Muriel couldn’t believe what she was hearing. The real threat wasn’t Clan Campbell and their huge wolves… it was the sneaky and duplicitous Rose Clan.
“We got wind of this several months ago and we have been on the hunt to defeat them ever since.” He continued. “We got here just in time.”
“The hunt?” Muriel asked curiously.
“Aye,” John snarled. “The Rose’s have left a path of destruction… my pack and I have hunted them down and finally caught up with them… none of them will survive by the time we are through.”
Muriel shuddered and she remembered how all of the casualties in the Great Hall seemed to be from Clan Rose.
“You saved me?” she whispered.
“Aye,” John smiled. “And I wed you instantly so you would never be vulnerable again.”
“But why?” she gasped. “We don’t even know one another.”
John took a step forward and took hold of her by the shoulders before he looked at her deep in the eyes and spoke softly…
“Our Clans have crossed paths before… many, many years ago… and it has been written in the stars ever since that you and I should come together to start a new blood line… a new clan… one so powerful it shall rule the whole of Scotland.”
Muriel looked up at her husband. She didn’t know much, but she did know that she trusted him entirely. There was a sincerity in his words, and in his actions. She had felt something between them the second she had laid eyes on him. The complete opposite of what had happened when she had first seen Lord Rose. He had made her skin crawl and she had known there was something disloyal and evil lurking beneath his surface. Now John had come and saved her and her family from making a terrible mistake.
“My parents…” she began, “Do they know?”
John shook his head.
“No,” he said, “The Rose’s have been deceiving people for generations. But, Clan Campbell is very different to any other clan you will have ever come across before,” he smiled.
“In what way?” Muriel whispered.
“Here,” he reached out and took her hand, “Let me show you.”
8.
The night had fallen swiftly and the ground crunched underfoot as they walked together underneath a sky that glistened with the light of millions of bright stars. Muriel looked up and couldn’t believe how beautifully perfect it was, it was as if the heavens had opened up just for them to celebrate their union.
“Your parents will return safely,” he reassured her as they walked hand in hand, “News will reach them soon enough that their castle is intact and their family waits for them.”
“But then what?” Muriel asked. “We all just live here together?”
The thought was so ridiculous she almost couldn’t keep a straight face.
“Well that all depends on you,” John smiled.
Muriel wanted to ask him what he meant but she was distracted by a shooting star overhead and she stopped to look up into the sky.
“This is so incredible,” she gasped.
“It’s because it’s meant to be,” John pulled her closer to him and she felt his warmth.
They continued on past the loch and towards the forest. The moonlight glinted down on the water and lit the path ahead. It was the first time that Muriel had noticed it was a full moon and as they continued she felt a change in John’s demeanor, as if he was trying to restrain himself from saying something and holding back with each step they took.
He finally stopped on the edge of the loch and sat down on a rock. He motioned for Muriel to follow him and she sat down at his side as they looked up at the beautiful night’s sky and all of the splendor that was being opened up to them.
“Clan Campbell are very different indeed,” he continued their conversation from back in her bed chamber, “We have many secrets. Some of which have become legend and some that are just wild whispers around the highlands.”
“What sort of legends?” she asked, although she had the feeling that she already knew what he was going to answer.
“Wolves,” John said sternly, “Clan Campbell are half men… and half beast.”
Muriel felt a twinge of excitement. Even though she was confused, she had known the instant they had burst into the Great Hall that there was something distinctly different about them. The men and wolves were far too big to be anything short of supernatural.
“I’m not sure I know what you mean,” she stammered.
John reached up and took hold of her face before he kissed her passionately and deeply on the lips. She allowed her body to submit to him and for him to take her roughly in his arms as he lay her back against the rock. She was as timid as a virgin should be, and although she had never felt or known passion like it, her wedding night nerves still thumped through her and held her back from truly letting go.
“John,” she panted as she broke his kiss and looked deep into his eyes.
He was the most amazing man she had ever met… and yet there was something so otherworldly about him… and it frightened her. As his passion grew and stirred deep within him, she saw the beast rising to the surface.
His eyes turned icy blue and his whole frame seemed to vibrate with power and lust, as the intense heat raged within him.
“My Lady,” he panted before he looked up at the moon. His face cracked into something primal and wild, and Muriel finally let herself go. She rode along with him, spurred on by his intensity and the power raging within him.
As he shifted from human into wolf form, he took her breath away. The power that radiated from him was so incredible and frightening she was sure he was about to rip her limb from limb. The wolf growled and ran a hot, wet tongue up the side of her neck and cheek. His claws pawed at her and ripped at the wedding dress and he looked up and howled at the moon.
Muriel was so turned on, she couldn’t believe what was happening to her. Her body was a mess of want and need and as John shifted back into his human form, the clothes torn from his body and revealing his nakedness, he pressed down hard on her and spread her legs with his thighs.
