Ivan moved toward his brother and gripped Kenneth’s shoulder. “May you too find your mate and bear many cubs.”
“Aye, as I wish the same for you.” Kenneth clasped Ivan to him. They spoke to each other, in such a low tone she hadn’t a chance of hearing it.
Ivan grinned, released Kenneth and strode to his destrier tethered to a post at the stables. He tightened his saddlebag into place and mounted his steed. With one last wave, he galloped through the fallen leaves lining the forest trail, his padded leather war coat donned and claymore holstered to his back. All too soon, he disappeared into the dark, taking a piece of her heart with him.
Kenneth wrapped his arms around her. “All will be well, Mother.”
“Aye, it shall. Do you too sense your mate? I wish for a new daughter this night.”
“She’s very close, and I shall do all I can to give you what you seek.” He motioned toward the village along the loch where the land curved to a tip. Smoke curled from several of the thatch-roofed houses high into the night sky. “I shall find her this night and bring her home.”
“Then journey safely, and we shall see you on your return.”
“You shall.” He strode down to the sea-gate and bounded onto one of the moored skiffs.
Aye, this was a night of celebration. The coming days would mark the beginning of a new age, one filled with so many new promises for them all.
Chapter 3
A trickle of sunshine slithered between the gap in Iain’s navy curtains where they hadn’t quite been drawn and played over his closed eyelids. Curled in front of him, her back to his chest, Isla stirred and wriggled her pert backside into his groin. Holding and talking to her throughout the night had brought such peace to his soul.
Under his fur bedcovers, he ran one hand down her arm, her skin deliciously warm to the touch. For now he had this, her close, and it would be enough until they completed the bond.
“Iain?” Mumbling, she stretched and rolled toward him.
“Go back to sleep.”
“Is it morning already?” She opened one eye and peered toward the window. “It is. Daniel will be calling soon.” She sat up and the covers slithered down and pooled at her waist. “Would it be possible for me to take a shower before breakfast? And beg you for a change of clothes?”
“Of course, and no begging needed. I’ll find my mother and ask her to secure what you’ll need.” He eased out of the bed, helped her to her feet and led her into his bathroom with its sandy-colored stone floor tiles, charcoal vanity and fluffy cream towels. “Any other requests?”
“Coffee. A big cup, black, no sugar. I’ll need that if you want to get anything sensible out of me this morning.”
“Clothes and coffee. You shower and I’ll be back in fifteen minutes with both.” He claimed a quick kiss, backed out of the bathroom and closed the door with a soft snick. He changed, donned a pair of black leather pants and a silver-threaded cotton t-shirt then laced his boots and sheathed his wrist dagger. At the door, he stopped, one hand on the brass knob as in his bathroom, the water drummed against the glass sides of the shower. Everything within him pricked at leaving her.
Except he had no choice.
Out the door, he walked and downstairs.
Within the great hall, a good hundred of his clansmen sat eating at trestle tables, their boisterous chatter relaxing him. His kin would be excited to hear his news, to know he’d found his chosen one. There was much to celebrate this day.
At the dais, his father sat dressed in a navy cotton-ribbed shirt over loose tan pants, his sword gleaming at his side in readiness for training after the morning meal. His mother sat next to him in a plum ankle-length skirt and blouse, and Finlay and Kirk joined them, their plates overflowing with bacon and eggs.
He weaved around the perimeter of the hall, pulled out the chair next to his father and grinned. “I have good news.”
Dad grinned back at him as he stabbed a wedge of sausage and smeared it through the tomato sauce on the side of his plate. “Would that news have something to do with the young woman you steered inside the keep after sunset, the one you ferreted away in your chamber and didn’t introduce to us all?”
“The very one.”
Finlay leaned forward in his camouflage cargo pants and black shirt. “Then that explains the blast of contentment I got along our brotherly bond during the night. I returned from the chase of my mated one halfway through the night because I sensed your excitement. Congrats.”
“Thanks. Her name is Isla.”
