Desiring the Highlander (21 page)

“You aren’t leaving to go back in this weather, are you?” Aileen asked, moving to stand by Laurel.

“Nay, I’ll go in the morning, leaving me just enough time to reunite with a certain someone and say hello,” he said with a wink.

Brighid leaned over and whispered into Ellenor’s ear, “I didn’t know Hamish was seeing anyone. Did you?”

Ellenor rolled her eyes and elbowed Brighid lightly in the ribs. “How would I know? I don’t even know who he is.”

Hamish marched toward the table and wrenched a hind leg free from its hinge. Just as he did, his gaze fell upon Ellenor and his bushy brows furrowed. “I don’t think we know each other, lass. You are far too beautiful for me to be forgetting such an encounter.”

He dropped the leg, brushed his hand on his kilt, and walked toward her with what Ellenor guessed was supposed to be an enticing swagger. It was almost comical. “Really?” Ellenor retorted.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cole inch his way toward her. He may deny wanting her, but the fact was he did. And the look on Cole’s face indicated he was about to prove it to everyone present…violently. Jealousy was one thing, but not if in the end it caused him to leave and not return.

Turning back to Hamish, Ellenor said impishly, “Maybe we can meet another time…when you don’t have to
reunite with a certain someone
.” She ended with a lopsided grin.

Instantly, Cole stopped his forward movement and visibly began to thaw. Ellenor almost thought she saw a genuine smile begin to cross his face, but just before it truly appeared, it vanished again.

Conan began to half-cough, half-cackle into his fist. Finn pounded him on the back as he tried to swallow his own mirth. Laurel, Aileen, and Brighid didn’t even try to hold back their laughter as they erupted into giggles. Even Hamish broke into infectious howls, causing Ellenor to join him.

Laurel finally caught her voice and explained, “Hamish, I should have warned you about Ellenor. She is a friend of mine from England who has agreed to come and stay with us. As you can see, she is delightful and has a keen wit and unusual grasp of our language.”

Hamish surveyed Ellenor appreciatively. His thick red-brown beard parted as an enormous grin appeared across his face. “Ah, lass, if only you and me had more time. When I return, maybe it will be
you
I will seek to be with.”

Laurel witnessed the sudden flash of hatred in Cole’s eyes at the same time Ellenor did. With a hard smack of her hands, she got the room’s attention. “Thank you all for coming this evening and welcoming Ellenor into the McTiernay clan. Thank you, too, Ellenor, for helping me stage this small party. We all are blessed with your willingness to help me until this babe is born. Unfortunately, I must leave this gathering now before I fall asleep most ungraciously, leaving you men to carry me back to my room.”

“Not me!” Finn cried out, laughing. “Last time a man carried you to the bedroom, the laird suddenly appeared and the poor wretch almost died.”

Laurel rolled her eyes. “And thank
you
, Finn, for that wonderful reminder. Conan, for right now, I am putting Ellenor in the North Tower and would ask that you stay in either the West or East Towers for the time being.”

Conan nodded in agreement and said with a mischievous smile, “Ellenor can have my room. It has been tended and—”

“She’ll stay in my old room.” The announcement had come from Cole. His voice had been level and without inflection, which somehow left the feeling it was not to be questioned.

Laurel clucked her tongue and said, “Well, then I guess that is settled. Conan, would you mind escorting me to my room, and Cole, please show Ellenor exactly which room you wish her to have.”

The sarcasm dripping off her last statement was obvious to all, just as her ploy to have Cole be Ellenor’s escort and not Finn, Brighid, or any of the others present. But before Cole could ask one of them to do the honors, both Aileen and Brighid grabbed their husbands’ arms and began shuffling them out the door as quickly as they could muster, offering good nights and final words of welcome as they disappeared into the night. Hamish followed with a large meat bone in hand.

Cole glanced back at Ellenor, who was now standing by the hearth, looking both mystified and beautiful as the fire created a halo effect about her. Lord, she was gorgeous. And dangerous.

He had made a fool of himself declaring she would stay in his room, but the idea of Ellenor sleeping in another man’s bed was not something he could handle. At least not yet. He needed time, space, distance away from her so that he could once again focus on what was important. His men and his vow.

