To Wed A Highlander (9 page)

Colin was burning with desire. Makenna’s unconstrained response ignited a fire within him that had been dormant too long. He was so hard he hurt, and his imagination was going wild, thinking of all the things he’d like to do to her. When she moved closer, he held her, letting her feel the long, hard length of his arousal.

Immediately Makenna became aware of Colin’s physical need. She learned enough about mating from her sisters, but never did she dream a man could be so very hard, nor so large. The rigidity of his body completely contrasted the featherlight caresses of his fingers igniting a liquid fire in her veins. She waited for fear to rise and compel her to end the spell he was casting, but it never came. Instead, more than anything, she wanted to be with him, touch him, and know him in every way imaginable.

Makenna’s small sighs and light shivers made Colin momentarily lose his composure. A considerable shudder of need racked him as a raging hunger challenged his defenses. He knew his size and strength frightened women. It had terrified Deirdre. He wouldn’t, he vowed silently to himself, lose control and frighten his virgin wife away.

He released her lips and plucked the combs from her hair. Burying his face in the loose red curls, he reveled in the thick silky mass finally free of its constraints. His lips paused to nibble on the soft crevices of her neck before trailing to the base of her throat and below. His hand curved around her spine where the low back of her gown offered access to her silken skin. Slowly he unthreaded the ties to the bliaut until it gave way and slid onto the floor.

“So soft, so sweet.” He heard himself moan his thoughts aloud. “God, I need you, Makenna. I want you like I’ve wanted no other woman,” he purred against her ear.

Her mouth finally free, Makenna asked, “Colin, what’s happening? I don’t know what’s wrong with me. My body feels to be on fire, and yet I crave more.”

Colin cupped her cheek, his control almost shattered by her innocently whispered words. “Nothing’s wrong. Nothing has ever been more right. God, Makenna, don’t leave me. Please don’t tell me to go,” he begged, uttering his fears aloud.

His eyes met hers, and Makenna knew she never would. “Not now, not ever.”

The simple vow was heartfelt and real. Makenna meant every word. And suddenly his future seemed a lot less lonely. This strong-willed woman would no doubt argue and fight with him to their graves, but she wouldn’t ignore him. With Makenna, he would never be alone again.

The knowledge released a surge of need Colin could no longer suppress. He yanked impatiently at his clothing and then, before she became aware of his nude state, he pulled her back into his embrace and drank hungrily from her lips.

Makenna clutched at him, savoring the feel of his warm skin against her palms. Each kiss was deeper and more stirring than the last. She was barely aware of Colin removing the last of her clothing.

Last night seeing her naked from a distance, Colin had been tortured to know what it would be like to feel such wild beauty in his arms. Now that he was actually touching her, she was even more magnificent than he had imagined.

Unable to wait any longer, Colin scooped Makenna up in his arms and carried her to the bed. Settling her against the pillows, he lowered himself until he covered her body with his own.

“Makenna.” He paused, waiting until her eyes focused on his. “Never wonder whom I am thinking of when we are together. For it will always be you. I know who I am with, and I make love to you because I want and desire
you,
not merely because you are my wife and I can. Trust me. Coupling is only fulfilling if each of us crave the other. If you tell me you do not want this, I will cease and let you return to your room. No one will be the wiser.”

Makenna stared into his very blue eyes. His desire was unmistakable. The control he was exerting right now was tremendous and at the same time comforting. He was huge, but he would never hurt her physically. The danger of lying with Colin was the emotional havoc he could inflict on her heart. For two years, he had been at Lochlen and not once did she long for him as a man. Then yesterday all that changed. She was unprepared to be this attracted to him. It was more than just physical. And that’s what made it so terrifying.

Nevertheless, she would not leave. If only for tonight, she would know what it was like to be loved, to be held in a man’s arms, and made to feel complete. They didn’t love each other, but they had something rare and maybe more important.

“I don’t know why, Colin, or even how, but I trust you like no other. When you kiss me, I feel alive in ways I cannot explain. I’m both terrified and eager at the same time. More than anything, I want you to experience these same sensations. Teach me how to be a wife, Colin. I
need
you to want me,” she finished, her voice filled with quiet desperation.

