Well, almost.
If she understood things correctly, they would truly become their best after this coupling. The one that followed the gem igniting. It was hard to imagine what they shared getting any better yet as he lowered her to the bed and their lips met again, she sensed something coming.
Something greater than them both.
She knew he felt it too. Their magic was compelled by it. Their inner dragons were flying toward it as though desperate to reveal its secret. She trembled as his eyes met hers and he cupped her cheek. His touch was incredibly tender and caring, at odds with the fire and the need to claim her that flared within his eyes.
What they drowned in now was love, lust and primal need all wrapped in one. A heady concoction that made their hearts race and their breathing choppy. For a moment, as their eyes held, they hovered on the edge between what they were and what they were about to become.
“My lass...my mate,” he whispered into her mind before he pressed forward and they finally came together the way they were meant to.
Her nerve endings sizzled and sparked, receptive to his every thrust. Every motion of his body. Every morph of his features as their passion began to build and his pleasure grew. Not only their flesh but their souls came together in a way that seemed to make every second a non-stop crescendo. Peak upon peak of endless bliss as they sailed closer and closer.
All sense of time and place vanished though it almost seemed the world swelled around them. Heat gathered, and steam rose, encasing them in a fog of desire beyond what mere humans could feel.
Everything hazed red as he drove her higher and higher. As her awareness expanded further within his mind, she felt how strongly he loved her. Love that had always been there but was stolen from them like so much else.
“I love you too,” she whispered.
Though she had already said it, now it meant so much more. It was all so much clearer.
And it pushed them to let go at the same time.
Where she went after that was indescribable. She didn’t just feel a mind-blowing rush of pleasure, but a sense of eternity. Togetherness that went far beyond time. That brought them back to one another again and again.
They stayed that way for a long time before they started all over again, addicted to the way they made each other feel. It wasn’t a night for sleep, but for love and passion. A love she knew would never fade.
Sometime in the early morning hours, they must have drifted off because Milly’s voice at the tent entrance awoke them.
“Are you two awake?” she called out. “It’s almost time to go home, and King Robert is waiting.”
Jessie had fallen asleep with her cheek resting on his chest.
“We’ll be right out,” Bryce rumbled, as he began caressing her back.
“Home,” she whispered, well aware that he had awoken ready for her again.
“Aye,” he murmured. “Our home.”
She could close her eyes and still see MacLeod Castle clearly. How it had felt being there. How she had wanted to stay.
“Now ye will,” he said, following her thoughts. His voice was hoarse with desire as he flipped her beneath him. “After all, yer its mistress now.”
That wasn’t said in question or hope but finality. He would not let her go. But then he knew full well she had absolutely no desire to leave nor would she ever.
Wherever he was, she belonged.
“We probably shouldn’t keep a king waiting...” she managed to get out before he thrust and took the words right out of her mouth.
“It’s been hours since I had ye,” he whispered. “So I willnae last long.”
She well understood as her passion grew as quickly as his. Yet when they found fulfillment, it was just as powerful. Just as consuming.
By the time they dressed and made it outside, the sun was just cresting the horizon. Mystical and enchanting, it splintered through the forest and lit pockets of fog drifting along the woodland floor. It was the perfect sort of morning for their fantastical adventure to come to an end.
All was very quiet as people slept off a rowdy night of celebration. It seemed the only person waiting to see them off was King Robert himself.
“It has been a true pleasure serving ye, King Robert,” Grant murmured, his eyes damp as they met Robert’s. “I cannae tell ye how much I will miss ye, old friend.” He shook his head. “It seems like just yesterday ye and William Wallace were wee ones and I was helping my son and his lot protect ye from yet more evil.”
“Aye,” Adlin agreed and was about to say more, but Jessie cut him off softly when lo and behold, she saw someone unexpected drifting closer. “Speaking of...”
When everyone looked at her in question, she offered a small smile as she drew an image in her little book. Though transparent, what they couldn’t see before materialized.
Sir William Wallace.
King Robert took a step back, his eyes wide. “It cannae be.”
“Och, of course, it can,” William exclaimed, grinning. “Do ye think we dinnae exist after we die?”
Robert blinked several times before he sort of jerked his head no before yes then relented. “I suppose after everything I’ve seen since knowing the MacLomains, I’ve learned that anything is possible.”
“Aye.” Grant smiled at William. “’Tis verra good to see ye again, old friend.”
William nodded, still grinning at everyone before his smile faded and pride took its place as his eyes met Robert’s. “Since I’ve passed on, I’ve been by yer side in every battle, my King. And though I doubted it possible years ago, ye’ve made me verra proud and served our country well.”
Robert nodded, his eyes warm as they stayed with William’s. “As did ye, my friend. Because if not for yer inspiration and yer great love for the freedom of our beloved Scotland, I might never have come this far.”
“Och, nay, ye wouldnae have,” William agreed then winked. “But ye did, and ye did so far beyond what I ever hoped.” His eyes turned to Adlin and Grant. “Yet we should remain grateful to friends who made sure we met young so that when our time came to lead and work together, ‘twas a little less trying.”
