said,
standing behind him. She reached for the zip cord and tugged it downward. Inch
by inch, perfectly muscled flesh appeared stilling the breath in her lungs.

Nothing on earth could have pulled her eyes away as Struan
peeled the neoprene from his body. The scent of his last dive coated his
gorgeous male form. A light sheen of sweat mixed with the essence of the loch
stirred her desire from a low simmer to a high boil. This was torture. Her
hands shook. Her insides hummed. Desire threatened to take control, but the
O’Reillys were waiting so she refused to allow it. Caledonia released the cord
and quickly moved toward the door.

Without looking back, she called over her shoulder, “Hang
the dive suit on the hook on the wall then come up to the house. I’ll prepare the
bathroom for you to take a shower.”

The cool evening air slapped her in the face but did nothing
to knock sense into her overactive sex drive. She managed to stare straight
ahead as she scooted across the lawn to the house. In the bathroom, she laid
out a fresh towel and washcloth, made sure there was enough soap and shampoo
then returned to the kitchen. He entered just as she took the last step.

The dark-blue diving swim trunks hid nothing. Caledonia’s
mouth dried at the impressive lump in the tight-knit fabric caressing his cock
and balls. Damn. He was one fine man. Caledonia darted her eyes up the length
of his muscled torso to land on the molten-hot gaze within those deep-sea
blues. It took several seconds before she noticed he held a bag in his hand.

“W-what—” she stammered. “What’s in the bag?”

“Percy and Abel loaned mi a fresh pair o’ swim trunks and
what they call a t-shirt. Mi kilt and shirt seem to have gone missing.”

“They’re not missing,” Caledonia said, turning toward the
table. She lifted the clean, folded clothes and held them out to him. “I washed
them.”

“Thank you,” he replied, taking them from her and setting
them back on the table. “I greatly appreciate your kindness, but I won’t be
needing them until later.”

He nodded then walked toward the stairs.

“Do you remember how everything works in the bathroom?” she
asked.

“Aye, milady,” he answered, shooting her a coy smile across
his shoulder. “If I have any concerns on how things operate, I will call for
your assistance.”

Her cheeks flushed and brought a smile to his lips. The
function of the modern bathroom had been described to him in detail on his
first night of release, when he asked where he might relieve himself. Now he
was anxious to freshen. Personal cleanliness ranked high on his agenda. Though
he had spent the night in the water with Caledonia and knew he was clean, he
felt itchy from being frozen in stone wrapped in neoprene as she had called it.

It took him a few minutes to work through the steps of
running the water once he reached the bathroom. Turning knobs to maintain the
perfect temperature amazed him. Even though he’d done it before, he stooped and
looked under the sink for a hidden heat source. Again there was no fire. Struan
straightened. Now that he mastered the art of the sink, he turned to the
shower.

A few adjustments and the water felt comfortable to the
touch. He shed the trunks and stepped into the shower. Percy was right. A hot
shower and the itchiness disappeared. He washed from head to toe with the
fresh-scented soap, rinsed, then simply stood in the steady stream for a few
moments. The constant pulse to his neck, shoulders and back put images in his
head of delicate fingers swirling and kneading his flesh.

He imagined Caledonia’s fingers caressed him, sparking his
desire to life. Her lips touched his in a delicate invitation then retreated,
leaving him hungry for a sample of her flavor. Involuntarily, he leaned forward
as if chasing after her mouth. Water pelted his face.

Struan’s eyes flew wide open. He shut the water off and
stepped out, staring at the empty stall. Never had anything tickled his senses
as the magic of this shower. It not only cleaned and relaxed him, it led his
mind to think of the one thing that kept him sane during his day of
imprisonment. Caledonia.

Och.
His balls ached with need for that lovely lady.
Struan toweled dry and did his best to think of things less enticing than
Caledonia. It wasn’t until he fought with the clean swim trunks that he managed
to set aside his thoughts of lust and wondered just how men’s shafts survived
such snug clothing. He pulled the t-shirt Abel loaned him on over his head like
it had been explained and straightened it. Again, a tight fit. Struan tugged at
the neckline, flexed his shoulders and arms in an attempt to stretch the
fabric. It helped a little but not much.

