Forbidden Highlander (Highlander Trilogy 2)

Dawn stirred cuddling closer against him and he tucked the blanket over her shoulders. There was so much he wanted and needed to say to her, but the time wasn’t right, but most importantly the situation wasn’t right. And he blamed much of that on himself.

After his mother had died he had had no choice but to put his sister in a convent, and he had sworn he would let no one dictate his life. He had worked, though mostly battled hard, to reach that point. And now it was only the King he answered to and he found even that too restrictive.

What he had learned though was to manipulate those in power to get what he wanted and he wanted Dawn and nothing would stop him from having her as his wife.

The soft tap to his chest had him glancing down at Dawn, her eyes not yet fully opened. She looked as if she peeked between her lashes and yet she seemed to see him clearly, since she reached up to gently caress the scowl bunched between his eyes.

He shook his head. She needn’t know his trouble thoughts.

Dawn thought otherwise.

She tapped her chest, then his and then crossed her heart reminding him that he had asked her to promise to trust him. Then she tapped his chest again and crossed his heart and shrugged, asking if he promised to trust her. Then she took hold of his hand and laced her fingers with his and squeezed tight, as if reaffirming their commitment to each other.

“You are asking of me what I asked of you… to trust you. He squeezed their joined hand. “That we are one and nothing can separate us.” He loved the way she talked with her hands, since most of the time to do so, she touched him. And he loved when she touched him, whether innocently or passionately he loved the feel of her hands on him.

Dawn nodded with a smile.

“You would never think of leaving me, would you?” he asked needing her to reaffirm that they were inseparable. He did not like the soft scowl that disappeared as fast as it had appeared on her face. He grew angry, though truthfully it was more worry. “You have thought of leaving me?”

She was not good at hiding her thoughts from him. He could read and hear through her silence too well. She released his hand, patted her stomach and shook her head.

“You thought I didn’t want the babe?” he asked though why wouldn’t she? He had demanded she take something to prevent conception. What had he expected her to think? And then it hit him… she would have left him to protect their child and he silently cursed himself for being such a fool. “You would have left me to protect our child.” His scowl deepened. “That means you would have accepted Kirk’s offer of wedding his friend.”

He turned such a fierce look on her that she felt a twinge of fear.

“I would have never let that happen.” He grinned then and proudly. “I would have killed him before you ever got the chance to wed him.”

Her twinge dissipated with his grin and she shook her head and poked him in the ribs.

He grabbed her finger and kissed it, then he brought his lips to hers and before he kissed her said, “Never ever doubt that I want our child and never ever doubt that we are one.”

She had no chance to respond, his lips settled on hers. She recalled the envy she had felt when Lila told her about her first kiss and how wonderful it had been and how she wouldn’t mind kissing Paul over and over again. Dawn had hoped one day she would feel the same about someone. As time passed she doubted that day would ever come, and then a miracle happened… Cree kissed her.

She finally got to experience her own joy at being kissed and would have never thought it could be so utterly magical or that she would never want his kisses to stop. And she loved all the different ways he kissed her, like now with a fierce possessiveness that confirmed what he had said… they were one.

Her body began to respond to his deepening kiss, which was something that always happened, whether his kiss was filled with passion or tender caring. It didn’t matter; her body quickened. And at that moment, besides feeling passionate, she was feeling playful and so she slipped her hand down to take hold of him.

She wasn’t surprised to find him hard. It seemed to be a perpetual state with him when they were in bed together. Though she was surprised at his reaction, he stopped kissing her.

“Your wound?”

She hadn’t even given thought to it and she didn’t intend to, at least not now. She shook her head and to prove her point she pushed him on his back and slowly climbed on top of him. Her passion surged with her actions and she found herself more than eager to have him inside her.