The Highlander's Bride Trouble (13 page)

So she would have to leave him before she committed a greater sin by disappointing
him. She was sure she couldn’t bear to see resentment or scorn in his eyes when he
looked at her.

A gillie came and took her mare. The young lad guided the horse along the side of
a stream until a floodplain stretched out with plenty of grazing. The other horses
were already nibbling at the shoots, their saddles laid over large rocks for the night.

The MacLeod retainers were starting fires and cleaning rabbits they had shot from
the road with arrows in the last hours. The air was soon full of the scent of roasting
meat. Saer was leaning over a flat rack with two of his captains, studying a map with
the last of the day’s light. Nareen took the opportunity to slip off into the woods
for some privacy.

She had to force herself to return.

The urge to run was strong, but she knew Saer would only come after her. Success lie
in making sure he was sleeping when she made her run for Deigh Tower. Broen MacNicols
would grant her shelter and an escort to her brother. It was a foolish risk, to venture
out alone again, but she felt it a greater risk to stay. It was only a day’s ride
to Deigh Tower. She focused on that and held firm in her decision.

She drank deeply from the water bag, knowing she’d wake in the early morning hours
to relieve herself. Then she settled down to sleep, forcing herself to ignore the
rabbit in favor of sleeping while Saer was awake.

It was the best solution, really. She wanted no master, and would make sure she didn’t
have the chance to lose her resolve again.

It was certainly better than watching him grow dissatisfied with her.

***

“Ye wore the lass out,” Baruch remarked. “She did nae even wait for supper.”

Saer looked up, taking a moment to drink in the sight of Nareen. She’d curled up beside
a large cluster of rocks with her arisaid wrapped around her.

Pride moved through him. She was strong, sleeping out on the trail without any complaint
over the lack of comforts.

“That brat she was serving ran her to exhaustion,” he informed his captains. They
turned the conversation back to planning the route home.

It was much later when Saer was able to move toward Nareen. Her breathing was slow
and steady. He watched her for a long moment, studying her face. He still didn’t understand
his need for her. It defied logic, even sense.

But it was her face he saw when he closed his eyes, so he stretched out beside her
and enjoyed the soft sound of her breathing until he fell asleep.

For the first time in the many months since he’d first seen her at court, he felt
a lack of urgency. Peace settled over him, and it was far sweeter than he’d ever imagined.

***

Nareen smelled Saer before she opened her eyes. The scent of his skin, which she’d
somehow memorized from the times she’d been in his embrace, intoxicated her and undermined
her resolve to deny her hunger for him.

She opened her eyes and saw him sleeping next to her. He’d raised the portion of his
kilt that draped over his back to cover his head, but the rest of the wool was still
secured around his waist. In the distance, she could see his men completely wrapped
in the kilts they had taken off before lying down.

Not Saer. He slept, ready to be on his feet in a moment. Laid out between them was
his sword. It was even pulled from the scabbard, in case he needed to defend himself.
He didn’t trust the world any more than she did.

For a moment, she was torn. Again.

It seemed to be the way he affected her.

The only way to be free of the turmoil was to leave. She turned her head slowly and
looked across camp. Two retainers were still awake. They were poking at the fire as
they spoke in low tones. Off in the distance, the horses were dark shapes.

But fate was kind. There was a thick forest between her and the animals. She took
a last look at Saer and rolled up and onto her feet. He didn’t move, and she kept
her paces slow as she made her way into the forest. The urge to move faster needled
her, but she forced herself to take her time.

Her mare was smaller than the other horses and had drifted off by herself. Nareen
cooed softly to her, watching as her ears perked up.

Retrieving the saddle would be too great a risk, so she eased the bridle into place
and led her mare away from the others. Each moment seemed to be longer than normal,
and her steps sounded too loud, but the other horses remained quiet as she made her
way.

She used a rock to mount and held tight with her thighs as the horse began to carry
her away from the camp. Nareen let her set the pace, moving in unison with the animal.
The sky was clear, allowing her to see the constellations and guide them toward the
MacNicols stronghold. When she looked up, she saw just the faintest outline of one
of the towers in the distance. With luck, she’d make it by dawn.

