Highlander's Rebellious Love (13 page)

“And you thought to do your wifely duties with me and be done with it, but you have discovered it is not that simple.”

“You stir things in me,” she admitted, then quickly added, “though it is probably nothing more than lust.”

“I suppose it is a possibility. Lust and love can often be confused, the difference being that one wanes fairly quickly whereas the other lingers in the heart and captures the soul, connecting the man and woman for life.”

“And how do you come by this knowledge?”

“Observation.”

“You have seen or perhaps experienced enough of both to reach this conclusion?”

“I have seen, and experienced, lust often enough to envy love when I see it. Love, thus far, has escaped me as I have already told you.”

Her legs had regained their strength, to her relief and she stepped away from the chair, no longer needing its support. She did recall him telling her that, though for some foolish reason she seemed relieved to hear it again. This man—her husband—played havoc with her thoughts and feelings, and that would not do.

Patience raised her chin a notch. “Lust or love, what difference does it make. We are wed and nothing will change that.”

“So we surrender to lust and be done with it?”

Why did his suggestion disturb her so? Would that not be the simplest solution?

Patience shook her head. “I cannot think on this anymore tonight.” It was a poor excuse, but a truthful one. She was tired in mind and body, and she preferred a good rest before deciding anything.

Hunter walked over to her and slipped a gentle arm around her. “I do not wish to add to your burden and I do not wish to force anything upon you.” He lifted her chin so that their eyes would meet. “When you are ready to make love, not just consummate our vows, then tell me and I will make love to you and show you what we can share together.”

“But our vows—”

“Are sealed as far as anyone is concerned. We are wed and we will stay wed.”

“Tonight—”

“We sleep together and every night from this night on, and when you are ready we will make love.” He brushed his lips over hers. “But know one thing,
mo chridhe
, I will not—I cannot—stop kissing or touching you. I favor the taste of you and my hands instinctively reach out to touch and comfort you, and I cannot stop from doing so.” He stepped back and took her hand. “Now come, we both need rest for tomorrow’s journey and whatever my brother has waiting for us.”

She went with him to the bed and after removing her boots and he doing the same, they settled beneath the blankets fully clothed. She turned on her side and he wrapped himself around her, kissed her cheek, and in a few minutes he was asleep.

Patience did not fare as well. She lay there thinking of what he had proposed and she wondered how long it would be before she gave into the passion that her husband had ignited in her.

Chapter Twelve

As usual, Patience woke during the early morning when light had yet to claim dominion over the land. Hunter lay wrapped around her and though his arms were a comfort, she also found them confining. She slipped away from him as gently as possible, needing distance, needing to be alone. She was glad she was clothed, allowing her to immediately take her leave, her boots in hand.

It was while she was slipping on her boots that she noticed a shadow rush by the pens that had once contained farm animals. She made her way quietly along the short distance and followed the shadow into the small cropping of woods. She kept her footfalls light and her breath shallow so as not to be detected.

When she heard a birdcall that sounded foreign, she halted her steps and listened. A rustle of branches caught her attention, and she ducked low to the ground, her ears alert and her eyes focused as much as possible in the dark just before dawn.

“He wants this settled,” a voice said with authority.

“I am trying, but it did not go as expected.”

Patience recognized Ewan’s voice.

“He wants no war,” the voice advised.

“I agree, but there are those who intend to prevail no matter what,” Ewan said.

“He will intervene if necessary and it will not be to anyone’s liking,” the voice informed.

“He may not have a choice,” Ewan said.

“Unfortunate,” the voice said.

“One thing,” Ewan said. “This one sister is not to be ignored. I fear nothing will stop her.”

“Time will,” the voice confirmed.

With each word, Patience grew angrier. Ewan had lied. He was more involved with the Dark Dragon than he had claimed. She calmed her temper and gave thought to her options. She would be foolish to make herself known, for then she chanced being taken prisoner like her sister. If she kept Ewan in sight, then he may just lead her to the Dark Dragon.

