Chapter 17

17

Daniel had expected Lana to push him away. After all, this was usually the moment when she stopped him. But he pushed her skirts above her knees and trailed his fingers up her inner thigh, and she didn't stop him. Instead, her hand pressed more boldly against his covered erection.

Still, Daniel wanted to be sure that Lana wanted this. Even though she was lying beneath him, looking desperate for more, he didn't want her to regret this when she had a chance to clear her head. So instead of continuing his journey to the warmth between her legs, he pulled away. He looked down at her, waiting.

"Please," Lana moaned, an adorable crease forming between her eyebrows. "Please daenae stop."

Daniel smiled at her and kissed her gently, but then he quickly deepened the kiss. Lana nipped his bottom lip, and he dipped his hand back beneath her skirts. He delighted in the soft skin of her thighs, but he didn't linger there for long. Instead, he trailed his fingers to the warm wetness between her legs.

Lana cried out, a sound of shock and pleasure that made his manhood throb. He had never imagined how ready she was for him, but her eagerness delighted him. Perhaps Lana had been dreaming about this just as long as he had.

He slid his fingers up and down her slickness, letting her get used to the sensation. She was already quivering, and he felt certain he would soon make her scream.

His fingers sliding up and down her folds brought her such pleasure that she could only close her eyes and embrace the sensations. Lana pressed her head against the hard ground and tried to still the tremors in her legs. Her hand dropped away from Daniel's length, and then his hips pressed against her thigh as his fingers slid deeper into her core. Daniel explored higher, and then he found the perfect spot that made her cry out as a jolt of pleasure burst through her.

Lana heard his confident chuckle above her, and she glared up at him. His fingers paused in retaliation, and once again she had to beg.

"Nay," Lana whined. "Daenae stop. Please keep goin'."

He gave a satisfied smile, and then his fingers began to circle her sensitive spot before finding a rhythm.

"Oh!" Lana cried out as her whole body began to tense up around a growing pressure deep in her core.

It was like a ball of energy building inside of her, with all parts of her gathering around it as Daniel stroked her.

"That's it," he purred.

His mouth found its way back to her breast, and he began pleasuring both parts of her simultaneously, finding the perfect rhythm to drive her closer and closer to the edge.

Lana felt like nothing but a ball of nerves, all energy gathering, and then, with an urgency that surprised her, she crashed over the edge. She cried out, louder than she had before, and her whole body shook with ripples of pleasure. Daniel's fingers settled into a lazy pace, bringing her down from her high, and his mouth reclaimed her lips, kissing her deeply.

"Good girl," he growled.

Daniel took Lana in his arms, letting her rest her head on his shoulder as she recovered. He still felt his desire raging through him, desperate for release, but he knew he couldn't push things too far. Not without her permission.

"Have ye reconsidered?" he whispered. "Would ye like to change the rules?"

Lana jerked her head up, a look of angry confusion on her face. "Can ye offer me love?" she asked. "Will ye give me the thing I've always longed for?"

He took in the firm set of her jaw and the flash of anger in her eyes. He wanted to tell her what would make her feel better. He even wondered if he should lie to her. But Daniel knew he could never let himself love someone. Especially not Lana. It was too dangerous… And he wouldn't forgive himself if something happened to her.

"I told ye," Daniel said, sitting up in a way he hoped looked nonchalant. "I daenae believe in love."

"Thought so," Lana scoffed. "Very well."

She started pulling at her dress, trying to cover herself. Something about the gesture made Daniel mad, and he turned back to her.

"So ye willnae lie with me?" he asked. "Even after we are wed?"

"Nay," Lana answered. She threw her skirts back around her feet. "I willnae lie with ye unless I'm in love with ye. And if ye keep acting like this, I'd say yer chances are quite low."

Daniel scrambled to his feet and strode off toward the lake, needing to put distance between them. He paced angrily along the shoreline, letting his anger and the physical activity cool his desire, not stopping to tell her where he was going.

Daniel was frustrated with the situation, but he was even more angry with himself. He had set out to find a wife who would care for his daughter. He had never intended to care about bedding the woman. But now it was all he could think about. He couldn't understand how he had found himself here, suddenly beholden to Lana and desperate to have her in his arms.

He walked for a long time until he noticed the sun beginning to dip lower in the sky. The air around him grew cold, and he set off to where he had left Lana fighting to get back into her dress.

"Ye returned," Lana said evenly, pushing herself to her feet. His horse was standing next to her, happily munching on grass.

"Aye," Daniel uttered, struggling to keep his tone cool. "Let's go home."

