by TC Calligari
Skye’s eyes darted to meet his and she tried to pull her fingers from his grasp.
“I promise that I won’t let you fall.” His charming half-grin sent a flutter to her stomach.
“Aiden, I…” she began to protest, but he was already pulling her toward the dance floor and somehow her feet were following willingly. In the next instant she was swept into his arms and they were gliding among the crowd. Skye tried to look down at the whirl of their feet but she stumbled. Aiden’s arms remained locked under her own and the frame he had created kept her on her feet.
“Look at me.” He commanded.
She raised her eyes, filled with doubt, to his.
Slowly, he pulled her against him. The move would appear intimate to an onlooker, but Aiden used the motion to speak softly in her ear.
“Lean on my arms. I’ll guide you.”
Skye dropped her forehead to his shoulder in embarrassment. It rested there for only a moment before she looked at him again with a wary glance. He nodded, encouraging her to follow his instructions.
She allowed her arms to drop against his and used the upper body strength acquired from hunting to press her weight down against his forearms. She was surprised when the pressure appeared to have no effect on him. His frame lifted her slightly so that her feet skimmed the ground lightly. As Aiden twirled her around the floor, Skye’s feet kept up with his. When she missed a step, or her foot fumbled beneath them, Aiden’s grasp guided her back into balance and carried her on as if nothing had happened. To the onlooker, they would appear to be perfectly skilled dancing partners. It would be nearly undetectable that Aiden was all but carrying Skye across the floor.
After a few minutes of embarrassment, Skye felt a giggle burst from inside of her. She looked up at her partner with happy surprise. She was actually enjoying herself. Aiden looked down at her with a matching grin and his arms tightened around her. He whipped her around once more, her skirts flying out behind her in elegant folds, and for once Skye felt like a beautiful dancer. As the song finally ended she found herself wishing that it would go on.
Aiden released her and they stood facing each other on the floor.
“Thank you, for that.” Skye spoke in a soft voice, her eyes fixed on her hands.
“Well, now you’ve danced.” Aiden spoke with a nonchalance that had Skye raising her eyes in confusion. “You can go back to refusing partners and claim that you’ve had your fill for the night and no one will be the wiser.”
Skye’s heart sank. It was clear that Aiden had not enjoyed the activity as much as she had thought, as much as she had. He bowed his head in a sharp nod and excused himself. Skye watched him leave the dance floor, and then the hall altogether. He did not return for the rest of the night.
Two days later, Skye wandered into the darkened castle study to look for a book to keep her entertained while her brother discussed business with the Laird. The long room was darkened in the night. The only source of light was a large fire in the hearth and a small candle at the far end of the room. Skye stepped quietly into the room, determined not to bother the sole occupant at the far end. The Laird was often found reading, Skye remembered Deirdre’s information. She lit a candle of her own and began to move along the shelves in search of her choice.
It was not until he shifted into the light of his own candle that Skye realized that it was Aiden who sat reading in the corner. She turned quickly to leave, when he spoke.
“Why haven’t you been hunting while you are here?” He asked.
She turned toward him and shrugged, her arms crossed over the book that she held against the front of her body. He rose from the chair, set his book on the nearby table, and approached her.
“We have excellent hunting in the forest around the castle.” He came to stand a short distance away. “Greum and Cat were attacked by wolves not six months passed. The men have had a difficult time getting rid of them. Maybe you could solve the problem as you did with the wolves near your home?”
Skye felt her mouth drop open at Aiden’s suggestion. It was true that hunting a wolf from a distance was more effective than fighting them in bear form. Wolves were fast, vicious, and they traveled in packs. While the clansmen did often work in pairs, it was not often that you would see more than two bears at a time. Still, Skye thought it strange that Aiden would suggest, and even encourage, what her father called an un-feminine interest.
“Aiden, I don’t hunt anymore.” Skye admitted. She tried to keep the sadness from her voice but suspected that Aiden could detect it.
