Plead Forgiveness (Loyalty Series) (54 page)

When her father and his men were in earshot, Kyla
blurted out, “Father, they saved my life. Nae harm shall come to them, this I
swore.”

Laird Fraser was confused by his daughter’s words
until he came to a stop and saw his enemy. He growled out, “Paen Macleod, ye
have nae business on my land and-”

Kyla moved Apollo in front of her father, blocking his
view of her two saviors, then spoke softly. “Father, did ye nae hear me? I
would nae be alive if they hadn’t rescued me. A boar attacked, and I was thrown
from my horse. I tried to climb up a tree, but wouldnae have made it that far
if it hadn’t been for their dog.”

Laird Fraser looked at the beast that stood staring at
them from the edge of the woods, then pointed at him and spat, “That dog?”

Kyla turned and saw Arth, then said, “Aye, he verra
friendly and-”

“Verra friendly,” her father roared. “’Tis a wolf, nae
a dog.”

“He is only half wolf,” Ella corrected.

Paen closed his eyes and shook his head at the daft
words of the lass in front of him.

“And who the hell are ye?”

“Lady Ella, wife to Laird Macleod.” When she saw his
eyes widen in surprise, she continued, “The alternative to us returning your
daughter to safety would have been her walking unescorted and unarmed back to
yer castle.”

When Lair Fraser was about to reply, she added, “I
suggest you keep a civil tongue in your head if you do not want me to cut it
out.”

Paen covered his eyes with sheer frustration. “Ye just
had to add that last bit, dinna ye.”

Ella didn’t reply, just kept her gaze fixed on Kyla’s
father. He was still digesting her words, while his men snorted and grunted in
disbelief.

“I see the rumors about ye are true,” Cormac Fraser
said with narrowed eyes.

“Rumors rarely are,” Ella countered.

Highly amused, the laird corrected, “True, but in this
case they are. Suffice it to say, yer courage is well noted and respected. I
have nae like for kidnapping and abusing children, even the nephew of my enemy.
What ye did to save that child was the most selfless act this old man has heard
in a long time. And I will nae argue with the woman whom I hold in high
regard.” He gaze turned to Kyla when he said, “I thank ye both for saving the
life of my daughter.”

“Thank ye,” Kyla whispered to her Father, then leaped
off her horse. When she saw Ella dismount, she walked Apollo over to her and
handed over the reins.

Ella pulled Kyla into an affectionate embrace and
said, “’Tis evident your father loves you very much. Express your wishes
calmly, and I believe he will listen to you. And remember, if you ever have
need of me, send word through your maid as we discussed.”

“Ye are a good woman, Ella Macleod,” she said before
turning to Paen. “I . . . I thank ye, from the bottom of my heart.”

Paen’s fleeting look of surprise was quickly
concealed, followed by a cool nod.

A short time later, back on Macleod land, Ella asked,
“Will you tell me about Kyla and-”

“Nae.”

Pouting, Ella whined, “Why not?”

He glanced at her briefly, before averting his gaze.
“That look may work on Gavin, but it will nae work on me.”

Noting how satisfied she was about their adventure, he
added, “Speaking of yer husband, I dinna believe he will be as happy as ye seem
to be.”

“Why? I thought he would welcome an alliance with the
Frasers.”

“I doubt there will be an alliance, but that is nae
why he will be angry.”

“Why will he be angry?’

Her worth is still unknown to her, Paen thought. Her
innocent expression made him realize how unaccustomed she was to people caring
for her welfare. And the only ones who had were dead.

With patience, he explained, “Ye put yerself at risk
when ye dinna follow my order to return to the castle.”

Ella hung her head, saddened that she had disappointed
Paen.

“Lift yer chin, my wee hellion.” When she did, he
continued, “Ye are part of our clan and our family. They would be devastated if
ye were harmed.”

“Really?”

“Aye, especially yer husband,” he said, then watched
as her sweet smile returned.

