Chapter 20
Killian groaned as her lips parted for his hungry kiss. His hands swept down her slender back, and he pressed her body closer against his.
The kiss was intense, and the slow-burning fire in the pit of his loins erupted in a volcano of nerve-tingling flutters. He was on the verge of lifting her off the ground and taking her to the bed. That way, he knew he would spend the night exploring all the hidden pleasures of her innocence.
Killian wanted to taste her, savor her essence, and bury his throbbing hardness in her core.
Killian wanted to make love to her, and the way she responded to him made it harder for him to regain control.
His hands explored her back now. He had shifted her chemise so he could touch the bare skin of her back. Slowly, his fingers moved over the curve of her buttocks, cupping it tenderly as he stroked her there.
Lily moaned in his mouth again. His tongue swept over hers, locked her in, and suckled till a light tremor swept over her.
Killian picked her off the ground like she weighed nothing, moved her to the bed, and parted her legs once he laid her on the sheets. Lily’s lids were half closed, her lips slightly parted to release a sigh, and the crimson flush on her cheeks and neck was his undoing.
He had never seen a creature this enticing before. She made him lose control. Made him burn for her—hungry for her.
“I’ll kiss ye,” he whispered as he slid one hand from her knee up to her thigh, pushing her chemise away to reveal the garters underneath. “I’ll kiss ye all over.”
Lily whimpered and clenched her fingers into the sheets.
Killian loved the image of her on the bed like this, her short hair scattered and tousled over the sheets, her petite body dancing to the tunes he set.
His eyes closed as he kissed the back of her knee first, nudging her legs wider apart as he trailed his tongue up her inner thigh, higher and higher, till he got to the sweet spot between her legs.
Lily’s head thrashed from side to side, and she buried her fingers in his hair while he pleasured her. Killian loved her tiny moans and how she thrust her hips to meet his lips.
Her sounds were like a sweet melody to his ears. He drowned in her essence, her scent, loving every part of it and wanting to taste more of her.
Lily cried out when he pushed the rest of her undergarments away, exposing her lower half fully to him.
“Killian,” she cried out in a deliciously low tone just before she convulsed and climaxed in his arms, griding her hips against his mouth.
Killian panted as he withdrew from her. His body had hardened considerably, so much that it had begun to hurt, but his release wasn’t what he wanted at that moment. What he wanted—needed—was to pleasure her.
Lily lay limp on the bed, breathing heavily when he moved up to lie at her side and turn her body to face him. Her full lashes still covered her eyes, and he gathered her into his arms, gently pushing down the sleeves of her chemise so he could touch her breasts.
Her nipples were erect, begging for his attention. He kissed her mounds, cupped one in his right hand, and lowered his lips to her perky nipple.
He gathered her closer to him, his hands snaking around her waist to hold her in place while he feasted on her breasts till she was moaning and shivering in his arms again.
This time when he touched her core again, she was moist and ready for him. Killian slid one finger inside her, stroked her walls slowly till her legs parted of their own volition, then he withdrew when she gasped, and repeated the act again.
Her pleasure was enough to satiate his soul, but it didn’t last for long.
Killian watched her sleep after she peaked the second time.
He stroked a hand over her cheeks and hair, kissed every inch of her face till she stirred in her sleep, then pulled the sheets around her body and gathered her close.
She was delicate in his arms, and the urge to protect her slashed through him with an intensity that left him reeling. The only thing he could think of was finding the person behind all of this once and for all.
If Laird McLennan is innocent, then who could it be?
By the afternoon of the next day, Lily came out of the cabin to join Killian and the rest of his men at the village’s largest field.
Wehnthor was the smallest of his three villages, and Killian realized that the people here were more traditional than most of the clansmen he had met in his time as laird.
Even in the midst of their anguish and suffering, they prepared for the Lammas festival. He saw Lily approach while speaking with Fletcher and the village head. He instantly frowned when she stopped to greet the children playing around the path.
“I ordered ye nae to leave the cabin,” Killian said when she finally reached him.
The smile on her lips reached her eyes. There was also a lovely flush on her cheeks today. Seeing it reminded Killian of what they had spent the night doing. His body hardened in response to that thought, and he tried to shut out the thoughts.
Kiss me…
That murmur had replayed itself in his head the entire night, making him wish he had taken her right there.
“I feel much better today,” Lily said, interrupting his scandalous thoughts. He drew his gaze back to hers, searched her eyes a little, and frowned. “You cannot keep me locked in the cabin forever. I told you I wanted to help you and your people. I cannot do that if I am locked away in a cabin.”
