Honor of a Scottish Warrior

by Sky Purington

  Niall released her hands, clasped her cheeks and kissed her hard. So hard and so thorough, he lost himself. Lips open and receptive, she managed to groan his name into his mouth as her legs spread. Her nails dug into his shoulders and he relished the idea that she might reopen his wounds.

  All of them.

  Inside and out.

  “Niall,” she gasped against his lips when he grabbed her arse and took her with him as he rolled onto his back. Hands clamped firmly on her upper thighs, he closed his eyes and struggled for breath. The bloody lass ripped the life from him and there was still so much straining betwixt them.

  Lies.

  A need for honesty.

  “Open your eyes, Niall,” she demanded and pounded on his chest. “Open your fuc..fantastically gorgeous eyes.”

  Niall welcomed her anger and released her thighs. Clenching his fists, he rested his hands by his side as she came close. When he opened his eyes, hers were narrowed.

  “My eyes are open, lass,” he whispered. “I can see ye.”

  They both knew he was not talking about his vision but something far deeper. When she shifted and slowly sunk on to him in the best way possible, he clenched his teeth. All the while her eyes stayed locked with his and her lips inches away.

  “You think you have me all figured out,” she whispered as she filled herself and licked her lips in a way that made him groan. “But you don’t.”

  His eyes remained open.

  It was impossible to close them.

  Not with the rabid determination that combusted between them. She loved his body like she fought it. Hard and fast and furious. There was nothing slow about the way his lass moved. As she had with a dagger in her hand, she had something to prove.

  And bless the bloody gods, right now she was proving it to him.

  No lass had ever moved her hips quite like Nicole did now. It almost took more than he had not to flip her over and move faster. To show her just how quickly a man could take her when he meant it with all his heart.

  Heart.

  His heart.

  Niall shook off the sentimental feeling as he kept his gaze locked with hers. As she ran her nails down his chest and ate him alive with her eyes. His lass might have been born in the twenty-first century, but she was every inch a medieval warrior in more ways than one.

  But he was a warrior too.

  And he wanted to conquer.

  So as her pace increased along with her moans, he kept his hands down and willed his arousal to wait…to satisfy. He growled and groaned, but he refused to let go as she reached her peak and locked up over him. Saliva pooled on his tongue as her eyes rolled back and her body rippled and quivered. He had never seen anything so beautiful…so raw. It took everything he had to hold back.

  Yet there were bonuses to sacrificing.

  To letting the lass win her battle.

  She needed it and somehow he understood that because he needed it too.

  He allowed a small, easy smile to curl his lips when she shuddered and sank down against him. Unable to stop, he breathed in the salty scent of her soft hair and flexed his hips ever-so-slightly to remind her it wasn't over.

  “Hell,” she whispered.

  But he was in no rush. There was a certain satisfaction in feeling her body tremble against his. In feeling her climax ripple on and stroke him into a lush need that only became sweeter because he knew it was far from over.

  He rolled her slowly until she was beneath him then thrust once sharply. Like a bow with a notched arrow, she cried out, arched and released again. Now she wasn’t defiant and fighting him but open…

  Honest.

  Again he let her ride it out.

  Eventually, her eyes cracked open a fraction and she whispered, “Don’t look at me like that, Brute. Just take care of yourself.”

  “Aye, lass,” he whispered and stroked her damp cheek. “I will.”

  When he moved, it wasn’t harsh and demanding but slow, easy…different. He’d never lain with a lass and wanted to watch her every reaction. He had never lain with one and wanted to hear every little sound she made, feel every reaction of her body when he touched her.

  It was new and strange and he liked it.

  So he took the time to feel her heated, silky skin. The way it tightened at the base of her neck when she swallowed then moaned. How the bones of her chest led to the firm plumpness of her breasts. He dragged his hand down her slender waist, interested in the dip that allowed his thumb to brush over her bellybutton.

  Her legs slowly rose and she shook her head, eyes still barely open as she whispered, “What’re you doing? Don’t do that.”

