Midnight's Warrior (3 page)

Her skin was the color of mocha that complemented her long, wavy soft brown hair and golden highlights to perfection. And her blue-green eyes were a shade no color palette could capture.

Her oval face had high cheekbones, a small nose, and gently arching brows. She was of average height, not coming quite to Ramsey’s shoulder, but she was all woman.

With her infectious smile that combined seduction and mischievousness, tantalizing eyes that beckoned, and a voice that made his blood heat, Ramsey wanted her.

Desperately.

But he wasn’t there to woo a woman, no matter how fine a lass she was. He was there to protect her, and find Declan so he could kill him.

Everything else would have to wait.

She smiled and licked her lips as she walked toward him. Ramsey could see she was nervous. The fact she was coming to him was unexpected. From what he had seen of her, and heard from the owners and few other employees, Tara liked to keep to herself and rarely, if ever, answered any questions about herself.

“I thought you might need this,” she said as she handed him the large mug. “Though maybe I was wrong. I don’t know anyone who could stand to be out here longer than a few moments without some kind of sweater at least.”

Ramsey shrugged as he took a sip of the hot liquid. “I like the cold.”

“I can see that,” she replied with a chuckle.

Her dark, multicolored scarf was wrapped tightly around her throat, and her black coat disguised the shapely body he had seen when she wore just her jeans and a sweater.

Ramsey noticed the way she tried not to look at him too long, and how her gloved fingers kept fidgeting with her scarf or hair.

“I didn’t mean to bother you,” she said.

He suddenly realized he’d let the silence between them go on too long. “You didna. I’m sorry. I’m no’ much of a talker.”

She shrugged and grinned shyly. “Neither am I. Usually. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“Sometimes a person needs to talk. Even if it’s about nothing.”

Tara nodded. “That must be it. I—”

“Doona stop on my account. Just because I doona like to talk does no’ mean I’m no’ curious about you.”

She tugged a strand of light brown hair behind her ear. “I usually like to keep to myself.”

“Usually?”

“Always,” she said with a small lift of a shoulder, her eyes glancing down at her feet. “But I saw you out here and…” She trailed off, this time folding her hands together in front of her.

“The coffee was just what I needed. I thank you.”

Her lips parted as she began to talk, but just then the phone rang. Tara gave Ramsey one more look before she ran into the castle.

“Damn,” Ramsey said as he lifted the cup to his lips, his eyes following Tara. “I’m in trouble.”

CHAPTER THREE

Tara replaced the phone on its cradle and ran the credit card number she’d just gotten for the guest who was arriving later that evening.

She smiled as she looked at the list of requests that had been asked for as the credit card machine verified all the information. As soon as the card was approved Tara made a notation on her sheet.

With the instructions in hand, she rose from her chair, but her gaze was quickly snagged by Ramsey once more. She couldn’t tear her eyes away from him.

The way his muscles moved beneath the form-fitting tee had her hands itching to touch his tanned skin. Ramsey’s muscles weren’t huge like a bodybuilder’s, but they were visible and very, very pleasing to look at.

“Ripped,” she murmured.

Each muscle, even in his arms, was toned and defined so that there wasn’t an ounce of fat anywhere on his body. He turned his back to the windows and leaned over, giving Tara a perfect view of his butt.

“What a bum,” said a voice behind Tara.

She jerked and turned around to find one of the owners, Liz Maxwell. Liz cut her hazel eyes to Tara and grinned.

“There’s no harm in looking,” Liz said. “I’ve certainly done enough of it since Ramsey arrived.”

Tara glanced at Ramsey to find he faced the castle once more as he continued to shovel the thick snow. She dragged her eyes away from him and looked at the owner. Liz was in her early forties, but didn’t look it. She worked out and ate healthily, and having a lot of money helped to keep her in high-end clothes and her blond hair impeccable.

Tara smiled. “He is rather good-looking.”

“Oh, please. He’s not good-looking, Tara. He’s gorgeous. Swoonworthy even. I can’t believe he’s not on the telly or in movies. Men like him aren’t easy to find. I’d snatch him up if I were you.”

Tara shrugged, unsure of what to say. Did she want to run her hands over Ramsey and kiss him until she forgot who she was? Definitely.

