by Lydia Dare
She wasn’t like the English girls he was used to, that was true. That was one of the things he loved about her.
“Don’t rip her from her home,” Alec continued. “Live at least part of the year here.”
Ben glanced around the tiny cottage. He couldn’t live part of the year here. The few days it had been were difficult enough. “This place is not conducive for a man my size.”
Alec roared with laughter. “Do you take everything so literal, Benjamin? You don’t have to live in this cottage. Buy a house, or build one. William has that estate in Dumfriesshire, but I think Elspeth would prefer to stay in Edinburgh, even if it’s just a few months a year. I know everyone else would like that.”
“Miss Macleod, for instance?” Ben asked, as everything suddenly started to make sense.
“Aye,” Alec replied, unrepentantly. “But the others as well. Just think about it, Ben.”
Thirty-two
ELSPETH COULD HAVE KISSED ALEC MACQUARRIE FOR dragging Ben from the cottage, though she wasn’t quite sure what they were up to. But now her surprise for her husband could actually be a surprise. She stared at the new bed, which took up nearly the entire room. Fashioned out of willow branches, the four-poster bed looked like something fresh out of a fairy tale.
She couldn’t wait for Ben to return. She went about the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on dinner. Meat pies, with blueberry cobbler for dessert. She scoffed as she remembered the way he had offered to hire a cook for her. And a maid. She’d never had a servant before and didn’t know if she could accept one or not. It would certainly be a change.
Elspeth tugged the tablecloth one last time to remove the wrinkles and smiled as she felt Ben’s arm snake around her waist.
His warm breath teased the side of her face as he leaned toward her and said, “I don’t know what smells better, my wife or dinner.” He spun her slowly in his arms.
She would probably never tire of looking at him. His dark hair hung past his collar, and a wayward lock teased his forehead, as it usually did. She reached up to smooth it into place, and it immediately sprung back.
“Speaking of smells,” he started. “All the men I’ve encountered today have mentioned the fact that I smell like a flower.”
“Jealous, are they?” She giggled.
“I don’t think ‘jealous’ is the appropriate word. ‘Flummoxed’ is more like it.”
“They dinna ken about yer feminine side?” she joked.
He growled in her ear and tugged her closer “I don’t have a feminine side.”
She inhaled deeply. “Ye do now.”
He chuckled and swatted her behind as she moved away from him.
“Do ye want ta eat, or do ye want the surprise I have for ye?”
“You have a surprise for me?” His gaze shot toward her as he shrugged out of his jacket. “What kind of surprise?”
“Actually, the surprise isna from me. It’s from Sorcha, ta be truthful.” His shoulders fell dramatically. “Oh, stop,” she scolded him, reaching to take his arm. She tugged it briefly. “C’mon.”
“The surprise is in the bedroom?” he asked as he raised one eyebrow. “If not for the witch involved, I might be excited.”
“That witch did somethin’ very nice for ye, so ye’d better be thankin’ her in the mornin’.”
“I can hardly wait,” he said with a pout, dragging his feet as he walked toward her, all the enthusiasm gone from his step.
She opened the bedroom door and stepped back, unable to hide her grin as his eyes grew wide with shock. “Where did that come from?” he gasped as he took in the sight of the beautiful new bed.
“Do ye listen to a thing I say, Ben?” she asked, her hands lifting to rest on her hips. “I told ye, Sorcha made it.”
“I thought the little witch could only manipulate the plants,” he murmured as he walked near the bed and ran his hand lovingly across the willow branches. They’d been bent and manipulated to make a beautiful heart-shaped headboard.
“She does. How else could she get the willow limbs ta behave this way?” Truly, it looked as though she’d told the willow where to put the branches and how to bend them for the proper effect. “Sit,” she encouraged him.
He sat down gingerly on the edge of the mattress.
“It’s made of stronger stuff than that, Ben,” she said. Elspeth sat down beside him and bounced up and down. “And it’s as long as ye are tall.”
“I don’t know what to say,” he mumbled. “It’s a wonderful gift. I didn’t think any of the witches liked me enough to make anything for me.”
