Heart Of A Highland Warrior

by Anita Clenney

  “He does look hot and bothered,” Matilda said.

  Ronan stepped up beside Shay and demonstrated the proper technique for throwing a knife. Shay grinned as he let the knife go. Before it hit the target, she had raced across the ring in a blur and caught it.

  “Shite. Is that what everyone told me about?”

  “That’s it.” She smiled. “Cool, huh?”

  “Handy trait to have. What does it feel like?”

  “Amazing. I wish I was out there now.”

  Faelan walked up behind them. “Anna, your new phone is here. Try not to let a demon eat this one. Tavis, we got your ID. You officially exist. There are papers inside that say you’re not a hundred and seventy-seven years old.”

  “I need papers?”

  “We don’t want anyone thinking you’re a terrorist.”

  “What’s a terrorist?”

  “Obsessed bastards. Minions, probably. You wouldn’t believe the crap demons are up to now. Sorry about last night.” Faelan didn’t quite hide his grin.

  “Don’t start this again.”

  “I want to ask you something.” Faelan pulled Tavis aside, away from the others who were watching Ronan and Shay. “I have my reasons for asking. Have you noticed anything odd about Anna? About the way you feel around her?”

  “Like wanting to bed her every moment of the day?” Tavis glanced over to make sure she couldn’t hear. Not that she couldn’t see it in his face every time he got near her.

  Faelan smiled. “Aye. Like that. I think she’s your mate.”

  “That can’t be. I don’t want a mate.” And particularly not one as beautiful as Anna. It would mean nothing but heartache. Men would throw themselves at her feet, and sooner or later, she would accept one of them. Then what the hell did he want from her? Why was he following her around like a sick puppy if he didn’t want her?

  “You couldn’t choose better than Anna.”

  “I know she’s beautiful.”

  “I don’t mean her beauty. She’s good. Strong, loyal.” Faelan gave Tavis a knowing look. “Faithful.”

  “Hmm.”

  “You’ve got to get over this thing you have about beauty and demons.”

  “Yeah, you didn’t almost bed one.”

  “Anna’s no demon. You’re just making excuses because you’re scared.”

  “I’m not scared.”

  “You are. Most people are scared of ugly things. You’re scared of beauty. But enough with the lectures for now.” He patted Tavis on the shoulder and walked back to his wife. “What are you doing out here?”

  “Watching Ronan train Shay and wishing you weren’t stubborn as a jackass.” Bree’s voice was filled with longing.

  “You’re not training,” Faelan said. “I don’t care what Ronan says.”

  “I don’t see why not. Do you think Anna’s going to stop being a warrior just because she’s pregnant?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  TAVIS’S WORLD TILTED. He must have misheard. The shock on Anna’s face, and Bree’s hand clapped over her mouth, told him he hadn’t.

  “I’m so sorry, Anna,” Bree said.

  “Why would you say that?” Anna looked frantic.

  Faelan put an arm around Bree, who was shaking. “Maybe I’m wrong,” she said.

  “Wrong?” Anna’s eyes were wide, scared. “You mean you’re serious. You can’t know that.”

  “I’m sorry,” Bree said again.

  Ronan and Shay ambled over to see what the fuss was about. “What’s going on?” Shay asked.

  “Anna’s pregnant,” Matilda said. “I don’t mean to be forward. But who’s the father?”

  Anna’s mouth tightened. “Oh God.” She ran toward the castle, and Tavis took off after her.

  Tristol swirled away from the disturbance in a black mist. He was beyond pleased. His hybrid had impregnated Anna. This could prove very valuable. She must be protected from Voltar. Taking her away would create too many problems. Namely, everyone would be looking for her. And he had to focus on getting rid of Voltar before his plans were ruined. Anna was probably safest here, surrounded by warriors. Tavis would die before he’d let anyone hurt her.

  Tristol almost wished he had mated her with Tavis. He was remarkably strong, loyal, and tough. And he wasn’t out of control like the hybrid. Perhaps next time. After Voltar was destroyed.

