Claimed by a Laird (9 page)

His fingers slowed to a pet and she whimpered. His lips
landed on hers, his tongue delving into her mouth, which she playfully caught
between her teeth. She slid one trembling hand down his side, past his hard,
flat stomach, and slipped her palm around his hot shaft. A low groan escaped
his throat and she curled her fingers around his thick cock. He pussy
contracted hard at the silky weight of him in her palm.

“I need you now,” she whispered against his lips, sliding
her palm up and down the length of him.

Snarling, he yanked her legs apart and she released him as
he covered her with his body once more. He settled himself between her thighs
and she bent her knees. The bulbous tip of his cock pushed against her and
parted her slick folds.

He paused. “
Oir gu siorraidh is tusa leamsa
.” And
then, in one smooth thrust, he buried the length of his cock completely inside
her.

Anna gasped in acute pleasure, the deepest parts of her
stretching to accommodate his shaft. She wrapped her legs around his waist and
eagerly writhed her hips beneath him, driving him deeper within her.

He paused for a brief second and withdrew. Establishing a
slow, lazy rhythm, he slid back into her. She met his thrusts, planting soft,
quick kisses down his shoulder and back up to his neck. She dug her nails into
his shoulders once more, reeling with the intensity of new waves of hunger
rippling through her pussy. With two hard, direct thrusts, she cried out,
clutching him to her chest as searing vibrations seized her core as it
struggled to tighten around his thick cock. A guttural groan of her name echoed
in her ear as he roughly grabbed her hips and drove hard into her over and over
again.

And then he froze, holding her motionless beneath him. His
cock pulsated as he shot his hot seed deeply into her core.

Galen’s head fell to her shoulder and Anna let out a long,
staggered breath, stroking his back. When his heavy breathing returned to
normal, he slid his cock out of her and moved to her side. She shivered as the
cold air hit her bare skin. He adjusted the blanket over them, rolled to his
side and pulled her against his chest.

She turned to her side as well and pressed her back against
him, ignoring the dizziness in her head. She grabbed his hand and cradled it
against her breasts as sleepiness rapidly descended upon her.

“I meant what I said, lass,” he whispered. “
Oir gu
siorraidh is tusa leamsa.”

She stilled, unsure she understood him correctly. She
resisted the urge to shake her head in denial. “What did you say?” she asked
with a tremble.

His lips brushed her shoulder. “You are mine forever.”

Galen yawned and stretched as the early morning light
seeping into the tent awakened him. He rolled to his side and his eyes landed
on Anna, who had stolen the entire blanket at some point in the middle of the
night. It covered her from head to toe and she lay curled in a ball on her side
about as far away from him as possible in the tent.

He chuckled and moved toward her, resting his hand upon her
hip. His cock stirred and he thrust it against her soft backside, caressing her
hip with his hand. She shivered against him.

“Annie,” he crooned, leaning toward her ear. “It is time to
awaken.”

The ferocity of his need to take her again surprised him. He
grasped the edge of the blanket, lifted it to expose her back and dropped his
lips to her shoulder.

She shivered again. “
Tha mi fuar,
” she replied, her
voice shaky.

He froze. Had she just spoken Gaelic?

“
Dé thuirt thu
?” he replied in his native tongue,
asking what she had just said.

Her annoyed sigh reached him from somewhere underneath the blanket.
“
Dé tha thu ag iarraidh
?”

She could certainly speak Gaelic—the woman had just asked
him what he wanted. His stomach tightened. She would awaken this instant. And,
by all that was holy, he would get some answers out of her.

“Anna,” he barked, pulling the blanket away from her face.

She moaned, covering her ear with her palm. “Galen, please
don’t yell.”

The surge of anger melted as the paleness of her face hit
him. He caressed her cheeks and then her forehead, the fiery heat emanating
from her skin taking him by surprise. How had he not noticed before?

“Hell,” he muttered, recalling her pleas of not feeling
well. He was a complete cad for not believing her.

“
Tha mi duilich
,” she whispered, allowing him to turn
her onto her back.

“You do not need to apologize.” Galen dared not to look at
her nakedness as he removed the blanket. “I am going to help you dress so we
can get you to safety.”

“I’m so cold.”

“I know, lass.”

He sighed in resignation and gathered the clothing she had
laid out along the edge of the tent. He helped her to sit and slipped her
sleeveless shirt over her head, his cock stirring at the sight of her full,
soft breasts. He grabbed her sweater, determined to put as many layers between
them as possible.

“How is it that you can speak my language?” he asked.
Hopefully, she would keep her guard down for a little while longer.

Anna grabbed her skirt from him and pulled it onto her hips.
She collapsed against him, shivering and breathing heavily.

Galen stroked her hair as several competing questions
whirled through his head. Why Anna would speak to him in Gaelic now when she
hadn’t when they first met was beyond him, unless she was not who she said she
was. If she was not, then who could she be? Someone sent by an enemy clan to
attack him?

