Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Callum’s heart mimicked the galloping of his horse as they stopped in front of the cabin, nestled deep within the trees of the forest. It had only been half an hour since the first rumble of thunder, but the storm had quickly picked up, leaving them far behind the men who were more than likely headed toward the castle at full speed by now.
Thunder illuminated the sky, lighting up the canopy above their heads.
“Best we take shelter here, lass,” Callum called out over the howling of the wind while prying the cabin door open. “The storm’s nae goin’ to be pretty tonight.”
“I guess we daenae really have a choice, do we?” she called back, using her hand as a shield against the wind. Debris was flying everywhere as gusts of wind shook the trees around them.
“I’m afraid nae,” Callum said, ushering her in first before firmly shutting the door behind him.
“I will check to see if there are any supplies in here,” Eleanor lowered her voice slightly as she entered the slightly more comfortable cabin.
“Aye,” he replied. “Good luck with that, lass. I’m goin’ to find safety for the horses. “I think I saw a shelter nearby that will do.”
They exchanged looks for a moment before Callum rushed back outside.
The horses were patiently waiting for him outside the door just as fat drops of rain began to pelt the earth.
He pulled on the reins to get the horses to heed his command. They neighed restlessly, but he managed to get them to a sheltered spot behind the cabin that would ensure they were warm.
Looking up at the sky, he noticed the storm clouds gathering for a full-scale invasion. For a brief moment, he imagined what the night was going to hold for him. What was it going to be like, spending a night with Eleanor? They had been alone before, but never to sleep, and never overnight.
A burst of thunder shook him back to reality, and he rushed back into the cabin. Once inside, he was surprised to find that Eleanor had started a fire.
She paused over the hearth and looked up at him. “I was looking for anything we could use to keep us warm, but it seems like there is nohitn’ more than the fire, I am afraid,” Eleanor said, rummaging through the cupboards.
“Thank ye for ligthin’ the fire,” he failed to keep the surprise from his voice.
Her head quickly snapped in his direction as she glared at him. “Me father didnae raise a damsel in distress,” she replied. “Besides, I thought I would do somethin’ useful while ye enjoyed some fresh air.”
“Oh yes,” Callum rolled his eyes. “Nothing like a breath of fresh storm air while I am making sure our horses are safe… Ye should try it sometime,” his words dripped with sarcasm even to his ears.
Her smile tilted slightly to the side, a habit he had noticed whenever he was teasing her.
“I wouldnae want to make ye feel completely useless now, would I?” She smiled and turned her attention back to the fire.
Eleanor was nothing like all the women of the highlands.
She was equally beautiful and feisty. This fact intrigued him more than he cared to admit.
Something strange tugged at his chest when it seemed as if she were looking straight through him. “I think we should stop bickerin’ and make ourselves comfortable for the night.
Eleanor simply nodded and turned her back on him as she went about her business, stoking the fire.
The cabin was warm after the fire had been lit, and Callum was grateful that they had stopped for the night. He sat looking through the window, watching the storm beat the Scottish Highlands that spread out before them on the horizon with relentless fury.
Eleanor sat opposite him, her eyes fixed on an empty gaze as the thunder lit up the reflection of her face on the glass.
Callum wondered what was behind her eyes. What had turned her into this irresistibly boisterous lass that he was trying with all his might to resist?
“This reminds me of home,” she broke the silence. “Whenever a storm hit, father would boil some water for tea, and Andrew would gather some wood to make a fire. Then we would just sit and tell each other stories, as we drank our tea and ate some bannocks.”
“What I wouldnae do for some tea and bannocks right now,” Callum said dreamily, wondering what stories she would like to hear him tell.
“What does this storm remind ye of?” She asked. “Other than yer immense hunger and thirst right now?”
He eased one of his legs up, pulling it toward his chest as the other hung over the crate he had shifted toward the window as a seat. “Nothin’ in particular,” he laughed.
Is she trying to get to ken me now?
Callum was bewildered by her question but couldn’t resist being flattered by it.
“Ye have already told me ye are famished. Tell me about yer childhood? What would yeng Laird Callum do during a stormy night?” She smiled.
