by LAURA HARNER
She could choose to be hurt and angry that he’d walked away again, but he hadn’t left her. He had withheld his own physical gratification, out of concern for her. He didn’t want her coming to him out of gratitude. His reticence seemed old-fashioned in many ways, a chivalrous act from another time. Elena was too confused to decide how she was feeling, but she’d learned her lesson well, she wasn’t going to be sharing her feelings anytime soon. She was willing to enjoy just being around this fascinating man for a while.
She closed her eyes and imagined a wet and naked Faolan. Whuh! Elena grinned; she had no doubts about his sudden need for a shower. Faolan wanted her as much as she wanted him. Maybe she wasn’t the only one who deserved some romance. Hang on to your heart, Elena. It’s going to be a bumpy ride.
Chapter Seven
Red and Lilly didn’t seem quite sure what to make of Faolan staying at the house when they showed up Monday morning. Elena asked how they all seemed to know each other.
“Everyone knows everyone around here,” replied Lilly. “I’ve been knowin’ young Faolan since he was a wee one, and his da before that.” She seemed to accept that he was a bodyguard of sorts, after hearing of Elena’s attack, and they left it at that. Although Lilly didn’t seem to approve whole-heartedly, Red was happy to have another pair of hands to help with the work.
Cleaning the floors and shelves in the library took the entire morning, but the reward was worth it. By lunchtime, Elena had a gleaming, warm, and inviting library in which to work or relax. She loved it.
Lunch consisted of sandwiches on some of Lilly’s fresh baked bread, with lively discussion and much laughter. It seemed Red, Lilly, and Faolan were very friendly with each other. Yet something else to ponder. When lunch was nearly over, Faolan asked about the condition of the apartment. Elena looked to Red, waiting to hear his answer, and then realized everyone else was looking at her.
“What apartment?” Elena asked, completely flummoxed.
“The flat above the south end of the steading,” Faolan replied.
Since Elena had no idea there was a flat or apartment there, she hadn’t even looked at it yet. They decided a field trip was in order, put on coats, and crossed the yard to the steading. Red and Faolan went in first, to make sure the stairs and floor were stable, with Lilly and Elena trailing close behind.
Inside was a cute little six-room flat that was in good shape. Apparently, a caretaker had lived here off and on over the years. There was an electric stove, refrigerator, and wall heaters. Elena probably would have spent the first few nights in here had she known about it. After everyone ooh’d and ah’d, Faolan looked at Red and said a little too casually, “It would be great if you and Lilly could move in here. That way there would always be one of the three of us here to keep an eye on things.”
Red said quickly, “’Tis a grand idea. We could move in tomorrow.”
Lilly and Elena exchanged glances, and although Elena felt the surprise on her own face, Lilly’s expression thunderous.
“Faolan MacGailtry and Red Thomas!” Lilly turned to look at Elena, “I am sorry, dear. Pay no attention to these fools. ‘Tis plain as the look on their faces they cooked this scheme up betwixt them.”
She was right, one look at their faces and Elena knew exactly what Lilly meant. They looked like a couple of naughty boys caught stealing cookies. Elena couldn’t help it, she burst out laughing.
Faolan crossed the room, took both of Elena’s hands in his and looked deep into her eyes. “Och, I am sorry, lass. I shouldna’ have tried to trick you, ‘tis only your safety I was worried about. I canna be here all the time. Please think about it, and of course ‘tis up to you.”
For a moment, the feel of her hands held tight in his overwhelmed her, and she couldn’t remember how to talk, let alone what she wanted to say. “Uhm.”
She cleared her throat, pulled her hands from his and looked at Lilly before she tried again, “Of course you’re welcome to stay here, Lilly, but what about your other job? Will this be too far out of the way?” Elena was only paying them for their help half days, four days a week.
Lilly looked at Faolan, again with that unfathomable expression, and then back to Elena. “Our other work is taking care of some accounts, keeping records, and such. We can do that from anywhere. But you would be havin’ a right to more of our time or some rent money for us to live here.”
