She arched herself against him as his fingers cupped the heat of her, pushing aside the tight curls of her red hair. Slowly, at an almost torturous pace, he edged a finger inside the already slick, hot channel.

Makenna cried out softly and closed her eyes. He was driving her wild with need of him. She wanted to order him to throw her on the bed and bury himself in her, but she just trembled, losing her ability to speak or stand. Colin held her upright and continued to tease her senses with his fingers. She writhed within his grip, grabbing his neck, pleading for more. She was so incredibly hot.

Makenna shuddered beneath the sensual onslaught. She thought she was going to die from pleasure, but did not pull back from it.

“God, Makenna, I don’t think I am going to live through this if I wait any longer,” Colin groaned as he drew her back toward the bed.

Makenna moaned a soft whimper mirroring his own need. The primitive erotic sound nearly drove Colin mad. He came down on top of her and pulled her into his arms. She didn’t resist. Colin growled and sought the intimate connection with her body.

Makenna’s need for him was beyond urgent. Her body took control. She parted her thighs wide for him, and he lowered himself over her. He gripped her hips, and Makenna felt Colin’s broad shaft brush against her, probing gently. Unwilling to wait, Makenna met his exploration with an upward thrust of her hips and they were one.

Colin pulled out and drove slowly into her again, feeling her close around him, clinging to him. She was incredibly hot, wet, and so very tight. She was more than ready for him.

Makenna captured his lips and dove into his warm mouth, kissing him with an almost violent need. She crushed her body against him, rocking, taking him deeper and deeper inside her with each thrust.

Suddenly, Makenna arched against his aggressive hardness and cried out. Colin answered her with an explosive climax so overwhelming he shouted out her name again and again. He was out of control. He was safe. He was loved.

Their bodies were damp with perspiration, and the scent of their love filled the air. Colin didn’t think he had the strength left in him to roll away from her and decided to kiss her instead. First, he kissed her brow, then the tip of her nose. Then he captured her lips, kissing her slowly, taking his time, letting her feel the endless need and love inside him.

“You are so beautiful,” he muttered, awed.

“I’m a complete mess,” she countered, her voice still husky with passion.

“I’m the luckiest man in the world,” Colin sighed with a sense of peace deeper than he had ever known.

Makenna put her arms around him and stroked the sleek, muscled contours of his back. “Why do you say that?”

Her deep green eyes were dark with passion and love. He had never known such contentment. “With the exception of my parents, and to a degree my brothers, I have never felt completely accepted by another soul. I didn’t realize how lonely I had been until that night at the loch when you first told me you loved me. The depth of your confession shook me deeply. I couldn’t sort out my emotions. The only thing I knew was that I wanted you more than ever, and that I had to protect you.”

“People say they love each other every day. You heard it many times from Deirdre. Why should my declaration be so different?”

“People fall in love every day, and their love is real. But it is a rare thing for a man to be completely loved by another. To be accepted without question. To be trusted with blind faith. My parents had such a bond. They would fight, sometimes furiously, but oh, how they loved. Visiting Conor last year, I realized that he had found it with Laurel. You’ve seen them. It is as if they are each parts of the other. Watching them reminded me how rare it was to find someone to share your life with that loves you in that way. I knew then that I would never know the solace it brings. The day I married you I asked you to trust me, and you did, more than anyone had ever done before.”

“Many men have trusted you with their lives.”

Colin rolled onto his back and tucked his arm beneath his head. “Not like that. It is one thing to rely on someone to save your life, but it’s another to trust someone with the quality of your life. The latter takes a far greater leap of faith. You gave that to me, almost from the very beginning. Without it, I don’t know if I would ever have had the courage to love again.” Colin turned to his side and captured her gaze with his own. “And that is why I am so lucky.”

“You are luckier than you think.” Makenna sighed as Colin pushed the heavy weight of her hair aside and started a trail of kisses down her throat.

“Aye, I sure am,” he murmured against her skin, ready to show her again just how much he loved her.

“If being completely loved by one Dunstan is enough to make you lucky, how about being loved by two?”

Colin craned his head back and propped himself up on his elbows. He furrowed his brows questioningly. “By two?” he asked, not understanding.

