by Donna Grant
She nodded quickly. “You know why I live alone. You know what happens when others touch me. And look at you. You’re a man women fight over.”
“Aye, I know what happens when people touch you, but I’m no’ having a vision.” She thought he was good looking? That was a nice surprise, and one he wanted to take advantage of. He pulled her a fraction closer.
She went willingly, as if she didn’t know what he was doing. Just how long had it been since she had been in a man’s arms? And what kind of men were on Coll that didn’t see the amazing woman she was?
“I can’t make you have a vision.”
Her voice was low, a husky whisper that made Dale’s balls tighten with need. “Did it no’ occur to you that I might want more from you than a vision?”
“What do you want?”
Dale lowered his head and kissed her. He meant it to be a quick kiss, but as he began to pull back, she leaned up for more.
The desire that filled him was instantaneous and wild. He’d never felt anything so compelling, gripping.
Captivating.
Even as he wanted to give into the raging need, he made himself pull back. He reluctantly ended the kiss, but he couldn’t release Rennie. Her body trembled in his arms as she clung to him.
How long had he watched the couples from MacLeod Castle and yearned to have a woman of his own? How many times had he wondered how it would feel to have someone look at him with love and devotion?
“Why did you stop?” she asked.
Dale made a sound at the back of his throat. His body was asking him the same thing. For once he was going to do the right thing. “I doona want to take advantage of you.”
“Liar.”
He looked into her eyes and became lost. He was falling, tumbling. Plunging.
It was her compassion, her gentleness that had transfixed him.
With a smile she had mesmerized, charmed.
Fascinated.
No longer did he want to lie about who he was or what he had done. If there was a way to wash the sins away, he would do it in a heartbeat.
How could he, who had lived and breathed evil for so long, dare to be in the presence of someone as pure and good as Rennie? He should walk away that instant.
But the invisible ties that had drawn him to her had been fused. He knew in that instant that he would never be able to walk away from her.
“My past prevents me from taking what I want,” he finally said.
She licked her lips, bringing his attention to them. “What is it you want?”
“You. I want you.” Dale stepped away from her then, knowing if he didn’t, he would kiss her again.
Rennie stared at him a second before she turned and checked on the soup, and then keeping her back to him she asked, “Will you tell me of your past?”
“I’m no’ sure you really want to know.”
Rennie served two bowls and set them on the table with bread. Then she handed a bottle of wine to Dale as she got out the glasses. Dale opened the wine and poured it before he sat.
“I can no’ remember the last time I had a home-cooked meal and ate at a table.” He lifted the spoon to his mouth and savored the rich flavors. “Verra good, lass.”
Rennie shrugged, but he saw her smile before she ducked her head. “Are you afraid of what I’ll think of your past?”
“Aye.” He knew exactly how she would respond, and he wouldn’t fault her for it. “But I’m in your house accepting your hospitality. I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”
“Then tell me of your past. All of it,” she urged.
While they ate, he told her of his family and how his mother had been the most wonderful woman he knew. He told her of entering the military and having an outstanding career. It had been his intention to continue with the military when his mother died.
“I was lost after that. I got out of the military and fell in with a rough crowd. It wasna until two years later that Jason Wallace found me.”
“Who is Jason Wallace?”
“A drough. He unbound my god, and I found myself working for him. His power was immense. I saw him kill indiscriminately, and he made it clear that if I tried to leave he would kill me.”
Rennie pushed aside her empty bowl. “Did you stay for fear of being killed?”
“That and Aisley. She was Jason’s cousin, but he had tortured her when she tried to leave. She was also drough, but Jason had the help of the Devil to increase his magic. No one stood a chance against him.”
“So you helped Aisley,” Rennie said. “You must have cared for her.”
Dale finished his wine and gently set aside the glass. “I did, though I knew she didna feel the same. Jason wanted to rule the world, Rennie. He was in a war with the Warriors and Druids of MacLeod Castle.”
“A war?” she asked with a shudder. “The Warriors and Druids banded together?”
“They were husbands and wives. Each Warrior had taken a Druid as his own, and the combination of all of them was enough to keep Jason from winning. But Jason wouldna relent. They led us into a trap several months ago with beings called the selmyr.”
“What are they?”
“They are ancient creatures that were accidentally released and who fed off of magic—namely Druids.”
Rennie sat back, her eyes wide. “Where are they now?”
“Gone. But during the battle they were attacking us. I forfeited my life so Aisley could have hers.”
Rennie raised a dark brow. “Your life doesn’t look so forfeited now,” she said with a grin.
“I should’ve died that day. I wanted to die.”
Chapter Four
Rennie swallowed hard. The sincerity shining in Dale’s eyes told her he had wanted to die that day. “But you didn’t.”
“Nay. I should have. All the bite marks left me too weak to do anything. I lost consciousness, fully expecting to die, but I didna.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“I did terrible things for Jason. I killed for him.”
She slowly leaned back in her chair. “Did you willingly kill? Did you enjoy it?”
“Nay.”
“You did what you had to do in order to survive.”
