by Vines, Jolie
In a smart shirt, Lochie knelt on the floor, waiting on me. In his hand was a small box. Around, more candles glowed, casting warm light over flowers on the table and my handsome man. I’d never witnessed a scene more beautiful.
I closed the door and leaned against it, my heart hammering.
Isla beamed at us both and cleared her throat. “Da has something to ask ye. For both of us.”
Tears sprang into my eyes, and I swiped them away, not wanting to miss a second.
Lochie smiled and beckoned me closer, then opened the box to expose a gold ring studded with three diamonds. Simple, beautiful, and perfect.
“Caitriona, from the first moment I saw ye, I knew ye were extraordinary. Ye took two lost souls in me and my lass and made us a home. Both of us love ye. Both of us want to keep ye. Marry me, please. Become my wife and Isla’s ma. Make us the happiest family that ever lived.”
“Say yes!” Isla cheered. “Please, please, please.”
My heart swelled, overbrimming with more love than I could believe existed. “God, yes! Of course I will. I love ye both, too.”
I half fell into Lochie’s arms, bringing Isla into the mix. She squeezed us tight then danced around the living room, ecstatic in her joy.
Lochie stared at me. He took the ring from the box and slid it onto my finger. Then he kissed me.
“Ew,” Isla yelled.
I loved her so much, but right now, I only had eyes for her da, and my hunger for him grew. Later, when his—no, our—little lass slept, I’d show him how much this meant.
Lochie kissed me again softly, then stood and glanced out of the window.
“Right,” he said to Isla. “Grab your bag.”
I glanced between them. “Where are we going?”
A horn sounded outside, and Lochie grinned.
“That’s your ma. Isla’s having a sleepover at theirs tonight.”
Oh.
My pulse picked up, and I hugged Isla on autopilot then waved to Ma from the door. She beamed but didn’t come in, instead sweeping Isla into her car.
Thank heck, because I had a huge man to tackle to the floor and prove my love to.
But Lochie had his own idea. The moment he closed the door, he turned and grabbed me, and threw me over his shoulder.
I choked on a laugh, the upside-down hallway showing me where he was taking me. Then I landed on our bed and lifted my gaze to find Lochie dragging off his shirt, shedding buttons in the process.
“Whoa, someone’s in a hurry.” I beamed.
“Clothes off,” he ordered.
I shivered at his dark tone and stripped in seconds. Then he knelt on the bed between my legs and covered my body with his. Already hard, his dick throbbed against my core.
Bare.
In the past month, we’d slept together every night, but neither of us had mentioned birth control. Or stopping using it. I knew he was giving me a chance to adjust to the idea of us becoming a family.
I was already so rich with love.
Lochie kissed me, our words lost to our lips and the passion that swept over us like a forest fire. One kiss led to more and, in a minute, we were clasping each other, want and need building to a crescendo. His bare skin grazed mine.
My core was slick and wet, ready for him.
Then Lochie slowed and pressed his forehead to my cheek. “Fiancée,” he muttered.
I chuckled and sucked in a breath. “Ye like that?”
“Wife will be better. Do I get to call ye beautiful now?”
I burst out in a laugh. Months ago, I’d asked him not to, but how things had changed.
“Aye,” I murmured. “Can we get married soon?”
“Whenever ye like, my beautiful lass. I need to ask ye something.” He glanced down between us, to his dick so close to my entrance.
“No more condoms,” I said for him. “I already have you and Isla. You’ve given me everything I could ever need. But if we had a baby, too…”
Unleashed, Lochie surged and filled me, the stretch so right. I moaned, and he notched his head to my shoulder, pausing for a second before withdrawing to thrust again.
“That will be perfect,” he uttered. “You’re perfect. All mine.”
Those were the last words either of us said for a long while. With the house empty, we made the most of our privacy, loving each other and taking our time to show exactly how much. From our bed to the shower and back again, it was late by the time we made it to the kitchen for food.
Deliciously sore, I hugged my arms around Lochie’s t-shirt that I’d claimed, and watched him warm up then serve a meal he’d made.
Tomorrow, we’d surprise Isla by getting her a puppy. One day, we’d hopefully add to our family even more.
I’d never expected him, but Lochie was truly my other half. For so long, I’d been alone, and I’d thought myself happy.
How far I’d come.
Happiness was a grumpy, growling mountain man, made for me and perfectly mine.
And I, Caitriona McRae, was well and truly obsessed.
Epilogue
Cameron
On the warm bonnet of my car, I reclined, not that I could feel the tiniest degree of relaxation. Tension and stress racked me, and I grumbled to myself, watching the sun descend from my high point on the mountain. Months had passed since I’d been shot. Multiple surgeries had removed the pellets, the last just a few weeks ago. With physiotherapy to help the nerve damage and rebuilding muscle, I’d get back to my old self, and to my job.
I needed that physical exertion like I needed air.
A fucker to achieve when I couldn’t use my strength.
In the meantime, I was going out of my mind. I couldn’t work. Couldn’t sleep. I felt stupid for putting myself in the line of that fucker’s shotgun barrel.
Lochie allowed me to help with the training and management of the mountain rescue but refused my request to go on call-outs. I missed it. The hard use of my body.
