Wade noted the strength in her jaw and the fire in her eyes. He was excellent at reading signs, it’s how he became a detective so quickly. This woman hated the man she was speaking of.
“Come with me.” She said cautiously to him. “You may come and rest at Castle McLoughlan, and then I can send you on your way to Carissa McKinley.”
“Thank you.” He said to her, although he had no intention of leaving her until he figured out exactly what danger Mrs. Kinley had believed her to be in.
“Here is your room. I will have the staff draw you a bath and bring you some extra clothing.” She eyed him warily, caution deepening her green eyes.
“Thank you-” He had no idea what to call her, was he supposed to address her in any certain way? Or just refer to her by her first name?
“Chloe is fine.” She said softly, reading his expression.
“Chloe.” He almost whispered her name and watched her as she turned to leave. He couldn’t help himself, he watched the way she moved, and his hands itched to touch her. Her curves were something every woman in his time would practically kill for.
Chloe closed the door softly behind her even though every alarm in her brain was going off and telling her to run as fast as she could away from the man. If it hadn’t been for his strange accent, clothing and the fact that he had called Carissa his friend, she would have left him in the woods and prayed he made his way back to wherever it was he had come from.
She would have ignored the nerves in her body and how they reacted to him. As he had walked next to her horse, she had been afraid of him being so close to her if he had ridden behind her, she had stolen a few quick glances at him. He had warrior written all over him, from his muscled body to the way he walked, she knew he would be a force to be reckoned with against any enemy he crossed paths with.
If she believed his story, why had this woman sent him to her? What danger was she in? Her thoughts pushed back to her son. She would check in on him, make sure he was okay, and then she would send for Carissa and let her know her friend was here.
She prayed he wasn’t an enemy, but she knew Garrett would protect his wife if it came down to it. She had to focus on her son’s safety, and this man could very well pose a threat to it. Still, if he was telling the truth, and a small part of her honestly believed he was, then that meant she and her son were in danger, in which case having the head of the McKinley clan nearby may not be such a bad idea.
Chapter Four
Wade took a look around the room Chloe had given him. It was large and lavishly decorated. A massive four poster bed with intricate Celtic designs carved into the wood sat in the center of the far wall. Drapes hung from the sides of the bed and Wade imagined that when they were drawn, you wouldn’t be able to see any sunlight even in the middle of the day.
Tapestries hung from the walls in varying color and design, and a large rug was centered on the floor. Oddly enough, the room felt more comfortable to him than his own studio apartment did. Then again, after Marissa had left him, it had always felt more temporary than it had before.
Marissa. That one name could bring the best and worst feelings to the pit of his stomach. They had been so in love once. Dated all through college and had even been engaged for six months. Then his sister disappeared after a weekend trip with her boyfriend, and his world had seemed to stop.
He searched for her constantly. Had believed that maybe they had just eloped, but once her body was found, his heart crumbled. She had been the only family he had left.
Wade sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the wall. He hadn’t spoken for weeks after, had spent all of his energy trying to track down the boyfriend. His baby sister had been strangled, and he had put every ounce of his soul into tracking the bastard down.
They had finally tracked him to a small town in east Texas and thanks to Wade’s partner for keeping him from killing him, they got a full confession and were able to lock the son of a bitch up for good.
He had never been the same, though, and Marissa got tired of who he had become. He couldn’t say he blamed her, it wasn’t until the last year that he started to come back around. Nightmares came less frequently to him now, and he believed he was finally picking up the pieces of his heart.
Marissa was married now, a kid on the way. Part of him wondered if she hadn’t already been messing around on him before Leah’s disappearance.
A knock at the door jarred him from his thoughts. He stood and opened it, but when he looked out, no one was there. He had started to shut it again when he felt the tug on his pants.
“Well hi.” He knelt down face to face with the little boy. He had his mother’s dark hair and green eyes, and they made the recognition unmistakable.
“Hi.” He said softly and then grinned. “Momma said she found you in the woods!” He exclaimed. “What were you doing out there?”
“Going for a walk.” Wade smiled, he couldn’t help it. The little boy was adorable and so incredibly happy that it lifted his own spirits a bit.
“I like to go for walks too.”
“They are good for you.”
The little boy nodded and continued to stare at Wade. “I’m Fergus.” The little boy held his hand out, and Wade took it gently. “Laird of Castle McKinley.”
Wade bit back a laugh at the sturdiness in the four-year old’s voice. He had not come across many kids, but he couldn’t imagine they were all as spunky as this boy seemed to be.
“Nice to meet you, Fergus, I am Wade Cahill.”
“You sound funny.”
Before he could respond, Chloe’s voice sounded from down the fall.
“Fergus James. You will not be rude.”
“Sorry, Momma.” The boys’ demeanor instantly changed and the abruptness of it had Wade biting back another laugh. This was a boy who respected his momma, it made Wade happy to see.
“I’m so sorry.” She apologized and placed her hands on Fergus’s shoulders.
“Not a problem. He’s a handsome young man.”
“Thank you.” She blushed.
“He has your eyes.” Wade’s gaze held hers longer than he had planned it too, and before he knew it, he was awkwardly looking away.
