by Terry Spear
Chapter 11
After Duncan and Shelley returned to the villa to shower and get ready to go back to the reserve, she went off to the guest bedroom, and he planned to call Ian. She still didn’t want to leave the island until she’d finished her work there, but she said she’d be thrilled to accompany him to Scotland to see his gardens. He was glad about that and wished they hadn’t had the misunderstanding at the restaurant over where he’d intended for her to go.
At this point, he wanted her to meet his family and to see if she could tolerate his mother, who would not allow anyone to speak unkindly of the clan. Most likely Shelley would tell just how she and her family felt about the nobility and the resettling of the crofters. His mother would not be pleased, and she would let Shelley know it.
For now, though, he just wanted Shelley safe.
“Ian,” he said, as soon as his brother answered the phone.
Ian sounded worried. “What’s wrong, Duncan?”
“Silverman wants her, damn it.”
“Send Shelley here.”
“She wants to accompany me home, but only after she’s finished with her work here.” Duncan knew Ian would find her work ethic as admirable as he did, while also realizing she was a stubborn lass.
“I’ll send Cearnach.”
“Aye.” Duncan knew his older brother and he could ensure that Shelley stayed out of harm’s way. But the nagging problem with Shelley’s family needed to be discussed. He hated to bring it up, not sure how his brother would view the news. He cleared the sudden frog in his throat. “Ian, she comes from a family of crofters who were ousted during the Highland Clearances.”
Ian didn’t say anything at first, then finally asked, “She holds this against our family?”
“We did the same to crofters on our land.”
Ian grunted. Then as if he finally realized what Duncan had said earlier, he asked, “Has she agreed to come home with you for good?”
“We… haven’t really discussed that yet.”
“You’re mated?”
“Nay, Ian,” Duncan said, irritated. Why did his brother continue to assume that? “I told you I would tell you if the relationship was headed that way. I don’t even know about her family, her wolf pack. Or whether she’d want to move to Scotland.”
A heavy silence ensued, then Ian said, “All right. I’ll call you later when we know what time Cearnach will be arriving at the airport, and you can pick him up.”
“Aye.”
“And, Duncan?” The warning tone was back in Ian’s voice.
“Aye?”
“Do not take unnecessary risks. Wait until Cearnach arrives to do anything further where Silverman is concerned.”
“I’ll wait,” Duncan said, but only because he was concerned about Shelley’s safety. Otherwise he was ready to take whatever Silverman might throw at him.
“I’ll call you later,” Ian said.
“Thanks, Ian.” Duncan disconnected and headed for the bathroom to shower, hoping they wouldn’t have any trouble in the forest while Shelley catalogued more of her plants. He also hoped Cearnach wouldn’t make a play for her. His brother had a way with the lasses with his sunny disposition and his air of never being concerned about anything.
Maybe Duncan should tell Ian to send Guthrie instead.
***
Shelley finished making the reservations for the snorkeling trip to swim with the rays the next day and found Duncan staring out the window at the ocean. He turned when he heard her approach and gave her an anxious look. “Ian’s sending our next eldest brother, Cearnach, to stay with us until you’re finished with your work here and we can leave for Scotland.”
She was so surprised that she stared at him for longer than necessary. Finally she found her tongue and asked, “When?”
“He’s making flight reservations now.”
“Oh.”
“It’ll be safer that way.”
Which meant that Duncan was more worried about things getting out of hand with Silverman than he’d let on.
She nodded, but then she smiled. “He can pay half of your half of the cost of the villa.”
He laughed. “All our money goes into one account.”
“Oh. Sure. Wendy, that’s my girlfriend, says most wolf packs do that.”
“You don’t have a wolf pack?” Duncan sounded surprised but at the same time hopeful. If she didn’t have a wolf pack, she might like becoming part of his. On the other hand, she might not be used to being with a pack and have a hard time adjusting. His brothers could be big teases. Especially Cearnach.
