McBain's Bride

by Tara Hill

  After a bit, Ian walked toward the fire and I caught his signal to follow. I stayed back, out of the light behind my master, so to speak. I listened while they explained their plans. Ian was getting a fair translation but there was an undercurrent. The side conversations, the soft voices from other men were somewhat at odds from what Ian was discussing. I coughed and spit. Ian continued in his conversation but held up a hand to excuse himself to retrieve something from his saddle bags. I followed him behind the horses. His voice whispered into my ear, “What did you pick up?”

  “The timing is wrong, they are telling you something will happen the day after tomorrow when the next ship arrives with more barrels but the men over near the fire are talking about tomorrow evening. Something is not true and I think we should leave as soon as we can.”

  “Is my little warrior acting frightened?”

  “Your little warrior wishes for her bow so she could take out the lot of them while they sleep. These are evil men.”

  “Aye, that they are, love.”

  “Again with the 'love'? You're about to be wed for goodness sake.”

  “I know,” he whispered as his tongue traced my ear.

  “And not to me! So stop and go finish with these men, we'd best be away soon.”

  “Aye love, soon,” and with that Ian clumped me on the head and cursed. I staggered but managed to keep my head down. Why on earth had he done that? It soon became apparent when Ian ordered me to mount up and cursed me some more for being ten kinds of a fool for not bringing along some map. He quickly mounted beside me and called out to the leader that we'd be back in two evenings. He again batted me but I ducked and wheeled the horse about and together we left the camp.

  ~~~~~

  Our ride home took many turns and several start and stops. Ian took the lead and motioned me to ride close. We took back ways and side ways to put distance between us and the camp. We made it difficult to track us in the dark. Eventually we came upon a path. Ian led us in a new direction, up the hill instead of back down toward the inn. I could feel my horse starting to tire. We circled a rock wall at the top of a hill and then Ian disappeared. Peaches ignored my distress and followed blindly. I bent low under some sweet smelling vines and entered a copse, open to the stars. I heard Ian more than saw him dismount and I did the same. We removed the saddles and petted down the mounts. Ian gave them each a sack of grain from his saddle bags while I unrolled the blankets. It was as if we were back to those first nights together without so much rain. The stars shone brightly above us and the sweet smelling vines veiled our little hideaway.

  A light breeze stirred the leaves into a faint whisper. I shivered a bit in my cloak and longed for the warmth of that magical pool of Ian’s. He moved behind me enveloping me in his cloak and bent his head to my neck. I so enjoyed what he did to my neck. I turned in his embrace and wrapped my arms around him; his breath in my hair sent a different kind of chills down my spine.

  “This is better than whumping me on my head. What was that for?”

  He continued his slow kisses under my ear and around the top of the shirt I wore. “Just part of the charade. Did you not see Max in the tent? He studied you until I hit you.”

  “No man has ever hit me before.”

  “And no man ever will. I’d kill any man…..”

  “Ian, you are the ‘any man’, my soon to be husband will protect me.”

  “He’d better.”

  “He’ll be protecting me from you.”

  “Lass, you make my head hurt.” He continued to nuzzle me causing more shivers along my spine. “Love, let us lie down here and cuddle against the night chill.”

  “Is it cuddling you’re after, Ian?” I teased.

  We sank to the ground and I found myself quickly wrapped into blankets with him, thick warm blankets.

  “You were expecting us to be here this night?”

  “I meant to bring you up here before you were shot. I have food and wine and if you wait a bit I have something more for you.”

  I sat up and pulled the blanket close. In a moment I heard the scratch of tinder and a small lantern pooled light about us. It was dim and gave off little warmth but it did illuminate our nest. Indeed, he did provide us food and wine and a veritable mountain of blankets. A pack horse must have brought them up. Ian turned to me and knelt down in front of me. He began by removing my boots and socks. He then did the same. He stripped off his coat and shirt and I reached for his lovely chest, the one that fascinated me earlier. I too shrugged off my coat and the horrible breeches he had given me. I then snuggled into the blankets and rolled away from him. I heard him laugh softly and I heard the rustle of the blankets. He gathered me close, my back to his chest. I felt through my thin shirt his nakedness and his rather insistent manhood prodded my behind. I wiggled with pleasure against him to bring myself closer and to get warm. He grasped my hip to still me. We stayed still for quite awhile, his breathing even; I thought him to be asleep and started to drift off myself in this safe cocoon he had made for us. It was the first time I had been warm in hours. I burrowed deeper into the soft blankets.