“If you are ready, I will show you now before I retire. Otherwise, I’ll send Fallon to escort you to your room.”

Ellenor swallowed, still shocked at how the night had ended so abruptly. A few minutes ago, she was professing her love for Cole to Brighid. Now she was suddenly alone with him. Unable to think of what else to do or say, she murmured, “I’m ready.”

Cole pivoted and left Ellenor to follow his lead.

Cole leaned his shoulder against the massive bedroom door. It gave under the pressure, opening to a large interior room lit only by the faint torchlight coming from the corridor. The windows were shut, but the ever-growing storm wind was howling just on the other side, giving the room a ghostly quality.

Ellenor hugged her arms and briskly rubbed them for warmth. From behind, Cole said, “Sorry. I should have realized there wouldn’t be a fire. Maybe you should stay in Conan’s room.”

Ellenor bit her bottom lip. She would rather sleep in a Hall chair than in Conan’s room. The idea seemed intimate and therefore inappropriate. The thought of being in Cole’s bed, however, was not only appealing, it gave her a sense of hope she desperately needed. “I think I see some wood. If you don’t mind, would you light it before you leave?”

Cole stepped around her and knelt down by the hearth. He threw several new logs in, followed by some kindling. Standing back up, he grabbed a stick and went out to the corridor to light it. He came back in with the wooden tip on fire. He lit a candle on the small table next to the bed before igniting the logs and the once gloomy room was transformed with soft light.

Ellenor expected Cole’s bedchamber to be sparse, but instead it was filled with a medley of odds and ends that obviously had meaning to Cole. Across the hearth was a thick beam of wood serving as a mantle. On it was a beaten wooden sword used in training when boys first learned how to wield a weapon. In addition, there were several cups, an old leather belt, and a faded plaid hanging from a nail. A large thick rug lay in front of the fireplace and to its side was an oversized padded chair well worn from years of use. To the right of the fireplace was a muted tapestry of two dark-haired boys playing near a loch. Ellenor wondered if one of the boys was supposed to be Cole.

Two chests, one small and one significantly larger, were on either side of the door. The larger one had an etched crest of an eagle clutching a tree branch. Across the room, there was a small table with a couple of arch chairs and a long settee under the window with three pillows lying haphazardly on one end. Next to it was the bed, which was like everything else, large and sturdy. The rushes that covered the floor were fresh, proving Laurel had the staff come through periodically to keep things clean and ready for use.

Cole shifted his weight and Ellenor realized he had been waiting for her reaction as she took in his room. He was exposing a piece of himself she suspected few saw. Suddenly, his offer to have her sleep here meant more to her than if he had given her the grandest room in all of Scotland.

Ellenor turned to face the fire, unable to look at him. “I can’t believe how scared I am.”

“Scared?” Cole asked, perplexed by her admission.

“Mm-hmm. Scared. I’m standing here in this warm inviting room, and I’m scared. I haven’t slept in a place where I have felt safe in so long…Even my home, before I was forced to leave, didn’t make me feel secure. Faces, reminders were everywhere…”

Cole swallowed and moved closer. “You don’t have anything to worry about here, Elle. I made you a promise to never let harm fall on you again. Know that just by being here, on these lands, you are safe, even if I am not by your side.”

Ellenor nodded her head and rubbed her arms again to keep from crying. “Thank you for letting me stay here, Cole. I don’t think I would have been comfortable anywhere else. Somehow, knowing this was your room makes me feel safe. Like you are still sleeping just a few feet away.”

A calloused finger slipped under her chin. “Then why are you crying?”

“I don’t know,” she replied, brushing away a tear. “I’m just overwhelmed, I guess, but I am glad you made me come.”

Cole cocked a brow and took a step back. “
Made
you come? Elle, I don’t know exactly when you figured out Laurel was the one who had me come for you, but the moment that happened, I doubt there is a force in all of Scotland that could have
stopped
you from coming.”

Ellenor tilted her head back and sighed in acknowledgment. “You are probably correct, and though seeing Laurel again was wonderful, I am still worried. She expects so much and I am an outsider, and English, and…”

Cole framed her face between his hands and looked at her, his eyes piercing and alive with desire and pride. “You’ve been in my home for less than a day and already are conquering the hardest of souls. Even Conan, who hates all women.”

