The Highlander's Woman
(The Reckless Rockwoods Series, #3)
(The Reckless Rockwoods Series, #3)
By Monica Burns
Blurb:
Julian MacTavish’s honor made him guard a friend’s secret. But his lies to keep that vow make it difficult to prove his faithfulness as a husband. When a terrible inferno scars Patience’s body and mind, she becomes a recluse, widening the divide between them. But it’s her lack of trust, not her disfigurement, which sends Julian home alone to Scotland convinced he’s lost her forever.
Forgiveness in the face of death comes easily to Patience MacTavish, but the thought of being a burden to her husband does not. When a twist of fate takes Julian’s sight from him, Patience returns home hoping to make amends for not having faith in him. Pity is the last thing Julian wants from anyone, especially his wife, and it’s his turn to question her sincerity. Now, Patience must convince her husband that she’s come home for no other reason than love, even if it means arranging a highlander’s seduction.
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Excerpt
Patience’s eyes fluttered open as she covered her yawn with her hand. Dawn was barely peeking in through the bedroom curtains, and she smiled with happiness. Julian was home and all was right with her world.
“You’re beautiful, mo leannan. I will never be able to have enough of you.” The husky words startled her, and she jerked her head in his direction.
“You’re awake.”
“Aye.” Propped up on his elbow, Julian’s cradled his head in his hand as he stared down at her. “I have been for some time now.”
“And you didn’t wake me,” she teased as she remembered how they’d spent themselves in passionate lovemaking when they’d returned home last night after seeing the Dowager Countess Lyndham home.
“No, I’ve been watching my wife as she slept.” There was something almost reverent in his voice that tugged at her heart. Patience turned on her side and reached up to trail her fingertips across his cheeks until they came to rest on his lips.
“I hope I didn’t snore,” she said with a mischievous smile.
“Just a gentle roar.” Julian’s eyes twinkled with amusement, and she quickly pushed him onto his back. She stared down at him in mock annoyance.
“A gentle roar? I’ll have you know I do not snore at all.”
“I’m sorry mo ghràdh.” He shook his head. “I do no’ lie, but it is a beautiful snore nonetheless.”
“I think perhaps I should punish you for such impertinence, Mr. MacTavish.”
“And what punishment might you inflict, madam?” His eyes darkened as his deep chuckle vibrated against the palm of her hand.
Patience lowered her head to flick her tongue over his left nipple before she grabbed it with her teeth and gently abraded it. The fresh scent of evergreen mixed with the heat of his skin and brushed against her nose as she breathed in the potent male smell of him. She nipped at him again, savoring the delicious taste of him against her tongue. The action pulled a low growl out of him. His hands cupped her face, but she pulled away to move her mouth lower to where he was already stiff and hard.
Feathering light kisses across his stomach, she blew gently on his erection before continuing to brush her mouth across his muscular hip down to his leg. He was hot and all male against her lips. Her mouth brushed over the small, birthmark on his hip that reminded her of a bird in flight. Gently, she bit down on the mauve colored flesh, marking him as hers in much the same way nature had. Another growl rumbled out of him, and she smiled against his skin before grazing her teeth across his leg to his inner thigh.
“If this is your form of punishment, mo leannan, I approve.”
“Do you?” she lifted her head and blew across his hard, thick length before her tongue flicked out to lightly trace its way up to the salty tip of him.
“Aye,” he said hoarsely as his fingers slipped through her hair to cradle the back of her head.
She blew across his erection again before her tongue swirled around the tip of him. Repeating the action, she heard him draw in a sharp hiss of air. Slowly, she licked across the top of him as she looked up at his face. Eyes closed, he arched his hips upward slightly in a silent request for her to continue.
When she didn’t move, his eyes opened, and she smiled at the frustration flashing in the dark depths. Their gazes locked, she licked the tip of him once more as she might a spoon covered with the last traces of cream. A low groan reverberated out of him.
“Should I stop?” she murmured as her tongue swirled around him once more.
“God, no.” He shook his head forcefully. “But I’d rather have you astride me, lass. I want to feel you wrapped around me—milking me the way only you can.”
