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Chapter 22

22

N athan’s eyes snapped to hers. His spoon clinked on the plate. ‘Scandal? There’s not much to tell.’

She cocked an eyebrow. ‘Come on. You can’t dangle a juicy bit like this in front of me and expect me not to bite.’

He dragged a hand through that mop of blonde hair. It really wasn’t fair for a guy to have hair that lush.

‘You could google it anyway. But don’t say I didn’t warn you. It’s a fucked-up story.’ He reached for his water and knocked it back like a shot. ‘Gennie, you’ve got to understand… When I was a bit more than just a kid, I was famous in Britain. I had screaming fans, the works. Thought I had the world by the balls. Even had a girlfriend – Imogen was in a girl band. We were young and stupid, thought we were invincible.’

He forced a tight smile. ‘One night, after a show, we had a doobie in our hotel room and… We were teenagers, high and horny. Of course we fucked. Nothing kinky or anything.’

His fingers tapped on the table. ‘What I didn’t know was that my mentally challenged management wanted to “edge up my image”, turn me from boy-next-door to bad boy. Think Robbie Williams in his coke days.’

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he fought to keep his composure. ‘So, they…they got Imogen to hide a camera in the room. Taped us the whole time.’ His voice cracked, like splintering wood. ‘And that cunt Rudi leaked it to the press. Those vultures had a field day. My sister couldn’t go to school without being harassed. It went on for months. Pure hell. Imogen ghosted me faster than you can say “traitor”. She’s married to a footballer now. Serves her right.’

As he spoke, painting a picture of violation and betrayal, Gennie’s gut twisted. She could see it all too clearly – the merciless cameras, the brutal headlines, pictures of intimate moments plastered across every grimy tabloid. Devastating for anyone. Especially a teenager.

‘Bagpipe Banger, Celtic Smutpuppy, and Degraded Darling they called me. And,’ he let out a dry, mirthless laugh, ‘those were the nicer ones.’ His eyes were full of anger and hurt. ‘I was still half kid, and they all stabbed me in the back. Management, girlfriend, old classmates, press, fans. Couldn’t trust a soul except my family. So I felt I had to flee the country and disappear for a few years. I travelled.’ His voice trailed off. ‘That’s why I’m so private. Once you let people in, they can destroy you. Never want to go through that again. Never want Abby to go through that.’ He sat back and his eyes searched her face. ‘It’s a matter of survival.’

A fist squeezed her heart. ‘Jesus, Nathan,’ her hand reached out to cover his. ‘That’s…beyond messed up. I’m so, so sorry.’

‘Ancient history.’ He jerked one shoulder up like it was nothing, but she felt the tension in his fingers.

‘Doesn’t make it any less shit.’ She squeezed his hand. ‘No wonder you’re so keen on privacy.’

His eyes met hers, a glimmer of surprise and something else – gratitude, perhaps – in their depths. ‘Learned it the hard way.’

She nodded and traced circles on the back of his hand with her thumb. ‘For what it’s worth, I think you’re brave to share that with me.’

He scoffed, but the usual hardness had melted away. He turned his hand. Their fingers tangled together in a connection as intuitive as breathing. ‘Aye, maybe.’

The server’s arrival with the bill broke the moment.

They paid quietly, gathered their things, and stepped out into the October night.

Gennie hissed as the cold air bit her skin. ‘It feels like winter.’

Without a word, Nathan took off his down jacket. He stepped closer, his body shielding her from the chill. With deliberate care, he draped it over her shoulders. He slowly zipped it up. ‘There you go.’

Gennie’s breath caught in her throat and her heart cracked wide open. She’d always worn her independence like armour, but now she wanted to shed it like an old skin. To trust him, be vulnerable with him. The jacket smelled of him and wrapped her in safety.

‘Thanks. You’re not getting this back anytime soon.’

The air nipped at her cheeks, but she was warm. Her mind spun like a whirlpool with the pull she felt towards him.

He just stared at her, like an ex-con watching his first sunrise in freedom.

‘Nathan?’ Her whisper blended into the rustling of leaves.

He didn’t say a word. Instead, his hands found her waist with a firmness that sent sparks shooting through her veins.

‘Can I kiss you again, Gennie Rivers?’

‘Yes, Nathan MacMillan.’