He grunted and poured more wine into his glass. “That’s ballocks. There will come a time I’ll have to pay for all I’ve done.”
“I don’t think you’re evil, Dale. I think you got dealt a bad situation and managed to get through it. During that time you tried to protect Aisley, willingly sacrificing yourself for her. If you were a bad person, would you seek out an isle to hide on? No. You’d be out there finding another drough to work with.”
When he didn’t answer, she grabbed both bowls and stood. Her mother had told her Warriors had been created to fight for Briton, but then the gods had taken over. Yet her aunt had cautioned her that it was never wise to deem everything good or evil, because it could come back to bite you.
They were words Rennie had lived by, and it was what kept her from throwing Dale out of her house as soon as he’d told her what he was. Now she was glad she hadn’t, because she was coming to see the man he was.
It took her little time to clean the kitchen, and when she turned around, Dale was standing next to the fridge, leaning against it as he observed her with hooded eyes.
Many years had passed since she had seen desire, but she recognized it in his eyes now. And it sent her heart pounding and her blood heating.
“What’s your magic, Druid?” he asked softly.
She lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “I don’t have anything really.”
“A Druid with no special magic. That only occurs when the magic is weak, and yours, lass, is anything but.”
Though she knew she shouldn’t, she found herself asking, “What does my magic feel like?”
“Incandescent bliss. Irresistibly piercing. Enticingly brilliant.” He straightened, his dark eyes holding hers. “Seductively compelling.”
No one had ever spoken to her tha
t way, and it left Rennie reeling. She was adrift in a sea of need and desire she couldn’t navigate. And the only thing she could hold onto was … Dale.
“Even that doesna truly describe what the feel of your magic does to me. I can no’ get enough of it—or you.”
His voice had gone low, the timbre making chills race over her skin it was so erotic, but it was nothing compared to the fire in his eyes.
She knew he was waiting on her. He told her of his desire, now he was leaving it up to her to decide what she wanted. Rennie wanted him, but would the past repeat itself? Dale didn’t seem to care about the visions.
The one he’d seen had kept him at her house, but she didn’t think that’s why he remained now. At least she prayed that wasn’t the reason.
As much as she wanted to go to him, did she have the courage? Could she put the past behind her and move on in the hope the past didn’t repeat itself?
“Do you feel the passion between us, Druid? Or are you afraid of giving in to it?”
“Yes and … yes.”
One side of his mouth lifted in a devastating smile. “You’ve been in my dreams for months. I couldna see your face or hear your voice, but I knew your magic. Your magic led me here, to you. I doona know why, and right now, I doona care.”
Rennie’s mouth went dry. Her body was screaming for her to take the few steps separating them and wrap her arms around him while her mind was reminding her of the disaster of the last relationship she’d tried to have.
Indecision kept her rooted, but it was the disappointment in Dale’s eyes she saw right before he turned away that propelled her forward. Rennie hurried to him and put her hand on his shoulder to turn him.
As she did, she pressed her mouth to his. In the next instant, he had her against the wall, his hard body blocking her in. His kiss was intense and wild.
And she loved every second of it.
He broke away, his breathing as ragged as her own. Dale looked into her eyes with his face close to hers. “Tell me you want this. Tell me you want me.”
“I want you,” Rennie said and pulled his head back down for another kiss.
Their passion was explosive, sizzling. Scorching. It was an inferno raging out of control now that the flames had been fanned.
Buttons flew, fabric ripped as they frantically fought to remove the other’s clothes. They couldn’t get to each other fast enough.
Rennie moaned when he reached between them and cupped her breast before rolling her nipple between his fingers. Her fingers delved into his short, dark hair as he kissed down her throat.
He lifted her, and she wrapped her legs around his waist as he smiled at her. “Which way to your room?”
“Down the hall to the left.”
He strode from the kitchen and made his way to her room. There she unwound her legs, and he slowly lowered her until she was standing.
“It’s been a long time for me,” she hedged, suddenly uncertain of what to do.
“Your body knows.”
Rennie lowered her gaze to stare at the thick sinew of his chest and arms. Unable to help herself, she caressed her hands over his warm flesh, amazed at the strength beneath her palms that could be unleashed with barely a thought. “Does it?”
He leaned close until his mouth was near her ear. “Aye, lass,” he whispered.
Rennie shivered from the sound of his voice. She had never had a one-night stand, and she knew this was most likely where she was headed. Even as she knew it was wrong, she couldn’t stop herself. She wanted Dale, wanted to feel the passion and desire that made everything else fade away.
“Have you had a vision?”
He leaned back and shook his head. “Stop thinking, Rennie, and just feel.”
She opened her mouth to reply when his finger slid between her bare breasts and didn’t stop until he reached her navel. Everywhere he touched, her body burned, eager for more.
“Stop thinking,” he ordered. “You’ll make me believe I’m no’ doing a good enough job.”
Rennie grabbed hold of him to keep steady when he circled her nipples leisurely until her breasts swelled and her nipples peaked.
