Dangerous Highlander

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Cara stopped to rest against one of the tall pines of the forest. She looked behind her, her gaze scanning the trees. For almost two hours now she had the suspicion something was watching her. And following her.

She tried to stamp down the fear that continued to grow but was helpless against it. Deirdre’s wyrran could be tracking her. Her heart thumped in her chest, beating double time when she saw something move in the trees.

The urge to run was strong, but Lucan had told her to stand her ground, to know what she was fighting. If there was a chance to win, she had to get the upper hand.

Upper hand with what, you fool? You have no weapon.

Cara still couldn’t believe she had left with nothing. She glanced at her feet and saw a stick that was long enough and thick enough for her to use as a weapon.

She drew her mother’s vial from beneath her gown and wrapped her fingers around it. Prayers tumbled from her lips, but nothing could ease the terror inside her. She tried to recall everything that Lucan had taught her, but one afternoon of training a warrior she did not make.

A twig snapped to her right, and she jerked her head around, the stick raised in her hand. Only there was nothing. She knew her imagination was running away with her, that she was envisioning monsters where there weren’t any.

She gasped when she turned back around to find a man standing before her. He had dark hair held back in a queue at his neck. The saffron shirt beneath his kilt of bold green and blue with black was threadbare but clean. His tartan wasn’t one she recognized, which meant he wasn’t from a neighboring clan.

“Are you lost?”

She started at his deep, rich voice.

“I can help you,” he continued. “The forest is easy to become lost in.”

She licked her lips. “You’ve been following me.”

“Aye,” he answered with a small nod. Blue eyes watched her with patience. “I saw you come into the forest as if you were running from something.”

“What clan are you from?”

His gaze dropped from hers for a moment. “Shaw.”

There were no Shaws anywhere near them. She didn’t know if he had been banished or left his clan on his own, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to know which. “I’ll be fine. Thank you for your offer.”

“You don’t look as though you’ll be all right, lass. There are many wild creatures in the woods, and that stick in your hands willna keep them at bay.”

“I know all about wild creatures,” she mumbled. She would much rather face a boar than one of the Warriors.

He lifted his hands. “I have no weapons, and I mean you no harm. I only want to see you safely out of the forest.”

She glanced at the sky. It would be dark soon. And the night brought all kinds of things she wasn’t ready to face. Not without Lucan. “Is there somewhere I can stay the night?”

“There is a shelter,” he said slowly, his eyes narrowed as if he wasn’t sure he should have told her. “I can take you there.”

Cara dropped her head back against the tree. She didn’t know what to do. Sister Abigail had always told her she was too trusting. The stranger, Shaw, didn’t look as if he meant her any harm, but that didn’t mean anything.

“You don’t trust me.” It wasn’t a question.

Cara shook her head.

“You are right not to trust,” Shaw said. “There are too many . . . things . . . to be wary of.”

It was the way he said it that made her take another look at him. In his blue gaze she saw pain and weariness and . . . something else that looked almost familiar.

“What’s in the forest?” she asked. She had to know.

He shifted his gaze to the trees over her shoulder. “Nothing too scary.”

Cara thought of Lucan and how she wished he were beside her. She felt chilled to her soul and only Lucan’s heat could warm her. The only scary things she knew were the wyrrans and Warriors. As long as they weren’t in the forest, she would make it.

“Who do you run from?” Shaw asked.

She shrugged. “Myself.”

“Ah,” he said, and nodded. “I understand.”

There was a loud growl to her left. Cara turned her head to see something dark crashing through the trees at an alarming rate. She caught sight of claws and teeth amid what looked like shadows.

Nay!

She turned back to Shaw to find the man vanished and in his place was a Warrior. He faced her threat crashing toward them, his lips peeled back to show his fangs. Cara couldn’t take her eyes off his skin, which had turned a dark green that could easily cloak him in the forest.

The brothers had been wondering how to find other Warriors, and she had discovered one by accident. Was he friend or foe? More important, could he beat whatever was about to attack them?

The thought had barely gone through her mind before Shaw crashed backward to the ground, flipping over and over with the force of the other Warrior upon him. Cara turned to run when she saw something gleam gold against the black skin of the attacker’s neck.

Lucan.

