Highland Honor [Murray Brothers Book 2]

by Hannah Howell

  A brief pang of guilt plucked at her heart and mind, but she forced it away. She had chosen her path, and she would stay with it. There were worse crimes she could have committed. She would pay her penance later. Even if she had to spend months on her knees saying her rosary, the passion she shared with Nigel was worth it.

  Once back at the campsite, she went to the pond, removed her boots, and dangled her feet in the cold water. Her thoughts turned to Nigel, and she realized that she was probably not going to be able to just savor the passion and then leave when her name was cleared and she was free. Already questions formed in her mind about the future, and she knew that she had no answers, that, quite possibly, there were none. Not with him. Even now, after only one night in his arms, that realization stung. Doing a long, hard penance might well be the smallest of her worries.

  "Idiot,” she scolded herself, and kicked at the water.

  "Talking to yourself?” asked a deep, familiar voice from right behind her.

  Gisele screeched in surprise, barely kept herself from falling into the pond, and spun around to glare at Nigel. “One of these times you are going to frighten me so much my poor heart shall stop dead in my chest."

  He laughed and sat down beside her. “Why were ye calling yourself an idiot?"

  "Because I cannot seem to just take my ease and enjoy a day with nothing to do.” She stared at the water as she answered him, a little afraid that he would read her evasion in her face.

  "It is long past time that ye had a rest, loving."

  "Mayhap, but I have been running and hiding for so long it just feels wrong."

  "Then we must keep ye busy so that ye cannae think on it too much."

  "Keep me busy?” She eyed him with a touch of suspicion as he stood up and held out his hand.

  "Now, lass, ye must trust me and cease questioning my motives.” He pulled her into his arms and gave her a brief, hard kiss. “Did ye not ask me to teach ye how to walk softly?"

  Gisele smiled and nodded. “I will confess that I may be envious of how you can do that, and that is why I wish to learn the skill. Howbeit, I am also thinking it is a much—” she hesitated, then corrected herself—"very useful skill. There is no knowing how long I will have to remain hidden, is there?"

  "It will end soon."

  "How can you be so certain of that?"

  "Your kinsmen now work to get ye free of this."

  "But if, as you believe, I killed my husband, how can they release me from that accusation? DeVeau was a rich, powerful man with connections to the king himself. Few would dismiss my crime simply because they felt the man deserved to die. Few would think my killing him was justice just because he treated me so poorly."

  "Put your boots on."

  Gisele smiled faintly as she did as he ordered. “You have not answered me."

  "Ye try to trick me with questions that are difficult to answer and with clever assumptions."

  "Perhaps."

  "There is no perhaps about it. If I respond one way, ye hear me admit that I think ye are guilty. If I answer in another way, then ye can say that I think ye are innocent. Since I have yet to decide, ‘tis best if I dinnae answer at all."

  She cursed softly as she stood up and scowled at him. “Oui, I try to get you to proclaim me one or the other, guilty or innocent. We have been together for a week, and knew each other for a week before that, but you still have not decided? Do you truly believe me capable of such bloodthirstiness? Oui, simply killing him, that I might have done. There were many times when I ached to do so. But I would never have desecrated his body in such a manner, no matter how much I loathed that part of the man. I certainly would never have tortured him, mutilating him first and then killing him."

  Nigel was not sure why he could not just agree that she was innocent, especially since he was beginning to think she was. He decided that he just needed some more proof, no matter how he felt about her. His indecision was aided by the feeling that no woman could or should be faulted for killing such a man. It was, in many ways, self-defense.

  "Aye, I do find it hard to believe that ye could disfigure a mon. Why do ye ne'er call your husband by his name, his full name? Ye always call him DeVeau."

  Gisele felt as if she were banging her head against a very hard wall, but decided to just give up on the argument. It only made her angry, and now she realized that his doubt also hurt. Badgering the man to proclaim her innocence would also ruin what could be a very nice day, and she needed one.

