Sins of the Highlander (A Highland Erotic Romance) Read Online Free Page B

hand on top of his. Just a touch would be enough to settle her trembling nerves. But she couldn’t.
    She bowed her head and picked at the food on her plate. His proximity made her feel warm and jittery. Unsettled. The closer she was to him, the more difficult it was to ignore her base desires. She must find a way to occupy herself, to keep her distance from him—even though it might prove difficult when they traveled north.
    A part of her had no desire to stay away from him. She remembered how big his hands were as they stroked over his shaft, how her own body had reacted to him. How it ached for him. She wanted his fingers stroking deep inside her, her lips brushing over the silk of his cock…
    “Lady Aileen?”
    Aileen dropped her knife with a clatter and looked up. Niall was gazing at her with a guarded expression.
    “Aye?”
    “The laird has asked that I bring you to Ellandonan as soon as possible. How long do you think it will take you and your servants to prepare for the journey?”
    She blew out a breath through pursed lips, forcing herself to think. It wouldn’t be too difficult to complete the preparations for travel. Without Walter to complicate every step of the way, and with the help of her factor, Donegal, life at Dornoch had fallen into a smooth routine.
    She didn’t look forward to her meeting with the laird, but there was no reason to delay the inevitable. Shrugging, she said, “We shall leave tomorrow.”
    “Tomorrow? Surely you will require more time to prepare your belongings, your servants—”
    She tried to sound stern. “I manage this castle efficiently, Niall. I require little in the way of baggage or servants. I will prepare my people for departure with time to spare.”
    “All right then,” he said mildly. “As you wish. Tomorrow it is.” He gave a small nod of acceptance and returned to his food, once again leaving her alone with her thoughts.
    Aileen looked down at her Mackenzie men mingling with his MacRaes in the hall. The mood at Dornoch had lightened considerably in the past few weeks, and she couldn’t blame anyone for feeling more relief than sorrow at Walter’s death. Niall’s men seemed to be as content as hers, and it made for a hall filled with cheerfulness, even after the somber early mass in the chapel.
    It seemed she and Niall were the only ones excluded from the jovial atmosphere. She slid a glance at him. He was frowning down at his food as if in deep thought.
    She didn’t want things to become awkward between them. What she had witnessed last night had been a mistake. They could never be with each other. She had a duty to the laird and to her future husband. Her virtue had never failed her, and she wouldn’t allow it to do so now.
    She and Niall had been friends once, after all, and they would be spending more time together. Taking a deep breath, she turned to him again. “How long will it take for us to travel to Ellandonan?”
    “It took two full days for me and my men to travel here. But the roads are bad this time of year. I expect it will take about a week with your carriage, wagons, and baggage.”
    She shook her head, smiling. “I won’t require a carriage. I’ll ride beside you. Have you forgotten how I like to ride?”
    His brows rose in surprise, but he spoke mildly. “Of course. I do remember. Still, you will bring a baggage train and servants. They won’t travel as quickly as you and I on horseback.”
    Aileen imagined the two of them riding side by side to Ellandonan on the rugged Highland road, the wind streaming through their hair. Laughing and free. It would be perfect—a dream.
    One that would never make the transition from the land of fiction into the realm of reality. As always, she would be bogged down by the baggage of her station.
    The smile slipped from her lips and she nodded in concession. “You are right, of course.”
    She felt the warmth of his eyes on her for several moments before he went back to his