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hard time for sleeping in the middle of the day. But I expect he’s having as hard a time staying on his feet as I am.” He swayed slightly and, hovering over her, propped both hands against the doorframe. “But why the hell would ye walk into my bedchamber?”
    “I . . . I’m sorry,” she managed. Her back throbbed from the impact of the knob on her spine and the pain had her on the verge of tears. But she never cried in front of others, and she certainly was not going to start now. “I was just coming to apologize to ye.”
    Arran chuckled slightly. “Why would ye be doing a thing like that? I was quite certain ye’d be ready to tan both of us when ye saw us next.”
    “It’s not ye that I’m upset with. I’m sure ye felt obligated to accompany Eoin when he decided to philander around the countryside. But as to my behavior the night I arrived here, I had no reason to speak to ye so. I hope ye can forgive me.”
    “Lass . . .” he reached down to grab her shoulders and helped her to her feet. Once she was standing, he resumed his position against the doorway, leaving her trapped between his arms. “Ye shouldn’t be so hard on Eoin. It was my idea for us to leave. I talked him into it.”
    She interrupted him, shocking herself at the pitch of her voice. “Ye what? I just arrived! I didn’t even know my way around the keep when ye two left! Not that yer confession in any way excuses Eoin, but I canna believe both of ye could be so thoughtless.”
    * * *
    Arran stared down at her as she continued screaming. She was even more beautiful when she was angry, with her face flushing pink and her eyes a vibrant blue. No wonder his brother had pushed himself against her when she’d screamed at him. He couldn’t think of doing anything else, and with his head pounding and his thoughts still mushy, he couldn’t resist the temptation to silence her by crushing his mouth to hers.
    * * *
    She knew she was making a fool of herself, she didn’t even know what she was screaming anymore. It wasn’t until Arran’s lips moved against hers that she was shocked into silence.
    Her body reacted to his kiss in ways she didn’t even know were possible. All of her anger melted away, along with every other sensible thought in her head. She knew she should stop him, but when his hands dropped from the door to cup either side of her face, she found herself leaning into him, desperate to get closer.
    When he pushed her into the door with his body, she realized that despite the urgency of his kiss, he was taking special care not to hurt her back again. As his tongue slid deeper into her mouth, the feeling of his velvety lips undid her completely. Surrendering, she wove her fingers into his hair, clinging to his body and gently scratching his scalp. He groaned into her mouth as she tugged at his hair, grinding his hips toward her.
    It wasn’t until his hand dropped to cover her breast that Blaire returned to her senses. Oh God. This must stop . Doing the only thing she could think of to break his kiss, she raised her knee, throwing it into his groin. The second he dropped to his knees, she ran out of the door and back to her bedchamber without stopping to look back.
    Slamming the door to her own bedchamber, Blaire sank onto the edge of the bed and stared blankly at the wall until her breathing returned to normal. Reaching up to brush her fingers over her lips, the rush of emotions she’d felt only seconds ago came back to her.
    Blaire had always prided herself on not being driven by the mindless need for men like most women seemed to be, but perhaps she’d just been kissing the wrong men.
    Before Blaire’s engagement to Eoin had been announced, Blaire had her fair share of suitors at her father’s home. Many of them even kissed her, but she had always found the kisses to be only tolerable, if not mildly pleasant. Arran’s kiss was far more than tolerable, and it ignited the first glimmer of hope she’d had since arriving at the