  He skimmed his hand over the smooth curvature of her hip then scraped his fingers lightly over her arse when her leg lifted. Hungry for something he didn’t understand, he devoured her lips when she tried to talk again. What other word was there for it? Nothing felt so intense as the need to taste her denial and passion not from below but from right here.

  This time, there was no talking around his kisses. He wasn’t giving her a chance to speak. Whatever was happening between them sped up and slowed down all at once. Like a violent waterfall crashing then finding peace in a still lake.

  If he started moving again, he didn’t know when. This was too all-consuming and unique. He wrapped one arm around her waist and dug his hand into her hair as he let go. Of what he would never know. Not physical but mental release.

  Something soul deep.

  Something his and hers.

  Theirs.

  Kisses turned into strokes of the tongue until nothing but their bodies moving together cut through. They were no longer desperate to take control but to drown in whatever they were creating. This thing that had them stroking and caressing instead of forcing and taking.

  When their moans came, they mingled.

  “Niall,” she gasped.

  “Nicole,” he groaned.

  Again and again they said one another’s names as they drenched themselves in a passion that only grew stronger. He moved. She moved. They moved. He never wanted it to stop. Was this bliss? Eternity?

  “Oh, God,” she gasped, legs wrapped around him and hands clasping either side of his neck. “What are you doing to me?”

  Damned if he knew and hell if he cared.

  Sweat slicked, they ground and swayed against each other, their eagerness growing as they no longer tried to get closer but sank into whatever had ignited between them. Desperate to touch every inch of her but keep their lips close, their harsh breath intermingled as their lips pressed then grazed then pressed again.

  Their hips moved against each other’s as they struggled to somehow merge. The sensations were too strong now. The need too great. Body tight against hers, they thrust and drove each other closer. So much. Too bloody much.

  When fire tore up his spine, he roared and gripped the bed, concerned that he might hurt her. Nicole again clenched the sides of his neck, pressed her cheek against him, arched and cried out. He had no idea if the sounds he heard came from her or him as sharp pleasure screamed through him and he let go.

  Long, hard and with no end in sight, he let go.

  It was the most freeing moment of his life in ways he did not understand.

  Aye, sexually, but so much more.

  So, so, much more.

  “For me too,” she whispered into his mind as he jerked against her, far gone.

  It was a long while before either of them were able to move, let alone speak. But he still heard those whispered words in his mind. A response to his own thoughts. Words he apparently couldn't block if he wanted to. Ones she never intended for him to hear.

  For me too.

  Words that had literally just changed his life.

  Chapter Twelve

  NIALL HAD LONG dozed off yet she still hadn’t pulled away.

  She could.

  She should.

  But no, Nicole remained draped over him, tucked beneath furs he had at some point pulled
over them. The crash of waves echoed through the cave and torches burned. Yet for the first time in far too long she focused less on what she could hear and more on what she was feeling.

  So much feeling.

  The lingering pulses between her thighs that should be long gone. The smell of his skin, taxed but salty and spicy at the same time. She kept trailing her fingers down his bicep and forearm, fascinated by how the muscles wove together before they culminated in his strong hand.

  His other hand remained clamped possessively on her butt.

  What were they doing? What was this? She was still pissed that she lied to him earlier about having parents. Why not just tell him the truth? Deep down she knew why. Telling him would let him into her inner circle and nobody was allowed there except her closest friends. Letting a man so close was not going to happen. Nobody got inside her heart like that and the idea that Niall just might have made her feel shifty. Edgy. Angry.

  But excited and eager.

  Those last two emotions almost made her flee. Out of this cave. Back to Amber. Back to Darach. Anyone who could point a finger at Niall and say, “Back the heck off!” if she wanted them to. Because she did. Or so she tried to convince herself. Yet instead of running she snuggled closer…as close as she could get.

  “Go if ye need to, lass,” he whispered. “I willnae hold ye back.”

