“Can I help you, Isabella?” Gerard’s voice was laced with displeasure as he stared down at her.
Isabella tilted her chin and looked him in the eyes as her blood began to simmer. “No,” she said shortly. “I don’t believe you can.” She turned to leave, but couldn’t resist a parting shot. “At one time, I thought you could help me, but now I see you are not the man for the job. Perhaps Ethan can help me. He seems more than willing.”
Isabella opened the door, but Gerard reached around her and slammed it shut. “And just what do you mean by that?” he growled in her ear.
She turned to face him as she tried to calm the pounding of her heart. Heat flared in his eyes. He looked like he wanted to shake her and it surprised her to know that she could cause such a response from the powerful man in front of her.
“I didn’t mean anything by it,” Isabella said, with a calm she didn’t feel. She was playing with fire, but was surprised to find she didn’t care. Gerard had all but ignored her since her arrival here and it was about time she got some kind of reaction from him.
Gerard studied her for a minute, searching her eyes for the truth. “Has Ethan made anymore advances toward you?”
It surprised her to hear the jealousy in his voice. “No. In fact, he apologized for his previous behavior.”
Gerard nodded before taking a step back and thrusting a hand through his hair. He sighed, looking troubled. “What is it you want, Isabella?” he repeated. “Surely you didn’t come out in the cold and the wet just to spar with me.”
“I want to go home.” Isabella could read the frustration on his face and her heart sank when he shook his head.
“You can’t, lass.” Gerard folded his arms. “This conversation tires me. It isn’t safe for you to live in the forest alone. You could be attacked by a wild animal…or worse.”
Isabella knew what he meant by ‘worse’, but it didn’t matter. She was going to return home and there was nothing he could do to stop her. She would walk if she had to.
“Fine,” she said with a courage she didn’t feel. “I will go alone.”
Gerard grasped her arm and pulled her to him. “You will go nowhere without me by your side,” he growled, as he stared down at her. “It isn’t safe for a woman to be alone outside of the castle walls.”
Isabella laughed as she freed her arm and took a step back. “That is nonsense. I lived by myself for months and not a soul bothered me.”
She opened the stable door and stepped outside into the cold air with Gerard close on her heels. She could see Ethan standing by the closed portcullis, speaking with one of the guards. “Perhaps I shall ask Ethan to accompany me,” she murmured. “I am certain he wouldn’t mind.”
“You won’t,” Gerard’s voice was low so that only her ears would hear and held an undercurrent of anger.
“Why not?” Isabella tossed her head. “You have proved to me that you are far too busy to see to my wishes.”
“I can see to your wishes just fine, lass,” Gerard murmured, placing an arm about her waist and pulling her to his side. “Just say the word and I will spend the rest of the day seeing to your wishes.”
Isabella’s cheeks burned as images of them naked on his bed tumbled through her mind. Oh, how she wished she could take him up on his offer, but she didn’t belong here and the longer she delayed returning home, the harder it would be to leave.
“I’m going home,” she said firmly. “I stayed alone in my cottage for months and wasn’t bothered by a soul.”
Gerard’s eyes glittered with emotion. “Aye, lass, you did, but that was before the men in the castle knew of your presence. I’m sure any one of them would be more than happy to pay you a visit if they found out you were living alone in the middle of the forest.”
Isabella shrugged as if it didn’t matter to her. “Company would be welcome. It gets lonely sometimes. It would be nice to have someone to talk to for a change.”
Gerard gave a bark of laughter. “Talking would be the last thing the men would have on their minds.”
Isabella’s cheeks colored as she understood the meaning behind his words. “Surely, they wouldn’t…” her words trailed off as she noticed one of the stable hands watching her. A rough looking man with unkempt hair and dirty clothes. There was a hunger in his eyes as he studied her and she quickly adverted her gaze.
Gerard snorted. “They are perfect gentlemen when someone is watching them. They know better than to misbehave beneath the laird’s roof. But they won’t be afraid of the consequences if they do their deeds outside of the castle walls.”
