Unmistakable hope lit her eyes. “How can you be so certain?”
“How can you not be?”
Still hopeful, her eyes lingered on his for another moment, her internal war obvious before resolution returned to her gaze, and she faced forward again.
“Though I wish it were otherwise, this doesn’t override what your parents shared, Tiernan.” She settled back against him. “It doesn’t change the fact that sleeping with you might mean I can’t protect you anymore.”
“Nay.” Yet one thing was clear. “But it does bring us one step closer together. Because the stone’s color is most certainly the shade of our two eye colors combined. Which, if I were to guess, means that ‘tis only a matter of time before you receive the certainty you need.” He knew he had sounded impatient earlier and wanted her to know he could handle it. That he would wait no matter how long it took. “A certainty I will gladly wait for even if it takes a lifetime.”
“That’s an awfully long time to go without sex,” she pointed out.
“But I would,” he said softly, never more serious. “For you.”
Though he'd lain with a few women over the years mainly because she’d done the same with men, it still felt like he was waiting. That he’d been waiting his whole bloody life. Yet he would wait the rest of it as long as he could keep her close. As long as they weren’t hundreds of years apart anymore.
“What was that all about?” Aidan trotted up alongside them. “I swore I saw the sword glow.”
“Aye then?” Tiernan said, not overly surprised his cousin saw such. As it were when their magic wasn’t fluctuating, Aidan was nearly as powerful as him and an arch-wizard as well.
“Aye.” It didn't take long for Aidan to home in on Julie’s ring. He smiled. “Bloody hell, look at that! A verra welcome sight, aye, Cousin?”
“’Tis,” Tiernan replied, grinning.
The band of travelers slowed then stopped. It seemed they had made it to where they would make camp for the night.
“We’ll set the tents up, hunt, then join Thomas and the wee king, aye?” Aidan said. “Twill be good to enjoy some freshly roasted game.”
It was too when they eventually joined Thomas and King David in the royal tent. As always, the wee king sat quietly, his gaze astute. He might not speak as a rule, but his father’s intelligence was there, taking it all in. Mostly, Tiernan noted, taking in Julie. But then she had a way with the boy, often directing smiles at the lad. Ones that earned her not necessarily a smile in return but most certainly interest.
“We should arrive at the holding late tomorrow,” Thomas divulged as food was served. “But I expect scouts to meet up with us sooner with the latest news on Balliol and his miscreants.”
“News will be welcome,” Tiernan replied, knowing full well there wasn’t much of it at this juncture.
They enjoyed a pleasant meal with the regent and king, speaking mostly of what was going on in the country. The unrest and uprisings. David remained silent but always kept a keen eye on them. It was clear he liked Thomas by the respectful way he watched him. In turn, the regent liked the lad too, never speaking down to him but as though he were his equal despite his age.
Sir Thomas Randolph and King Robert the Bruce had been close, so it was no wonder he treated David well. But then he suspected Thomas would anyway. He was just that sort of man. Doing his best for his beloved country. One that had been warring most of his life.
Hopefully, the news from Thomas' scouts on the morrow would be promising. Yet as Tiernan, Julie, and Aidan learned on their walk back after dinner when they happened upon Grant, they might be hoping for too much.
Chapter Fifteen
“IT’S SO GOOD to see you, Grant,” she exclaimed, only to realize men around the campfires were looking at her strangely because she seemingly talked to thin air.
“’Tis good to see you as well,” Grant replied once they were away from all the others. His gaze went to her ring, and he smiled. “’Tis a fine gift from so many.” He looked from Tiernan to her, pleased. “One that binds you good and true to your lad, I’d say.”
“You’d say.” She sighed. “But don’t know for certain?”
“I know ‘tis a ring that brings true love together,” Grant replied. “I also know with Tiernan’s magic tied so heavily into it that true love does indeed exist betwixt you. Otherwise, the creation of the ring using both of your magic wouldnae have been possible.” He shook his head. “The Celtic gods would never have allowed it.”
“You mean my ancestors’ magic was used in its creation,” she corrected. “Not mine.”
“’Your magic is in there too, lass,” he replied. “If you cannae feel that already, you soon will.”
Tiernan seemed extremely pleased with everything Grant shared.
“’Tis truly a special ring, lass,” Grant went on, still studying it. “There has never been one that blended both the witch’s and wizard’s eye colors.”
“My magic was that color when it was still in the pendant, though,” she said.
“Magic sparked because of your wizard and you finding your way back to each other as you should,” Grant informed. “’Tis all verra unusual but telling too.”
“How so?”
“It all but confirms you two are meant to be.”
Tiernan’s smile only widened before he appeared curious. “Typically, the stone glows the color of the wizard’s eyes. ‘Tis how we know the power of true love has ignited.” He cocked his head. “So should I expect it to eventually turn my eye color?”
“I dinnae think so,” Grant replied. “But it couldnae hurt to look for the glow.” He shrugged. “Or not as you’ve already seen the color shine from the pendant.”
“So, there’s no way to know if the stone shining confirms anything.” She leaned against a tree and sighed again. “That means this doesn’t necessarily override the whole protector purity thing.”
