Read A Highwayman's Honor: (A Highland Highwayman Novella #1) for Free Online Page A

glanced down and grasped the quilt, pulling it more tightly against her. “So am I,” he said, surprising a laugh from her.
    “Come.” He took her hand and led her closer to the fire. She sat on the bed while he stoked the flames. “I need to change out of the rest of these wet clothes,” he said.
    Her mouth dropped open a bit and she turned around on the bed. He laughed and bent to tug his sodden boots from his feet. He finished peeling off the rest of his wet clothing and reached into the armoire for dry clothes. Though he stood with his back to her, he could feel her gaze burning into him. The thought of her watching him while he dressed stirred his blood, inflaming a passion he’d have difficulty containing if he let himself lose control.
    Still, he couldn’t resist playing a little. If she wanted to watch, he’d give her something worthwhile to see. Though he’d keep his back to her so she couldn’t see just how affected he was by her sitting naked beneath that quilt, watching him dress.
    He pulled a dry shirt on, letting the muscles of his back bunch and stretch as he lifted his arms to let the fabric slide over his body. He made sure the material fell slowly, past his broad back, over his tapered waist, and finally over his buttocks. A quick intake of breath from the direction of the bed was his reward for his ministrations. The thought of her sinking her nails into his backside while he moved over her hardened him to the point of pain and he had the sudden urge to see exactly how she’d react to the knowledge of what she did to him. He grabbed a pair of breeches and turned, letting her see him. All of him. She gasped and quickly resumed her perusal of the opposite wall. His chuckle had her cheeks burning so hotly he was certain her eyes watered.
    He sat beside her, the bed sinking beneath his weight. “If you’d like a closer look, I’d be happy to oblige.”
    Elizabet’s mouth dropped open. He didn’t know what had made him offer. Even if she desired him as he did her, and by the heat in her eyes he was certain she did, nothing good could come of it. He couldn’t keep her. And he wouldn’t take her maidenhead and send her back to her family, no longer virgin and unwed. It would ruin her. Her father he had no qualms ruining. The man was corrupt, cruel, and most likely a traitor. But Elizabet was not her father. And John had no desire to harm her, in any way.
    Before he could move away she bit her lip and raised her hand. His forehead creased in a frown but he didn’t move away as she tentatively touched him, brushing her hand along his jaw. She ran her finger along his lower lip as he’d done to her. He sucked in a sharp breath and the sound seemed to ignite something within her. She leaned toward him. He knew he should stop. It was sheer madness. He was a highwayman, an outlaw with a price on his head. A man, not her husband, whose face she’d never even seen.
    And she didn’t seem to care.
    Just one kiss.
    His lips hovered over hers. She pulled back slightly. “You said you wouldn’t kiss me until I asked,” she said with a small smile.
    “You can ask me later.”
    His lips touched hers and she sank into him. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her close. His heart thundered in his chest. Her lips were sweet, soft. She yielded to him, following his lead with an eagerness that made his head swim. This woman was a dream. A lovely, intoxicating dream from which he never wanted to wake. She moaned, a soft sound that had him threading his fingers through her hair and nipping at her lip. She opened for him and he delved inside.
    His body burned for her touch. She pressed herself closer, wrapping her arms about his neck. She plunged her fingers into his hair and held on tight, which only spurred him on. But when she touched the bottom of the mask, he grabbed her hand and pulled away from her, shaking his head.
    “No,” he said, his voice gruff.
    “Why?” she asked, her voice hardly more than