“Aye, by two. Me and our child, whom I have no doubt will love you and think you are the most wonderful father in the world, just as you are a husband,” she clarified while scattering small kisses along his chin and neck.

“A baby?” he croaked. “We’re going to have a baby?”

“Aye, in the late spring. Are you sure that you are fine with the idea? I know it is soon. We have not been married long, and you have so much on your mind with the—”

Colin lightly pressed his finger on her lips and then slowly released them. His eyes were alight with pleasure. “It is not too soon, though you may think so tomorrow when I assign a hundred men to follow you about and see to your safety.” He bent his head and again started kissing the sensitive areas of her neck before moving lower.

Makenna swatted playfully at his shoulder. “A hundred men! Gorten and Brodie are more than enough and listen to me—nothing is going to change. I will be more careful, but I am not going to sit about through the winter. I would go mad. Do you hear me, Colin? Nothing is going to change.”

Colin stopped his foray, his eyes dancing. “Nothing, Makenna? Then, I guess we should continue with my most favorite time of the day.” Just the thought of burying himself within her sent another rush of desire through his veins. Tonight he was going to indulge himself in a detailed exploration of her body. Every inch of her would be recommitted to his memory.

“And which time is that, husband?” Makenna asked, trembling as he traced the lines of her jaw with his fingertips.

His smile broadened. “The times I get to ravish your body again and again throughout the night,” he reminded her as he lowered his mouth to her breast. The taste of it sent a shudder of excitement through him.

“As I said, nothing is going to change,” she affirmed between gasps as his mouth trailed down past her navel. Sexual tension seized her insides. She shuddered again as Colin tasted the very heart of her. Tonight she would remember for the rest of her life.





Chapter Sixteen





Late the next morning, Makenna met Laurel and Ceridwin in the great hall. Immediately, Laurel could tell the previous night’s events had continued quite favorably for her friend after she had left the party.

“So you have finally arrived. I take it Colin knows about the expected expansion of the McTiernay clan?”

Ceridwin turned in the chair abruptly. “You are going to have a baby?”

Makenna’s grin broadened even farther. “Indeed, I am.”

“And Colin is happy.” Laurel’s statement was more a question than clarification.

“Colin is more than happy,” Makenna confirmed, turning to face Ceridwin. “I have decided that you and Drake shall move into my sister’s old room. I doubt Ula will be returning, and there is no reason it should collect dust from nonuse. Besides, she had the most wonderful view from her window.”

Ceridwin sat in shocked silence, her hazel eyes wide with surprise. Drake didn’t want to delay their marriage, but neither of them wanted to stay with her aunts, and as a soldier he had never had a need for his own cottage. “Really? I mean, to live in the castle…it’s such an honor.”

“Nonsense. It’s silly not to make use of those rooms, and I am feeling incredibly generous today.”

“But what about the laird…?”

“It just so happens Colin is feeling just as generous as I this morning,” Makenna remarked. “Shall we go now and see what must be done?”

Nodding, Ceridwin leapt out of the chair and followed Makenna and Laurel into the inner yard. They made their way quickly to the tower that acted as a hub for the rear curtain wall.

Laurel was the first to enter the room. Makenna heard her sister-in-law’s sharp intake of breath and knew instantly there was something wrong. Squeezing between the stone doorway and a frozen Laurel, Makenna walked into the room and felt her blood begin to boil. Ceridwin must have come in as well, for Makenna heard her squeak, “Oh my.”

Tapestries were shredded and on the floor. What bedding was left was ripped and ruined. Hearth ashes were thrown everywhere. Worst of all was the McTiernay plaid. It hung over the hearth, burned, leaving only scraps and pieces to prove what it once was.

Laurel sensed the extreme tension winding in Makenna and knew she needed to get her out of the room immediately. With Ceridwin’s help, Laurel managed to get Makenna out of the tower and back into the yard.

Once outside, Laurel began rubbing Makenna’s arms now shaking with rage. “I don’t think it was recent, Makenna. There was quite a bit of dust collected, so the steps you took to remove the staff you didn’t trust probably worked.”