“Me father wasn’t really around much,” he cleared his throat.
“So, I cannae say he provided much guidance, but I do recall me mother tellin’ me that all would be well as we sat in front of the fire.
” Callum started remembering some of his fondest memories with his mother.
“Sometimes she would tuck me into bed and pray with me until we fell asleep. Father would only come and see us when our presence was required for clan business.”
“Sounds like ye had an interesting relationship with yer father?” Eleanor’s voice was soft as she tucked a single strand of damp hair behind her head.
“Nae quite as interesting as the relationship I have with ye,” Callum teased, smiling cheekily. It was too dark for him to tell, but he was quite certain he made her blush. “Me father was anythin’ but interestin’…”
“Oh,” She said almost defeatedly. He noticed her shift uncomfortably in her seat. “I didnae mean to bring up old wounds. I kent that he was dead, and how he died, but I didnae ken that ye were nae close.”
“Never mind, lass. They are just scars now. I dinnae mind talkin’ about them.
I was never what me father wanted me to be, and so to get back at him for how he treated me mother, I continued to defy everything he stood for.
At least until I needed to take over the clan.
His lesson in being hard proved invaluable then. ”
Her eyes searched his face as something about the storm beating beyond the window compelled him to continue speaking.
Eleanor had opened a vein, and although it felt like his soul was bleeding, it was so liberating to share it with her.
“One night, I was already quite a grown lad, he came home and started his habitual screaming and shouting. I lay awake in bed, listening to me mother crying as her husband’s rage echoed through the corridors. ”
Callum was reliving the memory, his heart started to race again as he remembered his father’s voice echoing in his mind.
“Ye are good for nothing! Only one son and still I wait!”
Then he heard it, the crack of his father’s hand making contact with his mother’s face and her tears echoing even louder than his voice. The rage overflowed from within him, and he jumped out of bed.
Soft rain pelted the glass, drawing him out of the memory, yet still keeping him in the pain of what had happened that evening.
“I left me room and marched over to me parents’ chambers,” he said, looking straight at Eleanor, but all he could see was the wooden door with the thick black latches of his parents' chambers in front of him. He kicked the door repeatedly, loud enough to make the chaos beyond it end abruptly.
Eleanor sucked in a sharp breath as she waited for him to continue.
“Mother opened the door gently, with tears in her eyes and a nasty handprint on her face. I gently pushed her aside, despite her protesting. I beat me father so badly he lay barely conscious on their bed.” Callum still remembered how bruised and scraped his knuckles were for the next few days.
“The last thing I said to him was, If ye ever touch mother again, I promise I will throw ye out of the chamber window and tell everyone ye fell through it. Daenae ever touch her again.”
“I’m so sorry,” Eleanor’s presence pulled him out of his thoughts, and he suddenly felt her hand on his. “What an awful memory…” her voice lowered to a whisper.
“I think that one was worse for me father, though,” Callum replied after a long pause where his eyes were locked with hers.
Eleanor laughed, and for the first time, he realized how much he loved hearing it. It was unlike the laugh of anyone he had ever met. Her laugh was loud, hearty, and authentic. She truly was a breath of fresh and much-needed calm air in his otherwise tumultuous, stormy life.
Callum noticed that she must have realized she was holding his hand, because she tried to pull it away. He gently grabbed onto it and kept it firmly over his. He looked into her eyes and held her hand as if it were the only thing keeping them safe on that dark, stormy night.
“Thank ye for listening. I’ve never shared that story with anyone,” his voice was low now as the storm raged around the cabin.
“Thank ye for trusting me with such a painful memory,” her voice suddenly lowered to a whisper. “I ken it must’ve been a really difficult time for ye.”
They sat there in silence, gazing into each other’s eyes, and Callum’s soul was suddenly igniting along with his desire for Eleanor.
His passion rose like the flames in the fireplace as he imagined what it would be like to feel her lips against his once again.
He could not tell what she was thinking, but she, too, did not take her beautiful eyes off of him.
“Callum…” She finally breathed his name as if it were her very last breath.
His heart skittered in his chest, yet he could not find the words to respond to her in the moment.
