Wed to a Highland Warrior (19 page)

“If you keep a good pace, you can make MacAlpin village by nightfall and have a warm bed for your newborn to sleep in tonight,” Trey said.

Peter held out his hand, and Trey clasped it firmly. “I am indebted to you and will proudly serve the true king.”

Ian stepped forward, his thin chest proudly extended. “As will I.” He held the dagger out, returning it to Trey.

Trey shook his head. “You keep it, lad, and practice.”

Ian grinned from ear to ear. “I will make the true king proud.”

“No doubt you will,” Trey said. “Now hurry and be off; though before you go, I have one favor to ask.”

“Whatever you want,” Peter said.

“My family does not yet know of my marriage to Bliss, and I wish to tell them myself, so please do not mention I have a wife. I want to surprise them.”

“They will be surprised and pleased,” Emma said with a nod and a smile.

Quick good-byes were said, and the group moved on, the light snow soon covering their tracks.

Trey took Bliss’s hand, and a peaceful contentment washed over him. He had missed holding hands with her; though it truly hadn’t been that long, it seemed that it had. And he missed having her by his side while they traveled. And though he worried over her safety, he was glad she had remained with him.

“Are you ready to lead the soldiers on a merry chase?” he asked.

“Romping through the snow has always been a favorite pastime of mine.”

He kissed her quick. “I like romping.”

“In the snow?”

“Almost anyplace.”

“I’ll have to see how true that is.”

“By all means let me prove it to you.”

“Now?” Bliss asked with a smile.

Trey grinned. “Before the day ends . . . we’ll romp.”

Chapter 24

B
liss was happy though their present situation called more for caution. It didn’t matter to her. It only mattered that she was with Trey, and they had time together just the two of them. She knew it would not last long and that soon . . .

She did not want to think beyond this moment, for she knew that their time together would be limited, and there would come a time when they were . . .
separated.

She did not wish to think about it and had wished she had not known, for she wondered what would cause it and how long they would be apart. Unfortunately, she sensed no answers, and that disturbed her all the more.

Their pace wasn’t as rushed as usual, Trey wanting to make certain their tracks were easy to follow. They had waited until the snow had completely covered the ground and any remaining tracks that had been made before they left.

Bliss sensed Trey’s intentions. He would make a wide loop before heading home, which meant another day or two of travel. She smiled, her happiness growing.

“Do I dare ask if that smile of joy has to do with me?” Trey asked teasingly.

“It has everything to do with you,” she admitted with a light laugh.

“Tell me more,” he urged with a nudge of his shoulder to hers.

“I was just thinking how happy I am being alone with you, just the two of us.”

“The possibility of the soldiers’ finding us doesn’t worry you?”

“I don’t sense our capture though I imagine it is because we remain cautious, and I am not foolish enough to think that things cannot change at the next turn. It is just that I believe this time is special for us since—”

Bliss almost bit her tongue. She had had no intention of letting Trey know that she had sensed a separation between them. It would only cause him worry when he needed to focus on the present.

“What was about to slip off your tongue that you hadn’t planned on telling me?” he asked, not at all upset.

“You have enough on your mind.” She hoped to keep it from him though she knew it would be a useless effort.

“You only burden me more by not telling me.”

“We separate,” she said, her heart feeling the harshness of her words.

Trey stopped abruptly, looked around, and hurried her to a grove of trees that provided a modicum of concealment.

“Tell me,” he demanded.

“There truly isn’t anything to tell, which is why I didn’t want to mention it. I have sensed that somehow we are separated, but I don’t know when or for how long.”

“Can you sense that we do come together again?”

She shook her head. “I haven’t seen beyond the separation.”

He braced her back against one of the trees, his hand going to rest just above her head against the thick tree trunk. “It is probably no more than a mission or battle, for I will not be kept long from your side.”

His kiss came quick, its potency stunning her senses, and her arms were just as quick to go around him and hold him close. Their tongues mated while their bodies pressed hard against each other. Their need to join was unbearable, and the deepening kiss only added to the passion that they both knew could not presently be satisfied.

Trey tore his mouth away from hers. “Duty will call, so there will be separations, but also reunitings”—he grinned—“that both of us will thoroughly enjoy.”

He brushed his lips over hers and stepped away.

