Glasgow Rogue, page 25
Annie clasped her hands in her lap and looked down. “I let a man I thought to marry ruin me. ’Twas my fault.”
“’Tis nae your fault!” Anger like a red-hot poker seared through Niall. “The bastard trifled with ye. If he still lives, I will kill him for ye.”
“He is nae worth it.” Annie managed a trembling smile. “Anyway, he ran off.”
“The man deserves to die if he made promises he did nae intend to keep.”
“I am thankful I did nae increase because of that mistake. ’Twas a bitter lesson,” Annie said, “but I have learned to live with the fact that I am spoiled goods—”
“Ye are nae spoiled goods.”
Annie studied him. “Ye truly do nae think so? Be honest.”
“I will be as honest as I can be.” Niall held out his arms. “Come here, lass.”
****
Annie felt her eyes widen as she looked into Niall’s face and found nothing of contempt or condescension or criticism there. Instead, his eyes darkened to near charcoal, burning into her with an intense gaze.
She moved closer. Niall’s arms came around her and his mouth descended on hers. It only took the first touch of his lips for her to have total recall of how pleasurable the morning experience had been. One of his hands crept up to cradle her head, angling it to better fit his intention and she parted her mouth willingly to accept him. He tasted slightly of whisky, the smoky flavor adding to the peat smell from the brazier and the fresh scent of the soap he had used earlier. But none of that mattered since the tantalizing things he was doing with his expert mouth made her thoughts blur. There was only sensation as he teased, his lips brushing along hers one minute, increasing the pressure the next, then nibbling at a corner and sucking her lower lip before deepening the kiss once again.
His tongue explored her mouth fully, while his hand slid down to cup a breast, his thumb grazing the nipple as lightly as a butterfly lighting on a leaf. The barely-there stroke came again and Annie felt herself arching into his hand for more. Niall chuckled and worked his way down her throat, his warm mouth making wet, sucking sounds as his clever fingers rolled her now taut nipple between them. Annie groaned and pressed closer.
And then she was on her back, with Niall looming over her. He shrugged out of his open shirt and, seconds later, her shirt was gone too, leaving her completely exposed to him. Instinctively, her arms moved to cover herself, but Niall caught her wrists.
“Ye will nae cover yourself to me.” He placed her hands down by her sides. “Ye are a beautiful woman, Annie Ferguson, and I intend to enjoy every square inch of ye.”
He took a moment to boldly savor her nakedness. Annie felt heat arise in her face and flow through her body, the fiery hotness following his roaming eyes as he slowly let his gaze travel from her breasts down her belly to her core and back to her face. She probably looked like a pickled beet.
Niall reached for her breasts again, cupping both of them this time, pushing them together, then bending over her to put his face between the plump mounds. Annie made a whimpering sound as his thumb began flicking fast and hard across a hardened peak. Then she moaned in earnest as his mouth covered the other one and he began to suckle, lightly at first, his tongue laving the areola, pressing the nipple flat and then catching it lightly between his teeth as it popped back to erectness. Niall tugged gently and Annie pulled his head down, demanding more. He obliged, suckling harder and drawing deep. Annie felt herself shudder as sharp tingles raced downward to the pulsing center of her core.
Growling, Niall sat back momentarily to remove his breeches. The cool air hit the wetness of her breast where his mouth had been and Annie shivered, not from cold so much as missing his body heat. And then she shivered again as he stood to shed the last of his clothes and she saw his proud manhood jutting out at her. She swallowed hard. She’d only seen one other man’s penis before and it hadn’t been so…big. Tentatively, she reached out to touch it. Niall grasped her hand.
“If ye do that right now, I will nae last to finish what I have planned.”
Annie looked up at him, a bit bewildered. “I ken what comes next.”
Niall grinned. “Do ye?”
“Aye. Ye will spill your seed in me.” She looked again at his thick, hard length. “I think ye are ready.”
Niall’s grin widened. “I am more than ready, but I have nae pleasured ye enough, lass.”
