by Mia Pride
A strangled sob escaped Morna and she gripped her throat with both hands as if the man’s words were choking the life out of her. “Why, Caleb?” she whispered. “You never cared for her. You did not want her. You did not want me. Why are you doing this?”
Caleb shot Brennain a side-glance and sneered. At that moment, Brennain understood what the man was doing. He was angry at Brennain for bringing him back, and this was his punishment. Caleb never truly meant to come back, despite what his king thinks. He will take Glennis away from Morna or force her to stay with him, just to spite Brennain.
Blood roared in his ears. There was nothing for it. He had to do it. His right hand swung out and connected with the man’s nose. Caleb roared in pain and staggered back, blood flowing through the fingers cradling his broken nose.
Morna screamed and stepped back, but Brennain had never been so angry or disgusted in his life. He had met vile men, but for this lout to threaten to take Glennis from the woman who had raised his child just to hurt Brennain was the lowest of the low.
“Come inside, Morna! Or by morning, Glennis will be mine. You know I speak true. Not even our king can keep a rightful father away from his child.” Caleb scowled at Brennain as blood ran down his face, but he straightened his back and wiped it with his tunic sleeve. She swallowed hard and Brennain looked at her with a frown.
He put his hand out to her and shook his head, hoping she understood his silent promise. He would protect them and keep them safe.
Her gaze shifted between him and Caleb and he knew he had lost. She hated Caleb but would not risk losing Glennis. She had spent nearly a year with this man just for his daughter’s sake and she was not willing to stop now. She nodded her head and stepped closer to Caleb. “Aye. I will go home with you, Caleb. But I have Nola inside resting. She has had an ordeal.”
“I care not for that whore!” He spat out more blood on the ground and Brennain wished to make him bleed more.
“She is only a whore because you made her one! You are the worst sort of man,” Brennain forced through clenched teeth, and resisted pummeling the man once more. “At least give the woman some time to rest and wash the stink of you off her body!”
He saw Morna flinch at his words and felt bad for saying such things in front of her, but she had married this man and though he now understood why she had and why she intended to go back to him, he could not hold his tongue when he had so much venom to spew.
“Brennain… please,” she whispered, not bothering to make eye contact with him and despite every instinct in his body, he pursed his lips and ground his jaw. Every dig he made at Caleb would come back to her in the end. He had to walk away. He did not know how to leave her side, but she was not his and he had no choice.
“If he touches you, I will kill him,” he said to Morna before walking away. “Bring me Nola. I will not allow her to be in the same home as the man who defiled her.”
“I paid the bitch for her services!” Caleb roared.
“She was a slave, forced to take your coin and ride your dirty cock, you whoreson!”
“Enough!” Morna wailed, covering her ears and shaking all over. “I cannot stand it!” She ran inside, leaving him alone with Caleb, thinking of all the ways he wished to destroy the man.
“I will kill you if you touch my wife,” Caleb threatened, taking a step closer to Brennain. He really did look similar to Brennain and his body was only slightly smaller, but the two men could not be more different where honor and duty were concerned.
“I will kill you if I find out you hurt a hair on her head. I vow to you I will cross the sea, hunt you down, and kill you painfully. You know I can. You know I will.”
Before Caleb could give a rebuttal, Morna came out with tears sliding down her face, embracing Nola. “Here Brennain. Take her somewhere safe.”
Nola rushed over to him and pressed against him and he could feel her body shaking with fear. The poor lass was terrified of Caleb.
“Nobody will harm you. Reaghan and I will keep you safe. I vow.” She nodded and gripped his tunic in her fist, avoiding eye contact with anyone.
“My thanks for the tea,” she murmured to Morna.
Stepping forward, Morna grabbed the woman’s hand and squeezed. “I am sorry you could not stay longer. I wish you well. You are safe with Brennain and Reaghan.” Nola nodded, and he felt her body loosen slightly at Morna’s reassurance.