Did she want a relationship with him where he knew everything about her past and her family? That would be a huge no.

There were too many things in her past she couldn’t outrun, and she didn’t want anyone else hurt when those things caught up with her.

“What’s in your hand?” Liz asked.

“Ah, instructions,” Tara said, reluctantly tearing her thoughts away from Ramsey. “We have a high-profile guest coming tonight to stay through the weekend. He’s surprising his girlfriend, so he has some requests he’d like us to take care of.”

“And who is this high-profile guest?” Liz asked, a big smile on her lips.

“The name was withheld. I was told it was to make sure the media didn’t find out where he was.”

“Well, it isn’t the British royalty. They have castles of their own in Scotland.” Liz tapped her finger on her chin. “I can’t wait to find out who it is. Let’s begin to get everything in order. We only have a few hours. Which room did they book?”

“They’ll be on the fourth floor.”

“Oh, the Duke’s rooms,” Liz said with a satisfied nod.

Tara looked down at the list. “He wants champagne, at least four dozen roses—”

“What color?” Liz interrupted.

“He didn’t say.”

“Hmm. I’m thinking a mix of red, pink, and white. Go on.”

“Chocolate-covered strawberries, rose petals sprinkled over the bed, and lots of candles throughout the room. He’s also requested the best meal our chef can prepare so they can dine in the room tonight. The entire thing is supposed to be a surprise.”

Liz rubbed her hands together. “I’ll talk to Stefan now and also contact the florist about the roses.”

Tara made notations by those items and tucked the pencil behind her ear. “I’ll get on the rest.”

Liz hurried away while Tara removed her scarf and coat. Before she hung them up on the hooks near the door, she grabbed her mittens that were atop her desk and tucked them in the pocket of her jacket.

Unable to resist, Tara took another look at Ramsey. But to her disappointment, he was gone, the path well and truly cleared for anyone who wanted to venture out to the beach.

She sighed and hurried to find the housekeeper.

*   *   *

Ramsey replaced the shovel in the shed before he returned to his small, one-bedroom cottage and called Arran.

“I guess Fallon told you,” Arran said by way of hello.

Ramsey chuckled. “Aye, he did. There’s little vegetation or buildings to hide you or Charon around the castle. The two of you should come to the cottage and stay.”

“And then how would we have a look around the place?”

“At night, obviously. The closer you are, the faster you can help me if I need it.”

Arran was quiet so long Ramsey was beginning to wonder if the Warrior realized that he planned to take on Declan himself.

“Charon doesna like the idea,” Arran said finally.

“I doona like the fact that either of you are here, but there’s nothing I can do about it. Fallon wanted you both in case something happened. It’s no’ a matter of if Declan will come, it’s a matter of when. You’ve had to go some distance from the castle in order to find cover. If you’re here, I wouldna have to wait for you to arrive.”

“Doona try to manipulate us,” Charon’s disembodied voice said over the phone.

Ramsey smiled. “All right. I doona trust Declan. I cannot watch both Tara and the two of you.”

“We’re Warriors, Ramsey. Immortal. With powers,” Arran said, his voice thick with irritation.

“Aye. And in case you’ve forgotten, Declan has the X90 bullets filled with
drough
blood. One drop. That’s all it takes to kill us.”

Arran sighed loudly. “We’ll be there shortly.”

“I’ll leave the back window unlocked.”

Ramsey ended the call and ran a hand down his face. If need be, he would lock Charon and Arran away somewhere so they couldn’t be harmed by Declan.

In their war against Deirdre they had come away with only the loss of Duncan but entirely too many Druids. Ramsey didn’t want any more to die.

Declan didn’t care who got caught in the middle. He was going to kill anyone who got in his way. Ramsey stood a chance against him, but even he wasn’t sure how much of a chance.

During the long centuries of his life Ramsey had tried to call forth his magic while releasing his god only once, and the power of it had frightened him enough not to try it again. Yet, he knew that to battle Declan, he would have to use all of his considerable magic, and the power of his god.

Ramsey turned and looked at the castle through the wide window of his cottage. The tower, which was five floors, rose high above the rest of the castle. The tower had been the original building, and the two additions on either side were built many decades later.

