The Kilted Stranger

by Margaret Pargeter

  Nothing else stirred in the silence. Meric stood up with abrupt grace, his kilt swinging. ‘Now you can understand,’ he teased, ‘why a lot of people never get near them.’

  Scrambling to her feet, Sue nodded, speechlessly. ‘I suppose I’ve been lucky,’ she agreed soberly.

  ‘You could say that,’ he conceded. ‘You could also be grateful you were with such a good stalker.’

  She looked back at him mischievously from beneath her lashes. ‘I didn’t think you were over-fond of gratitude, Mr. Findlay?’

  She held his glittery, dark look. ‘If you call me Mr. Findlay again, you’ll never know

  what hit you, girl!’

  Her mouth quirked in a careless smile which disregarded the menace in his face. ‘You’re full of dark threats today, aren’t you? Most probably empty ones, but I don’t scare easily.’

  His light teasing provoked, but she doubted whether his mind was really on what he was saying, or her light responses. He was a busy man and quite likely regarded her as a bit of a nuisance, someone he could treat casually while he concentrated subconsciously on his current problems. Someone like a younger sister. Her own mind rebelled unexplainably at her inability to make any indelible impression. Illogical though it seemed, Sue decided, with feminine perversity, that she didn’t like being ignored. It might not be wise, in fact it could be quite insane, but the desire was there in spite of his threats to provoke him a little in return!

  He hadn’t replied. to her last remark, as with an indifferent shrug he turned and made his way back down into the valley, leaving her to follow as best she could. With one last wistful look towards the place where the stag had disappeared Sue scrambled after him, sliding down the cliff face to land in an undignified heap at his feet.

  ‘Well, that’s one way of doing it!’ His eyebrows shot up and his voice drawled sardonically, and he made no attempt to help her to her feet

  She gazed at him scornfully as she picked herself up. Her hands were scratched where she had tried unsuccessfully to retain a grip on the rock, and one leg hurt slightly, but that would be nothing to him! A few well chosen words beat in her brain and it took a great effort to hold them in check. They would only bounce off his hard arrogance, she was sure of that. Even now, as she dusted herself down, he was picking up his coat and looking at his watch.

  ‘We’ll have something to eat,’ he said, ‘then it will be time to get back. It’s almost two o’clock and we’ve some way to go.’ With long strides he set off along the stony path. ‘There’s a good spot up here,’ he told her over his shoulder. ‘I’ve used it before. It’s more comfortable than perching on a rock.’

  Secretly intrigued, Sue trailed behind him up the burn, her movements freer now that the need for complete silence was past. As they went deeper into the small valley she found the isolation exciting. It might have been a private Shangri-la. They might have been explorers in some far off corner of the universe, trekking untrodden ground; the mountains of Tibet; the Great Wall of China. Vividly she allowed her imagination to run riot, through all the places she longed to see and probably never would. This place, she felt, was very old, sculptured in dramatic patterns by the elements, cut into jagged peaks and precipices by the sun and the rain and wind. A long, cold shiver ran down her spine as the thick isolation caught and held her, like a demon lover refusing to let go. Here a person could be lost for years before anyone might pass by. There must surely be ground here where no human foot had ever trod?

  All too soon they came to the spot Meric had mentioned, a sheltered ring of boulders within the backdrop of mountains, and within the boulders, flat rock covered with grass. Grass, burnt and dried at this time of the year, but thick enough to provide some comfort in an otherwise barren landscape.

  Meric turned. ‘Will this do?’ he asked, a slight smile at the corner of his mouth as he handed her the rucksack with the food.

  Without waiting for her assent he placed his rifle against the cliff. She noticed how he always took the greatest care of it. Next he took off his waterproof jacket, spreading it for a pillow before he lay down. ‘Now serve the food, woman,’ he grunted as he stretched out his legs.