“Aye,” Robert agreed, eying them fondly before he gave William a dubious look. “Because I dinnae think there would have been much hope for our comradery without it.”
“’Twould have been bloody difficult,” William concurred, his eyes with Robert’s again. “But all that is behind us and Scotland has more hope now than it would have had otherwise.”
“Aye.” Robert’s eyes swept over everyone. “We thank ye for all yer help. May God always keep ye close.”
There wasn’t a dry eye as they said their final goodbyes. It had been a long road filled with uncertainty, but because of such courageous men, Scotland would go on. But then it had taken a wee bit of magic too. Jessie’s eyes went to her friends and their men. And plenty of love.
As it would be told centuries later, many thought they saw William Wallace’s ghost haunting certain famous battle grounds. Often at the heels of King Robert the Bruce. The wildest tale, of course, was that they were seen walking through the woodland in the wee morning hours after the Battle of Byland Moor chatting like long-lost friends. But then rumors turned to folklore, and nothing is ever certain.
Except, she thought, as they whipped through time a few minutes later, her future with Bryce. As the off-setting sensation of time-travel faded, her eyes locked on MacLeod Castle, then went to the North Sea raging beside it.
That’s when she realized she might just be able to make the future even clearer.
She might be able to reach out to Fraser after all.
Chapter Twenty
THEY HAD NO sooner appeared on MacLeod Castle’s drawbridge, when they were met by a flood of kin and his well-wishing clan. The day was as bright and sunny as their faces as everyone greeted one another. It appeared Adlin and Grant had telepathically caught everybody up on what happened and planned a grand celebration to celebrate t
he survival of Scotland’s history.
His parents and grandfather greeted them first, beaming and happy to learn that he and Jessie had found true love. And, naturally, that she was a fellow dragon.
“Ye look much better, Ma,” he said, noting that the color had returned to her cheeks.
His mother perked an amused brow at Jessie. “You didn’t tell him?”
She shook her head and smiled. “I thought I’d let you.”
When Bryce looked at his mother in question, she grinned. “Though I didn’t think it was possible my dragon magic has returned. I can shift again.”
Relieved to hear it, his eyes went to Jessie. “When the curse lifted then?”
“Around about,” she replied. “Specifically, after your mother’s dragon magic broke the last tether between you and the warlock.”
“Och, ‘tis verra good.” He hugged his mother, smiling, before embracing his father as well.
“I’m happy for ye both,” his grandfather said, embracing Jessie then Bryce. “I knew ye two were meant to be.” He looked at Jessie with pride. “And just as I suspected, yer as powerful as my Torra ever was.”
“Thank you,” she replied softly as her eyes went to his mother. “Your dragon made all the difference, and I couldn’t be more grateful.”
Though he knew she had been thankful for his mother’s sacrifice from the beginning, now that Jessie was dragon, she truly understood the enormity of it. What his mother had been willing to give up.
“Think nothing of it.” Ma’s eyes flickered from Bryce to Jessie. “When you have children you’ll understand. Not even our inner dragons are as important.”
Jessie nodded as her eyes went to his and she offered a soft smile. He remembered all too well the thoughts she had the day she lost her virginity. The same thoughts that warmed her heart now. The idea that she could have children. A life.
He squeezed her hand and returned the smile, more than ready to give her everything her heart desired. Especially bairns. His smile widened at the mere thought. The idea of wee black dragons running all over their castle appealed greatly.
“Children, not to mention dragons, can inherit from their grandparents too,” his mother reminded, following his thoughts. “So your kids might just be purple like me.”
“Or mayhap green like me,” Da added, grinning. Like all of them, his father was beyond happy. Not only for Bryce and Jessie but no doubt because he had his dragon mate back. It had to have been as terrible for his da as it was for his ma.
Bryce’s gaze returned to Jessie as he thought about it. How it might feel to lose her dragon now that they had just found it. Impossible, was the word that came to mind. Perhaps that was an extreme response, but right now that’s how he felt. Because he couldn’t imagine being without her or her dragon though he had been for so long.
“I see there have been some changes whilst we were gone.” Bryce grinned and gestured at Blair and Jim. The two had been entertaining a love, hate relationship since all of this began. Yet now his arm was wrapped around her, and they seemed very enamored with one another.
“Big changes for sure!” Milly smiled and shook her head. “Can you believe they got married while we were gone?”
“Thank the Lord Almighty for small favors,” Christina exclaimed, off to congratulate the couple.
“Apparently they’ve decided to live at MacLomain Castle.” Milly kept grinning. “But they’ll summer at the colonial in New Hampshire to keep an eye on things.”
Everyone smiled before Bryce redirected the conversation. “So the countryside is as it should be?”
“Aye,” his father responded. “Things have indeed returned to normal.”
“The future looks good too.” Jessie smiled as she showed them a page from her little book. “See?”
Bryce and his cousins grinned as they eyed it. The image showed the United Kingdom just as it should be in the twenty-first century including not only Northern Ireland, Wales, England but most especially Scotland.
“There’s more,” Jessie said into his mind. Her eyes went to Uncle Logan, Aunt Cassie, and Blair before she looked at him. “Though it appears MacLeod Castle has nothing but cliffs around it, there’s a place here where you can access the shore isn’t there?”
