Chapter 27 #2
Elspeth kissed him back without confusion this time. She knew what she wanted and that knowledge made her bold.
Her fingers entered his hair. His breath broke against her mouth when she pulled him closer, and the sound sent warmth unfurling through her body. Colin lifted her carefully and carried her to the bed.
He laid her down as though she were precious.
That tenderness frightened her more than desire ever had.
His hands paused at the fastening of her wrapper. “Tell me tae stop, and I’ll stop.”
“Dinnae stop…”
He loosened the garment and drew it aside. The cool air touched her skin. Elspeth trembled, though not from fear. Colin’s gaze moved over her until it reached the bandage at her ribs.
Elspeth’s fingers tightened in the bedding.
“I will kill every man who ever tries tae hurt ye,” he vowed against her skin.
The words should have horrified her.
Instead, she touched his hair and whispered. “Then ye had better remain alive long enough tae manage it.”
His eyes lifted to hers.
“I intend tae.”
His hand travelled down her back, following the curve of her waist before settling at her hip. Every movement was measured. Even with need tightening his body, he never forgot the wound beneath her ribs. When he leaned over her, he kept his weight supported upon one arm.
His mouth found hers. The kiss began slowly, almost solemnly.
He tasted her as though time had become abundant, his lips moving with patient hunger while his fingers slipped into her hair.
Elspeth drew him closer, but Colin resisted the pull just enough to keep his chest from bearing down upon her injury.
That restraint made the desire in him more visible.
She felt it in the tension of his muscles, in the uneven breath against her cheek, in the way his hand tightened briefly upon the pillow whenever she shifted beneath him.
His mouth travelled along her jaw and down the line of her throat. Each kiss lingered. The roughness of his breath warmed her skin, followed by the softer brush of his lips.
Elspeth’s hands moved over his shoulders, tracing familiar strength. Beneath her palms, he seemed carved from heat and discipline, every muscle held under control for her sake.
He let his gaze move over her. There was no haste in it, only reverence.
Colin bent to kiss the skin above her breasts, then lower, careful to avoid the fading bruise and the healing cut at her ribs.
When his mouth neared it, his touch changed.
The hunger softened. He pressed a kiss beside the wound, so gentle it made her throat tighten.
His thumb stroked the unmarked skin beneath it. The tenderness was almost unbearable.
Elspeth threaded her fingers through his hair and guided him upward. He followed at once, returning to her mouth while his hand moved down her side.
He watched her even as he touched her. The smallest change in her breathing made him pause. Each tremor drew his attention. When her body arched toward him, he shifted with her, protecting the wounded side with one broad palm and supporting her as carefully as if she might break.
She would not have called herself fragile. Colin did not treat her as such. His care was not fear of her weakness. It was an acknowledgement of what she had survived.
Pleasure gathered beneath his slow touch, beginning as warmth and deepening until her fingers tightened against his back. His fingers slid between her thighs, probing her gently, preparing her for what was to come.
Elspeth buried her face against his shoulder when sensation sharpened.
Colin held her there. His mouth brushed her temple, then her cheek.
His fingers moved knowingly, strumming her like the finest instrument, but just before she was pushed over the abyss of pleasure, Colin settled between her thighs with deliberate care.
He entered her slowly. She moaned. The fullness came by degrees, each careful movement allowing her time to adjust. Colin’s breath broke against her mouth, but he did not hurry. Even when her legs tightened around him, urging him closer, he watched her face for the smallest sign of pain.
Elspeth lifted herself toward him. Their bodies moved together in an unhurried rhythm.
His movements deepened slowly. Each one drew another breath from her, another tremor through her body.
Colin kept one hand near the wound, shielding it whenever she turned, ensuring the blankets did not catch against the tender skin.
The care never left him, even as his control began to fray.
His breathing became rougher. His forehead lowered to hers. The rhythm between them gathered, no longer cautious but still contained within the limits her body allowed.
Elspeth touched his face. Colin turned into her palm. That small surrender undid her more completely than urgency could have done.
She felt him stretch her, fill her, pleasure her. Her release moved through her in a long, trembling wave. Colin held her steady, his mouth covering hers as her body tightened around him. Only when she had begun to soften did his restraint finally break.
He buried his face against her neck, his body shuddering as he followed her. Even in surrender, one arm remained braced beside her, the other curved beneath her wounded side, holding her securely against him.
Afterward, he shifted them carefully. He drew the blankets over them, then again placed his palm lightly beside the healing wound. His heartbeat slowed beneath her ear.
Elspeth traced one of the scars across his chest while his fingers moved lazily through her hair. The darkness gathered around the bed, softened by firelight and the warmth of his arms.
Colin kept holding her long after desire had quieted, as though care was not merely something that followed passion.
It was the deepest part of it.