  For a moment Sue’s eyes dwelt indignantly on the whole long length of him, then, strangely submissive, she did as she was told. She tried to convince herself it was because he deserved it, not because he was so arrogant and good-looking that her heart could no longer resist him. It seemed the most natural thing in the world to work while he rested, to lay out the lunch Mrs. Lennox had provided. On a flat piece of exposed rock she put the ham sandwiches, the green apples, the thick wedges of home-made fruit cake and cheese. The flasks of coffee she put aside until the end of the meal, but removing the screw tops she went to the stream and scooped out two cups of the clear, sparkling water. If they were having ambrosia, food of the gods, then this surely would be nectar to go with it. Feeling enormously pleased with herself, she carried it back to their rocky table.

  Meric opened his eyes as she sat down beside him, propping himself up on one elbow as she passed him a sandwich, noting her still damp cheeks which she had rinsed before returning from the burn. His gaze lingered appreciatively on the matt bloom on her skin before dropping slowly to the feast she had spread out. ‘You’d make quite a good handmaiden,’ he said amiably. ‘In another age I might have purchased you.’

  ‘I suppose,’ Sue rejoined primly, ‘I should feel flattered. You would have haggled over me in a market place?’

  ‘I might have been tempted.’

  ‘Provided the price wasn’t too high?’

  His eyes swept over her lazily, and her cheeks flushed at what she thought she read in his glance, something which smouldered there, causing a pulse to jerk in. her throat. He laughed softly beneath his breath. ‘You said that, not I, sweet Sue. In a moment of weakness you might tempt a man not to consider the cost. ’

  ‘But you would regret it later!’ What foolishness made her persist with this inane conversation? It was like sliding down a precipice, once started one seemed unable to stop.

  He continued to look at her, his expression sardonic. ‘That would depend on several things, wouldn’t it? The price of some things, Sue, is far beyond their true value.’

  Quickly, to still a flicker of anger, she bit sharply into a green apple, crunching the white flesh with even white teeth, ‘You don’t like women much, do you, Meric?’

  His eyes glinted, mocking her patent innocence. ‘Of course I like women. You have a genius, Sue, for asking silly questions. Now, my opinion of them ...? Well, that’s another matter altogether. I suppose you refer to women in general?’

  What did he mean? With an almost physical effort she drew her eyes away from his enigmatical face. She wasn’t going to ask him to elaborate. It would be wiser, she knew it instinctively, to change the subject. She shrugged her slim shoulders, suppressing a small yawn, deliberately giving the impression of boredom as her hand went out to a flask to pour coffee. Her appetite had suddenly gone, she wasn’t even thirsty any more, but it was something to do and might distract his attention from her hot cheeks.

  ‘I have enjoyed myself today,’ she assured him, studiously polite as she measured brown sugar into his cup. She knew from experience that he took two spoonfuls. ‘The stag was wonderful ... So is this place,’ she tacked on haphazardly, staring around her.

  He raised his eyebrows at her delicately tinted face, making it understood he was aware that she had ignored his last question. ‘So much enthusiasm,’ he murmured

  indifferently. ‘I seem to have heard it all before.’

  Of course he had! Crossly Sue flung herself on her back on the hot grass some feet away from him, preferring not to look at him. Guests from the hotel - women like herself from the cities. Their exaggerated expressions of delight would waft unheard about his cynical ears. ‘It’s known to be possible,’ she retorted stubbornly, ‘to fall in love with a place after only a short time.’

  Lazily he put down h
is cup which he emptied in one long draught. His voice was soft but ironic. ‘You’re not cut out for places like this, Sue. You’re sweet, and rather lovely, but don’t try to fool yourself otherwise. Hothouse plants should stay in their proper environment, not seek to flourish where only the hardiest can survive.’

  ‘I came with you here today! I kept up over all that rough ground, and you dare say that!’

  Taking no notice of her indignant gasp, Meric rose to his feet, carried both their cups to the burn and rinsed them out. ‘It’s more like July than October,’ he remarked quite casually. ‘I’ve rarely known it so hot.’