He gathered the dirty suit and towel then bounded down the
stairs. Aileen met him in the kitchen and took the items and directed him to
meet the others down on the dock. Struan grabbed his clothes off the table. She
handed him a scone and scooted him out the door. After he put his clothes in
the shed, he joined the others on the boat and they shoved off for deeper
waters.

“Tonight,” Caledonia announced as she turned to face him.
“We’re going to at least fifty feet. Think you can handle it?”

The breeze fluttered a few escapees from her braid to frame
her face. The sight of her dressed in a diving suit with her curves accentuated
made his cock stir. He knew if he didn’t do something soon, all would know just
how much he wanted Caledonia.

“Aye,” he replied right before he peeled off the shirt and
quickly busied himself with the diving suit Percy handed him. He arched an
eyebrow and leveled a playful gaze her way. “I can handle anything ye have for
mi.”

His innuendo didn’t go unnoticed by Caledonia. The heat in
his eyes confirmed what she thought she’d heard in his tone. When he’d gone to
take a shower, every ounce of her wanted to follow him up the stairs.
To
make sure he was okay, not to join him.
She’d battled with her conscience
before taking the chicken’s way out and leaving the house entirely before she
did something stupid.

Then the sight of him casually strolling across the yard to
the dock had nearly stopped her heart. The man truly looked good in swim trunks
and a t-shirt. Silently she prayed for the strength to keep her hands to
herself and teach him to dive. He had a goal he wanted to reach before he
returned home and she promised to help him. When he bent over in front of her,
stepped into the dive suit and did a little wiggle as he pulled it up, it was
all she could do not to drop her jaw and drool. She spun around.

Lord help her. The best she could hope for was that the
water was extra cold tonight. But she doubted even a day of sitting in a barrel
of solid ice would take the edge off the razor-sharp need cutting through her
for Struan at that moment. She’d thought of nothing but him all day. And she
hoped their little sampling of each other earlier was only the beginning.
Caledonia double- and triple-checked the equipment while the others dressed for
the dive. When they reached the spot she’d suggested for their venture, Poppa
cut the engine and weighed anchor.

As soon as they were ready, all four went over the side.
When her eyes adjusted, it amazed her how well Struan did. He took to diving
like a master. She hung back and took it all in, keeping close to the group
while enjoying the sight of Struan exploring the underworld with the giddy
excitement of a child with a new toy. With Percy and Abel’s help, she managed
to take him to the fifty-foot mark without difficulty. They worked as a team
leading, guiding and teaching. And even a couple of times, she noted a bit of
horseplay. Boys. She sighed and shook her head.

It tore at her heart to motion time to surface was near.
Struan swam beside her, took her hand then laid something in her palm. She
aimed the light so she could see. It sparkled slightly. It was the oddest rock
she’d ever seen. When she looked back at him, she swore he smiled around his
regulator. She nodded then made the signal again that it was time to surface.
She tucked it into the pouch she kept at her waist for trinkets and treasures
she might find along the way. When she took the lead he followed, as did Percy
and Abel.

They broke the surface after an hour of diving. Percy and
Abel were the first out of the water. Struan swam close to Caledonia. As they
bobbed in the water, he smiled at her. The mask sat on top of his head. His
regulator hung from his shoulder. He looked the picture-perfect part of a diver
on a sports magazine.

Caledonia wanted nothing more than to kiss him, but
refrained when Percy reached over the edge to take her fins and helped her up
the ladder. Struan followed. He fit right in with the O’Reillys. They showed
him how to stow the gear and check for damage. As per their dive plan, they
reasoned it would be best for Struan to take him down deeper in increments. Two
dives tonight. One at fifty feet, the second at sixty and see how he did.

While Percy and Abel kept him busy, she slipped the rock out
of her pouch and held it to the light. It was oddly shaped. Smooth on one side
and rough on the other, but pretty. She looked over at Struan who stared across
Percy’s shoulder at her. She couldn’t help but smile. When Percy pointed
something out to him on the dive chart in his hand, Struan’s gaze fell from
hers to the chart, but not before it left a warm glow inside her soul. Yeah,
the man was perfect even if he was over two hundred years old.