  Anna holed up in her room, pretending she wasn’t there. She ignored Bree’s knocking, and then Tavis’s a few minutes later. After his footsteps faded, she slipped into the hall hoping she didn’t meet anyone. She ran into Niall, who was eating a sandwich nearly as thick as his arm.

  “Sorry,” he mumbled around a full mouth. His eyes widened, and his throat worked. Anna would have walked past him, but she was afraid he was choking. He finally swallowed. “Roast beef.” He held up the sandwich. His eyes dropped to her stomach. “I was hungry.” Another awkward look at her stomach. “Congratulations…Uh, I gotta go.” He hurried away.

  She was still standing in the corridor staring after him when Brodie appeared. He glanced at her stomach. “Hey.”

  “Hi.”

  “How are you?” His gaze dropped to her stomach again.

  “Fine.”

  “Good.” He kept staring at her stomach.

  “Stop looking at my stomach.”

  “OK,” he said and hurried away.

  Instead of slipping out for a long walk, she went to find Ronan. He was out near the stables, looking into the woods.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  He swung around and faced her. “Nothing. Did you hear a funny noise just now? A whirring sound?”

  “No. But I was inside.”

  He glanced back toward the trees and frowned.

  “I need your help,” Anna said. “I need to get away.”

  “From?”

  “Everyone.” Anna crossed her arms over her stomach. She was terrified. She’d rather face Voltar than think about becoming a mother.

  “You can’t leave. Voltar and Tristol are out there, and my guess is that they’re looking for you.”

  “I’ll risk it. I need to be alone. And I don’t want the Council to find out.”

  “You can’t just run off,” Ronan said. “The father has a right to know what’s going on. I take it we’re talking about Tavis.”

  “Who says I’m pregnant? Bree was just guessing.”

  “Bree doesn’t just guess. How did this happen?”

  “Really?”

  “You’re not the kind to…”

  “Have sex?”

  “Well…” He scratched his arm. “I thought you had issues with sex. Not that it wasn’t good with us.”

  Better than good, but it was just wrong. Or bad timing. Both of them had been hurting and vulnerable. Neither of them belonged there. He knew it. She knew it. So they pretty much pretended it hadn’t happened. “Maybe I’m discovering its lure.”

  “You’ve got the hots for Tavis…bad.”

  Anna rolled her eyes. “Will you help me or not?”

  “Where do you want to go?”

  “Montana.”

  “It’ll take me a day or two to arrange it. I have to step up security.”

  “I’ll hide until then. Thank you.” Anna hugged him.

  Ronan seemed surprised. After their encounter, they didn’t do a lot of touching. He pulled her closer and just held her for a minute. “It’ll be OK,” he whispered. “The clan will help you out. You’ll have so many surrogate mothers and fathers you’ll be sick of them. And you’ll be a great mother.” His hands slipped lower, over her battle marks—which didn’t tingle when he touched them—to her butt.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Just making sure there’s no spark. Nice. Very nice. But no spark.”
/>   “Then get your hands off my ass.”

  What the hell was she doing? Anna had just found out she was pregnant, and here she was in Ronan’s arms with his hands on her arse. He turned around and stomped toward the house, fury in every bone in his body. That’s what beauty got you. Pain and betrayal.

  But how could it be betrayal if she wasn’t his? He didn’t even know if it was his bairn. It could be the hybrid’s. Bollocks. She could be carrying a half vampire inside her. Though how anyone could know she was pregnant this soon was beyond him. But everyone seemed to put stock in Bree’s feelings.

  He turned around and walked back. Anna was going to need help. Voltar and Tristol were out there, and she might be carrying an inhuman bairn. Tavis had sworn to protect her. In fact, he’d been ordered to protect her. He was going to protect her no matter if she wanted it or not. When he got there, his pretty thoughts shriveled to dust. Anna was racing across the field on horseback with no saddle. He hurried to the stables and grabbed the first horse he saw—a big white stallion that had been saddled and hitched to a rail. Niall was nearby in one of the stalls. Tavis pulled the reins free and climbed on his back. The stallion reared on his hind legs, and Tavis leaned in, nudging it with his heels. The stallion dropped down and headed for the open field.

