Authors: Donna Fletcher
S
torm was one of the last to retire for the night. Burke had left the campfire hours earlier, and she had no doubt he hoped she’d do the same. She couldn’t. She was upset.
Burke’s vivid description of America painted a desirable picture and had set many minds to thinking. Why not? There was no promise of owning land in Scotland. They would struggle their entire lives and have nothing in the end. At least America provided them with a chance for a decent life, and even if they struggled, it would be for their own land.
How could she deny them that? They couldn’t go on living in treetops in the woods forever. She knew how eager Tanin and Ellie were to have a family, and yet at the same time, they both feared it. How could they raise children when Tanin constantly kept two steps ahead of the law?
America seemed the answer to many of their prayers and Storm had the feeling that a few of them would take the opportunity offered and set sail with Burke.
Was she being foolish in not considering the same?
She paced the small confines of her quarters, the questions haunting her mind.
She hadn’t expected to feel as tied to Burke as she had these last few days. They spent endless time together and made love every night. Her days had suddenly become more joyous. She smiled more, laughed more, enjoyed life more. Burke had a good sense of humor and he was a man of intelligence. Their discussions always stirred and challenged her mind.
She had actually panicked when she suddenly realized that he would leave and she would once again be on her own. She had admonished herself to keep her distance, to only enjoy his company but not let herself
feel
.
She had, however,
felt
from the very first time he had touched her, kissed her, and that was what started it all. She had experienced emotion for the first time since her husband’s death and it had felt so very good.
Suddenly her emptiness was gone and life once again seemed worthwhile.
It actually wasn’t a sudden realization. It somehow just happened without her knowing it. She hadn’t wanted to feel for the American. She hadn’t believed she could. He was not the type of man she ever imagined herself interested in.
She had never expected to be interested in a man again. This attraction was a complete surprise and confused her, but then Daniel had told her once that love never made sense.
Love
.
It wasn’t possible that she could love the American. Or did she refuse to acknowledge her feelings? Did she really think she could be intimate with the man and not feel?
She plopped down on the bed, annoyed.
Answers certainly weren’t forthcoming and she was growing tired of fighting with herself. A simple interlude had turned complicated in so many ways, and she didn’t have the slightest idea how to uncomplicate matters.
She was grateful for the distraction of the rap at her door—until she saw who it was.
“Burke,” she said on a sigh.
“Don’t sound so happy to see me.”
If only he could feel the catch in her stomach and the flutter in her heart, he’d know exactly how she felt on seeing him.
“You’re angry with me,” he said, approaching her.
She stood and moved away from the bed. “No, how can I be when you offer a future to many who thought they had none. It is kind of you.”
She sensed his next words would be that he offered her the same, but she didn’t want to hear that, not now.
“I’m tired,” she said, moving farther away from him. “I will see you in the morning. Remember we leave at dawn.”
He nodded and turned to leave, then swerved around and walked over to her.
She braced for the kiss she knew he’d deliver and steeled herself against responding. She couldn’t fall into bed with him again, she couldn’t. She lost herself completely to him when she did and she couldn’t allow herself to do that anymore.
He reached for her face, cupped it in his warm hands, and kissed her until she thought she would go insane from the want of him.
She kept her hands fisted at her sides, her back rigid and her heart cold.
He brushed his lips across hers. “Is it a challenge you want?”
She opened her mouth to answer and he plunged in, his tongue taking complete charge and sending spears of passion stabbing pinpricks of pleasure over every inch of her body.
He scooped her up in his arms and had her on the bed in no time. His hands worked magic beneath her clothes, not once attempting to remove her garments or his.
“Only if you want me, Storm,” he whispered in her ear. “I will love you only if you want me to.”
She thought to push him off her. Her hands went to his chest and rested against hard muscle. One push, one simple push, and he’d be gone.
He waited, his arms supporting his strength as he hovered over her. And there in his dark eyes where his hunger for her was always obvious, she caught a spark of intense love.
It jolted her heart and soared her passion and she
wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down on top of her.
Their passion was much too heated to waste time in removing clothes, so garments were shifted out of the way, bodies entwined, and movement fast and furious.
She feared her cries must have surely echoed out into the night, for the pleasure he brought her was so great, she could not control her moans. He must have thought the same for he captured as many as he could with kisses.
She savored the aftermath of their lovemaking and wanted nothing more than to fall asleep in his arms and not think of tomorrow or the future, just this time here and now spent with him.
As if he read her mind, he saw to undressing both of them and getting them settled beneath the blanket where they snuggled against each other, as had been their way since first they made love.
They didn’t talk. It wasn’t necessary. Their bodies had done the talking for them, and now Storm had a lot to consider, but not this moment. This moment was to enjoy.