“Let’s agree to expenses for the utilities, and draw up an agreement for the other duties you propose to take on. Helping to keep an eye on the place would be considered part of the job, and providing a place to live as partial compensation seems reasonable.”
Elena looked over at Faolan and added, “You and I should also draw up an agreement, since it seems I’m also providing you housing in exchange for watching over me.” His face darkened and he looked about to argue.
Elena’s legal radar went on high alert, and she cut Faolan off. “There is obviously something you all know that I don’t. How about the three of you get your stories straight and tell it to me tonight after dinner?” Elena smiled sweetly and left, closing the door on her way out, leaving the three of them standing there looking at each other, dumbfounded.
As she descended, she heard Red’s laughter ring out, “She has your number, lad!”
Since there was not likely to be any danger to her in town in the middle of the day, Elena decided to go shopping as a way to get out of the house to give them time to talk and give herself some time to think. She wasn’t sure what to make of the three of them. Clearly, their relationship was much closer than she’d initially thought. The idea of Red and Faolan scheming for an invitation to live onsite pleased her more than it should have. She should have been upset that they were talking behind her back, but it felt like one more proof that Faolan wouldn’t hurt her. After all, why would he bring witnesses to the farm if he was planning to do harm?
****
Dinner that night was a lively event. Lilly had outdone herself in the kitchen. She served lamb, roasted potatoes, sweet carrots, homemade rolls, and Caesar salad. Faolan sat very close to Elena, considering how large the table was. When he reached for the salad bowl, his arm brushed against hers, shooting electricity through her arm. Once, their knees met under the table, and she pulled hers back, apologizing. Later, when their knees bumped again, Elena wondered if he was doing it on purpose, just to get a rise out of her.
Two could play at that game.
It was as though they were both playing with fire. He said he wasn’t the man for her, yet he couldn’t seem to stop touching Elena. She told herself she wasn’t going to get emotionally attached, but she couldn’t help watching his face, judging his emotions.
The next time his leg bumped hers, Elena left hers where it was and then pushed it over a little more firmly, so there would be no doubt in Faolan’s mind that she was doing it on purpose. He didn’t pull away, and it got very hot on their side of the table.
After dinner, Lilly said, “You two kids wait for us in the library. Red and I will just clean up. We’ll be there in twenty.”
The fire blazed cozily, and the bookshelves and floor gleamed in the firelight. Elena started thinking about what furniture she wanted. She would keep the small oak table she was using as a desk, but the spare kitchen chairs and lawn chairs had to go.
Elena knelt in front of a box of books and opened it, intending to put them away. She turned her head to ask Faolan if he would like to help, only to find him standing directly behind her, having approached silently. Which puts his zipper right in front of my face. He was aroused, and when she reached to touch, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her to her feet. Instead of the kiss she was expecting, she got an examination, as he looked at the bump on her head, and declared it to be healing.
She stood there, her chest inches away from him, the feel of his fingers lightly touching her forehead, and she ached with desire for him. “Faolan,” she whispered.
He placed his fingers gently on her lips, and the
n replaced them with his lips, his fingers lingering, and pulling her lips apart. He kissed her deeply, insistently, his hands threaded into her hair. With a shudder, he pulled away from her lips and kissed the top of her head.
Taking a careful step back, he asked in a husky voice, “What are you working on in here?” He wouldn’t look directly at her.
So that’s how it’s going to be. Tease and then stop. He had done it in her bed, at the kitchen table, and now in the library. He might think he wasn’t good enough for her, but he couldn’t stay away either. He was a moth to her flame. Good, it gives me something to work with.
Elena bent over to reach into the box, keeping her butt in the air, just inches from where he stood. “I thought I would unpack some of these boxes,” she said innocently. “Want to help?”
