“Well, let’s take a look,” she offered a friendly smile.
Everything was wrapped up neatly in brown paper packages, and he had laid them all out on the kitchen table. She opened them one by one and was very impressed with his selections. He had brought back more bread, some apples and pears, several generous pieces of cheese, a bottle of whiskey, and even a simple cotton dress for her.
When she opened the last tiny parcel, she squealed with glee, “Oh you shouldn’t have!”
His cheeks flushed pink, “I hope all of this is okay.”
She unfolded the square of white cloth and out fell two sewing needles and several colored thread packets for stich work. She marveled at his generosity and thoughtfulness.
“You have been very kind to me,” she murmured quietly.
William wrapped his thick hands around her delicate fingers as they gingerly held the sewing supplies.
“You have made it easy,” he replied.
As she gazed into his emerald eyes, she felt no fear of the large man. She had questions and curiosities of the many unknowns, but no fear. The longer he held her hands in his grasp, the warmer her blood felt as it coursed through her body. In all the times Henry forced her to lay with him, she had never felt the desire to do so. But she now felt the desire to be with William as she had formerly been with her husband. And that thought is what drove fear into her heart.
Chapter Eight
William watched as Elise’s deep blue eyes blinked up at him and felt his gaze drift down to the swell of her full breasts. He could just see the ivory skin peeking out of her dress as they rose and fell softly. His hands still clasped hers. He pulled his eyes back up to her face and could not stop himself from pulling her closer until their faces were just inches apart.
“William?” she whispered.
He declined to answer verbally, but instead pressed his lips to hers, tasting the sweetness of her lips and the innocence of her presence. He felt her gasp softly but she did not pull away.
Elise’s head swam with new sensations and feelings. Occasionally Henry would attempt to kiss her, but that just left her repulsed and appalled. But with William it felt altogether different. She wanted to feel his lips on hers. She wanted to feel his hands around her waist and his chest beneath her palms.
She gasped louder and stepped back, withdrawing her lips and her hands from William’s attentions.
“I-I-I do apologize, I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me,” he stuttered.
“I-I-It’s not that. I-I’m not sorry. I, ahem, wanted you to. But I’m afraid… I’m afraid I want more as well,” she admitted quietly.
“You’re not? You do? What do you mean?” His confusion was evident.
“I’m not sure really.” She set the sewing supplies on the table, and twisted her hands up in her skirt.
“I know that I took you against your will and that I am holding you away from your husband and your home here. But I have no right…”
“You have the right if I say you do…” she whispered tenderly.
William studied her face intently, knowing that there was no returning from the place she offered. And without another word, he swept her easily into his arms, carried her to the bedroom, and shut the door with his heel after they entered the threshold.
He lay her down on the bed gently and crawled onto the bed himself, to kneel over her.
“Elise? Are you sure?”
“Yes William,” she whispered, certain of what she wanted but uncertain what it meant.
His workman’s hands felt rough and gentle as he touched her silky cheek. Her skin was softer than he had even imagined. She twined her arms around his neck and ran her fingers through the dark hair that curled at the nape of his neck.
While Henry was always eager to satisfy his own needs, William’s urgency seemed to be because he wanted to be with her and needed to be with her as quickly as possible. His hands slid up her thighs, dragging the skirt of her dress with them. She lay exposed to his gaze but felt no shame. He made quick work of removing his own tunic and trousers, and piled them on the floor with her dress.
When his warm skin touched hers, Elise sighed softly and parted her legs for his body. His fingers were gentle at her entrance. She had never had a man touch her there before, and it felt slippery. She was certain that was not from his fingers and marveled at how her body responded to his touch.
He rubbed himself against her and she gasped again.
“Oh my, so much bigger than I thought…”
He chuckled and beamed at the purity of her innocent comment.
“Thank you,” he laughed as she blushed.
He entered her wetness slowly, letting her body adjust to his girth. He relished the gasps and moans that escaped her soft pink lips and he buried his hand in her blonde curls.
As he thrust in and out of her body, Elise felt her body growing warmer, tingling as though she had just stepped out of a hot tub into an ice-cold room. His fingertips grasped her taut nipples and she arched into the sensation. The heated tingling grew stronger and she dug her nails into his bare back.
William groaned and plunged deeply into her. As she felt the fluid of his climax heat her body from the inside, the tingling inside her skin burst into thousands of tiny lightning bolts, and she panted his name over and over into his ear.
They both lay panting in the room, letting the darkness of the evening hide their exhaustion and pleasure.
“William, I never…”
He stroked her hair softly, “Never what?”
