She traced her finger along his leg. Jamie laughed up at her. “I did’t just fer ye, lassie. Ye ken I cinnae live withoot yer magical touch. Ye set me all aquiver when ye touch me like that. Oh, please, ne’er stop.”
“Cork it,” Fergus snapped.
“I suppose we’ll ha’e tae stop ’ere until we ken what’s the news,” Robbie sighed. “Where’ll we stay? Is there ought fer any comfortable rooms in this castle?”
A few servants peeked around the door at the strangers in conference where the McLeans always stood before. “I guess we’ll have to take charge over the place,” Sadie murmured. “I don’t like it, but I could tell them to put you up somewhere. Heaven knows there’s plenty of room. Callum and Jamie and I already have our own rooms, so that’s just two more rooms, one for you and Elle, and another for Fergus and Hazel.”
“You take care of it, Sadie,” Elle replied. “You know these people better than we do.”
“They’re good people,” Sadie told her. “I never met anyone better than the McLeans before this whole situation blew up in our faces.”
Just then, Christie shouldered his way through the servants. He entered the room, but he hovered near the door. He didn’t come near the strangers. “What does he want?” Hazel growled.
“It’s all right.” Sadie crossed the room and took Christie by the hand. “He’s a friend. He’s the only one who stood by Callum. You can trust him.”
The others narrowed their eyes at Christie. It would take something more than Sadie’s word before they started to trust him.
He resisted and hung back near the door. “Excuse me. We just wondered…. Carson and Arch and I…. we just wondered….”
“It’s awright, lad,” Callum told him. “Ye and yer brothers carry on yer duties defendin’ the castle the way ye’ve allus done. We’ll no second-guess ye now, and ye may continue tae follow Lachlan’s orders fer yer watches. Ye can visit Lachlan, and make sure the servants care fer him proper when he wakes up. As soon as his eyes open, I want tae see him. Ye’ll inform me. Understand?”
Christie started back.
“Ne’er ye mind, lad,” Callum told him. “I mean him no harm. We settled our business. Now I mun’ make a friend o’ him. Ye can tell him that. He’ll ne’er need worry o’er me again.”
Christie’s shoulders slumped, and he slunk out of the room.
Hazel watched him go. “Are you sure this is a good idea? They could turn against you in a heartbeat.”
“They’ll no try it,” Callum replied. “We’ll lift this curse, and then they’ll understand.”
Chapter 29
Hazel finished working on Jamie’s leg. He hopped to his feet and stamped his heel into the floor. “Good as new. Ye’re a wonder, lassie. It gi’es me an extra surge o’ energy e’ery time ye do that.”
Fergus rolled his eyes. “Will ye ne’er stop?”
Hazel patted Jamie’s arm. “Ignore him. I’m glad you like it, Jamie. Just don’t go hurting yourself too much, okay?”
“I’m goin’ up tae the battlements tae check the watches,” Jamie announced. “Who’s wi’ me? Rob? How aboot it?”
“I’ll come,” Robbie replied.
Callum kissed Sadie. “I’m goin’, too. I mun’ see the castle’s ta’en care on afore we rest on our laurels. We could be in another battle in no time.”
The three brothers left the room. Sadie, Elle, and Hazel exchanged glances. “Well,” Elle remarked, “here we are.”
“Where’s Carmen?” Sadie asked.
“She couldn’t come,” Elle replied. “She’s pregnant, and Angus couldn’t leave the realm unguarded at such short notice. She chose to stay with him.”
“You guys sure got here fast. We never knew Jamie was gone.”
“He told us it was urgent,” Hazel told her. “He wouldn’t say that if it wasn’t really urgent. He wouldn’t even let me look sideways at his leg. He said we had to take off immediately, so we did.”
Sadie shook her head. “I never believed it could all work out this way. I never thought I would see you guys flying out of the sun like that.”
Elle touched her arm. “We’re just glad you and Callum are okay. We were all so worried when Jamie showed up and told us. He made it sound so dire, and it sure was. He’s always such a joker, but he would never joke about that.”
