The House on the Shore (29 page)

To kill.

Anna sank down into the tub of hot water and thought about the events of the last twenty-four hours.
Morag was her only visitor, or had been until Luke showed up.
Luke…now there was an enigma.
A man who, by his own admission, was successful, yet he’d sailed across the Atlantic on a whim.
Why?
Morag had said something—what was it?
Oh
,
yes.
Something about looking for a past he didn’t know he had.
I
f he was seeking his ancestors, what did they have to do with her and Tigh na Cladach?

Pondering the answers, s
he poured a
dollop of shampoo into her hand
and massaged it into her hair
.

The croft had bee
n in her family for generations
.
S
urely
,
her gr
andmother would have told her if any of her ancestors had emigrated.

Luke should have been unprepared for the croft’s remoteness and inaccessibility.
Yet
he hadn’t seemed surprised.
What if he’d been acting?
That would explain why he’d made such a big deal about her staying there on her own.

He was in an ideal position to kill her.
All he had to do was row across the loch and bash her head in.
However,
that wasn’t the man she was getting to know.
He’d
shown up
yesterday morning full of concern.
No,
she
reasoned as she towelled herself dry, Luke couldn’t be
the prowler
.
Besides, when he looked at her, the air positively crackled with sexual tension, and just thinking about the way his mouth felt on hers made her lips tingle and he
r pulse quicken all over again.

A knock on the bathroom door interrupted her thoughts.
“Dinner’s ready.
”

“I’ll be down in a tick!”
She zipped up her denim skirt, fastened the buttons of her blouse, and scurried do
wn the stairs into the kitchen.

“I hope this is all right,” Luke said placing a bowl of soup in front of her.
“There’s cheese and ham, and salad too.”

“It’s perfect.
Thank you, Luke.
Do you mind if I ask you a question?”

“
G
o ahead.”

“On still nights, sound carries clear across the loch, so I was wondering…the night someone tried to break in, did you hear anything?”

“I tend to listen to the radio before I go to sleep, it helps me relax.
I’m sorry, I didn’t hear a thing.”

“In that case, do you recall if there were any other boats anchored in the loch that night?”

“
T
he loch doesn’t run straight to the sea, it narrows into a dog-leg about a third of the way down
.
Y
ou know that.
I guess it’s possible another vessel was anchored further out.
Why do you ask?”

“
If
my midnight caller arrived and left by car, the dogs would have heard its engine.
I probably would have done so, too.
I didn’t.
E
ither the prowler came on foot, in which case he’s familiar with the terrain, or he came by boat.”

“
I see what you’re getting at.”
His gaze caught and held hers
as h
is mouth spread into a thin-lipped smile.
“You’re not suggesting it was me
, a
re you?”

Anna moistened her dry lips, and avoided looking at
him.
“
O
f course not.”

Luke studied her face for an extra beat
.
“You are!
I can see it in your face.”
He p
ush
ed back his chair and carried
his
empty
sou
p bowl and plate to the sink.
“You think I tampered with the generator, and slashed your tyres.”

“No, Luke, I don’t.”

“You might remember that I was with you when someone took a pot shot at us
.
”

Anna’s face paled.
“You said that was an accident!”

“M
aybe I’m not so sure anymore.
There’s a pattern forming here.
Can you see it?”

“No, I can’t.”
She bit her lip and looked away.
“It just seems a coincidence that all these things started happening right aft
er you turned up on my doorstep.
”

“What possible motive could I have for trying to drive you out of this place?
I’d never set foot on Scottish soil until a few weeks ago.
My passport confirms that.
I’m exactly who I say I am
,
an artist.
Call Jack.
I’ll give you his number.
He’ll vouch for me, or if you prefer, call the police and have them check me out.
Either wa
y, I have got nothing to hide.”

Anna flushed with humiliation.
“I didn’t mean to imply that you were in any way responsible for what happened.
Please let’s not argue.
We’ve spent a lovely day together.
Let’s not spoil it because of a simple misunderstanding.”

“You mean
your
misunderstanding.”

“Yes,
my
misunderstanding.”

He h
eld out his arms.
“Come here.”

She covered the distance to him in two quick strides.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and gazed down into her eyes.
“I’m sorry too.
I overreacted.
The thought of you not trusting me was a kick in the guts.
Anna, I think
I’m
—
”

Standing on tiptoe, she wrapped her ar
ms around his neck
and smiled.

“Don’t think, just kiss me,” she whispered huskily in his ear.