With the snarl of a rabid hound, Caleb grabbed Morna’s arm and dragged her back toward the house. “You are to never speak to him again, wife. Do you understand?” The threat to take Glennis was implied by his every word. She nodded and chanced a glance at Brennain before she turned away and followed Caleb back inside the house. The door slammed shut and he could not help but feel like his future had just slammed shut, as well.
“Come, Nola. Let us get you somewhere warm and comfortable. We leave on the morrow.” She nodded and followed closely beside him, and he wondered at her ability to trust him and Reaghan after all she had been through. He knew she was shaken up, but deep down, there was a strong lass inside that wee body. He did not know where she came from or how she ended up at that fort, but he knew better than to ask.
He knew one more thing, as well. There was no way he was leaving Alba without Morna.
* * * *
“I was really looking forward to kicking his arse,” Mack grumbled, as he sat down beside Brennain on a bench in the long gathering hall and slammed his mug against the rough wooden surface. Suds sloshed over the brim and flooded the area around his mug, but the man was too busy wallowing to care. “Did ye really break his nose?” the man laughed.
Brennain showed Mack his cracked knuckles and breathed deeply. “Aye, that I did. Blood everywhere. Yet, it still isn’t enough. The man deserves much worse.”
Reaghan sat down beside him and laughed. “Who could have known the man was under the king’s protection? Though, I do not trust him for a moment. He is selfish and greedy. I do not believe for a moment he was waiting to destroy that ship before returning to Miathi. He was either planning to take the gold aboard the ship for himself or planning to stay behind as long as possible. There is not an honorable bone in his body.”
“Nay, there is not,” Bryant added, and he clinked mugs with Reaghan. “’Tis a right shame ye have to leave at dawn. And leave without Morna.”
Brennain sipped his ale slowly and narrowed his eyes, looking at Reaghan. The man’s eyes widened as if he wondered why Brennain looked like he was up to something. Because he was. He had a plan and would need to tell his companion by night’s end, but as much as he trusted Bryant and Mack, this did not involve them, and it was best to keep them ignorant of it all. The less they knew, the less guilt they would feel for being involved with Brennain come morning. He would likely not be allowed back at Miathi ever again, but he was willing to take the risk.
A bonny serving lass sauntered past and Brennain nudged Reaghan. “Is that not the lass you enjoyed spending time with several days ago?”
Reaghan looked up and saw the dark-haired woman just as she turned and winked at him before sauntering away once more. “Aye. That is her.” Reaghan shrugged and looked back down at his mug of ale, now half empty.
“You are not intending to seek your pleasure before we leave?” He had not known Reaghan long, but in the short time that he had, Brennain had never seen the man turn away from a good time with a bonny lass.
“Nay. Call me mad, but after what I saw Marcella… or Nola, rather, go through and how frightened she is, I just cannot seem to find it in me to even consider it.”
Those words shocked Brennain. He agreed what they saw was disturbing, although the image of the man tasting between the naked woman’s legs still haunted him and made him ache for Morna. How he wanted to taste her, feel her slick heat wrap around him, see her breasts bared and free, bouncing rhythmically as he thrust into her. He wiped a hand across his face and shifted in his seat. He was an awful man. Despite all he had seen and
how glad he was that they had rescued Nola from that fate, he could not stop thinking about making love to Morna. It drove him mad to know she was in her home with her husband. It angered him to imagine Caleb between her sweet thighs, taking his pleasure on his wife, who would relent because she had to, but would likely hate every minute of it, much like Nola.
Was Morna so different? She was stuck in a similar position with Caleb, but she must succumb to save the wee lass she loved as her own. He took one more large sip of his ale and slammed the nearly empty mug back down on the table.
“I understand, mate. I cannot stop thinking about Morna being stuck in that house with Caleb right now.”