She still wasn’t sure of it. “They’ll come ta love ye with time.” Maybe.
“I’ll thank her as soon as I see her.” His eyes traveled lazily down her body.
“Oh, no,” she said, scooting across the bed to get away from him. “I’ve meat pies and blueberry cobbler waitin’.”
Nearly effortlessly, he hooked her around the waist and had her beneath him within seconds. “You’re going to turn me into a blueberry.”
“I’m tryin’ ta turn ye inta a wolf. No’ a blueberry,” she giggled as he nuzzled her neck, the stubble on his cheeks abrading her skin. She sniffled loudly. “Ye do smell a bit like a flower.”
He rested his forehead against hers in a pose of submission. But then he chuckled. “I’ll take another bath in flower essence as long as it means I get to pull you in with me.”
“Ye’re incorrigible.”
“Hmm,” he agreed, lightly kissing her lips. “One of my better qualities.”
“Ben, dinner’s gettin’ cold.”
After devouring his meat pie, Ben looked at the blueberry cobbler in front of him. Even as tired of blueberries as he was, it smelled wonderful.
Across the table, Elspeth kept her eyes on him, making certain he ate every berry on his plate. She was more vigilant than his old governess, a whole lot prettier, too. “I promise to eat every bite, Ellie.” He brought a forkful to his mouth.
She momentarily glanced down at her plate. “Where did ye go with Alec MacQuarrie this afternoon?”
“I might have a surprise of my own,” he said, before shoveling in more cobbler.
Her green eyes widened. “A surprise?”
One he would be happy to give her when the time was right. The thoughtful gift from Sorcha went a long way toward a peace offering. Now he was even more convinced that he’d done the right thing when he’d bought the large plot of land outside of town earlier in the day. “But I’m not ready to tell you about it yet.”
He still had a few things to work out. Still, it seemed almost preordained when he and Alec happened upon architect John Burton on Queen Street later that afternoon. If he didn’t know better, he would think his old friend had somehow set up the chance encounter. The meeting turned into lunch, which turned into Mr. Burton promising Ben a set of designs for a large Gothic Revival mansion in the Scottish baronial style. That is, if Ben decided to build.
He could almost envision Elspeth in their new home now, standing on a veranda and looking up at the moon. They would be happy there for at least half the year.
“Well, in that case, once ye finish dinner, I’ll need ta get ye in bed—”
“I’m done,” he said, pushing away from the table.
He’d never tire of her innocent blushes. “Havers, Ben! I have an ointment I need ta apply ta ye.”
He made no attempt to hide his lascivious grin. “An ointment, you say?”
She nodded.
“And you’re going to apply it to my skin?”
Elspeth picked up the dishes from the dinner table and started toward the kitchen. “It’s made of aloe and ginger and geranium—”
“More flowers?” he asked with a frown.
She dropped the dishes by the stove and turned to face him. “I canna help it that the healin’ properties I need are found in flowers, Ben. The aloe plant is ruled by the moon, and its healin’ uses are well known. The ginger is ta increase ener
gy. Also ruled by the moon, the geranium will increase yer confidence.”
“My confidence?”
She stepped toward him. “Ye are a Lycan, Ben. That hasna changed. Ye need ta believe in yerself, in yer ability ta transform. The willow in the bed should help with that as well. Willow contains the strongest natural properties for shape-shifting.”
So Sorcha’s gift hadn’t really been to help him get a better night’s sleep. No matter, he’d still make the best use out of the bed. “So this ointment,” he began, tracing her lip with a finger. “Will you apply it for me? Or will you leave me to my own devices?”
Elspeth kissed his finger and wrapped her arms around his middle. “It would be best if ye had a healer rub it inta yer skin.”
“What luck,” he replied with a wink. “I happen to know a healer.”
“Do ye, indeed?” she giggled.
“Hmm. The prettiest girl in all of Scotland.” He scooped her up in his arms and started for their new willow bed.
“Ben!” She swatted at his chest. “The ointment.”
“We’ll get to it later,” he growled.
Thirty-three
ARM IN ARM WITH SORCHA, ELSPETH WALKED THROUGH the Ferguson orangery. The wonderful scents of tropical plants and flowering bushes were delightful. “So do ye think the bed worked?” Sorcha asked.