Kirk clasped his shoulder. “I caught sight of your Isla when I was in the control room. I got the same blast of contentment that Finlay did. She’s a pretty wee bear.”
“She’s also the eldest daughter of her clan’s chief. Murdock Matheson. He’s a seer, his mate having passed not long after Isla was born.”
“That had to have been hard.” Dad slid one arm around his mother’s shoulders and drew her closer. “What skill does Isla hold?”
“She can compel and she’s very strong. I couldn’t move a muscle when she told me not to move.”
“And why would she tell you not to move?” A teasing twinkle lit his father’s eyes.
“We were setting boundaries at the time.” Boundaries of a good sort. “She and her partner are working a case that brought her right to our doorstep. Capturing her last night, and just as the moon rose, was a stroke of good luck.”
“Where’s her partner now?” His mother stirred a teaspoon of honey into her cup of tea, her wavy hair, the same dark shade as his and his brothers’ hair, swishing about her shoulders in a soft bob.
“His name is Daniel and the two were going to chat again this morning.”
“You’ll need to take great care if she holds the skill of compelling.” Dad munched on his sausage. “Did you complete the bond?”
“We spent much of the night talking. Isla explained why she’s run these past five years, and that she has no intention of losing her father. I’ve assured her she never will, although I’ve yet to learn the whereabouts of her home base.”
“Give her time. She must first learn to trust you.” Dad picked up a piece of buttered toast and bit into it. “Your mother and I will gladly reassure her she has her freedom, if that’s what you wish for us to do.”
“Of course she has her freedom.” Mum reached across Dad’s lap and squeezed Iain’s arm. “You should also consider taking a week or two off, take her away and spend some time with her. Just the two of you. Unlike every other mated pair in our clan, you two haven’t known each other your entire lives.”
“As long as no one here minds that I do, I’m in total agreement.” Being alone with Isla was exactly what he needed. “Mum, Isla arrived with nothing. Do you think you can rustle up a change of clothing for her?”
“I certainly can. What else might she need?”
“Breakfast, and a large cup of coffee, black, no sugar.”
“Lovely.” She rose and kissed his cheek. “That sounded like an invitation to go and introduce myself to her. I’ll bring her down with me when I return.”
Kirk poured a cup of steaming coffee from the flask in the center of the table and nudged it toward Iain. “If her father is the seer of her people, what’s the likelihood we can talk to him about our missing mates, Finlay’s and mine?”
“I’ve already mentioned your search to Isla and about how otherworldly it is. I’ll bring it up again the moment I can.” He’d do anything he could to aid his brothers in their pursuit of their chosen ones, just as they would do the same for him. “I need you two to keep an eye out for her partner. Daniel holds the ability of telekinesis and can lift a man with his mind along. I don’t doubt he’ll turn up here before too long. He and Isla are close, very close.”
“Will do.” Kirk rolled the cuffs of his dark shirt to the elbow, exposing the sheathed daggers at his wrists. “Did you have any issue with said partner last night?”
“He had his own problems to deal with.
They were hunting two rogue bears from the offshoot clan of Mathies when I found her. The rogues got away and neither Daniel or Isla intend to give up the chase.”
“There aren’t many shifters left within the Mathie’s diluted blood line,” Kirk said. “Those who can shift can only do so on the night of a full moon.”
“Iain!” Mum hurried toward him, her silk scarf a vivid streak of plum flapping behind her. “There’s no sign of Isla in your chamber and the shower was left running.”
He shoved back his chair and eyed his brothers. “Secure the keep. Lock everything down. She’s not leaving here without me.”
“I’m on it.” Finlay raced out the door.
Kirk gritted his teeth. “I’ll check with the guard in the control room. If she’s left, we’ll soon know it.”
* * * *
Near the postern gate at the rear of Ivanson Castle, Isla compelled the guardsman on duty, her voice floating around him in its divine way. “You’ve never seen me and will have no knowledge I’ve walked this way. You’ll even turn any surveillance footage off and rewind and tape over any images of me.”
