Redeeming Vows (3 page)

Her foot shot out. Fin backed up to avoid the blow to his chest. She advanced with a quick step and attempted to hit him with her fist. Fin caught her hand, but didn’t take her down. He let go, allowing her to gain her balance again.

Liz’s cocky smile slid into something much more serious. Determined.

Fin watched her eyes, quick to catch her right before she made any move. Then something happened. She realized his strategy and managed to sneak in a kick.

Her foot caught him in the stomach and had him 14

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stumbling for balance. “Good girl,” he whispered, knowing she couldn’t hear him over the music in her ears. Her next two punches came fast and unexpected, one catching him hard on the jaw. And it hurt. His brow rose. The muscles straining on her arms held strength he didn’t know she had.

Fin sent his foot out to trip her. She avoided it and waved him toward her. “Come on, Fin. Stop playing.”

He turned his back to her, heard her approach, and swept her off her feet. She hit the floor hard.

Her eyes opened wide, stunned, but she jumped up and came at him.

Within ten minutes, they were both panting.

Liz’s punch wavered. Fin caught her fist and pulled it behind her back and her firmly up against his chest. Her breasts heaved, and her breathing strained. The soft curves of her body pressed to his.

Liz reached up to the arm he used to hold her and called her Druid powers. Fin felt his skin burn under her touch, and he let go, springing away from her, catching the earplugs and pulling them out of her ears. The device skirted across the floor.

“Not fair, lass.”

“Ever hear the term, all’s fair in love and war?”

Aye, well, what were they?

When she came at him again he ducked, taking her down to the floor and grabbed her hands and stretched them above her head where she couldn’t apply any fire or heat because her fingertips weren’t touching him.

Her eyes met his, his body laid on hers keeping her from moving. But this closeness, this contact was torture.

Elizabeth’s gaze traveled to his lips dancing dangerously close to hers. He smelled the sweet scent of her breath, knew without a doubt she 15

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desired his taste as much as he did hers. He knew that taste, had it once before, briefly.

Wanted it even more now.

“You’re quite a workout.” She breathed the words to him, lifted her lips a tad closer.

“As are you.”

They lay there, staring at each other, neither willing to make the first move. Stubborn.

Fin’s body responded to her nearness, his kilt hardly containing the effect she had on him. Her eyes grew wider until she shut them, cutting him off.

“You’re crushing me.”

He shifted his weight, giving her room to stand.

Liz’s face turned red as she looked away from him.

He wanted to laugh at her reaction, but cautioned himself against it.

“You move much faster than I expected.” Fin lifted onto his elbow, but remained on the floor and willed his body to relax.

“Yes, well. Practice makes…” Her voice drifted.

Her eyes glossed over.

“Practice makes what?”

“Perfect. Oh my God, that’s it.” She ran her hands through her hair, her smile hardly contained.

“We’re going about this all wrong!”

Confused, he asked, “What are you talking about?”

“Practice. Oh my God, Fin. We’ve been sitting here, hiding what we are, hiding what we do while Grainna is out there exercising her powers daily. We don’t stand a chance if we continue doing what we’re doing.”

Fin found his feet. “We have to hide who we are.

Secrecy is—”

“Bullshit. Secrecy means nothing if we’re dead.

And that’s what we’ll be if we don’t start playing by her rules.”

Her idea went against everything he’d been 16

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taught growing up. Druids didn’t openly practice their gifts for others to see.

“What are you suggesting?” He knew he wouldn’t like the answer, but he needed to know what she was thinking in order to keep her safe.

“We need to practice. Daily. Like you and the men do with your swords and fighting.”

“We do use our skills.”

“No, we don’t. Not like Grainna does, not without limitations.”

“We can’t go into the courtyard and start throwing fireballs around, Elizabeth.”

She turned from him, her mind deep in thought.

“There has to be a way.” Tapping her finger to her chin, Fin knew her thoughts were far from the room in which she stood. “When you were a kid discovering your powers, where did you practice?”

