My Daring Highlander (10 page)

“Are you injured?” Seona asked
her.

“’
Tis my ankle. We
dismounted during the gale and I stepped on a rock that rolled. I
felt something pop in my ankle, then I fell to the
ground.”

“Did you break a bone?”

“Nay, Laird MacKay examined it and
said ’tis more likely I have sprained it or pulled something.” She
glanced at Dirk where he stood a few yards away with
Isobel.

’Twas good news at least that nothing
was broken. “Can you stand?” Seona asked.

“I know not. Can you help me
up?”

“Aye.” Seona grabbed one of her hands,
while Isobel rushed forward and took the other. Patience was not a
heavy woman, but it appeared Seona and Isobel were supporting most
of her weight. Her aunt winced. “Ow! I think I’ll not be able
to.”

They lowered her to the ground
again.

Rebbie and the guards arrived, leading
Juliana. Seona was glad to see the mare had calmed herself and was
uninjured. But Seona was unsure whether she was ready to ride the
horse again. She would have nightmares about that frantic ride
across the moor.

“We need to be going,” Dirk said, loud
enough for everyone to hear.

Members of their party strode forward
and mounted. Hugh MacMillan lifted Aunt Patience into her
saddle.

“I no longer trust Seona’s daft mare,”
Keegan told Dirk, loud enough for her aunt to hear. “She’s going to
ride with me.”

“She should.” Dirk nodded. “’Twould be
far safer.”

Seona felt her face heat, certain her
glaring aunt would protest. But she kept her lips sealed tight,
apparently thinking better of opposing the chief. But Seona would
likely get an earful later.

***

Sitting behind him with her arms
around his waist, Seona enjoyed riding with Keegan several miles
south. Despite her weariness, she’d never felt more alive. ’Twas
the most enjoyable part of the journey thus far, aside from the
stolen kisses. Each time she thought of them, her body heated all
over and she hoped no one could tell what she was thinking. The
fact that she was riding astride with him so close in front of her
didn’t help. Her body felt strange and tingly, just as it had
during the kisses they’d shared.

Though she tried to keep some distance
between them, her hands on the firm muscles of his abdomen and
waist constantly made her wonder what he would feel like naked. She
shouldn’t be having such scandalous thoughts; she certainly never
had in the past. But they came to her mind and would not leave her
be.

Being held in Keegan’s arms was one of
the few joys she’d experienced in life. And his kiss was pure
decadence.

’Twas true that she was a virgin who
had never been kissed prior to the night before, but now she found
herself growing more and more curious about physical relations
between men and women. No one had seen fit to educate her about
such things thus far. Likely, a lot of naïve young ladies were in
the same situation, until their wedding night when they found out
first hand. She was not sure whether the bedding would be horrible
or enjoyable. She suspected, with Keegan, it could only be
enjoyable.

The sky was temperamental all day, but
no more gales blew in, thank heavens. They rode into the evening.
Huge gray clouds rolled in, bringing an earlier gloaming than
usual. On the western horizon, sunset illuminated the clouds in
bright pink, orange and violet.

She was thankful when they came upon a
group of three thatched-roof stone cottages by a small loch so she
could stretch her sore legs.

“We’ll have to see if we can stay the
night here,” Dirk said to Keegan as they dismounted. “I want the
women safe inside one of the cottages.”

“Aye. I like that idea,” Keegan said,
helping Seona down.

But who knew if the occupants were
friendly? Of course, Highland hospitality dictated that Scots be
welcomed, especially a chief and his entourage. She hoped that
would be the case this time. She didn’t relish sleeping in a tent
again.

A few minutes later, the smiling
crofters welcomed them to stay the night. They considered it an
honor to host a chief, his wife, and the rest of the
party.

Oran, the MacKay cook, helped two of
the women prepare a huge meal from pooled resources. The crofter
even cast his net into the small loch and hauled out several trout
to add to the small feast.

After they ate, her aunt decided it
was time for the women to wash up. They’d gotten muddy crossing the
moor after that gale.

“You bathe first, Aunt Patience. I
will later,” Seona said, then went outside while their maids helped
her aunt with a sponge bath. Before their meal, Seona had washed
her face and hands in the loch. She couldn’t wait to sink into a
luxurious tub of hot water, but that was not likely to happen until
they reached a castle.

Isobel talked with Dirk some distance
away, near the horses. How cozy they looked, holding hands and
murmuring. He kissed her cheek. Seona envied and idealized their
love so much her chest ached. Isobel was lucky to have found such a
deep passion. Seona longed for a happy marriage like theirs. An
image of Keegan’s face sprang to her mind.

Lest she be caught staring at Isobel
and Dirk, Seona glanced away from them and, turning in a half
circle, she noticed four guards standing at attention around the
perimeter, their gazes scanning the surrounding hillsides while one
watched the trail they’d arrived on. They certainly had no time to
spare her a glance. She felt much safer knowing they took their
jobs so seriously.

A yell and a loud laugh echoed in the
opposite direction. But the guards did not seem concerned about it.
What was going on? She followed the noise into the low-growing
trees and bushes at the edge of the loch, then peered
through.

Several of the men were
chest deep in the loch.
And naked.
She gasped. Although it was dusk, she could
clearly see their skin. Some had chests near hairy as a wolf, while
others only had a small amount of body hair, their chest and
abdominal muscles showing through.

Her eyes sought out Keegan. Where was
he? Someone emerged from beneath the water’s surface and flung his
hair back. Her breath held, she squinted. Aye, ’twas him. His
shoulders were incredibly wide and muscular. She was glad to see he
wasn’t one of the furry men. His back and arms appeared smooth and
sleek. When he turned, she saw that his chest only had a light
amount of hair which tapered into an intriguing line down his
ridged abdomen.