They fell asleep wrapped around each other, and she woke in the middle of the night aroused by his intimate touches, and they made love again.
In the morning, before dawn touched the horizon, they rose and dressed and spoke not a word. Soon they would, but for now, it would wait.
Five of them, Storm, Burke, Tannin, William, and Philip, had spent two days observing the activities
and routine of the guards along Balford land. It was easily determined what route Burke could take to reach the gardens and where the most secluded spot was for him to approach Lady Alaina.
Storm advised him that Lady Alaina’s daily stroll usually lasted thirty to forty minutes, and given the time it would take Burke to reach the location, it would leave him with no more then twenty minutes to speak with her. Otherwise, he ran the risk of guards breathing down his neck.
In the early morning of the day of the meeting, Storm found Burke standing on the edge of the forest that bordered Balford land.
“You are getting closer to rescuing your brother,” she encouraged as she approached.
He held his hand out to her. “Thanks to you.”
She took it and he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight. She loved that he was so generous with his affection, for it made her feel wanted.
“I hope this goes well for you today,” she said, snuggled in the crook of his arm.
“If nothing else, I will discover more than I already know about my brother, and that is bound to help me.”
“Yes, Lady Alaina would know much about your brother, being in love with him.”
“I am eager to hear it all, for then I can reach a reasonable conclusion that will allow me to take the next step.”
“Attempting to purchase your brother’s freedom,” Storm said softly.
“You don’t think it a viable option.”
She laid a gentle hand on his chest. “Lady Alaina would be the best one to answer that.”
“I value your opinion.”
“Something tells me that you need to be cautious. The Earl of Balford is a deceitful man and that means a dangerous man.”
“I will keep your warning in mind at all times.”
“You’d better,” she said with a poke to his ribs. “I don’t want anything happening to you.”
He pulled her in front of him with his hands resting at her waist. “Why is that?”
She stared into his dark eyes and knew what he wanted to hear from her, felt it in his touch, heard it in his voice, but was she ready to tell him? Did she know for sure herself?
“Time to leave,” Tanin said from behind them.
She shivered, Burke’s dark eyes warning along with his whisper: “I will have my answer soon.”
B
urke waited at the end of a row of box hedges. According to Philip, Lady Alaina’s routine was to enter the garden, walk to the edge of the forest until she came to a row of box hedges, then stroll around them and retrace her trail.
The high hedges would afford them privacy, and the length it took to walk them would provide him with the needed twenty minutes.
He was anxious to speak with her, anxious to learn all he could about his brother, anxious to be one step closer to freeing Cullen.
He heard the rustle of footsteps and the swish of material along the ground and stilled, waiting for Lady Alaina to turn the corner of the hedges.
She did and startled to a stop.
“Forgive my intrusion,” Burke said and offered his arm to her and quickly refreshed her memory of
him. “We met at the seamstress shop in St. Andrew. Burke Longton from America.”
Her tense stance eased and she accepted his arm. “Forgive me, I did not know you visited with my father.”
“I haven’t visited with your father. It is you I wished to see.”
Her steps faltered and he was quick to reassure her.
“I mean you no harm, Lady Alaina. I seek information about my brother—Cullen.”
She stopped and glanced over his face with loving eyes. “I wondered how two men with an uncanny resemblance could not be related.”
“Let me explain,” Burke offered, and proceeded to tell her his story in detail and how Cullen had no idea that he had a brother.
Tears threatened her eyes. “Cullen would be so happy to learn of this. He always wondered about his father. He would be pleased to know how much his father loved him.”
“Tell me of my brother, please.”
“He is a wonderful man with a good sense of humor.”
Burke grinned. “Like our father.”
“He’s taller than you and broader in the shoulders and chest. He is so very gentle and loving.”
“You fell in love with him?”
She nodded.
“How is that possible?”
“Cullen is an easy man to love.”
“No, I mean how did you two meet? How was it
possible for you to even get a chance to fall in love?”
“Cullen is a master with a bow and arrow. My father hired him to school the guards in his techniques. My friends and I expressed interest in learning and my father, after objecting and then realizing we simply thought of it as entertainment, agreed.”
She turned silent, and Burke could see her eyes clouding with tears. It was obvious the memories caused her pain, and he felt compelled to offer comfort while learning what he could of his brother.
“I am sorry to upset you. I know this must hurt terribly, but it is very important for me to find out whatever I can of Cullen if I’m to free him.”
Her hand flew to her chest and she gasped. “You will free Cullen?”
“I don’t intend on leaving Scotland without my brother.”
Her eyes turned sad and her shoulders sagged. “You will take him away.”
