The MacLomain Series: A New Beginning Boxed Set (Books 1-4)

by Purington, Sky

  “Aye,” her grandmother said softly, her eyes sad but determined as they stayed with Jessie’s. “But hear me well, child. You have a tremendous amount of your grandfather in you. Not just your appearance but your very magic and the goodness at your core. He would want you to be strong right now. Not mourn for him but embrace what he gave you and use it to keep this country safe.” Her eyes flickered between Jessie and Bryce. “He would want you to cherish the love you’ve found and never let it go.”

  “No risk of that,” Jessie murmured, brushing away another tear as she glanced at Bryce.

  Though she wanted to get to know her grandmother better, she knew they were running out of time. It seemed summoning a spirit was sustainable for only so long. The energy it took for her grandmother to stay manifested was limited. And she was using it up quickly with her passionate nature and anger at the enemy.

  “Is there anything else you might be able to tell me to help us defeat this last warlock?” Jessie asked. “Anything at all.”

  “Only that you must put love before all else,” her grandmother replied as her form began to waver. “And that you must not make the same mistake as your grandfather and let love blind you.”

  That sounded awfully similar to what Adlin had said earlier.

  “I love you, Granddaughter,” she whispered. “Fight well then finally live the life you deserve.”

  “Goodbye, Grandmother,” Jessie murmured. “Thank you so much.” She had nearly vanished when she thought of one more thing. “What about my sister? Do you know what happened to her? Where she is now?” Then she thought of even more questions, rambling despite herself. “And why did my grandfather’s killer ever allow my mother to have children? Wasn’t he concerned her offspring might possess magic to threaten his? If all that isn’t curious enough, why allow one to be taken away and out of his control?”

  But it was too late.

  Her grandmother was gone, and her questions would remain unanswered.

  Jessie slowly sat again and stared at the fire, dumbfounded by everything she had just learned. Bryce sat beside her, still holding her hand as Grant handed her a skin of whisky. After a solid swig or two, she finally turned eyes to everyone and released a shaky sigh. “Well...”

  That was it. That’s all she managed to get out before her feelings bombarded her and annoying tears started falling again. While she might be enjoying making up for lost time sexually, the endless emotional overload was starting to wear thin. But she just couldn’t stop it. Her emotions were determined to be felt, so she had no choice but to ride them out.

  The next thing she knew her friends were all around her offering hugs and just being there in general. She wasn’t sure whose shoulders she cried on. At one point probably all of theirs before she finally managed to get herself under control, took another swig of whisky and rallied her strength.

  That’s what she needed to do from here on out.

  Not cry what felt like every other minute, but get a grip and set aside her emotions. It might seem impossible, but she had to do it. For goodness sake, she had spent most of her life perfecting detachment so she should be able to do it now.

  “I must say that I agree, lass,” Adlin finally broke the silence, his words soft as he followed her thoughts. “’Tis time to rally the strength we both know you have and try to fight some of these emotions.” His eyes grew stern as they stayed with hers. “You need to be strong whilst you face what’s ahead.”

  While it was obvious by their expressions and mutterings that Bryce and her friends thought his words were a little strong, Jessie knew he was right. She nodded that she understood and would try harder from here on out.

  “I think Adlin’s right.” Grant’s eyes went from Bryce to Jessie as her friends, convinced she was okay now, finally returned to their men. “As your grandmother said, though, you need to embrace love now more than ever. ‘Tis verra powerful in its own right.”

  Everyone nodded as Milly chimed in. “Just look at what it’s accomplished so far.”

  Jessie’s eyes met Bryce’s, in total agreement. It certainly had accomplished a lot, hadn’t it? Not just what it had done for the other couples, but what it was doing for them. Though she had loved a piece of him for years, now it was so much stronger. And that was changing her in ways she never saw coming.

  He was helping her transform into the person she was always supposed to be.

  More than that, he was giving her a glimpse of a future she desperately wanted.

  A life with him.