Isabella shivered. “I’m certain the laird would be angry.”
“Oh, aye,” Gerard said softly. “Rowan would be very angry. But the men need to worry about me more than Rowan.”
Isabella’s eyes widened. “Why? What would you do if a man chose to visit me?”
Gerard’s gaze fastened on hers. “I would kill him, Bella. But not before I made him pay dearly first.”
From the look in his eyes, she knew he spoke the truth.
Gerard’s strong arms lifted her down from the horse and sat her on the ground in front of the cottage. Her slippers sank into the soft earth as rain fell around them, turning everything into a soggy mess. This wasn’t how she had pictured her homecoming. She had pictured a blue sky and the birds singing in the trees as the warmth from the sun’s rays kissed her skin, but sunshine was rare in the wintertime and warmth would have to wait until spring.
Gerard ushered her toward the door. “We need to get inside, lass, before we catch our deaths from cold.” He yanked open the rickety door and motioned her into the cottage.
Isabella’s breath caught as she stepped into the dimly lit interior. The place looked exactly as she had left it and a wave of homesickness washed over her, causing her to sag against the wall.
“Are you ill, lass?” Gerard towered over her, his concerned gaze searching her face. “I knew this trip was a bad idea. You should be seated in front of a warm fire, not traipsing through the woods in the pouring rain.”
“No.” Isabella calmed her emotions and straightened. “I’m not ill. It is just a shock to see my former home.” She walked around the room, touching the familiar objects and her wave of homesickness deepened. How could she have chosen to leave this place? This cottage had been in her family for generations and she had discarded it like a piece of trash she no longer had a use for.
“Aye,” Gerard murmured. “I imagine it would be a shock. Until now, you had never ventured far from home.”
Isabella crossed to the window and opened the shutters, looking out at the rain swept clearing in front of the cottage. Her gaze fastened on the spot she had found Gerard. At the time, she hadn’t known her life would change on that night and she wasn’t convinced it was for the better.
What would her life be like if she had never heard the name Gerard Mackenzie? Had never set eyes on the man behind the name. Had never fallen love with a man so infuriating it left her stomach in knots and her head spinning.
“Troubled, Bella?” Gerard’s deep voice rumbled in her ear as he stood beside her.
“A little,” she admitted. “I realize I can’t take advantage of the laird’s hospitality forever, and it is obvious I can’t stay here.” Tears glistened on her lashes and she angrily wiped them away. It wasn’t like her to cry over the littlest thing. She had always considered tears to be a sign of weakness and she wasn’t a weak woman. Not by far. “What is to become of me? I have no one.”
Gerard turned her to face him. “You have me,” he replied solemnly. “I won’t leave you to fend for yourself, lass.”
He reached out to tenderly smooth a curl away from her face and then cupped her chin. “I won’t abandon you, Bella. You have my word.”
Isabella didn’t have time to respond before he pulled her into his arms and claimed her lips in a kiss. She moaned as his mouth moved expertly against hers and her hands fisted in the material of his shirt.
&nbs
p; “Ah, Bella,” Gerard moaned as they broke apart. “What am I going to do with you?”
She arched a brow. “What do you want to do with me?”
Gerard’s grin was wicked. “Oh, I can think of a long list of things I would like to do with you, lass, but something tells me Rowan would give me a stern talking to if he ever found out. In case you haven’t noticed, the laird is quite protective of his people.”
Isabella didn’t answer, but reached up to pull him down for another kiss. She was tired of talking. Tired of hearing how much he wanted her with no action behind his words and tired of the constant ache she felt in his presence. She needed him and she needed him now.
Gerard growled, but didn’t push her away. He deepened the kiss as he lifted her in his arms and placed her on the bed.
Isabella briefly thought that this was her marriage bed, the one she had shared with Owen, but decided it didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was the man in her arms and the passion in his eyes as he removed her clothing.