They ate, rested, played with the kitten and fished for
several hours before they moved to deeper waters for the last dive of the
night. It went well. Struan did phenomenal. At the rate he was learning and
adapting to the water depths and pressures, she didn’t doubt his abilities to
take on extreme depth with the proper diving education. But was he willing to
wait and take it in the slow increments she knew were necessary to build his
skills?

The question gnawed at her the entire way back to the dock.
Excitement flowed off him with every dive. She watched him interact with Percy,
Abel and her poppa as if they were lifelong pals. It warmed her heart. But it
saddened her as well. Once they reached the bottom and he made his peace, would
he be gone? When he looked her way and smiled, she returned the smile. It was
wrong to want more. But she did.

* * * * *

They docked and helped load the scuba tanks into the van for
Poppa to take in the morning for refilling. Struan and Caledonia lingered,
sitting on the end of the dock after the O’Reillys left for home and Poppa went
to bed, taking the kitten to the house with him. Side by side, they quietly
looked out over the loch, taking in the silence of the late-night hour.

Struan’s hand wheedled its way to hers. He lifted it to his
lips and pressed a gentle kiss across her knuckles. “I meant what I said,
Caledonia. Ye have given mi a precious gift by teaching mi to dive. It is one
o’ which I can never repay.”

“You don’t have to repay me anything, Struan. It’s my
pleasure.”

His eyebrow arched and a mischievous look crossed his face.
“Your pleasure is teaching mi?”

“Aye.”

He leaned in closer, tipped her chin up toward him and on a
husky breath whispered, “Pleasure comes in many forms. One is in a kiss.”

Slow and delicate, he tasted her lips. He slid an arm around
her waist and held her close. He captured her mouth in a passionate kiss. He
tasted Caledonia’s mouth—rich, feminine with a hint of sugar ‘n’ spice. One
hand held her in an embrace while the other released her braid.

Thick, dark strands twisted in his fingers as he combed
through her hair, loosening the last weave to flow along her back and fall
below her waist. He let its soft texture slowly drift from his fingertips only
to stroke his hand through its length again. The sensation in his palm as he
caressed its silkiness from shoulder to the enticing curve of her bottom sent
an image to his brain he couldn’t deny. He wanted her, to have her ride him
using her hair to shield them in a curtain of deep, dark silk as they fulfilled
each other’s desires.

Struan broke from the kiss. Placing his forehead to hers, he
inhaled. A mixture of the loch and pure woman combined and gave him the perfect
aroma he’d forever associate with being Caledonia.

“Caledonia,” he whispered. “I’ve thought o’ nothing but ye
while I lay cursed.”

The brush of her hand to the front of his swim trunks made
his hardened shaft twitch. He met her ardent gaze and prayed he read her right.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and attacked his mouth in the hottest kiss
he’d ever experienced. Without breaking the connection, he lifted her as he
stood. Her legs hugged his waist as he carried her to the shed. One arm held
her tight while the other closed the door behind them. Caledonia flicked on the
light with her foot as they entered.

For every kiss he placed upon her, she matched it hot and
hurriedly. She released his neck and worked her cover-up off over her head.
Struan nipped at her left breast through her swimsuit and suckled the pointy
tip into his mouth. Her gasp fueled his desire. He grabbed the material in his
teeth and tugged. Caledonia squirmed until she worked the straps off her
shoulders and down her arms, freeing her breasts for his delight.

He suckled from one glorious breast to the other, nipping
and tugging until both nipples were reddened buds. Each tender bite to her
flesh garnered him a sensual wiggle of her against his cock, increasing his
need to be inside her. The grip of her legs around his hips tightened with
every tug of her nipple deep into his mouth. Though she’d warned against it
earlier, he sensed she liked a bit o’ roughness in her bed.

Struan swiped the table clear with one arm while still
ravishing her breast with his mouth and holding on to her. He laid her on the
table. Her legs lingered loosely around his hips. Her breasts rose and fell
with each heavy intake of air in a teasing dance that watered his mouth. He
grabbed the swimsuit and peeled it down her luxurious body.