  “Hey,” Niall yelled.

  Tavis raced after Anna. She was headed for the woods. She was fast, but his horse was faster. He caught up and yelled for her to stop. She slowed her horse and turned to look at him. Tavis jumped from the horse and walked over to her. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “Riding,” Anna said.

  “Without a saddle? Get off?”

  “What?”

  “Get off.”

  Anna frowned, but she dismounted. “What’s wrong with you?”

  “I know what you’re doing.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said. “But you need to chill.”

  “Chill? I’ll not have my bairn, or someone else’s, ripped out of its mother before it’s born.”

  She looked as shocked as if he’d slapped her. Her face went as pale as the vampires in Tristol’s fortress. “You think I’m trying to kill my baby? Are you insane?”

  Tavis stepped back, confused. “You’re not?”

  “No, I’m not, you ass.” The color was back in her face. Her cheeks were hot with anger. She turned and walked back to her horse.

  “You weren’t,” he said to her back. Shite. “Anna, wait.” He ran after her. “I saw you bouncing around up there without a saddle, and I thought you were trying to lose the bairn.”

  “What kind of monster do you think I am?”

  “I don’t…I mean, you’re kind, but they said you didn’t want a family.”

  “I don’t. But I wasn’t trying to lose my baby. I would never do that. Even…”

  Even if she’d been forced.

  “I thought I saw someone I recognized.”

  “And you couldn’t talk to him later instead of racing bareback across the field with a bairn barely set up in your womb?”

  Her face paled again. “I didn’t think about it.” She looked devastated. “How can I be a mother? I don’t know how.”

  Tavis slid his arms around her shoulders. “You’ve had some harsh things to deal with, and I’m sorry for my part. But you’re good, Anna. You’ll make a good mother, and you’ll raise a good child. It doesn’t matter if you don’t know who the father is.” God forbid he wasn’t human.

  “I do know who the father is.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  TAVIS STEPPED BACK. “You know? How?” She had been with him and the hybrid within hours of each other.

  “I haven’t had sex with anyone but you.”

  “But I thought…” Tavis’s heartbeat pounded in his ears. “You mean it’s mine? For certain, it’s mine?”

  She nodded, and a tear rolled down her cheek.

  “I’m going to be a father?” He couldn’t breathe. He looked at Anna’s stomach, flat and lean. His bairn was in there. His throat tightened, and his eyes began to sting.

  “I need to go.” He climbed on the horse and rode hard for the woods. When he reached the thick trees, he stopped and dismounted. He walked to a large oak tree out of Anna’s sight and sat down. He put his head in his hands and cried. For his family, for the son he’d never known, and for the child he would know. For finding Faelan again. And Anna. He felt a prickle across his shoulders. Someone was watching him. He jumped up, thinking Anna had followed him, and then swiped a thumb over his eyes so she didn’t see his tears. But she didn’t appear. “Who’s there?”

  No one answered, but a bush moved. Frowning, he started toward it, and then he heard something behind him. He turned and saw Faelan.

  “Tavis. What are you doing here?”

  “Just thinking.”

  Faelan frowned. “You all right?”

  “Aye.”

  “You don’t look it. I saw Anna back there. She told me you’d come this way. She had the same look.”

  “The bairn’s mine.”

  “She’s certain?”

  “She was never with the hybrid. I don’t know what to do.”

  A smile broke across Faelan’s face, and it reminded Tavis of when they were lads. “We’re going to be fathers. Both of us.” He grabbed Tavis in a hug, and Tavis wondered what having one child who would be more than a century younger than his sibling would do to the family tree.

