“You’ve seen to Archie’s wish then.” Tears gathered in Mary’s eyes too. “I’m going to miss you.”
“I’ll miss you too.” She tugged Mary to the window. “Your amulet lies on the stone, but promise me—”
“Aye, you’ve already asked, and it shall be done. When you sailed for Loch Gruinart, I searched my trunk. I found my amulet, yet somehow there are two. I have a feeling you first told me the truth, that you’re from the future, and you’re my direct kin.” Mary kissed her cheek. “Is it true?”
“Yes. Thank you for believing me.” She squeezed Mary hard, not wanting to let go. “I’m so grateful the fae brought me here, that I met you, and came to know Archie.”
“You’ll miss him?”
“With my heart and soul.” The circle beckoned though. Katherine had to be close. “My sister is all I have left. She would never give up waiting for me, as I’ll never give up trying to return to her. She’s my twin. We came into this world together, and will always remain so. I love her.”
“Excuse me, my ladies.” A maid knocked on the opened door, dipped her head toward Mary. “The tub ye ordered is ready. The lads would like to bring it in.”
“Good. Come in, boys.” Mary motioned them forward and they lugged the tub in. Eyeing her, she added, “I thought you’d like to refresh yourself.”
“I’d love it.” Mary was so thoughtful.
The lads filled the bath with pails of steaming water. Mary took a bottle of scented oil from one of the maids and added a few drops to the bathwater. The air swirled with the delicate scent of white roses. What a treat.
Another servant arrived with a trencher and placed it on Archie’s side table. After pulling up a chair, Marie cut a wedge from one of the prime cuts of beef and popped it into her mouth. It was seasoned just right, as were the roasted vegetables. Delicious. “I feel totally spoilt.”
“Here’s some wine.” Mary passed her a goblet. “Would you like help readying yourself for your bath?”
Below-stairs the raucous sound of the clan in full cheer traveled to her. “No, you go and enjoy the festivities. This is a night for celebration.”
“Relax and rest then.” She backed out of the room and closed the door behind her.
She wanted nothing more, and after taking a few sips of wine, she shucked her clothes. Breathing a long sigh, she slid into the water. Heav-en-ly.
After dunking her head, she came up and found Archie standing inside the room, his eyes a blaze of molten gold. “I believe this is the first time you’ve actually obeyed my orders and I’ve found you where you’re supposed to be.”
“Yes, but I can’t guarantee a second time. Enjoy the moment while it lasts. Are you joining me?”
“Nay, my bed awaits.” Grinning, he tossed his shirt aside. His rippling abs and tanned pecs gleamed under the dancing firelight. Then her warrior slid his pants down his thighs and off. “I want your heart racing against mine. I ache for it.”
“You wish for me to ease your pain?” She rose from the tub, grabbed the drying cloth and wrapped it around her. She couldn’t get to him fast enough.
“Aye, but with every inch of your beautiful body within my sight.” He flicked off the cloth, scooped her up and lowered her onto his mattress. “I want to love you, right through the night.”
“Yes, please.” She stroked the soft brown and blue patchwork blanket. “Fast. Slow. However you like.”
“I want it all.” Lust filled his gaze as he slid his knees between her thighs and widened her legs. “But only within you, where I belong.”
“Ahh, finally we’re speaking the same language. It took a while.” She pushed her fingers deep into his hair and held onto him. “I love that you know where you belong.”
“You were mine from the first moment I laid eyes on you.” He rubbed his hard cock over her folds, teasing her clit. “I would wish for you again and again if I could.”
“As would”—she gasped as he plunged into her—“I.”
Pleasure overflowed her body as tingles raced across her skin, leaving no part of her untouched. Buried deep inside her, their connection moved beyond all time. “I never want to be parted from you again.”
“Aye, and I wish I could have a thousand more wishes.” He rode her hard, and then kissed her until her orgasm built and she reached that divine pinnacle she loved. “Each wish would be to make you come, to have you calling my name as I took you.”