“I think if anything, it confirms that your situation is different than your ancestors, Julie,” Grant said. “I would almost hazard to say it was a direct message from them that you should follow a mix of their ways and Tiernan’s.” He shook his head. “Or I dinnae think they would have taken part in its creation.”
“I just wish I could be sure,” she said, not willing to risk Tiernan’s safety on speculation even if Grant was the one doing it.
“You will be sure when the time is right,” Grant said, sounding convinced before he focused on the reason he had come. “I dinnae know why I didnae sense it before, but something of note stirs amongst Balliol’s disinherited. There is unrest in one of them that wasnae there last time.” His expression grew troubled. “Yet I cannae sense if magic is at the root of it or not.”
“It is,” she said softly, suddenly feeling a little off. “A new kind...but very, very old.”
She frowned, wondering why she had said that. Yet she was right. She just knew it.
“New but old, aye?” Grant considered her. “Much like that of the Guardian Witch, some might say. Magic new to us because we thought it long-extinct but verra much old magic to be sure.”
“Maybe,” she murmured, wishing she could sense more. But whatever she had just felt was now out of reach, like a memory struggling to be remembered. A wave of exhaustion overcame her, and she yawned. “Sorry, but I think I need to lie down.”
“It’s been a long day of riding,” Tiernan began then evidently sensed more. From what she could tell, her magic had flared in his mind, then simmered down.
“Using your new magic will tax you at first,” he went on, sounding sure of himself. “It will take time to adjust.”
“You felt it then, aye, lad?” Grant eyed him curiously. “Almost as if her magic were your own?”
“Aye,” Tiernan confirmed. “I’ve never felt anything like it.”
“Of course you havenae,” Grant replied. “But I have as have many before you.” Nostalgia lit his eyes as he clearly thought about his beloved Sheila. “’Tis the
power of the Claddagh ring. The power of twin souls coming back together.”
“So you speculate,” she murmured.
“So I know,” Grant stated. He bid them goodnight and puffed away but not before warning them to remain vigilant. Danger could very well find them before they found it.
“Thomas intends to leave at daybreak,” Aidan said, “so I’ll bid you goodnight as well.”
The Hamilton laird had been relatively quiet most of the evening, but she knew he was more often than not a contemplative sort, so it was to be expected.
“From a cot to a little tent,” she noted as she and Tiernan crawled into the tight quarters erected at the base of a tree. It was set up to offer them extra protection from the cool southerly wind.
“’Twill be fine, lass.” Tiernan murmured a chant, clearly relieved when his magic worked. A tiny flickering light no brighter than a candle ignited above them. He grinned at her. “Besides, I believe you promised me this at one time.”
“Yeah, when you were a pre-teen and wanted to camp out next to the old oak in front of the colonial.” She chuckled. “You always did have a thing for that tree.”
“All MacLomains do,” he reminded.
“Right, because its magic is tied in with the one outside your castle,” she mused. “Lots of family history.”
“Aye, ‘tis a good tree,” he replied. “And I appreciated you promising to build a tent next to it on my next visit.”
“Yet by the time you returned, you were too big,” she recalled, chuckling again. “Not to mention you were starting to make doe-eyes at me.” She shook her head. “If you camped out, you were on your own at that point.”
“Aye.” His grin blossomed into a smile. “If I recall, by the next visit, I wasnae the only one making doe-eyes.”
“Maybe not,” she relented, remembering all-too-well watching a boy leave and a man return. She had known he would grow up into a hottie, it was just in his DNA, but she wasn’t prepared for just how attracted she’d be to him. “I don’t think I’ll ever forget it.”
He pulled off his boots while she did the same.
“I know I willnae.” His smile remained intact, his eyes merry. “You nearly fell off the rock when you saw me.”
“No, I didn’t.”
He chuckled this time. “Aye, you did.”
“I didn’t expect to see you appear at the Stonehenge,” she began then trailed off when another one of those weird sensations washed over her.
“What is it, Jules?” he asked, alarmed at first, but at ease when he obviously sensed it wasn’t life-threatening.
“I don’t know,” she murmured, lying back on the plaid blanket he'd laid out. “It didn’t occur to me until just now, but that feeling I had when I saw you back then...was the same as the one I felt today.” She met his eyes, wondering what he made of that. “I felt it at the Stonehenge with my ancestors, Tiernan. The same exact feeling of...warmth and wonder. Attraction.”
“And what do you make of that?” He gave her a pointed look. “Because it sounds like even more confirmation that we're meant to be together.”
Of course, that was his takeaway, and it made sense. Not enough for her to say what she knew he wanted to hear, though.
“It probably is more confirmation,” she said softly. “But it’s not enough, and you know it.”
Though she really, truly wished it were.
She tried not to stare when he pulled off his shirt. Way to torture a girl who was determined to be on her best behavior. She licked her lips. He looked far too good. Way too many perfectly chiseled muscles. Yet her gaze was drawn to something she was fairly certain hadn't been there the last time she saw him.
“When did you get that?” she murmured.
Inexplicably drawn, she sat up and touched the circular tattoo on his shoulder. The moment she did, heat blew over her, and four arrow-looking shapes appeared connected at the center by a circle.
