Winter Solstice: An Immortal Highlander Novella (Druid Series) (2 page)

He
strolled to the case that had first caught his eye and touched the glass. Power
pulsed through the air, from the book to his fingers and then back again. He
drew in a sharp breath but kept a straight face. “This one. How much for it?”

“Sorry,
not for sale,” Chelsy replied. “Display only. All the ones in that case are the
same. Just there for looks. Not for purchase.”

He eyed
her closely. Was she aware of how special they were? He’d not sensed any
magikal gifts upon her. Well, if he wasn’t counting her ability to make his
cock rock hard in an instant a magikal gift.

“Money is
nae an issue for me, lass,” he said. “Name yer price.”

She joined
him near the case and seemed lost in thought for a moment. “The books were my
grandmother’s and her father’s before her and his before that. Blah, blah,
blah. Since they’ve been in my family for like ever, I couldn’t ever part with
them. They were too interesting to keep locked away in my grandmother’s storage
room, so I dusted them off and brought them out here for others to be able to
enjoy their beauty as well.” She inched closer. “Are you a book collector?”

“This
subject interests me,” he offered, still eyeing the books and then her. Why was
it he didn’t sense the druid on her when the books were evident it was in her
blood line?

The text
currently making itself known to him was one that spoke of how to handle a
practitioner of the dark arts. Its title roughly translated to
Darkness
Through Light
. He couldn’t tear his gaze from it, wondering what it would
recommend one do to handle him. Since the attack that left him what he was
today—one with both the blood drinkers and the druids—he was often labeled as a
dark druid and hunted by those he’d once called brothers. It didn’t help that
the longer he’d spent on his own, the more he’d convinced himself he was indeed
a great darkness. Before long, he was actually living up to the reputation that
preceded him.

He slinked
his fingers over the smooth glass, hungry for the knowledge within the text. It
wasn’t until Chelsy’s tiny hand touched his forearm that he was able to draw
back from the pull of power. She stared up at him curiously.

“Gordon?”

“Aye.”

“I was
talking to you but it was like you were in a trance or something,” she said
softly, her hand still on him, making his arms heat. “I think you might be in
shock from the burns. We better get you out of those pants fast.” Instantly,
her cheeks stained with color. “I mean, well, it’s just… the restroom is that
way.”

“Lass, if
it’s my trews you’d be wantin’ off, I’d be happy to oblige.”

Her eyes
widened and he winked, causing infectious laughter to break free from her. He
joined in, his hand finding its way over hers in an oddly protective manner.
The book pulsed with power once more. At first, his instincts were to shield
Chelsy from it, assuming it was going to lash out at him for the darkness he
carried. In the last second, before he would have moved her, he sensed something
else.

A warning.

And not
about him but rather to him.

Danger
comes… for her.

With no
concern for himself, Gordon spun around, putting his body between Chelsy’s and
the entrance. He spotted them then, dark mages walking among the shoppers outside,
blending in to anyone who didn’t possess magik. They were searching for
something, or if the book was correct, someone.

Chelsy.

Chelsy
wasn’t sure how to react. One second she was standing next to Gordon near her
register and the next he was racing about the tiny bookstore, pulling the
blinds and locking the door.

She
gulped, her gaze shooting towards the back exit. He was big and fast but there
was a chance she could make it. Being locked in with a man she didn’t know who
was acting past the point of strange wasn’t an option. She had no interest in
being the lead story on the eleven o’clock news broadcast.

“Lass,” he
said, his tone warning. “I know what yer thinking. You can attempt to flee, but
you will nae make it verra far afore yer dead.”

“Before
I’m what?” she squeaked. “Ohmygod, I’m sorry about the hot chocolate.”

His brow
lifted. “What?”

“I didn’t
mean to dump it on you. It was an accident. Please don’t hurt me.”

His eyes
widened. “You think I’d hurt you?”

She
hiccupped. “Y-you said you’d kill me if I try to run.”

He swayed,
touching his stomach as if it was churning. “Och, I said no such thing!” He
thumbed towards the entrance. “The others comin’ for you will be doin’ the
killin’ if you do nae stay close to me.”

She looked
past him, at the closed blinds. “Someone is coming to try to rob my shop?”

“Lass, are
you touched in the head?” he asked calmly. “Where do you get these ideas from?”

“Gee,” she
snapped back. “I wonder.”

He took a
deep breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Lass, I’m gonna ask you a
question and you need to answer me honestly.”

“Okay.”

“Can you
wield magik?”

Chelsy
tipped her head, hoping that by leaning in, what he asked would make more
sense. “I’m sorry but did you just ask me if I can do magik?”

“Aye.”

She
laughed. When he didn’t, her jaw dropped. “You’re serious?”

“I am.”

