Taken by the Highlander

by Julianne MacLean

  “I was only five when you first taught me how to hold a sword.”

  “A stick sword,” Logan reminded him. “You may teach them things with sticks, Hamish, not steel. Will you remember that?”

  “Aye.”

  “Good. And maybe the bairn your mother is carrying will be the brother you’ve always wanted. We’ll know in a few weeks. If it’s not a fresh-faced little laddie, we’ll keep trying,” he added with a wink. “Now let’s get back before your mother starts to worry.”

  Together, they climbed high up the steep, rocky slope to the tunnel entrance, which was concealed beneath a tangle of roots and overhanging shrubbery.

  * * *

  Three weeks later

  “He is going to be handsome like you,” Mairi said as she sat up against the pillows on their bed, cradling their newborn son in her arms. “And no doubt, a great warrior. Look at those big little hands. His grip strength is impressive, don’t you think?”

  Positively spellbound by the miracle of his son’s birth and his wife’s incomparable strength through it all, Logan crawled onto the bed beside her and held out his arm. She snuggled close to rest her cheek against his chest.

  Logan placed his finger into his son’s palm, and the tiny, pudgy fist curled around it.

  All at once, in a tremendous flood of emotion, he felt the same immense joy and love he had felt upon the birth of his first two daughters, proving yet again that Mairi was the wisest woman on earth—for the love that overwhelmed his heart in that moment eclipsed absolutely everything unpleasant in the world.

  “You were so right,” he said, meeting his wife’s lovely, brown-eyed gaze. “When we first met, you told me that it was possible to let go of hate and replace it with love. Loving you has been the greatest gift of my life, Mairi, and now, our children…” Logan could not continue, however, for his throat closed up and tears filled his eyes. He fought to blink them away. “Look what you’ve done to me, lass. You’ve turned me into a sentimental fool. Yet another miracle.”

  “Indeed,” Mairi replied with a tender smile as she handed their precious swaddled bundle to Logan. “Here, you hold him now—in your strong and capable hands.”

  Logan reached out and cradled his son in his arms. For a long while, he and Mairi gazed with wonder at their son’s sweet pudgy face and soft little lips.

  “What shall we name him?” Mairi asked. “We’ve discussed a few possibilities, but….”

  “How about Angus Duncan Campbell?” Logan suggested. “For all that the great Lion of Kinloch and the Duke of Moncrieffe have done for us.”

  Mairi adjusted the folds in the swaddling cloth and tucked them away from the child’s face. “That is a good strong name,” she replied. “It suits him perfectly.”

  Logan kissed Mairi on the top of her head. “Do you know how much I love you?”

  “As much as I love you,” she replied with openness and affection.

  He shook his head in a blissful state of disbelief. “I never imagined happiness like this was possible.”

  “Nor did I,” she said thoughtfully. “Not until I met you, and you fixed everything that was broken inside of me.”

  “You were perfect then and you are perfect now,” he told her, as he watched his son sleep peacefully. “I am the luckiest man on earth.”

  Together, they lay on the enormous bed, contemplating their blessings, and falling more deeply in love with each other with every passing second.

  A short while later, Logan gently handed little Duncan over to Mairi. “Are you ready to let the others in? Your mother and Tomas are waiting, along with Hamish, Darach and Larena.”

  “Open the door and let them all in,” Mairi replied as she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and sat up straighter against the pillows.

  Logan rose from the bed, moved to the door, and opened it. The members of their family were clustered in the corridor, waiting impatiently to come in.

  “Finally,” Isla said with a smile.

  Logan beckoned for them to enter. He stepped aside to allow them to pass, after which a tremendous deluge of cooing and fussing ensued.

  Tomas—now Logan’s step-father-in-law—strode into the room and patted Logan firmly on the back. “Well done, lad.”

  “Look at the darling angel!” Isla said as she tiptoed closer to the bed.