Bliss wasn’t happy that he moved away from her though she could sense the reluctance in his steps. She knew that the distance was necessary or else they would soon be on the snow-covered ground . . . romping.

She could tell he wished to say more, or perhaps ask more, but he didn’t, and that he had explained their separation so as not to make it sound worrisome. It troubled her that she caused him more worry and reminded herself to be more careful about holding her tongue in the future; though she had never had a problem doing so before, she did with Trey. It felt so natural to share with him that it was difficult to keep things to herself. It seemed so right to discuss everything with him.

He didn’t judge her or scold her or belittle her; he was genuinely interested in all she had to say, and that had gladdened her heart. Finally, there was someone to share her life with, and it felt amazing.

“We stay as one,” Trey said, and held his hand out to her.

“Always.” She smiled and took hold.

They hadn’t walked very far when they both suddenly stopped.

“Two or more approach,” Bliss whispered.

Trey didn’t hesitate; he hurried her behind a thicket of bushes. “Wait here. I’ll be back.”

She watched him break off a branch and wipe the ground clean of their foot tracks, then he purposely made new tracks and disappeared in the opposite direction from where she hid.

Why hadn’t she sensed that someone approached sooner? She shook her head, annoyed with herself. She had been too busy with thoughts of Trey. Her knowing had always come easily, for there had been nothing else to fill or worry her thoughts. Now she was so concerned with Trey that it interfered with her knowing, and that was not good.

Even now, when she should be focused on what could happen, she was too busy thinking of Trey. Not good. She breathed a quiet sigh, kept her eyes on her surroundings and her ears attuned to all sounds.

As soon as quiet descended around her, she sensed the approach of two soldiers. She remained as still as could be and listened to the footfalls draw nearer.

“At least we found their trail,” one said.

“We’ll get that Highlander, and when the king’s guards get done with him, he’ll be begging to fight for the king,” the other said.

“And no one need know that he bested us,” the one sneered.

“As for the woman and child—”

“She’ll pay for fleeing with the Highlander,” the one said angrily.

“Look here, one set of footprints, and they’re deep.”

“He carries the fool woman and child. Let’s go; we’ll catch them fast enough now.”

Bliss heard them hurry off, but she remained where she was; she would take no chance—she would wait for Trey.

It wasn’t long before he was at her side, pulling her to her feet and cautioning with his finger to remain silent as he hurried them off in yet another direction. It wasn’t for some time before he broke the silence.

“Those fools will track the trail I left long before they realize it takes them nowhere,” he said.

“Then we can return to your home now,” she said with a sense of disappointment.

He shook his head. “The two fools aren’t the only soldiers in search of those farmers who escaped. I don’t want to take the chance and lead any of them to Peter and the others. We’ll leave foot tracks that will lead whoever finds them on a useless trail before circling and heading home.”

“How long till then?”

“We’ll reach home by nightfall tomorrow.”

She smiled and squeezed his hand.

“I thought you would like that; it is the most we can delay. I need to get home to my brothers. The time draws near for the true king to step forward and claim the throne.”

“I know, but at least we’ll have this brief time, and for that I am grateful.”

They continued walking, in circles at times, and as the day wore on, and dusk was about to claim the land, Trey turned to her.

“We need a warm, safe shelter tonight, for I intend to make love to you.”

She smiled, though she asked, “Do you think it is safe?”

“The soldiers have searched all day on foot and no doubt are as exhausted as we are and have probably already camped for the night. I’m surprised we can’t hear their complaints and loud snores. Besides, do you sense any soldiers near?”

She shook her head, knowing that he asked so as to put her mind at ease.

“Good, then tonight is ours,” he said with a satisfied grin.

“Where will we find”—she smiled—“you knew I would sense a place.”

“I
hoped
you would.”

“It is a short distance from here, tucked in the woods, a bit worn but usable enough,” she said. “A gift, I believe, from fate.”

“A good gift; I gratefully accept.”

As they drew closer to the abandoned cottage, her heart grew heavier, and, at first, she wasn’t sure why; and then she realized that not soon after tonight, they could possibly separate. She didn’t want to believe it, and she certainly didn’t want to tell Trey. It would weigh too heavily upon them both and interfere with their night of love.

She would say nothing, though . . .

He was staring at her when she looked his way.

“Are you going to tell me, or do I have to ask again?”