Truth of it? I was pent up, strung out, and seriously bored.
A dangerous combination of emotions for a man like me.
I worked hard to keep a calm exterior, and not to show the wildness inside me, but the battle was getting tougher. Soon enough, I’d lose it altogether.
From down in the late-spring heather, Ellie gave a wuff, and seconds later, my phone rang from inside the cab. I leapt down, ignoring the pain of the jolt, and collected the device.
Leo, the screen read. My favourite rock star, and husband of Viola, my cousin. I spent a lot of time with the couple and worked for Vi’s da, often living in their castle while they were away on tour.
They were home now. Vi was due to give birth in a couple of weeks so they’d be around for a while. I answered the call, a grin at the ready.
“Cam, I need to ask a favour,” Leo said.
“God, anything. Put me to work.”
“I have a friend coming to stay on the estate. They need collecting from the airport tonight. Viola’s in some pain, and I don’t want to leave her. Can you help?”
“Nae problem. Give me his name and flight time, and I’ll fetch him.”
“Her,” Leo corrected. “This is where it gets complicated. My guest is Elise. You know the film star? She acted in one of my music videos and she needs a getaway to handle some shit that’s going on. I told her where better than the Highlands? I have a bothy organised for her to stay in, but there could be problems with getting her here safely.”
I hummed interest, but my mind was away, spinning. Leo didn’t know, but from a young teen, I’d had the biggest crush on Elise.
Notorious for many reasons.
So fucking gorgeous she had me in pieces.
In my darkest moments, recovering from my injuries, I’d let her pretty face be my distraction. I’d played her movies too many times, lost in my own thoughts and needing to climb out, and using fantasy to do so.
Even my damn dog was named for her. I reached and ruffled Ellie’s fur, and she panted h
appily then bounded into the car.
Aye, I knew the name Elise, but I wasn’t daft enough to imagine I knew anything about the real person.
Then I caught up with Leo’s words. “What do you mean problems with getting her here?”
“She’s being hounded by the press. If they find her and follow her back to the estate, she’ll be worse off than when she started.”
My sense of alertness ramped up, adrenaline flooding my underused system. “Will they chase the car?”
“I hope not. Don’t get into a pursuit.”
Leo filled in the rest of the details. She’d land in Inverness in just a few hours. I’d come face to face with the woman I’d imagined so many times.
I hung up, and my heart thundered.
Finally, I had a purpose. A dark night, roads I knew like the back of my hand, aye, I was the right man for the job. I just had to wind in my age-old crush before I met the lass of my dreams, then prepare to save her from those who hunted her.
* * *
Elise
I was being followed. Despite the subterfuge—my disguise, zero entourage, and the cheap plane ticket to a place no one should be able to find me—I sensed attention on me, hot and cloying.
Stifling where already I could barely breathe.
I stole a peek over my shoulder, using my raised hood and carry-on bag to hide the look.
Farther back in the arrivals queue, a figure stared right back at me.
Fuck. Fuck!
A photographer, I was certain. Or was I being paranoid? That was possible. I shuffled forward as the line moved, fear sweeping down my spine.
As soon as I’d got off the plane, I’d read Leo’s message about his friend collecting me. Though he’d sent a picture of the man and the car license plate, tendrils of panic flooded my already mixed-up system.
Strangers pursued me. A stranger would be driving me.
I was a mess. Daylight scared me. Life fucking scared me. After everything that happened on that movie set…
No. I couldn’t think about it.
This short break was meant to help, yet dread was my new best friend.
“Miss?” A voice summoned me forward to the immigration window.
I handed over my passport with trembling fingers.
The woman showed no reaction to my name or face, and only waved me through. My heartbeat picked up more.
This was my chance.
The person who’d somehow followed me on my flight was still in the queue. I didn’t have any luggage beyond my bag so I was good to go.
As soon as I’d cleared the corner, I took off.
Sprinting, I rounded the barriers and jogged through the airport, my legs unsteady after the long cross-Atlantic flight. The dark night outside called me, and I burst from the exit, sucking in my first breath of cool Scottish air.
But I moved too fast. My feet hadn’t stopped when they should.
I stumbled straight into the road.
Right into the path of a large off-roader.
The wide blue eyes of the driver—the man from the photo Leo had sent—were the last things I saw. Then everything went black.
The End.
Order Cameron and Elise’s shocking and swoony romance, Hunted (Wild Mountain Scots, #2), here.
Thank you for reading Cait and Lochie’s story! Want a glimpse into their happy future? Read on…
Bonus Epilogue
Caitriona
The message landed on my phone with a rude buzz, and my heart sank. I’d been dreading work interrupting my day, although it was almost inevitable. But as I went to read the screen, the bairn on my shoulder let out a warbling wail.
I pocketed the device and stroked the wee lass’s back, bouncing her gently. The scent of her soft hair drove my hormones crazy.
I was coming to the peak of the most fertile part of my cycle, so I was a goner for baby fever.
“There, there. What’s all this fuss about? Ye miss your ma? She’s right over there, sweetheart.”