“Archie.” She screamed his name as she clasped his butt and pushed her hips toward him. She flew, her inner muscles gripping and dragging him home.
“My faerie.” He looked deep into her eyes then roared as came right along with her, his seed shooting straight to her core.
They were joined, in the most elemental way, she and her Highlander from another time. “Yes, your faerie. Always yours,” she whispered as he collapsed on top of her.
* * * *
Marie cupped Archie’s face then stirred him awake with a gentle kiss. “You’re heavy.”
“Sorry, love. You make me lose my mind.” He eased up a touch then rocked gently inside her. “A very contented mind.”
She stretched and smiled. “I think it’s my turn on top.”
He reveled in where their bodies met, and his cock twitched and lengthened again, always hungry for more. He nuzzled between her beautiful breasts. “I shouldnae have neglected these sweet morsels. Your turn on top will have to wait.”
“Neglecting is—” She moaned as he drew her nipple deep into his mouth and sucked. “Oh, bad. Very bad.”
Throughout the night, he didn’t make that mistake again. He savored every single inch of her, and she returned the favor, loving him as he loved her. They were the most magical hours, and he fell asleep as the first rays of dawn stole across the sky, his woman cocooned safely within his arms.
Such peace invaded his soul.
* * * *
Marie dragged herself from the bed as Archie’s breathing evened out. She would never leave the temptation of his body if she didn’t attempt it now.
She searched his trunk and discovered her clothing laundered and folded neatly within. After dressing in her white linen pants, camisole and silk shirt, she nabbed her fine woolen coat and slunk out of his chamber.
Even as her heart heaved, she crept down the winding stairs and around the edge of the great hall, taking care not to awaken the men sprawled across pallets before the hearth. Katherine needed her, would be waiting for her. It was all that kept her moving.
Outside, she snuck across the stony courtyard and passed under the arched entrance.
The faerie circle remained quiet, bare of any breeze, and the amulet upon the center stone beckoned her to come.
She slipped between the two perimeter stones and knelt before Mary’s talisman. “I’m here, Katherine. Where are you?”
A breeze made her hair tickle her face. She closed her eyes, hoping the faeries were at play. “Please, let Katherine come,” she cried to them.
Her sister was close. Every cell in her body sensed it. She should take the amulet and make a—
“I’m here.” Katherine’s voice whispered all around her.
She sagged onto the stone. “I saw to Archie’s wish.”
“I knew you would.” Another wisp of air brushed her cheek. “Come home to me.”
“Marie!” Archie shouted her name as he raced down the trail, his white shirttails flying free behind him.
“Ahh, your Highland warrior comes.” Katherine’s voice curled with mischief.
“Marie!” He hit the edge of the circle, bounced off and slammed onto the ground. Stunned, he shook his head then staggered to his feet. “Hell, the veil’s up.”
“Marie, take the amulet,” her sister crooned.
She patted her hands through the air, searching for her.
“Is she in there with you?” Archie shoved against the veil. “Dinnae go to her, no’ yet. I need to hold you, one last time.”
“Sis, ever
y day since you disappeared into the past, I’ve returned and waited for you,” Katherine revealed. “I’m right here, and I’ve watched those ruins and wished for the castle to reappear. Pick up the amulet. It must be the only way you can get back to me.”
Yes, she had to get back to Katherine. “I don’t want to leave him, but I’ll never leave you.” Archie’s eyes had darkened, losing all light. “I have to go,” she pleaded to him.
He thumped his chest. “I love you.”
“I can’t live without my sister.”
“I would never ask you to. Pick up the talisman.” His voice broke. “Go to her.”
Hands shaking, she slowly reached for it. She could do this. She had to. She wrapped her fingers around it and slipped it over her head. “I love you too, Archie.”
A rumble of thunder boomed and her Highlander slithered to his knees. “Guardians of Dunyvaig,” he rasped. “Keep my loved one safe.”
“Marie.” Katherine shimmered into view and grabbed her. “Oh my goodness, you’re back.”
