Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“Theo?” Lavina’s voice broke with uncertainty.
“Ye’re fine,” he whispered as his lips grazed over her inner thigh so tenderly it caused her legs to tremble. “Ye need only say the word, and I’ll stop,” Theo said, his voice low, stirring the passion brewing within her.
Lavina trembled, loving how his body quivered beneath her touch, despite her unsteady, inexperienced hands.
“I’ll move to the fire and sleep on the floor once more if that’s what ye desire.”
With a trembling hand, she ran her fingertips over his jawline, feeling his rough stubble. She dared not speak, certain her voice would give away her nervousness.
Was she scared? Yes. There was no masking that truth.
Every nerve in her body tingled as Theo stroked her curves with reverence.
He stared at her as if she were the only one in the world who could sedate his needs.
The longing and yearning brewing and festering behind his stoic expression didn’t fool her one bit.
But it did anchor her, like a ship safe in port.
“Ye have to ken,” Theo whispered, his voice thick with awe as he nestled between her legs, “ye’re the most stunnin’ thing I’ve ever seen.”
Lavina had to remind herself to breathe as he peeled away each layer of fabric, slow and deliberate, until only a thin muslin shift veiled her nakedness. She had never felt so exposed, so vulnerable, yet so safe.
The tiny voice of doubt that had long plagued her thoughts and poisoned her heart against her husband had vanished.
“Oh my,” she gasped, her breath catching as she felt his wet tongue graze her sex.
“Do ye want me to stop?” Theo asked, his voice muffled against the soft skin of her inner thigh.
Lavina wasn’t sure what she wanted. The sensation was too new to reject, but strange enough to make her draw back if only for a second.
Still, it wasn’t a stranger between her legs. It was Theo. Her husband.
“Nay,” she whispered.
When Theo froze, she reached for his head and gently guided him back down.
“I want more. I want everything ye’re willin’ to give me.”
“Are ye sure that’s what ye want?” he asked, his kisses lingering like hot coals against the tender skin of her thighs.
He emerged from under her shift, his gaze burning with a hunger that seemed to awaken every part of her.
Lavina bobbed her head, breathless, aching, as his hand trailed up her thigh, gathering the fabric and pushing it higher before tossing it to the corner of the room.
“Nay, dinnae cover yerself,” Theo murmured, his voice sultry and deep. “I want to remember how lovely ye look in the moonlight.”
He carefully pried her arms from her chest, baring her to his ravenous gaze. Her heart raced faster than a startled crow as she lay naked beneath him, vulnerable in every way.
She waited, braced for judgment, for hesitation… for rejection.
“Tell me what ye’re thinkin’,” she said, her voice a fragile whisper in the space between them.
Shock and confusion flickered across Theo’s features.
“Do ye really nae ken how stunnin’ ye are?” he asked, his voice husky with disbelief.
Heat flooded her cheeks as he crawled over her, his hand rising to cradle her face. Slowly, he bent low until they shared the same breath.
“Ye have enchanted me,” he murmured, his confession falling into her like sunlight through cracks in old stone, warming parts of her she’d long kept hidden.
“I want ye,” she whispered.
“Then take me,” he said. “But ken this—I willnae take what isnae freely given. Ye’ve already given too much out of duty.”
She reached up, her thumb brushing gently over his bottom lip. “But I do want ye,” she insisted, her voice steady now, the certainty in it surprising her.
Theo crushed his mouth to hers, and the hunger in that kiss filled her with need
Lavina’s eyes widened. He was breathtaking.
Sun-kissed skin stretched over powerful muscle, every inch of him shaped by labor and life.
She bit her lip as she dared to brush her fingers over the silver streaks across his ribs and back.
The stripes made her want to cry, but at the same time, they showed her how much Theo had gone through in his life before her.
But it wasn’t his body that mesmerized her. It was the way he looked at her, as though she were sacred.
As he returned to her, she realized something with startling clarity: she had never felt safer.
“Tell me if I go too fast,” he murmured, brushing a lock of hair from her face, “or if I hurt ye.”
“Ye willnae hurt me,” Lavina whispered.
He growled—a low, male sound of hunger—and crushed his lips to hers again.
The kiss was unbridled, fierce, claiming her in ways that unraveled her soul. His lips trailed down her neck, teasing her flesh until goosebumps rose in their wake. Her legs parted of their own accord, her body no longer listening to reason.
Theo kissed lower, his tongue licking along her collarbone, and his hands followed, mapping her curves as if learning them by heart.
“Theo,” she gasped, her fingers tangling in his hair.
He looked up, desire burning in his gaze, and she could no longer deny the fire consuming her.
“Please,” she breathed. “I want ye.”
Her breath hitched the moment his hips shifted and his fingers slid between her thighs.
She gasped. Every part of her was acutely aware of him.
“Ye’re tremblin’,” he murmured, his mouth brushing against her neck.
His hot breath tickled her skin, stirring another whirlwind of emotions within her.
“I’ve never…” Her voice broke, the words catching in her throat. “Nay one’s ever touched me like this.”
Theo’s movements slowed, his touch reverent, as though honoring the truth she had just shared.
“Ye deserve to be worshipped,” he whispered, kissing the line of her jaw as his fingers continued their gentle, deliberate work.
Lavina melted under his touch. Each stroke, each caress unspooled the fear and shame she had once carried like armor.
Theo held his breath, his heart fluttering wildly with anticipation and wonder at her trust. Then, he whispered, “Allow me to be the first to show ye what it means to be wanted.”