  Larena, Darach’s wife—who was ever so happy to have returned to her home of Leathan Castle, after five years in France with Darach—followed Isla and offered her own congratulations. “He is so beautiful, Mairi. What a darling boy. You did very well.”

  While the women, Tomas, and Hamish crowded around the bed to fuss over Mairi and the babe, Logan faced his brother in front of the hearth. They regarded each other steadily and with uncertainty for a moment, and then a look of pride washed over Darach’s face.

  “You also did well, brother,” Darach said. “In everything. I have no doubt that if Father were alive today to see all of this, he would be very proud.”

  Logan listened to the words his brother spoke and felt another rush of strong emotion, for it was what he had yearned to hear all his life—that he had made his father proud.

  Though Ronald James Campbell was in heaven now, Logan believed with all his heart that they would meet again one day, and he would not feel ashamed of the life he had led. To the contrary, he would see his father again with a feeling of pride and serenity.

  “What about you, Darach?” Logan asked. “We quarreled before we parted five years ago, and though I apologized in writing, I must know, is all truly forgiven?”

  Darach rested a hand on Logan’s shoulder. “I, too, must ask the same of you, Logan, for I was harsh that night. Of all things for me to do…to break your sword arm. It’s a wonder you could forgive me.”

  Logan drew in a deep breath and thought again of all that he had learned from the act of loving his wife. “Time heals all wounds,” he softly replied. “All is forgiven.”

  He held out his hand and Darach shook it, then pulled him close and gave him a brotherly hug.

  “Congratulations,” Darach said, drawing back. “The bairn is a fine-looking lad. Clearly, he takes after his mother.”

  Logan stepped back and laughed. “No doubt about it.”

  Together, they moved to the foot of the bed to join the others in admiring the latest addition to the Campbell clan. Then the nursemaid brought Logan’s two young daughters into the room to meet their new brother. They climbed onto the bed with curious looks on their faces.

  Logan watched his wife smile dazzlingly and introduce little Duncan to his beloved daughters. In that moment, he felt a wave a joy so profound, it moved him to tears.

  Love….

  He understood it now, and was at last content in the knowledge that all their lives would be richer for it, and all that was meant to be, would be.

  Dear Reader,

  Thank you for taking the time to read my latest Highlander historical romance. I hope you enjoyed it. If this is your first time reading one of my Scottish historicals, you might enjoy book one in this series, CAPTURED BY THE HIGHLANDER, where we are first introduced to the Duke of Moncrieffe and the Butcher of the Highlands. Book two, CLAIMED BY THE HIGHLANDER, picks up where that story leaves off with the tale of Angus the Lion—perhaps the most ruthless and seemingly irredeemable character in this series. The third book, SEDUCED BY THE HIGHLANDER, tells the story of Angus’s cousin and Laird of War, Lachlan MacDonald, who made a brief appearance in this novel. Lachlan is the most charming and seductive of all my Highlanders—a heartbreaker for sure.

  Book four, RETURN OF THE HIGHLANDER, tells the tale of Logan’s brother, Darach, and their hostage, Larena Campbell. Logan plays a large role in that novel, which begins shortly after Leathan Castle is overtaken by the English under the command of Gregory Chatham.

  As it stands now, this book is the conclusion to my Highlander series. If you enjoyed the series, please consider leaving a review at Goodreads or your favorite online re
tailer to help others discover it. And please read on for a complete list of my other novels. I have plenty of historical romances available, as well as a stand-alone time travel romance called TAKEN BY THE COWBOY, which is full of fun and adventure. I’ve included an excerpt from that novel which starts on the next page.

  If you enjoy contemporary novels about real life magic, you might want to check out my Color of Heaven Series.

  As always, thank you for reading one of my books, and feel free to visit my website at www.juliannemaclean.com for more information about my other titles and my writing life, or to enter my monthly giveaway for an autographed print edition of something from my backlist. While you’re there, be sure to sign up for my newsletter to stay informed about special events and new releases. You can also follow me on Facebook and Twitter, or send me a note through my website.

  All for now and happy reading!

