Mystic Mountains

would be together again once her sentence was served. That hope was now dashed.
    Still and all, there was little point in dwelling on things that could never be. The past was gone. She had her own family now; her children were her l ife. And then there was Tiger.
    After making sure Tim was settled and asleep she drew her shawl about her shoulders. For a moment she stood smiling down on where Gracie softly snored on the makeshift pallet beneath the window. How good it was to have her dear friend with her again. Gracie would help to take away the ache of sadness left by Thelma 's passing. Still not a day went by without her thinking of Thelma and all she'd done to help her settle in this strange and seemingly hostile land.
    Yes, despite all the heartache and sorrow she 'd suffered, she was sure the fates looked kindly on her that day at the wharf.
    Stepping outside she breathed the fresh night air deeply into her lungs. A gentle breeze l ifted tendrils of hair that escaped the confines of the coil at her nape and she sighed as she looked to the heavens where not a single cloud marred the majesty of the stars spread out there.
    She wandered to stand beside one of the almond trees, planted last year and already growing strongly. Everything seemed to flourish in this rich soil. She ran a hand up its trunk in silent prayer.
    "Couldn 't sleep, eh?" Tiger moved out of the shadows, his quiet question making her jump. "Too much excitement for you."
    As h e strolled towards her, a certain alertness in his manner, the moonlight shone on his mane of gold and her breath caught in her throat as she recalled the first time she'd set eyes on him all those years ago; how she'd thought him some sort of golden god. Then she'd done her best to ignore his effect on her. But now she had no thought to deny it; what was to be gained by that? He was everything to her. Always would be.
    His mouth curved in the smile that always set her heart to skipping as he stopped in front of her, hands on hips, his stance arrogant and commanding in the way that once set her teeth to gnashing.
    "Yes, I had no thought of sleeping this night," she admitted, touching a hand to her hair. "I have so many things going round in my head. What a day. How can I ever repay you for bringing Gracie and Jeremy back with you, Tiger?" She clasped her hands in front of her, making a steeple with her first fingers. "I don't think I thanked you properly, did I?"
    "You know how to do that easily enough." Stepping a pace closer until she could feel his warm breath fanning her flushed cheeks he took her hands in his.
    "I do?" She lifted her brows, her heart beginning to flutter madly as his thumbs brushed over her knuckles.
    He closed the gap, then drew her to his hard body, his hands firm on her waist. Directing her hands about his middle he ordered softly, "Take that prissy look off your face and kiss me."
    "Prissy, am I?" 
    "Aye." He pinched her chin between a finger and thumb, his eyes like molten honey as he stared long and hard at her. "You 're wearing the look that warns me to leave you be, yet your body welcomes me. I can feel your heart pounding as hard as mine. Can see you're wanting my kiss as much as I'm craving yours."
    Isabella let out a shaky sigh as he ran a knuckle over her breast; a knuckle she noti ced shook as her own limbs trembled. He muttered something low as he embraced her, tightening his hold as his mouth met hers, hot and hard, instantly bringing her every sense alive.
    She heard a soft moan as her pulses leapt, then realized it had come from her own mouth. Every part of her body was sensitive to his touch. Even her toes curled.
    Sliding her arms about his shoulders she reveled in the firm strength of him, the springiness of the hair curving at his neck, the smoothness of his freshly shaven jawline, the width of his strong shoulders. Surrendering to the delight of being close to her lover again, of feeling the hardness of him and the gentleness that combined to make him all she could ever desire, she felt as if she was floating, drifting on a sea of pleasure.
    She murmured his name in a breathless whisper as his hands travelled the length of her spine to settle on her buttocks, pushing her against the familiar hardness of his body. He left her with no shred of doubt as to what effect the kiss had on him.
    "Promise you'll never leave me again, Bella," he murmured, his voice heavy with desire as he lifted his mouth to stare down at her.
    Tiger waited