“What do you mean? You just brought all of those pelts for Cat.”
“Well, I did hunt,” she shrugged, “but shortly after, my father…” She closed her eyes. Skye did not know how to explain without speaking poorly of her father. Despite his beliefs she loved him too much to speak ill of him.
When Aiden’s hands closed around her shoulders, her eyes snapped open.
“He took away your bow.” Aiden finished for her. It was a statement, not a question.
Skye nodded. “And…” She looked down and grasped the skirt of her gown, spreading it out to her sides.
Aiden chewed his lip, in thought.
“I suppose you can’t hunt in a gown, can you?” There was an edge of laughter in his tone that lightened the ache in Skye’s heart. Yes, her father had taken away her English-style pants, the clothing that allowed her to move so freely in pursuit of her prey.
“I suppose not.” She smiled. Somehow, Aiden’s tone of understanding, rather than reproach, had made her feel better.
It suddenly occurred to her that Aiden’s hands were still resting on her shoulders. Their gazes locked and Skye found that the air had thickened by some strange force. She found it hard to breathe. Aiden was staring at her as he had never done before, as no man had, with a look that bore into her very soul. Skye tried to swallow past the lump in her throat but found that difficult as well. In a sheer panic she grasped at something to say to break the terrifying silence—anything at all.
“Aiden, about the other evening…” Skye had no idea what she was going to say. Before she had a chance to plan her apology, Aiden’s mouth came crashing down over her own. The initial impact was abrupt, almost as if his decision had been made only that instant, but a moment later the kiss softened into the most intoxicating combination of passion and restraint. Skye found that her hands had risen to grasp his elbows. She, once again, was using his strength to steady herself. Though they were standing still, the effect of his kiss was much the same as dancing. Skye’s head spun and she felt as if the room was moving around them.
Aiden adjusted the angle of his head to better accommodate her shorter stature. Skye’s unconscious reaction was to lean into him, their bodies pressed against each other in every possible location. His hands dove into the waves of hair at the base of her neck before trailing a tantalizing path down the base of her spine. Never had she been kissed like this before. A soft peck or lingering pressure, perhaps, but never with blazing passion that left her skin burning in every place that he touched.
Skye felt his tongue against her lips. The sensation was entirely foreign to her limited experience, but she found her mouth opening against his. When it crossed the threshold into her own mouth, Skye gasped against him. She felt Aiden tense in her arms, preparing to pull away, when Skye pressed her mouth forcefully against his and returned the gesture. The action was all the encouragement that he needed. Aiden’s arms crossed behind her back and he pulled her more fully against him.
Skye was reeling. Never would she have imagined that she would be kissing Aiden MacConaill in a darkened study. Never would it have occurred to her that they would share such a visceral reaction. If anything, she had worked to avoid Aiden after that day in the woods, long ago.
Her arms found their way around his neck. Skye was practically lifted off the ground as Aiden’s solid strength raised her closer to his own height. She felt the distinctive hardening beneath his kilt. She would ha
ve expected it to frighten her, but it did not. Instead, Skye smiled against his mouth with the knowledge that she could affect him in such a way. Whether he disappeared this time, or not, there would be no question as to his enjoyment.
The creak of the door handle behind her had Aiden breaking their contact with a blink of an eye. Before Skye had a chance to react, Aiden had spun her behind him so that her body was blocked from the view of the doorway. Thankfully, the darkened room and her deep blue gown, kept the line of her skirts from showing behind him. Skye grasped the back of his shirt and pressed her forehead into his back. The mortification of what they had been doing washed over her as she listened to his brief conversation with the scullery maid who had come to tend the fire. With a quick word of dismissal, the maid left the room and Skye felt Aiden take a deep breath.
Slowly, he turned to face her and wrapped Skye’s trembling shoulders in his embrace. His chin settled against her hair and with slow strokes of his hand over the locks, he soothed her nerves.
She shuddered to think of Teirnan’s reaction if they had been discovered.