“The staff should be heading up with your bath any minute now. Dinner is at five.”
“Thank you, Chloe.”
He watched her leave for the second time and felt the familiar tug of lust in his stomach. She was attractive sure, any man could see that, but there was something more that drew his attention. If Mrs. Kinley was right, and she was in danger, he was going to do everything he could to make sure she and her son were safe.
When Wade made his way downstairs for dinner, hoping he wasn’t late because he had no idea what time it was, he took careful note of everything he passed. He looked at everything as if it were another of his investigations and he didn’t want to miss anything.
Tapestries covered most of the walls, and thanks to his boyish interest in all things castles he had discovered two secret doors hidden behind them. He made a mental note to search them once he had more time.
Just as he was walking down a hallway he hoped led to the dining area, he heard the sound of a woman crying. His mind went on alert, and he reached for a gun that was no longer in a shoulder holster.
“Shit.” He muttered and headed toward the direction of the crying.
He found the woman backed into a corner of what looked to be a linen closet.
“Ma’am?” He asked, kneeling closer to her. “Are you okay?”
Her eyes, a deep blue shot to his and she tried to slink further back into her corner.
“I won’t hurt you.” He put his hands up, palms out as a display of peace and she relaxed slightly. “What happened?” He asked her and began checking for any sign of physical injury. “Did someone hurt you?”
She started crying again, and he did his best to switch from cop mode to man. “What is your name?”
She sniffled and looked up at him through tears. �
��Tis Delila.”
“That’s a pretty name.” He smiled. “I’m Wade.”
“I know who you are Mister, Lady Chloe told us of you.”
“Hopefully nice things.” He joked, but the woman looked horrified.
“Of course nice things Mister, we wouldn’t speak ill of a guest!”
“Of course not, I meant it as a joke.”
This got a smile out of the woman, and Wade noted that she was attractive, in an understated way. Her face was round and framed by two curls of light auburn hair. The rest of it was tucked up in a neat bun.
“So tell me what happened?” He sat across from her, but left the door to the closet open, not wanting any rumors spreading through the halls.
“Tis nothing Mister Wade.”
“Nothing wouldn’t cause you to be crying in a linen closet.” He eyed her cautiously not wanting to scare her.
“I suppose it wouldn’t. It’s just, I gave my heart to Sheamus, believing it would be returned, gave him more than that if you don’t mind me saying.” Her cheeks reddened with anger. “Well, I caught him with another woman moments ago in the hall behind the kitchen!”
“Sounds like he’s a jackass to me.” Wade said simply.
Delila smiled widely and nodded.
“He is a jackass.” She agreed and covered her mouth on a laugh.
“I believe you can do better Delila, how’s about you go about your day with your nose turned up toward him. Doesn’t sound like he’s worth yours or the other woman’s time.”
“I think that’s a fine plan Mister Wade.”
Wade stood and helped Delila to her feet.
“Thank you.” She curtsied slightly and headed through the door.
Wade watched, amused and then headed the opposite way down the hall.
“That was a nice thing that you did.” Chloe’s voice cut through his thoughts and seeped into his brain like a drug. How long had it been since a woman had that kind of effect on him, he wondered? Easy enough answer he supposed, never.
“She was hurting. Needed someone to talk to.”
“You could have taken advantage of her, and you didn’t.”
Her words cut through him like a knife and anger flushed his cheeks.
“I have not, nor would I ever force myself on a woman, Chloe. I have no tolerance for men that do.”
She smiled lightly and touched his arm. He did his best to ignore the jolt od lust that resulted from the contact, but based on her face she had felt it too.
“I didn’t mean it that way.” Chloe said as she dropped her hand. “I only meant it as a compliment. I apologize if my words came out as if I were accusing you of something.”
He looked into her eyes and saw something he couldn’t quite place. Had she experienced such violence before? His anger was replaced with something new, and he pictured her crying and alone. He would kill any man who dared hurt his woman.
“If you follow me I can show you where the dining area is.”
His woman? Since when had he begun thinking of her as his woman? He shook his head and followed after Chloe. He was in way over his head.
“I sent for the McKinley’s,” Chloe said as they ate dinner that evening.
“The McKinley’s?”
“Carissa.” Chloe tried to hide the twinge of jealousy in her voice at the mention of another woman in reference to Wade. She had no right to feel such a useless emotion.
“Oh that’s right I forgot she was married. Thank you, Chloe.”
“Momma may I be excused?” Fergus asked as he bounced in his seat.
Chloe sighed and looked at his plate. He had barely touched his dinner, but such was the normal since they had moved into the castle. Her son would rather be running through its stone walls slaying all sorts of imaginary dragons, then eating dinner with her.
She nodded, and he was gone before she could even smile at him.
“He’s a good kid,” Wade said around a bite of potato.
“Thank you.”
“Must be hard raising him by yourself.” He paused, “If you don’t mind me asking, what happened to his father?”
Chloe’s jaw hardened. She was not one to talk about Carrick McLoughlin, but she supposed he would hear the story from one of the staff if not for her, and she would prefer him to hear the version where she was not some hopeless victim afterward.
