To Catch a Highlander (24 page)

Sometimes, the best ye can do is jus' toss yer fears to the wind and tell the truth. Even if ye have to lie to do it.

Old Woman Nora from
Loch Lomond
to her three wee granddaughters one cold evening

"I am not afraid of anything." She yanked her wrist from his grasp, placed her hands on the table, and rose. "Not even you."

She was magnificent, staring disdainfully at him even as her chest rose and fell with the desire that bound them both.

Remaining in his seat, Dougal reached for the cards and placed the deck before her. "Prove it."

Her hands were fisted on the table, and he could see her struggle—the part of her that desired him and the part of her that feared that desire. He knew that feeling; he was fighting the exact same battle this very moment.

Her lips curved into a damnably seductive smile as she picked up the deck. "Highest draw wins."

"Wins what?" he asked, his hands fisted.

Shivers traced through Sophia at the hoarseness of his voice. "Whatever the winner wants."

He raised his brows. "Sophia, are you certain about this?"

Her gaze dropped to the deed on the table before her. "I am very certain."

"Then you may go first."

"I should reshuffle the cards." She did so, her mind whirling as quickly as the cards. If she lost this hand, Dougal would take his kiss and then… leave.

The though made her throat tighten until she couldn't swallow. She had to win this hand; she simply
had
to.

She glanced at Dougal, whose gaze was on her face rather than her hands. That would help. Red had shown her more ways to win than just counting the cards. While she never would have cheated to win back the house, it wasn't so bad when the stake was a kiss… or the very intriguing "something more."

Smiling a little to herself, she shuffled the cards quickly, manipulating the cards on the top with each flick of her wrist.

"There." She set the cards back on the table, palming a card as she did so. "Who shall go first?"

He regarded her a long moment, assessing, measuring.

She tingled all over, forcing herself to say in a normal voice, "Dougal?"

"I'm sorry; my mind was wandering. Please go ahead."

She started to reach for the deck so she could position the card as she wished, when Dougal grabbed her wrist.

"No."

His voice made Sophia freeze in place. His mouth was almost white with controlled anger, his eyes blazing a deep, endless green.

Outside, the wind lifted, swirling the curtains in the windows, ruffling the cards on the table, wafting heat from the candle flames.

Suddenly, he pulled her forward, out of her chair, across the slick surface of the table.

"MacLean!" she cried, grasping at her captured wrist, but to no avail.

His lips were just inches from hers. He lifted her captured wrist and brought it to her eye level, the hidden card now visible.

Outside, the wind whipped to life.

His eyes glittered with fury. "So this is how you won the deed."

"No! Dougal, I—"

The shutters banged as the rumble of thunder echoed in response.

Sophia's gaze locked with Dougal's. There was nothing she could say. Nothing she could do. She lay half across the table, her wrist imprisoned in his large hand, her face mere inches from his.

Outside, the thunder moved closer. The wind blew harshly into the room, spinning the loose cards from the table. They spiraled up, then down, dancing on the wild wind.

"Why?" Dougal asked, his voice the crack of a whip.

Sophia's heart pounded against her throat, and she opened her mouth. "I—"

"No, don't say anything," he said bitterly. "You'll just lie to me, tell me what you think I want to hear."

He stood, oblivious to everything but his anger.

He hauled her up against him, trapping her to his chest, his body as hard as his expression. "This was what you'd planned all along, to steal from me by making me so wild with lust that I could no longer think."

She wedged her hands between them and pressed against his chest. "No, no! I did no such thing! I—I wanted the house back, but I did not cheat you out of it! I swear, I only—"

"Don't speak. You've been tempting me from the beginning, throwing yourself at me like a courtesan."

Oh, God, when he said it like that—"Dougal, please. You have to understand—"

A crack of thunder drowned out her words, lightning blinding her momentarily, the whip of a vicious wind snuffing every candle and leaving them in darkness.

"Damn you," Dougal snapped, his voice vibrating oddly though her. "You are no better than your father—a gambler and a thief."

"Dougal, I only cheated now, for the kiss."

His jaw clenched white. "You expect me to believe that?"

Looking into his face, she knew that it was futile to explain anything right now. He was too angry, and the situation looked damning, even to her.

Lightning threw Dougal's harsh face into relief, and he looked like a beautiful avenging angel, come to exact a horrible justice. She shivered at the sight as a crash of thunder cracked so close that the ground shook. With a muffled exclamation, Dougal bent his head and kissed her.

It was brutal, insistent. Despite her raw fear, Sophia opened to him. She couldn't stop it, any more than she could hold back the wildness of the storm.

