The Capture of Highland Desire (The Mac Coinnach Brothers) (8 page)

             
She had learned that he was the youngest of three brothers, the oldest of whom was Bren Mac Coinnach, clan chief and Laird of Creagmor.  The whole Mac Coinnach family had some sort of mystique surrounding them, and there was even a rumor that they practiced magic, like her own extended family.  Maybe they did, maybe they didn’t, but it didn’t change the fact that Eian Mac Coinnach had reportedly slept with more women than even he could count.  A different one every night, the maids had said.  Sometimes even several at once, or so said the rumors, they had tittered in hushed tones.  Well, his libido certainly wasn’t in question, and his dark good looks alone could seduce almost any woman
she
had ever met. If Eian Mac Coinnach had been born in the 21st century, Allia mused as she made her way down the stairs, he would ride a motorcycle, for certain, and wear faded jeans and a leather jacket.  Quite likely, he'd be a rock star or a sexy Hollywood actor.  He would be the life of every party and live hard and fast, surrounded by throngs of wanna-bes attracted by his remarkable charisma and magnetic aura of devil-may-care danger.  That was just the kind of man he was, no matter what the century.  And then he had a little bit of that whole dark and dangerous warrior thing going on to perfectly complement his hard earned bad-boy reputation.  Top it all off with that body of a Greek God, and he was lethal to any woman’s virtue.  Even she herself was not immune, not by a long shot.  And that kind of man wasn't going to be changed by anything short of a miracle.  Good thing she wasn’t just any woman; she was one that knew better. 
But
is it terribly wrong to be flattered he’s made me a target? And would that make it even more wrong to fantasize about what it would be like to have a man like that naked in my bed? 
Not as long as it stayed a fantasy, she decided, after all, she was only human.

             
Womanly fantasies aside, Allia had to admit that her enlightening conversation with the maids left her feeling… well, vaguely disappointed.  Had she actually been hoping deep down that Eian was different than that?  That he actually liked
her
?  Now she was more certain than ever that she was no more to him than another conquest.  Must be her status as the Laird’s niece.  Or maybe she was the only single woman around he hadn’t slept with yet and he wanted to mark her off his list.  At any rate, he was definitely
not
dating material, and apparently she needed to keep telling herself that. Not that women and men really dated in this time, especially not in the ruling families.  Women, and often even men, had little choice in potential marriage partners; the right alliances were much more important.  Good thing she was dead set on staying out of any and all romantic entanglements anyway.  Nothing could be allowed to stand in her way if she needed to run.

Chapter 6

             
The hall was loud and a little too warm, with what seemed like hundreds of people eating and talking or milling around.  Serving maids wove their way through the crowd, pitchers of ale or platters of food precariously balanced in their hands as they were jostled from all sides.  Some of the men reached out and squeezed the maids’ breasts or bottoms as they went by, causing Allia to roll her eyes.  It was probably difficult enough to serve so many people under these conditions without being pawed at in the process.  But women’s lib was a few years off yet. 

She
glanced up as her uncle appeared at her side and, after a stern look that told her she had better behave, regally led her to her place at the high table.  She gave him the most genuine phony smile she could muster as she sat down, reaching immediately for the cup of wine in front of her.  Taking a long swallow, she once again let her gaze scan the room, telling herself she was only taking in the crowd.  But that, of course, was a lie.  After making it only halfway across the huge hall, her eyes locked on one figure that stood out starkly from the rest.  Taller, broader, and somehow just more
there
than anyone else, he could have easily been on the cover of GQ in her time, well her
other
time, or at the very least, a seriously successful cover model for romance novels.

Eian Mac Coinnach.  He was laughing as a group of several women flirted outrageously with him
, in a scene that was growing increasingly familiar to her.  He tossed his head back and his silky brown hair fell in waves around his shoulders.  One of the women, a curvy brunette who stood with her hip leaning towards him in a blatant come-on, reached up to brush a lock from his face and tuck it behind his ear.  Allia’s fingers clenched around her cup.  She wanted to be the one to do that.  Eian smiled at the woman and said something that made them both laugh.  Well, he certainly seemed to be enjoying himself, she thought sullenly.  But then, she shouldn’t care.  And anyway, the laird had just signaled the staff and dinner would be served in a few minutes. 

As if sensing her gaze,
Eian suddenly looked directly at her and the smile slowly left his face, replaced with… was it determination?  She froze for a long moment before quickly looking away, her heart suddenly beating much faster than before. Then he was coming toward her, heading straight for the high table.  Oh god!  Watching him, Allia was vaguely aware of her uncle beside her gesturing to an empty chair across from where she sat. 

“Eian, please join us
.”

“T’would be my honor, Laird”
, Eian said, the more serious expression on his face looking slightly out of place, compared with the easy grin she had seen thus far.

Leon glanced to his right.  “My niece and ward, Allia.”

“My lady.”  He bowed his head to her, his lips curling up at the corners just a little in amusement and his eyes sparkling with what looked like mischief.

“Welcome to Lochain”, she replied politely, averting her attention
again to her cup of wine.  Eian picked up his own cup, his eyes meeting hers over the rim as he took a long sip.  There was no mistaking the heat that burned within them.  Then he held his cup up and smiled at her.

“To the lady’s most uncommon beauty”, he said, and took another drink. 
Allia glanced nervously to her uncle, and found him watching intently, his gaze flicking between the two of them. 
Oh, great!  He knows… will he say something?  Have Eian beaten for looking at her?  Lock her in her room?

