“Yes.” Elene’s blue eyes bore into Liam’s. Her answer was forthright and unwavering. It made Liam feel guiltier. He almost wished he hadn’t asked.
“I’ll take you to your uncle’s. If Katryne and Johan are there, then we don’t need to look further. If they aren’t, I will help you look. Once you’re all with your uncle, I’ll sleep in the corner. I won’t leave you alone with only your uncle.”
“I don’t know, Liam. If Gunter finds you there, it will enrage him far more than finding us with just my uncle. But I fear he would kill my uncle without a word of warning.” Elene shook her head. “We can’t stay there. We need to go home.”
“And if your mother is too drunk to care? What if Katryne and Johan hear or see something?”
Elene’s gaze hardened. “They will never see aught. I’ll make sure of that.”
“There shouldn’t be aught for them to see.” Liam knew they were going around in circles.
“I managed him before. I will do it again. And if I can’t, then that’s what fate willed.” Elene turned away, but Liam grabbed her arm and yanked back. He was careful not to hurt her, but he also wasn’t prepared to let her walk away. When he saw lust spark in her eyes, he pulled her against him.
“Is that what you want? A man like that?”
“No. And you are not that type. You would never force me.”You wouldn’t need to.
“You sound as though you would accept him.”
“I would accept ending my life before I let him touch me.”
“No.” Liam’s mouth crashed against hers. The thought of Elene’s life ending by anyone’s hand sent a surge of emotion that tangled fear and rage to the point of boiling over. Elene opened to him, accepting his questing tongue into her mouth, sucking on him. Liam maneuvered them into a stall, where he pressed Elene against the wall, his hands resting on the wall beside her shoulders. She grasped his hips and urged them toward her, spinning his sporran out of the way as he obliged.
“Touch me. Please.” Elene’s hoarse whisper held all the longing Liam felt. His right hand trailed over her throat and across her chest, his knuckles grazing her bare skin. His fingers dipped into her cleavage before he cupped her breast. Elene arched her back as she pressed her palms against the wall beside her thighs. She felt the cool air on her shoulder, then her breast as her sleeve slid down her arm. With her eyes closed, she didn’t expect the feel of Liam’s tongue rasping over her nipple, then his warm breath on the puckered flesh before he took it into his mouth. She’d never imagined a sensation the like of Liam suckling her breast. Her hand tangled in his ebony waves. When she reached between them, Liam grasped her wrist and moved her hand aside.
“I want to touch you just as much as I think you want me to touch you. Naught matters more to me right now than bringing you pleasure. Let me. Please.”
Elene stared into his emerald orbs before she nodded, stunned that he expected nothing—would ask for nothing—in return. She couldn’t imagine any man being so content to go without. Liam’s mouth returned to her breast, and she didn’t bother to contain her soft moan. Liam reacted with increased pressure as his hand massaged her other breast.
A clap of thunder startled them, then they heard the stables’ doors slam shut. Liam yanked Elene’s sleeve onto her shoulder before he spun around, shielding her from whomever approached.
“Elene?” A girl’s hushed voice floated to them. Elene hurried to right her gown before she tapped Liam’s shoulder. He looked back at her, then stepped aside. She rushed forward, running a hand over her hair.
“Kat?” Elene emerged from the stall, but sensed Liam hung back. She understood his discretion and appreciated it. When she spied her brother standing by the door, she waved him forward. “Have you been home?”
“Yes. They’re…” Katryne’s cheeks flushed. “We heard them, so we didn’t go inside.”
“I’m hungry,” Johan announced.
“We’ll go to the mead hall. It should be time for the evening meal soon. We will eat there.”
“Is the Highlander coming?” Katryne whispered. Elene froze. “We saw him come in here, then you came in. We haven’t seen him come out.”
“I don’t know if Liam would like to come with us or if Androw and Janet expect him.”
Elene’s comment reminded Liam of what Janet said earlier. It had slipped his mind, but he stepped forward. “I forgot Janet said I was to take you to their croft. I’ll walk you all there.”
Elene nodded as she ushered her siblings in front of her and out of the stables. Four sets of eyes swung to the Isbister croft, a collective breath held until they saw nothing amiss. They stayed in the buildings’ shadows as they skirted puddles until Elene led them to the back door of Androw’s home. As the village chieftain, his home was far larger than most, holding several rooms. There was a door at the rear of the building that connected to the kitchen. Janet hurried them in and pointed to seats in front of the hearth as she bustled around the kitchen, ladling bowls of steaming pottage.
“I told him you went hunting,” Androw announced as he joined them before the roaring fire.
“What am I going to do when I bring naught home?” Elene looked between Androw and Janet, but it was Liam who answered.
“It’s raining. Tell him the animals were hiding. If that won’t work, I’ll hunt now. There are several hours before it gets dark.” Liam watched Elene debate his offer, but he caught Androw’s slight nod toward the door. Before she could answer, Liam crossed the main chamber and entered the room where his belongings stood at the bed’s footboard. He gathered his bow and quiver before he headed to the back door, but Elene met him there.
“I don’t want you to get soaked. You’re barely dry now, and you’ve been in the rain for days. I’ll tell him they were all hiding.”
“It’s but a sprinkle.” Liam’s words bore no weight as another clap of thunder rattled the roof. “The Highlands aren’t much different from here. I’ve been out in far worse.”