He straddled Shaw and raised his hand. She winced when his claws slashed Shaw’s chest. The other Warrior howled in pain and kicked Lucan in the back, knocking him over Shaw’s head.

Both jumped to their feet, circling each other. Around Lucan she saw darkness follow him, as if it waited for his call.

He had said he controlled shadows and darkness.

Cara couldn’t let this continue.

“Lucan! Stop. He was helping me,” she cried.

Lucan paused and glanced at her. “Are you hurt?”

“Nay.”

“Lucan?” Shaw said. “Lucan MacLeod?”

Cara’s gaze jerked to Shaw, who stared hard at Lucan.

“Who wants to know?” Lucan asked.

Shaw lowered his arms. In a blink his skin returned to normal, all traces of the Warrior gone. “I’m Galen Shaw. Deirdre unbound my god not long after she found you and your brothers.”

Cara took a step toward the men, but Lucan held up a hand to stop her. He kept in his Warrior form, his black skin gleaming in the fading sunlight that filtered through the trees. She was fascinated by the change in him and how easily he wore the dual responsibility.

“All the Warriors I’ve encountered have tried to force me back to Deirdre,” Lucan said.

Galen shook his head. “Word of how you and your brothers escaped Deirdre is what gave many of us the courage we needed to break free ourselves. But that was long ago when she thought fear would keep us in the mountain. She has a different dungeon now, one that no one comes back from.”

“You could be lying.”

“I could,” Galen agreed. “But I’m not. Every Warrior knows of the MacLeods. Every Highlander knows of the MacLeods. You and your brothers are legendary, Lucan. I’ve been searching for you for over a century.”

Lucan stiffened. “You want to be the one to try and take me back to Deirdre’s?”

Galen sighed. “Haven’t you listened to anything I’ve said? You and your brothers aren’t the only ones fighting Deirdre and her plan for dominance. We need to band together.”

“Aye,” Cara said. “I agree.”

Lucan ignored her, his gaze boring into Galen.

Finally Galen sighed. “Think on it, MacLeod. Deirdre will find you someday.”

“She already has,” Lucan said.

Galen’s body jerked as if he’d been shot with an arrow. “You already fought her?”

“Not yet. She sent her wyrran and a few Warriors looking for . . . something else. They found me instead.”

Cara wondered why he didn’t tell Galen that Deirdre wanted her.

Galen’s blue eyes shone with anticipation. “You killed the Warriors.”

“There were two. One got away.”

“So Deirdre will be coming for you.”

Lucan shrugged. “Probably.”

“I can be of service,” Galen said. “You’ll need all the Warriors you can get.”

“My brothers and I didn’t survive this long because we trusted people. The answer is nay.”

Galen glanced at her. “If you change your mind, you know where to find me.”

With that, he disappeared into the forest. Cara released the stick and blew out a breath. Then Lucan turned to her.

“You ran,” he said, his jaw clenching in anger. The shadows moved closer to him.

Cara nodded. She had hurt him by leaving. She could see it in his eyes. “I did, Lucan, but only to protect you.”

His forehead furrowed. “You didn’t run because you fear me?”

“Nay.” She walked to him and put her hands on his chest. Warmth enveloped her. “I ran because everyone around me dies. I don’t want you to die.”

“Look at me, Cara.”

“I am.”

“Nay!” he shouted. “Look at me. Look at what I am.”

She smiled and ran her fingers over his lips, her thumb brushing one of his fangs. “I see you, Lucan. I see the god that gives you immortality and strength beyond my reckoning. I also see the man who has saved me many times and who continues to protect me despite everything. I see the man who desires me, but denies that desire because of what he is.”

“Cara.”

She ignored his warning and let her hands roam over his chest. She wished his tunic was gone so she could feel his skin beneath her hands. “You came for me.”

“I vowed to keep you safe. I just wonder who will keep you safe from me?”

“I don’t want to be safe from you,” she whispered.

His hands wrapped around her arms and pushed her back against the tree. She sighed in anticipation when his body slammed against hers.

“Walk away, Cara. Please.”

“I can’t,” she murmured. “I want this, Lucan. I’ve wanted this from the moment I first looked into your eyes.”

He closed his eyes. “You doona know what you’re saying.”

