“Ah.” That made sense. Intrigued and wanting to see the show, she peered down the street.
“’Tis no place for a married lass, though.” He winked, his half grin firmly in place. “Besides, I thought you might prefer to dine with the King of Scotland.”
“You thought right,” she exclaimed, unable to contain her excitement this time.
As it turned out, it would be a while before that happened. The ceremony to make Donald the official regent took precedence. Something they didn’t attend, but that was okay because she had the chance to bathe instead. Though Aidan offered to wait outside the door to the room they’d been given at a small inn, she insisted he guard her from inside.
“We’re supposed to be married,” she reminded. “So how would that look?”
“True,” he agreed, sitting at a table in the corner. He didn’t look at her directly, but she knew he watched her out of the corner of his eye. “I suppose I’m just trying to make things more comfortable for you...normal.”
He really was considerate, and she appreciated it. But the truth was, nothing about any of this was normal. They had pretty much skipped the dating process and gone straight to the relationship part. Which, all things considered, didn’t feel nearly as odd or awkward as it should. But she supposed between the ring and however many previous lives they shared, that made sense.
Despite having already had sex and feeling like she knew him so well, she still felt bashful when she undressed. Nevertheless, she removed her clothes and climbed in. He had warmed her bath water with magic, and it soothed her sore muscles.
“I never realized how painful horseback riding could be,” she commented, lathering up with a crude looking yet flowery smelling soap.
When Aidan didn’t reply right away, she glanced at him only to find him staring at her with unmistakable desire.
“Aye, horseback riding can be taxing if you’re not used to it,” he said hoarsely, glancing away. He cleared his throat. “Especially when riding as much as we did.”
Just as aroused by that smoldering look as she had been by his affection all day, she continued bathing, casting him sidelong glances as often as he did her.
“Thank you for warming the water,” she commented, loving that he could do that with the flick of his wrist. “It must be a relief to have your magic working a little better.”
“Och, ‘tis,” he agreed wholeheartedly. “’Tis extremely difficult when it doesnae work as it should.”
“I can imagine,” she teased. “Then, you actually have to do things normally like the rest of us.”
When distress flared in his eyes, and his anxious thoughts brushed hers, she realized just how much a wizard was connected to his magic. How he only felt like half a man without it. While tempted to tell him he wouldn’t be, she kept quiet.
“’Tis all right, lass,” he said softly. “You dinnae need to keep quiet.”
“I just wish I knew what to say,” she murmured. “I've never met a wizard, so I'm clueless about what you’re going through. What it feels like to have your magic so off.”
“’Tis like losing a piece of who you are.” His eyes appeared haunted. “’Tis indescribable really. Our magic is tied in with our verra being. Our sense of self.” His brogue thickened. “If I were to equate it with anything, I suspect ‘tis worse than someone losing all their senses at once. Thrust into scentless, muffled darkness. Unable to feel a thing, even the metallic fear in their mouth.” He shook his head. “There is a sense of drawing closer to vast emptiness.”
Hell. That sounded terrifying. No wonder they were so troubled.
“Then let’s make sure that doesn’t happen to you guys.” She tried to sound flirtatious even as her heart went out to him. She winked, reminding him intimacy was a key factor, hoping he got the hint. “No matter what it takes.”
That got his mind back on track, and they chatted about less serious things. All the while, they checked each other out, imagining what came next. The bed? Floor? This very tub? How it would feel. Euphoric? Gravity defying? Likely both plus a zillion other naughty adjectives.
By the time she stood and wrapped a towel around her, she was so aroused, her legs felt liquefied. Yet still, her shyness returned. Something she’d never experienced with other men. Granted, they weren’t as hot as this one or nearly as good in bed but still. Her skin kept heating, and her heart raced. It almost felt unnatural.
Eventually, she couldn’t hold her tongue about it anymore.
“Do you feel it, too, or is it just me?” she asked, well aware he followed her thoughts. She sat down at the table, still wrapped in her towel. “I’m not shy by nature but something about you,” she gestured between them, “whatever’s happening between us makes me feel more like a sheltered virgin than a modern day woman who’s no such thing.”
“I dinnae feel precisely what you feel, but I do feel...different,” he conceded, clearly trying to keep his eyes on her face rather than her scantily clad body. A courtesy that only turned her on more. “’Tis something I have never quite felt before...at least not in this life.”
If possible, her heart pounded even harder, and she felt a little breathless.
“Not in this life,” she murmured, resting her hand on the table. “So in another life.”
“Aye.” He placed his hand over hers, sounding surer than she expected, considering it undermined what he felt for Maeve. “I think what you’re feeling, whatwe’refeeling, is falling in love...again.”
The moment he said ‘again’ a strange sensation washed over her. Most certainly a sense that he was right but more than that. An overwhelming feeling of loss so strong she knew their love had been doomed.
More than that, looking into his tender gaze, she suddenly knew why.
