In My Wild Dream Read online

  She sucked in her breath, feeling dizzy, and clung to his arm to steady herself. With her head tilted up to see him, she offered her mouth.

  He chuckled and slid his finger between her lips, entering the moist cavern and groaning at her wet warmth. He brought his fingers to his mouth, tasting her. “I dreamed about you,” he told her as his eyelids half closed and he gazed at her through twin slits of blazing heat.

  She stumbled, weakened by his seductive assault. “And I you,” she admitted; then she gripped his bare shoulders and pulled herself closer. “I want your kiss.”

  He groaned again and buried his face in her hair. He breathed in her scent, memorizing it. A heady sense of rightness filled him and he slid his hands behind her neck and angled her to receive him. But instead of devouring her, he merely brushed her lips with his, tantalizing them both.

  “I want to teach you,” he whispered.

  “I want to learn,” she moaned as the rest of the world shrank and only his words and touch remained to bind her to earth.

  He pushed the cape the rest of the way off her shoulders and let it rustle to the floor. “Your skin is more beautiful than the finest silk,” he murmured as he caressed her arms with his open palms. He slowly turned her toward the window, pressing himself against her back. “Do you know how beautiful you are?”

  Kassandra shivered as he moved her hair aside and kissed the back of her neck. “My hair,” she whispered. “I don’t like it.”

  He kissed the few tight curls that tickled her nape. “ ’Tis wonderful,” he told her. “Exotic and exciting.”

  She moaned and bent her head forward, granting him complete access.

  “I want to make you proud of how you look and who you are,” he murmured. “You should walk with your head held high.”

  Kassandra shuddered, aware that his words unknowingly reflected his own desires. She suddenly wanted to give him everything, too. She wanted him to have all that he thought he wanted, even if it meant losing him. She would do anything she could to help him gain his title. His loneliness broke her heart and made her ache with the need to make him whole.

  She pushed down the neckline of her dress and bared her shoulder. As soon as she felt him tremble, she knew he needed this. He was too often concerned about everyone else. Right now, with her, he could forget everything and feel her love, even if that love was only expressed with her body.

  Tugging harder, she pulled her dress off and let it join the cape upon the floor.

  He drew in a quick breath, shocked by her nakedness, yet deeply aroused by her lack of inhibition.

  “Close your eyes and let your body feel my touch,” he said in her ear, breathing against the sensitive shell. “Think of each muscle as a separate part of you. Move each part of your body independently, letting it tell me what makes you respond. In this way, we will learn each other’s caress.”

  Kassandra obediently closed her eyes. “Now . . .” Cadedryn whispered. “Shift only the part of your body that enjoys my touch. Keep the rest of yourself still. Be like a candle, as your body flickers with the tiniest breath of wind but appears tall and silent when unaffected.”

  “Why a candle?” she asked breathlessly.

  “How powerful is fire? How hot is passion? Your hair is like the brightest flame and I must be the kiln that tames your power.”

  Kassandra’s eyes opened and she stared into Cadedryn’s intent gaze as it was reflected in the window. A quiver began in the bottom of her abdomen as she pressed against his still clothed body.

  He smiled and slowly shook his head. “Don’t look at me. Feel me.”

  “You are still wearing your shirt,” Kassandra replied.

  “Do you want me to take it off?”

  “Yes.”

  He pulled on the ties, then drew it over his head. Kassandra sucked in her breath at the brush of his bare chest against her back. “Your flesh is so hard and cool.”

  “And you are soft and warm,” he answered as he stroked her arm. “Move for me,” he encouraged. “Tell me with your motions if you like my caress.”

  Kassandra lifted her arm awkwardly.

  “Not like that. Move like a kitten who wants to be petted.”

  Kassandra inhaled, absorbing Cadedryn’s scent as she closed her eyes again. She concentrated on releasing control of her body, on letting her muscles react with primitive need. She wanted to become one with him such that his needs became hers and her desires united them in an unending circle of love.