“Aye, ye love him as well. That is good to my way of
thinking.”

When she blushed crimson, he added with a chuckle, “I
will nae reveal yer secret, for those words must come from ye alone. And dinna
fear he will nae return them. My brother has loved ye from the moment ye threw
yerself into his arms, after he killed the Englishman who dared to attack ye.”

“Thank you.”

He waved off her words, then spat, “Och, enough of
this coddling. Let us ride and together we will confess our sins.”

It was high noon when Laird Macleod unleashed ire
after hearing the details of Ella and Paen’s excursion. His thunderous roar
made servants take flight from the great hall, leaving it empty save three.

Palms flat on the trestle table, face reddened with
rage, Gavin stared at his wife and brother. They looked like two errant
children waiting to be punished.

“Explain, wife, why ye dinna follow Paen’s orders to
return to the castle?”

“I wanted to help,” she replied in a small voice.

“Help! Ye wanted to help! Bloody hell woman, the last
time ye wanted to help ye were almost raped. The time before that ye were left
scarred for life. Do ye nae care what happens to ye?”

Nothing could have prepared Ella for the searing pain
his words caused. Blinking back the tears, she shot to her feet and railed, “I
heard nae complaints when I helped save you and your men.”

Her voice broke when she continued, “Nor when ye
learned I took Gabriel’s lashing. Do you think I stopped to ask the name of the
boy tied to the whipping post afore I covered his body with my own. Consequences,
be damn, when a child is about to be whipped or a frightened girl is attacked
by a wild boar. All that mattered then and now, was that they were in trouble.”

A tear streaked down her face when she added, “And if
my troublesome nature and scarred body infuriate you so much then get rid of
me, for I will not change.”

Gavin and Paen were speechless as they watched her run
from the hall.

“I should nae have said that,” Gavin said with obvious
remorse as he lowered his body to the chair and put his head in his hands.

“I agree, ‘twas most unwise,” Paen said with brutal
honesty, still seated across from his brother. “Ye let yer fear speak, nae yer
heart. Aye, her recklessness is maddening, but there is reason behind it as
well.”

When Paen saw his brother lift his head, he asked, “Do
ye dare deny ye love her?”

“Aye,” Gavin said without hesitation. “I love her more
than I believed was humanly possible. ‘Tis that love that compels me to keep
her safe, regardless of the sacrifice.”

“’Twas her valiant nature and loving spirit that
captured yer heart,” Paen assumed.

“Aye.”

“Then dinna ask her to change the part ye love most
about her. Accept her for who she is, and the stress she will nae doubt bring
to yer life.”

Seeing Gavin’s mood lighten, he added, “Well, nae just
yer life, every bloody man who calls himself a Macleod. But, she is well worth
it.”

“Aye, she is,” he said. He stood, rounded the table,
and then slapped the younger man on the back. “Thank ye.”

“Bah, be gone,” Paen said as he waved him away. “Go mend
the bridge ye broke.”

Moments later Gavin knocked on his wife’s chamber door
and waited for the reply that never came. He tried to enter, but found that it
was bolted from his invasion. With rising determination he stalked to his
chamber, passed through the connecting door and pushed aside the tapestry.

The sight that greeted him would live in his memory
for a lifetime, as it fairly broke his heart. Naked from the waist down, Ella
stood looking over her shoulder with watery eyes at the reflection of her
scarred back in the large mirror that hung on the wall. By her horror-stricken
expression, he realized it was the first time she had seen the multiple red
scars that lined her back from shoulder to waist.

Within a heartbeat he was across the chamber, holding
the woman he loved. Ignoring her protest, he rested his cheek on the top of her
head and said, “Forgive me. I should nae have spoken about the attack or the
whipping.”

“I’m hideous,” she cried.

Gavin pulled her from his chest and looked into her
glade green eyes when he said, “Ye are beautiful. Yer face, form, heart,
spirit, everything about ye is beautiful.”