She had to smile though the occasion certainly didn’t call for it, but she couldn’t help herself. It was wonderful to know how attuned he was to her and how he didn’t get annoyed with her over it. He simply waited for her to accept how closely they were tied.

Duncan and Mercy may have had real, solid chains that bound them, but Trey and she were bound by a solid force that no one could destroy.

She was about to share what she had sensed when a vision hit her so hard that it drove her to her knees.

Wild and screaming, Leora rushed at her. “Bring him home. Bring him home now, I need him. Now! Now! Now!”

“Now! Now! Now!” Bliss yelled, as her eyes sprang open.

She was in Trey’s arms, his expression one of sheer determination.

“I was about to shake you senseless to wake you.”

“It was a brief vision.”

“Leora?”

Bliss nodded. “She wants you to return home. She says she needs you.”

“She is dead. What can she need from me?”

“I don’t know, but I do know we will find out soon.”

Trey scooped her up in his arms. “But not now, not here, not tonight.”

She was glad when he carried her to the cottage and said no more.

Once inside, there was some preparing to be done. A fire needed starting, the small space needed sweeping, and the bed needed tending. They both went to work, wanting it all done as soon as possible.

“I’m thinking that I would prefer a cottage of our own rather than a bedchamber in the keep,” Trey said, sending a grin her way as he stoked the fire. “More privacy.”

The words spilled out of her mouth before she could call them back. “What of my cottage?”

Trey stood and slipped off his shirt. “A place to visit.”

It wasn’t that she had expected a different answer. After all, women followed where their husbands went, but then, to her, Trey wasn’t like other husbands. He was different, and that was what she loved about him. She also had to consider that he served the true king. He had a duty . . . but, then, so did she.

He stepped toward her, and she took a step away. He was too appealing bare-chested, and this issue needed to be discussed before she surrendered to him, and perhaps that was her worry. That she would surrender everything to him, and what would be left of her, her people, her ways?

The thought suddenly frightened her. Was love demanding too much? Or was she surrendering too much?

“We need to talk,” she said, her hand going up to stop his approach.

He laughed. “Now is not the time for talk.”

She kept her eyes on his face, the sight of him half-naked making her hands itch to touch him. “Appease me.”

He grinned wickedly. “I’d rather pleasure you.”

“Consider it a prelude to our lovemaking.”

His grin vanished in a flash. “A necessary one?”

She nodded.

“This night was meant for us. Can this not wait?”

She supposed she could let it go for now and discuss it another time with him, but that would be one more step to complete surrender. Would she lose another part of herself? Her abilities were part of who she was, and, while at times, she found them a burden, she could not live without them. They defined her.

“Your hesitation tells me you are thinking it over and therefore perhaps it is not as important as you think.”

That was enough for her to hear. “It’s more important than you’ll ever know.”

He quirked a brow. “Then let us talk and be done with it.”

“It cannot be discussed and dismissed easily.”

“If it is nonsense, it can be discarded easily enough.”

She told herself to be patient. He was eager to make love to her and annoyed that a discussion should delay their pleasure. She had to make him understand the importance of this matter to her.

“It’s about my home,” she said.

“You’ll love your new home,” he assured her with a smile, as if the matter were settled easily.

She shook her head. “Not
your
home;
my
home.”

His smile disappeared. “
My
home is
your
home.”

“No, it isn’t. I have a home with my people—”

“You belong with my clan now.”

“I cannot simply desert my people,” she said.

“You are not deserting them. We’ll visit with them.”

“And what if I wish to remain there a while?” she asked.

“If such a time comes, I’ll see what can be arranged.”

A shiver ran through her, as if part of her was slipping away. She had come and gone as she pleased for so long that it was strange to think she would need to seek anyone’s permission to do as she pleased.

“Do not fret over it. We will see that you can visit often with your people and they can come to the keep when in need of healing.”

She shook her head. “That will not do. My door is always open to my people, and there are times I sense when I am needed.”

“They must understand that your marriage will take you away from them, to a new home. It is part of marriage. A wife makes a home with her husband. We will make a good home together.”

“I have no doubt of that. It is where that home will be that troubles me.”

“You know I serve the true king,” Trey said, as if no more discussion was necessary.

“So what you are saying is that there is no room for discussion.”

“What is it that truly bothers you? It can’t be this senseless chatter about where we will live. You know a wife goes with her husband. So what is it that has you stopping us from making love?”