Page 62 of Tempted By a Highland Beast
She opened her mouth to argue, then closed it again, frustration clear in every line of her body. The logical part of her mind knew he was right. They were betrothed. But the rest of her, the part that had been carefully trained in propriety and virtue, recoiled at the intimacy of it.
Constantine watched her with languid eyes that suggested he was bored. “Unless ye have some other objection?”
“I dinnae trust ye,” she said finally, the words sharp as a blade.
“Smart lass.” He pulled his jerkin over his head, revealing the lean muscle and scattered scars beneath. Rowena hoped the breath she sucked in had been silent, but the arrogant smirk on his face suggested he had heard her.
“But maybe it would be more accurate tae say ye dinnae trust yerself… What dae ye say? Mayhaps I can make ye eat yer words.”
The casual way he spoke of it sent heat flooding through her veins. Not entirely from anger, though she tried to tell herself that’s all it was.
“Ye wouldnae dare.”
“Wouldnae I?” Constantine set his jerkin aside and began unlacing his shirt. “Tell me lass, if I tried tae kiss ye again, ye wouldnae let me?” His gaze challenged her to deny it, but Rowena knew it was true. She would let him.
“I dinnae think it would take much tae convince ye.” he added.
Rowena’s eyes dropped to his hands as they worked the leather ties, then snapped back up to his face. “Unbelievable!”
A knock at the door broke the moment. “Hot water,” called a voice from the hall.
Constantine moved to answer it, accepting the steaming pitcher from a young serving girl who kept her eyes carefully averted. When he closed the door again, Rowena had retreated to the window, her arms wrapped around herself like armor.
“The water’s hot,” he said unnecessarily, pouring it into the basin. Steam rose in delicate curls, and the scent of lavender filled the air.
“I can see that.”
Constantine watched her reflection in the dark glass, noting the tension in her shoulders, the way she held herself apart. Something had shifted between them during their stay at the village, some wall had begun to crumble. But now, faced with the intimacy of a shared room, she was rebuilding it stone by stone.
I’ll be damned if I let her.
“Rowena.” His voice was quieter now, less commanding. “What are ye thinkin’?”
Her shoulders stiffened, and he saw her eyes close in the window’s reflection. “It daesnae matter.”
“It daes tae me. Tell me.”
She turned slowly, her face carefully composed. But he could see the flush creeping up her throat, the way her breathing had grown shallow. “When I came tae yer chambers were ye… did ye…”
Constantine stepped closer, close enough to see the gold flecks in her hazel eyes, the way her lips parted slightly when she was nervous.
“I was thinking of ye.” The words came out rougher than he’d intended, raw with honesty. “Of what it might be like tae touch ye. Tae taste ye. Tae hear ye call me name fer reasons that would’ve naethin’ tae dae with political arrangements.”
Rowena’s breath caught, her eyes widening. “Was that... was that the first time ye’d thought of me that way?”
“Nay.” The admission came without hesitation. “I’ve thought of little else since that first day at the loch. Ye are a beautiful lass, Rowena. I would have tae be a blind man nae tae be attracted by ye.” His hand came up, fingers barely grazing her cheek.
“I’ve never…” The words came out in a rush, then stopped abruptly.
“Never what?”
She shook her head, color flooding her cheeks again. “It daesnae matter.”
“Tell me.” His voice was soft, coaxing. “What is it ye’ve never done?”
“Intimacy,” she whispered, the word so quietly he almost didn’t catch it. “I’ve never been intimate with someone. Never felt the way ye make me feel.”
Something possessive and fierce sparked in Constantine’s dark eyes. The knowledge that she was unclaimed, untouched, that whatever desire lived between them was his alone to claim, affected him more than he’d expected.