With a deep breath and a firm set to her shoulders, Skye pulled away.
“If you’ll excuse me.” She muttered, slipping around Aiden and heading for the door.
“Wait, Skye…” Aiden hooked a hand around her elbow to stop her. She turned but did not meet his eyes. She was grateful that the room was so dark. Skye knew, without a doubt, that her pale skin was covered in a deep blush.
“G’night, Aiden.” She tried to speak firmly but it came out as a whisper. He must have sensed her need to escape, the close call having rattled her more than she cared to admit. His hand dropped from her arm and he allowed her to exit the room without another word.
Skye returned to the safety of her chambers and remained there for the rest of the night.
In the following days Aiden paid Skye more attention than usual. He was subtle in his actions. Skye thought no one suspected any change in behavior except for possibly Deirdre. Skye did her best to avoid him. She seated herself beside Teirnan at dinner, in hopes that Aiden would remain far away from her watchful brother. This plan worked against her due to the close friendship between the men. When Skye excused herself immediately after dessert, Aiden remained at the table to spend time with his friend. The following day, she resolved to sit between Catríona and Deirdre. The safety of female conversation would keep the man at bay.
If Skye was supposed to be searching for a husband, she needed to refrain from encouraging Aiden’s attentions. She could not risk secret encounters with the son of the Laird preventing her from making a match of her choice. Aiden was not even a consideration, she reminded herself. He would marry a proper lady who could conform to the castle lifestyle. He might enjoy her company at the moment but, Skye remembered her father’s words, no lad wants a wife who tromps through the woods. The woods are for the bears, lass, if you were meant to be out there then you’d shift too.
The worst part was that Skye actually enjoyed talking to him. Aiden was extremely kind and helpful to everyone in the castle. The servants respected him, and his sisters often told stories of his mild-mannered way, compared to his energetic brothers.
Avoiding him was difficult. He was such a central part of the castle life that Skye found herself torn between the blushing agony of being near him, and the desire to join in whatever playful activity he was leading at the time. In large parties they went for horseback rides, picnics, and down to the village to watch the children compete in challenges of athleticism. They spent an afternoon down by the Mill, feeding the ducks and other baby animals that wandered about the farmland. Skye spent nearly every afternoon with Aiden, but she made sure that they were never alone.
***
Early one morning, there was a knock on her chamber door. Skye threw her cloak over her dressing gown and opened the door to find the tanner’s son standing in the hall with a large wrapped bundle.
“Are you Mistress Laramie?” the child asked.
Skye nodded, and accepted the bundle.
“What is this?” she asked, when he turned to skip away.
“It’s a gift.” Came the small response, as if the answer were obvious. Without another word the boy slipped down the hallway and out of sight.
Skye shut the door behind her and carried the bundle to rest on her bed. What a strange way to receive a gift, she thought, and began untying the twine that bound the brown cloth wrapping.
When the fabric fell open, Skye gasped with pleasure.
Laying on her bed was a new pair of tanned leather pants, like the English wore, a white shirt, and a matching tanned vest. New boots lay beside the clothing and, beneath it all, a small bow and quiver. There was no note but she knew whom they were from. Without a doubt in her mind, Skye knew that Aiden had these items made for her.
Did he not mind the idea of a woman hunting on her own? Did he think the woods were made for the bears alone? A thousand questions raced through Skye’s mind but she did not have time to think of them. Before she realized what she was doing she had peeled her shift over her head and begun to slip into the hunting outfit that lay on the bed.
She tucked the bow and quiver to her side, threw her cloak over everything and slipped out in the halls of the sleeping castle. She knew where to find Aiden without asking. Skye tread quietly in her soft leather boots until she reached the door to the study. She pulled the cloak tightly closed in case there were others inside, and slipped through the door, closing it behind her. Aiden was sitting in a chair in front of the hearth, his elbows on his knees, flipping a dagger in his hands. When the door clicked shut his head snapped up to see Skye standing in the door with a grin spread across her face.