Her knees were close enough to his to touch, and he could not help but picture the kiss they had shared at the bonfire.
They sat again in silence, gazing at each other once more.
Callum’s hands gripped hers a little tighter, and he began to run his fingertips along her arm.
Her lips parted in a silent gasp, but she said nothing as her eyes dipped to his hand.
He gently stroked up and down her arm, drawing patterns with the tips of his fingers, and then finally, his resolve began to crumble as he leaned in closer and pressed his lips against hers in a searing embrace.
Their hot breaths stoked his passions as he gently caressed her mouth with his lips. Slowly, darting his tongue in and out of her mouth.
She let out a moan and moved closer to him, surrendering herself completely to his touch.
Callum picked her up and walked with her to the bed that stood in the corner of the cabin.
She ran her fingers across his shoulders and down his arms as he gently placed her on the bed and sat beside her without taking his eyes or his lips off of her.
“Eleanor…” he whispered in her ear between breaths. “Tell me to stop if ye daenae want this, lass.”
Eleanor moaned and shuddered as he stepped back and slowly removed his shirt. She reached up and placed her hands on his bare chest when he leaned closer again.
His lips met hers once more, deeper and slower this time as his tongue snaked in and out of her mouth. He gently worked his fingers around her back and began to undo the laces of her dress until he was able to slide the garment down her shoulders.
She shifted for him, allowing him to pull the fabric all the way down until she was left in her corset and undergarments.
He looked down at her in awe as she reached behind her back and undid her corset, allowing him to remove it along with the final slip of fabric.
Her breasts glinted in the light from the flames of the fireplace.
He could feel himself getting uncontrollably aroused by her beauty.
He massaged his way from her shoulders down the sides of her body as he kissed his way from her neck, over her breasts, and gently sucking her nipples, carefully wrapping his tongue around each one.
Eleanor moaned a little louder, making him smile as he noticed her reaction.
He continued to kiss and lick her nipples as he gently ran his fingers over either side of her naked body. Callum’s heart skipped a beat as he glanced down at her naked form; her legs were spread on either side of him as he sat bent over before her.
“Lass…” he whispered, “Ye are so beautiful.” Giving her ear a gentle nibble, he made her whimper with pleasure.
“Daenae, stop,” she breathed.
Callum smiled and obliged. He continued to caress her with his fingertips and kiss his way down to her center. Gently squeezing her nipples with his fingers as he worked his tongue gently through her folds.
Her breaths became quicker, and her moans became louder, as his tongue darted in and out of her. With one hand, he caressed his way down to her core, and with one finger, gently rolled it between her folds until he found her sweet spot as he persisted to search her with his tongue.
Eleanor’s voice got progressively louder and her breaths progressively deeper as Callum continued to work his magic.
Her reaction stoked the fires of his passion ever more, and suddenly the thunder and storm were nothing but a distant sound drowning out in the background of the unforgettable memory they were busy making.
Callum picked up the pace of his tongue and fingers to the rhythm of his heartbeat that was racing with desire. Suddenly, her breath paused, her eyes widened, and she dug her fingernails into his arms.
“Callum!” She screamed as her pleasure overflowed from deep within her, making her legs shake and tremble.
Callum lay next to her for a moment, and she recomposed herself. He turned to her and smiled. “Ye seemed to really enjoy yerself?”
“I… I have never felt anythin’ like it before…” Her words were utterly breathless as she looked into his eyes.
“Aye, but we are nae done, lass,” he gipped her hand and gently moved it to his chest, guiding her down.
The tips of her fingers caressed a path down his chest and abdomen as uncertainty swam in her eyes. She did not know what she was doing, but she certainly was willing to allow him to teach her.
He guided her hand all the way down as a moan escaped his throat.
Her fingers wrapped around his throbbing member, giving him pleasure that almost sent him over the edge. She gently worked him back and forth under his guidance, driving him wild as he imagined what it would be like to be inside of her.
The storm raged on outside the cabin, and soon enough, Callum reached his peak, crying out into the night as lightning lit up the sky.
They lay side by side, utterly peaceful in each other’s company, unaware of what the following day would bring.