When he stopped wallowing, she relented, giving him the view he’d been coveting.
“You’re a quick study.” His hand moved from Màiri’s mark down her neck, his finger tracing a sensuous path downward.
“You know,” she said, “only you and Alana have ever talked to me about hiding my mark. Father has never mentioned it once.”
“Because, for all his gruffness, your father is a kind and gentle man. He wouldn’t want to hurt your feelings.”
“You and Alana both mentioned it.”
Ian’s fingers began to stray farther downward. “People have different ways of loving.”
Not surprisingly, his hand found the very spot she’d just uncovered.
“My father maybe said the words five times in my life that I can remember,” he continued. “My mom, literally every day. But I know Dad loves me and my brothers just as much as Mom. He just shows it differently.”
Màiri would have a difficult time continuing this discussion if Ian did not cease his ministrations. Now his thumb ran across her nipple, turning it into a hard peak. She watched his eyes, filled now with desire, and tried to attend to their discussion.
“My father would be devastated to lose me. ’Twas why I thought he might set aside his rivalry with Clan Dern to marry me to Ambrose, who lived so close.”
They’d carefully avoided discussing their future these past few days, but her decision hung over them all. Not just her and Ian, but Grey and Marian too. Colban had admitted that he would be overjoyed for them to stay, to have his sister’s son in their midst.
Every time she saw Ian with his brother, she opened her mouth to tell him she’d do it. She would go to the future with him. Experience the changes Ian talked about. Healthcare. Women’s rights. Potentially, a longer life. But then a vision of her father, alone, his daughter gone forever, his young yet unborn son, off fighting in a war that would prove never-ending . . . it held her back.
Closing her eyes, Màiri tried to stop thinking of it as she lay her head on the pillow and enjoyed the sensation of Ian’s lips closing around her breast as his hand strayed lower. It was so easy to give over to the sensations he awoke in her.
“Ian,” she murmured as his teeth gently nipped at her. A jolt between her legs demanded what he was now giving as his hand ran inward from her thigh.
“Mmm,” was his only response.
Suddenly, he was everywhere. His lips, his tongue . . . his fingers. She giggled, startling him, as she remembered the word he’d used for what he was doing just now.
Versatile, indeed.
“Not the response I was hoping for,” he said, lifting his head.
As she loved to do, Màiri ran her hand through his thick hair. In response, he edged closer, capturing her lips in a searing kiss. She gave over to him swiftly and without hesitation. One moment, his hand was between them. The next, her husband had flipped them over, Màiri now above him as they’d done the night before.
Guiding himself into her, Ian moved his hips, his hands covering her breasts. And this time, she made love to him. This position felt a little different. She was powerful and in control, and his expression left no doubt he enjoyed it as much as she.
When she felt the spasms take her, Ian’s moans echoing in her ears, Màiri collapsed against him. Her husband circled his arms around her, holding her tightly to his chest, and Màiri suddenly had the urge to cry. What an odd response.
“I know the difference now,” she said, not loosening their embrace. “Between making love and . . .”
A sharp knock at the door interrupted her. This was no ordinary knock. Màiri jumped up as Ian scrambled off the bed. His reaction left little doubt that he sensed what she did. Something was wrong.
“Ian,” Grey shouted. “Open up.”
“Hold on,” Ian called back, dressing. Màiri picked her shift up off the floor, slipping it over her head.
“Ian,” his brother called again, knocking as if his brother hadn’t responded.
Màiri’s heart thudded in response. Were they under attack? Had someone been injured?
Unlocking the door, Ian whipped it open. Greyson’s expression confirmed what they’d already suspected. Something had happened.
She had never seen Ian’s brother look this way before. He’d always seemed so in control. But not now, not at this moment.
“They’re here.”