  Cadedryn slid his fingers across Kassandra’s back and she reacted by rolling one shoulder into his caress.

  “Yes,” he breathed in her ear. “Just like that.” He ran a finger down the center of her bare back, then spread his hand wide to stroke her buttocks.

  Kassandra arched her spine, then pressed against her tutor’s hand.

  “Move against me,” he instructed. “Just enough to tell me you want me. Feel my hand. Taunt me. Make me desire you.”

  Kassandra wriggled her hind end.

  “Slower. Think about caressing me without using your hands.”

  Kassandra gasped and started to pull away.

  “Don’t be shy. No one is here but you and I,” Cadedryn reminded her as he watched Kassandra’s skin shimmer in the window. Her nipples were hard and tight and the red thatch of hair concealing the juncture of her thighs was starting to glisten. He pulled Kassandra back against his swollen groin.

  This time she moved with him. At first she was hesitant, but then she caught Cadedryn’s rhythm and began to undulate. A deep need began to tingle in her core, and she emitted a soft moan.

  Cadedryn’s hands skated up her hips and traced along her abdomen, all the while continuing his rocking motion. He searched farther and wrapped his hands around Kassandra’s breasts. “Don’t use words . . . Let yourself feel us together . . . Give yourself to your man.” His thumbs rubbed over Kassandra’s nipples.

  “Shushhh . . .” He sighed as her body relaxed against his and she became pliant with sensuality.

  His heart thudded. It was as if she had been made just for him. Her body fit perfectly against his, and their natural rhythms beat together in beautiful synchrony. “I want to become lost within you.”

  “I will enfold you,” she promised as she lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck as her flame-colored tresses tumbled across her breasts and swept down to tickle her belly button.

  Blood rushed through his veins and air swept through his lungs, making him dizzy. Her rising passion filled his senses and his own desire pulsed, making his hands shake. She was his sole focus—her shoulders, her arms, her slender legs . . . her proud breasts, her shimmering flesh. He wanted to arouse her to the point where she was dying for want of his touch.

  His body coiled with need, ready to explode the moment she was ready.

  “Say my name,” he commanded. “Tell me that you want me and only me.”

  “Cadedryn,” she breathed.

  Cadedryn’s pulse thundered and his member swelled further, its surging size becoming painful in his tight breeches.

  Kassandra arched her body against his, her flesh rippling. She drew his head closer and, as she leaned back, she pressed her lips against his throat. His smell surrounded her—not just from his body, but from the very air. She felt his essence, the same energy she felt in her dreams.

  “I can feel you,” she whispered in awe. “As if we were meant to join . . .”

  “I want to join with you. I want to be inside you and feel your heat surround me.”

  Fire swept through her, burning her. She heard his heavy breathing, felt his body tense as he pulled her hard against him.

  “Open your thighs,” he murmured, nudging them apart with his knee. “Wider.”

  Kassandra’s nether cheeks brushed against Cadedryn’s engorged rod and they both groaned. She lifted one bare foot and bent her leg around his, then slid her toe up and down, feeling his rough breeches. She explored the strong muscles with her toe
s, tracing and stroking the long lines.

  He reached between her thighs and touched her core, shuddering at the wet evidence of her arousal. “Tell me,” he gasped.

  His voice sent ripples down Kassandra’s spine and she flung her head back, sending her tresses flying.

  Cadedryn became enfolded in her flames and his hands slid from her breasts to tangle in her hair. He grasped the mass at the base of her head and pulled her back even farther, forcing her chin up into the air. He kissed her exposed neck, then switched and suckled the other side.

  “Tell me you want me,” he growled.

  “Yes! I want you!”

  He spun her around and lifted her in his arms, carrying her swiftly to his bed, where he lay her down and stood over her. “Have mercy,” he whispered. “You are beautiful.” He untied his breeches and sank down beside her.

  She turned to him, her arms open.

