The Laird's Forbidden Lady by Ann Lethbridge Page B

to this woman, unless he was careful.
    He was always careful. Always in control. Tonight was no different.

Chapter Seven
    S elina let the blessed warmth of Ian’s body at her back and the heat of the fire in front gather her up and set her adrift. The feel of his arms around her made her feel safe, protected from the world beyond their cave.
    Men usually made her nervous. They had to be watched and judged and kept at a distance. If you let them get too close, they found a way to hurt you.
    Ian had taught her that lesson when she was an impressionable schoolgirl. How could she forget that about him now?
    Or was it the schoolgirl who had once more taken over her mind and her body reminding her of those old foolish longings?
    Certainly not. She knew what this was, what it had always been: forbidden desire. A fragilewoman always brought out a male’s urge to protect. And thus she held the upper hand, as long as she didn’t allow herself to be drawn under its spell. Under those conditions, there was nothing wrong with a little bit of mutual lust. Provided it didn’t go too far.
    A lady had to be careful of her reputation, especially if she hoped to marry.
    Then why this pervasive sense of well-being wrapped in his arms when tonight she had risked everything?
    She turned her face up, looking at his hard square jaw covered in stubble. Her gaze traced the shadow of his cheek and the carved cheekbone. And the longing inside her seemed to increase with the expansion and contraction of his ribs at her back. A silent sigh, yet she felt it with every bone in her body.
    ‘I never forgave myself for what I said to you, that day at the beach,’ he murmured low in her ear. ‘Children are cruel, but I was old enough to know better. I had an overabundance of pride in those days.’
    Surprised, she twisted in his arms to better see his expression, to assure herself he wasn’t mocking.
    Indeed, his lips did smile, but it was a lovely generous smile, youthful, touched by regret, his eyes gleaming with firelight.
    Her insides drew tight, pulsed with a sensationthat made her eyelids droop and her body soften.
    Looking down at her, he inhaled a swift breath. The glimmer in his eyes burst into searing flames.
    The air crackled and warmed. All around them heat conspired to make them short of breath and wordless. His arms tightened around her body, his head dipped until his mouth was close enough to brush her lips. The soft caress of each exhale tickled her lips, the scent of him, salt and sea air, and something very male filled her senses.
    ‘It seems we are destined to rescue each other from time to time,’ she said on a breathless laugh. Though it must never happen again.
    Without thought, she put her arms around his neck, tipped her head and kissed his cheek, much as she had as a girl. ‘I’m glad I reached you in time.’
    A groan broke in his throat. ‘Me, too.’ His hand came to her jaw, cradling her chin, angling her head the better to kiss her back.
    His lips firmed over hers, testing and teasing. His lips parted and his tongue licked her bottom lip. Thrills ran amok in her body, making her gasp with shock at the pleasure of such an intimate touch.
    Heavenly sensations coursed through her veins and turned her bones liquid.
    His parted lips matched hers and, open-mouthed, their lips melded and moved in a harmony she hadn’t expected. Tentatively, she tried a taste of her own. Their tongues met and danced and played, at first gently, carefully, and then with wild fervour.
    Dizzy, breathing hard, she lay in his arms. The magic of his kiss took her out of her body. Whereas she’d been floating before, now she was flying, soaring, released from the chains of the world.
    Inside she trembled.
    Never in her adult life had she lost her sense of self so utterly as now, as if some part of them had fused and become something different altogether. It exhilarated. And terrified.
    Fear made her struggle.
    He drew back, breathing hard, looking