But Leon
abruptly looked away and engaged his guests in talk of politics and what was happening with the clans to the east, and slowly Allia began to relax.  The wine helped too, and a maid had come around and refilled her cup at least twice already. 

Though she couldn’t follow most of the
unfamiliar conversation and didn’t know any of the various men they mentioned, she soon realized that Eian Mac Coinnach was far more than a pretty face.  He spoke with confidence and authority on every subject Leon brought up, and it was soon obvious to anyone listening that he was both very intelligent and well educated.  Which only made him more attractive in her eyes. 
Damn, why couldn’t he be some sort of all brawn and no brains jerk that she could never really fall for?  Why did he have to be gorgeous and interesting too?
  Allia sighed and turned to the roast venison that had been sliced and placed on her trencher.  She cut off a small piece with her eating knife and chewed it slowly.  It was good, but she felt too on edge to really taste it.  Instead, she drank some more wine, hoping it would calm her enough to make it through the rest of the evening.

             
It wasn’t long before Eian spoke to her again.  “My lady, have ye been at Lochain long?”

             
“No.”  She set her wine down on the table.  “Just for a few days.”

             
“And where were ye staying before, then?” 

             
He was doing that thing again, holding her captive with those eyes, making her feel as if she were the only person in the room.  “I… um… I was with other relatives. In London.”

             
She caught her uncle’s sudden frown out of the corner of her eye.  Well, what was she supposed to say?

             
She deftly turned the tables on him.  “What brings you all the way to Lochain, Eian?”

             
“My brother.  I’m just passing through Lochain on clan business to the south, but Bren likes to keep up with all of our allies.”  He nodded respectfully at Leon.  “I willna be here more than a few days.  But… I have some time tomorrow if per chance ye could show me around, my lady.”

             
A quick glance at her uncle told her that he was no longer listening to them, or she was certain he would have objected.  “I… I don’t know.  I’ll have to see if I can find the time.”  She folded her hands in front of her to keep from fidgeting with them.  “Or perhaps one of my maids can give you a tour.  They would likely know the place better anyway.”

             
Eian leaned forward a little in his chair.  “I would rather have ye, lass. Perhaps ye would consider it?”

             
“Perhaps.”

             
There was so much more Eian wanted to say, but couldn’t with the lass’s uncle listening, and he was all too soon drawn back into the conversation with the other men.

              Tonight after dinner there was dancing, which as a lady of the house, well, the
only
lady of the house, Allia was expected to participate in.  And she was determined to do exactly what was expected of her this evening.  She could not afford to lose any more of her already limited freedom, or she would never be able to slip the leash, so to speak.  At her uncle’s meaningful nod, she rose gracefully from the table as the music started and joined those already on the floor.  As she flew around the room, stepping lightly, spinning to the loud, fast music, and fortified by the wine she had consumed, it didn’t take long for her to lose herself to the exhilaration of the dance.  It was nothing like the rock and roll she had mostly grown up with, but overall, it had the same intoxicating effect.  Music had always spoken to her blood, the beat of the drums seeming to echo the beat of her heart, and it was effectively taking her away to forget about her problems for a while. 

She laughed
out loud as man after man held her in his arms, then spun her around, and she twirled with arms outstretched to reach for the next. Occasionally one of them would cup her bottom or try to cop a feel of her breast, but she ignored it, not bothered enough to care.  She was actually starting to truly enjoy herself, until one touch felt different from all the rest.  Hotter, stronger, just
more
.  Allia looked up into deep brown eyes that were all too familiar. 
Eian
.  And as luck would have it, or more likely as he had carefully planned, it was at that very moment that the music slowed to a ballad.  Without even thinking, she instinctively tried to wrench out of his grasp, but his arms were like steel bands, holding her in place, just inches from the broad expanse of his muscled chest.  In the heat of the room, the warm, musky scent of his skin reached her, and she couldn’t stop herself from breathing it in.  Everything about the man was intoxicating, dangerous.  Shaking herself, she tried once more to pull away.

             
“Och now, lass, just one dance.  That’s all I ask.”  He reached up to run one finger down her cheek and along the line of her jaw, and she felt the same pulsing pleasure in his touch.  They were in the center of the crowd, hidden from view by the throng of swaying and somewhat inebriated people who were paying no attention to them.

             
“What are you, stalking me?” she mumbled, unable to believe his persistence.  Really, he could have any woman here, so why was he so intent on having
her
?  Already her body was betraying her.  Her heart pounded in her ears and her stomach was filled with butterflies.  He pulled her a little closer, and she could feel the heat of his flesh though his thin linen shirt.  Now her breath hitched too.  Oh God, her body wanted his in the worst way, like two magnets drawn together she swayed closer.  Her hands came up to hold onto him as they danced, and she felt the slide of his rock hard muscles under his shirt.  What would it be like to run her hands over every single inch of him… it would be heaven, that’s what.  If only she was the kind of girl who could just have sex for the fun of it and walk away… but she wasn’t, at least not with
this
man.  She would fall for him.  She
knew
she would, with a cold certainty.  Then the next time she turned around, he would be in someone else’s bed and she would be left reeling from a broken heart.  And she could
not
be dealing with dangerous affairs and broken hearts right now when she wasn’t even sure if she was about to become a human sacrifice, or worse.  Oh, it was just not
fair
! 

              Eian leaned closer.  “Tell me lass”, he whispered near her ear, “why do ye run from me when I can see desire in yer eyes?”

She was flustered, and her voice betrayed her, coming out as a shaky whisper.  “There is no desire in my eyes.”