Total pages in book: 33
Estimated words: 32223 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 161(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 107(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32223 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 161(@200wpm)___ 129(@250wpm)___ 107(@300wpm)
I grin, biting my lip.
Well, Lachlan’s is positively decadent, so much so that Cat and I used to insist on bathing in his bathroom when we were young. And later, we’d just sneak in and use it anyways. I mean, I could quite readily have attendants bring warm water up for my own bath, but Lachlan’s is something else entirely. An engineering wonder.
In Lachlan’s master bath, he’s had a pump, like you might find for a well, installed. And though creaky, pumping it draws water up from the cisterns beneath the castle, all the way up in metal piping that sits right against the chimney’s from the kitchen and his own hearth. Which means, though slow, you’re able to hand-pump steaming hot water right into the big hammered-metal tub.
…You can see why Cat and I loved it so much.
I haven’t used it in years, and certainly not since I arrived back at Castle McDougall. But with Lachlan gone until dinner time? I smile to myself.
What’s the harm?
I gasp quietly, groaning as I sink my body down into the steaming water in the tub. A low groan escapes my lips as I rest my butt on the bottom, the water coming up to just above my breasts as I lay back with my long blonde hair piled up on top of my head.
Now this is heaven.
My second-cousin Mary, who I was staying with in Paris when Darcy basically banished me there for the last few years, had a pretty nice tub. But this? This is something else entirely. I close my eyes, my thoughts drifting back to France. It was nice enough there, but while Mary was no Darcy, she wasn’t exactly warm and fuzzy either. And in truth, I mostly just missed Scotland. Coming back here for Cat’s wedding made me realize it even more, and after that, even before the whole Darcy thing exploded, I knew I wouldn’t be going back.
And now you’re marrying the man you grew up fantasizing about.
I blush, sinking a little lower in the steamy water. My hands find my breasts, my fingers teasing over my skin as I close my eyes. My pulse quickens, and I know I should just take my illicit bath and go, but I can’t help it. Not when I’m here, in his bath. In his domain.
My hands trace lower, teasing over my tummy and then my hips, my pulse beating faster and faster as my legs spread gently. My breath comes faster, my heart racing, and I’m just sinking back into the heat of the water to let myself go, when suddenly, the door slams open.
I shriek, bolting up to a sitting position, slamming my legs together as my arms wrap around my bare breasts, and as my eyes swivel up to lock with Lachlan’s.
Oh God.
There’s a fierceness to his face, his eyes wild and his jaw clenched tight. He freezes in the doorframe, one hand gripping the latch with white knuckles as his gaze sweeps over me. The room is silent but for the tiny little drip of the water from the pump into the tub. My arms tighten, my body shivering heatedly as I cover myself. But even still, I’m naked in front of him. Totally bare, and totally at his mercy, and if I’m being honest, the thrill of being like this—so exposed and so… naked in front of Lachlan McDougall has my breath catching and my skin tingling like liquid fire.
“I—” my croaked voice breaks the silence. “I didn’t… I thought you’d be out until supper.”
Lachlan’s jaw twitches, his eyes positively burning a hole through me. He’s silent, just watching me.
“What are you doing in here, Iona,” he finally growls, that baritone practically setting ripples across the surface of the still tub water.
“I—the water is warm here,” I say softly, my eyes wide and staring back at him in shock and maybe a little fear. His eyes hold mine, before they slip lower, and I shiver as I feel his gaze tease over me before sliding back to my eyes. He nods at wall beside the tub, and at the large, thick bathrobe hanging by a hook.
“Use that.”
I blush, biting my lip as he turns. Turns, but doesn’t leave. I swallow, my heart racing as I slowly stand in the tub, water dripping over my body as I cover myself with my hands. I shy away from him, even if he’s still, and not turning towards me. And with one quick dart of my hand, I snatch the robe off the hook. I step quickly out of the tub and pull it on, wrapping it tight around my bare, warm body.
“Okay,” I say softly.
Lachlan clears his throat, still turned away from me.
“I’m, uh… I’m decent.”
I swear I hear a low growl as he turns, his eyes sweeping right over me, and his jaw tightening as if he sees right through the robe. I tremble quietly, swallowing the lump in my throat and the heat from my face as I take a shaky breath and face him.