“Would you like some whiskey?” She asked standing. She didn’t want to talk about it in the open. Was not a story she wished for Fergus to overhear.
“You have whiskey here?”
Chloe couldn’t help but laugh at his expression. She knew he wasn’t from this time, she had pieced that much together with what she knew of Carissa. His genuine surprise at the fact that they had whiskey was the first thing she had truly laughed at in years.
“Aye, we have whiskey. Tis made with horse urine, though.” She grinned widely at him and knew the moment the joke had sunk in.
“Nice try, but at this point I would still drink it.”
Chloe laughed again, how nice it felt! “I’ve no doubt you would. Come on, I have some in my room.”
Chapter Five
As Wade followed her up the stairs and into her chamber, Chloe pushed down the butterflies. She had never willingly allowed a man in her bedchamber, in fact, the only man she had ever been with was Carrick, and it was something she never wanted to repeat.
She had decided to trust Wade after seeing the way he handled Delila, and she hoped that her trust was not misplaced. This would be the ultimate test she supposed. Whether that was smart of her or not, she would soon find out.
She pushed open the door to her room first, and then to the small sitting area off of her bedroom. She settled into one of the chairs in front of an already roaring fireplace while Wade took a seat in the other. She then poured whiskey into the glasses on the table between them.
“Cheers,” Wade said and clinked his glass to hers.
“So you asked me about Fergus’s father.” Chloe said after taking a drink. She turned to face Wade. “Tis not a nice story, there is no love involved.”
Chloe watched as Wade’s expression darkened. She remembered how he had told her earlier that evening that he had no tolerance for men who forced themselves on women.
“You don’t have to tell me, Chloe. I won’t push.”
Chloe shrugged. She had lived through it, true talking about it didn’t alleviate any of the anger she still felt nor did it ease any memories of the event, but she hoped that telling Wade would somehow help him to better understand her position in the castle.
Chloe was no fool, she saw how her new guest looked at her, knew how she looked at him as well. Part of her hoped that in telling him her story would cause him to lose interest in her, that perhaps that loss of interest would take hers away as well. She couldn’t afford to enter into any relationship whether it was physical or more. Truth be told, she wasn’t sure she could ever let another man touch her. She believed Carrick stole that.
“People talk and I would rather you hear it from me.”
Wade nodded and took another drink from his glass. Chloe watched as the shadow from the flames he watched danced across his face.
“I was the handmaiden to the late Carrick McLoughlin’s daughter, Eleanora. We grew up together, I was only but a year older than her. My mother worked for McLoughlin as well, and my father was his stable hand.” Chloe sipped from her whiskey, and let the burn from the liquid ease away some of the memories. “My parents both died of sickness when I was young, and the McLoughlin family took me in. The lady of the castle, Carrick McLoughlin’s wife passed away soon after. It wasn’t long after that when the staff began noticing the way McLoughlin was treating his maids. They would show up with new bruises, or wouldn’t show back up at all. Most of the staff left, but I stuck with Eleanora. She wasn’t mean like her father, but she was daft and paid no attention to anything that went on. When she was married off to the McKinley, I went with her.”
&
nbsp; “McKinley?” Wade asked.
“Aye, Garrett McKinley was married before Carissa.”
Wade nodded and stayed quiet so she could continue.
“Eleanora became pregnant fairly quickly, and I overheard a conversation she and her father had during one of his visits. He told her that if the babe was a boy, she was to kill McKinley as he slept.” Chloe tightened her hands into fists. “I kept silent, prepared to warn Garrett if the babe was a boy, but Eleanora began experiencing her pains early, and both she and the babe died. Twas a girl and although Garrett didn’t love Eleanora, he grieved for them both.”
“If he didn’t love her, then why did he marry her?”
“Twas arranged. Neither truly loved each other. Garrett had hoped the union would keep the two clans at bay. If the McKinley’s had gone to war with the McLoughlin’s they would have been devastated as the McLoughlin’s outnumbered them two to one.” When he nodded, she continued. “After she died, I came back here, and McLoughlin came to me. I foolishly believed he was grieving his daughter so I thought I would console him. Evil man or not, I felt for him. He had discovered I had told Garrett of his plan and he forced himself on me as a punishment. I left immediately after and went into hiding in the village.”
Chloe watched as Wade stood and began to pace. She could feel the anger rolling off of him, and wondered why he felt such emotion. It was years ago, and the man was dead. She continued anyways. “It wasn’t long before I realized I was carrying his child. I didn’t go to him, knowing that he would take my baby. So I chose to raise the child on my own, and I did. It wasn’t until Carrick kidnapped your friend Carissa and Garrett killed him that I admitted to anyone who Fergus’s father was.”
“Kidnapped her?” His anger doubled now, and Chloe nodded. “Did he-”
“No, he did not force himself on her. Garrett rescued her before Carrick had his way. Garrett told everyone that Fergus was the rightful heir to the McLoughlin land and everyone accepted that. Whether it was because they suspected it already. or they feared Garrett McKinley I’m not sure.”
Their Own Time: A Trio of Time Travel Romance Novelette's Page 9