As he slid the tip of his manhood into her dripping wet sex and claimed her properly, Muriel squealed with delight and pleasure that reverberated throughout the highlands.
As John powered himself into her, he got harder with each stroke and built up to his powerful release.
Muriel had waited for this moment her entire life and it couldn’t have been more perfect. Her husband was like nothing she had ever known or could even have dreamed of, and as he thrust into her one last time and spilled his red hot seed, she unraveled around him. As she experienced her first orgasm, it was so intense she thought that it may tear her in half.
Afterwards she lay in his arms, nuzzled into his burning hot chest and traced lines with her fingertips up his naked torso.
“You are amazing John Campbell,” she whispered. “You have no idea what you’ve just done to me…” she giggled.
“Oh I do,” he kissed her on the forehead as he pulled her closer. “I’ve deflowered you… and hopefully impregnated you with a cub.”
Muriel felt a twinge in her belly.
A cub…
A baby for them both…?
“This is the beginning,” he whispered, “This is the start of the rest of the world. Together we are going to change Scotland forever…”
Muriel looked deep into his eyes and smiled. She knew he was right and hoped that she did have a baby growing inside of her.
“The stars,” she whispered as she looked up again, “Do you really believe this was written there?”
“Most certainly,” John smiled.
The ground began to freeze around them, but Muriel barely noticed. The heat coming from her wolf husband was keeping her warm and she could still feel it pulsing throughout her.
Less than forty-eight hours earlier she had just been a normal highland lassie waiting for her life to begin… and out of nowhere she had been thrown into an almost unbearable situation wi
th the evil Lord Rose… rescued by the handsome John Campbell and married with the possibility of a baby on the way. It had certainly been an unbelievable day, but one she wouldn’t change for a moment. She had found something with John… even if it was just the beginning, she knew it was a journey she wanted to be on.
She looked over at Cawdor Castle and smiled. She had never wanted to leave before John had burst into the Great Hall, but now she had a husband of her own, one that she wanted to be with, she knew what Elizabeth and her mother had meant. Her destiny was being fulfilled… she had been chosen by a shifter clan and together they were going to begin something legendary. John said that it would depend on her… and she wanted to go. Together they could find their own home and start their own clan… The Campbell-Calder’s would be the most powerful family in the whole of the highlands.
She nuzzled into John’s shoulder and looked up at the stars. Above them trails of silver shot across the sky and Muriel took it as a sign from the Gods that she was on the right path. She was where she was meant to be and destiny had finally found her.
“I love you John Campbell,” she whispered as she locked her fingers with his, “And I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”
John turned to her and kissed her deeply for one last time before they feel asleep together under the stars as wild wolves howled beneath the moon.
THE END
MC Romance
What the Outlaw Must Have
Samantha Leal
Copyright ©2015 by Samantha Leal. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic of mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Thank you so much for your interest in my work!
1.
Holly collapsed on the stool and rubbed the soles of her feet. They were red hot and tired. She had been working since eleven that morning and now as it approached 1:00 am, her whole body ached. Her shoes fell lightly to the floor, and Elle almost swept them up with the edge of her broom. The girls laughed, half with amusement and half with exhaustion.
“What a shift,” Holly sighed as she stretched and pulled a strawberry milkshake closer to her and took a long, much-needed sip.
“Tell me about it,” Elle said as she set down the broom and sat on the stool next to her.
“Pass me mine,” she smiled, motioning to the other tall glass next to Holly.
Holly slid it along the countertop, and Elle began to stir it with her straw.
“Happy Friday,” she grinned. The two girls clinked glasses.
“Yeah, who needs to go to a bar when you can serve truckers and indulge in these once a week?” Holly joked.
Elle laughed and slapped her playfully on the arm.
“We need to get lives, don’t we?” Elle scrunched up her mouth as she pouted and looked out across the parking lot. It was now deserted, but just an hour before it had been filled with trucks and cars, and the diner had been full of men and women either traveling somewhere or just looking for someone to talk to. Their small town could be a lonely one and they regularly got people in there who simply had nothing better to do.
“I’m just glad tonight is over.” Holly rubbed her eyes. “I’m so tired, I feel like I could sleep for a week.”
“Are you off tomorrow?” Elle asked as she got back to her feet and continued to sweep up the remnants of French fries and pie crusts that had made their way onto the floor.
“Yep,” Holly grinned. “And I intend to sleep all day.”
“Don’t waste it,” Elle said seriously. “Go shopping, catch a movie, or even better…come in here and see me!”
“Haha,” Holly laughed. “No chance.”
“Spoil sport,” Elle pouted.
Elle knew that even though they had the milkshake ritual every Friday night, she couldn’t stomach the thought of finishing hers. She pushed it away and got to her feet. Without her shoes, she tiptoed behind the counter and began to clean the counters before heading over to the cash register and counting the money.