“Never, um, enjoyed it like that before.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. What do you think now?”
“I think I should like that again.”
He laughed, “That can be arranged. But perhaps for now, we can get some dinner.”
They dressed quickly, and he held her hand sweetly as they moved from the bedroom to the kitchen. They fixed plates of ham and bread and apples and generous portions of cheese. He even poured them each a small sip of whiskey to go with the food.
As they laughed and ate and drank, Elise felt extremely calm and at ease with everything that had transpired. Once the food was finished, William refilled their mugs with more whiskey and invited her to the sitting area.
After he lit the fire, he pulled her down to his lap as he sat in one of the chairs.
“I’m afraid I have to tell you how the visit to the estate went.”
“Ah, I see. I understand.”
“I’m afraid you are not to be traded for the land,” he said with a rueful smile.
She blinked back tears but dashed them away quickly with her fingertips.
“I’m not surprised. It’s not that I will miss him, I just have nowhere to go now. I have no family and now no husband.”
William traced the back of her hand with his fingers, “Would you consider me as an alternative to homelessness?”
She beamed at his hopeful face, “I would love that.”
Chapter Nine
Over the next year, Elise made a happy home out of William’s small house. She added touches here and there to remind him that a woman lived there too. There were almost always wildflowers on the table; she tended the chickens and the vegetable garden all on her own; and she learned how to make meals that were efficient and inexpensive and tasty. She spent many an afternoon mending blankets or stitching her needlepoint. Sometimes William would tell her she should sell off the samplers for money. She waved him off but considered making a go of it.
William continued to work for his boss and never really mentioned the fact of how they came to be together. He enjoyed coming home to her smiling face and willing arms. He spent a few hours each evening carefully woodworking in the back stable, but would not let Elise see his project until it was finished.
He typically handled the trips into town and while Elise missed her outings, she found that she had less need to escape than she did from Henry.
She did miss Abigail though
. She mentioned it every so often to William and he would pat her hand caringly. He knew she had to be lonely, and he wished he could offer her more than just his company. The evenings were pleasantly empty, full of nothing but good food and good companionship and heated passion in the bedroom.
One cool autumn morning, William came bursting through the front door with a huge grin on his face.
“Hello my love!” he greeted her.
She laughed, “What on earth has gotten into you? Have you been at the whiskey without me?”
He stepped back from the open door and gestured outside with his hand. The face that peered around the corner made Elise gasp out loud.
“Abigail!” she screeched.
Abigail grinned and ran to embrace her former mistress and long-time friend.
The two women giggled at the state of each other, and each stroked the other’s swollen belly. William wrapped his arms around his common law bride and kissed the top of her head.
“Abigail still works for Henry but she had to come see you when I told her about our little impending miracle. How about I drive you all into town for an outing?”
Both young women nodded vehemently, and bundled up for the trip. After several hours of discomfort in the wooden buggy, the two walked arm in arm through the village with William trailing close behind.
As they stepped into the small inn for lunch, Abigail pressed her fingertips to her lips and stepped back as William stepped forward next to Elise. A drunken Henry lurched up from his table, sending his mistress tumbling to the floor.
“Well lookie here,” he stuttered, pointing a finger at her.
William wrapped one muscular arm around Elise protectively, as Elise inhaled sharply.
“Looksh like you got yourshelf in a bit of trouble,” Henry slurred as he staggered towards the couple.
Elise stiffened and straightened her spine. “No, actually I was in a peck of trouble until I found a real man.”
Abigail grinned at Henry’s astonished face, but Elise had already whirled around and was striding out of the inn.
THE END
Kidnapped by the Highlander Lord
The night was descending on a small clan in the Scottish highlands. The hunters had been out during the day and had brought back a bountiful feast. The large bonfire in the middle of the village crackled and the smell of cooking meat filtered through the camp, making everyone's stomachs growl with a deep hunger. When they ate they tore the meat off the bones, and the juice ran down their jowls until there was nothing left but the ashy smell of the fire. The village was alive with the sounds of primitive howling. Life was good and they had little to worry about. The world around them provided them with animals to eat. There was a lake to the east of them in which they could fish, and the high mountains around them enclosed them in what they thought was an impenetrable ring. Exiting through that way was dangerous, and the only people who had left via that treacherous terrain had never returned. It was assumed that they had perished on the arduous journey.