  "His name was Michael,” she said, not surprised to hear a hint of anger still lingering in her voice. It would take a few minutes for her to regain her calm. “I called him by that name once, at our wedding. After our wedding night, I called him only DeVeau to his face, and many unkind things when he could not hear me. I did call him some rougher names to his face, but only a few times in the beginning, for the beatings I got quickly taught me some discretion."

  He hugged her in a brief expression of sympathy, and inwardly cursed DeVeau. It was such tales, however, that made him hesitant to completely believe her claim of total innocence. Gisele was a proud woman, spirited, and she possessed a temper. At some point in her marriage, the humiliation and brutality DeVeau meted out could have driven her to kill him. There was also the chance that, horrified by what she had done, she had simply cast the memory from her mind. He just wished that his indecision did not upset her as it did.

  "You were going to teach me how to walk quietly, how to slip through the wood like a ghost,” she reminded him as she stepped out of his hold.

  Nigel smiled faintly and carefully explained the way one had to walk to make each step quiet. “Ye must train yourself to walk toe to heel, rolling your wee foot down even as ye start to do the same with the other foot. What ye are trying to do is nay set too much weight on any part of your foot as ye walk."

  "Am I to float above the ground like some spirit?"

  He just laughed and took her by the hand. “It can be difficult to explain. Watch me closely, and do as I do."

  Gisele tried, again and again. She could see how he moved, but found that it was hard to imitate. When she finally stumbled over a half-buried tree root because she was paying more attention to how to walk than to where she was walking, she quit and sat down on the soft grass. Cursing softly over her embarrassing clumsiness, she rubbed her aching legs.

  "Ye didnae do too badly, lass,” Nigel said as he sat down next to her.

  "Empty flattery. I was terrible, and my legs hurt."

  "Aye, they will until ye learn the trick of it. Ye were close a time or two."

  "Close, but I moved so slowly that a man hobbled in both legs could have run me down.” She smiled faintly when he laughed. “This is not a trick one can learn quickly or easily."

  "Nay. I was taught when I was just a small lad, and e'en though the young can learn quickly, it was a long, long time ere I could do it right and without thought."

  "And just why would you be taught such a skill? You are a mounted knight."

  "Aye, but I could lose my mount, or a horse can become a hindrance if I am on a raid where stealth is necessary.” He leaned closer to her and began to kiss the side of her neck.

  "A raid?” She did nothing to stop him as he gently pushed her down onto the grass. “Thievery."

  "Weel, aye, there is a wee bit of that."

  Her soft laughter was stopped by his hungry kiss. As he began to tug her clothes off, she was briefly concerned about doing something so intimate in the full light of day, and in the open on the grass. Then he started to kiss her breasts, and she decided she did not care. Tentatively, she began to help Nigel shed his clothes as well, and when he revealed only approval of her aid, she grew bolder.

  Once they were both naked, Nigel moved so that she was on top of his clothes, her soft skin protected from the ground. As he kissed and caressed her, Gisele moved her hands over his strong body with increasing daring. Cautiously, she slid her hand down his stomach and, after taking a deep brea
th to steady herself, touched his erection. When he gasped and jerked beneath her shy touch, she started to pull her hand away, but he quickly put it back.

  Although shocked by her own boldness, Gisele stroked him. Nigel had shown her that this part of a man could bring pleasure, and she realized that knowledge had roused her curiosity. The way Nigel's breathing grew fast and unsteady, the faint tremor that began to ripple through his lean body, told her that he liked her touch, and that made her even more curious. Then, suddenly, Nigel tugged her hand away, and Gisele feared that she had grown too bold or had even caused him some pain.

  "I am sorry,” she whispered, although she was not quite sure what she was apologizing for.

  "Nay, lass.” Nigel pressed his forehead against hers, lightly kissed the end of her nose, and struggled to regain the control he had almost lost. “Ye did nothing wrong. In truth, ye did everything right.” He began to trail kisses down her long, slim neck.

  Gisele threaded her fingers into his hair and held him close as he covered her breasts with kisses. “If I did everything right, then why did you stop me? I thought I had hurt you in some manner."