“Randy would kill you if he saw you without shoes,” Elle laughed. “Fired on the spot.”
“Well, it’s a good thing he isn’t here, then,” Holly winked before arranging all of the cash into neat piles and putting it in the safe. Randy would be in at 6:00 am to collect it and no doubt check that the girls had done everything exactly how he liked it. For a boss, he could be a pain in the ass, but at least he left them alone regularly to just get on with things. Holly didn’t exactly like working as a waitress, but she was grateful to have a job that allowed her to pay her way and put a roof over her head. Since she lost her parents, she also didn’t mind not having so much time on her hands… She didn’t like being left alone to think.
“Seriously, though,” Elle said as she turned off the neon lights that lit up the windows out front. “Don’t waste your day tomorrow… I’m stuck in here until six and then back in on Sunday. What I wouldn’t give to have the weekend free.”
Holly thought about it for a moment and realized her friend was right. She should do something worthwhile rather than just lying in bed and churning everything over.
“Okay,” she smiled. “You’re right. I’ll get out and seize the day.”
“Carpe diem,” Elle nodded with pride.
“Indeed,” Holly laughed.
As the girls left the diner and made their way to Holly’s car, she had an overwhelming rush of affection for Elle. She really had been a great friend to her when she needed someone the most, and she was grateful to have found her. When she had taken her job at the diner, the last thing she had expected was to find a friend for life. Now the two of them were the longest serving waitresses there and well-known fixtures in their local community, as well as with the hundreds of truckers who traveled down their stretch of highway day in and day out.
As Holly pulled up outside of Elle’s small ranch house, she kissed her on the cheek.
“Have a fun day off,” Elle bounced out of the car. “I’ll see you Monday?”
“Sure,” Holly smiled. “Have a good weekend.”
Elle smiled and waved over her shoulder as she made her way to her front door. Holly looked ahead and at the dark road in front of her. She had a whole weekend with only herself for company, and it seemed to stretch out ahead like a terrifying abyss.
“Come on,” she coached herself as she pulled away from the curb and started on her way home. “Time alone isn’t so bad.”
But she wasn’t fooling anyone.
Least of all herself.
2.
The next morning, the sunlight blazed through the curtains and illuminated Holly’s bedroom. She was flat on her back, wrapped up under the sheet, and she blinked as she came to. She sat up and stretched and rubbed her eyes. The day did look inviting. She could tell it was going to be a hot one and there would no doubt be plenty of people down by the lake waterskiing, fishing and swimming, but she couldn’t bring herself to go down there alone. With each passing week, her confidence was dwindling. It had been such a long time since she had had a boyfriend, and after the death of her parents she found herself becoming more introverted.
She felt alone in the world, and it was starting to weigh heavy on her. Elle was the only person she really had that she could rely on and trust, but they couldn’t be together all of the time, and Holly knew that she had to make herself stronger on her own.
She got out of bed and walked slowly into the kitchen. Her house was similar to Elle’s but maybe slightly smaller. It was all on one level and had two bedrooms instead of three, but the girls often marveled at how strange it was that the layouts were almost identical.
When the kettle boiled, she poured herself a huge cup of tea and made her way through to the adjoining room. She slipped down onto the couch and yawned. Even though she had slept until almost noon, she was still ex
hausted.
She reached down and pulled out her photo album from the bottom shelf of her coffee table. She had made a habit to look at a few photographs of her family every day because she missed them so much. She still couldn’t believe it had been two whole years that they had been gone.
As she flipped open the first page, she saw the familiar picture of her mother and father with their arms around each other, smiling down at the camera while they stood in their garden at the old house. When they died, Holly decided to put it up for sale so she could move somewhere smaller and start again, but it hadn’t been easy to leave all of their memories behind.
Her father had dropped dead one day without any warning. Her mother had found him crumpled up in the shower, and the paramedics said he was dead before he hit the floor. A massive heart attack had rocketed through him and taken him at fifty-five. Holly honestly didn’t think that life could deal her and her mother any more blows, but less than six months later her mother had passed away from what the doctors believed could have been a broken heart.
She had heard of stories like that happening but had never really believed them. But after seeing it firsthand, she knew it to be true. Her mother had loved her father so much that she couldn’t exist in the world without him.
After the passing of her mother and once the house had sold, Holly knew it was time to move on with her life. She had invested much of the money from the house, used some as a down payment on a new house and started working at the diner. The world could have been her oyster, but she couldn’t face the thought of leaving her hometown and her family behind. It was the only place she really knew, and it was the only place she really wanted to be.
Making the decision not to leave came with its bad points. She never had the chance to meet anyone new, she hadn’t had a romantic relationship pretty much since high school and she was in no way likely to meet anyone at this rate. People simply didn’t just move to Red Creek; it was more the kind of town they either passed through or had been in forever.
HUNTER (Forsaken Riders MC Romance Book 11) Page 121