Highland Thirst by Lynsay Sands, Hannah Howell Page B

enough to fight or escape
him if the need arose.
    By
the time they had finished the meal, Brona was yawning. The fact that she was
about to share a bed with Heming, even fully dressed, should have made her
nervous, but she was simply too tired to care. And that was very sad, she
thought with a faint smile as she crawled onto the bed, closing her eyes the
moment she settled her head on the pillow.
    Heming
grimaced as he yanked off his boots and climbed onto the bed. Brona muttered
something as he pulled her into his arms but he could tell that she was already
more asleep than awake. He was tempted to take advantage of that, but pushed
the temptation aside. When he made Brona his he wanted her to be wide awake and
fully aware of every kiss, every touch. For now it was enough just to hold her
close as he slept. Before they left the room, however, Heming was determined to
make her fully his, for there might not be another chance to get her alone
before they reached Cambrun.
     
    Brona
smiled as lightly calloused hands stroked her. She was a little surprised that
her dream had grown so explicit considering her lack of experience and
knowledge. Heat flowed through her with every touch of Heming’s hands and she
savored it, drinking it in like the finest of wines. The touch of his warm lips
upon the side of her neck made her shiver with pleasure. She reached back to
thread her fingers through his soft hair even as she tilted her head back to
give him greater access to her throat and murmured her delight when she felt
the scrape of his teeth against her skin.
    His
teeth? a slowly waking part of her mind asked. Brona frowned, certain that she would
not have put that in her lovely dream of sharing a passionate moment with
Heming. It was true that letting him take her blood had made her feel all hot
and needy. But she was still not sure she was comfortable with that need of
his. Brona was fairly sure she would not have dreamt of such.
    “Brona,
love, ‘tis time to wake up,” said a familiar deep voice, soft lips moving
against her ear in a way that made her stomach clench with want.
    “I
think I may already be awake,” she murmured but did not open her eyes.
    Heming
laughed softly and lightly nipped her ear. “Then look at me.”
    “Must
I?”
    “Aye,
for I wish to kiss ye.”
    There
was a soft rumble to his voice that Brona realized was a sign of his desire. It
fed her own desire almost as much as his touch did. Considering her utter lack
of experience with men and desire, she was surprised she could recognize his so
easily and feel it increasing her own.
    Slowly
she turned around to face him, making no move to slip free of his embrace. His
golden eyes were dark and warm as he looked at her, the heat in them slipping
into her blood. Brona knew what he wanted, knew she was wrong to want it too.
He spoke no words of love or a future for them. Men did not need any deep
emotion to feel lust. Brona felt deeply, however. Her passion came straight
from her heart.
    Give
in, a voice whispered in her mind as he brushed soft kisses over her face. Just
once take what ye want. And, oh, how she wanted, she thought as he teased
her lips with soft, nibbling kisses. It was the voice of temptation whispering
in her head and she knew it. Brona also knew she should ignore it as it was the
sort of thing that destroyed all too many women.
    When
he slid his tongue into her mouth, stroking the inside in a way that had her
trembling from the strength of her desire, she wrapped her arms around his neck
and held on tight. Brona knew it was probably a big mistake, would probably
cause her a lot of pain in the future, but she was going to give in to
temptation. There had been so little joy in her life since the death of her
parents and she was hungry for some, no matter how fleeting that joy might
prove to be. If she had to do a penance for it, she decided it would be a small
price to pay for all the sweet, heady memories this beautiful man would