  Watching him from beneath her thick lashes as she lay on her back, Sue curved a hand compulsively around a hard piece of rock. Why did he enjoy raising a fine anger within her, such a turmoil of emotions she could never hope to sort out? ‘You don’t like me, do you?’ she accused sharply. No sooner were the words out than she felt she had uttered them to him before.;

  ‘I don’t think I do.’ Noiselessly he turned to drop down lightly on the ground beside her. ‘But liking needn’t always enter into the relationship between a man and a woman, or don’t you agree?’ His eyes, clearly indicating his meaning, roved slowly over the curved outline of her young body. With an easy strength and without hurry, he pulled her into his arms, lying with her on the softly sensuous turf, one arm curved around her waist, the other beneath her head, his hand holding the fine bone of her shoulder.

  A long time afterwards Sue wondered why she hadn’t attempted to escape. Afterwards she blamed the heat which partly drugged her senses, and the atmosphere with its almost hypnotical silence. The feeling that Meric Findlay and she were quite alone in the world, and what was happening was a natural continuation of the pleasure she had experienced in the morning.

  She did stir, not wanting to after a long moment, yet subtly aware of the danger of staying where she was. But with easy strength he controlled her first tentative movement, his hand tightening slightly on her shoulder, his chin pressing just a little more firmly on the top of her head.

  ‘Be still,’ he ordered, his voice low, lazily indifferent, as he stretched his long legs out against her, ‘You told me before you were grateful!’

  But that didn’t mean ...? Somehow, when she tried to speak, the words stuck in her throat. A curious inertia which she had felt before in his arms seemed to be taking over, rejecting any desire to protest. He was holding her gently, as if seeking to reassure her, almost as if she were one of the small animals of the forest which he held captive in his embrace. She said, because she felt she must, ‘Do you always exact payment in this fashion?’

  He laughed deep in his throat. ‘I can’t think of anything more gratifying.’

  She was silent, turning the word over in her mind, not liking the sound of it. She was aware that he could, if he wished, be utterly ruthless, that he was too dangerous to play with, and yet she didn’t care. It could be an opinion that by appearing totally acquiescent she was inviting trouble, but the experimental rapport of just lying in Meric’s arms seemed curiously irresistible. After all, it was just for a few minutes, it wasn’t necessary to go any further. At twenty-one it was perhaps time she began to live a little more dangerously, to lose a little of her former inhibition. No man would want an inexperienced schoolgirl. If only, she thought, with a small despairing sigh, she had a few guidelines to go by!

  Unexpectedly he raised himself on one elbow, traces of a question on his dark face as he looked down at her. ‘Why the sigh, sweet Sue? Are you wondering how you’re going to cope?’ The timbre of his voice was amused and sardonic, stiffening her diminishing resistance.

  ‘I’m not wondering anything of the sort,’ she lied lightly. Attempting to substantiate her statement, she glanced directly into his eyes, a warm wave of air dancing between them, but her faint little smile never quite made it. Something in his expression made her tilt her face defiantly, and her smile faded as a dark wave of apprehension washed over her, as softly and very gently he lowered his lips to hers.

  The touch of his lips was like fire going through her, but before she could free herself his hand slid under her hair and pinned the nape of her neck. Carefully the pressure of his mouth increased as his fingers moved back to her hair, raking through it slowly, gently smoothing the heavy silkiness of it from her forehead and ear. Her head seemed to swim at the warm crush of his mocking mouth on hers. As he drew her sensuously closer, his heavy body held hers to the heady scent of the crushed grass. Flushed and tormented, her fair head thrown back, she returned his exploring kisses with a kind of helpless hunger.

  Something within her leapt crazily, jerking through her being, a whirlpool of emotion, striving for expression. Involuntarily her arms went up around his neck, her fingers threading through the dark thickness of his hair, as his own hands went down to linger hard on her waist before going up under her blouse to rest, his fingers widespread over the soft skin on her back.

  Then suddenly his mouth eased slowly from her own, just enough to allow her to draw one deep shuddering breath.

  ‘Poor Sue,’ he murmured, his mouth trailing fire across her face, holding her to him as she tried to draw back, his lips dropping to the soft hollow in her throat. ‘And you thought you could cope!’

  His words stung through the flame which threatened to consume her. His voice was low but as sardonic as before, as he mocked her inability to fight the wilfulness of her devastated emotions.

  ‘I might, if you let me go,’ she gasped unsteadily. ‘If it wasn’t for your brute strength

  His eyes glittered as he dropped another brief kiss on her lips. ‘Must you always seek excuses, Sue? You’ll be telling me next you have a built-in aversion to this sort of thing.’