“Uhh,” he replied, his eyes glued to her backside. Elena handed him a stack of books and went right back to unpacking, hiding a feline smile of satisfaction. He stood where he was, inches from her backside for a long minute before he slowly stepped away.
“Elena, we need to talk.”
Uh oh, it was never good news for the woman when a man said that.
Elena turned and looked at him with dismay. “You’re leaving again.” A statement, not a question.
He read her face and was quick to reassure her, “Nay, love, I told you I would take care of you until this was sorted out.”
Oh my God! He just called me love.
He took her hand and led her to the seat where he had held her in his lap the day before. This time he grabbed a second kitchen chair straddled it backward. Elena sat down, worried about what was coming next.
“You were right. There is more between Red, Lilly, and me than just casual acquaintances. I have known them all my life. They raised me after my family died. There is much to this story, and some of which I am not proud of. Will you just let me finish, before you judge me guilty?”
“Faolan, whatever it is, you can tell me. I won’t judge you.”
“Och, lass, you will, and I wouldna be blamin’ you if you never wanted to see me again. But a promise is a promise, and I swore to care for you ‘til this mess was over, so ‘tis about time you know some of what this is about.
“I know now the story of how you got involved with the Worthingtons, but I didna know at first. I told you the other night the Worthingtons have been trying to take certain things from my family and have gone so far to commit murder to get them. They are all pure evil. Your Marty’s ancestor killed my whole family: my parents, my two sisters, and younger brother.”
Elena gasped in horror and put her hand on Faolan’s arm. His gaze focused on some unseen distant horizon. He didn’t seem to know she was there.
“I was in the steading, in a stall asleep on some hay. I heard men shouting. I saw my family shot down by crossbow in the paddock. I was but twelve, but I wanted to go kill the bastard with my bare hands.” His eyes were dark with the memory.
“Oh my God, Faolan.” Elena could think of no words of comfort, she knew firsthand the pain of being an orphan. But to watch your family be murdered!
“Red was near enough to me to see what happened. He grabbed me and held me, with his hand tight over my mouth until Worthington and his men left. Red saved my life that day. He and Lilly were the caretakers for my family, and they took me then and raised me.” He smiled toward Red and Lilly who had just joined them.
“Some of this we heard the day he killed my family, the rest we discovered long after. The killer said he would let the family live if my father would break a sacred vow, sign over ownership of the farm, and forever leave the land of our ancestors. My father was desperate to save his family. He broke an eternal oath when he revealed the…” he paused, searching for the right word, “artifact.”
Faolan’s voice was bitter as he continued. “I think my father knew they would all be killed, but he tried to save them, anyway. Instead of saving them, he sold my soul.” Faolan, took a deep breath, and said, “I need a drink.”
Red went to the kitchen and brought back a bottle of Macallan, a fine, single malt whisky, and poured four glasses. Both Faolan and Red shot the first glass back and poured a second. Lilly sipped, so Elena followed suit. She had never tasted whisky before, but the taste was smooth and warmed her all the way down.
“Faolan, did you think I would hate you for this? Because you didn’t tell me you knew Red and Lilly?” Elena asked.
“Nay lass, ‘tis only the beginning of this story. You will have to trust me, lass, there are things in the world that you shouldna’ ken. Things not of this world. Worthington is a bastard for exposing you to this, because once you know, you can never completely go back.
“Although my father hid the items the killer was seeking, he did admit they existed, thereby breaking the trust with the otherworld. He gave away sacred knowledge that was unearned to someone not worthy. The wards that protected my family were broken.”
Elena felt her grip on reality slipping. Crossbows? Protective wards? Other worlds? Elena looked to Lilly and Red, expecting to see some subtle sign that she should go along with Faolan’s story, should humor him. Instead, she saw two people looking at Faolan with the love of parents shining in their eyes. Whatever this was, they believed it too.
Faolan continued, “After the Worthington gained possession of the farm, they spent a small fortune searching for the things my father revealed. He also looked for other relatives, believing the secrets he sought were clan knowledge. He was right, in a sense because they would have been handed down to me had my father lived long enough.