  When they got back to the house, everyone was searching for Matilda. “She wanted me to give her a cooking lesson, of all things,” Coira said. “But she didn’t show up.”

  “She probably forgot,” Shay said. “She gets distracted easily.”

  “Distracted?” Nina said. “She’s insane. Ask Jamie about Matilda and the Secret Service. I swear I’m going to put her in a home.”

  Cody walked into the room and sighed. “What’s she done now?”

  “We can’t find her,” Nina said.

  “She was inside the secret passage in my room before,” Tavis said. “She was looking for the cat. She was worried about him.”

  “I’m afraid something is wrong,” Coira said. “The cat is here. She’s always got that cat with her. And I didn’t pay it any mind, but she’s been asking a lot of questions about the time vault.”

  Bree frowned. “She asked me too. She wanted to know what it was like inside. If I felt anything. And she was asking Tavis about it. You don’t think…”

  Shay closed her eyes. “Oh God.”

  Several of the warriors split up to search the castle and grounds, just in case she had gotten lost. Cody, Faelan, Shay, and Nina went to Bree and Faelan’s house so they could check the chapel cellar. Tavis went with them since he needed to return the time vault now that they had the key.

  “Make sure she’s not in it first,” Shay said.

  “Or make sure that she is,” Cody said.

  Shay smacked his arm. “Cody!”

  “My car isn’t here,” Nina said. “She shouldn’t be driving.”

  “Matilda shouldn’t be doing a lot of things she does,” Cody said. “Her recklessness is going to get us all killed.”

  “Calm down.” Shay patted his arm. “I’m sure she’s just being typical Matilda.”

  “You’re a saint to put up with her,” Cody said to Nina.

  “If she doesn’t settle down, I’ll be meeting Saint Peter ahead of schedule.”

  “This brings back memories,” Tavis said as they entered the cellar. This time, they had battery-powered flashlights which were a damned sight better than lanterns.

  Shay stepped into the dark cellar. “Tavis, you’re a brave man.”

  “Heavens, yes,” Nina agreed. “I can’t imagine coming down here and climbing into a box knowing you were going to sleep for so
long.”

  “He is brave.” Faelan thumped him on the back. “He’s been watching out for me for as long as I can remember.”

  “Someone had to,” Tavis said. “It’s there.” He pointed his light at the time vault.

  “Look at that.” Shay moved closer and touched the wood. “It’s beautiful. And to think they’re intended to hold something so ugly. If the demons I’ve seen are any indication, you and Faelan are the best looking things to come out of one of these.”

  “It’s closed,” Cody said, examining the lid.

  “That was a thump,” Faelan said. “Quick, open it.”

  The vault wasn’t locked, so the lid could be lifted, but it was heavy. Faelan and Tavis opened it, and Matilda popped up like a jack-in-the-box. “Oh my God,” she gasped. Her hair was wild, eyes round, and she was panting.

  “What the hell are you doing?” Cody yelled.

  “Calm down, Cody,” Shay said. “Matilda, what the hell are you doing? You could have suffocated in there.”

  The men helped her out. She clutched at Faelan and Tavis for support.

  Cody was furious. “Dammit, Matilda.”

  “I wanted to see what it was like to lie inside one. Research for my book. I didn’t mean for the lid to close. I had a block of wood to stop it, but it fell. It was so dark. But I felt everything. I remember every terrifying moment.” She patted her face. “Do I look any younger?”

  Nina stomped her foot. “You don’t look any younger, Matilda! You look like something your damned cat spit up.”

  “The cat. He’s probably worried about me,” Matilda said.

  “He probably knocked the block of wood out from under the lid,” Cody muttered.

  Nina looked exasperated. “Matilda, you have to stop exploring like this. You’re driving us all crazy.”

  “I am?”

  “Why do you think Jamie’s avoiding the castle?”

  “He’s busy,” Matilda said. “I think he still has a few loose ends to tie up from our little adventure. Her name is Sam.”

  “He’s staying clear of you,” Nina said.