“We didn’t.”

“Please, Fin, any child with a new skill practices.”

“We learned to control, more than use, our gifts.”

“Grainna uses, practices and controls.
That
is her advantage.”

Fin hated to admit it, even to himself, but Elizabeth had a point. “As boys, Duncan and I would ride out into the woods and work our powers. ’Tisn’t safe to do that now.”

“Alone, no. Maybe if we went out in groups it would be.” Liz took new interest in the room where they stood. “I chose this end of the keep to exercise because nobody comes up here.”

“So we practice here.”

“Tara’s gift manipulates plants and nature.

Your father can control the weather, Myra the wind.

Those things can’t be worked out inside these walls.”

“And Simon needs animals to see through,” Fin concluded before she could.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes at the mention of her 17

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son’s name and walked away. “Not completely.”

“What do you mean?”

She took a deep breath and hesitated before speaking again. “Simon is doing more than seeing through animals. I think he’s going to be able to shift or turn into the animals once his power is perfected.”

Her words didn’t come as surprise, but they did raise fear inside him. “Like Grainna.”

“Yeah.”

Any other family member, any other Druid, Fin could see this new gift as a way to spy on their enemy and bring them closer to defeating her. Simon was still a boy. Quickly growing into a man, but still too young to venture into battle. His gift could keep him from danger, however. For that reason alone, Simon needed to practice and master his new skills.

Elizabeth’s ideas on this subject held merit.

“We’ll discuss this with the others over our evening meal.” Fin picked up his sword and strapped it to his waist. Liz covered her modern clothing with a cloak, and then tucked the music device deep into her pocket.

As they walked from the room, Liz said, “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For not putting down my plans instantly like you normally do.”

He laughed. “I only deny ideas without merit.

’Tisn’t my fault none you’ve given before held any.”

Her jaw dropped, eyes narrowed. Liz pivoted and stormed away from him mumbling, “Asshole.”

Fin’s laughter followed her as he watched the retreating woman. Her cloak covered her outfit, but Fin still saw the sway of her hips and the long length of her legs. Once again, he battled down the desire the woman provoked. How long would he deny the physical pull she had on him? Why did he deny it now?

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Liz rounded the corner and spoke more clearly.

“You’re a jerk, Finlay MacCoinnich.”

“And you love it, Elizabeth McAllister,” he whispered to himself.

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Grainna rested on the top of a tree, tucking her thick black wings to her side. The warrior below sat on his horse, back straight, his ear turned to the sky.

He waited several seconds before moving his mount closer to the stream that ran along the banks of Lancaster’s land.

Reaching out with her power, Grainna probed into the massive man’s mind. His return to Lancaster was early, his time away spent defending allies for his laird. Visions of death filled the far corners of the warrior’s thoughts. No remorse for the lives he’d taken lurked in the shadows.

He slid from his horse, stepped aside, and proceeded to relieve his bladder. His hand lingered between his legs longer than necessary. Grainna experienced the man’s rush of lust and quickly projected her image into his mind. He stroked himself once, twice and started to harden.

Grainna swept off her perch and landed on mortal feet several yards away. Her raven black hair fell to the length of her back, her breasts pushed forward already aroused and ready for the warrior’s touch. Living a life in an old woman’s body for so long left her starving for a hard man’s touch.

Any man’s touch.

This one however, held an air of danger.

She worshiped danger.

Do not be alarmed,
she chanted in his thoughts.

I want nothing more than the power between your
legs.

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As the man’s hand gripped his erection, Grainna’s knees weakened. His lust manifested in her thoughts. A weaker man would already be on the ground with her straddling his thighs. This man, this warrior fresh from battle, wasn’t as easy to manipulate.

Turn to me. See what is yours for the taking.

Slowly, he did as she demanded. Grainna’s eyes drifted to his hand and she smiled a siren’s deviant grin. “Allow me,” she sighed, stepping forward until his heat collided with hers.

