Chapter Twenty
Tavish stirred when a weight shifting on top of him. For a moment, he was disoriented and reached for his sword. Two realizations rapidly sunk in. It was his wife who lay on top of him, and he did not have his sword because it was still in his chamber within the royal castle. His fractured arm ached with a fierce pain severe enough to admit Ceit might have been right about the splint. He did not regret their love making, but he was aware it surely contributed to his discomfort. Ceit shifted again and a waft of her rosemary and thyme soap filled his nostrils.
Ma arm could be cut off, and I wouldnae regret what we did last night. Then again, I rather enjoyed having both hands available. I take back having ma arm cut off. That wouldnae do at all.
Ceit nuzzled his neck as she too came awake.
“Canna sleep?” she asked in a husky voice that sent shards of lust straight to Tavish’s groin.
“I slept. I was a wee disoriented when I woke to ye moving on top of me. Though I canna complain aboot ye being there. I rather fancy it. A lot.”
Tavish returned her kisses as his good arm traveled up her back then skimmed her ribs before cupping her breast. Their lips brushed against one another as they both smiled.
“How are ye, mo sheillean beag?”
“Different,” she sighed.
“I dinna ken if that is a good thing or a bad thing,” Tavish had a sudden stab of worry that she regretted handfasting and making love. “I would have preferred to give ye a proper bed and a chamber for our wedding night.”
“Dinna fash,” she brushed the hair from his forehead as she looked into his chocolate brown eyes. “We will have that the night we marry in a kirk. I rather like the privacy of this cave. Nae another soul kens what we shared. Nay one is trying to watch a bedding ceremony. There werenae any randy comments made. I dinna have to shrink off to make love to ma husband. It was just us. I wouldnae trade that for aught.”
“Then ye dinna regret yer choices tonight?”
“Regret them? Why would ye ever wonder if I regret them? Do ye?”
“Nae for a moment. Marrying ye is the soundest and happiest choice I’ve ever made. I wouldnae undo it for aught, and I dare anyone to doubt me.”
“I dinna regret it either, mo chridhe.”
Tavish’s broad smile made her realize her use of endearments made him sense her devotion just as deeply as when he called her by his pet names.
“I’m yer heart?”
“All of it.”
Their kiss conveyed all the adoration words would never fully express. Tavish drew Ceit back over his chest, and she slid down to meet the tip of his rod. She shifted her hips, and he slid in.
“Ye were already ready for me,” Tavish sounded surprised.
“How can ye tell?”
Tavish saw the naivety in her gaze and once more wished to undo his past, so they might discover this together.
“Yer body readies itself with the honey it produces. When yer cunny is prepared for me, it makes sliding ma rod easy. If ye arenae ready, it would hurt ye,” Tavish paused for a moment. “Ceity, I want to be sure ye ken ye can always turn me away. Ye dinna have to bed me if ye dinna want to. I will never force ye, so it is always yer choice. And if yer body isnae ready for mine, then let me ken. We willna ever rush because nae only do I nae want to cause ye pain, but I dinna want to steal yer enjoyment for our love making. I would have it be something ye always look forward to rather something ye ever dread.”
“I bed ye?”
“Aye. If ye want to initiate our love play, then ye do that at any time. Ye dinna have to wait for me. I would rather ye dinna always wait. Ceity, I want to ken ye desire me as much as I do ye.”
“There should be nay doubt of that. But what if I dinna want to make love when ye do? Or if I’m indisposed for a while like while I’m carrying or after a bairn?”
“Then I shall hold ye in ma arms while we sleep just as we did tonight. I will offer ye any pleasures ye desire, and if that is naught, then I wait until ye are ready.”
“Ye sound so philosophical aboot it, but dinna men have needs?”
Tavish sighed. There was a time when he was one of those men who would have claimed that. Not that he would have ever strayed, but he once considered his desires as itches that needed scratching. He usually just found a willing partner, then his needs were met. It shocked him how drastically his emotions and beliefs changed.
“I havenae aught different than a woman. Before I met ye, I indulged ma so-called needs. I didna wonder much beyond what I wanted and what a willing partner offered. Marrying ye makes me see how selfish and self-involved I was. Ma only need now is to ken ye are happy. Ye need nae fear I will turn away if I canna have ye the vera moment I want ye. There is far more depth to ma feelings than lusting for yer body.”
“And if ye nay longer desire me? If ye willna bed me? What of me then? What shall I do?”
Tavish froze. His temper flared, and he rolled them over, so they were still joined but he looked down at her. He realized he did not like that position after all. He never wanted to use his size or strength to corner her. He rolled them to their sides and returned her leg to his hip. He rocked into her twice as her muscles drew him.
“Are ye asking to take a lover?” He stilled again before continuing, “I would kill any mon who sought to touch ye. I am yers just as ye are mine. There will be nay others.”
Ceit smiled, and Tavish realized that she had not been serious.
