Highland Knight Read Online Free Page B

brought the wee lass back here?”
    “Gillyanne?” Avery whispered, but, even as she opened her eyes to look, she knew she had been tricked. “Ye wretched, cunning bastard,” she muttered as he held her chin tightly, refusing to let her turn away from his gaze.
    Triumph sparked through Cameron’s veins as he saw the way her eyes glowed with the heat of desire. They also glittered with fury, although he was not sure if she was angry at him or herself. He expected it was some of each. It was easy to understand that the very last thing little Avery Murray would wish to feel for him was passion. In truth, although he savored the depth of the desire he felt and looked forward to heartily feeding that hunger, he was a little dismayed himself. Such a fierce, swiftly fired passion could easily become a complication he did not need or want. It would not change his plans, but it might be wise to practice some caution.
    “Aye, that I am,” he agreed almost cheerfully. “I am also the mon ye desire. Why not just give in now, lass?”
    That display of mind-numbing arrogance nearly made Avery choke. Of course she desired him, although it galled her to admit it even to herself. He was an extraordinarily handsome man: tall, strong, and just a little dangerous. And there was a good chance that, as her brother Payton would so crudely put it, she was ripe. One also had to consider the possibility that the man was a very good kisser, skilled at turning a lass’s mind to heated gruel. That he would even mention her mindless, traitorous desire for him or assume she would just give in without a whimper was what was so infuriating. Did he truly believe himself to be so compelling or her to be so weak?
    “Why dinnae ye just crawl back under that rock ye slithered out from?” she said in a voice so sweet that she was surprised it did not make her teeth ache.
    “And to think that is the same mouth I just tasted such a sweet welcome in.”
    “Ye delude yourself.”
    “Nay, but I think ye wish to delude yourself.”
    Cameron rolled off her, fighting his reluctance to leave the warm softness of her body. He sprawled on his back and crossed his arms beneath his head. A small grin fleetingly shaped his mouth when he heard her shift as far away from him as the bed would allow. He noticed she did not get off.
    When he found himself regretting that he and little Avery had met under such circumstances, he cursed to himself. Those were dangerous thoughts. Not only could it make him hesitate in seeking justice and retribution, but he could easily begin to forget all that had made him choose celibacy. He had learned the hard lessons about the treachery of women, and he was not about to let some skinny lass with eyes like a cat make him forget them. He would soon end his long-endured celibacy, but he would never again let passion make him a fool.
    Avery settled herself so close to the edge of the bed that the smallest of movements could easily send her plummeting to the floor. She hoped Sir Cameron was not a restless sleeper. Sheltering her gaze beneath her lowered lashes, she looked at the man who so effortlessly set her blood afire.
    The dark look on his face made her frown. She did not really think he was sulking because she did not immediately succumb to his charms. In truth, she had given him an embarrassingly strong indication that she was very seducible. He should be looking annoyingly smug. Most men would be if they foresaw such an easy conquest. Instead, he looked as if he had just bitten into a very sour apple.
    Her eyes widened slightly as she wondered if he found the sudden passion that flared between them as worrisome as she did. It certainly frightened her, if only because of how he meant to use it against her. It was too strong, too overwhelming, thus very difficult to fight. For her it signaled possible defeat. For him it could do the same, if in a different way. Surely it would be difficult to keep his mind and heart fixed upon revenge