Free KiltedForPleasure by Melissa Blue

final stain and be done. That would take a few hours at best. Most of that time would be letting it dry.

    This is what he should have been focusing on, not her . Tension gripped the nape of his neck as the memory of her mouth—He threw the three bit onto the table. She wanted him but not the consequences, and he couldn’t fault her for that. He would respect her wishes and ignore her desires. It’s why he’d called MacDougal that morning so he could avoid going to the castle. A truck would come by later to drop off the first repair job.

    Douglass cleared his throat. “How long is she going to be here?”

    The question brought his scowl back. “Three months. So that’s how long you have to behave.”

    “I’m not her problem.”

    He met his uncle’s keen stare. Callan wouldn’t push Victoria. He also wouldn’t dissuade her if she had a moment of weakness. That’s why she didn’t entirely trust him. Smart woman. But last night when she told him to stop, his first inclination had been to reassure her—to give something of himself that wasn’t strictly physical. It had been so long since he had, it felt wrong.

    Didn’t matter if wanting a connection was normal, healthy. He’d just come from his wife’s grave and there he was seducing another woman, caring for her. And the vicious cycle of it all was that he had needed to feel the warmth of another human, that connection so badly that he hadn’t taken care.

    Papa Baird scoffed. “What’s the matter with you? You look distracted and tense.”

    He ran a hand through his hair, feeling a flush rise to his cheeks. “I’m trying to figure out how to get this screw out without busting up the wood. There are already splintered pieces around it.”

    “Right,” Douglass said, and he could have just said bollocks.

    “I’m going to let you go,” he said to his uncle. “I’m sure there are patrons waiting to go into the pub.” Someone knocked at his door.

    “That might be my lassie. Go answer it.”

    He checked the time and considered it just might be. “Bye.”

    “No. No. I’ll wait. I want to know when she plans to drop by. Without you .”

    Callan set down the screwdriver. It took him another second to fight the instinct to close the laptop and abruptly end the call. Finally, he just sighed and went to answer the door.

    Victoria held up a flash drive in her right hand. “I’ve taken pics of the last bit of furniture I’m going to need you to repair. Nothing major, but I don’t have anywhere to print them.”

    He leaned against his doorjamb and crossed his arms. Annoyance, lust and disgust at himself rushed through him. At the sight of her short skirt and high heels, his cock rooted for lust to win. Then she smiled, unleashing that cute dimple on him. The useless organ in his chest skittered, which only furrowed his brows until a sneer tugged at his mouth. “That wasn’t necessary.”

    She shrugged, ignoring his bark as usual. “Saved you a trip. And I didn’t want to wait. Even with the extra month, my to-do list is epic.”

    She was acting like last night hadn’t happened. He should have let her, but that would mean he’d have to get amnesia. He couldn’t forget how her neck looked so delicate as she’d offered it to him. Her moans. His jaw clenched as he waved her in and then followed her hip sway.

    He settled at the workbench, his back to her and pulled the laptop closer. “Your boyfriend wanted to say ’hi.’”

    “How are you, you cad?” her voice had softened, making it clear she was more than a little bit smitten with his uncle.

    Papa Baird flirted and Victoria spurned his attempts, her dimple flashing every now and again. The professional exterior fell away and there was the woman Callan could still practically taste. If he were smart, he’d thank her for the flash drive, scoot her out the door and if push came to shove, drink himself limp.

    “Callan and I have some—need to talk.” She didn’t know he’d