Highlander's Beautiful Liar A Scottish Medieval Highlander Romance Historical Novel - Adamina Young Page 0,23

ye do is ridiculous! Ye drive me to distraction, woman! I free ye from prison, and ye lie to me. I protect ye, and ye risk yer life by trying to escape! I can’t decide if yer mad or just plain daft!”

Cora darted her tongue out in an effort to wet her dry lips. His eyes darkened at the action, and she inhaled sharply. “Alec, I’m not quite sure what you want me to say.”

“I think, right now, I doona want ye to say anything,” he whispered as he closed the distance between them. She pressed her back against the wall, but there was no escape. If Cora was being honest with herself, she would admit that she didn’t want to escape. From the moment that he’d picked her up from the prison and carried her to her chambers, she wanted to feel his arms around her again.

She put her hands on his chest, but he snagged them with one hand and raised them up above her head. His other hand settled on her hip, and her heart pounded in her chest. “What,” her voice came out as a squeak, and she cleared her throat and tried again. “What are you doing?”

“Something that I’ve wanted to do for days,” he said in a low voice before he bent his head and kissed her. It wasn’t her first kiss. There were two occasions where someone had kissed her when she was younger, but they were simply hoping that she’d be like her mother. Instead, she’d slapped them and stepped away before things got too far. Innes had kissed her several times to torment her. She’d quickly grown to hate the contact of a man, but this was different.

Alec’s caresses were gentle and heated her blood like nothing else. Rather than push him away, Cora wanted to pull him closer, but her hands were still trapped. Alec pulled back and rested his forehead on hers. “Open yer mouth, lass.”

Puzzled, she frowned. “Why?”

He swooped back down again and captured her lips, only this time, his tongue snuck in and stroked hers. Surprised, Cora gasped, but it was followed by a low moan. With just one kiss, he’d awakened feelings inside her that she didn’t even know existed.

“Sweetheart,” he murmured. “Ye act like this is yer first time kissing a man.”

She was about to explain that it sort of was when he kissed her just below her ear. Shocked and aroused, she tugged at her hands. “Please,” she whispered. “Please, I want to touch you.”

“Yes,” he moaned. “Ye can touch me where ye want to.” When he released her hands, she wrapped them around his neck, but rather than explore his body like she wanted to, she could just hang on. His fingers skimmed over the fabric of the trousers, and when he touched the apex of her thighs, she trembled and cried out.

“So smooth,” Alec muttered, his breath hot in her ear. “Ah, I want to touch ye, Claire.”

Claire. The lie washed over her and left her feeling cold and hollow. “Wait,” she whispered. “I can’t do this.”

He froze and pulled his head back to stare at her. “Why? What aren’t ye telling me?”

She could see the frustration in his eyes. Unable to help herself, she reached up to touch his cheek. “I want to trust you, Alec. I really do.”

Before he could respond, there was a pounding on the door. “Laird? We have a guest.”

Alec sighed and shook his head. “I doona care. They can wait.”

“I doona thing so. ’Tis King Edward. He’ll be here within the hour.”

“What?” Alec growled and leapt across the room to open the door. Cora, still shaken by his touch, could only gape at the news.

Dear God, what if the Scottish King was there for Innes? What if he’d come to make sure that she did what she was supposed to do six months ago?

Marry Innes Campbell.

6

Alec took several deep breaths. There was no way they could be prepared for the King in an hour, but King Edward knew that. He was, no doubt, trying to catch Alec unawares to see how things were really going.

“Get Kane and Jamie to organize a hunt. We won't be able to feed them with the meat we have in the reserves. Make sure Seth's old chambers are clean for the King.” He turned back and stared at Cora. She looked terrified as she pressed herself against the wall. He couldn't very well have her running around the keep with the