He stood. She could tell he was nervous about whether or not his gift was well received. Skye shuffled over to him and spread the cloak wide, revealing the completed ensemble.
“Then you like them?” he breathed a sigh of relief.
Skye could not help herself, she laughed and flung her arms around Aiden’s neck.
“They are the most perfect gift that has ever been given.” She had meant it as a friendly embrace but when Skye felt the urge to kiss him sweep over her body she pulled away.
“Well, are you ready?” She asked with excitement.
“Ready?” He laughed. “Now?”
Skye grabbed his hands and pulled him toward the door.
“Yes, now! I cannot wait.” She tugged harder though he could have easily resisted.
“I thought you hunted alone?” Aiden’s smile was radiant. It was clear that her excitement was more than he had anticipated.
“I do.” She laughed. “But today you’ll go with me.”
“Alone?” Aiden had clearly caught on to her behavior in the past days. He seemed to enjoy teasing her at the moment.
“Yes. We’ll have to leave on horses. Otherwise my brother will know I’ve been hunting.” Skye was quivering with excitement. “I want a look at those wolves. We’ll separate in the woods and search for them.”
Aiden hesitated, a look of concern on his face. He smoothed a curl back into her braid. “I cannot imagine someone so tiny facing a pack of wolves. We do not normally confront them.”
He was worried about her, she realized, and maybe slightly concerned about his ability to protect her against the pack.
“I do not confront them.” She smiled. “I catch them from afar. I don’t plan on hunting today, I only wish to observe.” Skye raised her hand and rested it on his cheek. “I promise to keep you safe.” She teased.
Aiden covered her hand with his own and turned to press his lips against her palm. The heat of his breath against her skin caused an exciting chill to run through her body.
“Maybe those pants were a bad idea.” He teased.
Skye stepped forward and pressed her lips lightly against his, she allowed them to linger for a moment before pulling away.
“Alright, maybe not so bad an idea.” He said in a strained voice
gesturing toward the waiting door. Skye laughed heartily and led the way to the stables.
The countryside surrounding the castle was beautiful in the early morning light. A pale fog rolled across the highlands, the misty haze making the forest feel like another world entirely.
When they were well inside the forest, Aiden and Skye dismounted and tied the horses near a stream.
“Don’t wander too far.” Aiden instructed when she removed her cloak and slung the quiver across her back.
“I won’t” Skye smiled and slipped into the cover of the forest, leaving Aiden the privacy he needed to disrobe and shift.
She walked for nearly a quarter of an hour before she saw the first dried paw print in the mud. The dog-like marking was old, dried in the clay of the last rain. Skye smiled to herself, old markings or not this was the right area. She followed the track to where they ended and, with no further clue, turned and followed her path back the way that she had come.
She decided to venture back to check on the horses, then follow another trail in a different direction. If she continued weaving this path then the horses would not be left for too long, and Skye would not lose her way in the woods.
She checked the horses, gave them each a small carrot, and began her journey down another path. When she heard a twig snap up ahead, Skye thought that perhaps Aiden had chosen the same route. A tuft of grey fur on a nearby bush caught her eye and she felt a cold sweat steal over her body. Aiden was tawny, the pale yellow-brown that resembled his natural hair, though darker.
Grey, like a wolf. Her mind jumped to the conclusion with a jolt. A grey bear would be too old to be wandering this far from the castle alone. The old men rarely roamed this far on their own.
She heard another snap, this time behind her, and her instincts told her that she had wandered into the center of the pack. Skye thought about nocking an arrow but knew that it would be fruitless to take on the bests from the ground. Her eyes scanned the surrounding forest for a scalable tree. Twenty yards away was the perfect tree to climb safely, if she could jump high enough to reach the lowest branch. Skye estimated the height and thought that she could make it. If she could pull herself above the limb before the wolves caught sight of her, there were no lower branches or fallen logs for them to climb on.