But there was a blur of motion beside her before a hard arm reached across and snagged
her off the back of her mare. Nareen let out a screech as Saer clamped her against
his chest and used his knees to steer his stallion.

“Let me go!”

He pulled her to the ground and planted himself between her and her mare. He was furious,
his brows lowered and his lips pressed into a hard line. He pointed one thick finger
at her.

“Why, Nareen?” he demanded in a rough tone. “Tell me the name of the man ye are intent
on returning to.”

“Kael Grant,” she snapped. “I’m going to make sure me brother knows I want no master.
And certainly nae ye!”

He drew in a harsh breath. “Ye want me, Nareen.”

She shook her head. “I refuse to be any man’s.”

He chuckled darkly, moving toward her. She backed up and realized she was moving into
the forest. The limbs of the trees blocked out the moon’s bright light.

“That is nae what yer actions were saying when ye entangled yer hand in me hair and
stroked me tongue with yer own.”

“I’m saying it to ye now,” she insisted as she tried to hedge around him and back
into the light. He blended with the night too well, and she had no defense against
the urges that came out when she was with him.

He hooked her around the waist and pressed her back against the solid trunk of a tree.
His body was huge and impossible to move, but the worst part was the way she shuddered
with delight.

“Ye’ll have to prove it, Nareen. Refuse me kiss and stand unmoved in me embrace, and
I will let ye go.”

“See if I don’t bite ye,” she warned.

He stepped back, surprising her. And disappointing her too.

She stood in shocked amazement as she tried to decide what to do.

But she’d misunderstood his action, and that was a mistake. He reached out and pulled
free the cord that held her bodice closed. With a hard tug, the knot opened, and he
used one finger to drag the cord free of the first few eyelets. The weight of her
breasts opened the bodice, giving him room to plunge his hands inside the loose neck
of her chemise and cup both tender mounds.

She gasped, arching back against the trunk of the tree. He massaged the tender globes,
brushing her puckered nipples with his thumbs.

“Tell me ye do nae like me hands on ye, Nareen.”

She clamped her mouth shut and closed her eyes. He tugged on her nipples, drawing
a heated moan from her lips. Never once had she thought her breasts might feel so
good. Saer held them, massaging them, and it felt like they grew heavier.

“Put yer hands on me.”

It was a rough command, and she curled her hands into the bark of the tree to deny
herself the feeling of him.

He swept his hand through the front of her bodice, opening it completely before leaning
over and licking one hard nipple.

“Oh, Christ!” She shoved her hands into his hair, gripping the smooth strands as he
arched her toward him.

Liquid fire was flowing down to her sex. He didn’t stop at licking, but opened his
mouth and sucked on her nipple like he was starving.

She was starving too. Starving for him.

All the need that had been threatening to burst, exploded. She lost the will to think,
to consider, or even identify what she was doing. There were only her cravings and
the fact that he was there to sate her. She leaned over, seeking some of his warm
skin to kiss. She wanted to taste him, wanted to drive him as insane as he was making
her.

Her mouth connected with his jaw, and she kissed her way along it until he lifted
his head away from her breast to allow her to kiss him.

It was a hungry merging of lips and tongue. There was nothing tender about it. He
demanded and she matched him motion for motion. She clawed at his shirt, hating the
fabric, but his sword was still resting on his back, making it impossible to strip
the garment from him. She settled for grasping his biceps, where his sleeves were
tied up to the shoulders. A moan of rapture passed her lips as she connected with
his skin. She shoved her hands farther beneath his shirt, to feel his shoulders.

“That’s the way…” He encouraged her in a rough voice. “Touch me, Nareen, enjoy me
as much as I enjoy ye…”

He pressed a hard kiss against the side of her neck, and then another before yanking
her skirt up. The night air was a relief, carrying away some of the heat. But she
still felt like she might boil alive when he slid his hand up her thigh.

He chuckled when he discovered the dagger strapped there. “Bastian might have gotten
a nasty surprise when he tried to bed ye.”

“I wouldn’t have let him…” Her thoughts began to clear when she opened her eyes and
locked gazes with him. “I’m not letting ye—”

He cupped her mons, grazing the center of her folds with a fingertip. She choked on
what she’d been saying, her body drawing taut.