Sadie tried to say something else, but her mouth wouldn’t obey her. Her lips quivered. Hazel hooked her hand through Sadie’s arm. “Don’t say it. Show us to our rooms, and you can go lie down. From what Jamie said about what you’ve been through, it sounds like you need it.”
Sadie led them out of the room, but she couldn’t get her emotions under control. Now that her friends flanked her, she saw her ordeal through their eyes, from the moment she appeared outside the Tower House, through the long march to Duart, to falling in love with Callum and watching him almost die outside just a few minutes ago—she couldn’t cope with it all.
She walked down the castle halls the way she did before, but she saw nothing in front of her eyes. She never let herself to feel until this moment how this experience destroyed her. Nervous and emotional exhaustion dragged her to the ground.
She halted by the stairs to give instructions to the servants. They bobbed her curtsies and hurried to do her bidding. They already considered her Lachlan’s wife, so she might as well play the part to its limit. They would learn the truth soon enough.
She conducted Elle and Hazel upstairs. The maids still bustled around their rooms to change the bedding and open the curtains and light the fires. Sadie paused in Elle’s doorway. “I’m sure your guys will find you when they’re done. Will you be comfortable in here until supper tonight?”
“We’ll be fine,” Elle replied. “We just ate lunch.”
Hazel laughed. Sadie looked back and forth from one woman to the other. She barely recognized them. Elle looked happier and more relaxed than Sadie could ever remember her, and Hazel positively glowed. Marriage and stability in this strange country agreed with both of them.
Hazel put her arms around Sadie. “Go lie down, honey. Take a load off your feet and try to get some sleep. None of us knows when those things will attack again.”
“I’ll go lie down,” Sadie replied, “but I don’t think I’ll really rest until I get out of here. I don’t think I could ever really rest inside these walls.”
“You’re not still worried about Lachlan, are you?” Elle asked. “Callum won’t let him come near you.”
“It’s not Lachlan—at least, it’s not only Lachlan,” Sadie replied. “It’s… well, it’s everything. When Callum first said he could get me out of here, I started thinking about a country where none of this was happening. I kept thinking about a beautiful country with a shining white castle with colored flags flying and the sun blinking over the waving grass. I know it sounds stupid. It was just a silly fantasy I had of a place where I could get away from all this fighting and chaos.”
Elle and Hazel looked at each other. Then Elle kissed Sadie on the cheek. “Go get some rest, girl. When this is all over with, we’ll get you out of here and you can come back with us.”
She turned on her heel and walked into the room. She passed into a corner where Sadie couldn’t see her anymore. Hazel kissed Sadie, too, and went to her own bedroom door. “I’ll see you later. Try to take it easy while you can, and we’ll see you back downstairs in a little while.”
She shut her door in Sadie’s face. Sadie stood alone on the landing. She had nothing to do but go back to her own room. She blinked, but she couldn’t make head or tail of what just happened. She was getting out of here. Hazel said so. Callum said so. Nothing could stop her, but she still hesitated to believe it. Why?
Because of the vampires. That’s why. No one was going anywhere until the friends found a way to get rid of them. Sadie walked back to her own room. She sat down on the bench seat by the window. Lachlan wouldn’t come around to bother her. She was safe. That concept made no sense to her.
She no longer believed safety was possible.
She gazed out the window at the tumultuous sea. The vampires would rise out of that sea. They would flood the castle in their thousands. They would never quit until they wiped out everyone inside, wolf, dragon, or human.
At least she couldn’t see the bloody field where Callum and Lachlan almost killed each other. She never wanted to see Lachlan again as long as she lived. She could understand Callum’s desire to show his victim mercy, especially after the way he tried to kill the man. She could even understand Hazel healing him and saving his life, but she couldn’t forgive him for what he’d done.
Sadie didn’t want Lachlan to die. She only wanted him stopped, and she couldn’t believe anything would stop him. He would continue tormenting her, no matter where she went. He would never accept her choice to give herself to Callum.
At that moment, the door latch popped. She turned away from the window to see Callum walk into the room. He closed the door behind him and crossed to where she sat. “Awright, lassie? Ye look sad.”