  Ian shifted and brought his hands up around my chest and began an exploration of sorts. Soon the chemise was unbuttoned and off my shoulders. His callused fingers felt rough against my skin. He traced my ribs and the undersides of my breasts. He cupped them in his hands before laving my ear with his tongue. He removed his tongue and blew softly across the wetness left behind at the same instant he pinched my nipples. I groaned, an arrow of heat shot down between my legs and I arched back into his chest. My Ian seemed to know what he was doing. I tried to turn around but his arms held me tight. He repeated the same sequence and I danced against him but this time Ian groaned. My body was but an instrument in his arms, I was held prisoner, but my, what a delightful cage. Eventually his hands wandered lower and sought my core. He stroked my hips and further down toward the fire that pooled, waiting for his touch. I struggled in his arms. I had to touch something, my lips needed to kiss something, my head flailed back and forth, his teeth capturing my neck, nibbling as I moaned his name again and again. His fingers found their goal; his fingers teased my bud. Pleasure started in waves through my belly. His finger entered me while his thumb continued its own exploration. Again and again, I arched back against him. I felt his rod grow ever larger against my back. His fingers, his lovely fingers against my secret bud, rubbed and pulled. In and out his finger moved and another joined in the dance, all the time his tongue and teeth played and danced on my neck. I was panting; I needed to move, to shout, to kiss, to suck, anything but lie trapped in his glorious arms. I bucked against his hand and something inside me roared and surged, a thousand tiny lights went off in my head, I was filled with a song that had no words, only the rhythm of his hands and my heart. The beat slowed, I could breathe again and he removed his hand. I sighed. Ian chuckled.

  “Robin, you are a bit of a lusty wench after all.”

  “What was that? My sister’s never mentioned that!”

  “What was what?” Ian answered cockily.

  “I don’t rightly know but I never heard of such a thing.”

  “What thing?” Ian pressed.

  “Oh ho!” I chortled, “You’re a proud one. I think you think that was something special.”

  “It obviously was for you, my love.”

  “That it was, what ever do you call it? Is it proper?”

  “Nothing about you lying here with me is proper, Robin.” Ian’s voice sobered, “You know that I want to be your first. I planned to be your first. I had this all set up so you could not resist me, but now I am feeling lowly, like I took advantage. You are being given in marriage to a man and he will not look kindly upon a bride who is not a virgin, so I am afraid I cannot repeat the experience and join in, as it were.”

  I turned in his arms and faced him. In the starlight I could make out the shape of his face and the glint in his eyes. I cupped his cheek with my hand; my fingers trailed across his
lips where I could feel a small smile still lingering. I kissed him, slowly and sweetly. He opened his mouth to me and slid in his tongue. It was the sweetest kiss he had given me and it hurt when we stopped; my heart hurt when we stopped. This man could have taken my virtue, I guess my virtue was pretty much gone by about now, but he could have taken my virginity but he refrained.

  “I am not worth much of anything to anyone if I am not a virgin, my maidenhead for the price of a home and the promise of children.”

  “I know,” Ian whispered, “it hardly seems fair.”

  “You can tup all the woman you want and come to the marriage fully prepared and well practiced. I assume you have practiced long and hard.”

  “Quite hard, my love.”

  I laughed but went on, “You know what I mean.” I continued to trail my fingers over his chest, stopping on his nipples since mine seemed to have been such an interest to him. He gasped a bit so I assumed I correctly judged that. His hand covered mine and stilled its journey.

  “You must stop, my love.”

  “Why? I thought you enjoyed this.”

  “I did, I mean I do, but I can’t,” my proud strong Ian faltered. “You are correct in that it is imperative that you enter the marriage bed a virgin. I can’t bear the thought of you being rejected by another man, I might have to hurt him, but I can’t do that without ruining you by saying we had this night together.”

  “But what if I want this night together?”

  “It’s an impossible situation and it’s my fault. I brought you here with the intention of seducing you, of pleasuring you and taking my pleasure but it is at too great a cost.

  “I’ll take you back to the inn and leave you with Ennis, she’ll see you to the Garnets and they’ll get you home. I want you to be happy in your marriage.”

  “You think I can be happy with another man?”

  “Of course.” Ian lied, “This will all be just an adventure you tell your grandchildren, a story.” I felt his hands clench into fists again, I felt the tension in him. He was being noble and unfortunately, he made sense. I could not let my family down; I wanted this man, not the Giant of McBain’s Doom. I wanted the McBain’s steward, their pet smuggler, my almost lover. That’s what I wanted and that’s what I would demand of my brothers. I was not terribly important to the plans of my father; I knew I could get him and Robert to see things as they were. I thought about seducing Ian myself and then forcing him to marry me but that wasn’t honest. I’d do the right thing without sharing too many details of these past few days. The details would make my brothers want to kill Ian and that wouldn’t do for my plans. I was going to marry the big oaf.

  So I played along and let him be noble. I let him cover me in a clean shirt and snuggle with me under the stars. I felt his breath against my forehead as we drifted to sleep with a smile on my face. This was how I planned to spend the rest of my life, in his arms if I could just get him and my stubborn brothers to accept it. I dreamed of plans and plots and woke to sounds and smells of frying bacon. I sat up and smiled my very best smile at my soon-to-be fiancé.