Ellenor smiled. “Conan doesn’t hate women. He just gets frustrated with those who are less knowledgeable.”

“That’s about everyone.”

“True…”

“Everyone but you.”

The intimacy of Cole’s touch was proving too much. If she didn’t break free, she was going to throw her arms around him and make a fool of herself. “I like Conan. I do, but he makes me nervous.”

“And does Hamish?” Cole asked, releasing his hold before moving to the mantel. He unhooked the faded plaid and draped it around her shoulders.

Ellenor tightened the material around her and huddled inside it, pretending it was Cole wrapping his arms around her and holding her tight as he did in the Hall. “Hamish? No. Yes. Maybe…I don’t know. He was so large and comical; it was hard to know if he was serious or trying to get a reaction. But he sure got one out of you.”

“The man was out of line,” Cole replied crisply and fell into the single hearth chair.

Ellenor, also wanting to sit down, decided to curl up on the rug in front of the fire. She crossed her arms over her knees and laid her head on her elbow, watching Cole mentally stew over the night’s events. His expression had changed and she knew his mind had moved from Hamish’s flirtatious actions to his brief but disappointing message. And despite the concern etched on Cole’s face, Ellenor couldn’t help feeling content. This was what she had always wanted. A home and a good man with whom she could be completely herself. “They will choose you, Cole. They will.”

Cole’s eyes snapped to hers. Surprise that she had read his thoughts and understood what bothered him swirled in the cobalt depths. “They might not. In the end, it doesn’t really matter.”

“You don’t care?”

“No.”

Ellenor tossed off the blanket. She stood up, pointed a finger at his chest, and said, “Elmer Ludlow of the clan McTiernay, I don’t believe you. I think you do care—a lot. Those people need you and you know it. Without you, they won’t survive. Stop pretending to be indifferent and admit what’s really bothering you. That if you are chosen, it was because of circumstances and not for wanting
you
.”

Cole stared at her. He should have been angry or, at the very least, annoyed at being chastised by an Englishwoman, but he could think of nothing but her. Thoughts of his future, her past, and all the reasons he should stand up and leave vanished. Only memories were left, tantalizing ones of how good it had felt to hold her, all soft and vulnerable pressed up against him. Of her silky hair and her naked breasts, perfect and round filling his hands. Of how her lips moved against his, untutored, full of genuine passion, eagerly responding to him as if she had been made just for him, only him. And he was mere inches away from knowing such exquisite pleasure again.

His body quickened at the thought and he silently cursed his own weakness as he caved in to his need and tugged her onto his lap. “I told you to stop calling me Elmer.”

“I fully intend to,” she whispered. His nearness pulled at her senses, flooding her with strange feelings she had only discovered that morning. Her heart was racing so fast she could barely speak.

“When?”

His blue eyes had become disturbingly dark, blazing with hot, intense, sexual magnetism. Primal energy danced dangerously in front of her, and she could not look away. She wanted to, but her body was responding to his gaze in ways for which she was unprepared. Everything about him…his strength, his pride, his principles, even his blatant desire for her…all of it captivated her and she could not break from its spell. “Someday…” Ellenor managed to mumble, and before she could say anything more, he brought her mouth down to his with an intimate aggression that seared her senses.

From the moment he entered the tower, Cole had known he wasn’t leaving without kissing her one last time. But he had thought it would be a safe kiss. He would try to leave and she would meet him halfway out the door, standing sweet and innocent and full of untutored passion. It was something he was supposed to be able to have, enjoy, and control.

This embrace, however, was far different.

Ellenor’s scent had taken over his every breath and Cole thought he was going to drown in the rose and lavender fragrance. His mouth was voracious, his tongue stroking, probing the warmth of her lips, seeking the very thing that made her full of life. It should have frightened her, made her recoil from his touch, but instead, her fingers clenched around his shoulders, and pulled him even closer.

He groaned in response, drinking hungrily from her lips as if the years of loneliness that lay in front of him could be ended with this one last taste of her spirit. How could such a woman want him? But she did—of that he had no doubt.