“God, how I want you. I’ve wanted you from the first moment I laid eyes on you,” he rasped as he stared down at her nakedness spread out before him. He began to kiss his way down her body, pausing to place a lick here and a nip there.
Isabella squirmed underneath his ministrations. “The first time you saw me, you thought I was an angel and you were in heaven.”
Gerard paused between her thighs. His grin was wicked as he gazed at her. “You mean you aren’t an angel, lass?” he asked, leaning forward to give her a long lick. “You taste like what I imagine an angel would taste like.”
A moan tore from Isabella’s lips as he licked her again and she reached down to fist her hands in his hair, bringing him up to her. “Tasted a lot of angels, have you?” She attempted to smile, but moaned when he sank his fingers inside of her.
“No, lass,” Gerard said solemnly, as he began to move his fingers deep within her. “Only you.”
Isabella hands fisted in the sheets as her passion began to build. With every stroke he took her higher until she could stand it no more.
“Gerard,” she panted, her voice strained.
“Aye, Bella?” he said, as he watched her closely. Watched the emotions flicker across her face.
“I need you,” she whimpered.
And then he was there, moving between her thighs and entering her with a single thrust.
Isabella clung to him as he began to expertly move. Thrusting into her so forcefully that the bed swayed and groaned beneath them. “Goddess, help me,” she gasped, as one last thrust reached her core and she shattered in his arms. A moment later, he found his release as well and sank down on the bed beside her, pulling her into his arms and showering her face with soft kisses.
“God, help me,” he groaned as he pressed a kiss to her lips. “What am I going to do with you, Bella?”
“Love me,” she whispered softly. For a moment she thought he hadn’t heard her, but then he stiffened in her arms and pulled away. A rush of cold air swept across her bare skin where just a moment before his warmth had been.
He refused to look at her as he sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the far wall. After a few minutes, he rose and quickly dressed and then nodded in her direction. “Get your clothes on, lass,” he said in a voice devoid of emotion. “We need to return to the castle. I have work that needs to be done.”
Isabella was numb as she dressed. It was obvious the maids had been right. She was only a way for him to pass the time and once he was finished with her, he no longer had a use for her.
“Hurry, Bella.” Gerard refused to look at her as he walked to the door. “Play time is over,” he said, before stepping out into the pouring rain.
Isabella felt as if she had been slapped. Play time; that was all she was to him, a toy he could use for his amusement. The best thing she could do for herself was stay in the cottage and let him ride away. But she knew the thought was useless. Gerard wouldn’t leave her in the cottage. He may not have a use for her other than warming his bed, but he wouldn’t leave her behind, of that she was certain.
With a sigh, she took one last look at the cottage before following him out into the pouring rain.
Chapter
Eight
One week later.
Isabella stepped out of her bedchamber and stopped as two women passed by. Dressed in fine clothes, they were members of the large party of guests that had arrived at the castle the night before.
Isabella smiled and said hello, but the women ignored her as they continued on down the corridor. Their words floated back to her.
“I can’t believe a man such as Gerard Mackenzie would ever take up with a mere peasant,” the younger woman said, as she turned to look at Isabella over her shoulder.
“Hush, now,” the older woman soothed. “You know Gerard is just dallying with her. Let him play. He will soon tire of her and move on to a woman who is more socially acceptable.”
Isabella’s cheeks flooded with color as she followed the women down the corridor and to the stairs leading to the floor below. She had never considered herself to be a peasant, even though she hadn’t much money and until she met Gerard, had never known a man who was a member of the nobility.
She reached the ground floor and instead of turning and walking into the Great Hall, the direction the women had gone, she sailed to the entryway and out into the watery sunshine of the winter day. With the women’s words still ringing in her ears, Isabella marched toward the lists where she could hear the loud commotion of men training.
Isabella stopped when she reached the small clearing at the side of the castle. She sat down on a large rock and watched a group of men a few feet away. Two of the men were facing off and the sound of clashing swords rang out on the breeze.