Mack snorted and wiped the foam off his mouth with his sleeve. “Caleb never sleeps at home with his wife. I saw him walking toward Mavis’s hut on the way here. I wonder how many times he visited my hut to bed my wife while I was away on a mission,” the man growled. “I will never know, for my wife is dead.” He belched loudly and swerved slightly. “I wish ye safe travels. Oh… and before I forget,” the man rummaged inside the leather satchel slung over his shoulder for longer than Brennain thought possible, before retrieving a cloth sack tied with string and dropping it in front of Brennain. The contents clinked together within the sack and Brennain picked it up to feel its weight. Then Mack tossed another bag to Reaghan. “Your share of the gold we found aboard that ship. We will be giving ours to King Ailbert.”
“My thanks, Mack. I am certain King Tuathal will appreciate some gold stolen from his enemy,” Brennain grunted, and he quickly shoved the bag of gold into his satchel.
Reaghan did the same and raised his mug to Mack and Bryant. “Many thanks, lads. It was good fun blowing things up with you.” He laughed and took a large sip. His smile slipped off his face and Brennain looked at him sideways. The man was definitely distracted and had his mind on other things.
Bryant patted them on the back and wished them safe travels before both men left for the night, leaving Brennain and Reaghan alone.
“What is going on with you, mate?” Brennain asked, as Reaghan stared down into his empty mug.
“What? Och, nothing. What is going on with you?” He raised a brow. “You are up to something.”
“We are taking Morna and Glennis with us to Ráth Mór.”
“Och, aye? She agreed to go with you, then?”
Brennain cleared his throat and shifted his gaze. “Not exactly.”
Reaghan furrowed his brow and rubbed his blond beard. “You plan on stealing her away, then?”
Leaning in, Brennain looked Reaghan straight in his hazel eyes. “She does not want to be Caleb’s wife. That much is obvious. The man will force her to stay with him out of hatred of me. As soon as I am gone, and he can nay longer have his revenge on me, he will turn from her once more and abandon his wife and child.”
“Mayhap so, but you cannot simply steal a woman and a child away in the middle of the night.”
“And her mother,” Brennain added, not breaking eye contact.
“You jest,” Reaghan smirked, thinking this was all a game to Brennain.
“I do not jest. Glennis can be taken from Morna at any time. Caleb will hold his daughter over her head for her entire life. She will be miserable with him. She is as good as his servant as long as she remains here.”
“And, you cannot simply ask her to sneak away and meet you at the boat in the morning? Beg her to wed with you and run away into the sunset?”
Brennain scoffed at that. “You know she would never agree to it.”
“Which is precisely why stealing her is a very bad idea, mate. You will be a criminal in the eyes of the law.”
“You do realize I have already blown up a ship and harbor stolen gold, aye? I will have men looking for me now that Eoghann knows of my involvement. I am not at all worried about any of it. As long as I remain in Ériu, under Tuathal’s protection, I am safe.”
“Listen, mate. I am not at all certain Tuathal will support your kidnapping of an entire female family and harboring them within his walls.”
“Then it is my task to make Morna fall in love with me and agree to wed with me as soon as possible, so she will not be a stolen lassie, but my bride.”
Reaghan took a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. “You know I have your back in all things. If this is your plan, I shall help you. But if Tuathal strings you from a tree by your bollocks, I was never here.”
“Deal.” Brennain extended his arm and Reaghan clasped his forearm warily.
“You are a bloody fool, Brennain Mac Greine.”
A lazy grin spread across his face and he chuckled. “Love turns all men into fools, so I have been told.”
Chapter Eight
The room was pitch black and silent. It was nothing new, yet Morna felt the need to jump at every sound. She prayed her horrid husband would not return from whoever’s bed he was warming on this night. He had never hit her, and she didn’t believe he ever would. She was not frightened of him in that manner, however, he wielded infinite power over her as long as he used Glennis against her.