  Niall was awake.

  How did he know she wanted to run? Was he in her head again? Cheek still pressed against his chest, she said nothing. Better to let him think she was snoozing.

  “I know you’re awake,” he murmured, stroking her shoulder so gently she barely felt the touch.

  Not the type to evade, she murmured back, “I’ll leave when I’m ready to.”

  “I’d rather you stay.”

  Nicole was about to bite back with a remark about how damn lucky he would be if she did, but frowned and said nothing. The truth was she didn’t want him to move…them to move. The comfort and safety she felt in his arms was…what? Something she was unwilling to let go of. Even if she refused to admit it.

  “I’m still here, aren’t I,” she whispered, frustrated that she felt the need to say it. But not saying it was impossible.

  Now he stroked her hair. Just a light touch. As if he wasn’t claiming her but wanted to offer simple comfort. “Aye, you are.”

  Again, her traitorous eyes went to the ring on her finger. Still the same. Good. What a relief. Right?

  “Nicole?” Niall said softly and wrapped his hand over hers.

  “What?” she mumbled. A surge of irritation blew through her when he brushed his finger over the stone at the heart of the ring, stealing it on and off from her sight.

  Niall being Niall didn’t hold back. “Are you hoping this stone will match my eyes?”

  “No,” she said too quickly. She kept staring at the ring, lost in a variety of emotions.

  As he seemed to like to do, he surprised her when he pulled her ring to his lips, kissed it and murmured, “’Tis a telling ring this. One that I find myself needing an answer from.”

  “No,” she repeated, on auto-drive now as she yanked away, sat up and frowned at the ring. She shook her head and stood, repeating, “No,” as she pulled his tunic over her head.

  “I didnae mean anything by it,” he said gently.

  “Hell if you didn’t,” she muttered and plunked down in a chair by the fire. “You’re obviously interested in me again.”

  “Aye, I am.” Niall kept lounging casually on the bed, all his splendid nudity laid out for her to admire. “But truth be told, I think mayhap I’ve been interested in you from the start.”

  Nicole frowned. “I’m a waste of your time, Niall.” Her eyes met his. “You might think there’s hope for us, but there’s not.”

  She didn’t much like the softening in his gaze as he considered her.

  “I disagree,” he said. “But I willnae push you, lass. Either you want me or you dinnae.”

  “Well, I don’t.” She gestured at the bed. “Outside of the obvious that is.”

  Niall leaned over and pulled a skin out of a satchel then tossed it to her. “There’s water in that if you’re thirsty.”

  Was she ever. Nicole nodded thanks and took several long gulps before she noticed the way he was looking at her. As if he had something to share but was not sure where to start. “What?”

  Niall stared at her for a long moment before he sighed. “I dinnae want the lies betwixt us anymore.”

  Nicole didn't like the sound of that. “What lies?”

  “The first night you arrived at MacLeod Castle,” he started. “The night you were in your cups.”

  “What about it?” she said cautiously. “I thought you already came clean about that night.”

  “Partly.” His eyes stayed with hers. “But there was more.” He cleared his throat. “Quite a bit more.” He held up another skin. “Mayhap you’d like a wee bit o’ whisky first?”

  Damn. He thought to soften the blow with booze. “No whisky. Seems like that’s where all my troubles begin.” She was almost afraid to ask, but was all about ripping the bandaid off fast. “Out with it.”

  Niall took a swig. Way to go liquid courage. “You shared a lot about your life that didn’t exactly match up with what you were saying earlier about your parents.”

  “I did not,” she whispered and shook her head. Despite how intoxicated, she wouldn’t share that information with anyone outside of her friends. “You’re full of crap.”

  “You told me about going from foster home to foster home. About the difficult years when you first started having trouble with your hearing and how misunderstood you were,” he said, voice low and even.

  Oh, no. Why the hell? She must have had one heck of a look on her face because he grew concerned and started to stand.

  Nicole put up a hand and shook her head. “Stop right there.”