  Julianne

  Excerpt from

  Taken by the Cowboy

  by Julianne MacLean

  HERO AND PROTECTOR

  Former bounty hunter, expert gunslinger, and the toughest sheriff Dodge City has ever known, Truman Wade is a real man from the tip of his black Stetson right down to his spurs and leather boots. He’s never met his match in a gunfight, but he’s never met a gorgeous, gutsy woman from the twenty-first century either…

  TORN BETWEEN TWO WORLDS

  Newly single after a rocky breakup with her self-absorbed fiancé, newspaper columnist Jessica Delaney crashes her car in a lightning storm and soon finds herself dodging bullets in the Wild West. Before the night is out, she’s tossed in jail for a murder she didn’t commit, and if things don’t seem complicated enough, the impossibly handsome sheriff in charge of her arrest has danger written all over him—and a sexy swagger to die for. Jessica knows she needs to get home, but when Sheriff Wade’s enticing touch sets her passions on fire, she begins to wonder if fate has other plans for her, and soon she must choose between the life she longs for in the future… and the greatest love she’s ever known.

  Prologue

  Dodge City, Kansas

  Present day

  Jessica Delaney sat in the waiting room outside the operating room, barely able to move, much less comprehend what had just happened to her brother. “How much longer?” she said to her parents. “He’s been in there for two hours.”

  Jessica’s mother blew her nose, while her father sat in silence, squeezing his wife’s hand. “I’m sure they’re doing their best,” he said. “We’ll hear something soon.”

  Jessica rose from her chair and walked to the edge of the waiting room to peer down the long hall at the surgery doors to the O.R. She thought of Gregory lying on the table under the lights, a team of masked surgeons working over him. What were his chances? Did anyone ever survive a bullet wound to the chest?

  Feeling nauseous all of a sudden, she returned to her chair and sat down. She stared at a framed painting on the wall and wished this day had been different. Gregory didn’t deserve to be lying on that table. He was too young, and such a good person.

  At least the gunman was behind bars. The convenience store clerk had noticed the out-of-state license plate just before he called 911.

  An orderly in a white uniform walked by pushing a cart stacked with folded blue hospital gowns. Jessica watched him while he steered the cart onto the elevator. When the doors slid shut behind him, she thought of Liam, her fiancée.

  Should she call him and tell him they were still waiting for news?

  Jessica chewed on a thumbnail and recalled their conversation hours ago, when she’d called him at work….

  “Liam, something terrible just happened. Can you come with me to Dodge?”

  “When? Now? I’m in a meeting. I can’t just skip out.”

  She fought to keep her voice steady. “Gregory’s been shot. He’s on his way to the hospital. I need to go right now, and I’d really like you to come with me.”

  He was silent for a moment. “God, Jessica…is he going to be okay?”

  “I don’t know. That’s why I need to go now—to be with Mom and Dad.”

  “Of course. You should go.”

  “Can’t you come?”

  She heard him sigh heavily on the other end of the line. “It’s a really bad time, Jess. We’ve got clients coming in tonight. It could be a million-dollar deal. If I’m not there, it might cost me my job—and you don’t know what kind of day it’s been for me.” He began to tell her about the mountain of emails and texts he still had to get through.

  Jessica covered her forehead with her hand. She didn’t want to hear the details. Not now.

  She interrupted him. “Look, don’t worry about it. I’ll go alone.”

  “Let me know how he’s doing. Call me later.”

  “Sure.” She hung up without saying goodbye and drove from Topeka to Dodge alone….

  The squeak of the surgery doors swinging open pulled Jessica from her thoughts. She stood up to look down the hall again and saw a doctor in O.R. greens walking toward them. His shirt was drenched in sweat. “Mom, Dad…someone’s coming.”

  Her parents stood up.

  The doctor, who looked to be in his mid-thirties, kept his eyes on Jessica as he walked the length of the hall. A terrible rush of anxiety exploded in her belly as he came to stand before them.