“I have a mother and three uncles. It’s sort of an autonomous wolf pack. My uncles never mated, and we lost my father many years ago, so whatever we earn is ours to keep.”
If her pack was loosely tied together, he assumed they wouldn’t mind if she joined his in Scotland.
Then he considered the logistics of their sleeping arrangements here at the villa. That was a more immediate concern and could be a problem when Cearnach arrived. “We’ll have to swap bedrooms. My brother and I will share the twin beds, and you can have the master bedroom again.”
“Tonight we can stay together so I don’t have to hear your footfalls on the stairs all night while you check on me to see if I’m okay.”
He gave her a small smile. It would be his pleasure. But if he stayed with her one night, he was certain he wouldn’t want to give her up for the next… or any other.
“Did Silverman call to arrange a meeting with you while I was in the shower?” she asked.
“No. He’s trying to determine how willing I am to fight him where you are concerned. Ready to go to the reserve before it gets any later?”
“Yes.” She grabbed her backpack and headed for the front door. “I made the reservations for snorkeling with the stingrays for tomorrow afternoon. We can swim in the ocean later in the evening, depending on when your brother gets here.”
“We’ll swim well before he arrives so I can have you to myself. It wouldn’t do for him to see you in that string bikini of yours. I’ve never swum so much in so few days.”
“You have to wear the bathing suit I bought you. I want to see how far it stretches.” She raised a brow and gave him a sinfully wicked smile.
He laughed, and from the way he did, she thought she might have pushed their relationship into something she might not be ready for… yet.
Duncan pulled the door open for her. She stopped dead in the entryway, her heart skipping a beat. The two burly men who had met them in the parking lot after they had disembarked from the pirate ship—and that damned Kenneth—stood in front of them, blocking their exit. All somber faced.
“Our boss insists on seeing you. Alone,” the spokesman of the group said to Duncan. “The little lady can stay here. Kenneth will see to it.” The big man turned to look at her. “Sal only wants to talk privately with him. That’s all. Don’t worry about a thing.”
“I’ll be fine,” Duncan assured her, knowing Sal wouldn’t try to make him disappear. Not if this was all about Sal’s desire to pursue Shelley, and Duncan suspected it was.
“An hour at the most,” the man said.
“I have work to do at the reserve,” Shelley said hotly, as if she didn’t care what any of them did as long as she got her work done.
Duncan wasn’t sure what she had in mind, but he didn’t want her coming to harm at the hands of this Kenneth hothead. Although considering what she could do to Kenneth as a wolf set his mind somewhat at ease.
The spokesman nodded. “Kenneth can go with you.”
Shelley looked to see if Duncan was agreeable. He lowered his head, telling her that he thought it would be safe, and then he left with the other two men.
With her stomach tied in knots, Shelley was so close to stripping out of her clothes, shifting, and then tearing into Kenneth that she had to fight the urge to the marrow of her bones. She thought she could reduce the anger and anxiety flooding her system if she went to the reserve
and worked. She wanted to call Duncan’s brother, Ian, to let his clan know that Silverman’s men had forced Duncan to go with them. She was certain Ian would send half the pack to protect his youngest brother. Probably even come himself.
But if she made the call and nothing untoward happened, Duncan would be sorely irritated with her. Especially since the men didn’t sound as if they planned to kill Duncan. They must not realize that Duncan knew about Silverman and the stolen funds.
She cradled her bag in her arms, intending to drive the rental car to the reserve and hoping she wouldn’t get stopped because she didn’t have a special license or insurance to drive on the island. But Kenneth shook his head and made her ride as a passenger.
That made her a little more nervous. She suspected he didn’t want her in control of the car or where they were going.
“What’s this all about?” she demanded as he drove her to the reserve.
“Sal wants to talk to the Scot. That’s all.”
“What about?” she asked again, her tongue sharpening.
He shrugged. “None of my business. Are you going to continue to chase after Sal?” A hint of warning was in his voice, which she thought odd, considering who was chasing after whom in this scenario.
