by Fiona Faris
“Are ye hurt? What did they do tae ye?” She ran her hands up and down his torso, checking for wounds, then forced him to turn so she could get a better look at his legs and back. He smiled as he turned with a small flourish. Finally she was able to be satisfied that he was alive, real, and unharmed.
“I couldnae die, lass, and leave ye? Not possible. I would’ve fought the evil nuckelavee himself to the death had he tried tae take me from ye.” He dipped his lips to kiss her again, softly this time, nipping her lips with each kiss lightly. “Tell me, lass, what did I miss?”
She pulled back and looked at him hard. What did he miss? He missed the torture and hell he’d put her through over the last few days. He missed Elias, the beast, demanding she marry him and help him secure the MacKenzie Lairdship. He missed her loss of innocence as she decided what and how she would ensure Elias never won.
But Milly didn’t want to discuss what Nathan had missed. She only wanted to feel. She wanted to feel him, all of him, in a way that she would never forget. She wanted to be owned and possessed by him.
“There will be time for discussion later. Now I need ye, Nathan. I need ye in a way I cannae describe.” She took his hand and led him to the bed. The day would come no matter how much they fought it, but they had hours yet before the castle would stir. She wanted to love him. And that was exactly what she intended to do.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Nathan was not about to argue with the lass. He didn’t need to be told twice. He wanted her badly. It was dreams of her in his arms that powered him through the icy winter landscape to get back to the castle. She kept him warm when a hundred plaids could not.
She led him to the bed, and he pulled her into his arms again, this time lifting her off the cold wood slatted floor to gently lay her on the soft pallet of the bed. She let out a soft moan as he moved to join her. His body raised above hers, he fingered the soft lace at the top of her night shift.
“Ye were meant for fine things, not the harsh travel of the road,” he whispered before moving his mouth to the hollow of where her neck met her throat at the tip of the lace he just held. Her skin softer than the finest silks, she lifted her body giving him even more access. He took from her, greedily running his lips up her neck, flecking his tongue as he went, dipping in to taste each inch of her. He peppered her jaw line with light kisses before finding the delicate velvet of her ear lobe and sucking it lightly, enjoying the gasp of pleasure that escaped her.
“I was only meant for you,” she said, her breathlessness making his body come alive with desire. Her pleasure, claiming herself as his own was enough to drive him mad with need. His. She was his. He hadn’t wanted it. He wasn’t able to describe the when or how it happened, but he knew as much as he knew he would defeat Elias. Millicent MacGille belonged to him. The only wedding that was going to take place in this castle was his own. He’d made a promise that if he found her he would never let her go again, and he meant to make good on his word. Duty and honor would own the day, but first he would own Milly.
“Lass, yer all I dream of.”
“Ye dream of me? How, Nathan, tell me?” He smiled into her neck, her words hitting him in the center of his groin, his cock hardening. She was innocent, but determined, and he was hard as a rock already.
“I dream of ye underneath me like this, but lass, I’m afraid ye are wearing too many clothes.” With one movement, he rustled up her shift and lifted it over her head, the cool air chilling her body. She moved to cover her exposed flesh, but he captured her hand in his own, placing it above her head. “Nay, Milly, let me look at you. Och, so beautiful.” He leaned down and took one pert breast into his mouth, still holding her hands above. “I dreamed ye’d taste like honey and lavender. Do ye remember that soap at the inn?”
“Aye, I brought it with me tucked in my skirts. It reminds me of you, of this.”
“I can taste it on ye. I’d claim all the lavender and honey in the world to keep any other lass from smelling and tasting as good as ye do.” He moved on to other breast, twirling his tongue around her light pink nipple, delighting as she squirmed underneath him, rolling her hips toward his length. Asking for more than she knew she needed, but Nathan wasn’t ready to give her that. Not yet.
He moved to strip off his own clothes. He wanted to be as close to her as possible. She reached up and undid the buttons on his shirt herself. He closed his eyes, relishing the feel of the soft tips of each of her fingers as they brushed against his skin. She delicately pulled the shirt from his shoulders and ran her hands up through the soft tufts of his chest hair before lowering her hands to reach for the front of his breeches. “Nathan, can I touch ye?” she asked before quickly relieving him of the remainder of his clothing.
“Aye,” he said through clenched teeth. She tentatively ran her hands across the tight back of his buttocks before moving them around front of him and taking a slight thumb across his silken tip. He arched his head back, closing his eyes at the sweet sensations coursing through him, tension coiling in his stomach, then moving lower. Just the simple touch of her on him was enough to undo him. She was so sweet. Then she gripped his shaft running her hand up and down, her eyes open and on him, questioning. “Is this all right?”
“Aye, lass, it’s more than all right. It’s divine,” he said, placing his hand over her own and increasing her speed. “Like this, sweet, ahh yes, heaven.”
Milly loved the feel of him in her hand. She’d never known it could be like this with a man. That as a woman she would have so much power. She felt the wet pool at the apex of her legs, where her pleasure lay in wait. Their bodies were made to fit together, perfectly. She needed him to fill the emptiness she’d felt without him. He moved her hands off his shaft and placed them onto his chest.
