Chapter 8
“I’m startin’ to think that ye were put on this earth to torture me.”
His words rolled round and round in her head.
His lips pressed firmly against hers, impossibly hot, just like his hands.
Fingertips traced down the curve of her side, brushing her hip and moving along the line of her spine.
He pulled her closer, deepening the kiss.
Her hands moved instinctively, and she tightened her grip on his shoulder.
When had she shut her eyes? All she could see was the inside of her eyelids, flickering with red light.
Her scar!
The memory of that rushed through Nora’s mind, filling her with panic. Could he feel her scar against his lips as he kissed her? Did it disgust him?
The tip of his tongue brushed her bottom lip, and Nora let out a ragged gasp, her jaw slackening almost by itself. Warmth flooded through her, a pulse beginning to beat between her legs. It was that feeling, that intense and frightening rush of desire, which woke Nora up from her haze.
What am I doin’? This is nae why I am here.
She gave a muffled cry, her breath warm against his lips, and pushed feebly on his chest.
He released her at once, stepping back. Nora bumped back against the dresser, hard. Something jingled and fell over. She had no idea what it was. It didn’t matter; none of it mattered.
For a moment, there was silence. They stared at each other, eyes wide.
Nora could not quite take in enough air, her lungs tightening with each breath.
And yet, she was breathing, she must be.
Creighton’s lips were slightly reddened, and it struck Nora that the redness came from their kiss.
It was tempting to lift a hand to her own lips, to see if hers were red and tender too, but she held back.
Curling her hands around the edge of the dresser, Nora took a shaky breath and waited for him to speak first. Wild possibilities spun through her mind.
What will he say? Will he beg me forgiveness? Will he tell me that he’s fallin’ in love with me? Will he insist that I leave at once?
“I should nae have done that,” Creighton muttered, half turning away. “That was foolish. Beyond foolish.”
Nora came crashing down to earth with that simple statement.
“Aye,” she managed weakly. “It was foolish. But ye cannae simply blame yerself.”
“Can I nae? I am older and wiser, am I nae?”
She bristled. “Nae by much, surely.”
He lifted a dark eyebrow. “Oh, nay? What age are ye, then?”
She considered lying, but there was something about his unflinching, steely stare that made her think twice.
“Four-and-twenty,” she muttered, tossing back her hair.
He chuckled. “I am almost thirty.”
“Well, then, we are both adults.”
“Aye, adults who ken exactly what rests on this betrothal. I have said it before, and I’ll say it again.
This betrothal is nothin’ of the sort. We are nae goin’ to be wed; we are nae friends.
We arenae even allies, nae yet. So, I will do better in the future.
We’ll keep our distance from each other.
That was nae meant to happen, and I’ll take care that it does nae happen again. ”
Well. That was reassuring, wasn’t it? She should be relieved. She was definitely relieved, although at the moment, it was fair that she only felt confused and a little uneasy. Very fair. More than fair.
The tightness in her core had not gone away. It ached, a constant pulse that refused to let her entirely settle.
Perhaps if I ignore it entirely, it will go away. Perhaps.
“As I said before, I did nae sleep in yer bed, me Laird,” she managed.
He eyed her for a long moment. “I suppose it is pointless to ask why ye were in me room in the first place. I’ll nae get a straight answer.”
She tightened her jaw. “Am I in trouble? Do ye plan to toss me in the dungeons?”
Maybe if he sent me to the dungeons, I could search for Margaret. The circumstances would be less than ideal, but…
He rolled his eyes. “Of course, I willnae be sendin’ ye to the dungeons. How I treat ye here is the model yer laird will follow when it comes to how he treats me cousin.”
Nora drew herself up. “Laird Bryden is a man of honor. He will treat yer cousin well.”
“Aye, but me cousin is nae a woman of honor, and therein lies the problem,” he muttered darkly. “But nay matter. We’ll keep apart from now on. I’m sure ye agree that is the best thing to do, aye?”
“Aye,” she echoed, wondering why her own voice sounded so tense and taut in her head. Of course, he was right. It seemed pointless now to deny that she did find him attractive, not that it meant anything. And he kissed her, so that must mean…
Best nae to complete that thought. She cleared her throat, resisting the urge to lift her fingers to her mouth and chew her nails. Instead, she stood still, staring at him. He stared back, his eyes dark and his face unreadable.
