As part of the
Aiden's Angels giveaway, I promised to write and post a scene from Aiden's point of view if the total entries reached 750. And you did it! I'm awed and humbled by the awesome group of readers who love Aiden MacRae and the
Between series like I do.
So while the
giveaway is going on until the end of the month, here is the scene I promised. It takes place in
Between after Lindsey and Aiden return home from the ball in Versailles.
After settling Lindsey into the feather bed, I trace my
thumb across her cheek to tuck a stray curl behind her ear. Her lips still bear
a slight swelling from our kisses earlier at the palace where her boldness had
surprised and delighted me. I’m seized by a mad urge to crawl into the bed and join
her, but her sleepy eyes hold that impulse at bay.
“Sweet dreams, mo
chridhe. I’ll be here when you wake. I promise you that much.” After
pressing a light kiss to her forehead, I tear my gaze away and cross the room
to the pallet I’d cast for myself beneath the window. I’ve never minded making
my bed upon the ground before, but I can feel her eyes watching me, the weight
of them like warm hands upon my skin. I turn away to hide the effect her
presence has on my body, and struggle for a moment over how to best retire for
the night.
Normally, I’d discard
my kilt and strip down to my sark. The shirt comes almost to my knees—certainly
long enough to maintain modesty in most circumstances. But with Lindsey mere
feet away in naught but a thin shift, my desire would be far too evident were I
to lie on the ground in only my sark. Still, I cannot take my rest fully
clothed or she may ask about it, dissolving the restraint I’ve only barely got
hold of.
Instead, I remove my sporran, dirk and shoes, then lower
myself to the pallet and pull the sark off over my head. The slight intake of
breath from across the room that accompanies the baring of my flesh sends a
spike of need through me. Aye, keeping the kilt in place was indeed the right
choice. I swallow hard.
With my eyes closed, I listen to her breathing as it
eventually becomes slow and even. Just when I expect a gentle snore to signal
the depths of her sleep, an unexpected sound floats across the room.
Humming.
Curious, I sit up and peer at the bed, but I’m not able to
see properly, so I get to my feet. The breathy, guttural sound of Lindsey’s
humming vibrates in the stillness of the moonlit room. I recognize the waltz
played by the orchestra at the ball. Suddenly, her arms fling out wide to
either side and she twists in the bed, sending the blankets cascading to the
floor.
She’s dancing in her sleep.
Mesmerized, I watch her, taking shallow breaths myself
lest I break her trance. Her lips curve up in a delicious smile and my heart
clenches at the sight. My tongue passes silently over my own lips, longing to
taste her again, to feel her mouth move against mine.
“Aiden...” She breathes my name, though her eyes remain
closed.
I can’t help myself. I take a chance. “I’m here, love,” I
reply and hold my breath, waiting.
Her dreamy smile grows. “Dance with me, silly. What are
you doing clear over there?” Her fingertips twitch as though she’s beckoning me
across the hall into her arms. Kneeling at her bedside, I lower my hand into
hers until our palms touch. Heat from her skin travels up my arm and curls
around my neck. A groan escapes my lips before I can catch myself.
She stills and for a moment, I fear the spell is broken,
that my thoughtless sound was enough to disturb her. But then she curls into a
ball on one side and tucks my hand close to her heart. The humming resumes and
I breathe again, painfully aware of my fingertips nestled between her breasts.
Lifetimes pass as I watch her reliving our dance at the
ball in her dreams. My prayers are unceasing and repetitive, an aching plea for
mercy.
Sighing, she settles deeper into the mattress. “Don’t
leave me, Aiden. Stay,” she says, the words a velvet blade to my soul.
“I promise, my love. I promise.” A hot tear lands on my
outstretched arm between us, the first of many I know will come when she is
torn from me at last.
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