Lana nodded and allowed him to help her onto the horse. He jumped up behind her and urged the horse forward, content to journey home in silence.

Lana didn't understand the brooding, grumpy man behind her. She thought they had a nice day in town with the brief exception of Skye's tantrum in the store.

And then Daniel had sent Cameron and Skye away so they could be alone together. She wanted to be happy about the turn of events. She was certainly happy about what Daniel had shown her at the lake.

But instead of enjoying the nice day, he seemed to begrudge it. Moments after bringing her such pleasure, he had simply stormed away. And why? All because she decided to hold fast to her rule?

"I was thinking," Lana began when she couldn't handle the silence anymore. "About me rule."

"Enough about the rules," Daniel said, clearly trying to shut down the conversation, but Lana pushed forward. From her position on the horse, she could speak without looking at him, and it made her feel empowered.

"Nay, let me speak," she insisted. "I willnae lie with ye."

"Aye, so ye have said."

"Yes, but I was thinking… If ye want to repeat what we did by the loch, that might be alright with me."

She expected him to be pleased, but instead, she heard him scoff at the words.

"Och, nay, lass. I willnae touch ye again. Nae unless I can claim ye properly as me wife. All ye have to do is give up this silly idea of love. Do ye nae see we could have a very successful marriage?"

"Successful?" Lana echoed. "I daenae want successful. That is the most unromantic word I've ever heard."

"Then what is it ye want?" Daniel asked.

The horse stiffened a bit below her, and she knew Daniel was growing upset. Animals had a way of sensing these things long before humans ever could.

"I daenae want to fight," Lana said, eager to calm him down. "That is the first thing for ye to realize."

Her words seemed to have their effect because Daniel didn't respond right away. Instead, she heard the heavy breath he let out. She took this as a sign to continue.

"I want to be happy," Lana said, though she suddenly worried the words sounded small and naive. "I want to live with someone who enjoys seeing me every day. And I want to ken that someone will look out for me, nay matter what."

"And that is love?" Daniel asked. She didn't miss the skepticism in his voice.

"Tell me," Lana asked, "how can ye ken love is so bad if ye have never felt it?"

Daniel was quiet for a long time. So long that she wondered if he would ever answer at all. She couldn't keep from glancing over her shoulder to look at him. She caught him staring ahead, lost in his thoughts. Her movement pulled him out of this reverie, and his introspective expression turned into a scowl.

"How do ye ken love is good if ye have never felt it?"

They were back at the same argument. Lana turned back to the road, watching where they were heading. It was growing darker around them, and she was carefully watching for any obstructions in the road that might injure his horse.

"I daenae ken," she admitted. "But I want the chance to find out. It's unfair of ye to deprive me of that."

"Do I need to remind ye that ye chose me?" Daniel asked.

Lana rolled her eyes. "Aye, ye love to remind me of it," she huffed. "Ye mean to tell me I only have meself to blame for this. It's me own fault that I will never find love. Is that what ye mean?"

"I am nae depriving ye of love," Daniel snapped. "It is cruel of ye to keep saying it."

"No? Then ye willnae stop me if I find someone else to love?"

"What do ye mean?" he asked.

Lana heard the darkness in his voice, but she decided to press on. This was her life, after all, and it was time she understood exactly what her future might look like.

"A lover," she clarified, though she didn't know if she had ever said these words before. "If I find a man who loves me properly, ye willnae stand in our way?"

The air around her felt charged as she waited for a response. She tried to keep her breath steady, though her heart pounded in her ears. She suddenly worried that she had taken things too far. What if Daniel had enough of her? What if her boldness was enough to make him reconsider their impending union? Would he send her back home?

In the silence, Lana contemplated what this might look like. What if Daniel decided to call all of this off and let her find someone else to love? She thought of Skye twirling with joy in the clothing store. She had only known the little girl for a few days, but she didn't want to leave her.

But the thing that struck her most strongly, the thing that was most surprising, was that Lana couldn't imagine never seeing Daniel again. The very thought of it was almost too much to bear. The realization sent her reeling.

"Very well."

Daniel's words jolted her out of her thoughts. Lana struggled to remember what she had asked him about.

A lover. Ye asked him about taking a lover.

"I told ye I needed a woman to raise me child. That is all that matters to me. If ye need someone else to love, as ye say, then ye have me permission."

There it was. The permission Lana was seeking. Her dreams of love didn't have to disappear when she got married.

The confusing thing, the part that she couldn't yet figure out, was that she did not feel happy about his consent. As she thought about finding someone else and leaving Daniel to his solitude, Lana felt nothing but despair.