Read An English Bride In Scotland for Free Online Page B

amazement when his tongue took advantage of the move and slid inside her mouth.
    Truly, while she knew mouths weren’t made to hold two tongues, it was quite nice to have his in there. The feel of it rubbing along hers and filling her mouth was surprisingly exciting and Annabel instinctively opened her mouth wider, her hands slipping up his arms to wrap themselves around his neck.
    Ross responded by catching the back of her head in one large hand, and tilting it slightly to a better angle. He then dropped both hands to clasp her behind and raised her as he straightened. Annabel assumed it was so he wouldn’t have to bend over, but the action made their bodies rub against each other in the most interesting way.
    When she felt him catch her under the thighs and pull her legs around his hips, Annabel went with it willingly, even eagerly. But then he broke their kiss and let her slide down a bit as he turned toward the bed and an alien hardness rubbed against her core. The action sent an unaccustomed excitement rocketing through her that made Annabel clutch at his shoulders even as she threw her head back on a gasp for air she couldn’t seem to find. The head tossing probably wasn’t a good idea, it made her feel like she was falling, and Annabel opened her eyes to find the world melting around them into blackness.
    R OSS CAUGHT A NNABEL to his chest when he realized she was falling backward, and then simply stared down with disbelief at her head lolling over his arm. She’d passed out he realized with consternation and scowled at her for it. But after a moment, he sighed and lowered her to the bed, acknowledging that she wasn’t likely to awaken anytime soon . . . and that it was all his own fault. He was the one who had insisted she drink, and Annabel had obediently done so.
    He’d intended to get her properly soused and then seduce her out of her chemise carouse. His hope had been that with enough liquor he would have been able to make her forget the church’s ruling and relax enough to enjoy the bedding. And his plan had nearly worked. Certainly she had seemed to enjoy their kiss with uninhibited pleasure, and he suspected she would have enjoyed much more had she remained conscious. Unfortunately, it appeared he’d overdone it on the amount of liquor she could handle. In his own defense, she’d seemed to be handling it extremely well . . . right up until she’d passed out.
    Ross bent and quickly slipped the chemise carouse off of her. Still holding her upright with one hand, he used the other to toss the offensive article across the room, assuring himself he’d burn the damn thing ere morning. He then turned back to his bride and paused as he noted the welts on her back. Ross recognized them as whip marks at once and it made him stiffen with rage at the thought of anyone touching her so in violence. He hadn’t cared much for her parents; their demeanor was cool and uncaring toward their daughter. He hadn’t seen a single sign of affection for her, but this pushed his feelings for them from indifferent to active dislike.
    Mouth tight, Ross eased Annabel gently down into bed, taking the trouble to turn her on her side so that her welts didn’t pain her in sleep. Then he tugged up the linens and furs over her. Straightening, he then stared down at her for a moment, his tight-lipped expression easing and twitching with amusement when she began to snore lightly. She was just so damned cute.
    Shaking his head at himself, Ross glanced around to see where his sgian dubh had landed when the bedding party had stripped him. Unable to find it, he settled for his sword instead and moved around the bed to grab it up. Sitting on the side of the bed, Ross tugged the top linens and furs out of the way, then sliced his palm lightly and rubbed the blood that oozed out onto the bottom linen next to her hip. It would save explanations in the morning when her parents and the priest came to collect the linens as proof that the