Page 49 of Craved By a Wolf

Hella stepped out onto the pebbles and kept walking forwards, not stopping until the water lapped at her toes and dampened the hem of her skirts.

She looked down and canted her head as she frowned.

Her long skirts.

It wasn’t like her to wear such modest clothing, but as she took in her black dress, she found she liked that it concealed so much of her body, keeping it a mystery, even as it revealed her best asset. She stroked her breasts again, skimming fingers over the twin mounds, and lifted her gaze, settling it on the loch.

Green mountains laced with pale purple and pink heather enclosed the water, their gentle slopes appearing brown near the top and dark green at the bottom where trees hugged their foothills. The water rippled and sparkled in the sunshine, the way the light played across it mesmerising her for a moment before her gaze was drawn to one of the islands that dotted the loch. There were several of them, some large and home to towering pines, and others little more than rocks jutting from the surface.

She found her focus drifting to one in particular as a sensation built inside her—an island that had several trees clustered together in the centre of it.

She stilled.

That wasn’t the only thing on the island.

MacKinnon stood on the shore, his loose white shirt billowing in the breeze, held in place by the waist of a red and green kilt.

Her pulse quickened, heart thumping harder as she stared at him and he stared at her, and awareness of him reached right down into her soul.

She had been mistaken.

Hewas the breathtaking thing in this place.

His dark hair was tousled and wild, his eyes more gold than silver, and the few buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing his broad chest and making her itch to brush her fingers through the hair that covered it.

Her breath hitched as he moved forwards, as he waded into the water.

Heading for her.

Her pulse fluttered and she looked away, knew she should leave but couldn’t bring herself to do it as he dived into the loch and began swimming towards her. Anticipation thrummed inside her, had her restless and unsure what to do as he closed the distance between them, his powerful arms and legs making swift work of crossing the water that separated them.

But not quickly enough for her liking.

Her entire body felt as if it was on fire as she waited. She burned for him.

Hella looked down at the water that caressed her feet and then at MacKinnon.

And found she couldn’t wait.

She waded into the water, her skirts growing heavy as it soaked them. She wrestled with them, struggling to lift them as the water reached her thighs, the coolness of it a relief from the summer heat but not from the fire blazing within her.

That fire only grew hotter still when MacKinnon reached a point where he could stand. He rose from the water and stole her breath. Mother earth, he was glorious. His white shirt clung to his body, revealing it to her hungry gaze, and she barely bit back a moan as he swept his hands over his wet hair, slicking it back from his face.

Droplets of water rolled down his sculpted cheeks to caress the straight line of his jaw, tempting her fingers to stroke the same path.

Eyes that were, in fact, more silver than gold locked with hers, bewitching her.

Such striking eyes.

How could she have ever thought no man in this world could have eyes more interesting and entrancing than Ethyrian’s?

MacKinnon’s eyes could cast a spell on her, were black magic that destroyed her defences and tore down her control.

He waded towards her, powerful legs cutting through the water, making it surge around him, and her breaths came faster, her heart thundering as she waited to see what he would do.

Hoping it was what she needed him to do.

The moment he was close enough, he snagged her wrist and pulled her into his arms.

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