Annie stared at him. He didn’t think she’d enjoyed what he’d just done? Good heavens, she could practically feel herself dripping. “But ye have pleasured me. ’Tis your turn.”
“Nae yet.”
“What…” she started to say and then gasped as Niall spread her thighs apart and nestled between them. Before she had time to grasp what he intended to do, he’d placed her legs over his shoulders and she felt his warm tongue lapping at the juice that flowed from her like overspilt milk, taking his time before licking slowly and leisurely along her folds. Annie gasped again and then nearly levitated as his mouth covered her thrumming nub and he sucked on it hard. Something clenched deep inside her belly and her thigh muscles corded around his head, locking him in place as her body shattered.
“Oh, my…” The words were lost as Niall slid up her body and she felt the large tip of his shaft nudge her entrance. She barely had time to register that it felt smooth as satin over hard steel before he began to push and she felt herself being stretched wide. She stilled, adjusting to the strange sensation of slowly being filled.
Niall paused. “I am nae hurting ye, am I?”
“Nae!” And it was true. The first time had hurt like Hades, but Niall’s cock inside her only felt like heaven. Annie wiggled beneath him. “Nae! Doona stop.”
“I have nae intention of stopping, lass.”
Niall finished his thrust and withdrew as slowly as he had entered, until he was nearly separate from her. Annie made a mewling sound in her throat and wrapped her legs around his hips to keep him in place. “Doona…nae yet…”
Niall laughed. “I am nae going anywhere, lass.”
Annie nearly cried in relief as he filled her again. She hadn’t known her body could actually ache for such a thing. But it did. Every nerve ending felt like it was on fire as Niall kept his thrusts slow and even, teasing her by nearly leaving and then coming together again. She began to writhe beneath him, wanting…more. But Niall continued to tease, alternating now between his slow, easy rhythm and moving harder and faster, which just made her want…more. Much more. Annie’s hands grabbed Niall’s shoulders, her nails raking across his back as her body began to undulate in earnest. Heat seared through her, the flames spreading through her veins like molten lava. Sound faded and her sight dimmed, her only concentration on the joining of their bodies. She had no idea where hers ended and Niall’s began. There was only…sensation beyond belief. And then, just as she began to float on air, a final hard thrust came, butting against her womb and she erupted like a long dormant volcano.
It took several minutes before Annie could actually claim her arms and legs again. She felt boneless—even the effort of moving seemed too much. Niall had rolled off her but kept an arm looped over her stomach. She finally managed to turn her head to find him propped on his other elbow, watching her intensely.
“I…that was…wonderful,” Annie said, thinking how inane and inept those words were, but she had nothing else to describe their coupling.
“Aye, ’twas,” Niall answered and pushed wet strands of her hair away from her face. “And ’tis what we can enjoy every night once we are married.”
Married. Reality returned like a cold dose of ice water from a burn. He was still insisting they get married. No doubt he thought that what had just taken place would persuade her to say yes. Maybe he had even planned to seduce her into it. Lord knew the man was good at what he did. Annie closed her eyes. For most women, this would be enough. A man who made wonderful love to her and wanted to protect her.
But she didn’t want protection. Or maybe she did—she couldn’t deny that being rescued a time or two had saved her from harm—but she didn’t want a man to marry her out of a sense of duty or responsibility. And she knew now that Highlanders had a strong sense of honor. She’d not only seen it in Niall, but also from his brothers and Ian MacLeod and even Owen MacLean. They would all fight in a flash to protect a woman. It was in their blood. It was what they did. That didn’t mean they loved any of those women—other than Ian and Jillian, obviously.
Niall had never said he loved her. The word had not even come up when he proposed marriage. He hadn’t even actually asked her if she would become his wife. He’d simply presented the idea as a good arrangement so he would have the legal right to protect her according to English law. Honor. Duty. Responsibility. Not love.