Hot tears scorched her cheeks as she clung to Katherine. “We’re together again.”
“You truly love him?” Katherine searched her gaze.
“Yes. Knowing him has been a moment of magic, an adventure unlike any I’ve ever known.” Keeping hold of Katherine, she staggered to the edge of the circle. They were still between times, and Archie was beyond her reach, but there. She slumped to her knees, not losing her grip on her sister who dropped down beside her. “He stole my heart with one simple wish.”
“He said he loves you, Marie. How can you leave him?” Anguish crossed her sister’s face.
“Archie!” John raced down the trail. “What’s happened?”
“She’s gone.” Archie clutched the grass then ripped handfuls free. “She’s gone.”
John lowered to his knees. “Then wish for her back, as you wished for her in the very beginning.”
“This is what she wanted, and I willnae make her choose between her sister and me.” He seized his brother’s arm. “I must give her up.”
Katherine squeaked. “Oh my goodness. He really does love you.”
Yes, but her Highlander was lost to her for all time.
“We have to find a way to get to him.” Katherine tugged on her hand.
“It’s impossible.”
“Nothing is ever impossible. C’mon, Marie, neither of us have anything tying us to the future except each other. If you’ve traveled to the past using the amulet, then why can’t it happen again? Don’t you remember my wish? It was for both of us to find a moment of magic, to live and to have a ton of adventure along the way.” She swiped the talisman from around Marie’s neck, joined their hands together and wound it around both their wrists. “Let’s do this, sis, but this time, together. You’re not leaving me again.”
“The clans will always be at war.”
“Yes, but they’re our clans, and you know as well as I do how hard it’s been without Mum. Do you want to lose another person you love too?”
“No, I want him.” Everything within her cried out to return to him. “Are you sure?”
“Yes. When one finds love, one should never let it go. I want to do this.”
“But how?” Before her, Archie pressed his hand against the barrier and she settled her hand over his. He was so close, yet so far away. “He’s still beyond my reach.”
“Do you hear that, John? Whispers from within.” Archie looked straight at her, and her heart near flew right out of her chest.
“He can hear me. Archie,” she cried.
“I heard.” John gaped. “Marie calls for you.”
“John.” Katherine thumped the veil. “It’s Katherine, Marie’s sister. Tell Archie to make a wish, for both my sister and me.”
John pressed his hand over Katherine’s as if he knew exactly where she was. “Make a wish, brother, for both of them. Katherine asked it.”
Archie blew out a breath. “Are you sure, Marie? What if this doesnae work?”
“We have to try. Please, make the wish.”
He squeezed his eyes shut. “Aye, I shall try. Guardians of Dunyvaig, I ask for a wish, for you to send me the woman who has stolen my heart and the one she holds closest to her. Bring them here, so we need never live apart again.” He swept his hand through the air and her amulet rose, breached the barrier and spun into his palm. He snapped his eyes open, locked his gaze on her amulet.
A wind rose and tunneled around, whipping her hair across her face. She grasped hold of Katherine, ensuring the amulet was bound tight around them both. “Don’t let go of me, sis. If you do, you’ll be in more trouble than it’s worth.”
“I’m holding on. Sisters, forever.”
“Come to me, my love.” Archie jerked on her amulet.
She fell through the barrier and against the very warrior who awaited her.
Katherine was plastered against John. They’d done it. They were here.
She unraveled the talisman and threw her arms around Archie’s neck. “I missed you.”
“Unbelievable.” He grinned. “My faerie returns.”
Katherine stared at John then brushed the sides of her red and blue woolen coat. “I’m Katherine. Nice to meet you.”
“John, and ’tis a pleasure to meet you.” He kissed her hand.
Archie lifted Marie to her feet and swung her into his arms. “You’re home.”
“I’m home.” She laughed as he spun her about. “Goodness, I loved your wish.”