“Along with you if you so choose,” he offered and smiled. “I have a lady of my own I wish to return with to America. We can all be family together.”
“That sounds delightful, but my father would never permit it. I am to wed a titled man of my father’s choosing, one who will financially benefit my family.”
“If my brother is anything like me, he’d never allow that to happen.”
She smiled and wiped at a single tear that spilled down her cheek. “You are right, which is what caused Cullen’s plight.”
“Tell me,” Burke urged, time running out.
“Cullen and I decided to run off together once we realized how much we loved each other. We planned to forge a life high up in the Highlands where no one would find us. As long as we were together, nothing else mattered to me. Before we could implement our plan, I took ill.” She paused and fought back tears. “My father sent me away and Cullen searched for me, though it was my father who found him and imprisoned him.”
“How long has he been imprisoned?”
“About six months. My father has moved Cullen from prison to prison in an attempt to keep me from him, but I have found ways to visit with him. Now my father has sent him someplace I dare not visit.”
“Weighton.”
Alaina nodded slowly. “My father does not realize that he not only condemns Cullen to death but his daughter as well, for I will die a little each day along with Cullen.”
“That’s not necessary,” Burke informed her emphatically. “I intend to free my brother and you will both come to America with me. Cullen is a rich man and will provide you with a good life.”
“As long as I am with Cullen nothing else matters, but I don’t see how you’ll be able to free him from Weighton. It is impregnable.”
“So I’ve heard, but what if I made your father a substantial offer for my brother’s freedom and guaranteed he’d never set foot on Scottish soil again?”
Alaina sighed. “I don’t know. He’s adamant about making Cullen suffer.”
“I could offer him a sizable amount of money.”
“I would hope that he would accept it, but knowing my father’s arrogance and pride, he might just enjoy refusing your offer and seeing that you suffer, as he feels he was made to do.”
“You are here alive and well. He suffers no loss.”
Alaina glanced to the ground and spoke in a near whisper. “I gave to your brother what belonged to my future husband.”
Burke raised her chin with his finger. “You gave my brother your love and he gave his in return. There is no shame in that. The shame is that your father refuses to allow his daughter happiness.”
Alaina smiled. “Yes, you are much like your brother.”
Burke was pleased to hear that he and Cullen shared identical traits, and it made him even more determined to free him and meet him for himself. They had many years to catch up on and the rest of their lives to finally do it.
“Since Weighton seems impregnable, my only choice is to speak with your father and make him an offer.”
“If he refuses?”
Alaina’s shudder informed Burke of her expectations of the plan, and while it concerned him, it was his only option for the moment. Which meant he had no choice; he had to give it a try.
“Could you arrange a meeting with your father tomorrow for me? Tell him I’m only in the area for the day and would like to discuss business with him.”
She nodded. “I will explain how I met you and your request for a meeting.”
“Will he ask what it is in regard to?”
“No, business is left to men and he would not expect you to have discussed it with me.”
“I must go,” Burke said, regretful he couldn’t spend more time with her and learn more about his brother. “One more thing. When did you last see Cullen, and how was he?”
“Before he was moved from Mewers—” She stopped suddenly. “I saw you at Mewers. I had learned that Cullen was to be moved and hoped to see him before then, but he was already gone when I got there. You were there in search of him that day?”
“My group freed the young lad hoping he’d provide us with information. I had wondered why you stared at me.”
She smiled. “When I first saw you I thought my eyes played tricks on me and that Cullen walked free. Then I realized it was my heart that had played tricks on me.”
Burke took her hand and squeezed gently. “Cullen will walk free, and perhaps I can be persuasive enough to convince your father that I’m a land baron, which makes Cullen one. Would he consider agreeing to his daughter marrying a land baron?”
Alaina crossed her arms over her heart. “With all my heart I pray he would, but my father is a stubborn and vindictive man, and the man he wishes me to wed is a very powerful duke.”
“It’s worth a try,” Burke said. “I will see you tomorrow at—”
“Just before noon. I will convince my father of the importance of the meeting, telling him how wealthy you are.”
“I’m glad my brother found love with you and glad I’ll have you as family.”
Alaina squeezed his hand before releasing it. “I’m so very glad you’re here to help your brother. Until tomorrow.”
She hurried off, and Burke made his way back into the forest where Storm and Tanin waited for him while William and Philip continued to keep watch.
“Lady Alaina was receptive to my questions,” Burke explained once they returned to their campsite. “She and Cullen fell in love and planned to run off together. She took ill and her father found Cullen and now makes him pay for loving his daughter while the earl intends to wed her off to a duke.”
Storm shook her head while pacing in front of Burke. “He’s looking to make powerful connections through marriage. I wouldn’t be surprised if the duke helped him to get Cullen imprisoned in Weighton.”