Covering
her eyes with her hands, she shook her head. “Great, he’s hot and insane. I bet
he’s an escaped mental patient or something. Sure, Chelsy, drag the crazies home
with you.”

A strange
warmth and light caught her attention. She lowered her hands to find glowing
yellow orbs of light spinning around Gordon. He had his arms out, palms up and
an unreadable look upon his face. The lights danced towards her and she yelped.

“They’ll
nae hurt you, lass.”

Reaching
out, she came just shy of touching one. “You’re… magik.”

He
chuckled. “Aye, I suppose I am. The term yer lookin’ for is druid.”

She
glanced towards the books on display and back to him. “
Real
live magik
druids are
real
? They’re not a myth? They’re
real
?”

He looked
to the orbs as if that was answer enough.

She went
to touch one again but stopped. “Promise they won’t hurt me.”

“Aye.”

She made
contact with it and a tingly feeling swept up her arm, making her giggle.
Almost instantly, the orb turned into a white dove of light, spreading its
wings wide, flying about the room. She clapped her hands together and spun,
watching it, her eyes full of wonder. “Gordon, it’s beautiful!”

Suddenly,
he was directly behind her, his hands on her shoulders. “Lass, that’s nae my
doing.”

“What?”
she asked. “Of course it is. Who else would be doing it?”

He ran his
large hands down her arms and lifted her wrists. His hands slid over hers and
his warm breath skated over her neck. “Lass, you touched what I’d created and
the bird came about.”

She stared
at their joined hands, unable to focus. Her entire body warmed and she rubbed
almost catlike against him. Never had she wanted a man more. She should be
screaming, running in terror from her shop and the man who could wield magik,
but she felt safe with him. And she wanted him, in ways she shouldn’t.

Gordon’s
erection dug into her lower back. “Careful, lass. I may be immortal and able to
wield magik, but in the end, I’m just a man.”

Immortal?

Gasping,
she glanced over her shoulder at him. “You’ll live forever?”

“So long
as I keep my heart and head and avoid sunlight.”

“Sunlight?”

He winked.
“Related to something else, but, aye.”

She
smiled. “Neat.”

He
laughed. “I was expecting you to scream or maybe shout and try to run from me.
I was nae expecting a
neat
from you.”

She
couldn’t look away. He bent his head, his lips hovering near hers. Chelsy’s
lips separated slightly and the next thing she knew, Gordon kissed her. His
tongue darted into her mouth, spearing her lips sweetly. He moaned and dragged
her around to face him, their tongues laced.

Never had
a man been so bold with her and she liked it. Liked how in charge he seemed to
be. Their kiss increased and she went to her tiptoes, trying to compensate for
the difference in height. She nicked her tongue on something sharp and blood
welled quickly. She tried to draw back from Gordon but he held tighter, lifting
her, almost eating at her mouth in a seductive manner. Her toes curled and her
belly tightened in anticipation.

Blood.

Warm,
rich, coppery and full of power and light.

She was
like liquid gold in his mouth, coating his tongue.

Gordon
swallowed, continuing to kiss her. His cock pushed at his jeans, wanting free, wanting
her. He knew he should release her and keep his distance but he couldn’t. He
lifted her higher and much to his surprise she wrapped her legs around his
waist. He wanted to take what she was offering, but the book of darkness pulsed
power at him once more, warning him of danger to her. It was the only reason he
composed himself.

Setting
her down gently, he groaned. “Chelsy, something evil is comin’.”

“I know,”
she whispered, touching her swollen lips.

“Listen
closely, lass,” he said, doing his best to ignore his raging hard on. “Do you
have any mistletoe, holly, ivy or evergreens?”

“Um, why?”

“I can use
them to help block negative energy. To help hide what I am and possibly give us
the upper hand.”

Chelsy
took a calming breath before leaning forward. She smiled. “So what you’re
saying is that you need Christmas decorations to help save you from the
ultimate evil?”

“Och,
lass,” Gordon said, running his hand through his hair. “Do nae make it out to
be so simple. And they’re nae decorations. They’re used to help honor the
triple goddess at Yule time.”

“The
triple who?”

He sighed.
“Did yer
grandmere
never explain this all to you? It’s clear she had
knowledge of the druids and Celtic ways. She had to explain it was a marking of
rebirth of…”

Chelsy
clicked her fingers and pointed to him. “Yes. Well, no, but kind of.”

He looked
tired.

“See, she
used to always say this time of year meant out with the old and in with the
new, rebirth of everything.”

He perked.

“I sort of
assumed she was slightly crazy and eccentric, so I pretty much dismissed
everything she said.”

He rolled
his eyes. “’Tis no wonder she summoned me to you.”

“She did
what?”

“The coco,
lass. I do nae believe it was an accident.”