Yet, it flowed well. Dunnoth Tower wasn’t nearly the size of MacLeod Castle, but like any castle, it had its own special history that included one of the previous owners running off with his wife’s sister and leaving his wife to run the castle.

A sound from his room had Ramsey looking over his shoulder to see Arran and Charon come into view.

Arran smiled as he held out his arm for Ramsey to clasp. “You didna really think we’d leave this to you alone, did you?”

“I had hoped,” Ramsey replied with a welcoming smile.

Charon stepped forward when Arran moved aside and clasped Ramsey’s forearm in a strong grip. “I didna get away from MacLeod Castle quick enough, it seems.”

Ramsey laughed and dropped his arm to his side. “Fallon does have a way of getting what he wants.”

Charon shoved aside his dark hair that grazed his shoulders, and narrowed his eyes at the castle. “Does Tara know what you are?”

“Nay. And I doona think she will unless I tell her.”

“Or until Declan shows his face,” Arran added.

Ramsey hooked his thumbs in the front pockets of his jeans. “Tara hasna been here long, and by the way she acts, I’d bet she has her bags packed, ready to leave at a moment’s notice.”

“She’s a runner,” Charon said. “If what her mother said is true, Tara hasna settled anywhere long except Edinburgh.”

Arran crossed his arms over his chest. “And that didna turn out well for her.”

“She thought she was safe there,” Ramsey said. “It’s why she stayed so long. A huge city to get lost in.”

Charon’s lips twisted in a frown. “You can never outrun your past.”

Ramsey looked at the Warrior. He knew how Charon had spied upon Quinn, Arran, Ian, and Duncan while they had been imprisoned in Deirdre’s mountain. But he had done it because Deirdre threatened to kill his family. That was something to be forgiven, yet it seemed there was much more to Charon’s past than he had told anyone.

Charon’s head turned and he met Ramsey’s gaze. “How many people are staying at the castle?”

“Right now only one couple. Why?”

“It would be easier to move around with more people.”

Arran rubbed his chin. “I think we need to have a look around tonight. Inside and out.”

“I agree,” Charon said.

Ramsey raised a black brow. “I’ve already done it, but both of you need to know the layout as well as I do. Tara’s room is on the main floor, toward the back of the tower on the left. The owners occupy a set of rooms on the fifth floor.”

“And the other employees?” Arran asked.

“Also on the bottom floor, and even in the basement.”

Charon turned on his heel and walked to the overstuffed chair angled away from the television. He sank into it and put his hands behind his head. “Have you spoken to Tara?”

“Aye.”

“About what?”

Ramsey leaned back against the windowsill, his hands braced on the sill. “She’s verra closed off. No one knows anything about her past or even much about her other than that she’s had various jobs over the past ten years.”

“So the owners of the castle would know more,” Arran said. “Her employment history.”

Ramsey shrugged. “Aye. Unless she lied.”

“Which she’s likely to do,” Charon said.

The crunch of shoes on the snow had Ramsey looking out the window to see Tara coming his way. “Hide. She’s coming.”

Charon and Arran were in the bedroom out of sight without a sound well before Tara knocked on the door.

Ramsey opened it and welcomed her inside before he closed it, and the cold, behind her. “Something wrong?”

“No,” she said with a soft laugh as she loosened her scarf. “Liz wanted me to let you know we’re having guests in the Duke’s rooms beginning tonight. The last time there had been a problem with the shower, so she wanted to see if you would check it out.”

Alarm spiked through Ramsey. “Who is the guest?”

“All I know is that it’s a high-profile man who is coming to surprise his girlfriend. Isn’t that romantic?”

Ramsey returned her smile. But he couldn’t help but suspect that the guest wasn’t just anyone. It was certain to be Declan.

“When does the guest arrive?” he asked.

“By six.”

That gave him several hours to prepare. Since they couldn’t find Declan because his magic blocked even Broc from using his god’s power of finding anyone, anywhere, they had to rely on other means.

Tara’s hand rested on his arm. “Are you all right?”

Ramsey mentally shook himself. “Aye. Just thinking of all I need to do.”

“I better let you get to it.” She gave him another soft smile before she left.

Arran whistled long and slow as he leaned against the door frame. “Damn. That’s one fine-looking woman.”