My Daring Highlander (7 page)

Dirk’s loud breaths were the only
sounds in the darkness. Isobel ran to him and he drew her close
with one arm.

“Are you injured?” she
asked.

“Nay,” Dirk said. “Are
you?”

“Nay.”

“Thank the saints. When he snatched
you from the tent and took off, I thought my life was over.” Dirk
pulled Isobel tighter against him and kissed her.

Keegan moved out of the tree line and
closer to the unmoving body of Nolan MacLeod. An ugly dark gash
marred his throat.

“Is the bastard dead?” Dirk
asked.

Nolan’s eyes gleamed wide and
sightless in the moonlight. “Aye. Looks that way.”

“Justice is served,” Dirk
said.

“Indeed,” Isobel agreed, staring
solemnly at the dead man’s body. “I wanted to kill him myself but…
he was too strong for me.”

“Nay, ’twas my duty and
responsibility,” Dirk said. “Any other whoreson who hurts you—or
even tries to—will meet the same fate.”

Dirk could have lost his beloved wife
so easily tonight. He had to be relieved to finally be rid of the
MacLeod knave. Keegan could only imagine how he must have felt when
Isobel was seized. ’Twas the same gut-wrenching feeling he would
have if someone kidnapped Seona. Keegan strode back into the wood
and found her where he’d left her, wrapped in his plaid and
standing behind the tree.

“All is well now. Nolan MacLeod
grabbed Isobel and made off with her, but Dirk killed the
blackguard. Neither Dirk nor Isobel is hurt.”

“’
Tis good news. I would
like to see Isobel,” Seona said, excitement evident in her tone.
“What of Haldane?”

“I know not yet. Come.” After
sheathing his sword, Keegan lifted Seona into his arms and carried
her through the trees. Though he would never tell her, he was
enjoying the sensation of carrying her slim, lithe form in his
arms. Once he emerged onto the trail, he set Seona onto her feet
but stood between her and Nolan’s dead body. She didn’t need the
additional scare.

“Och. I see what happened to your
plaid, then,” Dirk said in a light tone.

“Aye. I am ever the gentleman.” Keegan
gave a mock courtly bow.

“I’m not certain of that, but you are
generous.” Dirk grinned. “Where’s your horse?”

“Hidden in the trees. I’ll go retrieve
him.”

While Dirk guarded the women, Keegan
returned to the forest for Curry.

A few minutes later, they were all
mounted and traveling slowly through the dimness, Keegan’s horse
behind Dirk’s. The faint light of dawn gleamed over the dark
mountains and white morning mist floated from the burn.

Thankfully, the echo of blades had
gone silent and Keegan hoped each member of the MacKay party was
unhurt. He wanted to ask Dirk if they’d lost any men, but he and
Isobel were sharing a kiss up ahead. Far be it from him to
interrupt, but their actions made him crave another taste of
Seona.

Her innocent kiss had
completely seduced him. From the first time he’d seen her last
autumn, her full, bow-shaped lips had driven him mad. He’d been
fantasizing about kissing her for months, and now that he knew how
delicious her kisses were, he yearned for more.
So much more.

Those two minutes had been the most
stunning of Keegan’s life. He had to find a way to keep
her.

Now, he held her slender form with one
arm around her midsection. Her curvy arse pressing against his
groin was even more tempting than the floral scent emanating from
her long, glossy hair. Every aspect of her lured him, but he
managed to restrain himself from brushing his lips across her ear.
For the moment, simply holding her close and knowing she was safe
was enough.

He focused on guiding the horse along
the side of the burn toward camp.

Dirk stopped and waited for Keegan to
catch up. “I hope the guards have run the rest of the outlaws
through,” Dirk said.

“Aye. Do you ken if any in our party
was killed?”

“Nay, I don’t.”

A horse nickered nearby. Halting,
Keegan snatched his sword from the scabbard and Dirk did the same.
Keegan’s gaze searched the vicinity for the rider. He detected no
other movements. The animal dropped his head and continued picking
grass.

“Nolan’s horse,” Dirk said.