  ~~~~~

  “What’s your plan for the day, Ian?” I asked sweetly.

  “I want you to see the Caeverlock before we head back to the inn. There is some interesting history here about.”

  I crawled out of my warm nest and found Ian had thoughtfully brought along decent clothing so I would not have to wear the terrible britches from the day before. I dressed and washed my face. My hair was hopelessly tangled so after running my fingers through it, I settled for a simple braid. Ian handed me a stick with a rasher of bacon and some toasted bread. It smelled divine and I ate mine greedily. He tidied up a bit and grabbed my hand pulling me up.

  “You have got to see the view from the highest tower before the sun gets too high.” Ian sounded like an excited boy; I found him utterly charming. We did not head out the way we had entered on the horse. Instead we ducked under an archway that led to a long low tunnel of sorts, open to the sky here and there, smelling slightly damp but of fresh moss and not rot. We came out into a tower with only one side missing.

  “Stay close, my love.” Ian warned. He pointed to the missing steps. The wood planks of the stars leading up, switched back and forth across the remaining wall. I could see the remains of what had been a circular stair. It reminded me of something I couldn’t place.

  “These wooden steps are new, only a century old,” Ian laughed and leaped over a missing one. I followed and he caught my hand to steady me, it was but a little leap. Several more steps were missing with us leaping from step to step up the stairs. The final chasm lacked three stairs. Ian leaped effortlessly while I was somewhat wary of the leap and of my skirts. “I’ll catch you, come on,” Ian urged while I hesitated.

  “You’d better,” I muttered back. I hiked my skirt up fairly high and took a couple of steps back downwards so as to gain some forward momentum. “Ready for me?” I hollered and off I charged. I over estimated and easily cleared the chasm but bowled into Ian causing him to lean a little too far sideways. For a second I thought we would topple into the tower. His strong arms wrapped around me and he pulled me against the wall. I felt his heart beating in his chest. We both looked down and realized how far up we had come. We turned to each other, exhaled, then laughed, one more shared near death experience, hysterical laughter is a great release.