“Did I do something wrong?” she asked, suddenly aware she was still very innocent and didn’t know what she should be doing. She’d hoped to deliver him as much pleasure as he’d given her.
“Nay, lass, just the opposite. We’re so right, I’m afraid it will be over before it starts if I allow ye tae keep on me like that.” He kissed her again, this time taking his own hands and rubbing her starting at the soft part of her inner thigh, moving upward, slowly tickling her flesh until he reached the downy curls that protected her sex. Reaching between her folds with a single finger, he slipped inside her. She gasped. It was a delicious feeling being invaded by him.
“Ahhh, yer so wet, love. So ready for me. Are ye sure this is what ye want? I dinnae think I can stop unless ye ask me to.” She didn’t know how he could even ask. He entered her with another finger now, curling both until they reached that spot that ached for him.
“Aye, Nathan, dinnae stop, ’tis what I want more than breath.”
“I’ve heard it will hurt ye, lass, but stay with me. I will make it good for you, I promise.”
“I’ll always stay with ye, Nathan. Please… dinnae make me wait for you. I need ye now.” She was arched in overwhelming need of him. Less than an hour previous she was grieving his death, but he was alive, here with her now, in the flesh and she wanted his flesh as close to hers as possible. She wanted to be surrounded by him. Needed it, needed him. She loved him.
He moved over her, settling his length into the warm parting of her legs. She tensed slightly, unsure of how it would feel, but the anticipation was deadly. Her body tensed, giving him pause. The pinching and tightness wasn’t a surprise but was also not pleasant. She took a long slow breath. “Milly, I dinnae want ye hurt, should I stop?” She didn’t have the words to explain that once the pain ebbed away it was replaced by something else. A type of fulfillment that was almost pleasant.
“Nay, dinnae stop. Please.” She wanted more of him. He didn’t need more encouragement. He pushed himself deeper within her, the pain completely gone, and his moan of pleasure gratified her. The way he filled her, complete and right. He began to slowly move inside her, causing the wave of pleasure to return. With each thrust, the friction they created
sent tiny shocks of fire through her. Her stomach tightened and heat mixed with the moisture they created, giving her the impression that she was soaring. Nathan was the only thing keeping her tethered, she clutched him fiercely. She crested atop it, scared but at the same time needing to fall over the edge. She began to move with him in unison. He flipped their bodies and positioned her so she rode a top him. His thumb finding her sensitive nub, he rubbed and tweaked as she moved down onto him. “Take yer pleasure, lass, let me watch. Ye are an angel sent from heaven, just for me.”
Her only response, his name on her lips as she fell into the abyss. A moment later Nathan joined her. With one final deep thrust, he moaned out his own release as she collapsed on top of him, spent and satisfied.
* * *
“It’s dark like the deepest part of a fire. How is it the red of yer hair is so much darker than Lucas and Gavin?” Nathan ran his fingers through Milly’s hair as she lay with her head on his chest.
“I have my mother’s hair. My da had more of a shock of ginger, if ye remember.”
“Aye, am I ever glad ye favor, Lady Catherine.” She gave him a small giggle. He couldn’t see her eyes, but felt the movement on his chest. It warmed his heart. He couldn’t get enough of her laying with him, but the reality of the day was closing in and they hadn’t yet discussed the danger that lay ahead.
“Lass, ye cannae wed him. We need tae leave the keep. We can use the passageways to get the bailey and then head tae Cadney. Once yer safe, I’ll come back and handle my cousin.” She lifted her head from his chest and sat upright, bringing the woolen blanket that covered her up to her chest. God how he wished she would not cover herself from him. He wanted to see all of her. He moved to pull the blanket away, but she scooted out of his reach. Her eyes were serious.
“Nathan, I’ll not have this argument with ye again.” She quickly told him of all Elias had threatened since her return to the keep, and how devastated she’d been seeing Nathan on his knees in the forest, as if all hope was lost. He felt the pain of what she witnessed along with her. “I heard ye scream my name, lass, I ken ye were with me. It gave me the strength to fight on. It will take more than a couple treacherous clansmen to keep me away from ye.”
“Don’t ye see? Elias was so pleased with himself when he thought ye dead. If he learns ye’re alive, he’ll not only kill you, he’ll torture you. I cannae bear tae loose ye again. There’s no way tae ken who in the keep is aligned with him. It’s not safe for you here. If we kill Elias outright, we’ll never get tae Gavin. I hae tae go through with the ceremony. I have no choice.”
“Lass, there is always have a choice. Please, let me protect ye.”
“Nay, Nathan, let me protect ye.” She pulled his dirk out from behind a pillow. “I have a plan.” He knew she wouldn’t go down without a fight, but when he saw the dagger in her hand, his heart lept into his throat. Surely she didn’t mean to take on Elias, herself, alone and on her wedding night? His cousin was too strong. She was fierce to be sure, but Elias was cunning, and if he overpowered her, Nathan knew she would pay with her life. The thought of her laying, bloodied in a heap, after Elias discovered her plan was too much. There were too many risks, but the lass was so stubborn. He had to find a way to convince her. He steadied his gaze on her features. There was something in her gaze, something that stilled his heart, softening him. He cupped her chin in his hand, giving her the same determination in his gaze that he saw in her own emerald depths.