  As she thought about how she might be able to make that happen, a nugget of an idea formed. “I was in control of so much for so long that it was jarring not to be when the warlocks split off.” She pondered as she eyed them. “Yet as time has gone on and I’ve grown stronger via my dragon magic and of course, Bryce, rather than weaken as I anticipated, I’ve begun to wonder.”

  “Wonder what, darlin’?” Christina asked from Graham’s lap.

  “Why I’m still looking at things as if I have no control,” she replied. “Why I’m waiting so patiently for the warlock to make his move.”

  Intrigued, Grant cocked his head. “What are you thinking, lass?”

  “I’m not entirely sure yet,” she murmured. “All I know is I’m sick of being on the defense when I could be on the offense. And I’m sick of feeling like this warlock holds all the cards.”

  “That a girl.” Lindsay grinned. “Just tell us how we can help, and you know we will.”

  Jessie nodded. “I will.” She looked at everyone again. “All of us should give it some thought tonight and make a move sooner rather than later.” She tapped the book. “After all, I’ve got a tool that can double as a weapon, wouldn’t you say?”

  Adlin and Grant grinned as Bryce wrapped his arm around her shoulders and nodded. “I’d say we’re verra much on the right path now, lass.”

  “Aye,” Grant said as they all set to eating. “We’ll sleep on it then in the morn join King Robert. He’s eager to see you all.”

  The rest of the evening was a pleasure as everybody enjoyed being together once more. Though her emotions were still turbulent, she better managed them by firmly keeping revenge in mind. Not only for everyone here but for her grandparents and her mother. For all the lives affected by one weak, cruel man.

  As she and Bryce curled up beneath a blanket later that night, his front to her back, she felt incredibly content. And, as always, aroused with him so close. Who would have ever thought she was so sexual? But she couldn’t seem to get enough. Not with him around.

  “If ye werenae so vocal,” he murmured, a grin in his voice, his hand already minutes into roaming her leg. “I’d take ye here and now.”

  “We’re not even near everyone,” she reminded. They had found a little cave set apart. Though in truth, it did connect to the area everyone else slept in. Nonetheless, she pressed her butt against his erection, reminding him how ready he was for her. “And I can be quiet.”

  Or so she hoped.

  Either way, it seemed he needed no further prompting.

  “To hell with whether yer quiet,” he growled, blowing past any reservations he might have had as he yanked her dress up. The blanket never moved but half a breath later he certainly did when he finally took her.

  She bit back a groan and gripped the blanket as she savored the feeling. He didn’t thrust hard but slow and rhythmic. His small, deep movements built a whole new type of pleasure as did the feeling of him taking her like this. His front to her back.

  In a way, it was more raw and erotic than when she could actually see his face. She gauged everything she felt off the soft sounds he made. Off the way his hand clenched around hers as their passion built.

  She shut her eyes and just felt. Sometimes he rolled his hips where other times he barely moved. When he went to touch her clit to enhance everything, she whispered, “No.”

  She didn’t need that. Not now. Not as she focused on where they joined and the astounding sensat
ions that alone caused. Moments later, warm waves of pleasure began rolling through her. When he pressed deep, issued a low, muffled groan and released, those warm waves became a deluge.

  A harsh shudder of pleasure ripped through her before her body relaxed entirely and she simply floated in his arms. For a moment in time, she had no worries at all. Life was stress-free, and the two of them were all that existed. Blissful, reveling in that utter contentment, she drifted off to sleep.

  Or at least she thought she was sleeping. It was hard to know. Especially when she opened her eyes, and she was standing face to face with the man who had called himself her grandfather.

  More jarring than that?

  She was seeing him through a haze of red far sharper than what she had experienced on the shore when she and Bryce killed the warlock.

  Chapter Sixteen

  BRYCE WATCHED AS JESSIE, no older than eight or nine, clenched her little fists and glared up at a man he knew full well was the imposter. The enemy claiming to be her grandfather. They stood near the clearing in the woods she loved so well.

