The last hold he had upon his sanity snapped at the sight of Nairna’s terror.
Bram unleashed the full force of his temper, smashing his head against the nose of the soldier holding him captive. Reality blurred, and somehow he had both a dirk and a sword in his hands. The first blade sank into flesh, and he fought with every last breath he had to give. He struck again and again, until he no longer knew what was happening.
He heard the sounds of battle, felt the slash of the enemy’s sword, but still he fought.
For her, the woman he loved. The bloodlust roared through him, and he let go of all control, no longer caring what he did. He would die before letting any man touch her, especially Cairnross.
And when he felt the hands dragging him away, the last sight he saw was Nairna’s stricken face.
Chapter Twenty-One
Her husband had fallen into such madness, Nairna feared she’d lost him. Sweat dripped down his face and his eyes were wild. Blood covered his hands and the body of Lord Cairnross lay fallen on the ground.
Nairna had never seen anything like it. The rage had broken free and Bram had moved so fast. He’d torn her free of the soldiers’ grip, slaughtering them like a legendary berserker.
Alex shielded his brother, protecting Bram as they both fought. And then her husband had run to Cairnross, dragging the earl off his horse before killing him.
Now, Bram held his claymore with both hands, as if daring anyone to draw near. Lord Harkirk had disappeared and the soldiers were awaiting orders for what to do next.
Nairna didn’t know. But when the archers pulled back their bowstrings, ready to take her husband’s life, she ran to stand in front of Bram.
‘Don’t,’ she pleaded with them. She couldn’t stand and watch him die. ‘Please, don’t.’ Tears that streamed down her face, and she shielded him, even knowing she might lose her own life.
She didn’t care. She needed to be with him, no matter that it might be their last moments. Bram’s eyes were clouded and she saw no awareness within them. His breathing was ragged, his eyes glazed.
She closed her eyes, waiting for the arrows to slice through them.
Instead, she heard the roar of men approaching. From both sides, there were archers surrounding the enemy with bows drawn. Lord Locharr rode forwards in full armour with his MacKinnon clansmen. On the opposite side was another nobleman, dressed in regal finery. He was flanked by at least twenty men, and behind him were even more soldiers. They were heavily armed, with both archers and cavalry.
Within minutes, Lady Marguerite emerged from her hiding place in the forest and ran towards the nobleman. From the similarity in their features, Nairna suspected the man was her father.
The nobleman signalled for two of his men to guard Lady Marguerite, while they escorted her to his side. She spoke quietly to the man for a moment, before he gestured for the guards to take her to safety.
A moment later, the man glanced at Lord Harkirk cowering behind his soldiers. ‘I am Guy de Montpierre, the Duc D’Avignois,’ he said.
He rode forwards, staring down at Harkirk as if the Englishman were little more than an insect. ‘I’d advise you to return to your own stronghold, unless you’d rather I discussed this attack with your king. I suppose he would be interested to hear of why you’ve stirred up more unrest in the Highlands.’
Lord Harkirk signalled for his men to fall back. He met the duke’s stare, but was wise enough not to argue. Within minutes, his men retreated, followed by Cairnross’s survivors. Nairna didn’t breathe easily until they were gone.
Alex came forwards to greet the duke along with Lord Locharr, and between the three, Nairna overheard talk of alliances.
But there were still matters she wanted to address with the duke. She let go of Bram and moved forwards.
‘Your Grace,’ she said, dropping into a curtsy. The nobleman turned a curious look upon her and waited for her to speak. ‘What about the death of Lord Cairnross?’ She worried about Bram and whether or not the English nobles would accuse him of murder.
The duke eyed the fallen body of Cairnross. ‘Should anyone ask, I will bear witness that the earl was killed in battle.’
Nairna closed her eyes with thankfulness and Alex sent her a reassuring look.
‘And there’s something else,’ she blurted out, despite his impatient look. ‘Lord Harkirk has been demanding payments from the surrounding clans, in order to secure peace. I believe you would gain the support of many men were you to use your influence to stop the bribes.’