“Sal’s pursuing me, not the other way around. If you hadn’t noticed, I’m happily pursuing a relationship with Duncan.”
She still thought it odd the way Kenneth had asked the question, as if he didn’t want her involved with his boss. She would have thought he’d want her to agree with whatever his boss wished.
“Tell him you’re not interested in having anything more to do with him. You obviously haven’t made that clear to him. Like you’re playing some damned cat-and-mouse game with the two men.”
She wondered if this was a personal issue. Perhaps a woman had played Kenneth for a fool—encouraging both him and someone else to take interest—and he had lost out.
Or maybe he was just worried that his boss didn’t have the wherewithal to battle someone like Duncan. That he might be a dangerous man to rile. Kenneth had seen firsthand that Duncan wasn’t one to sit back and play into anyone’s hands. Maybe he could tell that if Duncan was provoked too far, Kenneth might not have a job at all.
The bottom line was that she was worried about what Kenneth or the other men might be supposed to do to Duncan. Or her, even. “If your boss told you to kill someone, would you do it?”
Kenneth jerked his attention to her. “Hell, no. None of us do that kind of work. Is that what you thought?”
She thought the contradiction was funny. Kenneth could threaten and bully Duncan in a restaurant full of people, but when it came to taking a stand, he didn’t have the guts to do anything. He was all mouth, she thought. No real courage. But what if he had a gun? Would that give him enough nerve to put some backbone behind his threatening words?
“What am I supposed to think when you’re strong-arming Duncan like you’ve done and given him no choice in the matter? When you forcibly take Duncan to a private meeting with Sal, and then I’m left with you to guard me?”
He snorted. “It’s just so you don’t get any ideas. Go to the local police and stir up trouble, saying that we stole your boyfriend or something.” He turned his head to ask her, “How does he know Sal? My girlfriend said he has to.”
“He doesn’t. He just didn’t think that any boss should keep a man and a woman who are in love apart. Duncan told me she said she was upset because she keeps trying to get together with you and Sal keeps you from meeting up with her.”
Kenneth grunted, as if his job was more important. “She should have kept her big mouth shut.”
Hmm, the woman seemed more hung up on the worm than he was on her.
“Duncan’s one of the good guys,” Shelley said, except that his family had forced Scots off their lands. “So just like he sympathized with your girlfriend, he’s not at all pleased with Sal’s attempts to hook up with me. Wouldn’t you feel the same if some guy asked you to give up the girl you’re dating?”
Kenneth hesitated, then finally said under his breath, “For money, hell, I’d do anything.” He looked her over and sneered. “I’m sure the Scot will be asking for a lot of compensation, though. The question is: will what Sal offers be enough? What will happen when he pays it? I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes, lady.”
The threat barely registering, Shelley stared at the creep, his comment about money surprising the hell out of her. “Sal’s going to offer to buy me?”
***
Not expecting where Silverman’s men planned to take him, Duncan walked into a bar that was not open for another hour in George Town. They hadn’t taken him to Sal’s estate like he thought they would. Maybe Sal had decided on this establishment because he didn’t want Duncan anywhere near the inside of his estate.
Scowling, Sal leaned back in a leather chair, tapping his fingers on the tabletop with a sturdy rope braiding the edge. A ship’s hull with a bare-breasted mermaid masthead jutted into the room, the hull serving as a finger-food bar filled with fried chicken wings, shrimp on beds of ice, sushi, and mushrooms in a sauce, plus salad fixings. The place smelled of beer and whiskey as classical music drifted overhead.
Sal motioned for the bartender to bring them whatever Duncan wanted. “Whiskey,” he said, and Sal ordered one, too.
“Kenneth’s girlfriend said you knew me,” Sal said after the bartender served their drinks, then disappeared.
Even Sal’s henchmen who had brought Duncan there waited outside.
“How would I know anything about you? I’m here on vacation. The only thing I know about you is that you’re trying to hit on Shelley.” Duncan sounded really peeved, which wasn’t in the least put on.