  Again, he was seeing through the warlock’s eyes.

  But how could that be considering the warlock didn’t exist until after this man died?

  “You’ll stay out here in the forest until I say you can return,” he spat. “You’ll stay here while I beat your mother for being the insolent woman that she is.”

  Jessie trembled, not in fear but rage as the man continued saying horrible things. It didn’t take Bryce long to figure out he was purposely instigating her. But why? What was the point?

  Seconds later, he figured it out when dragon fire flared in her eyes.

  Bloody hell. She was embracing her dragon, wasn’t she? Not just a dormant yet magical lineage passed on from her grandfather but the real deal. Moments later, as the air began to swirl around her, the man whipped out his little book and began drawing.

  There was no questioning what was about to happen.

  She was going to suffer a somewhat similar fate as her grandfather.

  Though Bryce raged inside, he was immobile, trapped in a warlock waiting patiently on the sidelines. A warlock staying to the shadows. He watched in horror as her little black dragon lunged at the man before he stepped aside and grinned darkly. She half roared, half screamed in pain before the impossible happened.

  Her dragon colors swirled and separated from her.

  Once again a little girl, Jessie staggered back in shock. Standing in the spot of sunlight she loved so well her sad eyes met his moments before her colors—her inner dragon—rushed straight into the warlock.

  He barely had a moment to process the strange sensation before the imposter grandfather began chanting. Half a breath later the warlock was violently yanked toward the little book. Then all went black as he was sucked down into the bowels of Hell itself.

  Ripped from the nightmare, he and Jessie sat up at the same time.

  Bryce had to pat himself to make sure he was actually here. It had all seemed so real. Terrifying. Endless. But he had figured out a few things. The warlock was manifested ahead of time and somehow given a piece of her dragon. Then as swiftly as it was given freedom, it was taken away, and he was thrust back into the dark abyss of a curse yet to unravel.

  If all that wasn’t enough, an even bigger truth was revealed.

  “I am a dragon,” Jessie whispered, not only following his thoughts but based on the startled way she awoke, witnessed the same nightmare. A mixture of sadness and anger churned in her eyes as they met his. “Or at least I was a dragon.”

  He pulled her into his arms, not sure what else to do. What was the meaning of all that? Did he somehow...possess her dragon? He would have scoffed at the idea had his mother not so recently given her dragon magic to Jessie.

  “No,” she whispered, following his thoughts. “Just the warlock has it in him. Not you.”

  “Bloody hell,” he muttered as they stood. Though he was furious at the idea, he couldn’t help but feel a spark of both elation and rage. Elation that she was indeed a dragon that once shifted. And rage because someone had the nerve to take her dragon away from her...away from him.

  Because her little dragon very much belonged to his.

  “You’re my mate,” he whispered, as snippets of what the warlock felt at the time rushed through him. The undeniable connection. The incredible truth.

  Bryce pulled her closer, unable to stop the red haze that fell over his vision as their eyes held. “It might have been a terrifying moment, but at least one thing was established, lass. We are verra much dragon mates.”

  Her eyes grew moist. “I would like nothing more.”

  In his momentary exaltation, he had lost sight of how she must feel right now. It was clear she had yet to feel that remarkable connection. The moment, no matter how fleeting, of unabashed joy. But then how could she when she had been ruthlessly robbed of something so important? When an inherent part of who she was had been so callously ripped away from her.

  “I’m so sorry, lass,” he whispered and cupped her cheeks, his touch tender. “We will fix this.” He shook his head. “If ‘tis the last thing I do, I will get your dragon back.”

  She nodded and blinked away any tears before they could fall, clearly focusing on anger and revenge over loss and regret. “I know you will.” Her jaw tightened in determination. “We both will.”

  Though they knew it was a very real possibility, they refused to entertain the idea that she might not get it back. That she may never experience the wonder of shifting and being with her mate as dragonkind intended it. Instead, they focused on the day all of this would be made right. A day that could not come soon enough.