She would assign one of her warriors to trail him. Ewan McCuil was not to be let out of sight. He was her connection to the Dark Dragon and the thought gave her hope that she would finally have a way of finding her sister.

When the meeting between the two men was over and they took their leave, Patience waited before she moved, not wanting anyone to know that she had been there and heard the men talk. Daylight was just peeking on the horizon when she returned to camp, staying close to the shadows so that no one knew she had been in the woods.

She quickly sought out Edward and explained that Ewan was to be watched and followed at all times. The warriors would take shifts so that Ewan did not suspect anything, and this was to be kept in strict confidence, shared with no one outside the troop.

Patience shared an early breakfast with her warriors, her mind on what had transpired in the woods. She could not help but wonder if Una knew of Ewan’s involvement with the Dark Dragon or if Una herself knew the infamous warrior. And then there was Hunter. Could he possibly be more familiar with the Dark Dragon than he had admitted?

Ever since her arrival in this region of the Highlands, it seemed that more truths than lies sprouted. She would need to remain attentive, and as far as war? She agreed with the Dark Dragon on that one... she wanted no war.

But how to stop it and rescue her sister were the answers that most eluded Patience.

~~~

Hunter woke, not surprised to find the spot beside him in the bed empty. What continued to surprise him was that she had been able to slip away without him knowing it. He was usually alert to movement and sound, and yet he had felt or heard nothing. She was quite a skilled warrior.

With a slow stretch, he got himself out of bed ready to find his wife. A smile touched his lips as he thought about last night and wondered if she had left before he woke because she was fearful she would surrender to the passion that he had seen burn so often in her eyes and felt ignite just as often in her body.

He may have given her a choice of when they would make love, but he would make certain to see it brought to fruition sooner rather than later.

With thoughts of making love to her growing him hard, he left the cottage, forcing his thoughts elsewhere. They fell on his brother Greer and he realized the possible consequences if he should discover that Patience and his wedding vows had not been sealed. On the other hand, it mattered little, since Greer no doubt had plans to see him killed and a war started.

He spotted Patience at a rain barrel, filling a bucket with rainwater. Her shirtsleeves were rolled up well passed her elbows, exposing her taut muscled arms and the bruise that was beginning to fade. She hefted the full bucket with ease and placed it on a bench. She then got busy scrubbing her face, neck, arms, and hands. He had noticed that she did everything with intense determination, even now while she scrubbed herself it was not with slow leisure enjoyment, but firm intense movement. She dried herself the same way, tucking the cloth she used at her waist.

Hunter crossed his arms over his chest and rested back against the corner of the cottage, continuing to watch her. She yanked off the stripe of leather that held her hair back and shook her head so that her long dark hair fell freely around her face.

His breath caught in his chest, his arms fell to his sides, and his eyes rounded wide. He could not believe how freeing her hair had changed his wife’s appearance. He thought her a beautiful woman when he had first seen her, but with her dark hair released from its restraint to fall naturally over her shoulders and frame her face to perfection she was more than beautiful; she was stunning.

He winced for her, when she did not, as she roughly ran a comb through her long dark strands. She did it several times, then grabbed her hair and brought the silky strands to rest over one shoulder to comb, over and over again. Then she tossed her head so that her hair fell down her back and with deft hands restrained her lovely locks with the leather tie once again.

She set the comb on the bench and picked up a small crock that sat there and removed the top. She scooped something out with her fingers and began applying it to her face, neck, and then arms until she had rubbed it well into her skin.

Curious, Hunter finally walked over to her. The scent hit him when he was only a few feet from her and it stopped him, his nostrils flaring to drink in the pleasant aroma. It reminded him of a warm spring day when the wildflowers in the meadows were in full bloom.

He approached her with smile. “Do I smell wildflowers?”

