He grinned. “It was your spirit. Not many lasses would have attempted to geld me.” He referred to her whacking him with the stick.
Hot color flooded her face. In the haven of his arms, her gaze dropped to his chest. “I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“Yes you did, but the damage wasn’t permanent, as you will soon find out.” He tossed the towel aside. It landed in the tub and he couldn’t care less. He lifted her up in his arms, wrapping those lovely long legs around his waist, her breasts against his chest.
She looked up in confusion, her mouth opening, and he silenced any questions with a kiss. A kiss that let her know he was done with talking. A kiss that would seduce.
Instead, he soon discovered himself being seduced.
She was an innocent, new to the art of kissing. She started to pull back. He wouldn’t let her. He held her as one would a child, an arm under her buttocks, a hand on her back to press her close, while he claimed her mouth, begging, pleading, schooling her into what he liked.
And she kissed back, a willing pupil. He broke off the kiss, but her lips chased his. Her arms came around
his neck and she took the kiss deeper still.
He stroked her with his tongue.
A low, happy laugh escaped her. They stared at each other, nose-to-nose and almost cross-eyed.
He nipped the tip of her nose and slid her body down a notch until she could feel the strength of his arousal against the most intimate part of her. Nothing separated them but the leather of his breeches. He could feel her heat.
For a second, her eyes widened and he watched, fascinated, as understanding dawned in them. He smiled. “I’m going to have you, Anne Black. I’m going to carry to that bed and make a woman of you. My woman.”
She bowed her head. He thought she was laughing, but a tear landed on his chest.
Stunned, Aidan said, “Anne, is something wrong? What have I done?” She tried to duck her head to avoid his scrutiny, but he’d none of it. “Anne, what is the matter?”
“You’ve done nothing.” She raised her head to look at him. Her nose was turning a little pink and her eyes were shiny with huge tears. “I’m just happy. That’s all. I’m a goose, aren’t I?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he carried her over to the bed and laid her down on the sable throw. “You are beautiful,” he whispered, pulling his shirt off over his head. He threw it aside and with a leap landed on
the bed beside her. The bed ropes bounced, rolling her against him. He caught and held her fast.
Her eyes were sparkling now with joyful laughter. It transformed her into a seductive creature. If she was like this from only a few kisses, what would she be like when he’d buried himself deep within her?
He knew without saying it was going to be good between them. They had been destined for this moment.
Almost reverently, he cupped her breast. Dear God, he wanted to inhale her. To taste and touch every inch of her—
A knock sounded on the door. Anne scrambled to cover her nakedness, but Aidan wouldn’t have any of it. He caught her wrist. “Whoever it is can go to the devil. We’ve got other things to do.” He pressed her back against the bed.
Someone knocked again. “Laird? It’s Davey. Hugh sent me.”
Mere inches from her parted lips, her body warm and pliant beneath his, Aidan froze. “Davey?”
The Danes had come. It was starting.
“Laird, they—”
“I’ll be right there, Davey,” Aidan said, cutting him off. It would not be good to say anything in front of Anne.
“What is it?” she whispered.
He sat up with a groan. The Danes’ timing couldn’t be worse.
“Are you all right?” she asked anxiously.
He looked at her. She’d pulled the sable up to hide nakedness, but her hair was tumbled and messy, her lips rosy and a little swollen from his kiss—and he wanted nothing more than to give her a quick one. But he couldn’t. This would be her first time and it must be done right.
He’d have to wait.
He prayed his errant body could.
“I’ll manage.” He tore his gaze from her and went to his wardrobe. He pulled out a black shirt and threw it over his head.
“What could Hugh want that is so urgent?” she asked.
“The horses,” he answered noncommittally. “I asked Hugh to keep an eye on Doublelet. You must be careful when a horse is in foal.”
She nodded, accepting his excuse. It made him feel ill-at-ease to lie to her.
He crossed to the bed and gave her a great bruising kiss. “You wait here and we’ll finish what we’ve started when I come back.”
“Don’t be long,” she whispered.
Sweet, sweet Anne. He left the room, the sooner to return.
Anne stretched out on the bed, her body still stimulated and humming with excitement. The fine, thick fur felt good against her bare skin. She hoped noth
ing serious had happened to Doublelet. Everyone at Kelwin knew Aidan anticipated great things from her foal.
Perhaps she should join him in the barn. It would be easier than waiting.
And she could be close to him.
She rose from the bed and started dressing. Fussing over her hair, she hurried to his wash basin by the windows where she’d left her pins.
It was cloudy but the moon was full. A lover’s moon, she reminded herself. It came out from behind the clouds just long enough to wink at her. She almost laughed at it, she was so happy, but then she noticed movement.
Anne peered into the darkness. There, on the cliff path, were walkers. Who would be out at this time of night? The cloud shifted again, and she recognized Hugh.
And Aidan was with him, as were several of the other men from the clan.
A sense of foreboding came down on top of her, crushing her earlier well-being.
Why would Aidan tell her he was going one place and then go to another?
Anne backed away from the window. She should go back to bed. But she wouldn’t be able to sleep.