Love was the only reason she would even consider giving up her freedom for marriage. But her pride could not let her tell Niall that. If she did, he’d simply say the words to make her feel better. He wouldn’t mean them. Love was not something someone could ask for. It had to be given freely without pressure. She knew because she loved Niall with all her heart. But she could not marry him knowing he might never feel the same way. Better to let him think a career was more important to her. She took a deep breath and pulled the sheet up.
“I have nae changed my mind.”
Niall frowned. “What?”
“I have nae changed my mind.”
“Ye doona have to repeat it.” Niall sat up and stared down at her. “After what we just did…ye cannae tell me ye did nae enjoy it.”
Annie sat up too, careful to keep the sheet in place. “I did enjoy it. ’Twas heaven.”
“Then why—”
“Because coupling is nae…” Annie stopped, horrified she’d almost said love. “…I mean, bed sport is fun, but ’tis a common reaction between men and women, nae?” It was a lie on her part, but she didn’t give Niall a chance to answer, just quickly added a second one. “I want to stay an independent woman. I will find another job.”
“Doona be ridiculous. I can help—”
“I ken ye can help,” Annie answered. “But the answer is the same. I will nae marry ye.”
Niall stared at her for a moment longer, then rolled off the bed and grabbed his clothes. Pulling on his trews, he headed for the door and opened it before he turned around. “Just so ye ken, what happened between us is nae a common reaction.”
And then he was gone.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Annie woke before dawn and threw the covers back, ignoring the cold floor on her bare feet and the chill in the air because the fire in the brazier had gone completely out. She made hasty work of her ablutions in the near icy water left in the basin and donned her clothes just as the first streaks of pale lavender were lighting the dark sky.
Was Niall still here or had he left in the night?
It had taken only a moment to pull the nightshirt over her head last evening, but by the time she’d gotten to the door, Niall had disappeared. She’d contemplated getting dressed and going down to the public room where he was probably having ale, but reconsidered when she heard the raucous laughter drifting up the stairs. Most of those men would already be in their cups and, if Niall wasn’t there, she would become the target of lewd remarks and lecherous looks and maybe even worse. She certainly didn’t need Niall to rescue her once again. Rationalizing that perhaps he needed some time to think about and understand what she’d said, she’d retreated back to bed, waiting for him to return.
Only he hadn’t.
She opened the door and poked her head out. All was quiet and the other doors in the hall were all closed. Was Niall behind one of them? She couldn’t very well start knocking, though. Her stomach rumbled, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten much of the dinner last night because she was too nervous about Niall’s reaction to finding out she wasn’t an innocent, modest maiden.
That thought made her smile. She was much too opinionated and outspoken to be thought modest. Her worldly views and strange ideas about women’s independence weren’t at all conventional either. But, more to the point, Niall hadn’t been upset that she’d given away her virtue. If only she thought he actually loved her…
Annie pushed away that fantasy. It had become all too obvious when Niall hadn’t returned to the room that he didn’t. Well. She was wasting time wool-gathering. If Niall hadn’t already left, she might be able to catch him if she waited in the public room. They needed to talk.
To her surprise—and relief—Niall was seated at one of the tables having breakfast. Or rather, breakfast was being served to him by an attractive, smiling maid whose generous cleavage was showing above the peasant blouse she wore. Annie narrowed her eyes. Had Niall spent the night with the girl? Had there been any empty rooms available? The idea of another woman curled up against him, naked, enjoying having him do the things he’d done to her made Annie’s female parts heat while the blood in her veins turned cold.
Niall looked up and caught her gaze. His expression was impassive and she couldn’t tell if he was still upset with her or not. Neither could she tell from his bland expression if he’d sated the barmaid’s needs last night either. Drat it.
“I believe we’ll need another plate,” Niall said to the serving girl as Annie approached his table.
The girl gave Annie a look that was none too friendly and flounced off. Annie stared after her, chewing her lip as she sat down, then she turned to Niall. “Did ye…”
He raised a brow slightly as her question trailed off. “Did I what?”
Annie felt her face warm. She’d almost asked him if he’d spent the night with the serving girl. “I meant, why did ye nae return to our room?”
His brow rose higher. “Why would I?”
