Page 35 of Shaw

He and the other guards knew she had slept with Shaw, Julianne decided as she went downstairs. Well, of course they did; they’d just seem her come out of his room. As fast as the castle grapevine seemed to work, everyone would know by the time they finished breakfast. That was okay; it wouldn’t be the first time people had whispered about or snickered at her. She was just sick of everyone thinking that Shaw was the devil and she was crazy for liking him.

“Okay, maybe I am nuts,” she muttered after walking past yet another squinty-eyed guard. “But isn’t that my business?” In a louder voice she said, “Don’t you guys have better things to do than gossip about me and who I sleep with, which is my personal private business, by the way?”

Her voice echoed down the passage, making every guard stare at the ceiling like it had centerfolds taped to it.

Julianne knew the rest of the clan would probably hear about that, too, but she decided she didn’t care. She’d never had such an amazing time with any guy. That alone would make any woman go a little wild, wouldn’t it? Between the sheets Shaw was so hot he probably should have set the bed on fire. She couldn’t wait until they could get naked together again.

I’m not sorry. Why should I be?

As for all the calling each other strange words and that truly bizarre experience during the orgasm where she saw the two of them in that world of mirrors, she couldn’t decide if that was on her or him. It seemed to be both of them. All she could remember after that was more sex, and more sex. At the end she had just cuddled with him in that about-to-slide-into-a-coma way, holding onto his hands as if her life depended on it, and then falling into a deep, dreamless sleep. Julianne had never been so tired, so the sleep had almost been the best part. Having multiple climaxes like that, while a little scary, beat out the exhausted sleeping. She should have stayed awake to have more fun with Shaw, but maybe that would have killed her.

Whoa, no, she definitely could not die now, she thought. She needed to have a lot more sex with Shaw before that happened.

“Morning, Julianne,” Caroline called out as soon as she walked into the great hall. The diver waved her over to the laird’s table where she was sitting with Valerie and Lark.

Time to face the girls from the future. Don’t be embarrassed. Own it.

“Morning.” Julianne made a show of eyeing the one empty chair beside her own. “Have you seen Satan this morning? He made me do the walk of shame alone, but last night was totally worth it.”

Lark choked on her brew, while Valerie did like the guards and studied the vaulted ceiling. Caroline’s blue eyes danced as she laughed out loud.

“Sleeping with Satan doesn’t get me a room in the dungeon, right?” she asked the laird’s wife.

Valerie met her gaze but still looked as if she’d stubbed her toe. “No, my dear, of course not.”

“Shaw probably went walkabout. He can move so fast no one would notice him leaving the castle,” the diver told her, wiping some tears from her eyes. “Or he could just be hanging out in the garrison hall and talking with the guys. He likes to check in with Nyall when he’s, you know, having a good day.”

“Is he having a good day?” the seamstress asked, her tone timid.

“Don’t know. Thanks to me he had an extremely good night, but he left before I came to.” Julianne sat down and huffed out some air. “Okay, so here’s the thing: since I got here Shaw hasn’t left me alone for like five seconds, right? Then when I have sex with him—think like the super freaky excellent, mind-blowing kind—he skips out on me. What’s his deal?”

“My guy hovered and dodged for like a week before I finally got him in bed,” Lark told her. “I practically dragged him there. Then he was all–”

“Ladies, please.” Valerie looked around the hall before she leaned forward and asked in a low voice, “Must we discuss this quite so openly?”

“Why not?” Caroline countered. “Twelfth century guys can be a pain, I don’t care what the maids think, and none of us are virgins. Shaw wasn’t your first, was he, Jules?”

She shook her head. “I was married for three years before I landed on the island. My ex Mitch, he acted like a nice, decent guy, but the reality? Huge greedy ass of a man-whore. Could not keep his pants zipped.”

The diver winced. “Ack. I had one of those. Anything with a pulse, that guy would nail.”

“Yeah, mine, too, especially if they’d let him make a sex tape while they did the deed. Anyway, I couldn’t deal with my hubs’ psycho dick, and I didn’t want to end up on some homegrown porn site. So about a year ago I moved into the guest room, put a deadbolt on the door and went back to soloing with my vibrator.” She saw Valerie’s expression and winced. “Sorry, V, I know that was totally TMI. But Shaw is like not the worst, you know?”

“Maybe that’s why you two were meant for each other,” Lark suggested. “I know the chieftain sometimes acts like a man-whore, but behind that gorgeous face and all those muscles, he’s really a nice, decent guy.”

“Not counting the monster inside him that wants to rip out your guts while it gnaws on your spine like beef jerky,” Caroline tacked on.

“I think we’re all aware of the danger Shaw presents, ladies.” The laird’s wife regarded Julianne. “If he left to wander and think alone, he will return eventually. He simply needs some time to work out whatever is troubling him.”

“What if it’s the Big Bad? You know, his ink?” When none of them replied Julianne knew they knew. “Exactly how long has he been handling all this Pritani garbage by himself, anyway? A couple of centuries? Ever since they trashed him?”

“I really can’t say. I believe he would ask for help if he needed it,” the laird’s wife said, although she sounded uncomfortable and wouldn’t look at her.

“He seems as if he’s used to managing it by himself,” Lark added.

Caroline started to say something, only to fall silent and shake her head.

“Look, I can appreciate how much you all care for the guy, him being the laird’s blood bro and all,” Julianne said, taking pity on them. “No doubt he’s convinced you that he has to battle on alone like a brave little soldier and all that. But the truth is right in everyone’s face, and no one wants to admit it.”