She studied his face. Bruises still darkened his forehead and cheek. Hazel’s magic didn’t get rid of the dried blood around his ear and in his hair. “I’m not sad. I’m just tired. I want to leave here, but we still have one more battle to fight.”
“Aye. We’ll fight it, especially wi’ the men on the roof. They’re all keen tae close wi’ the creatures once again.”
“You’re keen, too, aren’t you?” she muttered. “You just can’t wait to get yourself killed.”
He peered down at her. He started to say something, but he stopped himself. She looked out the window. She tried to pretend he wasn’t there, that his eyes didn’t drill into her being with that unmistakable intensity.
“I ha’e seen Lachlan,” he murmured.
Sadie whipped around. “You what?”
“He’s askin’ tae see ye,” Callum told her.
“I’ll bet he is.”
“Ye should go see him,” Callum urged. “He wants tae apologize tae ye.”
She snorted. “Yeah, right.”
“Ye mun’ prepare yerself tae meet him. He’ll be at our conference tonight, and the others’ll no dismiss him after what happened. This is his castle, after all that, and we’re his guests. Ye mun’ confront him, one way or the other.”
“I’m never speaking to Lachlan McLean again as long as I live,” she spat. “I don’t care if I have to be in the same room with him. I won’t have anything to do with him. You can tell him that for me if you want to.”
“I’ll no tell him. You will.”
His tone made her turn around in a hurry. She stared up at the casual determination written all over his face. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
He went down on one knee in front of her and took her hand. “Listen tae me, lassie, and listen weel fer this whole business turns on ye. We need him. We need him tae help us defend this place, and we’ll no defend it withoot the McLeans workin’ wi’ us side by side. Do ye hear? We ha’e had a few days’ peace withoot those creatures attackin’, so it’s any second now they’ll be comin’ o’er the hill at us. When that happens, we need tae be shoulder tae shoulder wi’ the McLeans and the Montgomerys and anybody else who’ll stand wi’ us. Ye’ll put on yer breeches and buckle on yer weapons and ye’ll fight wi’ the rest o’ us. Elle and ’Azel’ll do the same. Ye mark me words, and it’ll take e’ery weapon in this place tae defeat ’em withoot ’Azel’s magic on our side. Do ye hear? Ye mun’ make yer peace wi’ Lachlan. He’ll no harm a hair on yer head as laing as any mon o’ the Urlus remains alive tae protect ye, but ye mun’ make yer peace wi’ him and ye mun’ do it immediately. There’s no a moment tae lose, and we’ll no survive’t if ye don’t.”
She stared down into his glittering eyes. This was the most he’d spoken to her yet, and here he was, on his knees at her feet. He pressed her hand between his, and his words shot to her heart.
The minute he said those words out loud, she understood the truth in them. Callum’s mercy for the man he defeated filled her to overflowing. She never hated Lachlan. She only wanted to help him and his people. She would give anything for the McLeans, and now all their lives got caught in the same net.
She bent her head to stare down at his hands entwined with hers. “All right. I’ll do it.”
He darted in a kissed her. In an instant, their mouths locked. What could have been a quick peck turned into a raving passionate effort to inhale each other to the dregs. Sadie hugged him against her. She didn’t care about his injuries or the chance of soiling her nice clothes. She wanted him. She wanted nothing else.
He attacked her harder and stronger than ever. The desperate uncertainty of his fight with Lachlan came together now. They would never let each other go. He stroked her cheeks, her hair, her chest, her shoulders. He didn’t know what to touch first. He caressed one part of her, only to leave it behind and move on to something different.
His tongue set her on fire. She licked his lips and nibbled at his mouth in ravenous bites. His presence electrified her like never before, now that nothing separated them anymore. He was all hers. His family and her friends saw. They knew and approved of the match. They would help Callum take her out of here, and they would take her to that shining city she envisioned so long ago.
She knew that now. The place she dreamed about, the place that called her home—it existed somewhere just out of sight. Dragons fluttered over the castle turrets. They raced through the clouds, landed in the courtyards, and changed into beautiful, happy, productive people.