She didn’t much like the tone of that question. She wasn’t sure what he meant either. “We need to talk.”
“Talk?” Niall shrugged. “Ye made yourself quite clear last evening. There is nae more to be said.”
But there was! She wanted to explain that she wasn’t rejecting him, she was simply rejecting the idea of marriage. But then, she’d also have to delve into her reasons and that would probably bring about another argument or, worse, a declaration not sincerely meant. Perhaps it was best to postpone that discussion.
“I did nae mean to put ye out, Niall.”
He shrugged again. “I managed.”
Anne frowned. Just whom did he manage with? The serving girl? Or maybe some other woman who worked here? Annie remembered there had been several in the public room last night. She couldn’t ask, for heaven’s sake. Her mouth seemed to be functioning on its own though.
“Did the inn have an extra room, then?”
A corner of his mouth lifted. “I was comfortable enough.”
That wasn’t answering her question, blast it. But then she realized he wasn’t going to. From the quirky smile, he was probably enjoying baiting her. Her temper began to rise and she lifted her chin. “Forget I asked. It is nae my business.”
Niall gave her a level look. “We can agree on that, at least.”
Argh! The man was infuriating. Annie opened her mouth to retort and then snapped it shut as the maid approached with a bowl of porridge and a plate of coddled eggs and ham. “Thank ye,” Annie managed to say between nearly gritted teeth.
“Ye had best eat all of it,” Niall said after the girl left. “Since the roads are good from here to Glasgow, I rented a carriage for ye.”
Annie looked at him, startled. Was he abandoning her after all? “Are ye going to ride with me?”
Niall shook his head. “I will ride behind to make sure we are nae followed. If we doona stop except to rest the horses, we can make the city by nightfall.”
“But it took us almost two days on the trip up.”
“The leg wound made for slower going,” Niall replied. “I am sure your mother will be anxious to see ye.”
Which really meant Niall was anxious to be rid of her. He wasn’t even riding in the carriage. It was also obvious he did not want to spend another night at an inn with her. Annie fixed her eyes on her food so he wouldn’t see her disappointment. She wouldn’t have minded a repeat performance of what they had done, if for no other reason than to prove to Niall she wasn’t rejecting him. Annie gave herself an inward shake. Liar. It wasn’t about rejecting Niall. It was about how good the whole experience had felt. She really, really, really would have liked that one more time.
But Niall evidently didn’t agree.
****
Ten hours had never lasted so long. By the time they sighted Glasgow, the gloaming had descended, mirroring Niall’s darkened mood.
Annie Ferguson was the most stubborn woman he’d ever encountered. Next to her, his sister Margaret seemed as docile and agreeable as a spring lamb, a description his brothers would no doubt feel made him a candidate for London’s Bedlam. But it was true. Ninety-nine percent of young women wanted husbands, if for no other reason than to have someone provide a house and funds. He’d avoided the parson’s noose often enough. And now—now—when he’d made an honorable offer of marriage because he wanted to protect Annie, she was the one woman who didn’t want to get married.
Obstinate creature! But even she couldn’t deny what had happened between them in bed last night had been nothing short of fantastic. Niall might not understand how a female’s mind worked, but he damn well knew when a woman had been pleasured. And Annie had responded with unfettered passion just as he had always suspected she would. He admired her strength and independence. He knew there would never be a dull moment in her presence. But, most of all, the thought of having her in his bed nightly had been consuming him for weeks. He finally understood why his brother Alasdair had been so besotted with Bridget. For the first time in Niall’s life, the thought of settling down, remaining faithful, and having a family appealed to him.
Family. Niall’s mind jolted from his doldrums. Lord Almighty. He may already have gotten Annie with child. He hadn’t taken his usual precautions because he’d assumed that she would agree to marriage once they’d physically coupled. Most single ladies expected a marriage proposal if they’d been caught in a compromising situation and they demanded it if liberties were taken beyond a kiss or two. Physical coupling certainly met both standards. But then, Annie Ferguson was the other one percent.
