Something about them took her breath away.
She wasn’t sure if it was seeing their well-toned bodies beneath their too-tight shirts or their to-die-for good looks. Whatever it was, she just couldn’t seem to function properly when they were in the same room with her.
After washing the dishes and everything else she’d dirtied while fixing dinner, Kaitlin hung the dishrag to dry on the divider between the two sinks and headed for the living room. Since she no longer had an excuse to stay away, it was time to face the two men that she couldn’t seem to get out of her head.
“Come sit down, lass.”
How in the heck did Liam know she was standing there? She hadn’t made a sound. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“Why? We don’t bite.”
She wasn’t at all sure about that. The expression on Angus’s face when he said it gave her pause. Something told her that she wasn’t quite safe with them, or maybe it was just her virtue she needed to worry about.
“Maybe not. But if I’m so safe with you two, why is it, the only seat left open is the one between you?”
Liam pointed to his chest. “Lad.” He pointed to the empty seat. “Lass.” Then he pointed at Angus. “Lad.”
Kaitlin shook her head. “I don’t know about you two.”
Grabbing the blanket from the back of the couch, she threw it onto the thick rug in front of the fireplace and sat down.
Liam frowned down at her. “You’ll be cold down there, lass.”
“So?” She patted the blanket with a smile. “That’s what this is for.” Though outwardly she put up a fight, something drew her toward the two men. What it was, she couldn’t say. Something about them made her feel the same way she did when a wounded animal needed her help. It was as though some deep, animalistic part of them called to her.
It frightened her. She’d never felt this way before. What could she do to keep those feelings from overruling her good sense?
In the past, those strange impulses drew her to the wild animals, and even against her good judgment, some strange inner drive always forced her to do exactly what she tried to avoid doing.
Something told that the same thing would happen this night. Some strange impulse would drive her to do something stupid tonight. She could feel it.
“Come sit with us for a bit, lass. We won’t harm ye.”
The look on Liam’s face was anything but harmless. She tried to avoid looking in his eyes. Something deep inside those slate-gray eyes called to her soul and something about the way he moved, the way he looked and the sound of his voice called her body.
It was the same with Angus.
Everything about these two men both frightened and drew her. Some strange, mystical force pulled her closer and closer to them and she could do nothing to stop it. Why couldn’t she ignore them? Why couldn’t she just sit here on the floor and keep away from the two men that stirred her body in a way no one ever had before?
Rising to her knees, Kaitlin rubbed her damp palms on her thighs. She wanted to go to them. Something inside her insisted that she needed to go to them. How could she ignore something that felt ingrained so deep within her soul?
With trembling hands, Kaitlen slowly rose up onto her knees. She couldn’t explain why. She only knew that she felt as though she would never be complete if she didn’t answer the call she felt from within Liam’s and Angus’s souls. Like the animals she nursed, these two were also injured deep inside. She could feel it.
Resting a trembling hand against her heart, she tilted her head and stared at them for a moment. “What is the pain I feel so deep inside you?”
“Ye dinnae want tae know, lass,” they both said at the same time. The shake of their heads and their adamant expressions should have told her to leave well enough alone, but she pressed on. They said curiosity killed the cat. Well, they may not be far off the mark on that one.
“I do want to know.”