She did the only thing she could do—the only thing she wanted to do. She gave in to Dougal's passion and allowed her own to flow free. Like the storm, it charged through her, and soon she was wanting more, needing more.

With a groan, Dougal lifted her to the table, her bottom sliding over the slick surface as he laid her among the tossed cards. She sank beneath him, feeling as wild as the wind, as powerful as the lightning, as much a part of the earth as the thunder that rumbled across it.

She could feel his hands as he slid her skirts up, past her knees, to her thighs and higher. His warm fingers found the tops of her stockings, and he stripped them from her, tearing them in his hurry.

Thunder crashed again, the lightning revealing Dougal's face set with determination, anger, and blatant desire; he'd never looked so handsome.

The table was hard against her back, but she didn't care. All she felt was him. She was engulfed by him, consumed by him, surrounded and completed by him. Every fiber of her cried out for his touch, and she craved him as she'd never needed another.

He pushed aside her chemise and stepped back to loosen his breeches. The momentary loss of contact made Sophia mad with desire. She writhed against the table, feeling wanton and exposed and yearning for more. Impatient, she hooked her heels about his waist and pulled him closer, seeking him.

Dougal's bared skin brushed her. Her heart thundered as loudly as the storm that crashed about them. The rain poured thirstily, the wind tormenting her as it brushed over her writhing body.

For a taut moment, he held himself at the edge, his face showing the strain of maintaining his control. She read the question in his green eyes and, in answer, grabbed his shirt with both hands, locked her legs about him, and yanked him forward.

A strike of lightning lit the room as Dougal sank into her, his gasped yell of triumph blending with the thunder. Yet as loud as the thunder crashed, Sophia's surprised cry of pain rang out clearly.

Dougal stopped, buried deep inside her, his gaze burning into hers. She saw the accusation there but would have none of it. This was what she'd wanted. She grabbed his shoulders and writhed against him, urging him deeper.

Thunder roared overhead, Dougal moving with it, his face contorted with desire and fury. Sophie opened beneath him, the pain subsiding as she lifted her hips to meet him, thrust for thrust.

Sophia clutched him to her, tears welling as she savored his fullness inside her, soothing her ache, making her yearn for more. And more. And yet more.

As he began thrusting into her, the pressure inside built. She writhed against him, seeking, always seeking, though she didn't know what.

Suddenly, a tidal wave of tingling pleasure crashed over her. She arched up, her eyes closing as she rode the crest of the feelings, gasping for breath. Her body convulsed with intense pleasure, her legs locked furiously about Dougal's waist as he gasped her name, then collapsed on her.

Outside, the thunder rumbled.

They stayed where they were, Dougal between her thighs, her legs locked about his waist, her arms about his neck.

Sophia hid her face in Dougal's neck, soaking in his warmth as reason slowly returned. Where did they go from here? Where
could
they go? He'd leave at first light, and she'd never see him again.

She'd lost in every way a woman could lose.

Dougal stirred and lifted himself on one arm. Sophia allowed him to rise, reluctantly slipping her arms from his neck.

He rested on his elbow and looked down at her, his eyes hidden by the dark. "Tell me, Sophia… was this part of the plan, too? Were you to seduce me if you were caught playing your tricks? Blind me by passion so that I wouldn't demand what is rightfully mine?" Thunder roiled overhead, the rain drumming down.

His gaze narrowed. "You told me you were not an innocent. Perhaps you didn't really want the house after all but a wealthy husband." He laughed bitterly. "If that was your intentions, my lady, I'd afraid you've failed in that as well."

"No!" Sophia's sadness welled into irritation. "There was no plan other than to lure you into playing cards. I should have told you I was a virgin, but I—"

"Enough," he snapped. A crack of lightning punctuated his words. "I don't want to hear any more lies. I don't even know why I asked."

Damn him! She'd just given him her virginity, her very being, and he couldn't be bothered to listen to her.

"Let me up!" She pushed him away and scrambled to get up, yanking her skirts down over her sticky thighs, her hands trembling as she adjusted her gown. The wind blew across her, making her shiver as she faced the chill of his disdain.

She looked about the room for her shawl and found it pooled beneath one of the chairs by the table. She tossed it over her shoulders and marched to the windows to close them, uncaring that the rain sprayed her gown and hair. Lightning flashed as she struggled with the last window, and something caught her eye—an odd light, glowing fiercely against the black night.

Frowning, she peered through the rain, her hands gripping the window. The glow grew, casting enough light finally to show itself. "Dougal! The barn is on fire!"