He nearly snorted at the thought of Anna attacking anyone.
Hell, the woman would not even let him kill that damned Graham soldier despite
how roughly he had used her. Besides, had he not seen her in his very own
dreams two days before she actually appeared in the flesh?

She was too strange, her attitudes, actions and speech too
out of the ordinary to be someone sent by one of his enemies in a surprise
attack. Until he had proof otherwise, he would believe the story she had told
him. He owed her that much for getting him out of the dungeon.

Galen helped her to lie down and then pulled her socks over
her feet. Two additional clothing items, besides her tall boots with strange
heels, were revealed as he moved the blanket so he could cover her. He picked
up the smaller of the two and stared at it in confusion. It was a simple
triangle of silky, black cloth that had three strips of fabric extending from
each corner, which then met at a smaller triangle in back. His brow furrowed.
Where was he supposed to have put that? The other, larger item, made of similar
black fabric, had two straps descending to two bulbous shapes, also attached to
other strips of fabric. When he held it by the straps in front of him, the
large, spherical shapes reminded him of breasts.

He shook his head and tossed the items aside. He couldn’t
concern himself with her extra pieces of clothing. Anna was covered in all the
right places and this was all that was necessary.

He placed a quick kiss upon her brow and promised to return
to her soon.

Stepping out of the tent, he grabbed his dry clothing and
quickly dressed. Turning, he spotted Adam and Geoffrey swaggering toward him,
grinning from ear to ear.

“We were just debating about who should dare to fetch you
from that tent.” Adam laughed.

Galen allowed one corner of his mouth to curl in a small
smile before sobering as the men stopped in front of him. “Anna’s feverish.”

“Damn.” The amusement fell from Adam’s face. He crossed his
arms and shook his head. “How is she?”

“Barely coherent,” Galen muttered. “She is burning up and
needs to be tended to.”

“We could take her to the MacPherson holding,” Geoffrey
offered. “We—”

Galen shook his head. “We have asked too much of them
already.”

Adam nodded. “They have been more than accommodating in
allowing us to remain on their land overnight. It is a definite risk to them,
especially since their laird’s sister is married to the Campbell. Who knows how
long it would take the Gowrie to find out.”

Geoffrey scowled. “No one knows who she is, let alone she is
associated with us.”

“Word travels quickly in the Highlands,” Galen said as he
crossed his arms. “A casual remark by a MacPherson servant to the wrong person
that they are sheltering my woman and we will be riding from this battle into
another with the Gowrie after he has kidnapped Anna. Too many Campbells have
married into the MacPherson clan. Do not think for a moment the Campbell laird
wouldn’t alert his overlord to the presence of my woman in his brother-in-law’s
keep.”

“We have to take her home.” Adam sighed in resignation.

A muscle in Galen’s jaw twitched. “I would not normally
ask—”

“I know.” Adam dismissively waved his hand. “But she is our
mistress now and her safety is our priority.”

Galen nodded curtly. “Geoffrey, you will ride with them.”

Geoffrey’s face reddened and he balled his fists at his
sides. “I need to stand by your side in battle. If I had not—”

“What is done is done,” Galen growled, not wishing to take
this particular moment to box his brother’s ears for his stupidity at getting
caught with a Graham cow. “You have learned your lesson, have you not?”

“Then why are you punishing me?”

Galen narrowed his eyes, losing patience as he stared at his
eighteen-year-old brother. “It is not punishment to protect your mistress. It
is your duty and your honor.”

“My mistress?” Geoffrey sputtered, his eyes wide in angry
shock. “No vows have been exchanged, have they? Galen, listen to reason. You
have no proof of who she really is, only what she has told you.”

With one, swift motion, Galen’s hand wrapped around his brother’s
neck and lifted him off the ground. “She is the woman who got me out of that
castle alive and just might have saved your sorry ass from getting killed in
attempting to breech the Graham defenses!”

Adam grabbed Galen’s arm and pushed against Geoffrey’s chest
in an attempt to separate the brothers, but to no avail. “Galen swore before us
last night he was taking the woman for his own. Do not question your laird!” he
admonished the younger man.

Galen flicked his wrist and released Geoffrey, sending his
younger brother flying onto his backside. Geoffrey sprang up and lunged for
Galen.

Adam stepped between them and shoved Geoffrey backward. “I
am your commander!” he shouted. “I do not care if the laird is your brother,
you will not step outside the chain of command. If you have a problem, you
bring it to me. Do you understand?”

“Then tell my laird,” Geoffrey spat, peering around Adam, “I
will not play nursemaid to some treacherous English wench simply because his
cock has taken a liking to her!”

Galen’s control snapped. Nostrils flaring, he shoved Adam
aside and threw back his right elbow. Before Geoffrey could react, Galen’s fist
landed squarely on Geoffrey’s jaw and he was knocked to the ground.

