Duncan was so caught up in the scent, feel, and taste of his bride, it took him a moment to notice her efforts at escape. Once he did, he ignored them. To his mind, she was just a bit frightened by the knowledge he had imparted regarding the first time between a man and a woman. She most likely feared the bedding now. ’Twas to be expected, but ’twas better to get such things over and done with quickly. ’Twas a good thing, too, for he feared the feel of her wiggling beneath him was going to make it fair difficult to go slow and tender. Damn! She was like a flame and he dry tinder, he thought, then felt something hard press against his groin as she arched and twisted beneath him.

Stilling, he frowned against the pink flesh of one breast and pressed himself against her again. When he felt the hardness once more, then felt it shift, he released her at once and pulled away in horror, tales of odd men who liked to dress as women flashing through his head. “What have ye got down there?”

Iliana was so caught up in the struggle, it took a moment for her to realize she had nothing to fight anymore. Once it registered, however, and she saw the stunned, horrified look on her husband’s face as he awaited her answer, she frowned in confusion. “What?”

Duncan reached for the linens tangled around her hips, then paused. Fear flashing across his face, he raised his eyes to her breasts. Aye, they were breasts all right. Rather than remove the linens, he reached down suddenly and pressed his hand to her crotch, barely catching a feel of the hardness there before she scooted away and tried to flee the bed. He let her escape, leaping from the bed himself as she did.

“What the devil be ye?” he asked hoarsely, facing her across the bed as she struggled to cover herself with the linens without revealing what lay between her legs.

His eyes devoured her breasts with a sort of desperation now, all fire gone from his face and all color with it. Iliana frowned at this turn of events. “What the devil do you think I am?”

“I donna ken. Ye’ve the face and breasts of a woman, but…” Misery twisted his brow as his gaze dropped below her waist. “Ye’ve something hard where a woman has no business havin’ something hard.”

Iliana’s eyes widened in amazement as she realized he had felt the lock hanging from the front of the chastity belt and seemed at a loss as to what to make of it. She could not, for the life of her, think what conclusions he was coming to, but was fair sure from his reaction that they were not complimentary. What did he think she had between her legs?