“Agreed.” He plunged his finger between the folds of her sex and stroked his way from
the entrance of her passage to her throbbing clitoris. “Ye are nae letting me bed
ye, lass, ye are trysting with me.”

He rubbed the center of her pleasure, his voice like a spell drawing her into a realm
of dark enchantment. The scent of his skin filled her senses, somehow conveying strength.
She arched toward him, seeking release from the hunger driving her mad, but he didn’t
give it to her. He slid his finger down to tease the opening of her body, then thrust
up inside her passage.

She was slick, and she opened her eyes wide with shock as pleasure tore through her.
It was deeper than what he’d given her before, the walls of her passage incredibly
sensitive. And needy.

She felt empty, his finger not nearly enough to satisfy her.

“When I do bed ye, Nareen, I am going to suck ye until ye scream.”

“What?” Her voice was a ghost of a whisper. She blinked, trying to understand what
he meant. Her cheeks flamed when she made sense of it. Court was a swirling haze of
sexual liaisons.

“But nae tonight.” There was a hard purpose in his voice. He pulled his hand free
and hooked her knee. “Tonight, I am going to claim ye.”

“I’ll not—”

He sealed her denial beneath a hard kiss. She wanted to refuse, but he thrust his
tongue deep inside her mouth, and her passage clamored for attention too. How could
a kiss be so overwhelming? A moment after he sealed her lips beneath his, she was
opening her mouth and licking his lower lip. She craved him, every bit of him.

He lifted her up, spreading her thighs wide with his body. “Claw me…”

It shouldn’t have sounded like a good idea, but her fingers curled into talons, her
nails sinking into his skin. She was desperate for a deeper contact with him.

Saer didn’t grant it to her immediately.

He pinned her to the tree, his wide chest pressing her against it. He stroked her
folds a few more times before introducing the harder touch of his cock. She gasped
as pleasure rolled through her. It was just a ripple—the next wave was deeper as he
fit the head of his member against the opening of her passage.

It felt too large, but she was empty and aching for his hardness. He grasped her thighs
and held her still, controlling his entry completely. The first thrust was only an
inch. Her body stretched to accommodate him before he withdrew.

“Just do it,” she urged.

“No.” His tone was rigid. She opened her eyes and witnessed the strain on his face.
A muscle was ticking along his jaw as he slowly pressed deeper into her.

This time there was pain. It snaked through her quickly, and he withdrew again. His
cock was sliding against her bud, sending renewed need through her, so by the time
he’d removed his length, she was craving it again.

“Ye claimed ye admired me strength…” She sank her fingernails into the thick muscles
of his shoulders. “So do nae coddle me now.”

His nostrils flared. Raw hunger smoldered in his eyes. He offered her a single nod
and began thrusting slowly into her spread body. Her passage resisted, feeling too
tight, but it gave way. She was slick and wet, allowing his rigid length to burrow
deeper and deeper until it felt like he was touching her womb.

She hissed and felt blood beneath her fingernails. With a gasp, she pulled her hands
off him.

“Draw yer share of blood, lass…” he encouraged darkly and pulled free before thrusting
straight and true back into her. “For I’ve matched ye measure for measure…”

The pain subsided into a dull ache. “Ye dinnae hurt me at all.”

He brushed her lips with a kiss. It was the lightest, most tender of touches, surprising
her, because he was so hard. Both in nature and form.

“I’ll make it worth yer courage now,” he promised in a dark, raspy voice.

Her eyelids felt heavy, but she lifted them and gazed at him. His features were drawn
tight with need, his nostrils flaring with unsatisfied hunger. The sight drove her
need up, whipping the flames into a frenzy.

“I’ll make it very much worth yer courage…”

He flexed his hips, thrusting against her. The tree was solid behind her back, but
her skirt gave her enough padding. By the second thrust, she was sure she wouldn’t
have noticed bark digging into her anyway. There was too much delight coming from
the motions of his cock. She arched toward him, seeking more pressure against her
clitoris. Pleasure was gathering in her belly, tightening with every thrust. She strained
against him, needing it to burst. She felt like she might die if she didn’t strain
toward him.