just enough to give a hint that she wanted him to deepen the kiss, but not too much to make it seem she was desperate for more. Even if she was.
His mouth smiled against hers as his eyes grew smokier with desire. And then he obliged. His hands shifted to her hair, stroking and grasping handfuls as he poked his tongue between her lips, drew her body closer to his, and then pressed deeply into her mouth with his tongue.
She gave as good as she got, shifting her hands from around his neck to his hips and pulling him in even closer, settling him against the heat between her legs. Felt his rigid erection against her. Rolled her tongue around his in a loverâs intimate dance.
But he suddenly went very still and then groaned, pulling his mouth from hers. He wanted more. She could tell from the way his body was still pressed against hers, the way he was fighting with himself to let go, and damn if she didnât want him to keep kissing her. A wolf had never kissed her before, and she wondered if it was just Ian or if all wolves were this hot.
He gazed into her eyes, his own filled with lust, his body hard and ready for more, but he cleared his throat and said, âWelcome to Scotland, lass.â
Thatâs when she heard the car doors slam outside. He must have heard his brother and Maria drive up while sheâd been concentrating too much on the kiss and everything else.
Then he moved her to the edge of the bathtub and said, âIâll leave you to your bath, unless you need any further help.â He smiled and gave her the sexiest wink that a man had ever given her, and in that instant, heat suffused every pore all over again.
Before he moved away from her, she heard Duncan speaking loudly at the front door, alerting Ian, she figured, that he and Maria had returned in case Ian was too busy to hear them. Duncan probably didnât wish to incur Ianâs wrath in the event the laird wasnât through with his âbusinessâ with Julia.
Ian shut the bathroom door as the front door opened.
A moment of silence followed, and Julia could imagine Duncan and Maria quickly drawing their own conclusions as to what had occurred between Ian and her in the bathroom.
Maria finally broke the silence. âThanks so much for helping us out. Weâll repay you as soon as we can get someââ
âNo need,â Ian said, dismissing her comment. âWeâll be expecting you and your staff later.â He was officious and curt, to the point, and then the front door shut, leaving Julia and Maria alone.
Julia wondered then if he felt heâd made a terrible mistake in kissing her, like she was feeling. Not that she didnât like it or hadnât wanted it to last a whole hell of a lot longer, but what had she been thinking? This was not the way to conduct her covert missions.
She rose gingerly from the edge of the tub, tested her foot on the tile floor, which felt fine, and then hurried to strip and plunge into the bath for a quick cleanup.
âAre you all right in there?â Maria asked, sounding more than curious.
âJust washing some of the mud off. Be out in a second so you can get cleaned up for your meeting.â
Maria didnât budge from outside the door.
âNothing happened,â Julia assured her. Then she frowned. âNothing happened between you and Duncan, did it?â
***
âDid you think either of the women was the same as the wolf we smelled near the car accident?â Duncan asked Ian as he drove them the two kilometers to Argent Castle, although the trek through the woods was closer to a kilometer.
â You smelled a wolf,â Ian corrected. âI couldnât catch the scent of a wolf at all, not with the smoke from the burning vehicle clouding my senses. After that, the rain washed away any scent of wolf.â
âYou didnât know that they were wolves when you saw them in the pub?â
Ian shook his head. âYou know how
Lightnin' Hopkins: His Life, Blues