Page 53 of Highlander’s Mercenary Lass

"Grace," he began, but Grace pulled away from him. Confused, Andrew followed her down the long castle corridor.

"Listen," said Grace, turning to face him, eyes blazing. "Thank ye for yer help, but ye can leave now. As ye can see, I'm braw."

Her eyes met his, and even though she tried to avert them, Andrew did not drop his gaze. Eventually, she hesitated. Now she looked at him closely.

"Are ye?" said Andrew, his green eyes looking at her searchingly. Now they were face-to-face in the corridor, and both of them had stopped walking. "Because if this is ye braw, then I dinnae want tae see ye riled!"

"Och," said Grace. She tried to push past him and get to her bedchamber, but Andrew grabbed her hand. "Get off me!" she snarked. But Andrew held firm. "Get off me, I say! Ye’re nay better than Paton!"

Andrew stopped, suddenly, an angry glint in his eye. Then, he smiled. "Really? The man ye’re going tae marry? If that's how ye feel, then—"

Before he could get to the end of the sentence, Grace's lips were around his, kissing him suddenly. Her moist, springy lips filled him with unexpected desire.

"Grace," he gasped, but only for a second. Without any hesitation, he had given in, burying himself deep into her passion.

Deeper and deeper, Andrew kissed. What she had started, he finished, and with a vengeance.

Until that moment, he had not truly realized how much he wanted her. Grace's sweet scent spiraled over him, sending its heady punch his way. She smelled divine. Her hair was like honeysuckle fields. His hands were all over her hair; Andrew lost himself in her aura.

Thiswas the reason he had traversed the boggy Scottish countryside for so many in the rain. This was what had made him stand up to Paton.

His senses on fire, Andrew could not stop himself from delving in deeper. It was crazy, it was hopeless—right there, in the middle of a corridor—but neither of them cared a fig.

"Andrew, I..." Grace looked at him, her face flushed and her headdress askew. Without thinking, Andrew removed it, teasing the locks from her head.

"Looks much better," he murmured approvingly, as her dark curls fell softly around her shoulders. "Suits ye much better than that daft horned thingie."

Grace's face hovered on a grin, but she didn't quite manage it. Instead, she leaned forward, kissing him fully around the neck, from the base of his hairline to the top of his spine. Each kiss sent a thrill rocketing through Andrew's spine, and with every touch, his skin heated up.

He had to have her, right there, right then. Pressing Grace against the gray castle walls, Andrew's hand explored the shape of her, running a finger from the base of her chin right down to the gap in her houppelande where her bosom started. There, beneath her cotton underdress, he positioned his hand flat against her bosom.

"There," he murmured, his palms stroking her breasts. Her skin was soft as silk, her bosoms shaped like pliant peaks beneath her gown.

"We shouldnae," said Grace, but didn't stop. She pressed her face up to his neck, nuzzling it lightly. A flame crackled within him. This was madness. The guards would be coming. He knew that, and she knew that.

Yet right then, they had the time. Andrew listened closely, watching out for the guards that were surely coming.

"Grace," said Andrew urgently, looking over his shoulder. Then he took her hand and dragged her to her room.

Before the door had even bolted shut, they were kissing, him pressing her up against the thick oak door and holding her tight. Then, in a second, she was grabbing him and holding him by the chin.

It was almost aggressive, the way she pushed him so fast against the wall. But then she hesitated and grinned playfully. Then, she embraced him with such tenderness that Andrew's hairs stood on end.

Softly, she kissed him, stroking him gently with the tips of her perfect fingers. Moaning softly, he thrust his head back as she caressed him intensely. The balls of her fingers rounded on him, deceiving him into ecstasy.

But just as he was about to give in to his desires, Andrew suddenly touched her arm. "Dinnae," he said simply.

The look in his green eyes was enough to disarm her. Grace stopped.

"What?" she asked, bringing her face up close to his. The sight of her there teased him, the soft pink of her cheeks crying out for him to kiss her.

"Dinnae marry Paton," said Andrew softly. Emotion was coursing through his veins, emotion he couldn't control.

Grace looked at him sadly. She was just about to say something when the door burst open.

"Andrew Caldwell!" the chief guard rang out.

Grace stared at him madly, her eyes widening. "Nay, nay!" she cried, raining down punches onto the men’s thick bodies. But she was no match for them.