Page 22 of Shy Innocent In The Spotlight

CHAPTER SEVEN

ELSPETHSTAREDATher reflection in the bathroom mirror, wishing she hadn’t told Mack the truth. But how could she have slept with him as her sister? It would be taking the charade way too far. She hadn’t been able to go any further without him knowing the truth. But now he knew who she was, he was pulling away. Was that because she wasn’t enough on her own? That the layer of confidence she’d adopted while pretending to be her twin had been the allure—the only thing about her he had found irresistible? She wasn’t enough as herself, but then, she never had been. She had always been lesser than her outgoing, talented twin. She had always compared herself to Elodie and felt she didn’t measure up. Not just because of her allergy, which had limited her life so much, but because she lacked her twin’s assertiveness, her audacity and energetic enthusiasm for adventure.

So where did that leave her now?

It left her feeling ashamed and alone and frustrated. Frustrated physically, because Mack’s kiss had awoken her flesh and made her hungry for more of his touch. She lifted her fingers to her lips, tracing where his lips had pressed so firmly, so urgently. Her cheeks were still flushed, her body still throbbing with a low, deep, dragging ache.

Her hand fell away from her lips and she released a ragged sigh. How was she going to get a wink of sleep knowing he was only a few feet away, scrunched up on the sofa?

Elspeth came out of the bathroom after freshening up to find Mack had left the crofter’s hut, presumably to give her some privacy. Unlike the castle, the walls here were thin, the rooms small, which would have made it the perfect love-tryst location.

Love?

She frowned at the word her brain had sourced at random. No, this wasn’t love. This was lust. She was experiencing her first full-on body crush. Yes, there were lots of things about Mack besides his body she found enormously attractive. He had known who she was and had brought her up here to keep her away from the press. It was a kind and thoughtful gesture, but it didn’t mean she had to fall in love with him because of it. No, she was attracted to him physically.

But then, who wouldn’t be? He had drive and ambition in spades, a strong work ethic and he genuinely cared about doing the right thing by people. Which was why he was refusing to sleep with her. Was it because he was worried she would read more into the encounter than was warranted? That he had somehow assumed she would fall instantly in love with him and complicate things for him? She might be a little inexperienced in the ways of the world, but she wasn’t a fool. She could handle a sensual encounter without losing her heart to him. One night with him would have been a perfect solution for her. A way of losing her virginity with a man she liked and respected and one who liked and respected her. Why wouldn’t he accept the invitation? Was it because he didn’t think she could handle a casual hook-up?

Elspeth sat on the sofa and cuddled a scatter cushion against her chest. She hadn’t considered herself the casual-dating type. In spite of her sheltered background, she had quietly dreamed of one day finding the right person to settle down with and make a family. But the older she got, the more remote the possibility had become. Who would want her with her faulty immune system? What if she gave one of her children her allergy? There would be a lifetime of worry for her and her partner, not to mention her child. And then her mother would have double the worry. It was easier not to hanker after things other people took for granted. Easier to settle for less than to crave more and be disappointed. And wouldn’t she be craving more than she could have by wanting more time with Mack? Wouldn’t she be setting herself up for bitter disappointment? For Mack was not the settling-down type. He had stated it baldly—he was a hardened playboy. A man who moved from casual lover to casual lover without long-term commitment on the agenda.

The door opened behind her and Elspeth turned to see Mack coming in with some blocks of peat for the fire. The late summer twilight had brought with it a cool change, the wind was whistling outside in an eerie tone that sounded almost ghostly, ethereal.

‘I think we might get a storm in a bit,’ Mack said, bending down to attend to the fire.

Elspeth put the scatter cushion to one side and got off the sofa to peer out of the nearest window. She suppressed a tiny shudder. Storm clouds were gathering, the sky so ominously broody it made the back of her neck prickle. ‘It certainly looks a bit wild out there...’

Mack must have sensed something in her tone, for he turned from his kneeling position in front of the fire to look at her over his shoulder. ‘You don’t like storms?’

She grimaced and wrapped her arms across her middle. ‘Not much.’

He closed the firebox and straightened, dusting off his hands on his jeans. ‘This hut has withstood plenty of savage storms, so you’ll be safe here.’

‘What if I don’t want to be safe?’ She must have been playing her twin too long for the words just popped out as if she had oodles of natural confidence. She was taking a gamble, stepping way outside her comfort zone, terrified he would reject her hands down, but she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself if she didn’t make the most of this opportunity.

She was alone with him, totally alone and might never have the chance again.

Why shouldn’t she be bold and brazen about what she wanted?

Mack rubbed a hand down his face. ‘Elspeth. We’ve already had this conversation.’

‘No, Mack. A conversation is where two people express their opinions and listen to each other, each taking on board what the other says.’ Elspeth approached him, stopping within touching distance. ‘You told me what you wanted without really listening to what I wanted.’

His eyes locked with hers. ‘What do you want?’

Elspeth closed the distance between them, sliding her hands up the hard wall of his chest. He sucked in a breath, his body jolting as if touched by a live wire. The same electricity that fired through her own acutely aware flesh. ‘I think you know what I want. It’s what you want too.’

Mack placed his hands on her hips and brought her flush against his hardened body. ‘You don’t strike me as the casual-lover type. And that’s all I can be right now.’

Elspeth snaked her arms around his neck, tangling her fingers in his windswept hair. He smelt of the outdoors—fresh, wild, untamed. She lowered her gaze to his grimly set mouth. ‘What if that was all I wanted right now? A casual lover?’

He tipped up her chin with one of his hands, his gaze searching. ‘Are you sure about this? You might regret it in the morning.’

Elspeth leaned into his rock-hard body, her feminine flesh tingling with anticipation. ‘I promise I won’t regret it. I want to make love with you. I want it so much I can hardly believe I’m saying it. For all these years, I’ve ignored the needs of my body. It’s like it’s been asleep until I met you. Now, all I can think about is how it will feel to be in your arms.’

Mack framed her face in his hands, his gaze still locked on hers. ‘You’re making it so hard for me to resist you.’ His voice was rough around the edges, his body against hers signalling the struggle he had to maintain control.

She smiled and stroked a finger down the length of his nose. ‘Look who’s talking. You’ve been making it impossible to resist you from the moment I met you.’

He gave a low deep groan and covered her mouth with his in a passionate kiss that set her blood racing and her heart pumping. His arms came around her, holding her to his body as if he never wanted to let her go. His tongue slipped between her lips and she was lost to the overwhelming force of desire that swept through her like a fast-running tide. Her lips clung to his, her tongue tangling with his, her need matching his. A ferocious need that threatened to consume her.

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