Page 106 of The Lyon and the Unicorn
James’s mouth twitched into a grin. “Lass, I’ve no wish to make ye feel compelled to forgive him merely because he has a witness to his plea. If ye wish to bash him over the head with a rock and toss him in the loch, ye have yer laird’s full blessing. In fact, lass, ye have my blessing to do anything ye like.”
He issued a bow. “Ye’ve done my brother a great honor by marrying him, lass, and I’m proud to call ye sister. But now”—he lowered his gaze to Murdo and grinned, revealing white, even teeth—“I’ll leave ye in peace. Brother, heed yer laird’s command.”
“What do ye command?” Murdo asked.
“Atone for yer sins toward yer wife,” James said. “Spend the rest of the day atoning for them, in any manner ye see fit that gives pleasure to her and absolution for yerself.”
He winked at Clara, then made his way back along the path, singing to himself. His voice carried through the air even after he disappeared out of sight.
Murdo tilted his head and gazed at Clara, a plea in his eyes.
“I pledge, here and now to ye, Clara, that I shall love, honor, and cherish ye. I shall honor ye with my soul, and worship ye with my body. I only ask that ye give this wretched husband of yers another chance.”
He reached for her hand and peppered her fingers with kisses. Then he flicked his tongue against her skin, tracing her finger from root to tip, taking it into his mouth and curling his tongue around it.
“Oh, lass, ye taste so sweet!” he said. “I yearn to feast on ye—if ye’ll let me.”
Her heart swelled at the love in his voice.
“Did not your laird command it?”
He tilted his head up, and she caught her breath at the desire in his eyes, pulsing with a deep-emerald flame.
“I love ye, Clara,” he said, “more than life itself. But I’ll not waste my breath telling ye—I wish toshowye.”
He grew still, hope flickering in his eyes while he waited for her response.
Then she lowered herself to her knees.
Hope morphed into joy—the pure joy of a soul no longer imprisoned by the chains of filial duty. Then he claimed her mouth in a hungry kiss, his lips sliding over hers. Tongues clashing, they relished the taste of each other as he pulled her to the ground.
He entered her swiftly, sliding into her body with ease, and she parted her thighs in welcome, wrapping her legs around his waist to pull him deeper inside.
“Och, lass—ye’ll be the undoing of me!”
His breath came out in short, sharp puffs, then he tilted his head back and cried out her name, which echoed across the landscape, reverberating into the earth as she writhed beneath him, surrendering to his touch. The wave crested asshe shattered around him while he roared out his pleasure. He plunged into her, finding completion at last, and a delicious heat swelled within her, threading through her body.
They lay together, Clara relishing the ground against her back, the land to which she now belonged, their bodies rippling with the aftershocks of their climax, while the breeze rippled over the loch, and she fell into a doze.
When she opened her eyes, she saw her husband staring down at her, his hair illuminated against the backdrop of the sun. He dipped his head and brushed his lips against hers, and she lifted her hand and placed it on his cheek.
“I love you, Murdo,” she whispered.
He blinked, and moisture gleamed in his eyes. She brushed his cheek with her thumb to find it wet with tears.
“Don’t cry for me, my love.”
“They’re tears of joy,” he replied, “and relief—that while I deserve never to be forgiven, ye’re willing to let me atone for my sins.”
“Oh,atone, is it?” she said mischievously.
“Aye,” he said. “There’s much atonement to come. In the loch, while the water engulfs us, and our love sends ripples across the water. Against the granite rock with its warmth on yer back after it’s been in the sun all day. Among the heather on the slopes of the mountain, where I can roar out my love for ye to rival the stags in rut…”
Her body pulsed with desire at the raw need in his voice.
“And then I’ll carry ye home and make love to ye all night in our bed while ye scream my name for all the clan to hear.”
“Murdo!”