The men parted and Isabella was able to get a view of the combatants. Gerard and Rowan scowled at each other as they circled, both of them calling out playful taunts as they lunged and dodged.
Isabella laughed and clapped her hands as Gerard, with a carefully aimed strike, dislodged the sword from Rowan’s hands causing it to sail through the air and land with a thud at her feet.
She heard the sound of running feet as she stared at the sword in front of her. The wicked looking blade glinted in the morning sun and she briefly wondered how many lives had ended by its sharp thrust.
She looked up in time to see Gerard halt in front of her. From the thunderous expression on his face, she could tell he wasn’t pleased.
“What on earth are you doing, woman?” he roared, loud enough to wake the dead in the nearby cemetery. “You could have been killed. At the very least, injured.” Gerard thrust a hand through his hair.
“I’m sorry, m’lord,” Isabella said sarcastically, as she rose to her feet. They had said little to each other since the incident in the cottage and she was still angry. She picked up the sword, it was heavy in her grasp, and handed it to him. “I didn’t know I would be in the line of fire.”
“Don’t call me lord,” he snapped.
“Ignore him,” Rowan said, as he walked up to stand beside them. He flashed Isabella his most charming grin before continuing. “It appears as if my cousin needs to learn some manners.”
“My manners are fine,” Gerard grumbled. “Or they would be, if I didn’t have to worry about a female who is constantly risking her pretty, little neck.”
“You worry about me?” Isabella couldn’t hide her look of surprise. She would have thought she would be the last thing on his mind. Especially since a large party of guests had arrived, including several beautiful women.
Gerard rolled his eyes in response. “Of course I worry about you, who knows what kind of trouble you would get into if let to your own devices.”
Rowan only laughed and slapped his cousin on the back. “I think the nights you have spent sleeping on the hard floor in front of Isabella’s bedchamber door are wearing on you, cousin. Your disposition has turned extremely sour.”
Is
abella’s eyes widened as she stared at Gerard. “You sleep in front of my room?”
Gerard scowled as he shot Rowan a dark look. He gave a curt nod, but refused to look at her, instead choosing to stare out over the rolling landscape.
Isabella tugged on his hand, willing him to meet her gaze. “Why?” she asked softly. In the cottage, he had acted as if he didn’t care, but a man who didn’t have feelings for her wouldn’t sleep on the floor in front of her bedchamber door.
She shook her head to clear it. Her mind was a muddled mess around him and since their time in the cottage, confusion was her normal state.
Gerard’s expression softened and he sighed. “I think it would be obvious, lass. You are far too lax when it comes to your own safety. More than once, I have checked your bedroom door at night and found it unlocked.”
“You care?” Isabella arched her brows. “I find that hard to believe since you have gone out of your way to prove otherwise.”
“Of course, I care,” Gerard replied gruffly. “I’m offended that you think I don’t.”
Rowan appeared amused as he looked from one to the other. “I’m going to resume my training,” he said, as he grinned at both of them. “Join us when you are ready, cousin.”
He turned to Isabella. “My lady,” he said, giving her a deep bow, before sauntering back across the grass.
A smile played about Gerard’s lips as he watched Rowan depart. “It appears as if you have won the laird over,” he said, as he studied Isabella. “And that, let me assure you, is no easy task.”
Isabella watched the laird as he laughed and talked with the other men. She smiled. From what she had observed during her short time here, the laird was strict, but fair. A hard worker, he expected no less from his servants and clansmen. He provided food for their bellies and a roof over their heads and expected loyalty in return.
Aye, the laird was a fine figure of a man to be sure and Isabella sighed dreamily as she watched the man train.
“My cousin is a married man,” Gerard growled, as he noticed the expression on her face. “And he loves Eva dearly. I hate to spoil your plans, but Rowan won’t stray. He loves his wife and children far too much to ever place his marriage in jeopardy.”
Loving A Highlander Page 8