His fingers moved slowly, reverently, coaxing her out of the shell she’d lived in for so long.
Her body responded in ways she hadn’t expected—eager, yearning, alive. Every time Theo hesitated, every time he gave her the chance to pull away, she only begged him for more. She ground her hips against him, needing to feel every inch of him.
Theo touched her as if she were made of air and moonbeams, of something fragile and divine. Her breath caught as he shifted between her legs, his hard length pressing against her inner thigh, aching with restraint.
“We can stop here if ye want,” he offered, breathless and trembling.
Lavina leaned up and brushed her lips with his. “Dinnae think. Just do it. I want this… I want ye to be the one.”
Theo’s hips settled between her parted thighs, and she felt his hard, heated length against her sex. More warmth rushed through her as her breath hitched.
He went still. “Are ye hurt?”
She shook her head quickly. “Nay, ye willnae hurt me. I trust ye.”
Three simple words. So terrifying. So true.
Theo kissed her again—deeply—before guiding himself to her entrance. His hand trembled as he moved, and Lavina wrapped her arms around his shoulders, anchoring herself to this moment.
He pushed forward slowly, as gently as possible.
She gasped, biting her lower lip, her nails digging into his back as her body adjusted to his size. She had never felt such fullness. Such closeness.
Theo stopped, holding himself perfectly still, his forehead pressed to hers. “I’m sorry… We can stop. I can wait,” he whispered, peppering her face with kisses.
Tears pooled in her eyes, not from pain, but from his overwhelming tenderness. “Nay. Dinnae stop. Just… slow down.”
He nodded, moving with careful precision.
Lavina then gripped his forearms, her breath catching with each stroke as tremors rippled through her.
He was holding back. Every thrust was restrained, reverent.
And then the discomfort disappeared.
Her breath stuttered as heat bloomed within her, surging through her limbs like wildfire. The fire he lit could only be coaxed by his touch—consuming, unspeakable, and utterly divine.
Lavina gulped as pleasure drilled through her being with each powerful roll of his hips.
“Oh, dear… please… dinnae stop.”
Theo groaned and obeyed.
He thrust deeper, no longer holding back. Her body welcomed him, clung to him, as if it had always been his. Her back arched, pressing her breasts to his chest, and her legs wrapped tightly around his waist. His name tumbled from her lips again and again until it was no longer a name, but a prayer.
Theo thrust harder, deeper, his hips snapping with raw need. The heat in his body collided with hers as her cry rang out, echoing off the walls.
The world fell away.
“I cannae,” he rasped in her ear, his teeth grazing her lobe. “I willnae last… Christ, Lavina—”
The popping of logs in the grate echoed like distant thunder in her ears, swallowed by the pounding of her heart and the frantic whoosh of her breath.
Lavina couldn’t speak. Could barely think. Her body felt unstitched, her soul laid bare. She kept her eyes on Theo as he finally pulled out of her and collapsed beside her, pulling her into the warmth of his arms.
“If ye werenae aware before,” he panted, his voice low and hoarse, “ye should ken it now.”
She nuzzled into the crook of his arm, every muscle limp, every breath shallow.
“And what’s that?” she murmured.
“That ye’re mine now.”
The sun rays spilled through the narrow crack in the curtain, slicing through the shadows.
Lavina stirred beneath the furs, stretching the sleep from her limbs.
A lazy smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she recalled the reason her body ached so deliciously.
Heat blossomed in her cheeks, and her gaze shifted to the man beside her.
Theo.
Last night had not been a dream. His weight pressed gently into the mattress beside her, one arm flung over his head.
“Ye’re starin’,” he mumbled, his eyes still closed.
Lavina smiled wider, drinking him in. “Nay, I’m nae,” she lied sheepishly.
Theo peeked through slitted lids.
Even groggy with sleep, he was devastatingly handsome, more so in the golden hush of morning light than she could have imagined. His hair was mussed, his lips still puckered from sleep—or something else—and his stubble caught the sun just right.
Before she could admire him any longer, he suddenly bolted upright.
“What time is it?” he asked, his voice strained.
“I dinnae ken. Why?”
“There’s a council meeting this morning—first thing.” His eyes went wide. “I’ve got to go.”
Without hesitation, he threw the covers back and leaped from the bed. His tall frame moved quickly, almost comically, as he scrambled to gather his clothes from various corners of the room.
Lavina couldn’t help but giggle at the sight. Memories of him tossing each garment aside with reckless abandon the night before made her cheeks flush.
He slipped on whatever he could to cover what he could, mumbling curses as he stepped on a boot and nearly tripped over his discarded belt. His focus was singular, all urgency and motion, as he charged toward the door.
Not a pause. Not a kiss. Not a backward glance.
Lavina’s heart sank.
But just as his hand gripped the door handle, he turned. His expression softened the moment their eyes met.
“Sorry,” he whispered, before rushing back to the bed. He leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, his lips warm and lingering. “I’ll have to get used to wishin’ ye a good day.”
Lavina looked up at him, trying not to let the tears of affection blur her vision.
“I’ll send ye a tray, so ye dinnae have to do anything today. Just rest. Take care of yerself.” His hand brushed her cheek before he straightened.
And with that, he was gone.
Lavina lay back against the pillows, her heart soaring even as the door clicked shut.
She pulled the furs up to her chin, breathing in his scent as she realized one thing was certain—Theo had changed her. For better or worse, she was his now, and she reveled in it.