“I’ll go talk to her.” She bit her lip. “Maybe I can help you with the animals first?”

I admired her procrastination technique. “Sure.”

MCKALE HELD MY HAND as we walked down the path toward the waterfall that evening. The clan was still partying it up, but the Masons had been a subdued bunch all day. I accepted with gratitude when McKale asked me on an early evening “date.”

When we reached the gurgling stream the first thing I did was look around for mini-men. I’d come prepared with a bathing suit, but I wasn’t opposed to breaking out a few more wrestling skills if someone dared to mess with us today.

We walked up the mossy, damp bank to where the stream thickened at the base of the falls. As we stopped and looked at each other, a shyness overcame us and we laughed.

“I guess you don’t own any swim trunks, huh?” I asked him. I motioned to my shorts.

“Nay. The lads and I swim without clothing.”

“Oh.” Heat prickled my skin and I cleared my throat.

“I’ll wear me pants today.”

I nodded, looking down at a spongy patch of earth that my toes were squishing around in.

“Okay. I have a swimsuit on under this. It was made for swimming. In case you couldn’t tell from the name.”

Ugh, go away embarrassing babble!

We looked at each other before reaching for our shirts and pulling them over our heads. He dropped his tunic and rubbed his hands over his flat stomach, taking in the sight of my fuchsia tankini. My heart was beating ridiculously fast as I bent to slide my shorts down. My heart never had a chance to relax because his hot hazel eyes never looked away. It was hard to breath and I didn’t know what to do with my hands. He lifted his eyes to my face.

“Are ye all right, then?”

“I’m… nervous.”

“Aye. All is well.”

His voice soothed me. Geez, if I was this nervous about swimming with him, I’d be a complete wreck three nights from now. I needed to calm down. Little nerves were natural, but I was feeling faint here.

“I’ve ne’er seen material such as that. May I?”

I nodded and he reached out, feeling the edge of the tankini top where it met my mid-section. The back of his fingertips brushed against my stomach and the prickly heat flared up again. He used both hands now, pulling at the fabric to see how it stretched. I could see the cobbler in him, fascinated by this creation and wondering how it might be used on the feet of Fae.

When he was done examining my suit, I held out my hand and he took it. Together we waded into the water near the falls. It was cooler than I remembered, probably from all the recent rain. I hissed and walked on my tip-toes. McKale let go of my hand and dove straight into the water’s depths, coming back up in the middle of the pool with a giant smile. He gave his wet head a shake, slinging water to the side.

When he motioned me to him, I let my chest go under. Cold! There was no way I was diving like he had. After a few steps the water was too deep and I had to swim the rest of the way. He took my hands and pulled me to him. Close. When his lips covered mine and his tender tongue sought my own, I almost forgot to kick my feet to stay above water. He wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me to a spot where we could touch bottom.

And then he kissed my breath away.

My hands slid over his body in the crisp water. I loved the hardness of lean muscle under his skin. I ran my hands across his chest and around to his back, feeling him from the line of his pants up to his shoulders. Unlike me, he kept his hands in one place, around my back. But he groaned with pleasure at my touch and kissed me harder. The water no longer felt so cold.

McKale’s mouth left mine and he pulled me to his chest to hug me. His cheek rubbed the side of my head.

“I can’t get enough of ye, Robyn. I didn’t know it could feel this way.”

I leaned back enough to look at him. “I’m full of surprises.”

He chuckled. “Careful now. Ye aren’t the only one who can give a surprise.”

I lifted an eyebrow, wondering what he meant, but he must have taken it as a challenge because he jumped up and dunked me under the water. I came up gasping, wiping water from my eyes.

“Not nice!” I rushed for him and we wrestled, laughing with sudden playfulness. It was an enjoyable release after the past twenty-four hours.

“’Tis not right for a lass to be so rough!” He laughed as I struggled my way out of his hold.

“That’s me. Take it or leave it.” We’d moved close to the shore now. I yanked the back of his knee forward with my heel so he’d lose his balance. As he fell forward he grabbed my waist and twisted us around so that I would fall on top of him. He grasped my wrists and pulled me down to him. Our upper bodies were on the dirt, but our legs were still in water.

“I’ll take ye, I will.”

McKale lifted his head to try and kiss me, but I dodged to the side. Instead I kissed his cheek before moving further to nibble his earlobe. He tensed underneath me and I could feel everything. Instead of making me nervous, his apparent arousal spurred me on. I kissed his neck and he held his breath. My mouth was hot in comparison to his cool skin. He sucked in air when I ran my tongue over his lightly freckled shoulder, down to his collarbone. I’d never done such a thing, and the way he reacted made me experience another delicious surge of power like I had when we kissed by the hen house.

“Aye, yer likely to drive me mad if ye keep that up.”