“Milly, lass, I see yer plan, and it may work. But ye cannae do it alone. I can’t let ye put yerself in such danger. Ye don’t ken what Elias is capable of, truly. I have men, I ken where Gavin is. Will ye not let me convince ye otherwise?”
“Ye ken where Gavin is?” Her eyes lit up. He would kill a thousand versions of Elias, locate and save her brother over and over again in order to see her look at him forever the way she looked at him now. Her trust and hope was all he needed. He loved her. Finally admitting it to himself filled him with a sense of peace he had not known he was missing. Something he hadn’t felt since before his father was killed.
He wrapped his arms around her, bringing her close. All the obstacles that stood in their way seemed to fade into the background of what he was feeling. He would have her. He would never allow another man to claim Milly, she was his. He closed his eyes, imagining Milly in the soft grass that surrounded Loch Cadney. Little red-haired girls with emerald eyes like their mother, and dark brooding boys, full of mischief and a need of adventure like him, playing in the woods around them. Or maybe it was the other way around? Who said his girls, their girls, couldn’t long for adventure? No matter how they came, they would be amazing children, their children. She would be an excellent mother, fierce and protective, yet still sweet and loving.
A rush of worry and darkness crowded in, a fantasy he didn’t know he craved and it could all be taken from him in an instant. He couldn’t tell her. If he admitted to her the feelings he was just now realizing, there would be nothing holding them back. But they weren’t safe. They weren’t free. He couldn’t allow any weakness for Milly to cloud his judgement on this day. He could only hope, when all was over and done, they would emerge victorious and that she felt enough affection for him to become his wife in earnest.
“Aye, lass, let me tell ye what I’ve learned. Mayhap we can work together…”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Nathan shared with Milly everything he’d learned from Simon and his men, holding her tightly as he told her Gavin was in the dungeon with Thomas. He would do anything to keep the pain of her brother’s continued captivity from her, but she needed to learn what they were up against. He explained about Derek and how he sent the lad racing to Lucas for men to help back them up. She nodded in agreement that all was not lost, and he felt his heart expand with her hope. After he spoke, she remained quiet for what felt to Nathan like an eternity.
“Well, then ye definitely need me to marry him. Or at least keep the pretense that I will marry him. Ye need him in the chapel tonight in order tae finish th’ ambush.” She may have been right, but there had to be a way to get Elias to the chapel without Milly being there. He didn’t feel right about putting her in harm’s way, even for a small amount of time. Devil be damned, he couldn’t think of one. If she didn’t appear at the chapel, Elias would chase her back here, and then Nathan and the few men he had would not have the advantage.
“I wish there was another way, but ye may be right,” he conceded, pulling her close, knowing she would not hear reason, and unsure if he had a better plan. But as sure as he drew breath, he would never allow her to risk herself for his sake. It was better to agree and allow her to rest, rather than continue the discussion.
“Nathan, ye have tae leave this room. A maid or Elias could come in at any moment, and all yer planning would be for naught. Please go.” He knew she was right on that at least. If Elias or one of his men found him in her bedchamber wrapped in his arms, he would be at a distinct disadvantage, but he couldn’t bear to leave her. She was finally his, and he feared letting her go. He couldn’t lose her, not again. So foolish he’d been in his youth. She was there, in front of him the whole time, growing into a fierce, beautiful lass and he had been too brash, too young, too stubborn to see it. He saw it now, and she was his. He wouldn’t let her go.
“I ken yer right. Try and lay back an’ close yer eyes. If ye have tae be involved, I want ye well rested.”
“Promise me ye won’t stay gone long,” she said sleepily. He kissed her brow and caressed her back until her features softened in sleep.
“I promise, love. Now sleep.”
Nathan stayed with Milly longer than he should have, but he was reluctant to leave the quiet peacefulness of the chamber, or the warmth of her body wrapped around his. He enjoyed her in sleep, the softness in her face as the worry lifted, and the tender way a small snore would escape her. She was just as beautiful in satisfied sleep as she was knifing down bandits in the streets of Perth. Eve
rything could go wrong in an instant. The fact that he could lose her, the clan, everything was not lost on Nathan. Their plan may not be a solid one but it was the best they had. Hopefully Derek would come through and reach Lucas in time to lend support. Elias would have no choice to back down. Some small part of him still wanted to avoid more bloodshed. And he didn’t want Milly to feel the pressure of being the one to end Elias’ life. That was his burden to bear. He couldn’t dissuade her, but he had a feeling as the night wore on, he would have an opportunity to change her mind. He would not have her soul burdened with murder, not for him. Not for anyone.
Her sleep settled into a deeper rest and she gave a contented sigh. Nathan slipped his arms out from around her and pulled himself from the bed. Dressing quickly, he glanced out of the lone window. The snow had stopped but the day was still grey. The winter had been long, and if he believed in omens, Nathan was afraid it was a bad one.
