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Maisie leaped awake.
Captain Cameron hovered over her.
Frozen to the spot where she lay on his bed, she met his stare as levelly as she could, her heart pounding, her mind filled with wonder about the fate she had designed for herself.
For an achingly long moment he seemed to search her deepest soul, looming over her with curiosity and fire in his eyes. How his gaze burned. It made her want to squirm, for she knew what it meant—that he wanted to possess her. And yet she felt caution in him. Had he sensed something about her? Her witchcraft, perhaps?
He lifted his head, then gave a broad smile. “You are the most beautiful woman I have ever had the prospect of bedding.”
Maisie replied quickly, following her instinct. “I have been called pleasing, but you are a captain who has conquered many oceans. I am sure you have known many women and are merely flattering me.”
He gave a husky chortle, then stepped away, unfastening his cloak and casting it aside.
She felt regret for her curt response. She was not normally so forthright. Her master had encouraged her to speak her mind only to him, for it was safest that way.
She shifted, sitting up and turning on the bed so that she could put her feet on the floor. Even though it was not the lush and fertile earth beneath her feet, doing so gave her some of the strength she would have drawn, had she been on land.
“I have known enough.” He glanced back over his shoulder. “You are not like other women.”
Her stomach knotted. What he said was true, although she could not let him believe it for longer than necessary. “I am but a woman,” she insisted, “a woman at your mercy.”
He turned back, closing in on her. Reaching out with one hand, he slipped it around her neck, his thumb stroking the skin of her collarbone. “At my mercy, eh?”
Maisie suppressed the shiver of anticipation that ran through her. How easily he could hold her. There was hunger in him. With her master such an action would have disturbed her greatly. With this man it only made her hope she had made a good choice. She forced herself to negotiate, to make the best of what she had given him in exchange for her passage to Scotland. “It has to be done a certain way.”
“Oh. I know exactly how it has to be done, lassie, trust me on that point.” He dropped to his knees, sliding his hands beneath her skirts to push her legs apart.
Maisie gasped. That was not what she meant. For her this moment was more sacred even than it would be for a normal woman. Her magic would be enriched and enhanced, her power unleashed.
However, the way he had opened her thighs, and his obvious desire for her, was overwhelming. Her curiosity about the carnal act made her anticipate the event, but she had not realized she would be so thoroughly affected by a lover’s touch and eagerness. His actions made her feel as if she was sinking and rising all at once, her body responding with fervor. I am aroused by him.
Maisie had not reckoned for that in her carefully laid plans of how she would rid herself of her virginity—the gem that was so deeply coveted by her master.
“Are you ready for me?” The captain stroked a palm between her thighs, edging her skirts higher.
The touch of his rough hands above her stockings, where the skin was bare and sensitive, set her nerves alight. “Please...please allow me a moment, sire.”
Maisie scanned the room. Her bundle was on the floor nearby. There were items that she needed, lodestones that would bind her unleashed carnal powers to her forever.
“A moment? It is yours. Not much longer, though.” He chuckled as he stood and began to undress. “You are too enticing to a man.”
Maisie had to act fast, yet she could scarcely drag her attention away from the sight of the captain removing his clothes. He did it so easily, tugging off his boots and tossing them aside. Mustering herself, she reached for her bundle and pulled it closer. Opening it, she made sure the lodestones were close to the top, then placed it as discreetly as she could beneath the bed, positioning it to sit directly below her center while she lay there.
Captain Cameron turned back to face her just as she straightened.
He pulled the loose shirt he wore up and over his head, revealing his chest. Maisie had scarcely taken in that sight when he moved his hands to the lace on his breeches. Her gaze was drawn in that direction. There was a bulky swelling within. Inhaling sharply, she looked away, thinking herself unable to observe as he shed his remaining clothing. It was too compelling a prospect. From the corner of her eye she caught glimpses of him as he undressed. The breadth of his chest seemed even more impressive unclothed, and his upper arms were surprisingly large. The way he moved, his body rippling with male strength, enthralled her. When he shoved his breeches off and his manhood was revealed she could not stop herself from staring openly. It rose from his groin as sturdy as the bough of a tree, its state of arousal undeniable. The prospect of it invading her left her breathless. She knew it was possible, for she’d had access to illustrations in the course of her education, but for a moment she doubted it. Even so, her blood raced.
While she was trying to decide whether she should disrobe herself, he strode over and lifted her bodily onto the mattress, then lay beside her. The heat and presence of his naked form made her move her hand to her chest in an attempt to quiet her nerves.
“It is not a large bunk,” he said, “but it will take us both if we stay close together, which I warrant we will.” His laugh was husky and he looked her over with undisguised interest.
His proximity was a seduction in itself. Peering up at him, she felt unsure what to do. She didn’t have to fret upon it for long. He bent to place a kiss against the skin of her throat while he pulled her skirts up and bunched them at her waist, revealing everything beneath.
“Lord, what a sight,” he murmured, when he drew back to take a look.
Maisie swallowed down the nerves that threatened to get the better of her, and forced herself to study his expression. He looked different with his eyes so alight with desire. Just then he traced his fingers around her exposed hip, sending a skittering sensation beneath her skin. Between her thighs, molten heat built, her body reacting to his blatant stare.
His expression had grown dark and he looked down at her with possessive eyes. “You will be well ridden tonight, my lady,” he whispered.