“Aye, miss.” Cloudy eyed, he stepped aside and allowed her to pass.
With Iain’s car key in hand, she snuck through the gate and raced across the gravel lot to his red convertible parked at the rear. Engine on, car in gear, she busted down the private winding road lined with thick pine trees either side. She hadn’t wanted to leave Iain like this, but if she’d stayed a moment longer, Daniel would turn up and right now they had no time to lose. Finding the Mathies was too important to let it slide a moment longer.
Her cell phone rang and she dug it from her pocket and answered it. “Hey, Daniel.”
“Hey back at ya. Where are you?”
“I’m coming. I’ll be at the inn in five minutes.” She pressed the button for the window and it lowered with a gentle hum. A cool breeze fluttered the short sleeves of Iain’s black shirt, the very one he’d worn last night. She hadn’t been able to leave without something of his that held his scent, and so before she’d slunk out of his room, she’d nabbed it and tied the two front flaps together over her own clothes.
Goodness. Her man smelled delectable, like woodsy pine and sunshine. She wanted to roll around in an open meadow with him, surrounded only by the beauty of the outdoors and kiss him again until he made her body hum like he had last night.
“Are you all right?” Daniel’s question broke her happy reverie.
“Aye, Iain was the perfect gentleman, but he’ll be on my six the second he realizes I’ve gone.” Or she certainly hoped he would be. She wasn’t yet ready to give up tangling with him until the next full moon rose.
“I’ve got the engine running. The chief scoured through satellite images taken of this area last night before it got too dark. He was able to confirm a match on the description I gave him of the Mathies’ mustard-colored Jeep. They passed through the village thirty miles to the west, the same village we passed through on our way here. He’s got evidence of them turning off the main road and crossing Milliner’s Bridge. There’s a large property on the right, one holding acres and acres of corn.
“Who owns the property?”
“A man by the name of Gerald Mathie-Bourner, ninety years of age, although he’s recently deceased and the property is sitting in trust until the reading of the will. There’s nothing on the property but an old and somewhat dilapidated shack. The chief’s waiting for further satellite images to come through on the shack this morning. He’s hoping the Jeep is still there.”
“Who’s Gerald Mathie-Bourner, and why hasn’t that name cropped up until now?”
“The old man was a recluse who barely left his property. How close are you now?”
“Two minutes, no more.” She squealed around the corner, flicking stones onto the grassy verge. “This time we’ll find them and haul them in by their balls.” She hung up, tossed her phone onto the leather seat next to her and drove like a wild woman.
Right on time, two minutes later, she skidded into the parking lot, dust pluming into the air. She wound the window up with an inch gap to spare at the top, grabbed her ringing phone that displayed an unknown number, locked the car and slid the key through the gap. It bounced on the tan leather seat and sprang onto the floor.
Sprinting, she raced to the SUV and slid into the front seat next to Daniel. “Go,” she said then answered her phone, a whole lot out of breath, “Hello, you’ve reached Isla.”
A low growl rumbled down the line. “Where the hell are you?”
“Clever bear. How’d you get my number?” Her mate was very resourceful.
“I memorized it before you hung up from Daniel yesterday. Now, would you care to answer my question? I’m missing my mate and I gave her my express promise she wouldn’t leave my lair without me.”
“Sorry, but I decided to take the convertible for a spin. She drives like a beauty, and now I’m back on the clock. I also borrowed your shirt. I really needed it. I hope you don’t mind.”
Daniel tore around the corner, pulled onto the main road and blew down the highway.
“What I mind is not knowing where you are.”
“Don’t worry about your baby. I left her locked in the parking lot at the inn. The key is inside.”
“That’s not the baby I’m after.” One gloriously low drawl that made her ache in places she shouldn’t be aching, or at least while on the clock. “Give me your destination. I’ll follow you.”
“I’m on clan business.”
Daniel whizzed past a gas station. Ahead, past the rolling fields of lush grass, the stone steeple of a church rose high within a quaint village. Daniel tapped her leg. “Put Iain on speaker. Let me have a chat with him.”
