Branded By a Warrior (9 page)

“
You recognized me, I am surprised
. We’ve only met once.” H
is deep voice rumbled in a velvet tone.

“I lost my broadsword for a year because of you
Broderick;
a lady doesn’t forget s
uch things.” C
losing her eyes
, she tried
to ignore the rush
of pain
coursing through her shoulder. Opening her eyes, she
could feel his eyes on
her;
slowly looking over at him she saw confusion and interest in his eyes.

“Forgive me if I dinnae understand lass, how did
I
do that?” Broderick
asked with humor in his voic
e as he poured her a goblet of water and handed it to her.

“At the waterfall, years ago, I promised to g
ive up my sword for a year if Duncan
walked away from you that day.
Neither of you idiots would hear reason or believe me, I offered my sword to my brother i
n exchange for him to walk away
.
”

Pushing away her statement, he asked, “
Are ye hungry lass?”

“Aye
.
”
She answered, taking a long drink of water. She was so parched; it tasted simply divine to her.

Elisabeth watched as he stood up and
took off his tartan plaid that crossed his chest and unraveled it, gently covering her
shoulders
, “I’ll
go to the kitchen and fetch ye
someth
ing to eat, I’ll return shortly.” H
e explained. Snapping his fingers, his dogs remained at her feet as he started to walk across the room towards the door.

Turning to watch him, she snuggled into his warm tartan and asked, “Are th
ese ye
r wolfhounds Broderick?”

Stopping in his tracks, he
turned around and nodded, “Aye
.
”

“Their name
s?” S
he questioned as she looked down at the l
arge shaggy hounds at her feet, smiling at the
dogs
that
had stuck so close to her
.

“Conn and Isla, they found you Elisabeth. They refuse to leave your side most days while you lay asleep; they’ve taken a liking to you lass. They have been your protection during the day while I was busy. Rhona, my old housekeeper has spent the days with you until I return in the evenings,” he explained as he watched her pet his dogs, “I’ll be right b
ack lass, I’ll go get some food
.
”

Elisabeth look
ed up and watched the handsome l
aird disappear out of the
room, closing the large wooden door behind him, leaving her alone in his room with
his dogs before the warm fire.

In her dreams she had heard his
voice;
she had felt his warm
th
and strength during her most terrifying nightmares. His words confirmed his presence beside her this past week, when he returned she had many questions for him. Her mind raced as she waited for him to return.
Sitting before the fireplace she pet the large hounds and watched he fire dance,
familiarizing
herself with the room.
Growing quite aware she probably looked like a tangled mess; she ran her good hand through her tresses and tried to make herself look presentable.
The fine linen chemise she wore concealed very little, thankful for the warm plaids, they kept her warm and covered her body.

Looking back at the fire she thought about the man who had just left, the years had been far too good to him. If she was infatuated with him years ago, seeing him now only made those feelings come back full force. Far taller than her brother, Broderick
was all muscle and strength. His dark hair added to his mysteriousness,
as did his brilliant green eyes, they were such a different shade than hers.
Over the years,
Elisabeth’s heart
skipped a beat at a few men to whom she was attracted to, but none as enticing as Broderick. It had been five years since she had last seen him; he had only
grown more devilishly handsome and infinitely stronger.

Thinking back to the stolen moments in time,
she saw the hounds perk their ears up as the door opened, turning to watch him carry a tray, kicking
the door closed behind him. Elisabeth’s belly grumbled with hunger as she smelled the fresh bread and saw the cheese and pastry on the tray. For a fierce warrior he was graceful and polite, charming and caring.
E
verything she thought he wasn’t, it appeared the years had turned him into a gentleman.

He sat the tray down before her,
“Please, eat Eli
sabeth, I know you are starving.” H
e offered as he
refilled her
cup with
cold water. Setting it down
beside the food,
he
walked over to the mantel
.

Elisabeth tore a large piece of the warm bread off as she watched him unsheathe his broadsword and place it above the mantel on the fireplace. Shoving the food into her
mouth she moaned with pleasure.
Elisabeth saw him turn
around
at the sound of her moan
.
Seeing her content, he bestowed a dazzling smile upon her that made her heart flutter.
Happily eating, she
observed him
as he sat back down. He
l
eaned
his head back
against the chair and
closed his green eyes
.
God his smile was jaw dropping.

She had no clue what had transpired in the years after he and Dun
can almost started a war, had Broderick
married? How old was he now? Did he have children?
She had so many questions, never one to skirt issues; she began to ask the slew of questions jumbling about in her head.

“Is this your room?”
S
he asked admiring hi
s weapon above the roaring fire.