‘I will see what can be done,’ the duke answered.
She sent him a grateful smile, as he turned to talk again with Lord Locharr. Satisfied that she’d done the best that she could to help her clan, Nairna turned back to Bram. His fist still gripped the claymore and his expression remained stoic.
‘Bram,’ she whispered. ‘It’s over.’
Her relief was so great, she went into his arms. But he never responded. Never moved. His palms gripped the claymore as though everything depended on it.
She couldn’t pry the hilt out of his grasp and Alex came over to help her. When at last he took the claymore from his brother, Nairna tried to guide Bram home. She needed to do whatever she could to bring him out of his darkness.
He let her lead him up the hill, but his hands were cold. Alex followed, and after a short distance, they found Callum crouching atop a flat stone, his bow and arrows held in one hand. He was fixated upon Lady Marguerite, watching her with her father.
The longing on his face made Nairna ache for him, for there was no hope of a match between a duke’s daughter and a third son. He seemed to know it, and after a time, he turned away and joined them.
When they reached the ridge, Nairna told the others what had happened. Most of the women wept with relief, taking their children in their arms as they started on the walk home.
Alex looked at his wife as though he wanted to pull her into his arms, but Laren remained frozen in place. She watched her husband, her expression filled with an unnamed emotion. Then he helped to bring Bram inside, while Laren stood alone with their daughters.
Nairna was the only one who saw the pain on Alex’s face.
‘Will you be all right with him?’ he asked, eyeing Bram, who was seated on the bed.
‘Aye.’ Nairna poured water into a basin and retrieved a cloth to tend her husband’s minor wounds. ‘Go to Laren. She needs you.’
There was a slight shift in Alex’s face, but he nodded and left. Nairna hoped that he would indeed go to his wife and reconcile with her. Though Laren had put on a brave face for the sake of her girls, the woman had been terrified.
When, at last, Nairna was alone with Bram, she picked up the cloth and soaked it in the water. Her hands trembled, so afraid she wouldn’t be able to break through to him. She brought the cool cloth to her husband’s face, smoothing away the dirt and blood. Then she pulled his tunic free, lifting it off to bare his chest. There was an angry cut on his arm and she washed the dried blood away, thankful that it wouldn’t need stitching.
‘Nairna,’ he murmured, when she brought the cloth over his scarred back. Awareness had filled his eyes, and he reached up to take her hand. ‘Are you unharmed?’
‘Aye.’ She cupped his face, pressing a kiss onto his mouth. ‘We’re safe now. And your brothers. Everything will be all right.’
Bram bowed his head, resting his bloodstained hands on his knees. ‘I would have died for you, Nairna. Willingly.’
‘I didn’t want you to die.’ She stepped between his legs, lifting his arms around her waist. Right now, she sensed that he needed her, needed a physical comfort. She kept her arms around him, sitting on his lap.
‘I don’t regret killing the English. Especially Cairnross.’ He tightened his arms around her. ‘They might hang me for that.’
‘The Duc D’Avignois will speak on your behalf,’ Nairna reassured him. ‘I believe he will protect our clan from the English.’
He sobere
d. ‘Then we owe him a debt.’
She touched his back. ‘We’ll ally with Marguerite’s family and offer protection to one another. She was grateful to you for rescuing her from Cairnross.’
He gave a slight shrug of acknowledgement, but it didn’t appear that he truly believed the danger was over.
‘Bram, what is it?’ she prompted.
He closed his eyes, as if he didn’t know what to say. Nairna sat beside him, waiting for him to speak. At last, he said, ‘Tonight, I wasn’t afraid of my own death. I was afraid of yours.’
He took her hand and brought it to his face as if drawing strength from her very touch. ‘When I thought he would harm you—’ He broke off, holding her hand so tightly.
‘He didn’t. You kept me safe,’ she murmured. She held him tightly, knowing that there was more he hadn’t said.
‘You asked me what it was like,’ he said quietly. ‘As a captive.’
She took a breath, not wanting to reopen such raw wounds. ‘You can tell me about it later, Bram.’ She stroked his hair away from his face, leaning down to kiss his mouth.