  "There is only so much pleasure a mon can endure, lass.” He kissed her taut stomach and teased her soft skin with brief licks of his tongue. “If I had let ye continue your delightful play I would have been finished, and I didnae want that, nay so quickly."

  Before she could ask him what he meant by finished, she felt the warmth of his mouth between her legs and cried out in shock. Gisele tried to pull away from the intimate kiss, but Nigel gripped her by her hips and stopped her retreat. A heartbeat later, shock was replaced by intense pleasure. She opened to him, welcoming his caress, giving him free reign over her body. She called out to him as she felt her desire reach its height, but he ignored her, and Gisele arched into his kiss as she cried out with the power of her release.

  She barely had time to catch her breath before he was restoking her passion. This time when she called out to him, wanting him to share in her pleasure, he returned to her arms. She groaned with delight as he joined their bodies, then gasped with surprise when Nigel suddenly rolled onto his back. He gently urged her to sit up, then moved her body on his, silently showing her what he wanted her to do. Gisele shuddered and quickly took the reins of their lovemaking into her hands. Even as her release ripped through her body, she felt Nigel grasp her more firmly by the hips and hold her tightly against him. He shuddered and moaned her name. She savored the warmth of his release as she collapsed in his arms.

  Nigel gave her no time to catch her breath, to really begin to think about what she was doing. Gisele recognized the game he played, and she decided to just let him play it. It was fun to forget all of her worries, to act as if she were completely carefree, able to do whatever she pleased without fear of any consequences. She laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck when he picked her up and carried her to the pond.

  "Can ye swim, lass?” he asked, grinning widely as he stood by the edge of the pond.

  "Oui, my Nana insisted that I learn the skill,” she replied. Then her eyes widened as she realized why he was asking. “Non!” was all she managed to scream as he laughed and tossed her into the water.

  She was just bobbing to the surface, prepared to call him every crude name she could think of, when he leapt into the water beside her. Gisele laughed and swam away from him. For a little while they feigned a game of “catch me,” then Gisele allowed him to win it. The grin on his handsome face told her he knew she had.

  They made love in the water, then bathed each other. She and Nigel knelt on the bank of the pond and washed all of their clothing, spreading it out on the grass so that the sun could dry it. Then they sprawled face down on the grass themselves, letting the sun warm them even as it dried the water from their skin.

  Gisele began to wonder if she had gone mad. It was difficult to believe that she was lying naked next to a man she had only known for two weeks. She smiled faintly. It was difficult to believe that she was lying naked in front of anyone at all. It was shocking and shamefully brazen, but she felt no great urge to slip away and cover herself.

  When Nigel idly ran his hand down her back Gisele knew exactly why she was behaving so immodestly. He had shown her the pleasure to be found in lovemaking, and she hungered for it. That delight pushed aside all of her fears and all of her worries. While she was in his arms, her desire hot and wild, she could think of nothing else but the man and how he made her feel. After a year of being surrounded by dark memories, fears, and suspicions, she craved those moments of blind passion. Her greed for something she had feared for so long amazed her. As Nigel pulled her closer, she was pleased to realize that her greed was fully shared.

  Nigel smiled as he spread a blanket over the sleeping Gisele. She had not stirred since he had risen from her arms and spread out their bedding next to the cold campfire, not even when he had picked her up and carried her to the bed. He left her dagger where she could easily reach it, slipped on his clothes, and walked into the forest.

  It was past time he looked around to be certain that they were still safe. He had allowed himself to become completely entranced by Gisele, firmly captivated by her passion. Although it had been satisfying and great fun, it had been somewhat foolish. He had not sensed any encroaching danger, but he was no longer sure that his special gift was working properly, or if he would even have been aware enough to notice if it had tried to warn him.

  The depth and heat of Gisele's passion had been a surprise to him, albeit a very welcome one. He had never known a woman to be so free and daring in her desire. Gisele was willing to try anything, suffering only the occasional but fortunately brief pinch of modesty. Once her fear had been taken away—at least her fear of any and all men—it was as if she had become curious to know all she had missed.