What am I missin’? What is it about him that prevents me from understandin’? Why does he make me feel as though I am slowly going mad? In a good way, that is. If a person can go mad in a good way.
“I should go,” he said abruptly, turning away. At once, he strode back around the bed to the center of the room. With more distance between them, Nora felt strangely breathless. Lightheaded.
“If ye wish,” she managed. “I hope ye daenae blame yerself for this, though.”
He gave a short laugh, rounding on her. “Nay, lass, I blame ye. Stay out of me room. And while I never imagined I’d have to tell ye this too, stay out of me bed, do ye understand?”
She bridled, glowering at him. “Ye daenae have to tell me twice.”
He met her gaze, scowling. “Fine words for a lass who apparently just spent some time rolling about on me bed, of all things. When ye feel up to tellin’ me why ye chose to do that, I’ll be glad to hear it.
Good day to ye, lass. And needless to say, I’ll be lockin’ the adjoinin’ door from me side from now on. ”
Leaving her with a red face and the inevitable feeling of looking foolish, he turned on his heel and stomped back through the adjoining door, leaving her door swinging open.
She heard his door slam, and the bolt scrape into place.
Furious, Nora hurried over to her door, slammed it, and shot the bolt back in place.
“Insufferable man,” she ground out to herself. “If I daenae see him again for the rest of the year, I’ll consider meself lucky. Lucky!”
She hoped he heard her. Judging by the low, almost inaudible laughter coming from the room beside hers, it was possible that he did.
It’s nay good, Nora thought miserably. I willnae sleep.
Judging by the silvery moonlight streaming in through the window, it was probably around midnight, maybe just before. No noise came from the hall outside.
Her meal had been brought earlier, with dishes and plates of food still half-eaten, scattered around her room.
The maids who had delivered them, the same surly-faced women as before, hadn’t bothered to return to collect the dirty dishes.
Nora had thought about piling the plates outside her door on the ground, but that seemed likely to attract rats.
The room sweltered. Too hot, it was too hot. She was too hot. The sheets tangled around her, drenched in sweat, and she could not find a comfortable spot, despite sleeping in the softest, springiest bed she had ever encountered.
It was all his fault.
The kiss replayed in her mind again and again.
Nora, of course, had never been kissed before.
There hadn’t been enough time. Besides, no one had ever appealed to her in that way.
If you kissed someone, you should feel drawn to them so strongly that resisting would be impossible.
Nobody had ever made Nora feel like that.
She had seen it happen among her friends.
People seemed to be pulled toward each other, wide-eyed and curious. Nora never once felt that attraction.
Well, she was feeling it now. She’d felt it long before Creighton’s lips touched hers.
It’s just attraction. Just desire. He’s a handsome man, and it’s natural to feel drawn to him that way, she told herself sternly, ignoring the fact that she had met plenty of handsome men in her lifetime but never once felt the same tug of attraction.
No, tug wasn’t the right word. It was like somebody had jammed a fishhook in her guts, twisting it around to make the point stay, then tied the end of the line around Creighton. Then he’d walked away.
She shivered, turning onto her other side in an attempt to find a comfortable spot. There was already a damp patch on the pillow where she had sweat in the hot room.
She could still feel the heat of his lips pressed against hers, the swipe of his tongue against her lower lip.
It was just a touch, nothing more, but whenever he touched it now, it seemed to burn.
The ache in her gut remained. A pulsing want, demanding that she get up and do something, anything about it.
Turning over again, Nora found herself staring at the wall where the adjoining doorway stood.
Dark and silent, it was little more than a shadow in the gloom.
A double-locked shadow. He was probably in his room at that very moment, trying to sleep amongst the herby scent of his sheets, probably trying to figure out a way to avoid her tomorrow.
If he wanted to avoid me, he shouldnae have put me in the room adjoinin’ his. Or perhaps he had to do that, what with me bein’ his betrothed.
Nora rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. Outside, an owl hooted somewhere. Judging by the quality of the moonlight, it was a clear night, with scarcely a cloud in the sky to obscure the full moon.
I’m nae going to get to sleep, am I?