“Aye.
”
H
e answered, not even bothering to open hi
s eyes. He sat relaxed beside her, his head leaned back and his hands resting on the large wooden arms of the chair.
He looked every bit the part
of l
aird, dressed in his kilt
, glorious unruly dark hair that reached his neck
,
and muscles that rippled with his every move.

Reaching down she lifted a pewter cup and drank the cool water, sighing with pleasure she quenched her ravenous thirst
and then
asked, “Where have you been sleep
ing if I have been in yer bed Broderick?” P
art of
her already knowing the answer, yet
she wanted to see what he said, she was curious to see if he lied to her.

In
her dreams
she had vision
s
of a dark haired man with vibrant green eyes. She could remember his voice through the fog; even his smell had become familiar to her. His presence had beckoned her out of the murky distance and into the light.
Now, with him sitting beside her, tucked under his personal tartan plaid, she knew it was Broderick who had been her savior these past days. The smell of his plaid was familiar to her; the smooth velvety tone of his voice was of the man who saved her from her demons.

Watching his every move, she saw him
lazily
roll
his head to look at her,
locking
eyes with
her; it made something inside her churn with desire.

“By your side every night lass, I dinnae take
my vows to protect you lightly
.
” His unapologetic response made her smirk, with any other man she would have ran him through for taking such liberties with her.
No man made decisions for her, yet she understood his mind.

“
You comforted me when the darkness came, I can remember your voice, your smell
.
”

“Nightmares have gripped you nightly Elisabeth,
I could not bear to see you tortured night after night
. I apologize if having me beside you offends your sensibilities, but
it was the only way I could get you to stop screaming
.
”

Biting her lip she close
d
her eyes as she said the last words, “I can never repay you for saving my life, I am forever in your debt Broderick
.
”

“Consider us even Elisabeth, I have always felt indebted to you for stopping the escalating tensions between your brother and I t
hat day at the waterfall. I owe
you my life
.
”

Slowly opening her eyes she looked across the small table that sat between them and saw him rake a hand through his dark hair. Sitting in his linen shirt and kilt, h
e looked tormented by the past, just as Duncan had been.
She could tell from his voice he held onto to guilt for far too long.

Reaching across the table she ten
tatively touched his forearm
, resting her hand upon his muscular arm
, “Let the past be Broderick, Duncan forgave you. Why you two never fully recovered your friendship is beside me, but he truly missed you. He sent me to
you;
you were his last hope for me
. He loved yo
u like the brother he never had, and he trusted you enough in his final moments with my life.
”

“I’ll not fail you Elisabeth
or him again
, vengeance and justice will be yours
. I will protect you with my life Elisabeth Drummond
.
”

Feeling
overwhelming emotions brewing ye
t again she changed the subject, looking down at her
beautiful
chemise and bandaged shoulder,
“
Who changed me?” S
he asked, growing embarrassed at the very th
ought of him seeing her naked. She inwardly cursed as she felt the
blu
sh crept across her
face as she watched him.

“Rhona and I
, you w
ere covered in blood and soaked
.
We had to access your wound so we could treat it properly.
”

Rolling her eyes with embarrassment, she figured why not go ahead and ask him all the other questions that were rolling around in her head, “Are ye married Broderick?”

“Nae
Elisabeth, marriage is not for me.
”

“
Me either.
How old are ye Broderick?”
N
onchalantly she swept her unruly hair over to the side of her
shoulder
she
attempted to plait her coppery locks
, pretending she was having a normal conversation with the handsome laird.

“Nine and twenty
Elisabeth.” H
e answe
red with a smirk, obviously entertained by her
straightforward
questioning.

Nodding she, looked at the fire, “I am sorry you’ve had to take care of me for so long, to share your space must not be easy
.” R
efusing to take he
r eyes off the blaze before her, s
o much had changed so quickly. Her family was gone; she was sharing a room with the most eligible man around, not to mention the most attractive. She was weak and helpless, her emotions were uncontrollable
,
and she
was completely out of her element
.

“Ye are easy to get used to lass, never apologize for being here Elisabeth. As you’ve made your vows, I have made mine
.” H
e watched her for a moment before asking, “Are ye married Elisabeth?”

“Nae
Broderick, marriage is
also
not for me
.”

“Your age?”

“Three and twenty
.” S
he replied softly, looking back at the fire.

Letting the conversation die, she tucked her feet underneath her and wrapped his tartan closer aroun
d her. His smell was comforting. S
itting before the fi
re she watched the flames dance as Broderick sat with his head resting back in the chair with his eyes closed.

***

Sleep claimed her
within the hour; the warmth of the fire and full belly had put her back to sleep easily. Still extremely weak from the blood loss,
Broderick knew
it would take her a while to build her strength back up.
He was simply delighted to see the young woman awake and coherent once again.