  As soon as he was sure that there were no DeVeaux closing in on them, Nigel went hunting. After having spent most of the day in vigorous lovemaking, he was hungry for something far more filling than bread and cheese. He smiled when he thought that Gisele probably would be, as well. The woman was proving to have a healthy appetite for a great many things.

  Gisele awoke to the mouthwatering smell of roasting meat. Her stomach growled loudly, she heard Nigel chuckle, and she cursed. Reaching out from under the blanket she retrieved her shirt and braies from the pile of clothing Nigel had set next to her. She knew she was amusing him as she struggled to dress herself beneath her blanket. She could almost feel his grin. He would probably never understand that, although she had spent most of the day romping naked in the glade, the mood had changed. She was not sure she really understood. There was also the fact that she needed to slip into the forest to attend to her personal needs, and she did not want to be away from the camp wearing nothing but her skin.

  Even in amongst the thick trees she could still smell the tempting aroma of food. She did what she needed to do as fast as she could and hurried back to the camp, a little annoyed when her haste seemed to further amuse Nigel. Everything appeared to be amusing the man at the moment.

  "Your excessive good humor is rapidly putting mine to death,” she said, as she sat down on their bedding, but there was no real anger in her voice.

  "'Tis just your hunger that makes ye less than cheerful,” he said even as he divided the rabbit and handed her her share on her plate.

  "Such an easy explanation,” she murmured, but said no more as she began to greedily devour her meal, relieved to see Nigel do the same.

  The speed with which they finished their hearty meal made Gisele a little ashamed of herself. She cleaned up after the meal, then returned to the campfire to share some wine with Nigel. Sitting there surrounded by beauty, replete with food, wine, and lovemaking, she could almost believe that everything would be all right.

  "It has been a very nice day,” she murmured. Then she blushed a little, afraid he would think she referred to the lovemaking alone.

  Nigel smiled, put his arm around her slim
shoulders, and kissed her on the cheek. “It has been a verra nice day indeed. We are rested, and the horses are rested. Aye, and all of us have been watered and fed weel."

  She sighed. “And so tomorrow we must begin to run again."

  "I fear so, loving. We needed this time, but it isnae wise to remain too long in one place when so many people are looking for you."

  "Mayhap God will smile upon us and give them a sickness in the belly that keeps them squatting in the woods, allowing us a free ride to the port.” She smiled when he laughed.

  "That would be a wondrous gift, but I dinnae think we should plan on it."

  "Sadly, non. At least we have clean clothes."

  "Aye, and one doesnae realize how much one appreciates that until ye cannae have it. I also miss a soft bed. It has been far too long since I have slept in one."

  "Oui, I, too, dearly miss that comfort."

  "There are soft beds at Donncoille,” he whispered against her cheek.

  "I look forward to getting there."

  "And verra big beds too."

  Gisele giggled as he gently pushed her down onto the bed. “Should we not rest for the journey?” she asked even as she twined her arms around his neck and tilted her head back to welcome his kisses against her throat.

  "The night is still verra young."

  "And you, Sir Nigel, are very greedy."

  "Aye, my sweet French rose, verra greedy indeed."

  She knew she did not have to tell him that she shared his greed. She had more than shown that during the day. Gisele also sensed a touch of desperation in the way she held him. It had been a peaceful respite, a sweet retreat from the world and all its ugliness. She was going to be sorry to see it end, especially since she had no idea what lay ahead. This could well be the last night she would spend in Nigel's strong arms, and she intended to savor every moment.

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  Twelve

  Nigel frowned and looked around. He could see nothing, but he still felt uneasy, and he moved so that he rode at Gisele's side instead of in front of her. He briefly wished they could return to the glade and steal another day of rest and enjoyment, for one had certainly not been enough for him, especially not if the chase were to begin again so soon. He just wished he could see how, and from what direction.