He took a deep breath, then cupped her face and said,
“I never kenned true fear until ye came into my life. And like a wild fire,
this fear grew when I kissed yer sweet lips and held ye close at night. My fear
soon turned into a raging inferno when ye became my wife, and later when ye
opened yer heart to me. And ‘tis my love for ye that ignites my greatest fear .
. . losing ye.”

In a soft whisper, she asked, “Ye love me?”

“Aye, I love ye, little one,” he said with smile, then
tenderly stroked her face.

Ella closed her eyes, completely in awe by enormity of
his words, then laid her hands on his chest and over his heart. Tears flooded
her eyes when she opened them, and said, “I love you, Gavin. My heart and soul
are yours, will always be yours.”

He captured her lips in a devastating kiss that had
her trembling with raw sensation and savage need. When his arms encircled her,
she felt engulfed by his love the way early morning mist would the trees. He
stood her by the edge of the bed, stripped her with tenderness as he rained
kisses over her exposed flesh.

Fierce, hot desire pounded through Gavin as his eyes
made love to her gloriously naked body. Leaning forward, inhaling her sweet
aroma, he trailed tiny nipping kisses down her throat and across her breast.
His tongue traced wet circles over the protruding buds, savoring her taste and
scent before he turned her body to worship the skin on her back.

“Nae, Gavin.”

“Let me love every part of ye. Kiss, touch and taste
all of ye.” And he did.

A series of slow, shivery kisses were pressed to the
raised flesh of each scar. His hands stroked the length of her back before they
meticulously paid homage to her heart-shaped, callipygian bottom. The two small
identical mounds were firm, the skin silky soft. He tasted her sweetness and
nibbled her enthralling flesh as she ran her fingers through his hair in silent
encouragement.

Turning to face him, Ella clawed at his clothes,
wanting to feel him against her. She tore his plaid from his waist as he ripped
off his tunic until nothing inhibited her view of his sculpted, wildly aroused
body.

Gavin moved her so she was kneeling on the bed with
her hands on the headboard, his large body spooning her smaller one. One hand
stoked a growing flame to smoldering blaze between her legs as the other
fondled her throbbing breasts. In detail, he began describing the feel and
splendor of her body, then what he planned to do with her exquisite body.

The warmth of his hands and lure of his words made her
mindless to all else, but him. She arched against him when he leaned over to
kiss her neck and shoulders, engulfed by his was masculinity. The feel of him,
swollen and hard, heated her core until she was panting with need. The hunger,
the urgency, was almost more than she could bear.

“Gavin!”

Answering her breathless, urgent plea, he grasped her
hips and slowly filled her body. He rocked her gently back and forth on her
knees, each thrust bringing him deeper, tighter, until ravaging pleasure filled
her every pore. The sensual pagan rhythm was soon thundering against her as she
matched his fluid movement.

She raised one arm and palmed the back of his head as
she felt a tumultuous thrumming within her expand to a wild crescendo until she
convulsed into a fiery, cataclysmic chain of rewarding spasms. A wild, keening
cry burst from her lungs as she shattered and soared to sweet oblivion. She
heard his hoarse cry as his fingers dug into her hips and buttock before she
felt his seed explode within her.

After collapsing on the bed, for long moments neither
of them moved. The sound of heavy breathing stirred the air around them as
pleasure undulated throughout their bodies, drenching them in the heat of their
love. She was still dazed when he stretched out beside her, and held her close
as she floated back to reality.

With their bodies deliciously sated and their skin
sensitive to the touch, Gavin explored her feminine curves as she lay motionless
on her stomach. He languidly caressed her slender hips and rounded bottom while
he kissed her shoulders and back.

With a tender gaze, Gavin stared down at the woman he
had just made love to so fiercely. Her skin was not dove white, but glowed
golden by the sunlight streaming in through the chamber window. Her body was
slim, but he could see the lines of sleek muscle under her taunt skin.