Unwilling (Highland Historical #2)

had
developed a dangerous twitch at his temple.
    “Where are you taking me?” she
demanded.
    Instead of answering, he reached
around her and took up the reins with both hands, effectively securing her
between his massive arms, and spurred the stallion into a gallop.  Precariously
situated as she was, Lindsay had no choice but to cling to him for dear life as
they cantered north and west, plunging into the forest.  She couldn’t tell how
far they rode, but the sun had completely disappeared by the time they left the
trees, and he slowed to a trot in front of a particularly craggy outcropping of
rock.  Lindsay didn’t see the cave until they were almost upon it.
    The giant dismounted before the
horse came to a complete stop, and drew his sword as he checked the cave for
what she assumed were unfriendly inhabitants.   If he thought she would be
sleeping in the dank rocks, he’d lost control of his senses.
    Seizing the opportunity, Lindsay
threw her leg over the other side of the saddle, took up the reins and kicked
the horse’s flanks with all her might. 
    The blasted beast didn’t even move. 
    “Yaw!” she shouted, and tried
again.  Her heart fell as the horse tossed his head and let out an impatient
noise. 
    “Do ye think me dim-witted, woman?” 
He sheathed his sword and cast her an infuriatingly droll look as he patted the
shire’s thick neck.  “Colm doesna obey anyone but me.”
    Of course he didn’t.  Lindsay
narrowed her eyes, replying with more bravado then she felt.  “I can’t speak to
your wits, but abducting me might just prove the most foolish mistake you ever
make.”
    He shrugged.  “Maybe so, but I had
no choice.”
    Confused, Lindsay was about to ask
him what he meant when he reached up and lifted her to the ground.  Goodness
but his strength was frightening.  As was his size.  She blinked up into his
startling eyes.  They were a lovely color, as vibrant as the highland grasses
in the summer.  Nothing at all like the fathomless abyss they’d been before
when they’d—
    Coughing, Lindsay looked toward the
opening of the cave.  Tucked behind some large boulders, it would appear to a
passerby that two large slabs of slate leaned against each other and were buttressed
by the mountain.  Unless someone ventured closer, it would be impossible to see
the depth of the resulting cavern about the convenient size of a small mire
hut.
    “I have to collect wood for a
fire.  Can I trust ye not to try and escape me, lass?”
    Oh, there was no doubt about it; he
truly was out of his mind.  “You mark me, demon—”
    “I told ye I wasna a demon,” he
said in a tone she could only have called long-suffering. 
    “I am Lindsay Ross, niece of the
Regent of Scotland, and I’m no one’s prisoner.  Even you can’t be on
guard all the time.  The moment you turn your back, the first misstep you make,
I’ll be gone.  And when I return, I’ll bring the wrath of the Ross and my
betrothed Laird MacKay upon you and every corner of your house.”  Lindsay had
seen such threats bring great Lairds and even English nobles to heel when
issued by her uncle.  She clung to the desperate hope that it would frighten
this mean creature.    
    “Aye, I figured as much.”  His
chest heaved with a beleaguered sigh as he unlatched a coil of rope from the
saddle.
      

Chapter
Six
     
    “How can you say you’re not a
demon?”  Lindsay spat as he set to lashing her wrists in front of her and
securing the bonds to the exposed roots of a tree. Timber didn’t grow tall or numerous
in the western highlands, but the roots burrowed deep into the earth.  This one
must be old and hearty on top of the stony hill in which they dwelled, because
the gnarled vines were as thick as her arm in some places.           
    “Because I’m no’,”  he answered
simply.
    “But all those men… you slaughtered
them.  And your eyes—”
     “Those men have been burning, murdering,
and raping their way across the highlands.  They didna deserve to live.”
    So it was true.  Angus MacKay was a
warlord and a marauder.  She didn’t want to marry such a villain, but she
couldn’t stay with this… man, either.  He posed too much of a threat.  Not only
in terms of her survival, but to her salvation, as well.  Her body still warmed
to his touch.  She could still feel the press of his strong thighs against her
flesh as they rode through the gloaming together.  A dark and sinful part