Brian stroked her back until her trembling eased. She was a tempting armful. He could feel the press of her breasts against his chest and his hands itched to stroke them. Even as a voice in his head warned him it was not a good idea, he placed his hand under her chin and turned her face up to his. Stealing one kiss would not hurt, he told that voice, as he lowered his mouth to hers.
Arianna watched his mouth come closer to hers and knew she should pull away. She knew it would not be a good idea if only because they still had a lot of miles left to travel together and this could breed some awkwardness between them. The temptation to be kissed by this man was too strong to resist, however. She may have been married for five years but, even counting the few stolen by young men before she was betrothed, she had experienced a paucity of kisses. And none of the ones who had kissed her had been as handsome as Sir Brian MacFingal. Not one of those kisses had made any grand impression upon her, either. She was curious to see if the man whom she found so intriguing, so fine to look at, would change her mind about the worthlessness of kisses.
The moment his lips touched her, Arianna knew this kiss would be different from any that had come before. His lips were soft and warm, that warmth flooding through her body. She slid her arms up around his neck, giving in to the urge to be held even more closely in his arms.
When he nudged at her lips with his tongue, she opened for him with caution. This part of the kiss had never really pleased her. Her kinswomen had assured her that it was wonderful if done by a man you wanted and one who had some skill. With but a few strokes of his tongue within her mouth, Arianna knew they had spoken the truth.
She quickly sank beneath the pleasure of the kiss. Her whole body was warmed by it and greedy for it. That warmth began to change, however, as he stroked her back and the kiss grew fiercer. A tightness began to grow inside her. Her nipples tautened and ached until she rubbed up against his chest in a vain attempt to ease the strangely pleasurable pain. Dampness pooled between her thighs, her woman’s place beginning to feel slightly swollen, and a low throbbing ache started to form deep in her belly. Arianna wanted to crawl inside his skin.
Shaken by what she was feeling, she pulled out of his arms so quickly she stumbled. He reached out to steady her and she stepped back, away from his touch. Fear slid insidiously through her veins, cooling the heat he had stirred within her. Arianna had no idea what he had done to her, but it worried her. She needed to think and that would be impossible as long as she was in his arms.
Unable to meet his gaze as she recalled how she had been rubbing her body all over his, she turned to the fire and the meal she had prepared. “We best eat this before it burns,” she said, and inwardly cursed herself, certain that she was acting and sounding like an idiot.
Brian frowned at her but said nothing. The brief glimpse he had gotten of her expression after she had leapt out of his arms, as if she had suddenly remembered that he was a leper, had been one of fear and confusion. He had not pushed her too far, or asked too much, so he did not really understand what he had done to frighten her.
For now, he decided as he moved to use a little of their water to wash, he would let her run. It was clear that she did not wish to talk about the kiss, either. He would grant her that silence for a little while. It would also give him time to think of the best way to approach her about her sudden retreat.
One thing he was sure of was that she had felt the same rush of desire he had. He was tempted to point that out to her and then ask her what ailed her, but knew that could be a very big mistake. Arianna had scars on her heart. She was not a woman a man rushed. Brian winced at the ache in his groin that told him his body was more than willing to rush her.
He would have to ignore it, something he had some experience in. Arianna was like some abused animal, cautious and easily frightened. Brian suspected she was unused to passion, may never have really experienced it. Nothing she had yet told him about that idiot Claud implied that he had been a good lover, or had even tried to be. Until Arianna could accept that she was a passionate woman and that he stirred that passion in her, he would have to tread very lightly. He would have another kiss soon, however, he decided as he sat down by the fire and watched her stir the stew. Forgoing the occasional reminder of what they had just shared with another a kiss would be wrong because he knew she could easily convince herself that she had felt nothing. That lie would not be allowed to stand.