And when he returned—?
For a moment, she wavered in indecision. She didn’t know if she could stand the pain of discover
ing his passion was nothing more than a ploy to hide his subterfuge. A successful ploy.
The suspense of waiting for him to return was unacceptable. She wanted answers now. Hurrying to her room, she changed into her blue cambric dress and followed her husband out of the castle and down the cliff path.
Her kid slippers were not the best for climbing down a rocky path at night. She had to walk slower than she wished lest she slip and give away her game.
Halfway down the path, she could see a group of men on the beach. What were they doing? She traveled as closely as she dared. Fang’s middle sons served as watchers but they weren’t doing a good job of it. They were more interested in what was happening at some point out at sea.
Anne strained her eyes to see what they saw. All was inky darkness…and then she heard a sound of oars in the roiling water.
She settled behind a rock and waited. A few minutes passed like hours. Against the sand of the beach where she and the girls had danced the morning away, a dinghy was pulled to shore. She caught sight of her husband’s tall form. He helped land the boat as men jumped out of it. They greeted him in a language foreign to her but which Aidan knew passably well.
They didn’t talk long, but set to work unloading small kegs. He’s smuggling, Anne realized, and didn’t know whether to be relieved or worried.
Another dinghy came ashore and the Scotsmen quickly helped to unload it. The line of kegs along the beach rapidly grew.
Aidan called his lookouts to the beach. Anne moved closer. She had to know what was in those kegs. It couldn’t be brandy. Aidan had no taste for it and he was wealthy enough through his family. What could he need with smugglers’ booty?
The dinghies pulled away from shore, their cargo unloaded. In the distance, Anne could see the lights of a ship
she’d not noticed before. The Scotsmen waited, it seemed, until the boats were too far out to see what they were doing. They lifted the small kegs on their shoulders and started to walk toward the far cliffs.
Anne knew there was a path there leading along the coast, but they didn’t go toward the path. They seemed to disappear.
She frowned. She had to get closer.
Aidan’s watchers were busy helping to carry the kegs, and she took advantage of it. She even dared to go all the way up to the nearest one. She sniffed. Besides the smell of salt air, there was the scent of something acrid. It made her nose tingle.
The men were coming back empty handed. She dashed to cower behind some rocks close to the water. The edge of her dress started to get wet, but she didn’t dare move.
Three times she watched the men perform their task. She strained her ears for any clue for what could be in the kegs and where they had stored them, but they were grimly quiet.
Her vivid imagination took over. There must be a cave in those cliffs. A smuggler’s cave. A shiver went through her that had nothing to do with the chill in the water lapping at her hem.
When they’d finished, it was as if they vanished into the night. One moment they were working, the next they were gone back to their homes and families.
But where was her husband?
“You can stand up now, Anne.”
Aidan’s voice startled her. She looked up and found him looming over her rocky hiding place. He held out his hand.
Slowly she came to her feet, pointedly ignoring his hand. “How did you know I was there?”
“The scent of the soap. What are you doing here?”
“I wanted to know what was going on. Obviously it has nothing to do with a pregnant horse.”
“For what purpose?” There was a testy note in his voice.
Well, she could be testy, too. “My husband sneaks around in the dark. Is that not reason to want to know what he is doing?”
He took hold of her by the chin, raising her gaze to his. “And what did you find out?”
Anne tried to pull away. She couldn’t. “You know my history. I don’t like smuggling.”
Footsteps ran along the path. It was Davey. “Hugh said the gunpowder is covered with a tarp…” His voice trailed off as he realized Aidan was not alone.
Alarmed at what he’d said in front of her, he began backing up the cliff. “I’m sorry, Laird.”
“Go on, Davey. Go to your bed,” Aidan told him curtly.
The boy took off running.
Anne was stunned. “Major Lambert is right. You are planning a rebellion.”
“It’s not what you think.” He reached for her arm but she shook him off, backing away from him.
“You have stored gunpowder in the cliffs. In what? A cave? Are you mad? Do you realize what Major Lambert will do to you if it is discovered? What he could do to all of us?”
He grabbed her arm above the elbow, his hold tight. “Quiet, or you’ll wake all of Caithness.”
“I thought I saw all of Caithness on the beach helping you.” She shook her head. “How could you bring Davey into this?”
“I didn’t, Anne. He came with his brothers.”
She almost collapsed. “Does their mother know? It will kill her if any harm comes to her sons.”
“I know.” His voice didn’t sound like himself, full of confidence and certainty.
“Aidan, are you saying you question this course of action?”
“Yes!” The word shot out of him as if he’d held it too long. “But I have no choice, Anne, and I don’t expect you to understand.”
“Then explain it to me. What is so important that it would drive you to rebellion?”
He sat on the rock she’d hid behind. “I’ve tried to avoid it, Anne, but Deacon is right. You saw Lambert. He wants my blood whether I am innocent or guilty.”
“He could hang you guilty at this moment,” she said crisply.
It surprised a laugh out of him, a laugh she didn’t understand. “What is so funny?”
“I realized you are correct.” He stood. “You’ve heard of the Clearances, haven’t you?”