He moved his hand from his shaft to the clasp holding his kilt together. It fell to the ground. His lips parted when she took him in hand. “Who are ye,” he asked against her will. Angering her.

“Only a vessel,” she told him.
A fantasy here to
relieve your desires.

Hearing her internal whispers, he clasped his hand to her waist and pulled her into his arms. His mouth found hers, but didn’t linger. She didn’t want to be kissed, thought the exercise a waste in light of the pleasures his mouth could and would bring.
You
will deny your pleasures until I’ve had mine. Until I
tell you when.

“Aye.” He trailed her neck with his tongue and lowered her to the ground.

Grainna forced his shirt from his shoulders, biting along his collar. Nothing about her touch was soft or loving.

Her warrior’s mouth sucked her erect nipple.

“Bite it. Hard.”

When he did, fluid rushed to her center. As with all the men she’d had since the change, this one’s mind started to feel the bone deep chill of her immortal soul seep into him.

Grainna spread her legs wide and told him to take her. His personal will already waned. She felt his will shift and the questions in his brain started 21

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pushing forward.

His hands stilled.

“Take me now!”

When his cock pushed into her, the cold ache of her core vibrated, consuming him.

She closed her eyes and looked through his. Her image stared back at her.

He started to move, unable to stop himself now.

Grainna took, demanding him to pound into her flesh without mercy. As his lust shot from him, she placed in his mind her true image, evil, old, wrinkled. As she rode out her pleasure, the warrior no longer felt any lust, any passion. Remorse and an empty void where his soul once lived were replaced with her desires. As she rode over the first wave of climax, Grainna roared her success of adding yet one more warrior to her army.

One more body to remove the MacCoinnichs from
her
land.

****

Amber pushed her plate aside and rose to her feet. “Let me, Auntie Tara. I’m not hungry tonight.”

“Are you sure?” Tara allowed Amber to take Briac from her arms.

“Of course.”

Liz couldn’t be more pleased with the support her sister received from the MacCoinnich family.

Her thoughts briefly shifted to her own experience as a new mother. At seventeen, with two parents more disgusted than disappointed with the unexpected pregnancy, she had little, if any, support. Simon’s father was whisked away by his parents as soon as they found out he’d knocked her up.

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When Liz turned eighteen, she and Simon were kicked out as well. That was the hardest year of her life. She’d saved a little money, moved into an extra room at one of her recently divorced neighbors, and found a position at a daycare center where taking care of Simon and earning enough money to live on worked hand in hand.

But it sucked. Big time.

She held no regrets. Simon was her world.

Liz glanced at him while he tickled Briac’s fingers, soliciting a smile from her nephew.

Unlike her, Simon was happy living in the sixteenth century. He adored the unity of this family. Fin sat at the top of his list.

“Simon.” Fin licked the grease from his fingers and nodded toward her son. “Elizabeth told me you’ve been experiencing changes in your gifts.”

Simon’s eyes shifted to her and then to Cian who sat on his right. “They seem to be changing.”

“I understand it is
you
who are changing.”

“Is that true, son? Is your body making changes when you see through the animals?” Ian said from the head of the table.

Simon nodded once. “Yes, a little.” Simon’s eyes lowered to the table, obviously uncomfortable.

“That’s wonderful.” Lora beamed a smile his way. “I think so too, Simon.” Amber patted his shoulder with support.

“You’re a brave lad. This gift is rare, only those with deep wisdom have ever been known to have such power.”

“You knew someone else who’s had it?” Simon asked.

“I’ve only heard of it, never seen it with my own eyes. Well, except when Grainna…” Ian didn’t finish his sentence. They all knew the battle he thought of.

Grainna had murdered the man responsible for her 23

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return of powers and then shifted into a bird to escape her death by the MacCoinnich’s hand.

“It would be best for you to master your new skill. Practice.”