He took her mouth in another bold kiss as he gently lowered her to the bed. Rennie sucked in a ragged breath when his weight settled atop her.
Flesh to flesh, body to body, their hands and mouths explored and learned. Time melted away until it was only the two of them. Rennie could think of nothing else, could feel nothing else but Dale.
His touch left her panting, his kisses made her weak with need. He knew just where to touch to make her moan, just how to stroke to bring her higher and higher.
She clutched the covers when his fingers delved into the curls between her legs. He teased her mercilessly until he slid his fingers inside her. Rennie cried out from the wonderful feeling, even as he began to move his fingers in and out of her.
When his thumb circled her clitoris, she felt herself tightening as her body reached for the climax. Rennie wanted to hold back, to enjoy it more, but Dale wouldn’t allow it.
He continued his assault, pushing her closer and closer to the edge until she shattered.
Dale watched as the orgasm took her. With his name on her lips and her skin flushed, she was all he could ever want. And he wasn’t nearly done with her.
He shifted until he was kneeling beside the bed between her legs. Then he leaned in to lick her. Her body jerked even as she moaned in pleasure. He loved the taste of her and continued to lick and lave until she was writhing on the bed.
Only then did he rise up and kneel one leg on the bed. Her green eyes met his, and the unabashed need, the blatant desire he saw was his undoing.
Dale leaned over her, the head of his cock grazing her. She opened her legs wider and urged him to her. He was powerless to resist. And with one thrust, he entered her.
Their bodies began to move slowly at first, the tempo building with their need. Just as he had known, once he was inside her, he felt … complete.
Her fingers dug into his back as she met him thrust for thrust. Their gazes clashed, held and something shifted between them, deepened … heightened.
Dale clutched the blanket as her magic swelled from her, encompassing both of them and intensifying his already out-of-control passion.
“More,” she said as she wrapped her long legs around him.
He groaned and grabbed her hips and adjusted her so that he sank deeper into her. Her walls were hot and slick, gripping him tightly.
Even as he fought to hold back his own orgasm, her body was too much to resist. With their skin slick and their breaths coming hard, he thrust harder, deeper with each shift of his hips.
“Dale,” she cried as her body clamped down on his cock with her second orgasm.
That’s all it took to send him tipping into his own climax. With one last plunge, he gave in to the pleasure as his seed filled her.
Like a cocoon, peace and contentment found him as he settled in the arms of a Druid who was as beautiful as she was powerful.
Chapter Five
December 20th
Dale woke from a night of strange dreams that flitted through his mind as swiftly as the wind, and just like the wind, he wasn’t able to catch a single memory of any of the dreams.
He turned his head on the pillow to see Rennie curled on her side with her back to him. They had fallen asleep in each other’s arms, and though Dale didn’t consider himself a cuddler, he discovered he wanted to hold her.
The bed squeaked as he turned on his side and molded his body to hers. Rennie let out a sigh and snuggled back against him.
Instantly, a vision slammed into him. This one was different. This time his god was unbound and he stood on Rennie’s land, the snow falling as he watched a female drough with red hair get out of a silver car. The anger and resentment coming from the drough was directed not at him—but Rennie.
As quickly as the vision came, it vanished, leaving Dale swimming in a sea of uncertainty. He rolle
d onto his back and started at the ceiling as he blew out a breath.
“What is it?” Rennie asked sleepily while she turned over and rested her head on his shoulder.
Since he knew how much the visions were a bone of contention with her, Dale decided not to say anything. “I think the storm let up.”
“Hmm. I’ll need to go check on my cattle. I hate to leave the warmth of the bed though.”
She smiled up at him, and he felt his chest constrict. How could a woman who possessed the same magic he felt in his dreams be real? Was it fate that sent him to her? Destiny maybe?
Or did it really matter?
Perhaps there was something else at work in the universe, because somehow he had been given the very thing he hadn’t known he needed. His arm tightened around Rennie even as the vision replayed in his head.
He wouldn’t let anything or anyone harm her. She needed to be protected, safeguarded from all the evil in the world. Not because he needed her, but because she was precious and all that was good.
It shook him, this necessity to guard her. No longer did it matter why he’d been brought to Coll. All that mattered was her. Rennie had wormed her way into his mind, and he feared she had gone even deeper than that.
He felt something for her, of that he was sure. It was more than infatuation, more than lust, but he refused to think of just what it could be.
“I’ll check on the animals,” he said. “The cold doesna bother me as it does you.”
“Because you’re a Warrior?”
“Aye,” he said and kissed her forehead. “I have to say, I’m surprised. You’ve taken the news of what I am better than I expected.”
“Did you think I’d scream and demand you leave?”
Her guileless green eyes stared up at him. After all the deceit he had been forced to endure, it amazed him that someone like Rennie existed. “Something like that, lass.”
“My aunt always told me that I should judge people individually. Like it wasn’t good to say all Druids were good, just as I shouldn’t make the mistake of thinking all Warriors were evil.”
While she spoke, her fingers idly drew upon his chest, making it difficult for Dale to concentrate. “Did your aunt know there were Warriors about?”