  He lay atop her, his elbows bracing his weight while he stared into her passion-filled eyes. The tip of his cock brushed against her and he closed his eyes, reveling in the sweetness of her silken skin. He shifted, pressing harder, and shuddered when her thighs opened to receive him.

  She reached around and slid her hands up and down his back, feeling his tense muscles as he struggled to control himself. His power was immense yet he treated her with incredible tenderness. She arched, knowing that he needed still more from her and sensing that he was holding back for her. “I am yours,” she whispered.

  He thrust inside her, deeply, smoothly, his body shaking with passion.

  She gasped at the pain. Her eyes opened wide and she pushed at his hips.

  “Wait,” he said, his forehead pressed against the bed.

  She pushed again and this time his hips obeyed as he lifted a few inches off her, but instead of leaving her, he thrust back inside.

  “Oh!” she cried, expecting the same pain, but this time pleasure filled her channel and she drew in a quick breath, suddenly wanting more. Clutching his shoulders, she pulled him closer and pressed thankful kisses across his chest.

  As the bliss mounted, her eyes drifted shut. With each stroke, she held him closer and lifted her hips to meet his, then moaned with pleasure as his body rubbed against her.

  He moved faster and faster, his neck clenched with the effort to keep a steady rhythm despite her tight grip. He smelled her passion rising and knew he had succeeded in awakening her from the depths of innocence. “Follow me,” he groaned. “Follow me to the edge!”

  She cried out, her need increasing until she felt a hunger so intense, it was as if she were starving for fulfillment. She tossed her head as sensations cascaded through her body. Swirling higher, her head spinning, she screamed as she became lost within the ever-increasing ripples of exquisite intensity.

  He pounded against her, his control burned by the heat of her tight embrace. “Yes!” he shouted.

  Kassandra’s passion exploded—she felt as if every sense were set ablaze. Lights danced around her eyes and she could no longer think coherently. She became one with him, one with her lover. Her inner muscles clenched, held him with pulsing resistance; then her channel became drenched with ambrosia and became a loving, liquid embrace.

  She felt faint . . . She felt her body floating into her familiar dream state, but the intense pleasure echoing throughout each part of her body forced her back, forced her to experience her ecstasy here. It was not a dream. This was real. This was Cadedryn’s love.

  Cadedryn shouted with satisfaction as he poured his seed deep into her, his essence claiming her as his. She was his woman, the other half of his soul. He wanted to merge deep within her, so deep he wouldn’t ever have to open his eyes again and face the world that had betrayed him. He clutched her tight, desperate to make the pleasure last.

  But it slowly faded and he was forced to breathe and confront reality.

  He groaned and rolled off her and stared at the ceiling.

  She shivered at the loss of his heat and curled up against him.

  “Thank you,” he whispered as he wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer.

  She stared at his face, watching the tension seep back into his jaw and seeing the skin around his eyes harden. Her heart ached with sorrow, knowing that her love had rescued him only for a moment and he was already sinking back into his cold loneliness.

  But even one moment was worth everything she could give.

  Chapter 11

  When Kassandra snuck back to her room, she barely closed the door before Kalial opened it again and came in after her. “Where have you been? I have been waiting in my chamber to hear you return! ’Tis been well over an hour and Triu-cair came back long ago. What have you been doing?” She stared worriedly at Kassandra’s flushed cheeks and swept a concerned gaze over her rumpled clothes.

  Kassandra stared at Triu-cair in surprise, wondering how he had found his way back before she did. She furrowed her brow, aware that she had not been paying him much attention over the last hour, then walked over to a chair. She sat down with a thud, afraid her weakened legs would not support her much longer and hoping that her sister would not notice anything different about her. How could one moment with Cadedryn make her feel as if the world were suddenly brighter? The air suddenly fresher? She felt transformed and invigorated, but she ducked her head to hide her smile. It would not do to tell Kalial. Kassandra was not ready to explain what had happened, for she barely understood it herself. “I went for a walk,” she mumbled as she tried to smooth her curls.