Ignoring his words, she swirled her tongue around the cap of his thick length before she took him completely into her mouth. The action pulled a dark cry from his throat as his lower body jerked hard in a display of pleasure. As she slid her mouth up and down over his erection, she applied pressure to the spot just behind his sacs that she’d discovered always enhanced his pleasure. Another groan of desire echoed above her head as she tightened her mouth on him. He jerked again before his hands firmly grasped her arms, and he dragged her upward to make her straddle him.
“No, mo ghràdh, you will have your satisfaction too.”
As he spoke, he thrust hard up into her. Pleasure streaked through her as their bodies joined together, and he encouraged her to ride him hard. One strong hand curled around her hip, while his other pressed against her breast bone to force her backward until his hard, thick length hit a sensitive spot inside her. The sensation tugged a cry of pleasure from her throat. Hands braced against his hard thighs, she arched her back and worshipped his body with hers as she met his thrusts with equal force.
With each stroke of her body against his, her heart beat faster as she cried out his name as desire cascaded over her. Heat spread its way through every cell in her body until she was on fire. A familiar sensation of euphoria began to build inside her, and she increased the pace of her body rocking against his.
Small ripples of pleasure pulled at her insides as her body gripped his with increasing pressure. The faster she moved against him, the more quickly her body pulsed against his. As her spasms increased, his body continued to pound fiercely against hers until in a fevered pitch of pleasure her body jerked to a stop. Her cry of satisfaction echoed over them as her insides shuddered and flexed around his thick erection.
A second later, his shout of pleasure matched hers as he made one last thrust into her then throbbed hard inside her. The intensity of their joining made her fall forward to press her forehead against hers. Harsh breaths emanated from both of them, and her heart was beating wildly in her chest.
Julian’s strong hands caressed her hips in a loving fashion before they slid up along her sides and cupped her face. With slow, tender kisses, his caresses left her sighing as she allowed her body to settle against his. Her head pressed into the curve of his shoulder, she breathed in his unique aroma. It was reminiscent of the beautiful, harsh, and wild highlands. It emphasized the man holding her came from a long line of fiercely proud and strong Scotsmen.
“I love you, Julian,” she whispered against his jaw. At her declaration he turned his head and pressed his lips to her brow.
“And I you, mo ghràdh,” he said with a rough edge of emotion in his voice. Nestled in his arms, Patience released a happy sigh, and a chuckle rumbled out of him. “I take it you are satisfied, Mrs. MacTavish?”
“For the moment,” she said with a laugh. His hand swatted her behind, and she yelped in surprise.
“My absence has turned you into an insatiable wench.” His fingers tilted her chin up so he could see her face. “But tis good to know you missed me.”
“I did,” she whispered as she stroked a cheek rough with stubble. “Please don’t leave me alone for so long if you must go to Crianlarich.”
“I had no choice, Patience. My father had need of me, and I could no’ shirk my duty.”
Julian stared up at the ceiling, and the tension in him said her refusal to go to Crianlarich had disappointed him more than she realized. Worse, her request just now had sounded as if she didn’t want him to go back to his childhood home at all. She rested her hand on his heart as she curled into his side.
“I’m sorry, my darling. I didn’t mean it that way. I just missed you.”
“Then next time, come with me,” he said quietly. The statement made her stiffen.
His grip on her arm relaxed as if he intended to let her go before he tightened his grip again. With a sharp tug, he pulled her into his chest. The sudden proximity of him made her heart do a somersault. Fingers splayed against his chest, he smelled of warm spice and bergamot. It had been too long since she’d been this close to him, and she trembled with a sudden need that scorched its way through her veins.
His mouth was so close to hers that with just a slight tilt of her head their lips would touch. Almost as if he’d read her mind, his hand cupped the back of her neck as his other arm wrapped around her waist and he pulled her tight against him.
“I have no idea why ye came back, Patience,” he said hoarsely. “But ye are treading a dark and dangerous path, lass.”