He lowered his head and captured her lips with his. They were a bit chapped and traced hers so carefully it turned her bones liquid. She leaned into him and her fingers clutched his shirt like a lifeline, the cotton crumpling in her grip. As if holding on to him was the only thing keeping her from floating away. The scent of him – musky and clean, with a hint of pine – filled her senses.

Nathan’s sullen exterior masked a tenderness that threatened to undo her, and the way he kissed her now, with such reverence and need, broke down the last bit of the walls she’d built up since childhood. His hand slid up to cradle her face, as if it belonged there, the pad of his thumb following the curve of her cheek as he kissed her deeper. She pressed closer, felt the drum of his heart against her own frenzied pulse. The world around them faded.

When they parted, both breathless and vulnerable, Gennie’s eyes fluttered open to meet his. His thumb brushed her lower lip. ‘Gennie, you—’ His voice scratched with emotion.

‘I’m here.’

‘Thank you.’

In that instant, she knew she was done for. She was ready to let go, to crash into whatever this was. Full speed.

The Land Rover lumbered down the winding road and the silence between them buzzed with enough electricity to power the entire town of Blairdrochaid. Her hand rested on his thigh.

This thing between them, it was more than wanting to climb him like a tree. It was a connection that made her insides dissolve. She’d never felt anything like this before. This was a leap into the unknown that made jumping out of a helicopter seem like a walk in the park.

When his hand covered hers, his fingers intertwined with her own, she was willing to swan dive off that cliff. For the first time in her life, she didn’t want to protect herself. She didn’t want to fight it. There was no point, anyway.

Consequences be damned – she wanted this man. Heart, body, and soul.

They pulled up to Glenwood Lodge. After saying good night to the Camerons and checking on a peacefully sleeping Abby, Gennie didn’t know what to do. Should she just…? On an instinctive flash of cowardice, she turned to head for her room.

But Nathan’s fingers tightened around her wrist in a vice-like grip. ‘Have you lost your mind, woman?’ His voice was a feral rumble. ‘I didn’t spend all night staring at you in that dress, just to watch you walk away. What have I told you about where I want you?’ His voice was like worn leather on bare skin. ‘Are you coming? Your choice. But I’m not going to ask twice.’

The air seized in her chest as she watched him, his eyes fixed on her with the intensity of a starving wolf staring at its next meal.

‘Yes,’ she said. ‘And I came to your bed first. Just saying.’

‘Shut up, Gennie with a G.’ He smiled and pulled her along the corridor into his room. The moonlight sliced through the gaps in the heavy curtains like silver knives on the wooden floor.

Nathan closed the door behind them and turned to her. ‘It’s just you and me tonight.’

She took a step forward, then another until she was close enough to count his eyelashes. He hauled her against him and her brain short-circuited as she felt the evidence of his need pressing against her like a steel rod.

‘Mhm…much better.’ His stubbly chin grazed her neck and goosebumps erupted on her arms. ‘Still cold?’ he asked with a teasing gleam in his eye.

‘No,’ she breathed and curled her fingers into his shirt. ‘Definitely not cold.’

‘Good.’ His hands slid down to cup her ass, squeezing hard. ‘Because I intend to keep you very, very warm tonight. But I need to know… What are you doing here, Gennie? Why did you choose to be here?’

‘Because…I…you…’ The words died on her tongue as he roamed over her curves, kneading her thighs, her ass.

How did he know she needed to be grabbed like that? Even she’d had no idea until now.

‘Tell me, Gentlestorm.’

Her head spun, drunk on his touch, his scent, his presence. The words tumbled out in a breathless rush. ‘Because I want you, Nathan. I want you so much it scares me.’

His eyes clouded. ‘Why? I’m twelve years older than you. I’m a single dad, a failed musician, and a recluse. You’re young and strong and brilliant. What the fuck do you think you see in me?’

His question weighed on her shoulders like a ton of bricks. She looked up into his glassy eyes. Her heart pounded with fear and resolve.

No holding back.

‘You’re right. You are older, and yeah, you live out here in the woods. But none of that matters. What matters is what I feel when I’m with you.’ She paused. ‘You make me feel safe in a way I’ve never felt before. You’re strong and calm, like a mountain I want to climb and never come down from. You care so deeply for the people you love. And the way you look at me… It’s like… like coming home to a place I didn’t even know existed.’

Nathan’s grip on her tightened. His eyes searched hers as if looking for a hint of doubt. But there was none. She meant every word.