Callum scooped her off the bench into his arms. He crushed her ribs in his meaty arms. His chest and shoulders dwarfed her, but she welcomed his rabid affections with equal ardor. She sat down on his lap, and her flesh opened to him.
He wrapped her legs around his waist and pressed his hips between her legs. She sobbed into his mouth. He excited her beyond comprehension, and here they were, in her room, alone, with nothing and no one to tell them to stop. They didn’t have to sneak around. They didn’t have to worry about anybody finding out or getting annoyed. The future lay wide open—just as soon as they put the vampires behind them.
He heaved her off his lap and sat her down on the bench once again. He broke away from her kiss and buried his face in her lap. His arms snaked around her hips, and he burrowed between her legs. Oh, she ached for him so bad! She wanted him down there. She wanted so much more than his body filling her up and breaking her open.
He nuzzled into her delicate flesh, and her steamy juices oozed out of her burning slit. She rubbed the back of his neck, and her head swam from wave upon wave of delirious passion washing over her. She rocked and moaned against his face. She never dared imagine this moment and the torrential ecstasy filling her whole being.
Callum seized her dress. He tossed her skirts back and sank between her legs. Her body cracked apart in craven need. His hot tongue tickled her to raging heat. He pushed her back and pried her legs apart. Her flesh melted at his touch, and her sweet nectar dripped onto his tongue.
She leaned back against the window. Her head fell back, and her vision blurred in an agony of rapture. He nudged deeper into her sodden tissues. He rooted between her folds and sucked the slippery fruit where it gushed out to feed him.
When he straightened up, she beheld sheer molten power radiating out of his face. Her juices stained his beard and eyebrows. He passed his hand across his mouth and dove in to kiss her. Fragrant perfume scented his mouth, and burning lust flickered in his eyes.
He didn’t wait to get her permission. He pulled her off the bench onto his lap, and this time, he pushed her skirts aside to expose her engorged tissues. He yanked his kilt away, and their desire met in eternal union. He angled his manhood between her legs where the lubricated passage invited him in, but he didn’t enter her.
She rocked on his hard shaft. It slithered between her folds and spread her juices over his hard tool. She ached for him inside, but his slow rhythm didn’t
take him anywhere near her opening.
She sagged in his arms, and he clutched her in his powerful embrace. He controlled her movements to position her where he wanted her. He mastered her and carried her to the heights of desire.
Her eyes focused on his face, and their gazes locked. Her heart overflowed with love for him and all his kind. Their strength, their majesty in flight, and their wisdom inspired her as never before. If she could only aspire to belong to that magical race, she would ask nothing more.
He studied her soul through her eyes. Did he see how much she wanted him? Did he feel it on her skin and in her dripping cleft? His shaft throbbed against her in longing. His fingers crept down her back to her bare rump. He touched her there from behind, and she almost died of hunger for him.
In a flash, he was inside. She never saw it coming. She groaned when his thickness split her asunder. Her eyes sagged half closed, and her spine undulated when he stroked up into her. She lolled sideways, but he supported her in his arms.
Her juices gushed around his shaft and dribbled around his veins. Her flesh squelched at every stiff intrusion of his rod into her deepest anatomy. She moaned out loud. She couldn’t respond when he kissed her. She stared at some distant truth beyond sight, and her mouth hung open in a gaping O of startled delight.
He pumped up into her deeper and harder. His fingers tormented her from behind, but she couldn’t resist. She wanted this, and now she got it. She wanted him, and now he was hers. She melted in his arms, and her body embraced him in an unstoppable fist of heat and muscle and blood.
He tightened his grip. His chest and shoulders strained to the breaking point under his shirt. The indentation beneath his throat where his muscles attached sank and stretched every time he moved. He compressed his lips and gritted his teeth for the effort.
He struck his shaft against her bones and spattered her nectar over his pelvis. He buried his lance in her gaping fissure, and every time he sank it into place, her body clamped down on it in a cataclysmic spasm. Her inner muscles quivered down his length to wring the tortured growls from his throat.
Wolf Castle Page 20