Keegan eyed the animal in the faint
light of dawn. The pale gray horse looked familiar, although
scrawnier than the last time he’d seen it. “He may have been riding
it, cousin, but ’tis one the outlaws stole from Dunnakeil last
winter.”

“Indeed?” Dirk asked.

Since his cousin had only just arrived
in Durness last November, he was not yet familiar with their
horses. “He’s near starved it to death.”

“Aye. Any man who mistreats women and
horses deserves what Nolan got,” Dirk muttered.

“Agreed.” Keegan leapt down and took
the horse’s bridle, then, after he was mounted again behind Seona,
led it back toward camp.

As the light grew brighter, visibility
was not improved for the thick haze gleamed white, giving their
surroundings a mystical quality. It seemed unreal, just as it had
to kiss Seona in the wood. Like a dream. One he never wanted to
wake up from.

“Chief!” a man yelled from the depths
of the mist. They halted. A guard named Boyce appeared.

“Aye?” Dirk responded.

“Are any of you hurt?” The brawny
man’s dark gaze skimmed over them.

“Nay. We’re well,” Dirk said. “Did
everyone in our party survive?”

“Aye. Three men have injuries and are
being patched up.”

Dirk nodded. “Were any outlaws
killed?”

“Aye. One I’ve never seen before. The
rest fled.”

“Make that two. I killed Nolan
MacLeod.”

“’
Tis good news, m’laird.
We’re well rid of the outlaw.”

“What of Haldane and McMurdo?” Keegan
asked.

“Escaped.” Boyce lowered his bushy
dark brows.

“We’ll get them.” Keegan was
determined to stop Haldane from attaining either of his goals. To
Keegan, Dirk was like a brother, and the clan needed him as the
chief. As for Seona, she was growing more precious to Keegan each
day. He wished he could’ve found a way to talk to her months ago.
But he’d thought there was no hope for anything between them. Now,
the time they had left together grew short.

“I only regret we didn’t take them
down before we started on this journey with the women,” Dirk said
in a low voice.

Keegan nodded, feeling the same
intense concern.

“Send three men to bury Nolan
MacLeod’s body in the wood and mark the grave with stones. But
first, search him and bring his weapons and possessions to me. I’ll
make sure his brother gets them,” Dirk told the guard.

“Aye, m’laird.” Boyce bowed and
hastened back toward camp.

“I’ll let Torrin MacLeod know where
his brother is buried,” Dirk said. “I’d want to know if it was my
brother.”

“Aye,” Keegan said. Although he didn’t
know the MacLeod chief well, he didn’t think the man would be
angered that his outlaw brother was killed at Dirk’s hand. In fact,
he should’ve expected it, given what Nolan had tried to do to
Isobel.

The four of them rode into camp where
the men were packing up the tents and readying everyone to travel.
Keegan was disappointed that his ride with Seona was over. Holding
her close to him was one of the best feelings on earth. He
dismounted, then lifted her down from the horse. Her dark blue gaze
met his in the faint dawn light and her lips curved up in a tiny
smile that bewitched him. Damn, how he wanted to kiss her
again.

Her haggard-looking aunt appeared and
dragged Seona away. She glanced back at him once, her expression
dejected. He wanted to chase after them, but that would be daft.
His chest ached. He led the recovered horse toward one of the two
grooms traveling with them and instructed him to give the gaunt
animal extra oats and also check it over for injuries.

Glancing down, Keegan realized he was
still only half dressed, though he was fully covered. Hopefully,
Seona would return his plaid after she put on her own clothing. The
men were sure to tease him about losing his plaid.

Behind him, a man roared as if in
pain. His hand flying to his sword hilt, Keegan spun around
expecting a surprise attack. But no one moved. “What the
devil?”

“Rebbie cauterized Marston’s badly
bleeding wound,” Dirk said nearby.

Keegan finally noticed the injured
guard, lying on the ground beyond several more men who either stood
watching or helped hold him down. “I hope he will recover quickly.”
Keegan accepted a cold bannock from their cook, Oran, a tall hefty
man with a short gray beard and a bald head. “I need another
bannock for Lady Seona.”