  When they joined the others to break their fast, Jessie filled them in on what had happened.

  Sven, above all, seemed the most troubled and certainly the angriest. “I am with Bryce on this and will see your dragon returned to you if it’s the last thing I do.” He shook his head. “There is no greater crime than what that man did to you.”

  While some might argue subjecting her to a life with evil warlocks was a greater crime, Bryce understood where Sven was coming from. He couldn’t imagine someone stealing his inner dragon nor the gaping hole that would be left behind.

  Though they wore comforting smiles, Bryce didn’t miss the flicker of unease in both Adlin's and Grant’s eyes. He knew full well what they were thinking. What everyone must be thinking.

  Now Jessie wasn’t just facing Bryce in the warlock but her own dragon.

  Though there was always the chance this new information would only fuel her determination to destroy the warlock in hopes of getting her dragon back, it could also work another way. She might hesitate to end the warlock because she feared killing her dragon too.

  “It all ties together somehow,” she said later as they headed for King Robert’s encampment. “Maybe possessing my dragon is what the warlock meant when he said I’m already his and will remember when I least expect it. Maybe because of your connection with him, we’ve got an advantage.” She gave him a hopeful look. “Because now we know what he’s hiding.”

  “Aye,” Bryce agreed, hoping that was the case. “’Twould make sense, wouldnae it?”

  “Aye, ‘twould,” Grant said. “And worth figuring into your plan when you control him rather than the other way around.”

  “Agreed,” she murmured as several horsemen approached. Scotsmen all, it took Bryce a moment to realize who was in the lead.

  “Greetings, my friends,” King Robert the Bruce bellowed as he swung down from his horse.

  Eight years had passed for the Bruce since they last saw him at Bannockburn and though he was still fit, the long war with England was starting to wear on him. Nevertheless, it was a nice reunion as he was again astounded by how they hadn’t aged a day.

  “Ye look awfully familiar to me, lassie,” he said to Jessie. “Have we met?

  She offered a small smile. “Could be but it would have been very briefly i
n a little tavern in Happrew back when Grant was wounded.”

  Grant looked at her curiously. “I thought you were gone by the time Robert arrived the next morn?”

  She shrugged and grinned. “Am I not allowed to stick around and enjoy a bit of history on occasion?”

  Grant chuckled. “I suppose you are.”

  Though Bryce wondered how she managed it without the warlocks knowing he supposed it didn’t much matter at this point.

  “You’ve arrived at a good time,” Robert announced as he had one of his men take his horse and walked with them. “We’ll be sitting down soon to go over plans one last time and ‘twould be good to have ye there.” He cast Adlin a knowing look. “In case ye’ve an opinion or two to add.”

  Adlin only grinned and shook his head. “Ye know better than to ask, old friend.”

  “Well, Grant’s already revised some of my plans so I’m sure things are going as they should,” Robert said. “And ye helped Angus steal those ships which was verra helpful. Not to mention saved his life.” His eyes covered everyone, especially Bryce and Jessie. “Thank ye for that, by the way.”

  They nodded as Grant frowned. “I didnae revise your plans.”

  Robert smiled then winked. “Of course, ye didnae.”

  Grant shook his head and shrugged when Adlin gave him a look. “’Tis not my fault if he’s beginning to catch on to us after all these years.”

  Adlin offered no comment as they left the woods and entered an encampment. Just like those they had entered before, men prepared for battle as they sharpened their blades and practiced fighting one another. And just like before many stopped to eye the lasses.

  It didn’t go unnoticed that Sven fell in on Jessie’s other side and he knew full well why. She might not be blood related, but she was a dragon. That meant she was as much Sven’s to protect as she was Bryce’s. He nodded at the Viking, not jealous but grateful.

  It had just begun raining, so they arrived at a good time.

  “Refreshments for my friends,” Robert said to one of the men standing guard outside his massive tent. Three men were already inside. Two sat and the third, a tall, dark haired man stood at a table eying a map. He arched a brow at them as they entered.