Unwilling (Highland Historical #2)

of
her thrilled to his darkness and strength.  “So, you get to decide who deserves
to live and die?” she pressed, ignoring the heat climbing her cheeks.  “What
are you, some sort of avenging angel?  A vigilante executioner?”
    “Nay, just a mercenary.”
    “Well, that is even worse.  What if
any of those men were innocent of the crimes you butchered them for?  What sins
have I committed that I must be witness to such a massacre?”
    He flicked her a glance from
beneath thick, ebony lashes, and she might have seen regret soften his eyes
before he turned his attention back to securing her bonds. 
     “You don’t have to do this,” she
offered.  “I’m no danger to you.”
    “I do what I must,” he murmured,
finishing with the knots and turning to face her.  “And I canna let you go.”
    Lindsay knelt before him, all other
options exhausted and a real terror building inside of her.  Her wrists slid
down the root but held fast.  She’d never been tied up before, and considering
what this man was capable of, it left her feeling utterly vulnerable.  “ Please . 
You can let me go,” she begged.  “I’m on my knees.  I’ll do anything.”
    Her captor’s nostrils flared and,
though his features darkened, a dangerous light illuminated his eyes.  He took
a step toward her, bringing the front of his damp trews to her eye-level.  His
mouth dropped open on a steadying exhale and his tongue snaked out to wet his
lower lip.  “I’ll warn ye once, Lindsay Ross, doona drop to yer knees and make
such offers to me, unless yer fully prepared to accept my terms.”
    Lindsay trembled.  She understood
his meaning, absolutely.  Her tongue wet her lips in a nervous gesture. 
    “What do you plan to do with me?”
she asked, unsteadily.  “Ransom me to my betrothed?”
    He turned away from her and strode
toward the cave opening.  “Ye’ll have no other betrothed.  Not after I slay
him.”
    No other betrothed?  What
could that mean?  “My uncle, then?”
    He shook his head.  “Nay lass, yer
coming with me.”
    “Where?”
    “Castle Lachlan.”
    “Castle Lachlan, but— Why ?” 
A dark fear curled deep in her stomach.
    “Because yer to be my mate.”
    “Your… what?”  That couldn’t mean
what she thought it meant, could it?
    He paused, looking back at her with
angry, glittering eyes.  “My wife ,” he ground out before leaving her
alone in the twilight.
    ***
    He’d made a mistake leaving her to
her own devices, Lindsay thought as she used her bare feet as leverage against
the rock wall.  If he thought she would submit to being the wife of a demon –
or – whatever he was, he could go straight to hell!  Or, wherever
creatures such as he spawned from.   Pulling at the cords and tangles of roots
with all her might, she felt her shoulder pop as her strength gave out.  She
collapsed to the ground, disheartened, but not defeated.  If she could get free
and gain enough distance on him, all she had to do was find the river Tay and
could follow it east to Benmore. 
    Her wrists hurt like the devil
now.  The rough cords of the rope hadn’t been tight enough to be painful or
cruel, but with all her struggling and pulling, she’d rubbed the skin so raw it
bled in some places.  That gave her the idea that maybe if she produced enough
blood to make her slim wrists slippery, she could wriggle out of the knots and
be gone before her captor returned. 
    It didn’t work.  Now the stinging
and burning caused tears of frustration and pain to spill down her cheeks.  As
she shifted on the ground, something hard dug into the flesh of her thigh.  It
was a small piece of shale but had a jagged edge to it.
    Aye!   Fate finally smiled
upon her.  Lindsay quickly went to work on the rope, clumsily sawing back and
forth.  Her wrists protested as her movements caused the coarse fibers to bite
into her wounds, but she didn’t care, she could taste freedom.  To her dismay,
the rope was well crafted and took longer to fray than she’d hoped. 
    It was almost completely dark in
the cavern when she heard muffled hoof beats on the soft earth outside. Lindsay’s
hopes fell and despair threatened to choke her.  No.  It didn’t matter; she’d
hide the rock and wait for him to fall asleep, then she’d make her escape.
    She gave him her back when he
strode in, burrowing in his cloak and refusing to look at him.  But her ears
tracked his movement as he set to building a fire at the