Galen stepped forward, placed his foot on Geoffrey’s chest and
leaned over him, breathing heavily. “You may not like those who speak her
tongue, but I will not tolerate your disrespect toward Anna. She will be your
sister, make no mistake about it.”

Geoffrey stared at Galen for several long moments,
Geoffrey’s eyes full of remorse, before he nodded.

Galen stepped backward, offering Geoffrey his hand. He
pulled himself to his feet, wiggled his jaw back and forth, rubbing it.

“Galen?” came a small, feminine voice from behind them.

All three men turned simultaneously. Anna stood before them,
wrapped in a blanket and shivering.

Galen reached her in two long strides. His breath caught in
his chest as he tucked her hair behind her ears and stared down at her face in
the light of day. The sun bounced off of her gloriously red hair, contrasting
perfectly with her milky flesh. He could not resist running his fingers through
her silky hair, the strands curling around and between his fingers like a
caress.

“What are you doing out here, lass?” The words caught on the
sudden dryness of his throat. “I told you I would be back for you.”

The tears threatening to spill from her bewitching
blue-green eyes were nearly his undoing. He caressed her pale cheek with the
back of his hand, wishing he could somehow return the sparkle to her sickly
eyes.

“The yelling is hurting my ears,” she whispered, casting her
gaze toward his feet.

She had heard their conversation. Galen had half a mind to
turn around and knock his brother to the ground a second time.

“Adam and Geoffrey are going to get you to safety,” he
replied, careful to keep the fury out of his voice.

Anna nodded and, without thinking of his audience, Galen
pressed his lips to the top of her heated forehead, lingering for a moment
longer than necessary. His chest ached at the thought of letting her leave his
arms, but he had no other choice. He motioned Adam forward with a lift of his
chin.

Solemnly looking down at Anna, Adam placed a gentle arm
around her shoulders. “Come, my lady,” he encouraged. “Let us get you to a warm
bed.”

Galen’s throat tightened with an unfamiliar emotion as Adam
guided her away. “Ride like hell,” he gruffly commanded, resisting the urge to
push his friend away so he could take her home himself.

He froze in his tracks as the more reasoned part of his
brain questioned what the hell he was doing. He had actually taken her as his
woman—in front of most of his warriors—and he barely knew her. He had also just
laid his brother out flat for questioning Anna’s intent while he too harbored
doubts about her. He was reacting far too strangely to this woman. She clouded
his thinking and his chest ached at the mere thought of letting her go.

Was she a witch? Is that how she had gained access to his
dreams?

Geoffrey approached him, unable to meet his brother’s gaze.
“Galen, I am sorry. I had not realized you felt anything for the woman.”

Galen shook his head dismissively and turned away, hoping
his brother would allow the matter to drop. For all of Geoffrey’s youthful
blundering, the young man was unfailingly loyal and only ever attempted to act
in his laird’s best interests.

Galen had been thirteen years old when he discovered he had
a younger brother nearly eighteen years ago. Unfortunately for Geoffrey,
Galen’s father, Malcolm, hadn’t been married to Geoffrey’s mother, who was a
maid in keep. Malcolm refused to acknowledge Geoffrey and he and his young
mother were quickly shunned by many in the clan.

But Galen could never stomach the idea of his own flesh and
blood treated as an outcast when Geoffrey had as much right to sit at the
laird’s table as Galen. He kept a close watch on Geoffrey as he grew, even
going so far as to secretly lay several young boys flat a time or two for
picking on Geoffrey. Galen provided for Geoffrey and his mother in secret as
best he could, but once their father died, Galen openly drew them back into the
clan fold and claimed Geoffrey as his brother. In truth, Galen had been the
only father Geoffrey had ever known.

Geoffrey grabbed Galen’s shoulder. “I am sorry your woman
overheard my words, but stop and think for one moment as a laird and not a man.
How is it she happened to make her way into the Graham holding and to then
release you? How could she have been in the right place at the right time
considering she is not a Graham?”

“That was already explained to you,” Galen gruffly answered
as flashes of his dreams of her played in his mind’s eye.

“Fine, but did you not hear her impeccable Gaelic last
night?” Geoffrey pressed. “If she knows naught but English, how could her
pronunciation have been so perfect?”

Galen attempted to dismiss his brother’s fears until he
could find out for himself exactly how Anna had learned his native tongue. “All
she said was ‘thank you’. It is not difficult. She must have picked it up from
the men.”

Geoffrey emphatically shook his head. “I also heard her say
‘good night.’ No one said it to her beforehand. She knew it. There was
understanding in her eyes, I would stake my life on it.”

Galen remained expressionless. He could not allow Geoffrey
to see the doubt about Anna that had already been planted in his own mind. God
forbid but if, in the end, Anna somehow ended up fooling him, it would be his
burden, alone, to carry. Regardless of her motives, she had released him from
his imprisonment. He owed her the benefit of the doubt until she was found not
to deserve it.