“Recently, when Worthington contacted the solicitor to have the property sold, I knew something was wrong. He would never sell it without first finding…what he has been looking for. I went to Phoenix to find out who you were and how you were connected to the Worthingtons. I followed you. I searched your home when you were away,” he said softly, avoiding Elena’s eyes.
“When I found out you were engaged to the youngest Worthington, I was positive you were part of the plan. I followed you to London and paid that woman to let me have her seat on the flight to Edinburgh. You told me on the plane where you were getting your car, so I waited there in order to send the description ahead to Red. The plan was, I would follow behind, and Red would wait in Inverness. We didna’ intend to let you out of our sight.
“Then I noticed someone else was watching you. He was hiding, waiting for you to come out to your car. I wanted to know who hired him, so I tapped him on the shoulder, and he swung around fast with a knife in his hand. I was careless, and he caught me in the side and ran away. You came out of the office just then, and without thinking it through, I jumped in your car and told you to drive.”
He finally looked at Elena and said, “I am sorry I scared you, lass.” Then he smiled at the memory, “Och, you are a feisty one! When you finally shared your story with me, I realized you were a victim in this, too. I still thought there was something wrong with Worthington selling you the farm, so I stayed close, trying to figure out what he was planning.”
His head went down again, and his voice was just above a whisper, “I was away the night you went to town. By the time I got here, you were in the yard with those…and he smashed your head…and I thought I would kill him.” His voice, which had started to shake with anger, faded away, and he just looked at her.
Bleakly, he said, “I am sorry, Elena. I should have protected you better. I should have believed you were really in danger. It’s just that the first time, I thought it still might just be a coincidence or that Worthington had somehow found out something. Now that we know the property will revert to him if something happens to you in the next six months, we must be extra careful. He never intended you to own this farm.”
Elena looked at all of them and waited. They all watched her, as if waiting to be told she believed them. She thought through what he had said. She was convinced of the evidence of the recent attacks. It made sense that Martin wanted her out of
the way. She certainly hadn’t gone as quietly as he’d initially expected. It also made sense that if this were Faolan’s family home, he would track the new owner, especially if the family lost it under coercion. Elena could also make a convincing case that Faolan would initially be suspicious of her, and track her movements. That was all evidence that told a story she could believe in.
However, an apparently unreported murder, ancient weapons and artifacts, and what sounded suspiciously like magic were stretching Elena’s credulity to the limit. Faolan hadn’t spoken very much about any of them, yet they were integral to understanding the whole story.
They were at an impasse. Faolan was finished telling the story he wanted Elena to hear, but not the one she thought she needed to hear. She knew she hadn’t heard the whole truth yet, certainly not enough of it to explain everything. Most importantly, Elena still had no idea why Faolan was pushing her away.
“Faolan,” Lilly said gently, “you must tell her all of it.”
He looked back at her, his face stricken, and then roared, “No!” He stormed from the room, and the front door slammed behind him.
Elena looked at Red and Lilly in the deafening silence that followed. Both of them were looking towards the door where Faolan had just left, their eyes full of love and concern.
“Lilly, tell me the rest, tell me how to help him.”
“Nay, lass. ‘Tis his story, and he must tell it in his own time and in his own way. Just as you must find the way to tell him of your feelings for him.”
Elena started to speak, but Lilly cut her off, “Tis plain as the look on your face, dear.”
Red finally spoke, “We need to be goin’ now, but we will be back in the morning, and if it pleases you, we will arrange the flat in the morning and bring our things back after lunch. Doona’ fash yourself about being alone. Faolan is out there watchin’ over you, lass. He willna’ let anything happen tonight.”
Lilly hugged Elena; then she and Red said good night, leaving her alone in the house. Elena stirred the fire and turned out the light in the library. She walked to the window and stood staring out at the snowy landscape. The new moon did not diminish the brightness of the stars.