“You had trouble getting a room when you first arrived,” Sal said, ignoring his comment about Shelley.
“Aye.”
“Shelley said you gave her a lift from the airport to her villa.”
So Sal was trying to verify everything that had happened between Duncan and Shelley? “She was waiting for a taxi, aye. I gave her a ride and took a couple to their hotel, as well.”
“As a good Samaritan.”
“As far as Shelley was concerned, aye. I hadn’t intended to also take the couple to their rental.”
Sal nodded. “Understandable. To attract the she-wolf, you made the effort, especially since you have nothing else going for you. Not even a room to stay at. So out of the goodness of her heart, she allowed you to stay at her villa.”
Duncan wasn’t going to deny it or tell Sal he was paying half of the cost. That wouldn’t look good when this man would have footed the whole bill, although the bastard would have been using Duncan’s people’s money.
“I’m a very wealthy man. I could give Shelley whatever she dreamed of having. Can you?” Sal asked.
Duncan raised his brows. “Monetarily, nay. In other ways, aye.”
Sal stiffened, getting the point of what Duncan was saying. “I’m interested in seeing Shelley further, and you seem to be an impediment.”
“Aye.” Duncan fought smiling. For the first time, Sal was squirming. Duncan liked to see Sal squirm since he didn’t figure the man did that often.
“How much would it take for you to leave the island and give her no further thought?”
Duncan pondered the question. If he mentioned the amount that Silverman had stolen from his clan, he predicted the man would not connect it to any one individual account. Duncan wanted to say the entire amount, plus the interest that should have accrued. He wasn’t greedy; he just believed in justice. Not that he could be bought off to leave Shelley to the snake.
But he did tell him what Sal owed him, wanting to be up front and honest with the man when Sal himself could not be. “Two hundred and fifty million pounds sterling,” Duncan said.
Sal looked aghast for only the briefest of moments. Then he had the nerve to smile, figuring Duncan was making a joke. “That’s a lot of money for one little female wol
f.”
“She’s a hell of a lot of wolf.” Duncan suspected Silverman might have seen Shelley and him frolicking in the ocean. Although he couldn’t see this stiff-necked fool doing anything of the sort, who knew what Sal was capable of when it came to women?
“What makes you think I have that kind of money or that I’d want to pay it for the privilege of seeing a wolf without your interference?”
“You’re the one who said you were wealthy and asked how much it would take to buy me off.”
Sal liked money too much. Duncan didn’t think the bastard would kill him to keep the money and get the girl. He also believed Sal thought he might be able to give Duncan a pittance, and he would go away. Now the thief saw that he couldn’t.
Duncan downed his drink and rose from the table. “Two hundred and fifty million pounds,” he reiterated. “She’s worth every farthing. But even if you paid me off to leave, she would decide whether she wished to see you or not.”
Sal looked a little sick. Duncan was beginning to think Shelley was right. Because of the money and power he wielded, the man was never denied anything he wanted. For the moment, Duncan was completely dumbfounded.
He slammed the door to the bar as he exited and said to Silverman’s two thugs, “Take me to the reserve where Shelley is.”
The spokesman opened the door and said to the boss man, “Is it all right to take him to the girl at the reserve?”
“Yeah. Take him,” Sal growled, and Duncan had the feeling that this business concerning Shelley wasn’t over between him and Sal.
The situation got Duncan thinking about Sal’s mate and how she would feel if she knew he was trying to see another wolf. She might know about his interest in human females and not care, although most lupus garou mates would. Maybe she was satisfied to live well and ignore his indiscretions with human women.
With a wolf? She might not be so forgiving.
***
Ian had Guthrie research everything he could about Duncan’s new she-wolf friend. It was the first time Duncan had ever been interested in a female wolf. He denied he had any long-term interest in her, but Ian knew his brother better than that. At least he thought he did. He assumed they would soon have a new American wolf living in the castle.