Page 47 of Highland Sky

Nash could hear his brother laughing as he hurried down to the water.

The lake was far enough away from the castle that no one would see him if he went fast. Looking around, he spied the children just outside the castle walls using their bows and arrows, shooting at a target that looked like a man made of straw. There were a few women in the fields, picking vegetables, and some of the men were taking care of the cattle up on the hill. No one was watching him, so he stripped off his clothes and jumped into the water with a splash.

Kellina broke thesurface of the water, opening her eyes and seeing the bright blue sky smiling down at her. The rainbow was gone now. But on the edge of the water was some sort of little fishing shed. She wondered if this was where the rainbow had ended earlier. It was only when she walked down to look at it that she decided she felt hot and sweaty and needed to wash. This was the big night when she was going to consummate her marriage. She didn’t want to stink when she finally did it. She figured that she had just enough time to go for a swim and wash off before Nash met her here.

She was swimming back to shore when she heard a big splash and looked up to see something in the water. At first, she thought it was some sort of animal, and it frightened her. Then she saw the head of a person, and realized someone else was going for a swim, too.

“God’s teeth, I dinna want them to see me naked.” She swam to the shore, running across the rocks and brush, trying to remember where she’d left her clothes.

“Kellina?” she heard someone call out. It sounded like Nash. God help her, she couldn’t find her clothes! “Kellina is that ye, lass?”

Finally spotting her clothes, she turned and ran for them, hearing the sloshing of Nash as he exited the water and followed.

“Nay, no’ yet, Nash. I’m no’ ready.” Her fingers fumbled with the ties on her tunic, but she only managed to make a knot. She’d never be able to get it over her head now.

“I guess we both had the same idea,” he said, sounding jovial, walking up next to her with his clothes in his hand.

She was down on her knees, but dared to turn her head to look at him. Water dripped down his broad chest, past the rigid peaks of his nipples. It was a warm day, but the water had been cold. She could see raised gooseflesh on his arms. Then her gaze roamed lower, and stopped beneath his waist. Expecting his manhood to be hard and as straight as an arrow, it surprised her when it wasn’t.

“Oh,” she said, her head snapping back the other way. She picked up her tunic, holding it to her chest. “Just turn around while I dress. And please put yer clothes on, too.”

“Dinna be silly.” He walked up next to her and she found herself looking down at his bare feet. “Kellina, we’ve already seen each other naked. Ye dinna have to be shy, lass.”

“That was when we were alone. And in the dark.” She didn’t look at him when she spoke. Becoming self-conscious, she held her clothes closer to hide her nakedness.

“We’re alone,” he said, looking around. “And the sun is startin’ to set, so it’ll be dark soon.”

“Ye ken what I mean, Nash. Now turn around, please.”

“Nay,” he said, taking her arm and yanking her up to a standing position. “I dinna mean to disrespect ye, but must I remind ye that we are married now? We planned on making love, and it is long past due.”

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her, letting his tongue slip into her mouth, surprising her with his action. She moaned.

“Did ye like that, lass?” He brushed back a lock of her wet hair. “Because I have so much more to teach ye.”

“Please, I dinna want to touch myself again,” she told him in a breathy whisper, coming to life just from his kiss.

“And neither will ye have to. I’ll do all the touchin’ this time, I promise.”

“Nash, I dinna ken if it will work.”

“Why no’?” he asked.

“Because ye’re no’ . . .” She looked down to his flaccid manhood.

“Oh, that,” he said with a chuckle. “I assure ye, it is no’ broken, if that is what’s worryin’ ye. It is just that I was swimmin’ in the cold loch. Give me another kiss or two, and things will be back to where we need them.”

Before she knew it, she was in his arms again. Their lips were locked and the kissing continued. One of his hands slipped around to cup her bare bottom. The other slid upward, closing around one breast. His fingers flicked at her nipple, causing it to go taut. Then she felt something pushing against her, and looked down. Sure enough, it hadn’t taken much, but Nash was hard, hot and ready.

“Nash, I dinna want to do this out here. What if my little brathair sees us?”

“All right. How about we go into that little shed?” He nodded toward the one that she supposed the rainbow had touched earlier.

“That’s a guid idea.”

With their clothes in hand, they hurried to the shed. Nash slowly pushed the door open while Kellina checked their surroundings, hoping no one was watching.

“It looks like a shed for storage, but there isna much in here,” said Nash in a muffled voice, since his head was inside the small enclosure. “It’s dark in the shed, but there is still some light coming through the cracks in the roof.”