“Lily…”
“She is right, m’laird,” Fletcher interrupted before Killian could say anything else to her. “She kens Laird McLennan better than any of us does. She will be of help to us in our plan.”
“There is a plan?” Lily asked.
Killian sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. He wanted to keep Lily out of this as much as possible. He did not want to put her in harm’s way again.
Nearly losing her once is enough.
He knew now that his heart could not take the pain of seeing her get hurt because of him again.
“The villagers want to celebrate the upcomin’ Lammas. It is only in two days, and I shall help them celebrate and enjoy it before we begin thinkin’ of our troubles again. Periods like this should always be celebrated, nay matter what.”
“I agree,” Lily told him with a smile. “In England, we celebrate the harvest and New Year. And Laird McLennan always declares a feast at such times.”
She beamed as she spoke of Laird McLennan, and Killian found himself wondering if she would ever smile when she spoke of him too.
“Come, I will show ye,” Killian said to her, completely forgetting about Fletcher and the village head as he led her away.
They strolled around the fields for a long time, and Killian told her tales about Lammas feasts and how his people celebrated in a grand style. They passed a group of children and mothers building twigs while the men gathered wood to set a general fire.
“So, Lammas is not the real harvest?” Lily asked after listening to him for a while.
Killian shook his head. “We celebrate Lammas to ask for protection for our harvest. The people here take it seriously, and I dinnae blame them. They have lost a lot since I became laird.”
They stopped walking when they reached a lonely path, and Killian faced Lily when she put a hand on his arm.
“It is not your fault… What happened here was not your fault,” she insisted.
His heart stuttered as he recalled the damage he had seen when they had arrived here days ago. “If we hadnae fought those men off, they would have killed more people, destroyed more families… It is my fault. I should have protected them better. That is what a laird does.”
Killian loved the feel of Lily’s hand on his arm as she offered comfort.
She shook her head, and he saw her eyes moisten. “You should not blame yourself,” she said.
“Ye dinnae understand, Lily,” he cut in, growing agitated as he raked his fingers through his hair.
“I neglected these people long before my brother became laird. I should have helped him… I should have been here, but I chose to travel and pursue my happiness instead of helping him… Perhaps he would be alive if I was here… Perhaps…”
Killian paused when he realized he was spilling all his burdens to Lily without thinking. He did not need to tell her these things, but a part of him melted at the thought of having her close to him like this.
He gasped when she suddenly threw her arms around his larger frame and hugged him tight. He froze, but his shock lasted only a moment before he leaned into her and began to enjoy the feel of her tiny arms pressing against his sides.
“You are a good man,” Lily murmured to him while her head remained pressed against his chest. “Not many lairds will care about the villagers like you do. None of this is your fault.”
Killian wanted to believe her. As he lifted a hand to pat her back, he sighed. “Thank ye, Lily.”
Lily pulled back, and a smile spread across her face. “What is the plan? How do you intend to find the one responsible for your brother’s death after the feast?”
Killian took out the dirk he had pulled from the pocket of the prisoner Fletcher had killed. “I found this dirk on one of the men that attacked us the other day. It is just like the one they found on my brother’s body. I shall use it to find the killer or the one behind all of this.”
“So, you believe me when I say Laird McLennan is innocent?”
Her eyes widened as she blinked at him. Killian nearly got lost into her eyes as he peered down at her, not wanting to look away because he enjoyed the fluttery feeling building in his chest.
“Nay,” he answered, aware of his breathlessness and how hard his heart pounded. “But I trust ye,” he added. “Ye risked yer life to save mine, and it was an incredibly stupid thing to do, but I am grateful to ye. I trust ye, Lily.”
Lily’s chest rose and fell with a whooshing breath in response to his words, and Killian leaned in to press a kiss to her forehead before he could stop himself.
When the moment was over a second later, he stepped back and then revealed his plan to her. “I thought about it, and the only person who would want me dead is the same one who killed my brother.
“I didnae finish goin’ through the records in my study, but so far, I havenae found any record of him doin’ business with Laird McLennan.
I have, however, found records of his last partnership with an Englishman.
If I find this man, I can find who my brother introduced to him. That will be our enemy.”
“And who is this Englishman? What is his name?”
“Richard Easton. He usually comes to Scotland around this time of year, during the Lammas feast. I ken he shall be in Scotland this period.”
“And how do you find him?”
“That is easy. Fletcher will lead me to him.”