She shrugged. “No.”
“Well, some call them ‘improvements,’” he said sarcastically. “A landlord gives his tenants a week to clear out. Whether they do or they don’t, the homes are burned and the land is used for grazing.”
“Why?”
“It’s more valuable with sheep on it than it is with people.”
“Where do the people go?”
“Who cares? Or at least, that is the attitude. Some move in with family, others go to Ireland, and still others are forced to emigrate even further.”
She frowned at the sand, digesting what he’d told her. “I suppose if they are renting, then they should expect to be asked to move on?” It was hard to believe people would do such a thing to others.
“I forget how English you are,” he said softly. “Anne, people are being burned out because they are poor. But their families have lived on the land here since before the days of the first earl of Tiebauld.”
“And those are the ones who wish to rebel.”
“Yes, those who hate the English.”
The moon came out from the clouds. Its light tipped the waves. It was so beautiful here. It would be hard to imagine it all destroyed.
She looked to him. “Aidan, do the Clearances bother members of our clan?”
“No. So far I’ve been able to protect them. My money has buffered them from the likes of the ‘improvers.’ But Deacon’s family lost everything.”
“Then let him and his brother fight—if they are foolish enough. This is why he tried to get me to leave, isn’t it?” She didn’t wait for his answer, but went on, “They do not have to drag you into their fight. The stakes are too high!”
“Anne, it’s too late. For years I’ve tried to straddle two worlds. On one side are the other gentry, many of them more English than Scottish. On the other, my fellow clansmen. It is hard for you to understand the ties that bind us, ties that cut across social class. It’s the old ways. I can’t ignore them any
longer. But I’ve said I will help only with the gunpowder. This is the end of my role.”
“No, because they will continue to need you, just as the smuggler needed my father.”
“You don’t understand. I must do this.”
“I understand what will happen if you are tried for treason and found guilty.” She railed at his stubbornness. “Do you? Have you any idea what it will be like?”
His expression could have been set in stone as he said, “I’ve made my decision, Anne.”
“You will die!”
“Perhaps. But it is my choice.”
His words wrapped around her heart like a vise. She took a step back. His actions were treasonous. The Crown would hang him.
She doubled over, the burden of grief almost more than she could bear.
He reached out. “Anne?”
“No, don’t touch me! I loved you.” She recoiled from him. “But you are going to destroy yourself and everything here. The castle, the people, everything you’ve built. This isn’t a game, Aidan. Or a little ‘healthy danger’ like stalking a mad wildcat.” Tears stung her eyes. The words choked her as she said, “It’ll be gone…all…gone.”
“Not if I’m careful—”
She cut him off. “You can’t escape it. And I can’t watch it.” She turned and ran.
He called after her but she did not stop. She couldn’t. She was in danger of crying and no good came of tears. He chose his fate. He chose to leave her.
Her foot slipped out of her kid shoe. She picked it up and kept running, heedless of stones on the path. She couldn’t feel them.
She couldn’t feel anything right now.
At the top of the cliff, Anne bypassed the house and ran for the stables. There, all was peaceful and quiet. It smelled of straw and hay. Familiar scents, comforting scents. The horses were asleep.
Not even the dogs who had chosen the stables for their bed seemed surprised at her appearance. The animals didn’t know what the future held. They had no fears, no worries.
Finding an empty stall, she closed herself in, went to the furthest corner, and slid down the wall. Then and only then, when she was alone and need not fear being heard, did she release the huge hiccupping sobs of her grief, letting them overcome her.
The smallest dog, York, scratched at the stall, whining to come comfort her. But she couldn’t let him in.
She couldn’t let anyone in, not anymore. It hurt too much.
Helplessly, Aidan watched Anne run. She’d need time to understand. If she loved him, she must accept the man he was.
Love.
The word shimmered in his mind. He etched it in the sand with his toe, but the “L” turned into an “A” and he wrote the letters of her name instead.
She had to understand.
He walked up the path, words forming in his mind to convince her. And if they didn’t work, he’d kiss her into submission. His pace picked up. Yes, that was what he would do.
But inside, he didn’t find Anne in his room. “So, we’re back to that,” he muttered, and strode to the guest room door.
He pounded hard on it three times, and then shoved it open. She wasn’t there.
Aidan returned to his room. He told himself he should let her be, and yet he couldn’t. The sable throw still carried the imprint of her body. Her pins were on his wash stand.
Her very presence was woven into the fabric of his life.
A sound in the hallway made him race to the door. He threw it open and there was Anne. She was about to enter her room. Her dress was streaked with dirt and mud. She carried her shoes.
“Anne!”
She paused, a hand on the door handle. For a long moment they stared at each other, and he could almost imagine he was looking into the eyes of a stranger.
The expression on her face was strained, her complexion pale. His poor Anne.
He held out his hand. “Come, let us talk.”
She went in her room, shutting the door firmly behind her.
Frustrated, Aidan closed his own door. He’d let her sleep on it. In the morning, she’d see sense—even if he had to shake it into her.
Marriage 03: The Marriage Contract Page 15