  We trudged more slowly afterwards and in a single turn we found a doorway to a platform. It felt sturdy to me and we walked across to lean over the parapet. I noticed we were still holding hands. Ian hadn’t let me go. In my heart I knew he would never let me go, we just had to work out the details.

  The view was magnificent. Patches of forests, boulders and hills stretched to the horizon. I heard the sound of the sea from behind the tower and smelled the salt tang on the breeze. It was a glorious day, the sky as blue as Ian’s eyes. His hair loose in the wind, he looked the Viking he had descended from and he turned to me as if I was his woman. My heart soared. I reached up to pull him down for a kiss. It was a short kiss but still so sweet.

  “Come see this,” he said taking my hand. He led me across the platform to the far parapet. I imagined archers kneeling down behind the massive stone, firing arrows into advancing enemies. The sea protected the other exposure. He pushed against a particular stone in the corner and the stone below it swung away grinding against the accumulation of dirt. When a stairway appeared, Ian hopped down leaving me to follow. It was narrow and lit dimly with what appeared to be additional arrow slits but I could not imagine an archer being able to draw a bow in the small confines of the stairs.

  “Nay, no archers here, love, only lookouts. See here as we turn we are now facing the southern exposure and when we turn again we’ll see the sea.”

  “How did you find this Ian?” I asked.

  He kept a steady pace ahead of me and the passage widened.

  “It is a mirror image of the tower in McBain’s Doom.” Ian told me.

  I kept silent about my secret foray into that tower a few years ago when the giant found me and hauled me back to Alice’s bed. He couldn’t yet know I had been a guest in his master’s castle. We continued down until we came to a broken arch leading out to a grassy area open to the sky.

  “This was the great hall.”

  “What happened here? How did this all come down and how did the Doom last through the wars?” I asked.

  “Betrayal and treachery, or so the story goes.”

  “You have to tell me.”

  “It’s a story for another time, about a maiden leading her clansmen into the castle to steal away her lover from under the nose of her rightful master and husband. Many versions are told, some pick one version over the other as they each favor the maiden, the lover or the spurned lord.”

  “Ahhh…” I murmured thinking this was remarkably similar to my own predicament; however I was going to steal away the estate manager before I got married. I needed to talk to my brothers as soon a
s possible to explain what I wanted them to say and do. I was so sure they would support me. Little did I expect how much they longed for the new roof. I also had to convince Ian to not marry to end some stupid family wrong that happened centuries before. Lord, those Scots could carry a grudge.

  Ian continued my tour of the ruins and eventually we found our way back to our horses and our camp. We saddled them, leaving the camp and blankets; I secretly hoped that meant Ian would return here with me tonight. He helped me mount and we left our magic almost-paradise. I wistfully looked around, imprinting this in my memory so that if plans went awry, I would have this memory of my one night with my love, this one memory to hold for the rest of my life after I married another man.

  The morning was half gone by the time we returned to the inn. Our trek home took us through the cool woods and then onto a coast road where we passed other travelers going to and from the town. No one seemed particularly excited, so we both assumed all was calm in town. Ian kept up a rambling commentary about the occupants of the town. He knew so very many people here as the McBain’s steward, he must have had dealings with most everyone between the work he did for the estate and the work he did smuggling. It certainly gave him a broad cross section of inhabitants to use as acquaintances. Shortly, we saw the roofs of the town and the steeple of the church and soon we found ourselves in the stable yard. Fergus stormed out of the inn and approached.

  “I’d like to know if you are daft, man?” he waved both hands in my direction.

  “I’d like to think not,” Ian glowered and pulled Fergus to the side. I ambled over; just close enough to listen.

  “I did not harm the lass, if that what you be thinking,” Ian stated.

  “I be thinking that I’ve seen the way you look at her and I’m not thinking you’ll be letting her go like all the others you bring here.”