Oran nodded and handed him one. Keegan
headed toward the bushes where most of the women were gathered.
Apparently, Seona was behind a bush, dressing, with the help of her
maids.

“Halt right there, Master Keegan,”
Lady Patience said, her critical glance darting down his shirt-clad
body. Aye, he knew very well he was not dressed properly, but at
least his private parts were concealed. Besides, it could not be
helped. He’d needed to give Seona his plaid for warmth. They were
in the wild Highlands and had just survived an ambush. Men often
threw off their bulky plaids to fight more easily in
battle.

Keegan held up the bannock. “Lady
Seona has not yet broken her fast.”

Lady Patience grabbed the oat cake
from his hand. “I’ll give it to her.”

Annoyance drove through him. “I thank
you.” He gave a mock bow, but waited where he was.

“That will be all,” Patience said,
with a flick of her hand.

His annoyance grew into full blown
irritation and he crossed his arms over his chest. Obviously, he
wasn’t a laird, but neither was he a servant. “Lady Seona was cold,
and I allowed her to borrow my plaid. Do you ken if she’s finished
with it?”

Lady Patience narrowed her eyes and
hastened behind the bush. After a few moments, she returned,
holding his plaid between her thumbs and forefingers as if it
contained vermin. Grinding his teeth, he snatched it from her and
strode away. He wanted to call her a vile name, but somehow
restrained himself. The lady had been like a thistle pricking his
arse all winter, glaring at him when he merely glanced Seona’s
way.

Somehow, he had to catch Seona away
from her again and give her another lesson in knife fighting. And
’haps steal another kiss. Anticipation rushing through him, he
suppressed a grin.

As he belted his plaid into place,
Dirk approached him at a determined pace. “We have a
problem.”

Keegan tensed, his attention focused.
“What is it?”

“The coins are gone,” Dirk growled in
a hushed tone.

Keegan frowned. “Which
coins?”

“I told you about the money I was
going to pay Lady Seona’s father for breaking the contract he had
with my father. ’Twas a large amount.” Dirk lowered his voice
further. “Five thousand merks.”

“Hell. One of the outlaws must have
stolen it. Was it on Nolan’s body?”

“Nay. I asked the guard who brought
his weapons to me. The bag of coins was in my tent, but when I took
off after Nolan and Isobel, the money was left unguarded.” Dirk
released a long, frustrated breath. “Now what am I going to pay
Chief Murray with?”

Keegan thought for a moment, but had
no ready answer. They were too far away from Castle Dunnakeil now
to return and get more money. Nothing else they carried with them
would be as valuable, beyond the horses. “Mayhap you won’t need to
pay him,” Keegan suggested.

“Well… nay, I don’t have to pay him.
’Twas only an act of goodwill to keep peace between our
clans.”

“’
Haps the horse will be
enough,” Keegan said, motioning toward the finest horse to ever
come from the MacKay stables.

Dirk shrugged, then eyed Keegan. “Or…
if you ask for Lady Seona’s hand and he agrees, no payment will be
necessary. In fact, you’ll receive her dowry.”

A flash of excitement lit within him.
’Twas what Keegan yearned for more than anything. And he didn’t
even care if she came with a dowry. “If only I could be so
lucky.”

“Isobel and I will go with you to the
Murrays’. ’Haps we can help convince her father.”

“’
Twould mean the world to
me, cousin.” Keegan smiled and shook Dirk’s hand, a thrill of
exhilaration moving through him that he might have a chance with
Seona. He didn’t think she would be opposed to marrying him. Of
course, he hadn’t asked her. ’Twould have been premature. But after
that kiss, and the sweet but sensual way she responded, he was
convinced she felt as drawn to him as he was to her.

He had to find out for
certain.

***

Haldane MacKay rode north across the
moor as if the devil himself chased him. Although Dirk MacKay was
not half as fearsome as a devil, he had a large force of men with
him. More than Haldane had. That was why he hadn’t succeeded in his
mission.