‘You see me, Nathan. I can be weak with you.’ She sucked in a breath and held his face in her hands. ‘I don’t give two fucks about age, the past, what the press wrote, or any of that crap. I care about you, the man in front of me. So yeah, maybe it doesn’t make sense. Maybe it’s batshit crazy. But I don’t care. I want you, Nathan.’

She pressed her lips to his, a kiss filled with everything she couldn’t put into words. When she pulled back, she saw her whole world in his gaze. ‘That’s why I’m here,’ she whispered. ‘That’s why I’m in your bedroom. Not because of a thunderstorm. Because of you.’

‘Gennie…’ He backed her up against the wall, his body hard as granite against hers. His breath fanned her ear. ‘You have no idea what you’re doing to me.’

‘Then tell me.’

‘You’re making me lose my mind.’ His fingers clenched around her face, callouses scraping her skin. ‘The instant you walked into my life…’ He paused, his grip tightening as he searched her eyes. ‘I thought my attraction to you was wrong. But age doesn’t matter – not when it’s the right person. Not that I have any choice. You’ve got me in the palm of your hand, Gennie. I’m fucked.’

Nathan kissed the tip of her nose, her chin. He let his hands drop to her hips and pulled her flush against him. ‘You’re everything I didn’t know I needed.’

Her heart swelled like a balloon ready to burst. A clot the size of Scotland formed in her throat as his words washed over her.

‘Gennie…no…’ She felt the wetness on her cheeks before she even realised she was crying. He wiped off the droplets, his touch infinitely gentle. ‘I’ve got you, baby.’

She pounced on his mouth, the kiss salty and sweet. His moan rolled through her, his tongue tangled with hers in a dance that set her blood on fire. ‘Show me, Nathan.’

His kiss was plundering and tender, possessive and caring at the same time. As only he could be. Her heart raced as she fumbled with his shirt buttons, fingers clumsy with need. ‘Did you superglue these?’

‘Having trouble there, Rivers?’

‘You wish.’ She ripped the shirt open, buttons spewing everywhere. It revealed a landscape that put the Highlands to shame – all hard planes and rolling muscles, with a dusting of golden hair. Her fingers skated over his abs, nails scraping lightly.

He hissed in a breath. ‘Christ, Gennie. I need you naked.’

She grinned against his mouth. ‘Patience is a virtue, you know.’

‘Tae fuck with patience. I’ve been patient all night.’

Her pulse soared with anticipation. His fingers trailed down her arms, her belly, her thighs, slipped under the hem of her dress to palm her bare ass.

‘You’ve been a fucking cock-tease in that dress. I want it off.’

‘Then take it off me.’

‘Oh, aye. That’s been the plan all along.’ He dragged the zipper down, knuckles feathering the notches of her spine. Her dress slid pooled on the floor.

He let out an almost pained sound. ‘God. So gorgeous.’ His left hand slid up to cup her breast, teasing her nipple through the lace to a hard bead. The other hand slid down to her aching centre. His fingers pushed her panties aside. Her wetness coated her inner thighs, she felt it, and all she could do was roll her hips against him.

‘Fuck,’ he groaned. ‘Fuck, Gennie. So wet. I could slide inside you right now, just like that. Goddammit.’

‘Yes! Nathan. Please. Will you, please…’

‘I know you’d like me to take you hard and fast, baby. And by God, I could. But we’re doing this my way.’ His breath was a flaming caress on her neck. ‘We’re doing this right. And we have to be quiet. We mustn’t wake Abby. Please, Gennie. Be quiet, for God’s sake.’

The world was spinning behind her eyes. He lifted her and she wrapped her legs around his waist, anchoring herself to him. He found the edge of the bed and lowered her onto the soft sheets. She lay back and watched him through hooded lids.

His breath was heavy. ‘Last chance to run.’ But the want in his voice left neither of them a real choice.

‘I’m not going anywhere.’

‘Then every inch of you is mine tonight.’

Not just tonight, MacMillan.

He stripped off his trousers and boxers, moving so smoothly. Hard lines and dark shadows played across his body. Gennie’s gaze trailed down and a pulse shot through her at the sight of his size.

‘Don’t look so surprised. You two have met before.’

She rose and reached out, her fingers tracing the length of him. ‘I faintly remember.’

He grinned, free and cocky and undeniably sexy. ‘Then let’s make fucking sure you never, ever forget.’

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