Page 27 of Capturing the Highlander's Heart

Jamie sat in silence for a few moments, the click of the door as she left reverberating in his mind.Will she like it? Or will she find it too intrusive?He worried for several minutes before returning to his desk with a huff.

Amelia entered her chamber and shut the door. She had lit a candle on the way up to her room, and she laid it down on the nightstand next tae her bed. She sat down on the bed’s edge, and stared at the gift in the candlelight. Amelia undid the pins from her hair and let the blond locks fall around her shoulders. She placed one hand on her head and one on her hip, deep in thought.He gave me a present?She tried to reconcile with this idea in her mind.First, he’s abominable, then he’s intelligent and brave, and now he’s thoughtful and kind?

Her fingers nudged at the corners of the gift’s wrapping, moving slowly to unwrap the gift. She held her breath, wondering what it could be.

And there it was. A gleaming stack of beautiful crisp white paper, cut and prepared and tied together loosely with a woolen string. A note sat behind the string as well, and Amelia unfolded it to read:

Amelia,

You are the strongest and most beautiful woman I know. You want to read stories about strong female characters? Then, right a story about yourself, and anyone would be honored to read it. I hope this paper will be enough.

Jamie

A tear dropped onto the letter, causing the ink to smear on one edge. Such warmth and kindness and thoughtfulness had not come from a man in so long. William was kind, for certain, but this, this gift, was so intimate and touching. She knew Charles would not have given such a gift. He’d have filled her arms with gowns and jewels, but not such a simple, beautiful gift.

I have to thank him.

She laid down the gift and wrappings and walked to the vanity. Her hair was down, but she tied it into a braid and straightened out her dress. The only thoughts were to tell this wonderful man how much his gift meant to hear, how much he...she didn’t know what the end of that sentence was, but she kept her mind focused on the task, and took the candle in hand to wander down to the work room again.I hope he’s still there.

Finally, she arrived. A light fluttering of nerves twitched across her chest, as she raised her hand to knock once again.

This time, Jamie came to the door. “Amelia? Is all well?” He opened the door wider and reached out to touch her cheek, tears filling her eyes.

She smiled and placed her hands on his chest. “Yes, yes, all is well.”

“Well, come in.” Jamie reluctantly let go of her and motioned for her to enter in the room.

He went and sat on the desk again, crossing his arms.

Amelia stood strong and said, “I just wanted to thank you for such a beautiful gift. Truly, it was very thoughtful, and I cannot thank you enough.”

She walked over to him, laid her hands on his crossed forearms, and placed a kiss on his cheek. She lingered there for a moment, smelling that hint of peppermint and rosemary, along with a sweet smell of working man.

“I…” she began, but let the word hang in the air on its own.

She breathed quicker, and she caught his gaze as she pulled away from his face. Jamie uncrossed his arms, and drew her into them.

With abandon, he crushed his lips to hers and felt her melt into him, her mouth opening, sweet and ready to taste him once again. She sighed and lifted her arms to his broad shoulders and down his arms, feeling his muscles along the way. Jamie brought his hands up to her face and guided her mouth to deepen the kiss. Then, he pulled away and kissed down her neck and across her chest.

Amelia moaned with pleasure. “You make me ache. Here. I don’t know what it is.” She drew his hand to her abdomen.

Breathless, Jamie replied. “Aye, lass I can help ye with that. I can make the ache go away and make ye moan even more. Are ye sure it’s not wine mixing yer words? Do ye want this?”

She stared into his eyes and nodded. Jamie’s whole body tingled as he grabbed her to him again to slant his mouth across hers. He beckoned her to explore him with her tongue, and she responded with fervor. He never wanted to stop kissing this woman. It was like breathing.

Jamie turned Amelia around and lifted her at the waist to sit on his desk. They broke the kiss for a moment as Amelia lifted her skirts up to free her legs. Then, she wrapped her legs around Jamie’s buttocks and yanked his head down to hers again, where she kissed him hungrily, deeply, toying with his tongue as she explored his mouth. Then, Jamie pulled at the trappings of her dress to free one smooth shoulder. He put his mouth to it, as Amelia put her head back, eyes closed. Then, he kissed the tops of each perfect breast, and slid a hand up a pale thigh.

It was a long tantalizing journey, but he took his time, and Amelia felt the core of her throbbing, and she hoped finally, he could sate this need. He rubbed a rough hand along the smoothness of her inner thigh, and yanked down the undergarments to reach her sweet bed of curls.

Amelia had been clinging to Jamie’s muscled biceps, feeling the muscles move and tighten as he held her and moved his hand to the center of the ache. And then, he found it. Amelia groaned with pleasure as Jamie captured her mouth with his. Jamie used his thumb to roll over her nub, feeling her wetness on him. He rubbed and moved, and Amelia’s moans became louder and more frequent. She pulled away and said, “I want to touch you.”

“Not yet, lass. Ye take yer pleasure first.”

“There’s more?” Her eyes open, and her cheeks flushed.

Jamie could have hugged her for her innocence. “Aye, so much more.”

And he continued to rub, and then slowly slid a finger inside. Amelia laid back on the desk, her braid having come undone and her blond locks laid around her like a halo. Her eyes were closed, and her lips parted. She arched her back to grind against Jamie’s hand. The pressure was building, and she felt as though she was on the edge of a waterfall, ready to plunge into the unknown. Jamie kept sliding a finger in and out of her, and Amelia’s moans grew in intensity. And then, she arched her back once more, and trembled, letting out a final cry of ecstasy as she allowed herself to flow off of the waterfall and fall down, down, spiraling into the waters of pleasure.

---