‘No.’ He took her hand and touched it to his throat. ‘You should know everything. And then you can decide if you want to be with me.’
How he could even think she could bear to be parted from him, she didn’t understand. But right now, he needed her to listen, and though she didn’t truly wish to hear it, the confession might ease him. Nairna touched the scar upon his throat, then brought her lips to it.
But he turned his back to her, showing her the scarred surface. ‘Six years ago, my brother was beaten until he couldn’t stand. I lost my temper that night and used my chains to strangle the guard.
‘It didn’t work. As a punishment, they cut me with their knives. One cut for every day of the year.’
Nairna was sickened by the thought of such torture. ‘You survived it.’
‘I prayed to die, at first. After I healed, I vowed that I would master my temper and bide my time.’
He rested his forearms on his knees, lowering his head. ‘But when I had the chance to escape, I risked his life. Callum might have died that night.’
‘He didn’t. And I don’t think he blames you for leaving him.’
‘Did you?’ he asked softly. ‘When I left our wedding, did you blame me for leaving you behind?’
She wanted to say no, that it hadn’t mattered. But it wasn’t the truth. She’d been devastated when he hadn’t returned. Many times, she’d grieved for him, wishing that he hadn’t gone home with his father.
‘At the time, I understood why you left,’ she admitted. ‘You needed to go with your family to defend Glen Arrin. But I never expected to be a widow so soon after our wedding.’
‘When I escaped from Cairnross, I almost didn’t return to you,’ he admitted. ‘I thought you were better off, believing I was dead.’
‘Why did you?’
‘Because I needed to see you. The image of you, of your smile, had given me a reason to hold on.’
She embraced him, closing her eyes as his strong arms came around her. Though she wished she hadn’t remarried another, she let go of the past years, for she now had the man she loved.
‘I don’t deserve you, Nairna. Today, when I almost lost you, I realised how much I need you.’ He brought her hand to his heart and she could feel the pulse beneath her palm. ‘I love you. And though I’m not the man I once was, I want to be a good husband to you.’
‘You already are,’ she whispered. She pushed away his tunic, caressing his warm male skin. Lowering her mouth to his pectoral muscles, she kissed him gently. ‘You’re all that I need.’
He pressed her down onto the bed, fully aroused. She welcomed the thick feel of his erection against her softer flesh.
He removed her clothing, then his own, before lying down beside her. She took him into her arms, shivering when his mouth covered hers.
‘I have years to make up for, Nairna. If you’ll allow it.’
She opened her arms to him, and with his hands and mouth he caressed her skin. Her nipples puckered and he kissed each of them, cupping her breasts as his mouth moved lower.
‘When you touched yourself the other night,’ he murmured, dropping a kiss upon her stomach, ‘I was watching you. I wonder if I’ve learned how.’
With his fingers, he entered her womanhood, caressing the secret flesh that was already moist for him. Nairna gasped, lifting her hips as he withdrew his fingers.
‘I’m not going to use my hands, though.’ He sent her a wicked smile, raising his hips to hers. With a shallow penetration, he entered her, coating his shaft with her arousal. Then he took his length and used it to rub against her hooded flesh. The thick pressure made her grow swollen, sensitive to every stroke. He teased her, moving in a slow rotation that made her arch against him.
He ground himself against her, with both hands upon her bottom, until she hooked her leg around his waist and took him deep inside.
‘I haven’t finished with you,’ he said, moving slowly.
‘Haven’t you?’ She kissed him, taking his tongue into her mouth while he penetrated her fully in slow strokes.
In answer, Bram stopped moving. He withdrew, leaving only an inch of his manhood inside her, while his thumb moved up to touch her hooded flesh. He used a soft rhythm to caress her, and she grew wetter as he quickened the pace in a circular motion.
‘I love you, Nairna,’ he said, his eyes locked upon her. She cried out as he intensified the pressure, guiding her towards the shimmering pleasure she needed so desperately.