Colin squeezed his eyes shut. He wanted to weep and laugh and cry out with joy. He reopened his eyes and lightly caressed her cheek with his knuckles. “I already do, Makenna McTiernay. I never expected to need anyone ever again. I have been empty for so long. God, Makenna, you make me realize what I have been searching for.” Cradling her face in his hands, he closed his mouth over hers. Slowly he devoured her lips as if he could consume the essence of her vibrant spirit.

The sheer kiss was overwhelming. It nearly choked her, but instead of release, Makenna sought more. Her fingers bit into the hard contours of Colin’s muscled back as her body begged for something, but she knew not what. Makenna knew only that Colin was the sole man who could give it to her.

Colin felt her back arch and her hips shift back and forth against his thighs. The movement caused his already aroused body to tighten even more with fierce, compelling need. He had to slow down and prepare her, for he had no doubt that he would be Makenna’s first lover. He wanted the experience to be perfect. Never would his young bride look outside their marriage for physical release.

He held her hips still and finished ravishing her mouth before moving to reexplore her neck. Nothing had ever been this good, this perfect. Everything about her was so right. Her eagerness only intensified his pleasure. Each caress, response, whimper she uttered made him feel whole, like a complete man. It began last night. They had sparred, but the verbal exchange had revealed something quite unexpected, an understanding that she was just as empty and alone as he. Never would she feel that way again.

Colin transferred his weight to his side, giving his fingers access to her soft round breasts. His mouth explored the contours of her shoulders as he cupped her pert little mounds and began to rub his callused thumbs against the hardened nipples. Makenna gasped, and Colin felt the shiver that went through her as if it had gone through himself.

“God, Makenna, how I need you. Just let me touch you, taste you.” And then his mouth covered her breast, his tongue felt like hot velvet against her skin.

Her breath quickened as his teeth lightly tantalized her taut nipple. He suckled, teasing it, making her squirm with want of him while his free hand moved over her abdomen and then lower. Lightly his fingers stroked the smooth flesh of her inner thigh. He was making her frantic. So many sensations were coursing through her veins it was akin to pain. “Colin, it’s too much!” Makenna cried out, inwardly hoping that he would refuse to stop.

“Aye,
bean cheile,
it is, but trust me,” he answered as he turned his attention to the other breast.

He felt one of her hands slip down to his thigh and sink her fingers into his hard, muscled buttock. Colin caught his breath, his whole body incredibly tight and heavy with barely controlled need. All instincts urged him to surge forward and drive himself into her.

Makenna felt his manhood, hard and impatient against her thigh. The sensation triggered a heavy pulling in her lower body. She clung tightly to him, wanting so very much for his hand to touch the place throbbing with enormous need. She could feel the rapid staccato rhythm of Colin’s heartbeat and knew that his need matched her own.

“Please, Colin, please,” she begged for what she knew not.

Colin’s mouth reclaimed hers as he drew his fingers through the gathering dew between her legs. Never had he known the glory of making a woman react so completely to him. He was so hard he feared he might burst, but her lusty moans and hesitant caresses were food for the soul. He needed more.

He played with the soft hairs of her apex, reveling in her honest reaction. He slowly introduced his finger between the velvety folds. Only when she arched her hips inviting him to know more did he invade the sweet, vulnerable warmth. She cried out, and Colin steadied her writhing body. His tongue mimicked his finger as he gradually eased it into the tight, hot channel. She was so wet and ready he couldn’t wait to lose himself in her.

“My God, Makenna,” Colin groaned, knowing his control was about to snap. He slid one leg between hers, making more room to slide another finger in and back out of the snug passage. He explored her with exquisite care, finding all the secret, hidden places, and made them tingle with need. And with each touch, each discovery, his own need grew in return.

Incredibly, Makenna wanted even more of him inside her, deeper, and lifted her hips against his hand. Her fingers splayed against his chest and then moved lower to touch him as intimately as he was touching her. Finding his flesh, her hand cradled his sex. She held him tight, moving the velvety skin up and down over the inner, rock-hard shaft.

