Conall: The 93rd Highlanders, Book Two by Samantha Kane Page B

she was crying.
    “ Aw, Avril,
darling,” he said. “Open the door. Let me see you.”
    “ Is Graeme
with you?” she asked. Conall felt a sharp bite of jealousy, but he
tamped it down. He’d brought it on himself, hadn’t he, by walking
away and pushing Graeme on her? “Yes, he’s here. Do you want him
instead?”
    There was a long pause
and Conall glanced over at Graeme, who’d walked closer. He looked
beyond him and saw Ham give him a little salute before he turned
and walked off into the night.
    “ I’d like to
see you both,” she said through the door. “If that’s all
right.”
    “ Of course it
is,” Conall quickly agreed. Despite the situation, excitement
coursed through his veins. He hadn’t been this close to her in
weeks. Slowly the door opened and he stepped inside, motioning
Graeme in after him.
     
     

C hapter T welve
     
     
    No sooner had the door
closed behind them than Avril threw herself in Conall’s arms.
Graeme tried not to let it bother him too much. She hadn’t seen him
alone in weeks. She clung to him tightly, not speaking and not
looking at either man, her face buried in Conall’s jacket. On his
part, Conall looked as though he’d found the Holy Grail. Why on
earth weren’t these two together? What the hell were they doing
with him when they should be in each other’s arms, not
his?
    He started to walk past
them, heading for the door, but Conall’s shot his hand out and
gripped his arm tightly. He pulled Graeme closer, and though he
offered token resistance he let Conall win the tug-of-war. In the
end he was pressed against Conall’s side, facing a tear-stained
Avril, who glanced up at him through wet lashes. She bit her lip
and then reached out and pulled his arm around her.
    Conall kissed the top of
her head and Graeme rested his forehead on Conall’s temple as he
wrapped his other arm around Conall’s back. He could feel the heat
from both of them, their backs moving with each deep, heavy
breath.
    “ We can’t do
this here,” Conall said quietly, regret lacing his words. “Not
here. Not now.” He tipped Avril’s face up and kissed her gently.
Then he turned and surprised Graeme with a kiss. Avril sucked in a
surprised gasp, and Graeme saw her knuckles turn white where she
had a grip on Conall’s jacket. Conall tipped Avril’s head back
farther, guiding her mouth to Graeme’s, and they kissed. But he was
incapable of Conall’s tenderness. He kissed Avril with relief and
passion, the thrill of being in both their arms making him
foolish.
    Avril responded as she
always did, with enthusiasm and a desire equal to his. Conall
groaned next to them and it brought Graeme to his senses. He broke
the kiss slowly and watched as Avril licked her lips, her eyes
hooded with desire.
    “ Now that’s
what I want,” Conall growled. “I want to watch that. Are you going
to let me watch, Avril?”
    “ You said you
couldn’t be with me anymore,” Avril said, her voice heavy with
tears again. “How is that different?”
    “ I was a
bloody stupid fool,” Conall admitted with his usual forthright
honesty. “I can’t stay away. And you weren’t any safer without me,
were you? No offense,” he said quickly, looking over at
Graeme.
    “ None taken,”
Graeme said calmly, though he didn’t feel calm. Conall was right.
They’d opened Avril up to the kind of mischief that happened here
tonight. What if Hamish hadn’t been about? “But I do have a
plan.”
    Avril stepped out of
their arms, and he was left standing there awkwardly, with his arm
still around Conall. He tried to move away, but Conall wouldn’t let
him, keeping a tight hold of his waist. Avril tipped her head to
the side as she stared at them, and Graeme could see her desire,
her approval of their intimacy. She hadn’t been lying to him—she
really did want him and Conall together. He’d never understand
women.
    “ What is it?”
she asked, wiping her cheeks with her gloved hands. “What kind