“I intend to make many more.” He set her on her feet then lowered to one knee. “And I’ll begin with the greatest wish I have. Marie MacLean, I cannae live without you. You hold my heart and soul in your hands.” He brought her hands to his lips and kissed her fingers. “I wish to take you as my wife, to love you as a man should love his woman. Will you do me the great honor of marrying me?”
“What about bairns?” She dropped to her knees. “I want them, and for you to give them to me.”
“Then ’twill be done. I’d rather have love than never have it at all.” He kissed her, just as she’d longed for.
She was here and never leaving him.
“Yes, then I wish for a lifetime with you.”
Wishes. They were what one made of them, and now she was back in his arms, all her wishes come true.
Chapter 12
On the upper dunes north of Loch Gruinart, Marie knelt behind Archie, massaging his shoulders. This was their place, where they’d first joined fully after the battle. The cloudless sky blazed brilliant blue, and inside, her heart overflowed with so much love.
“I can’t believe we’re here.” She slid her hands around his neck and leaned against the heat of his bare back. “I thought your clansmen would never let us leave Dunyvaig for our honeymoon.”
A week past, he’d made her his wife beside the faerie circle which had brought them together, Katherine by her side, and John by his.
“They’ve seen how I lose track of time when I’m alone with you. I cannae blame them.” He half-turned, slid an arm around her waist and swept her onto his lap. “And I shall lose even more time now since you wear naught but my shirt.”
“I like wearing your shirts. You may loan them to me whenever you wish.”
His golden eyes heated to a smoldering hue. “I wish to love you.”
“And I wish for a Highland warrior who knows exactly where to sheath his blade.”
Grinning, he slipped his hands under her shirttails and caressed her bare bottom.
Intense emotions swamped her. “Don’t ever let me go.”
“Never.” He kissed her, long and deeply, with breathless seduction.
Every inch of her throbbed.
“Make all my wishes come true, Archie.”
“I vow to make it my lifelong mission.”
Oh, yes. Missions. They were what she now thrived on, and together they were about to undertake the most important one of their lives.
Their quest?
To be bound to one another for all time.
Author’s Note
The ruins of Dunyvaig Castle holds such history within its crumbled stone walls, a past I find completely fascinating. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the accounts told of the Highlander clans who lived on the Isle of Islay and neighboring Jura.
For the purposes of this story, I chose to send Marie MacLean back to the year fifteen-hundred and ninety, because Angus MacDonald, the eighth Chief of Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg had been imprisoned by the king due to his feud with the MacLean of Duart, his brother-in-law. The king did in fact induce all those involved in the dispute, being Donald MacDonald of Sleat, Angus MacDonald of Dunnyveg and Lachlan MacLean of Duart, to go to Edinburgh. When they each arrived, they were apprehended and imprisoned. I altered this event slightly, allowing for the MacDonald chiefs’ capture by the king’s men to suit the story, as I did the ultimate capture of Lachlan MacLean as well.
Sir Lachlan Mor MacLean was the fourteenth Chief of Clan MacLean of Duart.
Angus MacDonald’s successor was his son James MacDonald, a minor, and with someone needing to lead the clan, I chose Archie.
Archie MacDonald and Marie MacLean however are fictional characters.
The faerie circle and the amulet, along with its passage down through Mary MacDonald’s maternal line were also my addition to the story.
Although the account told by Mary, of Donald MacDonald and his men seeking shelter on the MacLean’s portion of Jura, as well as James being taken hostage, Angus’s release and his meeting with MacLean at Mullintrea, are as accurate as I could convey them from the historical information on record of this event. Following this tragedy, the feud continued to rage and all within the Western Isles were affected. Ravaging by fire and sword, both MacDonald and MacLean laid waste to huge portions of land.
Lachlan MacLean was killed in action at the age of forty, in the year fifteen-hundred and ninety-eight at the Battle of Traigh Ghruinneart, near Loch Gruinart on the Isle of Islay. He was killed by the forces of Sir James MacDonald, the ninth Chief of Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg, being Mary and Angus’s eldest son who would have been around eighteen at the time.
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