“I do,” she argued. It excited her when he was in his Warrior form. He was dangerous and unpredictable. And he was hers.

She rose up on her tiptoes and placed her lips over his. He groaned and slanted his mouth over hers, his tongue slipping between her lips to plunder her mouth with wicked pleasure. His hands gripped her hips as her tongue touched his fangs.

“Ah, God, Cara. What you do to me,” he mumbled against her neck as he placed hot, wet kisses on her skin.

She grinned and opened her eyes long enough to see he had returned to normal. He lifted his head, his sea green eyes holding hers.

“Are you sure? I don’t think I can stop this time.”

She put her hands under his tunic to touch his muscular torso and felt his stomach jump. “I never wanted you to stop before.”

There were no more words as he claimed her mouth. His lips were soft, smooth, and firm and his taste heavenly. It was what she had needed, this delicious, alluring taste of him. But she wanted more. She wanted to understand the emotion that unfurled low in her belly and made her sex throb when Lucan touched her.

She pushed his tunic up to reveal more of his sculpted body. He broke the kiss long enough to jerk the tunic over his head and toss it aside. Then his mouth was on hers again, coaxing her passion higher, promising infinite pleasure.

He held her as if he was scared she might run away. She smiled inwardly. She wasn’t running anywhere, and there was no way he was this time, either. She would see where their desire took them.

Lucan clutched Cara against him. Her hands caressed his chest, his shoulders, and his neck, all the while she was kissing him with an abandon that drove his hunger higher.

He had fought his need for her and he had lost. She was in his arms, and he was going to relish every moment with her. Her soft moan made his heart pump faster.

“I want to feel you,” he said.

She nodded her head with a smile. He took a half step back and helped her to disrobe. He knelt before her and lifted one small foot to remove her shoe before he slowly unrolled her thick woolen hose down her leg. His fingers grazed her skin, marveling at its soft texture.

He looked up as he began to repeat the process on the other leg and saw her hands grip the tree, her eyes closed and her lips parted. Her pulse beat rapidly at her neck, letting him know she enjoyed his touch.

Lucan kissed the top of her foot and set it on the ground. He straightened and jerked off his boots, but when he reached for his breeches, her hands stopped him.

“I want to,” she said.

He looked into her dark eyes and saw a hunger that matched his own. Lucan nodded, his balls tightening in excitement. She unlaced his breeches and tugged them over his hips. His cock sprang free, hard and wanting.

There was a soft intake of breath before she wrapped her fingers around him. Lucan dropped his head back and fisted his hands. Her touch was soft and sensual, innocent and erotic. Up and down she moved her hand over his length, learning the feel of him.

“You’re so hard and hot, but so smooth.”

He thought he would die. He had gone without too long. There was no way he would be able to bring her to climax without spilling, not if she kept touching him.

“No more,” he whispered, and looked at her. “It’s my turn.”

He spread her gown and his tunic on the ground and then held out his hand for her. Cara didn’t hesitate in taking his hand and letting him lay her down.

His gaze roamed over her body, perfection in every detail from her full dark-tipped breasts, to her narrow waist and flared hips, to her slender legs.

She lifted her arms for him, wrapping them around his neck. The smile on her lips was all seduction. If he had any thoughts of trying to stop what was between them, he knew she wouldn’t let him. The fact that she had seen him, really seen him for the monster he was, and still wanted him boggled his mind.

“Don’t make me wait,” she whispered. “I’ve dreamed of this since our first kiss. Show me the passion, Lucan. Show me the promise of pleasure I see in your eyes.”

Lucan was humbled beyond words. He cradled her face in his hands and kissed her, running his lips lightly over hers. He wanted to take this slow, since it was her first time. But Cara was having none of that. She licked his lips and moaned. He was lost then. He would give her anything she wanted, no matter the cost.

He sank into her kiss, devouring her taste and her scent. His hands roamed her body as he learned every curve and sensitive spot of her skin. With his rod nestled between her legs, he felt her heat and her moisture. He wanted to plunge inside her, but she wasn’t ready. Not yet.

He cupped her breast and massaged it while his thumb moved back and forth over her nipple. Her nails sank into his back when the little nub turned hard. He leaned down and closed his lips over the nipple. He teased the peak with his teeth, biting gently before he laved the tip and suckled it deep in his mouth.