“I am glad for that, mo chridhe. I will endeavor to keep ye satisfied, so ye will always want to come to ma bed. I ken there isnae any way I would stop wanting ye there.”
“Yers? Ceit, there is no yers or mine. There is only ours.”
Ceit’s smiled beamed brighter than a thousand suns, and Tavish soaked in every drop of its warmth.
“I vera much like that idea since I have never slept as well as when I am with ye. I will become spoiled. I demand ye nae quit ma bed, or ye would find me sneaking into yers.”
Ceit’s hand found the dip in the side of his buttocks she discovered the night before, the one that fit her hand perfectly. She pressed forward and rocked her pelvis into his.
“Is it always like this? Always so good?”
Her breaths became shorter and harder.
“Nay. It has never been like this before. I had nay idea either.”
Tavish held her as snuggly as his arm and ribs would allow.
They gazed into one another’s eyes as they made love. It was a reflection of their own passion they saw as they came apart entangled in the plaid and each other.
“Brodie,”
Her body went taut as a bow string.
“Aye, Ceity.”
“I love ye,” they said as one before once again drifting back to sleep.
Tavish woke up to a cold wind blowing into the cave. The fire burned out while they slept, and Ceit’s skin was chilled to his touch. He looked towards the entrance and saw sunlight streaming in. It was much further into the morning than he normally ever slept. He edged out from under his plaid and moved towards the entrance.
“Shite!”
“What is it?” Ceit’s groggy voice was not far behind him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and peered around his shoulder. “Shite!”
There was a dusting of snow on the ground. Even though it was mid fall, snow was a possibility so high in the hills, and it was now reality for them.
“Tav, ye canna travel out there without a leine. Ye will freeze, and there is nay way I can generate enough heat to keep us both warm.”
“We canna stay here either. Look at the sky. It may vera well dump more, and then we would be left here with nay firewood and nay provisions. There isnae any choice. I will wrap us in the extra length of ma plaid.”
“Why do ye have to be such a giant?” Ceit bemoaned as her face expressed her fears. “If ye were a normal size ye might at least slip on ma chemise. It isnae much, but it would keep some wind off yer skin.”
Tavish threw his head back and laughed, and Ceit got a glimpse of what he must have looked like when he was younger and wreaking havoc with his siblings.
“I can just imagine what people would say with me bursting out of the seams of yer undergarments. And that’s if I even managed to get it over ma head. I’d be better off wrapping it around me like a cape. Besides ma size is what necessitates the extra length of wool.”
Tavish continued to laugh, but an idea slithered through Ceit’s mind. She went to her saddlebag and pulled the spare chemise out. She used one of her dirks to tear it up the center of the front. She walked over to Tavish and sized up his arms, she even ran her hands over his biceps which led to several smacking kisses before he would let go. She cut along the side seams just below the arm holes to widen them.
“Here.” She handed him the altered garment.
He looked at her as if she was daft but shrugged. He struggled to get one arm in, and then there was not enough material to stretch across his back.
“Giant,” Ceit muttered. She took the garment back and examined it then Tavish. His body tapered to a perfect triangle. She stepped in front of him. “Arms up.”
Tavish complied but only lifted high enough to cup her shoulders before pulling her in for another kiss. She swatted his hands away.
“Ye’re insatiable and incorrigible.”
“And I bet ye wouldnae have me any other way. Ye would at least keep the insatiable part,” he winked.
Ceit sighed when she failed to keep the grin from her face.
“That might be rather true.”
She wrapped the chemise around his chest and pulled, so it closed in the center.
“Hold this.”
“Aye, ma lady.”
Ceit cast him a sideways glance that warned him she did not appreciate his sarcasm. She tore two long strips from the bottom of the chemise she wore. She threaded one through the armholes and closed the chemise around Tavish’s chest. The other strip was made into a belt. She slit the neckline and down the back to create some slack.
“I canna do aught aboot yer bare shoulders, but that has to be better than naught.”
“Thank ye, lass.”
Ceit looked up at the sincerity in Tavish’s voice.
“Ye tend me well, and I appreciate yer care.”
Ceit stood on her tiptoes and gave him a peck on the cheek.
“It’s cause I love ye, and I even like ye some days.”
She tried to dart away, but Tavish hauled her back against his chest and tickled her ribs. Their laughter soon turned to moans as Ceit’s bottom rubbed against Tavish’s groin, and his hands traveled to her breasts. He grazed his thumbs over her nipples before palming them.
“Brodie?”
“Aye,” he murmured as he pulled her tighter against him, and she arched her back to push her breasts into his grasping palms.
“Is this one of those time when I can tell ye that I want ye, and ye will listen to ma request?”
“Bluidy hell it is.” Tavish spun them so they stood before the wall.
Ceit reached her hands out and braced herself before pushing her hips back. Tavish lifted her skirts and tucked them over her back. It was his first true view of her backside, and his mouth went dry, sure he would drool. He lifted his plaid and slid his cock between the matching spheres of her bottom. He coated himself and grunted as she dipped her fingers into her sheath and then slid her juices along his sword.