  “Mr. and Mrs. Delaney,” he said, “I’m Doctor Jake Spencer.”

  He shook her father’s hand, while Jessica put her arm around her mother.

  “I’m sorry to tell you this,” the doctor said. “We did everything we could for Gregory, but I’m afraid he didn’t make it.”

  Jessica stared blankly at the doctor, who kept his gaze fixed on hers. His eyes filled with empathy, while hers filled with tears.

  Her parents said nothing for a moment, then her mother let out a sob. “Please, no.”

  The doctor put his hand on her shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Mrs. Delaney. The wound was deep. The bullet entered his chest and punctured a lung. It lodged in the wall of his aorta. We tried to stop the bleeding and put a graft in place, but it bled too heavily, and we couldn’t stop it. We did all we could do. I massaged his heart to pump it manually, but…I’m very sorry.”

  Jessica’s mother leaned into her husband and buried her sobs in his chest. All Jessica could do was stare at the doctor while she listened to her mother’s weeping and the sound of her own blood rushing through her veins. She still couldn’t believe what the doctor was saying.

  “Will you be all right?” he asked. His voice was caring. Almost shaky. His green eyes were compassionate and sincere. He reached out and touched her shoulder.

  Jessica managed to nod.

  “If you need anything or have any questions,” he continued, “you can contact me at any time.” He handed her his card.

  “Thank you,” she replied.

  He made a move to leave but turned back. He shook his head in frustration. “I’m sorry, Jessica. I did everything in my power to save him. I wish I could have done something to prevent it from happening.”

  His expression was tight with strain, as he bowed his head and walked away.

  Her grief swelled as she stared after the doctor, until the doors to surgery swung closed behind him. She choked back a sob and turned to embrace her parents.

  It wasn’t until many hours later, after they left the hospital and went home to call their friends and relatives, that Jessica wondered how the doctor had known her name.

  Chapter One

  One year later

  Jessica shifted nervously in the driver’s seat, her fingers like vice grips around the steering wheel. She’d driven for two hours, slicing through a rain-battered dusk, wishing that she lived closer to Dodge and her parents. If she did, she wouldn’t have to spend so many hours traveling from one city to the other.

  Maybe it was time to move home, she thought, for the tenth time that month. There wasn’t much keeping her in Topeka anymore—not since she broke off her engag
ement to Liam.

  She was self-employed and could write her fitness column from wherever she pleased. All she needed was a good pair of sneakers for running, her laptop, and wireless Internet at a nearby Starbucks. Her apartment was a sublet. She could give a month’s notice and be out of there in a heartbeat. The change would do her good.

  Not that she wasn’t happy in her work. She loved what she did. There were no problems in that department, but everything else seemed so uncertain and unpredictable.

  Her brother had gone out to buy ice cream after supper one night, and he never saw another sunrise again.

  Jessica had imagined she’d be married by now with a kid on the way, but the man she chose for a husband turned out to be a self-absorbed child, and she was suddenly single again, paying off debt from a honeymoon she had no choice but take alone.

  Yet, she was ever hopeful, waiting for a sign from above, a clue to suggest what she was meant to do with her life. There had to be some greater purpose.

  Should she stay in Topeka, or move home to Dodge to be closer to her parents?

  They weren’t getting any younger and wouldn’t be around forever. If she’d learned anything over the past year, it was to make the most of each and every day, because you never knew when it could all end—just like that—with no warning whatsoever.

  Come on, destiny. Which is it? Topeka or Dodge?

  A flash of lightning and an instantaneous thunderclap caused her to jump in her seat. Rolling her neck to ease the tension in her shoulders, she flexed her fingers on the steering wheel and repositioned her slick palms. The windshield wipers snapped noisily back and forth.

  Another crash of thunder overlapped the last. Counting the seconds to keep her mind occupied, Jessica raked stiff fingers through her hair. She’d just finished a cup of bitter service-station coffee, and now her brain, whirling with caffeine, couldn’t match the lightning with the correct thunderclap.