She smiled while returning the top to the crock. “A salve my sister Heather created for me and Emma to keep our skin well-healed.”

He reached out and took hold of her arm, running a single finger over it ever so lightly. “I would say it works well since your skin feels so very soft and so very appealing.”

Patience eased her arm away from him reluctantly. She enjoyed the light feel of his finger stroking her arm, too much. It had sent ripples running through her that tingled her unmercifully, and she could not have that. She needed to remain focused at all times.

Hunter stepped closer, leaning down to sniff softly at her neck, then brought his lips to whisper in her ear, “Your delicious scent makes me want to touch and taste every inch of you.”

Patience took an awkward step back and Hunter reached out to take hold of her arm so she would not fall. His remark stirred images in her head that caused her cheeks to rise with a soft heat.

She was unable to stop from scolding him. “You are wicked.”

He laughed. “Oh,
mo chridhe
, I can be very wicked.” He kissed her quick and whispered, “And I would love for you to be wicked with me.”

She stared at him for a moment, giving it thought, then quickly stepped away. Whatever was the matter with her, letting his suggestion take root? She had to be careful around him, for he easily stirred her senseless.

“We have no time for this nonsense,” she scolded again. “We need to be on our way and we need to keep an eye out for your brother.”

“That we do,” Hunter agreed, then with a whisper said, “But we will eventually be wicked together.”

Patience’s cheeks flushed hot and it annoyed her that he could cause her to be embarrassed over mere words when she had faced men larger than him with confidence. Anger and instinct took over, and she smiled as she reached down and slipped her hand beneath his plaid to grab hold of his balls. “Just wanting to make sure you had a big enough pair to see the job done.”

“You might want to take hold of my manhood then to see if the size suits you as well.”

He dared her, and she could not ignore it. She grabbed hold of him and felt him surge in her hand. He was large and thick and smooth to the touch and she found that she quite liked the feel of him, and so she explored, caressing every inch of him and wondering how it would feel to have such strength inside her.

“Keep it up and I will break that agreement we made,” he whispered harshly.

Her hand fell away when she realized the possible consequences of her actions. She cast a quick eye around to see if anyone had seen their unseemly actions. But all were too busy with their duties to pay them heed and Una and Ewan were in deep conversation at the campfire a distance away.

Never had she allowed herself to become so lost in thought that she did not pay attention to her surroundings, and she would make sure it did not happen again.

Hunter stepped away, needing a bit of distance from her since her touch her turned him hard quicker than he had expected. He had always risen to the occasion easy enough, but the way he had surged to life in her hand had been unexpected, pleasantly so.

He smiled and had to ask, “He pleases you then?”

“That has yet to be determined,” she said, scooping up her comb and crock and went to walk past him.

Hunter grabbed her arm and stopped her. “Say the word and it will be done.”

She yanked her arm away and he watched her walk away, annoyance in her every step. He had to grin as he took a seat on the bench to wait for his arousal to fade. She was not only determined, she was feisty in action and words, and damn but he could not wait to make love to her. He could only imagine the intensity in which she would couple.

He shook his head, though his grin remained. He had to stop thinking about it or his arousal would only grow stronger instead of fading. He turned his thoughts toward his brother Greer. It was not a thought of would he attack, but when. Greer was vicious when it came to battle, but then he was vicious when it came to most things. And if Patience had left his wife Rona scarred in any way, Greer would be out for revenge. No one touched Greer’s possessions without suffering for it, and he no doubt also planned on making Hunter suffer.

Hunter stood, his arousal gone and his thoughts on the battle to come. He had to make his wife aware of how cruel Greer could be, and he had every intention of protecting her, whether she wanted him to or not.

As Hunter approached, he heard Ewan say to Patience, “I will travel some with you and your troop, if you permit.”

“You are more than welcome to join us, though I have no horse to spare,” Patience said.

Una spoke up, Beast close at her side. “Ewan can ride with me. My horse barely feels my weight.”