That was all the invitation Luke needed.
His kiss was slow and thoughtful, and meant to be conciliatory, but when Anna’s lips parted, seeking more, he found himself fighting for control.
His
arms tightened around her waist
.
H
e reclaimed her mouth and deepened the kiss.
The depth of her response broke all
hi
s earlier resolve to behave like a gentleman.
Suddenly kissing her wasn’t enough.
He wanted her naked, and under him, and now.
When he finally got his ragged breathing under control his voice was thick and unsteady.

“Sweetheart, I think we should continue this somewhere more comfortable
.
D
on’t you?”
He took her hand and led her towards the stairs.
When she hesitated, he turned
and pulled her against him, the hardness of his arousal pressing into her thigh.

“Don’t get all coy on me,” he whispered.
“We both know we’ve been moving toward this moment ever since we met.”
He lowered his lips to hers and kissed her with a ferocity that made her fully aware of his intentions.
Without waiting for her denial, he swept her into his arms and carried her up the stairs to his bedroom,
then closed
the door behind him with his foot.

Once by the bed, he set Anna on her feet.
With one fingertip he traced the line of her trembling lips.
The passion he saw reflected in her emerald green eyes answered the fire in his own.
He reclaimed her
lips. H
is left hand slowly e
xplored the hollow of her back
while
his right hand
moulded her soft derrière to the contour of his hard, lean body.
Hungrily
,
he took all she gave and more, his tongue exploring the soft recesses of her mouth.
When he finally lifted his mouth from hers, his
breathing was ragged and fast.

Anna clung to him, respondin
g without hesitation or thought
as her body instinctively arched towards his.
She w
rapped her arms around his neck
and
bur
ied
her fingers in his thick
jet-black
hair.
Her senses reeled as his tongue traced the soft fullness of her lips before seeking the velvet s
oftness of her mouth once more.

When his lips left hers to trail a path down her neck to the pulse beating at the base of her throat, sending shivers of delight through her, she inhaled sharply.
She felt his hands slide under her blouse, and skim her back, caressing every contour.
The gentle massage sent desire spiralling through her, filling her with an inner excitement she never believed possible.

“Luke
,” she said huskily, tugging
his T-shirt out of his shorts.

“Mm
—
” he murmured against her neck as his fingertips traced the outline of her bra.

“I haven’t…I haven’t done this in a while.”

“That makes two of us, honey.
Don’t worry.
I’ll take it slow.”

Luke pulled his T-shirt over his head.
Unbuttoning Anna’s blouse with trembling fingers,
he slipped it off her shoulders
and down her arms.
It fell to the floor.
Her skirt quickly followed.
His eyes dropped from her mouth to her shoulders,
and then
to her breasts.

“You’re
so beautiful,” he said huskily
as he outlined their fullness through the black lace of her bra.
“I’ve wanted to make love to you, since the moment I saw you.”
He watched her intently as his unsteady hands reached for the fastening.
When she didn’t protest, he freed
her breasts
from the lace, gently fondling each smooth, firm globe.
Slowly and seductively he traced circles around her dusky pink nipples, the nubs hardening under his expert touch.
His body quivered with desire, the ache in his groin almost unbearable.
He
tried desperately to slow the pace, wanting their first time to be perfect, but he couldn’t res
ist the invitation in her eyes.

Gently, he eased her down on to the bed.
His gaze lingered over her full breasts with their swollen
rosy
nipples, and the curve of her thighs.
In one quick movement he stripped off his shorts and stepped out of his boxers,
then
joined her on the bed.
His hands roamed intimately over her body, and when his tongue sought her taut nipples, drawing them into his mouth, she arched her back and called out his name.
He stroked her legs and thighs, the silky skin of her belly, before finally pulling aside the lace of her panties and slipping a finger inside, seeking the core of her desire.

Anna’s skin burned where he touched her.
His lovemaking was exquisite, sending flames of passion racing through her.
It was as if they had been lovers forever.
He knew exactly how to arouse her, to give her pleasure.
When she thought she could t
ake no more, he slowed the pace
and showered
feather-light kisses on her face and shoulders
.
Her
body ach
ed
for fulfilment
, and with a sigh of pleasure, s
he rested her cheek on his chest
.
She could feel his heart thudding, answering the beat of her own.
Slowly her fingers explored the muscles of his chest under the covering of hair, and where they touched, her lips followed, sending
fire coursing through his veins.
She pushed Luke on to his back, and straddled him.
Her fingertips softly brushed his lower lip before tracing the line of his collarbone, luxuriating in the feel o
f the coarse hair on his chest.

When her hand found his erection and stroked the hard, silky length, his body jerk
ed
and throbbed in response
.
Al
l he could think about was sinking into her.
Luke watched as her tongue slowly followed the trail left by her fingers and remembered to breathe—just.
When she lowered her mouth to taste him, the pleasure was pure, and explosive, and
almost drove him over the edge.