  ‘Not exactly. ’ Through a haziness of mind Sue thought it better to stick to half-truths. ‘It rather depends who I’m with.’

  ‘Tim Mason, for instance?’ One of his hands left the warm flesh of her back and returned to her throat, encircling it forcibly. ‘I wonder - are you usually such a liar?’

  ‘You don’t believe me, then?’ she asked, helpless under his infinitely exciting touch.

  ‘The devil I do!’ he muttered thickly, and drew her savagely to him again, this time

  parting her lips with the force of his own.

  Regardless now of what he thought, Sue returned his kisses eagerly, frightened yet revelling in the tide of feeling which was rising between them. Her body went soft and curiously boneless against his, and his hand moved across her back, gripping the bare skin, inflicting a fine pain which shot through to her breast, moving her lips in a wide little gasp under his own. Crushed against him, she clung to him feverishly, losing all awareness of everything but the needs of her pulsing, hungry body.

  He could feel her trembling, and lifted his dark head fractionally, muttering against her lips, ‘Just how permissive were you in that college of yours, dear Sue?’

  ‘It doesn’t matter ...’ Through the thick drumming of her heart Sue heard herself answer, again diverting from the truth, filled with a crazy desire to stay in his arms. If she confessed her innocence, he wouldn’t want her, and, in a moment of insanity she knew she wanted him, as she’d never wished for anything in her life before!

  ‘Sue!’ For a long moment she imagined she was to get what she desired. As the closeness of their bodies became charged with tension, she tried to hide the torment in her eyes. All her life she had waited for this, a moment when she might let her mind sink beneath mounting sensation. And, as he roughly spoke her name and his mouth hardened on hers again, her doubts faded against a wave of feeling so intense that she had no wish to fight it.

  ‘Darling,’ she whispered, beneath her breath, but the soft sound she made must have reached him. In an instant he lifted his head, seeming to retreat from her as with one fluid movement he rose to his feet.

  Quickly he pulled her up with him, still holding her, but lightly, waiting until she recovered some form of balance. His voi
ce came, faintly indulgent if very dry. ‘What did you expect this time, sweet Sue?’

  Transfixed and blazing blue, her eyes fastened on him, all the turmoil inside her reflected in the colour which flared across her white face. ‘I hate you!’ she cried, attempting furiously to defy him, truly hating his male arrogance, even while she longed to be back in his arms.

  ‘No, you don’t.’ Remorselessly his fingers bit into her arm, keeping her still. ‘But you might do if we stayed here longer. Grow up a little, for God’s sake, Sue!’

  Her slight figure seemed to droop on his arm. ‘I don’t think this conversation is doing either of us any good.’ Her voice came low, tinged with strain and a gathering bewilderment.

  Meric’s mouth quirked, but his smile held no mirth. ‘You would never have forgiven me, Sue. You might even have said that I deliberately tried to compromise you in order to get the estate, that I was trying to keep the heiress chained to my side.’

  His lips, which had been so gently persuasive just a few minutes ago, tightened as she stared at him, and he felt her body stiffen. ‘You can’t be serious?’ she choked.

  For a brief space of time something in her face seemed to hold him oddly, then with a grin he said suavely, shattering still further all her preconceived little notions, ‘I suppose we’re really a couple of fools, Sue, and neither of us too pleased with the other. I certainly didn’t mean to hurt you intentionally - but let it pass. Nothing will have changed came the morning. In any case, we must get going if we hope to make Glenroden before dark. I don’t think you’d really enjoy spending the night with me out here!’

  Feeling distinctly chilled, she followed him along the burn, on to the rough downhill track where she had almost to run to keep up with his loose-limbed stride. Unhappily she stared at his broad back, scarcely aware of where she was walking. Never could .she remember feeling so deflated. On the mountain, protected in Meric’s arms against the elements, she hadn’t cared at all about getting back to Glenroden, but now all she felt she wanted was somewhere to hide her head. She could only feel grateful that at least he didn’t know how much his rejection hurt.