Elspeth had to look away, knowing her blush would give her away. “Aye, the bed worked just fine.” It had worked even better than she’d planned, in fact. With all the extra space, Ben had done things to her that she’d never imagined were possible.
Sorcha stopped in front of a bush and lovingly ran her fingers over a bud. Instantly it doubled in size then opened to reveal a breathtaking white orchid.
“Will ye stop tryin’ ta show off?” Rhiannon said from behind them.
Elspeth couldn’t help but laugh as Sorcha puffed herself up. “What are ye doin’ here already?”
Rhiannon shrugged. “Cait said this was when we were ta meet.”
They were meeting? Elspeth hadn’t gotten a summons. “Do ye ken why?” she wondered aloud. Caitrin had been fairly surly when they’d lunched the day before, and she had no desire to hear another long list of complaints about her husband.
“She’s been so irritable lately, I dinna ask.”
Elspeth couldn’t blame her. “Rhi, since ye’re here, I wanted ta ask ye a favor for tomorrow night.”
“The full moon?” Rhiannon questioned, one eyebrow rose in question.
“Aye. Can ye make it a clear night? I’d like ta keep the clouds from interferin’.”
Rhiannon grasped her hand. “Ye doona even have to ask, El. I already had it planned. Yer wolf willna have any problems with the weather.”
She couldn’t quite believe it. They’d all been so opposed to Ben not that long ago. “Have ye had a change in heart about my husband, then?”
“He seems ta make ye happy.”
More than she could have ever imagined, his moodiness notwithstanding. “Aye, he does.”
“And he was so nice ta me yesterday,” Sorcha said with a smile. “And he’s so handsome. I’m wonderin’ if I can find a Lycan of my own. Dinna ye say he has brothers?”
Before Elspeth could even reply to that, Caitrin called from the door. “There ye are. I should have known Sorcha would be holdin’ court in here.” She walked farther into the orangery with Blaire following in her wake and turned to Sorcha. “And, no, ye canna have a Lycan of yer very own.”
Sorcha’s bottom lip poked out.
“Why did ye call us together, Cait?” Elspeth asked, crossing her arms across beneath her breasts. She was a bit unsure of how to respond, since Caitrin hadn’t even bothered to call her for the meeting. Had she thought El wouldn’t come?
“I had a vision.” Cait’s gaze rose sharply to meet Elspeth’s.
Elspeth raised a hand and forced a sarcastic gasp. “About me? No!” She lowered her arms and moved to walk past them all. “I doona want ta hear it.”
Caitrin’s hand clutched her arm in a furious grip as she walked by. “Ye have ta hear it. Ye doona have a choice.”
“I doona want ta hear ye speak poorly of Ben,” Elspeth hissed as she shook Cait loose from her arm. “Ye may no’ like it, but he’s my husband.”
“And ye’d put him before yer own safety, because ye want ta help him. We’ll no’ let ye do that.” Elspeth’s eyes searched through the faces of the girls present, surprised to see that none of them, not a single one, would meet her gaze.
“All of ye plan ta interfere? That’s the way of it?”
“I wouldna call it interferin’…” Sorcha kicked a clump of dirt in her path.
“We need ta ken what ta expect on the night of the full moon,” Caitrin said bluntly.
“I doona ken what ta expect myself!” Elspeth cried. “I have never attempted ta heal a broken Lycan!”
“I can get a clearer vision of it if ye’ll let me look inta yer future.”
“I’ll no’ participate,” Elspeth said. “Ye can plan my future without me.” She stomped past them and toward the door.
Caitrin’s voice stopped her. “I did see somethin’.”
Elspeth stopped, her hand on the doorknob. She didn’t turn to look back at them. “What did ye see?”
Elspeth’s heart nearly broke when she heard Caitrin’s voice crack. “I saw him hurt ye.”
Elspeth didn’t turn back. She stepped through the door and closed it behind her. Only when it was firmly shut did she allow herself to rest heavily against the surface and drop her face into her hands.
