The Highlander's Lady Knight (Midsummer Knights #2) - Madeline Martin Page 0,41

his arms. Her robe was slippery under his hands, her curves naked beneath.

“I wish we could leave here,” she whispered.

Except there were too many complications and they both knew it. The Ross clan would go after Cormac, or Lord Easton, or Cormac and Isolde. This feud would not be over until it had been handled properly, and Cormac refused to start his marriage to Isolde on the run.

He brushed the top of her head with his lips. Her hair was cool and smooth like her robe. He put his fingertips to the underside of her chin and tipped her face up so he could meet her eyes. “Think only of our wedding tomorrow and nothing else.”

A slow smile spread over her lips. “There may be more for us to think about.”

His blood immediately went hot, and he lifted a brow in silent question.

She draped her arms around the back of his neck and rose up on her toes, so her body pressed to his. It was all the invitation he needed. He held her to him and lowered his mouth to hers, ready to claim her as his wife.

13

Isolde would convey with her body what her mouth could not to Cormac. That she could not allow him to sacrifice himself for her. That she preferred to spend this last night being alive in his arms. That even if she was found out and forced to marry Brodie, she needed at least this memory to carry her through the rest of her days of misery bound to a man she did not want.

She gathered the ferocity of her emotions and poured it all into her passion. Her mouth explored the warmth of his as she brazenly licked his lower lip, enticing him to deepen their kiss.

His hands ran through her hair, which sent up wafts of rosewater blooming from her long tresses.

“Ye smell so good,” he groaned. His mouth traveled down her jaw to her neck, the scrape of his unshaven chin sending delicious prickles of pleasure dancing through her. His kisses shifted lower and brushed over her collarbone where her pulse no doubt thudded with the force of a blacksmith’s hammer.

She reached for him as he kissed her body, desperate to feel all of him this time, not the hint of sensations through so many layers of metal and thick cloth but skin to skin. His hands glided down her silk robe as he explored the curves of her body with strong, sure hands. Her skin tingled with the most exquisite awareness so that every stroke of his hand left a humming sensation in its wake.

She ran her fingers over his tunic, sampling the strength of his torso from atop his clothing. His muscles were solid under her exploration. Masculine. Perfect.

His fingertips whispered against the sides of her breasts, and a moan escaped from her throat. He leaned back slightly to watch her as his thumb brushed over her nipple. She sucked in a sharp inhale of delight. A throb of desire began at her core, its tune coming in pulses of need.

In a slow, careful move, he nudged aside the lapel of her robe to display one breast. Her cheeks burned with shyness, and she lowered her gaze to avoid watching his reaction. Instead, her focus fell on his large hand as he cupped her with great care, setting her skin aflame with such intimacy. His thumb swept over the bud of her nipple and circled it with a delicate touch that made her heart gallop. The little pink nub drew tight with pleasure.

“Ye’re so verra beautiful, Isolde.” Cormac reached for the length of silk belting her waist and pulled.

The bow she had hastily tied while rushing to prepare for Cormac’s arrival slipped free and cool air whispered over her skin. His gaze dipped to the gap where her body was visible between the blue silk.

He slid his hand beneath the robe to her bare skin. The contact of his fingers on her nakedness jolted through her with a crackle of energy so great that it made her gasp. His caress brushed her back first, sending a series of decadent shivers down her spine, then lowered to the curve of her bottom as he drew her closer to him.

His mouth met hers with a fierce hunger that burned through her reticence and heightened her desire. Their kisses turned frantic as they panted between suckles and licks. He kissed down her neck, his chin rasping her sensitive skin while his