As he waded toward the bank, his body
emerged from the water, inch by glorious inch. His lean lower
abdomen, his trim hips, his…. “Oh my,” she whispered, then covered
her mouth. She had never seen a completely naked man before. The
male parts between his legs both shocked and amazed her. The light
was too dim to see much detail, but she saw dangly parts that were
substantial in size.

“Who are you spying on?” The whisper
came from behind her.

She jumped and spun. Only her hand
over her mouth prevented her squeal from emerging.

Isobel waited there with a wicked
grin.

Lowering her hand, Seona took in a few
deep breaths and tried to calm her rapid heartbeat. “You scared the
life out of me, Isobel.”

She snickered and sent a quick glance
through the bushes. “You are being a very naughty lass.”

Seona placed her hands on her burning
cheeks. “Aye. ’Tis true. I pray you won’t tell Aunt
Patience.”

“Don’t be silly. I would tell her
naught. Did you see anything over there you liked?”

Seona left the bushes, heading toward
a sheep enclosure out to the side of the cottages. “Don’t tease me,
I beg of you.”

Isobel kept pace beside her. “I cannot
help myself. ’Tis too much fun.”

“You’re incorrigible.”

“Dirk thinks so, too.” Once they
stopped at the sheep pen, Isobel whispered, “I have been wondering
all day whether Keegan kissed you today after he rescued you. When
you two returned, you seemed very cozy.”

Seona’s face felt like an inferno.
Thank the heavens for the low light of gloaming.

“I won’t tell anyone,” Isobel
whispered.

“Do you promise?” Seona
asked.

“Aye, of course, I promise.” She
placed a hand over her heart.

Seona nodded. “Aye,” she
admitted, though she could not bring herself to say
Keegan kissed me.
“Unfortunately, Laird Rebbinglen happened upon us. I pray he
tells no one.”

Isobel snorted softly. “He may tease
Keegan about it, but he won’t tell your aunt. That is a
fact.”

Seona relaxed a bit, hoping she was
right.

“And how was it?” Isobel
inquired.

Seona considered for a moment, trying
to think of the right word. But there was none to describe how
she’d felt when Keegan kissed her. “Wonderful.”

“Well, ’tis only natural that you’d
want to know what he looks like naked, then.”

“Shh.” Seona spun to see if anyone
else was listening. They were alone, thank the heavens. “I heard a
noise. I didn’t know the men were bathing. What a
shock.”

Isobel giggled. “Last November, I was
in a similar situation, wishing to know what Dirk looked like
completely bare of clothes. I was fortunate one night when he
needed help with his bath. I volunteered for the task.” Isobel bit
her lip to hold back a naughty grin.

Seona shook her head, unable to
believe how daring Isobel had been. Seona wished to be just as
confident. If she was, could she have everything she wanted just as
Isobel did?

“That night turned out to be quite
amazing.” Isobel smiled wistfully.

Seona wanted to ask what she meant,
but couldn’t bring herself to pry about such a private matter. But
maybe she could ask a general question to satisfy some of her
curiosity. “My aunt would never tell me anything about… you know…
the marriage bed. And my mother passed when I was too young to know
about such things.”

“I’m sorry to hear this.” Isobel
appeared pensive for a moment. “My maid tried to educate me about
what goes on between men and women, but she did a poor job. She
told me sexual relations with a man was the worst thing imaginable.
Like torture.”

“Was she wrong?” Seona asked, unsure
what Isobel meant.

“If a woman is forced against her
will, it would be like torture, aye. But with the right man—a man
you are in love with—there is naught in the world like a proper
bedding.”

What did she mean by
proper
bedding? Surely
’twas one of the least proper things imaginable. “Why?” Seona
asked.

“How did you feel when Keegan kissed
you?”

Seona’s whole body flushed and burned.
“Heavens. I know not how to describe it. ’Twas like standing next
to a bonfire, but at the same time, my mind floated away on the
clouds.” She would not mention how certain parts of her body
awakened with a quickening excitement.

“Indeed. Making love to a man you are
strongly drawn to is like that, only a hundred times more intense
and exciting. The kisses, the touches. The need to have him fill
that void.”

Seona held her breath for she was
certain she was going to learn more than she’d ever expected. “Is
it painful?”

“I will admit it hurt the first time,
but only for a minute or two,” Isobel said, then shrugged. “After
that, there was naught but an overwhelming pleasure that I couldn’t
have imagined before I experienced it.”

When Seona realized her eyes were wide
as platters, she blinked and tried to appear nonchalant. She didn’t
want Isobel to think her a complete idiot. She had seen animals
mating and knew human mating had to be much the same. Back at home,
she had heard a couple of maids working in a chamber, giggling and
talking about a man one of them had a tryst with. They had gone
into some detail about his large shaft, but Seona still had a
difficult time understanding how things worked.

“What is hard to imagine is
how…certain parts would fit,” Seona said. ’Twas even harder to
imagine since she’d caught a glimpse of Keegan’s masculine parts
minutes ago.

“Aye, I wondered the same thing,”
Isobel said in a whisper. “’Tis true when a man becomes aroused,
his member becomes larger, harder and it stands at
attention.”

“In truth? Larger?” Seona was afraid
to ask how large.

“Aye, but apparently, a woman’s body
is designed to accommodate his size, whether he is small or large.
When he kisses you, strokes his fingers over you, you will start to
feel very warm and tingly in certain places.” Isobel
grinned.

Aye, Seona could understand that.
She’d already marveled at how tingly Keegan had made her feel
during their kisses. ’Twas a spellbinding feeling which stole her
thoughts and only made her want more.

“A purely primal urge will overcome
you and you cannot wait for him to… how should I say
this?”