Colin had hoped to bring her to climax before he took her for the first time. He wished for her to know the thrill of explosion before the pain of knowing a man. But the second she touched him he knew he could wait no longer.

His hands shook as he lifted her slightly and parted her legs to settle between them. He looked down at the fiery passion kindled in her beautiful green eyes. Her gorgeous red hair fanned the white pillow. She was beautiful. And she was all his. Never before had he felt so incredibly lucky.

Slowly he forged inside, letting her stretch to accommodate his size. She was so incredibly hot. And all for him.

Makenna shifted, encouraging him to go faster. The movement gave him so much pleasure it nearly ended the matter right then and there. Makenna moved again, and Colin plunged deep, sinking recklessly, hungrily into the snug channel of her body.

Makenna gasped and then cried out when the sharp pain of his entry shot through her body. For a moment, she thought he was too big, that she was too small, and the pain was too much to continue. Then almost as fast, it faded and the longing for something more swelled within her.

Colin’s heart stopped cold at her cry. The tear flowing down her cheek tore him in two. He bent down to kiss it away and started to move out of the slice of heaven he had only just found. “I’m sorry, Makenna. I’m so sorry. I swore never to hurt you—”

“And you didn’t,” Makenna interjected, holding him, refusing to let him leave her completely. “Make love to me, Colin. Please, don’t stop.”

That was all he needed to hear. Colin gently reburied himself in the warm softness of her. Heaven had not forsaken him. It was right here. Never could he explain the comfort of knowing she wanted him as much as he wanted her. Easing himself in and out of her wet passage, he urged her into a passionate rhythm.

Makenna arched as he moved inside her, her inner muscles clinging to him, drawing him deeper within her. She knew that her tears were causing him to be slow and gentle. In an effort to hasten the pace, she opened her thighs wider, forcing his male member to sink even deeper inside her with each stroke.

Colin had tried to control the depth and speed of his thrusts. His jaw was locked with the effort, his muscles straining. But she refused to let him be gentle, meeting each thrust with one of her own. Suddenly his control broke and he drove hard and deep, his hips echoing the earthy movement of hers.

He had been with women before, he had loved Deirdre, but nothing he had experienced prepared him for the powerful force building within, becoming more fervent, more intense as they strained together. His breath changed to short gasps.

Makenna felt him deep within her and discovered the connection of two souls suffused together through their bodies. With a soft, choked exclamation, she surrendered to the tumultuous storm of sensation sweeping over her. The world had erupted into an array of dazzling stars. Nothing could have prepared her for the emotions associated with such rapture.

A second later, she felt Colin’s hands pull her buttocks to him with a powerful strength that only added to her ascent. She heard him call her name, and then a heavy shudder racked him as his body surged to climax. A final triumphant exclamation escaped Colin’s lips as he sagged against her. He had been torn apart and put back together again, this time whole and complete.

Makenna felt her body float back to earth and held on tightly to the one solid thing in her universe. Colin was hers, she thought happily. For this moment in time, he belonged only to her just as she belonged to him. Tomorrow would come and remind them both of ghosts and current responsibilities, but tonight he was hers.

Colin rested silently and tried to catch his breath. For years, he had heard men talking about their women or wives. And during those long weeks when they were forced to be away from their loved ones, he had never understood their talk of anticipation and need.

Even Conor had alluded to such bedroom pleasures, unwittingly chiding him saying that it was a shame only two of the McTiernay men knew the unequaled satisfaction of a wedding night. Pride had kept him from divulging that he and Deirdre had slept separately on theirs. The few times they had shared a bed, it had not possessed any of the magic he had just shared with Makenna.

Makenna. The wildest and most aggravating of the Dunstans.

He should be shocked for feeling this way about a woman who enjoyed arguing with him publicly, defied his orders, and actively looked for ways to infuriate him. At a minimum, he should feel guilty for finding such pleasure from a woman he didn’t love when he couldn’t find it with the one he had. He searched for the feelings of betrayal but found none. Only gratitude for the precious gift Makenna had given him. A surprisingly beautiful and spirited gift he hoped to be worthy of receiving.