“Aye, ‘tis steep but accessible.” He looked at her in question. “Why?”
“I think I might be able to contact Fraser after all,” she replied. “Not just because we’re on the North Sea again but because of, well...” she blushed a little, “our coupling.”
That’s right. It was said they came into their fullest power once they lay together after igniting the ring.
“We can wait until later if you prefer so everyone can celebrate,” she began, but he shook his head and said, “Nay, my kin would want to do it now.”
She nodded as he relayed the message to everyone.
Because it was such a big day of celebration most would stay behind and entertain except those closest to Fraser as well as Jessie, Adlin, and Grant. So it was that they made their way down the steep path to the ocean with Fraser’s parents, cousins, and his sister Blair.
The ocean roared, and the wind howled as they found a rocky area close to the crashing waves. A place, as Jessie explained, that Fraser might have sailed past or perhaps even stood on in the fifteenth century.
He felt Jessie’s reservations as she opened her book. There were things she wanted to say to his kin but wasn’t sure it was her place. Yet it was her place, and he made that clear as he took her hand, met her eyes and spoke aloud. “They are your kin now too, lass. If you have something you need to say, do so. Please.”
“Yes, please do,” Aunt Cassie said, looking at her kindly. “It means the world that you might be able to contact Fraser for us. If there’s something you feel needs to be said, don’t hesitate.”
“Okay...” Jessie nodded, gratefulness in her eyes that they accepted her so readily. “Though I remain unsure if I should say as much, I will because it’s only fair to those involved.” Her eyes flickered briefly to the sea. “Dealing with the spiritual realm can be jarring for all parties present. Most especially, Fraser, I’d say.” Her eyes went from Adlin and Grant back to everyone else. “Where contacting my grandmother went fairly well I get the sense Fraser’s a bit more...” she searched for the right word, “angry.”
“Aye, but surely not when he sees us,” Uncle Logan said.
“I would hope not,” Jessie replied. “But I think you should be prepared for anything. And most of all, I think if he’s different than you remember you should all exercise patience.”
Bryce knew her advice was meant first and foremost for Conall, Rona, and Blair. But then it could apply to any of them he supposed. And while some families might be offended by her words of wisdom, or perhaps accuse her of stating the obvious, his kin did no such thing. Rather, they saw it as her protecting Fraser. Moreover, they remained grateful not only to discover Fraser lived but that they had the opportunity to reach out to him.
“We won’t overwhelm him but let him say his piece,” Aunt Cassie assured, casting Conall, Blair, and Rona a very direct look before her eyes returned to Jessie. “You have our word.”
Jessie nodded before she opened her book to the image of Fraser she had already drawn, and began chanting and sketching. He noticed she wasn’t adding anything to his appearance but to his background.
She was adding the shore they stood upon.
Moments later, bless the gods, something began to appear. A shape. At first, it was fuzzy then it became clearer. A transparent man facing the sea with his arms crossed over his chest. Ankle deep in water, he stood that way for a few moments before he at last turned and looked directly at them.
Fraser.
For all appearances, he was very much a pirate with his sun darkened, tattooed skin. He wore linen breeches, black boots, a white, unbuttoned tunic with a red handkerchief tied around his head and more braids than usual in his hair.
Bryc
e felt everyone’s emotional response to seeing him again. How thankful they all were.
“So you finally found me,” Fraser said softly, his arms still crossed over his chest as his eyes went from his parents to his sister to Conall and Rona. Though his gaze was hard, Bryce didn’t miss the flicker of emotion.
“’Tis good to see ye, Son,” Uncle Logan said. “Do ye know what happened then? To ye? Scotland? All of us?”
“I know what I’ve been able to surmise,” Fraser responded, clearly not concerned that he wasn’t actually here but communicating with them via the spiritual realm. “And I know where I belong now.”
“Bloody well with us then, aye?” Rona exclaimed before anyone had a chance to respond. “Back with yer kin.”
Fraser eyed them all for a moment before he shook his head. “Nay, not here. Not yet. Not until I’ve done what I’ve set out to do.”
“And what is that, Son?” Aunt Cassie asked gently, tears in her eyes. “Because we miss you more than you know.”
“Revenge,” Fraser said through clenched teeth as storm clouds seemed to gather in his eyes.
“Revenge has been taken, Cousin,” Conall assured. “We have defeated the warlocks, and the curse over Scotland has lifted.”
“Though ‘tis good to hear ye’ve saved our country, ‘twas never a curse I could fight.” Fraser shook his head, bitterness in his eyes. “My fight is with someone else and I willnae veer from my current path until I hold his still beating heart in my hand.”
Silence fell at that. What to say to such a thing? Who was this enemy he hated so much?
Finally, Uncle Logan nodded and responded for them all. Rather than ask the many questions they had, he instead chose to be brief and supportive. “Ye must do what ye need to do, Son. Just know we’re here when yer ready to come home and always here to help if yer in need of an extra blade at yer back.”
What Uncle Logan didn’t say in that well worded offer was that he, like the rest of them, knew that Fraser’s magic had not been returned to him.
Avenged by a Highland Laird Page 26