Dainty, dark-haired Persephone, daughter of Rose and Sebastian, continued her wail, far louder than seemed possible.
Across Casey’s kitchen, Rose lifted her head from where she was chatting with Casey. “I’ll take her, my little air raid siren. She’s due a feed.”
I nodded, and the woman collected her daughter, popping her shirt up to get the bairn to her lunch.
We’d gathered at Casey’s this morning ostensibly for tea and chat but also to swap baby cuddles. Isobel had brought Archie—huge compared to his younger cousins—and Rose was staying with them for a couple of days on a visit. Casey bounced her newborn daughter, Callie, in a springy chair and, on a sofa, heavily pregnant Viola yawned.
Though I hadn’t yet fallen pregnant, I was in seventh heaven. Babies everywhere.
Casey joined me. “How’s things at work?”
I wrinkled my nose. “Awkward. Every time I have to see or talk to Rupert, he’s snarky and rude.”
“That man should’ve been jailed for not reporting his nephew.”
I sighed agreement. “I just had a message come in to my phone. It’ll be him. He should’ve sent me back some papers yesterday, and he knew I had today off for a long weekend. I think I’ll have to go home and log on to catch up.”
“Can’t he finish up the task by himself?”
“He could, but he won’t.”
“Why don’t you quit?”
That…was a great idea. Where before I’d been indifferent to my job, now I truly disliked it. Rupert was a pain, Jill, his PA, was actively hostile—she had a thing for him, I was certain—but it paid the bills. Or would do if Lochie let me spend any of my money on our household. We were lucky that his cottage was paid for as part of his job, and I didn’t need to pay rent anymore as I’d given up the place next door.
Maybe now was the time for a career change.
“Incoming male. Need coffee for me and Brodie. Eyes hidden,” Blayne announced then stepped into the room, an arm held out to guide him and his other hand concealing his eyes.
“You’re safe,” Rose quipped. “No boobs out right now. Petal decided against her lunch.”
“Grand.” He uncovered his face and moved in on Casey, kissing her before kneeling to his daughter in the chair.
Casey put on a pot of coffee, and I used the distraction to check Rupert’s message. It was infuriating that I’d have to give up my mum-and-baby morning for him, but duty called.
Except, the message wasn’t from him.
Lochie: Pack up. I’m taking ye away for a few days.
I stared, then hit the Call button.
He answered straight away. “Hello, lass.”
My blood warmed. “What do ye mean we’re going away? Where?”
“Your da is picking up Isla from school. Ye and I have business to attend to.”
“What business?”
He clucked his tongue. “Pack light. Ye willnae need much. It’ll be just us and a hidden cabin. Meet ye at home around two.” Then he hung up.
I blinked, my mind racing over the mystery.
Just us and a cabin? A flush of heat rippled over me. A dirty weekend. That’s what it sounded like. With Isla in the house, we had to choose our alone time carefully, my parents providing the occasional sleepover for her.
I wouldn’t turn down a few days of just me and my mountain man.
“Not your boss, I take it from your blushing?” Casey raised an eyebrow.
“Nope. Lochie has something planned.”
At Casey’s side, Blayne smirked, glancing away.
I poked my cousin in the chest. “Ye know something, I can tell. Spill it.”
“Never.” He ducked to whisper in Casey’s ear.
My friend grinned big. “Same place? No way. That’s so cool.”
I opened my mouth, glancing between the pair. “What place? Why is it cool?”
But I only got a pair of infuriating smiles in return.
“You’ll see,” said Blayne
.
* * *
At 2PM on the dot, Lochie’s car rolled up outside our cottage. He leapt out and opened the passenger-side door, ready for me.
I leaned on wall outside our home. “I’ve been going out of my mind wondering what you’ve got planned.”
My huge fiancé bore down on me then pulled me into his arms. His warm, insistent lips met mine, and his hand held my head, his other landing on my back to clamp me to his body.
For a long moment, I forgot even my own name.
In all ways, Lochie owned me. My heart, my sexuality.
God, how I loved this man.
“In the car, Caitriona,” he muttered, his tone dark and delicious.
My breath caught, and I hurried around the Land Rover.
But as I buckled myself in, my phone rang again.
Rupert Gaskill, the screen read. I grumbled at it.
Lochie climbed in his side and glanced at the screen. “What does that jackass want?”
“Me to do some work for him. Despite the fact he’s caused the delay.”
“Can I answer?”
Amusement chased my now entirely horny state. “If ye like.”
Lochie took the still buzzing phone and answered. “Aye? What do ye want?”
I could just about hear a spluttering Rupert replying.
“Naw. Get away with ye. She’s on holiday today. Do it yourself, man.”
Lochie hung up without pause and handed the phone back to me, grinning for getting to abuse my boss.
I leaned over and kissed his cheek. “I could’ve done that myself.”
“But ye love it when I defend ye.”
I really did.
He drove us away from the McRae estate and out into the national park. For half an hour, he evaded my questions on where we were going, but pretty quickly we pulled up outside a set of wooden steps leading up into the trees.
Thick forest surrounded us, no other house or person in sight.
We were completely alone.
Lochie jumped out then rounded the car to my side. He opened my door and lifted me into his arms.
