Page 29 of Refuge for Ailsa

“She didn’t call me a name.”

“Oh, yeah, she did, after you left.”

Ailsa narrowed her eyelids to slits. “What did she call me?”

“She called you a cunt.”

Her jaw dropped. “Seriously? She called me acunt?”

“Why do you think I was so upset? I’m not going to let anybody call you something like that! No ma’am. That’s not cool. Not at all. I’m taking out a restraining order against her, and that’s that. I’m done with this. I don’t want her to ever bother us again.”

Those eyes. As she stared into them, there was a sweetness she hadn’t seen on Sunday. He’d been all animal passion and hard, throbbing manhood that day. The Tavish who knelt in front of her in the moment was the soft, sweet Tavish, the one who held doors and helped her push up her chair. She pressed her palms to his cheeks, her thumbs caressing his cheekbones. And suddenly, she was exhausted. “Oh, god. I feel kinda weak.”

“Go get in bed. I’ve got to feed Starlight and take her out, and then we’ll get some sleep. I think you need some rest, and I’ve gotta get up early and get on the road tomorrow morning, obviously.” He stood and when he reached down to her, she took his hand and let him help her to her feet. “But I meant what I said. I love you, Ailsa. I didn’t think it was possible to fall in love with somebody so fast, but I have, and I don’t regret it. Even if you break my heart, I won’t regret it.”

“I have no plans to break your heart. I love you too, Tav. I mean, you’ve gotten me called a cunt, and that’s never happened before, so I know I’m going to have a lot of new experiences with you.” A little chuckle escaped her throat, and she watched his whole body relax.

“Yeah, all the wrong kinds.”

“I wouldn’t say that. But I do have to go lie down. I feel really tired.”

“Go. It’s fine. I’ll take care of everything, lock up, all that.” He kissed her forehead. “And I really am sorry for all of this.”

“Not your fault. See you in a few minutes.” She stepped away and headed into the bedroom, but when she reached the doorway, she turned and smiled at him. “No matter how bad it was, I think it’s going to be worth it in the long run.”

“I’ll make sure it is, beautiful.”

Ailsa nodded and headed into the bathroom. All she really wanted was to get out of her clothes and into her pajamas, then scoot down into her soft bed and forget about what had happened earlier. And if she was in Tavish’s arms, it was all the better.

CHAPTER5

He putdown a towel in the living room and pointed to it. “Place.”

Starlight stepped toward it, curled up, and lay down. He might not have taught her to hunt, but as far as obedience went, she was amazing. She wouldn’t bother them all night. If she needed to go out, she’d come and lick his hand, but other than that, they’d never see or hear her until morning.

Ailsa was lying with her back to his side of the bed, so he made his way to the bathroom, got his toothbrush and toothpaste out of his bag, brushed his teeth, brushed his hair, and splashed water on his face. Tavish took a good, long look in the mirror. He needed a haircut, but the only barber he liked was in Danville, and he didn’t always have time to go. Keeping his facial hair tamed was a lot easier, and it was usually a neat stubble along his lower jaw and above his upper lip. His dark hair only had a few grays in it, but there were more in his chest hair. Even so, it wasn’t too bad. For thirty-nine, he guessed he looked okay. The carefulness he practiced with his diet showed, and he was lean and hard in all the places that counted.

Then he thought about the beautiful woman in the bed on the other side of the wall. Ailsa… She was a goddess,hisgoddess, if he had any say in it. There was nothing he could find a flaw in when it came to her?nothing. Her skin was soft and velvety, her hair was like a beautiful exploding ember, and those eyes pierced his soul. The first moment he’d seen her in the marina store, he’d been blown away by her beauty. That evening, she’d haunted his thoughts, and he couldn’t forget those eyes. The redness around them, the bloodshot rosiness, the puffy lids when he’d walked in there earlier? He never wanted to see that ever again, and he most certainly never wanted to be the cause of it. Smiling, happy, content, satisfied. Those were the things he wanted for her, always, and if he could be the one to give them to her, all the better.

He tried to slip into bed as quietly and gently as he could, but when he was under the covers, she rolled to face him. “I thought you were asleep. Sorry if I woke you,” he whispered to her.

“No. I wasn’t asleep. I was lying here, thinking about tonight. Our dinner might’ve been ruined, but you told me you love me. That made up for everything.” He reached out with his right hand and stroked two fingers down her left cheek as she lay there. “My heart hurt because I wanted to feel safe with you, and for a little while there, I didn’t.”

“I don’t ever want you to not feel safe with me. I promise you, I’ll always have your best interest at heart, and I’ll never let anything happen to you. You’re precious to me, Ailsa. No other woman has ever made me feel the way you do.”

When Tavish took her in his arms, she melted into him, and he couldn’t kiss her deeply enough. Everything he had, he wanted to pour into her. Carefully and slowly, he unbuttoned her pajama top and drew it open. Those breasts that had beckoned to him that very first day absolutely mesmerized him. As his hands cupped them and his thumbs rubbed across her nipples, she let out a tiny gasp. “Still sore?” he whispered against the soft skin of her neck.

“Yeah, a little.”

“I’ll go easy on them, I promise.” His hands slipped from her breasts around to her back, and he could feel the outline of her shoulder blades against his palms. All he really wanted to do was kiss her, hold her, and tell her how beautiful she was. “Wanna take those bottoms off?” he asked and waited to hear her response.

“Yeah. I do.” As he watched, she slipped off the pajama pants and then her panties. “There. Better. You?”

“Oh, yeah.” Tavish rid himself of the boxer briefs he was wearing and scooped her back into his arms again. “Damn, girl, you’re so soft and lovely. You’re the most beautiful thing in the whole world.”

“Nah. I guess I’m okay, but I’m not beautiful.”

Tavish shook his head. “No. You’re breathtaking. You have no idea how beautiful you really are.” He tapped her lower lip with his index finger and watched as she kissed it. As he drew it down her chin and then her neck, he pressed his lips to hers and let his finger continue to wander. It ran down the gap in her collarbone, between her breasts, dipped at her navel, grazed her belly, and glided into her slit. When she gasped against his lips, he deepened the kiss and began to stroke her most sensitive spot. Her hips bucked toward his hand, and he pressed his lips to her ear. “I want you, Ailsa. I want you every day, all day long. Touching you… It’s my form of prayer, angel. I can’t imagine not being here with you.” He felt her shudder, and her back arched, her legs stiffening, but she never made a sound. His finger slowed, and he kissed her again.

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