  “A walk?” Kalial said angrily. “Without your disguise? You don’t even have shoes on your feet! Are my warnings not clear enough? This is not Loch Nidean! The people here would sooner burn you than bend their stiff rules to accommodate your idiosyncrasies!” She paced the room in distress. “We must leave. Immediately. I cannot risk your life for this ridiculous quest.”

  “No!” Kassandra cried, leaping to her feet. “Not yet! He needs me.”

  “Needs you? He hardly grants you a passing glance.”

  Kassandra ran to her half sister and clung to her arm. “Please. Give me a few more days. I have to find the danger that still threatens him.”

  “Kassandra,” Kalial replied gently, taking her arms and pushing her onto the bed. “Cadedryn Caenmore has been summoned to the king’s chamber.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “That means the king may have granted clemency to his family. If so, he will regain his title and become Earl of Aberdour Castle. There is nothing he wants more than that title, and he must wed a woman of appropriate rank to maintain the king’s favor.”

  “You mean Corine Fergus.”

  “Yes. I’m sorry.”

  Kassandra slid off the bed and slipped behind a privacy screen to change her clothes. Her eyes filled with tears and she struggled not to let Kalial hear her distress. “I understand,” she murmured, choking back her sobs. “This is not proceeding exactly as I thought it would, but I would still like a few more days. There is something I must do. I know, because I dreamed it. Something terrible is going to happen if I don’t stop it.”

  Kalial paced in front of the screen. “Do you know what will cause it or when this event will take place?”

  “Uh-uh.”

  “Do you even know if it is something that you can change? Some things are meant to be.”

  Kassandra peeked over the screen. “Like I am meant to be with him?”

  Kalial looked at her in exasperation. “Will you never accept defeat?”

  Kassandra shook her head and dropped back out of sight.

  “Kassandra! Please take me seriously. You are a loving woman, with so much to offer. Maybe you were meant to find someone else and Cadedryn was but a catalyst. Once you experience passion, you will understand that your infatuation with Cadedryn is a childish game. Real love involves a physical connection that merges both the body and spirit.”

  Behind the screen, Kassandra touched her bruised thighs and grinned wryly. “I am sure I
wouldn’t know what you mean,” she said.

  “I want you to try to meet other gentlemen. Tomorrow night a group of traveling players will perform a drama. Will you come with me and consent to meet a few gentlemen?”

  Kassandra wrapped herself in a dressing gown and came out from behind the screen. Seeing Kalial’s implacable expression, she nodded her acceptance.

  “Does that mean we will stay?”

  “Only a few days more. A week at most,” Kalial warned. “And you must stay vigilant about your disguise or we will depart sooner.”

  “Yes. I understand.”

  Kalial softened her tone. “I had one of my dresses altered to fit you. See?” She pointed to the open wardrobe.

  A beautiful cream-colored gown covered with delicate blue stitching hung from the rod. Beside it was an elaborate silver headdress with a mantle of blue satin, cream lace and tiny silver flowers.

  “It’s lovely!” Kassandra gasped.

  “It has a matching girdle of silver and blue satin. It will bring out your eyes and complement your coloring.”

  Kassandra’s eyes sparkled as she enfolded Kalial in a huge hug. “Sister! You are so kind. Thank you for everything. I know you have risked much to bring me here.”

  Kalial patted her back and smiled. “If it sets your dreams to rest, then I will be satisfied. Now relax for a bit and then we will go down and join the others. Tomorrow you can wear the dress when you accompany me to the play.”

  After her sister left, Kassandra sat with Triu-cair and stroked his soft fur. You tricked me today, she chided in their private, unspoken language.

  I’m a weasel. I am supposed to be crafty. Are you angry with me?

  Kassandra smiled and stared at the sun as it spread ever-warmer rays across the Scottish fields. “No. But we may come to regret what happened this morning. How am I to leave, now that I have lain with him?”

  Triu-cair offered no answer.

  “I don’t have much time left,” Morgana whispered as she lifted a languid hand to her daughter’s concerned face from the bed where she lay.