Why did he even care? He had no love for her or his daughter. The man had not even acknowledged the wee lassie when he was home for a few short hours, cleaning up his blood and mumbling under his breath about Brennain Mac Greine never touching what belonged to him. That was when she started to understand. It was not that he wanted to keep Morna. He simply wished to keep Brennain away from her. He knew that she was drawn to Brennain like a moth to a flame, and the only power he could use against her was the love of a child. It was the only love in this world greater than her love for the dark-haired warrior with clover-green eyes and muscles over every inch of his body.
Och, how she longed to feel his body against hers, to know what it was like to feel his weight on her, touching her, kissing her in new, exciting places. Brennain had always been honorable toward her in the past, and she had appreciated it then, but now she cursed him for not seducing her as he had other lassies. If she was bound to be under Caleb’s control for the rest of her life, she could have at least known a few moments of blasted pleasure.
She wanted to be mad at Brennain, to hold on to whatever resentment she felt for the man, but it was too hard. The way he instinctively protected her and Glennis was all-consuming, and when he broke Caleb’s nose she had wanted to laugh and cheer for him but knew it would only come back at her and her daughter in the end. Instead, she had to whisper a plea to Brennain to stop. If Caleb wanted to hurt Brennain, he would do it through her.
She sighed and strained to see through the dark. The hearth fire had burned out about an hour ago and the soft lull of her daughter’s breathing caressed her ears. Her mother was in her bed across the room, her heavy breathing rhythmically filling the air.
Usually, Morna would be asleep by this time but she could not shut off her brain or make her body stop aching for Brennain’s touch. He would be leaving in a few hours and she would likely never see him again. It was just as well, but the heaviness in her breasts and the incessant throbbing between her legs was relentless. She had not been with a man in months, and even when she had been, it had felt forced and awkward. It was impossible to enjoy Caleb’s touch when she knew he had been in another woman’s bed the night before.
Squirming in her bed, she tossed to the left, then to the right. Despite the chill in the room, her body was overheating and a slight sheen of sweat covered her skin. Kicking the furs off her body, she enjoyed a sudden rush of cool air, but it wasn’t enough to stop the burning in her blood or the images of Brennain’s strong body pressing into hers. With a slight groan of frustration, she thrashed once more and tossed herself to the side, images of Brennain making love to her consuming her thoughts.
Eventually, she felt sleep sweeping her away. She was in that between world, where reality and fantasy blended together, and anything was possible. Her front door creaked open and she heard quiet footsteps moving in the darkness. Caleb must have decided to come home.
Good thing she was already asleep, or nearly so, and would not need to speak with him until morning.
The footsteps came closer and slowed. She was still half asleep and not entirely sure if she was dreaming. Caleb had never come home in the middle of the night and she was not certain if he planned to climb into her bed, or if he would sleep on the floor, or mayhap Glennis’s bed.
Her mattress dipped, and she knew she was not dreaming anymore. She should move over and make room for him, but she decided pretending to be asleep suited her better. She meant what she had said earlier. She would never share his bed again and making room for him could be seen as an invitation.
A hand wrapped around her mouth and her eyes popped open with a start. She tried to scream but was muzzled by the strong fingers across her face. Panic seized her, and she began to thrash as another hand wrapped tightly around her waist and forced her out of the bed and onto her feet. She tried to lash out, but her back was to whoever had grabbed her, so she instead kicked back and connected her heel to his shin. Was Caleb planning on hurting her? Had she underestimated how far he would go to hurt Brennain Mac Greine? Would he string her up from a tree and laugh while she dangled and turned blue, leaving her to be found in the morning?
Her thoughts grew more and more dark as her mind reeled. She tried to scream once more, for Glennis or her mother, but once again, could not. “Shush, lass. You are safe. I will not hurt you.” The voice was a soft, deep whisper, but her heart was beating wildly and her ears began to ring, drowning out any sense. As she looked around, she realized it was no longer completely pitch black in her home. The door was wide open and blue moonlight filtered in. Her gaze darted to Glennis’s bed and she found her lass asleep in Reaghan’s arms.