Chapter Eight
Sometime during the night, Mairead became dimly aware that Balor had brought them closer inland.
They had slept within the boat with his cloak covering them against the chill.
The heat of his body had warmed hers as they remained anchored off the coast. The sea had been calm, lazily drifting against the vessel.
She’d slept hard, comforted by his presence beside her. Balor had slept just as deeply, his arms and legs tangled around her. And she’d found that she didn’t mind it at all.
She didn’t know what to think of this man. He was troubled, born into a family who didn’t want him. And yet, he’d survived. He’d used their neglect to drive him towards becoming a different man, someone strong and confident.
Unlike her suitors, he had not been born into a life of wealth or status. He’d clawed his way from nothing into a man who had become a strong warrior. She couldn’t help but admire that.
But even more, with every moment at his side, her attraction grew stronger.
Being so close to Balor had only made it worse.
Right now, Mairead was fully aware of his body and the position of his hand so close to her breast. Against her spine, she could feel the hard shaft that made her grow soft and weak with wanting him.
Was it so wrong to desire a man’s touch?
Mairead slowed her breathing, wondering if she dared confess her longing.
She pushed her backside against him and didn’t miss the tension in his body when she felt the rigid evidence of his need.
He didn’t speak a word, behaving as if he were still asleep.
But his hand was perilously close to her breast. She shifted slightly until his fingers were upon the curve.
‘Are you wanting something, a mhuirnín?’ he whispered against her ear.
Yes. But she was afraid of what he might think of her if she was honest. He was so wrong for her…and yet, her body wasn’t listening to her mind. She craved a moment for herself, despite all the reasons it was wrong.
Silently, she took Balor’s hand and brought it beneath her tunic, loosening it until his hand cupped her bare breast. His thumb brushed against the erect nipple, and she bit her lip, the sensations of desire aching with every stroke.
‘Is this what you want?’ He rolled the nipple between his fingers, gripping her waist so she could feel every last inch of him against her backside.
It was, but she didn’t dare say it. There was a part of her that yearned to be touched, to feel like a woman instead of a king’s daughter. She knew this wasn’t fair to use him. But he also didn’t seem to mind.
She rolled over to face him, though she couldn’t see his face in the darkness. He continued exploring her breast, and the echoing ache between her legs made her skin grow hotter.
‘What do you want, Balor?’ she whispered, resting her hands upon his thundering heartbeat.
‘More than you can give,’ was his answer.
She didn’t know what to say to him. Her future felt as if it was out of her hands, no matter that she was trying to grasp control of her own life.
But she had this stolen moment with him.
His hand stilled upon her breast, though he didn’t move it away.
‘I know that I don’t deserve anything.’ He cupped her face with his other hand.
‘I’m the villain, remember? I haven’t earned the right to be with someone like you. ’
The darkness in his tone was a warning. But she didn’t care. Sometimes darkness was soothing, a quiet night that haunted her dreams with yearning.
‘We have time right now,’ she whispered. ‘Let it be enough.’
Balor’s mouth claimed hers, even as he tempted her with his teasing fingers, her nipple rising against him. When his tongue slid against her own, she opened to him, no longer caring that she was giving in to temptation.
‘But you came with me when I asked you to,’ she murmured against his mouth. ‘You’ve fought for me these past few weeks. And I’ve never really known why.’
He rested his forehead against hers. ‘Maybe because you seem to think there’s a part of me worth saving.’
A piece of her heart broke off at his words, and she kissed him this time, moving her hands over his face and down to his shoulders.
‘You are a man of honour,’ she said, her hands moving against his skin. ‘No matter what they say.’
‘I don’t feel honourable at all right now.’ The edge of his voice held a hint of frustration as his palm slid against her spine.
‘I don’t want you to be.’
At her words, his mouth claimed hers again with a fierce need, heating her skin until she was wet and aching.
‘I want to touch you,’ he murmured against her mouth. ‘Everywhere.’
She loosened the ties of the trews she wore and reached for his. Her hands were shaking, but she forced herself to admit the truth. ‘So do I.’
‘Your family would slit my throat if they knew what I was thinking right now,’ he said roughly. He reached back for the anchor and pulled it up, letting the tide pull them back out to sea.