“I’m meeting with the earl tomorrow,” Burke said, standing firm in anticipation of Storm’s objection.
“It will be a waste of time,” Storm said and sank to the ground to sit.
“I agree,” Tanin said, resting against an old rotting stump.
Burke sat beside Storm, the blue of her eyes swirling like an impending storm and warning of her concern. “Why?”
“The earl is looking for power and the only way
of obtaining it is through the marriage of his daughter. No amount of money will match that.”
“She’s right,” Tanin said. “I fear you waste your time.”
“What other choice do I have?” Burke asked, and watched as Tanin sat straight up and stared with wide eyes at Storm.
“Don’t even tell me you’re considering it,” Tanin warned, his eyes fixed on Storm.
Burke looked over at her, and in the depths of her blue eyes he could see a plan brewing like a storm that was about to rage and consume everything in its path.
“You know as well as I do, this meeting will go badly,” Storm said and turned to Burke. “You can’t meet with the earl. We must find a way into Weighton to free Cullen. It is the only logical solution.”
“I can be persuasive,” Burke argued.
“It’s not about persuasion,” she argued. “Besides, I still lead this group and my decision is final, and I say there’ll be no meeting between you and the earl.”
“It’s my choice,” Burke said firmly.
Storm shook her head. “No, it’s not. Your foolish move could not only cost my group dearly but it could cost your brother as well.”
He’d hear her out since he respected her opinion, but he’d be damned if the final choice would be hers. “How so?”
Storm looked to Tanin and he answered.
“The earl is a vindictive man—”
“Lady Alaina said the same.”
“Then listen to her for she speaks the truth,” Tanin said. “He has been the cause of suffering and countless deaths, and even of ones he claims to love. He had Lady Alaina’s mother confined to an institution, claiming she was insane. She killed herself after there only a month. He then married again and found a way to get rid of her when he insisted she was barren. He has gone through four wives and now looks for a fifth to give him the son he so desperately wants.”
“The earl intends to use his daughter to benefit his thirst for power. Otherwise she is useless to him,” Storm said. “While you may be able to convince him that your brother holds a title of land baron, that title does him little good here in Scotland. You are wasting your time and I will not allow it.”
“It’s not your decision,” Burke snapped.
“Think again, Mr. Longton,” she warned calmly.
Burke sent Tanin a look that begged for privacy and the man walked off, though not before making sure Burke understood that he agreed with Storm.
He wasn’t surprised when Storm stood and took a firm stance, her hands on her hips, her head held high. He was glad she didn’t wear the stocking cap that portrayed her as a young lad. He loved her wavy black hair that shouted she was a woman and a beautiful one at that.
She just wasn’t any woman—she was his woman. And though the thought melted his heart, he knew he needed to shield himself for he was about to go into battle with the infamous Storm.
He came to his feet, easing his back and shoulders
until he stood tall and firm. “I’ve made my decision, Storm. You can’t change my mind.”
“It’s not about changing your mind. It’s about obeying me, which I recall you had a problem with from the beginning.”
Burke opened his mouth to speak, and Storm was quick to still him with a warning.
“Think wisely, Mr. Longton, your response will affect many lives.”
Burke remained silent, though it wasn’t because he intended to change his mind. He merely wondered how he would convince her that this was his choice, something he had to do. Suddenly he realized the perfect solution. He’d sidetrack her.
“I told Lady Alaina she could come to America with us.”
Storm glared at him, and damn if he didn’t see the tempest rising in the blue of her eyes. He wished he had a storm coat to protect him from the squall that was about to hit.
“There is no us. Worse, you gave Lady Alaina hope.”
“There certainly is an us, and what is wrong with hope?”
“Hope always disappoints. It does so right now since you are so hopeful about us.”
“Hope does not always disappoint,” Burke argued. “Whether you want to admit it or not, there is an us and there will continue to be an us all the way to America.”
“See, you hope, and your hope will soon be dashed, and then what?”
“Let me reiterate. Hope does not disappoint. It offers encouragement and urges one to pursue his dream and see it to fruition. I intend to free my brother and have him live with me in America. We will watch our children be born and grow together. We will be family.”
“Senseless dreams,” she scoffed.
He stomped over to her and grabbed hold of her arms. “A dream perhaps, but a dream I will see to fruition.”
“Believe what nonsense you will, but unless you listen to me you will never free your brother and return with him and Lady Alaina to America where you will live this idyllic life.”
“I will have it,” Burke said adamantly. “And there will be an us.”
“That’s not possible,” she assured him.
He took hold of her shoulders and yanked her up against him. “Yes, it is possible, Storm, for I am determined that you will be my wife.”