The main passage in and out of the village was through a thick forest in which it was said that demons and other fantastical creatures lived. At night the shadows danced as the silvery moon poured down in slits through the branches of the trees, and none in the village dared go through, although many of them wondered if the stories were true. Abbie was one of them. She had long red hair that fell to the small of her back, a petite frame with slender curves in all the right places. Her eyes were emerald green, and when she had been a girl they had sparkled with curiosity. Often she would ask her parents and the elders of the village about the old legends and myths, and because she was so beloved they sat her on their lap and indulged her need to know everything.
But, as she grew the small world around her changed. Her parents died in an attack by barbarians. Many people lost their lives and the village was almost completely eradicated. The only reason they survived was because of one man – Callum, and ever since then he had been the hero of the village. Tall and strong, he walked with great purpose. His body was packed with muscle and he had a long dark beard. Everyone in the town loved him for what he had done, and after the barbarians had been driven away, he had asked Abbie for her hand in marriage. How could she have resisted? She was grieving for everything they had lost, but her tender heart knew that she had to look to the future, and she had to show everyone else that they could rebuild the village and that there was hope. So when he had approached her and asked for her hand in marriage she readily accepted, and it was the start of a new era. With Callum in the village the people thought they were invincible and that nothing could ever oppose them. He roared in triumph after the wedding and the sound echoed out through the valley, as if warning everyone that they would never stand a chance if they tried to attack again.
That had been a few years ago. Abbie had been but a babe of eighteen, and now she was approaching twenty-two, yet she felt much older, as though she had lived a thousand lifetimes. Her shoulders were rounded and her eyes had lost some of that sparkle for life, which had not turned out to be as much of a fairy tale as she had imagined it to be. Shortly after she was married she realized that Callum was not the hero the town had made him out to be either. He was rough with her, and cruel with his words. He was strong yes, and mighty, but behind closed doors he had a vicious streak that eroded Abbie's sense of self-worth. Often she tried to engage him with what she loved; the stories about the mystical forest creatures, but he scoffed at her.
“You're a woman now, you shouldn't concern yourself with such childish matters,” he said, towering above her, looking down his nose at her. “You are my wife now and that is all that matters in this world. You should be spending time trying to give me an heir so that my blood will run for generations yet. He will be the greatest child, and will be the leader of this clan, even surpassing my own efforts.” His eyes gleamed with pride as he thought about his future child, yet for whatever reason Abbie had not managed to conceive yet. She went to the healer and asked for help. The healer gave her various concoctions of herbs, and told her to make love to her husband on specific days, but still nothing worked and Callum's ire only grew.
“You are worthless. You were the jewel of this village and I thought I had won myself a prize worthy of my efforts, but now your luster has faded and I find myself regretting my choice. You are but a pebble and your beauty is being surpassed by others. You will give me an heir one of these days,” he said before he stormed out on one of his hunting parties. He often grew tired of her company and would ride out to the forest, exploring. In her youth she had imagined this would be the perfect life, married to a hero who would go out to the forest and return with wonderful stories about all the things he had seen out there. Abbie had yearned to see the wider world. To her the mountains were a prison and although everything was beautiful there was still so much more out there, and she had wanted her husband to share that love. Now she saw the error in her ways and knew that her childish dreams had been just that, childish. She faded into her shell and was but a ghost of the person she had once been. Her fire had been extinguished. Everyone in the village knew, and they knew how Callum treated her, yet none dared to go against the hero of the village. Perhaps, had her family not perished in the attack, things would have been different. When she was alone, Abbie would often imagine what her life would have been like had that night never happened, but dawn always reared its head and the days continued in the same manner. Day after day she felt an utter sense of hopelessness seep through her soul.
2
“Do you think they all died a long time ago?” Abbie said. She was sitting with her friend Maggie, sewing tunics.
“I don't think it really matters if they did or they didn't. Nobody has ever seen anything for real. If they did exist then I imagine they moved on or were killed long ago. If they didn't exist then nothing has changed,” Maggie replied.
“I like to think that they did exist.”
“I know you do, but just wish
ing it to be so doesn't mean that there is magic in the world.”
Abbie was silent for a few moments. “I don't know why anyone would have wanted to kill them. They must have been beautiful.”
“It's not unheard of for people to want to destroy beautiful things,” Maggie said pointedly, staring at Abbie. Both of them knew what she meant but Abbie didn't reply. Maggie was perhaps the only person in the village to see through Callum's brutish visage and didn't respect him for what he had done. She only saw him for the abusive husband that he was.
“He's due home today isn't he?” Maggie asked. Abbie nodded gently, but did not say anything. She had an air of sadness about her. Maggie reached over and squeezed Abbie's hand, a gesture which shocked the red-headed woman.
The Highlander's Taken Bride (Scottish Highlander Romance) Page 66