Ben paced back and forth in front of Elspeth’s little cottage. He’d started inside the house but had quickly become overwhelmed by the diminutive size of the dwelling. He felt as though the walls were closing in around him. He’d never felt such a huge desire to be outdoors.
Whatever Elspeth had been doing, it was working. He’d never felt his Lycan side quite as strongly as he did at that moment. He’d worked all day to tamp it down, but he had to admit he loved the feeling. He’d thought he’d lost it forever. He thought that side of himself was gone, but it wasn’t.
Elspeth had found it for him. She’d healed him with her silly flower baths, ointments, and blueberries. And she’d healed him with her heart.
He had no doubt that she was his Lycan mate. In his mind’s eye he saw himself with her under the light of the full moon. The shadows would part and the moonlight would shine upon her light skin. There he would strip her bare in front of him and take her as his mate. He would pierce her flesh with his teeth and make her his.
Ben grew more and more aroused as his mind wandered. It was physically painful to think about taking Elspeth under the light of the full moon. Twenty-four more hours and he would be one with her; he would press into her body and she would lovingly accept him just as he was.
He imagined her opening her body to him, wrapping her legs around his waist.
The sound of a carriage drew him from his lustful thoughts. He groaned as MacQuarrie’s coach rumbled to a stop in the drive. MacQuarrie was the last person he wanted to see. The driver hopped down and opened the door. Ben pressed the heel of his hand against his erection, mentally willing himself to calm down. He buttoned his coat and adjusted the folds to hide the tent of his trousers.
Elspeth’s red head popped out of the coach. He would have to thank his old friend for the loan of his carriage. He hated the thought of her walking home when nightfall was approaching.
Then MacQuarrie stepped out behind her. What was she doing alone with Alec?
Elspeth smiled softly and crossed to him, rising on tiptoe to touch her lips to his.
“Where have you been?” he asked. Even he could hear the tone of his voice and knew it was too abrasive, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. “With MacQuarrie?”
“No.” She smiled, sliding an arm around his waist to turn toward Alec. “Mr. MacQuarrie stopped and offered me a ride home when I left Sorcha’s. Thank ye,” she
said softly to him.
Ben tipped her chin up with a crooked finger. Her beautiful green eyes were rimmed with red, and her nose was abraded, maybe from blowing it. “What happened to you?” he barked. His gaze immediately rose to Alec. “What did you do to her?”
Elspeth’s clutch on his arm grew tighter when it appeared he would have charged Alec. “I’ll tell ye inside.” She turned toward the house. “Thank ye again, Mr. MacQuarrie.”
“Any time, Lady Elspeth.” The man had the nerve to wink at her. A low growl burned in Ben’s throat. With a question in his gaze, Alec asked, “See you tomorrow, Ben?”
Ben ignored him and ushered Elspeth through the door. She disentangled herself from his grasp.
“Why have you been crying?” he growled.
“Oh, it’s nothin’,” she said and absently waved her hand. It was definitely not nothing to him. Anger washed over him and was nearly as potent as his lust. The two emotions warred to determine which would ride the surface of his mind. He raked his hand through his hair.
He crossed the room to her and pulled her into his arms. “It’s not nothing if it makes you cry.” She relaxed against him, which helped to ease his anger a bit, but not the lust that crowded his mind.
His hands moved to her bodice and began to quickly untie her laces.
“Now, Ben?” she laughed. “I’m barely in the door!”
“You’re in far enough,” he growled.
The red around the corners of his vision should have warned him that he was too far gone. It should have told him that he wasn’t himself. It should have told him that he was out of control. But he was too far gone to pay it any heed.
He met a stubborn knot in the laces that held her dress closed and lowered his teeth to it. He bit cleanly through the material with one bite.
“Oh, Ben!” Elspeth cried. “Doona ruin my dress!” Her fingers rose to finish the job he’d started. He batted them away before he simply tore the gown in two. The sound of rendered material hung in the air.
Ben stopped and closed his eyes tightly.
“Are ye all right, Ben?” Her soft hand touched his face. He turned his head and nipped her palm. He closed his eyes tightly.
“I’m all right,” he said slowly. Was he?