The sky was still dark and clouded, but the faint crease of dawn had begun illuminating the edges of the horizon.
Their time together was slipping away, and she drew him back down to her.
‘I think you are the only man who has ever treated me like a woman instead of a pawn. You’ve kept me safe, even when it brought you into danger. ’
He pressed her back against the boat, his hard body poised over hers. ‘You are no man’s pawn. Not even mine.’
‘It’s hard to breathe when you touch me,’ she whispered. ‘And yet, I can’t catch my breath with the fear that you won’t.’
A hint of a smile caught his mouth. ‘Then let me discover exactly how to make you forget how to breathe, a mhuirnín.’
* * *
Balor had never imagined that this woman would desire someone like him. And her soft acquiescence was an offering that humbled him.
He would never dream of claiming her virginity—that was a husband’s right. But he fully intended to claim the right of a lover, tasting her skin and giving her pleasure.
She’d mistakenly believed he was an honourable man. Right now, honour was the furthest thing from his mind.
He helped her loosen the tunic, sliding it over her head until she was naked from the waist up. Gods above, but she was exquisite. In the faint dawn, shadows guarded the soft pink of her nipples. The generous curve of her breasts made his shaft rigid at the thought of touching her.
He kissed Mairead again, palming her breast and using his thumb to arouse her nipples. She was breathing heavier, arching against his touch.
And it was only natural when he trailed a path from her throat to one breast, covering the erect nipple with his tongue and mouth.
She gasped, her fingers digging into his hair while he explored her.
Oh, she most definitely liked that. He could feel her body trembling, and he drifted his mouth to the other breast, continuing to stroke the sweetness of the first.
He was so focused upon her, on tasting that soft skin and watching her unravel, that he didn’t notice until her bare palm closed around his erection.
He nearly shouted at the pleasure, and she squeezed him gently. ‘Does that…hurt you?’
‘No. But I’m not finished with you yet.’ He moved her hand away and slid her trews away, baring her womanhood. He caressed her stomach, inching a path lower, until she guided his hand between her legs.
She was slick and ready for him, something he hadn’t expected so soon. The moment he touched the hooded flesh above her entrance, she moaned.
She was so unbelievably sensitive. As he circled her, using her own wetness to smooth the touch, she grew more agitated. He paused, wondering if he should stop.
‘Balor,’ she pleaded. Her fingers were digging into his shoulder, but when he pressed a little too hard, she winced.
‘Show me,’ he demanded. He idly wondered if she had ever touched herself before.
But she brought his head back to her breast and demanded, ‘Kiss me here.’ Then she guided his finger inside her while she circled the flesh with his thumb.
He obeyed, and the change upon her was instantaneous. She shuddered as he moved his finger in and out, and he added a second finger, stroking her from within.
‘Gods above,’ she breathed. But she was moving against his rhythm, moaning as he suckled her nipple.
Mairead reached for him again, and this time, his trews loosened until his erection rested against her hip. ‘Don’t stop,’ she pleaded.
But he still wouldn’t dare take her offering. Instead, he continued his siege upon her womanhood, watching as she raised her knees, her body straining.
If he didn’t gather the threads of his self-control, he wouldn’t be able to stop. And so he withdrew his hand. His own breathing was unsteady, but he had an instinct of his own.
Without asking permission, he lifted her hips and tasted her intimately.
Mairead shattered at the first brush of his tongue upon her swollen flesh. She arched deeply, crying out as he licked and suckled her. ‘Balor, you—Oh, gods.’
This was heaven, he decided. She was utterly at his mercy, and he held the power to drive her over the edge until she found her fulfilment. Her hands dug into his hair, and he tasted her again as she came apart, her body trembling.
She was so responsive, he gloried in the way she gave herself to him. And although his own body was raging for more, he held himself back. This moment was for her.
Even if it was all they’d ever have.
* * *
Whatever Mairead had thought of Balor before, she’d been wrong. This man was nothing at all like she’d expected. He had no reason to travel with her across éireann to find her brother. It wasn’t his responsibility. But he’d somehow become her protector, and it warmed her.
Balor had hidden the boat amid the rocks past the shoreline before they began travelling on foot.