‘And I love you,’ she whispered, arching her back and shuddering as the first swollen wave broke through her. As she started to tremble, he drove inside, and she gripped his length, letting him feel her release as she climaxed.
She saw his own pleasure tightening, and he took her body in swift strokes. ‘I’ll never leave you again, Nairna. You’re mine, for always.’
The intensity of his lovemaking and the way he held her made her lose control of her own body. She stopped thinking about what was happening and simply let herself go.
When another storm of release overtook her, she took his mouth in a kiss. Bram ravaged her mouth until he let out a groan, losing himself in his own fulfilment.
‘I love you,’ she breathed. ‘Now even more than I did then.’
Her husband rested against her, their breathing growing steady. ‘It will take time before I can be the man you want.’
‘You’re already the man I want,’ she said. ‘And what you endured has only made you stronger.’
Bram’s answer was to take her in his arms and love her again.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Winter came and went, and although there was still unrest in Scotland, the clans were united by a common enemy in King Edward Longshanks. Bram and Alex had supported Robert the Bruce, and that spring they saw him crowned king of Scotland. The fight for Scotland’s freedom had not ended, but it had taken a turn for the better.
When Bram returned from Scone, he noticed a transformation in his wife. Laren had given Nairna free rein to handle the household and she’d spent the past few months sorting through the accounts, selling unneeded items and trading with the merchants.
His wife indeed had a talent for making money, just as she’d once told him. Because of her efforts, they were starting to rebuild Glen Arrin. With nothing remaining of the original keep, his brother Alex had redesigned the structure into a true castle.
Bram shielded his eyes from the morning sunlight, watching his kinsmen and brother Callum as they lifted stones, laying mortar to hold them steady. His mother Grizel was ordering her grandchildren around, using a wet thumb to wipe a smudge from Mairin’s face.
And though she had never once apologised to any of them, Grizel had made herself useful in the household, assigning tasks to everyone until it ran smoothly. Nairna had found a way to manage his mother, by letting her believe that she had control.
Despite the
way things were improving at Glen Arrin, Bram hadn’t seen any improvement in his younger brother. Ever since Lady Marguerite had left, Callum had grown more morose, the silence continuing. He spent his time either rebuilding the walls of the keep or practising with his bow and arrows. Sometimes he disappeared for days on end.
Although Bram held out hope that one day his brother would fully heal, he wasn’t certain it would happen. Time would tell.
In the meantime, he had brought a gift for Nairna back from Scone, one that had been given by the new Scottish king. Robert the Bruce had given many tokens to the chiefs who had offered their support.
Although Bram had returned last night, he hadn’t had time to give it to Nairna. They’d spent every hour in each other’s arms, until neither had slept well.
‘I’ve been looking for you,’ Nairna said, greeting him with a warm smile. Her hair was veiled, and at her side Caen wagged his tail in greeting. ‘I was hoping to ask you about the sheep.’
Bram kissed her, adjusting the bundle beneath his arms. ‘The sheep?’
‘Yes. I’d like to purchase more, to increase our flock. I think, with the additional wool, our women could weave cloth to sell. The sheep are mating well, but not quick enough and—’
‘Not quick enough?’ A mischievous thought occurred to him, and he teased, ‘Were you wanting me to coach them on how to satisfy their females? Is quicker really better?’
Shocked, she turned bright red. ‘No, that’s not I meant and you know it.’
He bit back his amusement. ‘Or perhaps they should be mated more often?’
Nairna’s blush deepened, and she shook her head in exasperation. ‘Now, stop. You are quite good at satisfying a woman, I’ll be the first to admit. But I don’t think it’s necessary to share that knowledge with the sheep.’
He laughed and picked her up, moving her around in a circle. ‘I’ll share everything I know with you, Nairna.’
When he set her down, he handed her the package. ‘I brought you something. It’s a gift from the king.’
She tore open the package and saw a length of crimson samite and a necklace formed from perfectly shaped pearls. ‘Bram, do you have any idea what these are worth?’ She clasped the package to her as if it were their clan’s salvation. He could read her thoughts, and immediately he stopped them.
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