  “Why would I have ever told you all that?” she murmured, well aware she wasn’t denying it. “Of all people.”

  “You said that you’d been scared your whole life and I made you feel safe,” he said softly. “That you trusted me to keep your secrets.”

  “And did you?” she shot back, growing angrier as his revelation sunk in.

  When he remained silent, she narrowed her eyes. “Did you?”

  “Aye, for the most part,” he began, a flicker of guilt in his eyes.

  “God damn it, Niall!” She stood, fists clenched. “Who’d you tell and how much did you share?”

  Niall stood and wrapped his plaid around his waist, a heavy frown on his face. “I only spoke with Cassie so that I could better ken how best to handle all you told me.”

  “Cassie?” A flash of hurt went through her when she realized her friend had kept this from her.

  “She cares for ye, lass,” he said. “As do I.”

  “Well get over it,” she retaliated. “Because you seriously don’t stand a chance with me now.” Before he could respond, she said, “What else did I share with you? Tell me everything.”

  As if she had not already blurted enough.

  Disgruntled, Niall let his plaid hang low on his waist and took another hearty swig of whisky. “That you were truly frightened of going deaf, that you had taken off your clothes for money and that you lost your virginity far too young.”

  “Wh..what?” she stuttered. Nobody knew that last one, not even her friends. She had always figured it was a minor detail and nobody’s business.

  Clearly she had thought it was Niall’s.

  This made no sense. None at all. “Why would I tell you so much?” she whispered more to herself than to him. “And heck, you’d think I’d remember just a little bit of it.”

  “Well,” he started then sort of trailed off before his expression once more grew guilty. “I might’ve made sure that you didn’t.”

  “Made sure,” she said slowly. Nicole blinked several times, staring at him, before the truth at last dawned on her. He might look like a
hot-as-hell Highlander, but he was also a wizard. Her eyes went wide and anger bubbled straight to the surface. “Did you somehow erase my memory?”

  He flinched and rubbed the side of his neck. “I didnae think ye’d want me to—”

  “Holy crap, you did. You ass-as I live and breathe total jerk!” Furious, Nicole didn’t think but acted and whipped the skin at him.

  Niall evaded the projectile. “Ye had enough going on and I didnae think—”

  “You sure as hell didn’t!” Now she was just throwing anything she could find which unfortunately for him were rocks.

  But he was quick and dodged them. “Och, lass, ‘twas not as bad as all that. Was it not better to forget how much you shared with me? At least at the time.”

  “How much I shared with you?” Whip. Whip. Then it occurred to her what he had likely done and she grew more upset. “I never told you any of that, did I? You read my frigging mind!”

  “Nay, I would never do that.” She heard the anger he tried to repress as he dodged to the left before a rock clipped him on the shoulder. “Never.”

  “I don’t believe you.” Whip. “You knew I was vulnerable and drunk so made yourself at home in my mind.” Whip. “Total douchebag thing to do, Brute.”

  “Nay, I didnae invade your thoughts,” he growled, evading another rock as he stalked toward her. “And there’s only one way to prove it.”

  He had nearly reached her when a firm voice resounded from the entrance. “What hails here? Take one more step, Highlander and you will find my dagger in your back.”

  Niall didn't stop at Heidrek’s threat any more than Nicole stopped whipping rocks. He had nearly reached her when he must have sensed something because he spun fast and caught a dagger inches before it hit him. Meanwhile, a small rock pinged off the back of his head. Enraged, Niall started toward Heidrek.

  Everyone save Amber and the children had appeared at the commotion. Heidrek, caught in his own folly, took a few steps back at the rage on Niall’s face.

  The teenager froze at Kol’s low words.

  “A Viking does not attack his kin without the King’s ruling. And he certainly never stabs his kin in the back but looks him in the eye. ‘Tis cowardly to do otherwise,” Kol warned Heidrek with disapproval. “You will reap what you sowed here, Nephew.”