“Sure.” She pressed the speaker button. “Iain, meet Daniel and play nice.”
“I’d rather play nice with you.” That deeply sexy voice of his was going to be her undoing.
“Iain”—Daniel cleared his throat—“I apologize for taking your mate from you so soon after you met her, except right now we’re on the clock as she said and after two killers. Saving the life of innocents comes first. I hope you understand.”
“I understand, but you still have no right to take her from me.” A car engine roared to life, and then a door slammed shut, the dual sounds loud coming down the line.
“Follow us then,” Daniel offered. “Since it sounds like you’re on your way. We’re headed to Milliner’s Bridge, half an hour due west of here. There’s a large property on the right. You know where I’m talking?”
“There’s nothing but fields of corn in that area. Who owns the property you’re speaking about?”
“An old man by the name of Gerald Mathie-Bourner owned the place. He’s now deceased and the reading of his will is yet to be completed. We’re going to park out of sight just off the road. The shack is a mile farther down the drive. Ensure you’re well-armed.” Daniel glanced at her. “My phone’s in the glove compartment. The chief sent me a few satellite images of the turnoff and the bridge. Send them to your mate. I wouldn’t want him to get lost.”
“I won’t get lost, but send the images to one of my brothers’ cell phones.” Iain’s husky voice sent another delicious burst of heat curling through her.
“What are their numbers?” She fanned her flushed face.
Iain rattled them off.
She keyed both numbers in then added his as well when he recited it.
Daniel slowed as he drove through the village then sped up the moment they cleared the town’s speed restriction.
“We just passed through the village, Iain. Where are you?”
“Close on your tail. The black SUV. We’re catching up quick.”
She gripped the side of her chair and looked through the rear darkened window. One of the large vehicles with enhanced tires that she’d seen in the castle’s lot sped down the road in hot pursuit. “I hope you’ve got your seat belt on, Mr. Bear.”
“I do.”
She smiled and let her next words float to him, the truth within each and every one. “I miss you.”
“Prove it.” A deep rumbling purr.
“Oh, I intend to.” She blew him a kiss even though he’d never see it.
“If you’re getting all hot and bothered”—Daniel frowned—“then jump into the back and shift. There’s plenty of room in there for your little bear.”
“Smarty-pants.” She cuffed him on the arm. “I’m not shifting in front of you. You’ve got your own little bear who likes to get naked and dance attendance on you.” To Iain, she said, “Just ignore Daniel. He’s got the worst sense of humor, but I promise you, you’ll get used to it.” She lowered her voice, whispered into the phone for Iain alone. “And I promise from now on, I’ll only ever shift in front of you.”
The SUV behind them swerved then moved back into its lane.
Daniel chuckled. “The man’s already fallen under your spell.” He turned off the main highway, crossed Milliner’s Bridge and made another right into the driveway they were after. He bumped across the pot-holed entrance and snuck into a small flattened area in the front field of corn, their vehicle hidden within the towering rows surrounding them.
“Let’s go and kick some bear ass.” Daniel holstered his weapon and came around and opened her door.
She hung up her cell phone and jumped out as Iain rumbled in beside them. He flung open his door and marched toward her in thigh-hugging black leather pants and a silver cotton t-shirt, his holstered weapon peeking out from under his flapping leather jacket. Two men flanked him, both identical to Iain, the one on his right in camouflage cargo pants and a black shirt. He slung a military sniper’s rifle over his shoulder. The man on his left wearing fawn pants and army boots, gripped a glinting gun.
“This is Finlay.” Iain motioned to his right. “And on my left is Kirk.” Leaving his brothers behind, he stopped in front of her, his fierce golden gaze boring in to hers. “You. Left. Me.”
“I thought we already covered this.” He stepped forward and she scrambled back and came up hard against the SUV. “I didn’t have a—” He kissed her, one hand cupping the back of her head and the other seizing her hip as he dragged her against him.
Highlander's Desire (The Matheson Brothers Book 1) Page 5