“Bend forward, Ceity. Let me see all of ye. I would watch ma cock as it works ye. I crave seeing ma body join to yers.
“Would that I could do the same.”
Tavish watched as his rod slid along her entrance. He spread her bottom and stared at her puckered sacred entrance. He ran a finger around it, and when Ceit did not stir, he tapped it.
“Tavish, ye said one day. Can that be today? I would ken what it is all like.”
“Nay, mo leannan. Nae today. I must have oil to make ma entry easier for ye. It would be unpleasant with nothing to help me slide in smoothly. I wouldnae do that to ye.”
“But I want to ken how it would be having ye enter me every way ye can.”
Tavish closed his eyes and tried forcing his mind to anything but the erotic words his wife uttered. Her hands moved his away as she offered herself to him. She bent forward further, and Tavish grasped her hips before surging into her. She pushed back to take him to the hilt. Tavish paused and allowed her to become accustomed to the new position. When she moved against him, she was ready. He held her tightly as his fingers bit into the flesh at her hips. She arched up and threw her head back to rest on his shoulder. One of his arms snaked up her belly to rest between her breasts as his hand dipped below her neckline.
“Brodie, aye. More. I dinna want ye to hurt yerself, but I would have it harder.”
Tavish followed her command and wrapped his arm around her to keep from plowing her face first into the wall. She reached out and braced herself again.
“So close, Brodie. So--” She did not finish before a wail was ripped from deep in her throat, and Tavish grunted as he spilled into her channel.
Tavish spun them around just as he had spun them to face the wall. He pressed his back to the wall and supported Ceit as her body went limp. It was only a few moments before she pulled away. Her kiss was tender as her hands roamed over his ribs then ran along his fractured arms.
“Mo sheillean beag, I only bruised ma ribs. They are much better and are only tender to the touch when I breathe. Ma arm hurt when I first woke, but it’s a mere discomfort. I will survive.”
Ceit bit her top lip and nodded her head, looking unconvinced.
“Dinna fash. I willna do aught to jeopardize ma ability to fight to protect ye.”
“I dinna like worrying if ye are in pain. It’s the same weight that presses down on me each time ma mind goes to ye being injured or killed in battle. It makes breathing hard, and ma head is heavy like I’m swimming through fog. I adore ye so much, Tavish. Just so bluidy much.”
“Wheesht, mo sheillean beag. Wheesht. I amnae going anywhere. Ye canna be rid of me.”
She nodded as she blinked rapidly.
“I wouldnae ever be rid of ye.”
Once again, she pecked him on the cheek before going to gather his plaid. She made quick work of pleating his breacan feile, and Tavish had a sharp jab of jealousy that he wanted to lie to himself and say was curiosity. Ceit looked up as she finished and must have read something on his face.
“Ma brother.”
Tavish furrowed his brow and tilted his head in confusion.
“Ye want to ken why I can pleat a mon’s plaid so well and so fast. I had to learn to do it, then I taught ma brother. When he was of an age to wear one, ma father wass away,” she raised an eyebrow, “so someone had to teach him. It was me or one of the auld men in the village who couldnae hear or see and was missing most of his teeth. Ma brother chose me. So, I learned from one of those auld men, practiced, then taught ma brother.”
Tavish walked over and laid down as he wrapped the plaid about his waist and belted it.
“Is there aught ye canna do, lass?”
“Nay.” She offered him a saucy grin.
“Dinna look at me like that, or we shall never leave, and they will find our frozen corpses joined at the hip.”
They laughed as Tavish led Whisky outside. The snow was not deep, but it was enough to be more than a dusting by the time they were ready to set off.
“Do we continue the way we were going or double back?”
“We canna travel further away than the direction we need. I canna guarantee we will be as lucky and find another cave for the night. I also dinna ken what we might find on the other side of these hills. The villages may nae welcome half-dressed Highlanders.”
“So, we go back the way we came?”
“Parallel. We travel a little to the east before we double back. I would have us avoid our original trail in case the mercenaries camped overnight too.”
“Do you suppose they have found shelter like us? Or will they have retreated to the base of the hills to wait us out?”
“I dinna ken. We must be alert and quiet as much as we can. Whisky was sure footed in the dark and amazed me at his ability to climb. He will have the advantage of the light, and I will let him pick his way again. He will sense the terrain better than I can.”
Ceit mounted and Tavish pulled himself up behind her. He found it much easier to mount that morning than the day before. He was in disbelief it had been less than twenty-four hours since she freed him from the oubliette. He realized that fresh air and uninterrupted sleep did him more good than he expected. They allowed Whisky to plod his way through the troughs between the hills before they turned in the direction from which they came. It was slow going with the snow, and Tavish was unwilling to push the horse to go faster. He did not want to risk the horse going lame or Ceit falling from her trusty steed.