She
huffed. “I already said I didn’t do it on purpose.”

His lips
pulled upwards, a slight smile forming. “I know. What I’m saying is yer
grandmere
reached from the otherworld to assure we met. I think her magik remains and
that she knew I could protect you.” He looked down at her. “If, and only if,
you stop asking me so many questions.”

Chelsy
opened her mouth, additional questions on the tip of her tongue, but she
snapped it shut fast.

Gordon
laughed, deep and from the gut, the sound moving over her, setting her mind at
ease. He put his hand out to her. “Lass, I need for you to trust in me. Can you
do that?”

She
nodded, placing her hand in his. “Yes.”

“
Guid
,” he said, drawing her close.

She
pressed her body to his and listened, wondering if she’d hear anything out of
the ordinary. She believed him, something bad was coming. She could almost feel
it. Being close to him helped to lessen the worry somewhat. He touched her
back, caressing it lightly.

“Lass, I’m
going to ask you to hide behind the counter and to nae come out, regardless of what
you see or hear,” he said. “Can you do it? Can you obey me?”

She lifted
her head, her gaze meeting his. “Yes.”

“
Guid
girl, now go,” he said, nudging her
in the direction of the counter. “Stay low and do nae make a sound.”

“Wait,
Gordon?”

“Aye?”

“Will you
be all right? I don’t want you hurt on account of me.”

He seemed
surprised by her concern for him. “I’ll be fine, lass. Now go.”

His cell
phone rang and he lifted it. He opened it quickly. “Coyle, I do nae have time
for yer bonds of family foolishness. I’ll call you back.” He huffed. “’Tis a
wonder I answer at all with the
snash
runnin’ from yer mouth. And do nae
think I do nae hear Korey’s chattel in the background. Goodbye.” He hung up and
tossed his phone to the side.

Chelsy did
as instructed, rushing behind the counter and going to her knees, her head just
high enough to peek around, through the glass of the adjacent display case.
Gordon headed towards her but stopped on the other side of the case. He grabbed
a book on tourism, leaned against the glass case and began leafing through it.

The locks
to the shop door disengaged and her eyes widened. No one but her had a key. No
one but her should be able to unlock the door that quickly. Three men filed in,
one after the other each looking as big as Gordon. Their gaze swept over the
shop entrance way before landing upon him.

“The
owner?”

“You’re
talkin’ to him,” Gordon said evenly, still flipping through the book. “Can I
interest you in a book on travel? Seems to me, you should be anywhere but here.”

Chelsy
remained in place.

The lead
man, with hair as dark as Gordon’s, stepped forth. “Who are you?”

“I’d be
the man of the house,” Gordon replied unhurried.

“Is that
so?” the lead man asked, grinning.

“Aye,
that’d be so.”

The men
exchanged glances.

The dark
haired one motioned to the bald one. “Check the back for her.”

“For who?”
Gordon asked, almost smirking at them.

“Don’t
play with us, druid.”

Gordon
laughed. “Do nae worry. I do nae enjoy playing with my food.”

“You’ve no
business in this, druid,” the dark haired one said. “Go and we’ll overlook you
stepping in our way. All we want is the girl.”

Chelsy
stiffened.

Gordon
snickered again, reaching down and blatantly adjusting himself. “Funny, all I
want is the lass as well though I’m thinkin’ she’d much rather prefer me doin’
what I want to do to her than you lot.”

Nodding,
Chelsy stayed low. Of course she’d pick Gordon over them. Heck, she’d pick
Gordon over any man. She couldn’t help but glance at his rock hard ass, pressed
against the glass case. Even in the face of danger, the man managed to turn her
on.

The lead
man lifted his arm and Gordon did the same. “Listen,” Gordon said. “I do nae
know if yer aware of this or not, but yer nae the only one here with magik.”

“Yeah but
there are three of us and one of you,” the man replied. “Now, give us the young
witch and we’ll be on our way.”

“No can
do,” Gordon answered. “I plan to keep her for myself. She’s clumsy, talks too
much, is on the short side, but oddly I’m findin’ those qualities to my liking
more and more.”

She
smiled.

They
seemed to take forever before the lead one spoke again. “Very well, for now,
we’ll leave matters be but, druid, you should know we’ll be back.”

“I’d expect
nothing less from you lot,” Gordon replied. “But, you should know, I’ll be
here.”

The men
left quickly and Gordon moved around the counter with a speed that shocked her.
He lifted her to her feet and held onto her shoulders. “Lass, yer nae to be alone.
Do you understand me? Let’s get you to a friend or family member and I’ll do
what I can to lead the dark mages far from you.”

She stared
up at him. “I don’t have any family left and I’ve not been in town long enough
to make any friends. It’s just me and I live in the apartment above the shop
here.”

“Unacceptable,”
he answered.