His eyes flared with magic then simmered down.
He had felt it too.
“I didnae have a tattoo there before.” He ran his fingers over it, frowning. “’Tis warm to the touch.”
“It is,” she agreed. Her ring caught her attention. “My ring’s changed.” Shocked, she looked from the Claddagh ring to the tattoo then back again. “The same design just appeared on the crowned heart encircling the stone.”
“We should summon Grant.” He glanced from her ring to his tattoo with uncertainty. “See what he makes of it.”
“How about in the morning?” God, she was tired, so she lay down again. “Neither my ring or your new tat feels dangerous to me. How about you?”
“Nay, but—”
“Please, Tiernan,” she murmured on a yawn. “Just lie down and hold me already.”
“Hold you?” He perked a brow in surprise. “Are you sure?”
“Positive.” She could barely keep her eyes open. “I’m too tired to...”
That’s the last thing she remembered saying before she dreamt of circles and stones swirling around her until they stopped moving, and she stood in the center. It was the design of Tiernan’s tattoo. The same one that had appeared on her ring.
Steeped in fog cut through by moonlight, the place felt mystical. Powerful somehow.
“Where are we?” she whispered, sensing Tiernan before he appeared out of the fog and joined her in the center of the stones. “Why are we here?”
“They are the stones of my Irish ancestors.” He eyed their surroundings with awe. “Yet some are missing.”
“Are we dreaming again then?” she whispered, taken by the sight of him, wanting him more by the moment. Drawn in a way that was as mystical and old-as-time as the stones themselves.
She knew something was off about it, but she didn’t care. Couldn’t. Not with him so close. So eager. With her in a way he never had been before.
“Aye, I think we are dreaming.” He reeled her close and tilted her chin up, seeing the same opportunity in this that she did. “And it doesnae matter what we do in a dream, lass.”
“How do you know?” Yet she really didn’t care.
All she wanted was to feel his lips on hers again.
To sink into the bliss he could bring her.
Rather than answer her, he gave her what she longed for. What she craved. He kissed her, soft at first before it grew more passionate and desperate. When she groaned, out of her mind already, way beyond caring if they should or shouldn’t do this, he took advantage and hoisted her up.
“Tiernan,” she moaned against his lips and wrapped her legs around his waist.
She trembled with blazing need when he pressed his erection against her. When he teased without taking. It never occurred to her that he hadn't chanted away their clothes, yet they had still mysteriously disappeared. But then this was a dream, right?
And they could do anything they wanted in a dream.
“Please,” she whimpered, nearly clawing at him, almost crazed. She needed him with a borderline primal vengeance. “Now.”
“Aye,” came a raspy voice seconds before Adlin’s voice boomed all around them.
“Wake up before ‘tis too late!”
Chapter Sixteen
HE JOLTED UPRIGHT when his father’s cane pounded down, and da’s magic pulsed around them.
“What the hell,” Julie exclaimed, bolting upright as well. Her worried eyes met his. “Are you...really you?” She looked him over concerned. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, lass.” He put his arm around her shoulders when he saw her trembling. “We both are.”
“Is your dad here? I could have sworn I heard him.”
“Me too.” He shook his head. “But he isnae here.”
“He isn't, is he?” she murmured, clearly connected to da now through Tiernan. “What just happened?” She leaned against him, subconsciously seeking comfort. “Because if that was a dream, it was a little too real for my taste.” Her eyes returned to his. “Your voice...”
; When she trailed off, he frowned.
“’Twas not my voice but ‘twas me up until that last moment, Jules.” He shook his head. “Dinnae doubt it for a second.”
He was still aching with arousal, so he had definitely been there. Yet something else had been there too at the very end.
Something had been trying to slip through.
“So were we in...Ireland?” she said softly.
“Aye,” he confirmed, not sure if he wanted to tell her what else they had been doing outside of the obvious.
“Just tell me.” Her gaze stayed on his eyes. “Because I certainly wasn’t in my right mind...not really.”
He considered how much she could handle right now but realized she would always be better off fully informed. She should understand as much as possible. It might very well save her life at some point.
“If I were to guess,” he said, “we were reenacting what brought my da into existence.” He tilted his head in acquiescence. “In his previous life, that is.”
Her brows shot up when she realized what he referred to. “Are you talking about the Irish king and the Druidess? His parents...” she cleared her throat, clearly uncomfortable she’d been anywhere near such, “conceiving him?”
He nodded. “If it makes you feel any better, ’tis not the first time something like this has happened over the generations.” He frowned as he thought about it. “Except this time, stones were missing.” He eyed his new tattoo, not sure what to make of things. “Come to think of it, the Stonehenge matched this.”
“You're right.” She traced her finger along his tattoo, lingering on the circle in the center. “We were right here.”
“Aye,” he murmured, sensing more.
As did she, it seemed.
“And we weren’t alone toward the end,” Julie murmured, her eyes narrowing. “Something tried to take you over, Tiernan.” She flinched then shivered. “Something dark...” Her eyes narrowed even more. “Something trying to gain access.” Her gaze focused on him again. “To what, though?”
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