The knock rang out like a clap of thunder over the moors. It stole the fire from her belly.
Stephen’s beady eyes peered through the crack in the door.
“I need a moment of the Laird’s time,” Lavina demanded, trying to keep her voice calm yet firm.
“Lavina? Let her in,” Theo’s voice ordered.
The door swung open, revealing Theo behind his desk with wide, eager eyes.
“I’m sorry to bother ye,” Lavina said, walking past Stephen without sparing him a glance.
She could still feel his gaze on her, a warning that seeped into her bones. She was interrupting something important.
“Why have ye come?” he asked, following her to Theo’s desk.
Theo shook his head and, with a wave of his hand, ordered Stephen to leave.
As Stephen turned and headed for the door, Theo called, “Report back in three days.”
The door moaned in protest as Stephen shut it, sealing Lavina in the room with Theo.
She swallowed past the lump of uncertainty in her throat and took a step closer.
“Why so timid?” Theo asked, his voice tender as though she were a kitten. “Ye werenae so shy last night. Or do ye wish to tell me that what we did was a mistake?”
Lavina shook her head and rushed toward him. Before she knew it, she was snuggled on his lap, her arms wrapped around his neck. The ire she had come in with had completely dissipated as she tried to soothe him.
“So, what is this?” he asked, pulling her back a bit.
“I dinnae want ye thinkin’ so poorly of last night. It was, by far, one of the best moments of me life,” Lavina stated with such conviction that it dispelled all doubt.
Theo’s grip tightened on her as he pulled her closer. “Is that right?” he asked, a smirk tugging at the corners of his lips.
She arched an eyebrow, glaring at him.
His smirk stretched into a grin, and before she could protest, his laugh filled the room.
“I’m just playin’ with ye. Ye came in here lookin’ bashful—I couldnae help meself.”
“That wasnae nice,” Lavina huffed, feeling the sting of his laughter like needles on her skin. “I thought ye were makin’ fun of me.”
“Never. How could anyone poke fun at an angel like ye? Do ye nae ken how stunning ye are?”
Heat rushed through her as he brushed aside loose strands of her hair and tucked them behind her ear. His thumb grazed her cheek for just a moment, but it was then that she lost her wits.
Why she had come to see him had completely slipped from her mind. All that mattered to her now was how tight he held her—and if she could coax a kiss from him.
A sharp knock sounded at the door, rattling her as if her desires were being banged on.
“Laird McGowan?”
The door opened enough for a single head to poke through. Lavina’s eyes widened with embarrassment as the elderly man stood as straight as a board before stepping back.
“That’ll teach him to enter without permission.” Theo chuckled, amused by the councilman’s reaction.
“He didnae,” Lavina said, trying to rise from his lap.
“He did. I couldnae hear him—I was just too caught up in ye, dear.”