Her breaths were coming in great gulps, her hips rising against his, seeking the fulfillment she didn’t understand yet. Lucan moved to her other breast and repeated his ministrations. She writhed beneath him and murmured his name.

Already Lucan was at his breaking point. He had to be inside her. He shifted his hand between their bodies until his fingers parted her dark curls. A smile pulled at his lips when he felt how wet she was.

She jerked when his fingers smoothed over her sex, touching a part of her no one else ever had. Or ever would.

“Lucan,” she whispered.

He slipped a finger inside her. God’s blood, she was tight. He clenched his jaw to hold back his desire as he prepared her. In and out his finger pumped and soon her hips rocked against him. He moved another finger to join the first. She moaned and arched her back. Her hard nipples gleamed in the afternoon sun, begging him to take them again.

Unable to resist, he suckled a taut peak and moved a third finger inside her. She cried out, the tempo of her hips moving faster.

His rod ached, the need too great. He removed his hand. Cara’s eyes flew open to meet his. Excitement flashed in her depths when the head of his cock rubbed against her sensitive sex. He pushed inside her and closed his eyes at the exquisite pleasure.

He pulled out and then sank deeper inside her heat. When he met her barrier, he withdrew until just the tip of him was inside her. With one thrust, he pressed through her maidenhead.

Her body tensed and she jerked. Lucan stilled to give her body time to adjust to him.

“Is it over?”

A laugh bubbled inside him at her annoyed tone. He looked into her eyes and gave her a kiss. “Not in the least.”

“Good.”

The need to move, to plunge into her hard and deep, filled him. He held himself in check and began to move with slow, short thrusts. It didn’t take long for her body to relax and soft sighs to reach his ears.

“Put your legs around my waist,” he said.

As soon as she did, he sank deeper. He couldn’t hold back the groan at the feel of her taking all of him. Their pace quickened, his thrusts going deeper, harder, as she lifted her hips against him.

The pleasure was too much, too intense. He knew he was about to orgasm, but he refused to reach completion before Cara. He shifted his weight to one hand and reached between them until his finger stroked her clitoris. She cried out and clawed his back as he caressed her.

He kept a steady rhythm, watching the emotions on her face as her body tensed. A heartbeat later she cried out as she peaked. Lucan was powerless to hold back his climax any longer. With her body clenching around his, he buried himself inside her and let her milk him dry.

For long moments they stayed as they were, their breaths mixing, their hearts racing. He parted his lids to find her watching him with bright eyes.

“That was . . .” She trailed off with a shrug.

He knew what she meant. Words for what had happened, the feelings that had washed over him, were missing. Then he thought of one that captured the moment. “It was perfect.”

A slow smile pulled at her lips. “Aye. It was most assuredly perfect.”

He put his forehead to hers. “Will you come back with me to the castle?”

“I’d go anywhere with you, Lucan, even to the fires of Hell.”

“Let’s hope it doesna come to that,” he said with a kiss on her nose.

He rolled to his back and pulled her against him. He gazed at the tops of the trees and the pink and orange sky of the setting sun.

With his body sated, he found himself thinking of when he had come upon Cara talking to Galen. The need to kill had never been so strong. Galen hadn’t been hurting Cara, but he had been near her. It was enough for Lucan.

What he still didn’t understand was why she wanted him. Lucan had stayed in his Warrior form so she could see what he was, take in his anger and the danger that surrounded him. Instead of pushing her away, it seemed to excite her. That should have worried him, but it pleased him more than he wanted to admit.

“What are you thinking?” she asked sleepily.

“About you.”

She chuckled. “I hope it’s good.”

“I wish you hadn’t run, Cara.”

With a sigh she rose up on her elbow to look at him. “I did what I thought was best.”

“You knew running would make you an easy target for Deirdre.”

“I did.”

“And you did it anyway.”

“You told me yourself Deirdre wouldn’t stop coming after me. I figured if I let her have me it would give you and your brothers a chance to get free of her.”

He cupped her face. “You are the bravest woman I know.”

“Nay,” she said with a slight shake of her head. “Just one that is starving.”