No sooner had he uttered his warning than his mouth captured hers in a demanding kiss. A tremor shot through her as her lips parted beneath his. Every bit the arrogant, commanding Highlander, his tongue swept into her mouth to duel tempestuously with hers. She knew it was folly, but she responded eagerly to his hot caress. The tart taste of gooseberry lingered in his mouth and danced across her tongue as his swirled around hers.
Caught up in the raw, sensual maleness of him, the heat radiating off him engulfed her until her body trembled with need. Hard, steely muscles pressed into her body with a powerful, unyielding strength that tempted and aroused her. She ached to feel his skin against hers until she didn’t know where she ended or he began.
Hot and erotic, his kiss enticed and claimed her until a hedonistic rush of pleasure spiraled through her veins. It sent a pulse streaking downward to the center of her core. The moment it reached the sensitive spot between her legs, a low cry of need rolled out of her throat as her body ached for more than just his kiss. The exquisite need for fulfillment spiraled through her while her heart raced out of control.
She moaned softly as with each stroke of his tongue, she yielded to his silent seduction. The pounding of his heart vibrated against her fingertips as a desire so deep and strong made her blind to everything but his kiss. She forgot all that had brought them to this point and simply gave herself up to the sweet passion of the moment. The low growl rumbling in his chest sent a rush of delight streaking through her. In the next instant, he thrust her from him.
“Get out,” he said coldly.
Heart beating wildly in her breast, Patience stared up at Julian’s stony expression. There wasn’t the slightest trace of emotion on his face, and tears welled in her eyes. Was he truly lost to her? Had she come to Crianlarich Castle for nothing?
Instinct pushed her spine deeper into the door and away from him as she recognized the predatory nature of his stance. His heat pressing into hers, Julian bent his head until his mouth lightly touched the burnt flesh of her ear. Without thinking, she jerked her head away from his lips, and instantly regretted the move.
Cold amusement crossed his sharp, angular features as his body pinned her to the door. Despite her best intentions, a tremor shook through her at the suppressed violence pulsating off him and into her body. This wasn’t the man she’d married or made love to in the past. This was an untamed warrior Scotsman—a man unwilling to give any quarter. As she stared up at him, her heart skidded out of control. He was magnificent, and she was determined to make him hers again.
“Are you afraid, my lady?” he asked with a biting sarcasm that infuriated her.
“Of you? Never,” she said fiercely as she chose to fight fire with fire. Her hand cupped the back of his strong neck and she tugged his head down toward hers to kiss him hard. Julian stiffened against her for a brief moment before his body roughly pressed her deeper into the wood door behind her. It was a display of domination, and a small thrill raced through her. He immediately took control of the kiss, his mouth crushing hers beneath his.
The raw heat of him engulfed her like a hot summer day just before a thunderstorm. Inside her breast, her heart pounded a familiar rhythm of white-hot passion. He’d always had the ability to excite her, but the wild emotion heating her blood now was unlike anything she’d ever experienced between them. It was a wild, primitive throbbing that made her body ache to feel his skin against hers.
His tongue thrust its way into her mouth and tangled with hers in a fiery dance of passion. Mint teased her taste buds as her fingers scrunched up the warm wool of his work kilt to touch a rock hard thigh. A large hand tugged at her bodice and the soft pop of buttons being torn free of her gown echoed in her ears. As his hand roughly yanked her bodice open, she trembled with excitement. It was an undisciplined act that said he was out of control.
The Reckless Rockwoods series
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About the Author
A bestselling author of spicy historical and paranormal romance, Monica Burns penned her first short romance story at the age of nine when she selected the pseudonym she uses today. Her historical book awards include the 2011 RT BookReviews Reviewers Choice Award and the 2012 Gayle Wilson Heart of Excellence Award for Pleasure Me. She is also the recipient of the prestigious paranormal romance award, the 2011 PRISM Best of the Best award for Assassin’s Heart. From the days when she hid her stories from her sisters to her first completed full-length manuscript, she always believed in her dream despite rejections and setbacks. A workaholic wife and mother, Monica believes it’s possible for the good guy to win if they work hard enough.You can find Monica here:
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