Dare, Lydia - Tall, Dark and Wolfish

Then suddenly she sat up. "Oh, I've got ta get back."

"Tell me you don't have somewhere else to be." He groaned.

Elspeth tapped his chest. "Wallace Ferguson has been keepin' watch over my grandfather. I told him I wouldna be gone long."

She scrambled to her feet and Ben tried to tug her skirts, but she was too quick for him. "Wait," he called.

She looked back over her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I've been gone too long."

Ben leapt from his spot and chased after her. He always seemed to be chasing her, he realized, which was never the case with most women. Of course, no other woman could make him climax by licking her wrist either. If there was a woman worth catching, it was Elspeth Campbell.

He caught up to her at the base of the hill and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her against his chest. "One more moment won't hurt, Elspeth."

She sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder. "Ben, I have ta go."

He nuzzled against her neck. "I just wanted to apologize for earlier. I shouldn't have barked at you."

Elspeth turned in his arms, her emerald eyes glistening under the crescent moon. "Ye did nothin' wrong. I should have told ye about my mark, but it's hard for me. I doona ken anythin' about my father except that he gave me that."

He brushed his lips across her cheek. "You can tell me anything, Ellie."

She wrapped her arms around his neck, and Ben tightened his hold on her. "Do ye mind waitin', then? Let me dispatch with Wallace. Then ye can come in for tea."

"Of course."

Elspeth stepped away from him and hurried along the path to her cottage. Ben watched her go, the delicate sway of her hips, quiet as a wolf. He'd been a fool not to see it earlier.

Elspeth rushed in through the door to find Wallace sitting vigil by her grandfather. He barely looked up when she entered, as he seemed lost in thought. She cleared her throat and he nearly leapt from his seat. "Oh, El, I dinna see ye there."

"No worries, Wallace. I'm sorry I was gone so long. I hate ta keep ye waitin'."

He shook his head as he started for the door. "Doona worry yerself, lass. Tomorrow it will all be over with."

She walked him toward the door. "I canna thank ye enough for everythin', Wallace."

He reached for the handle and then stopped and looked at her. "Are ye goin' ta be all right? Ye ken ye can always come and stay with us. I hate for ye ta be all alone."

Elspeth sighed. "I'm no' all alone, Wallace. I have all of ye. Thank ye again, for everythin'."

Wallace nodded, then opened the door and disappeared into the night.

Elspeth went to the stove in the middle of the room and put some water on to boil. Chamomile with a hint of blueberry ought to do nicely. Then she went to her grandfather's doorway. If she didn't know better, she'd think he was sleeping peacefully. She quietly shut the door and returned to the stove to pour the water for tea.

Just as she finished, she heard a light rap at the front door. Her heart sped up at the thought of Ben on the other side, and she rushed to answer it. Instead she found Caitrin with the Macleod plaid covering her hair. She resisted the urge to groan. All she needed was for her friend to see Ben.

"It's late, Caitrin."

Cait pulled the plaid from her head and gestured to the settee in the small room. "I ken. I willna stay long, I promise."

Elspeth opened the door wide. As Caitrin stepped over the threshold, she looked past her in the darkness. But she couldn't see Ben anywhere. She closed the door a little harder than was necessary.

Caitrin flopped down onto the settee and wiped a tear from her eye. Elspeth rushed toward her friend, awash in guilt. She should have realized the girl was upset. "What is it, Cait?"

Her friend clasped Elspeth's hands in her own. "I hate this, El. I hate all of it. Ye're my dearest friend, and I hate bein' on opposite sides."

So did Elspeth. She smiled sadly. "Then stop."

Caitrin shook her head. "I canna stop. I doona want ta lose ye. None of us do."

"Cait, I'm no' goin' anywhere. I doona ken how many times I have ta tell ye."

"But I've seen it, El. And if ye go off with him, back ta England, the

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will fall apart. We have ta have all of us."

Elspeth sighed. "I think ye're puttin' the cart before the horse. He hasna asked me ta go ta England with him. He's just lookin' ta be healed. After that, he'll go back ta where he's from." She glanced down at her mark. She was connected to him, though. Would distance matter? A year from now if he touched his mark, would she feel it?

"He will ask ye, El."

Even if he did, she couldn't go. She wouldn't fit into his world. "Cait, this is my home. It's all I ken. Ye've known me my whole life. Do ye honestly think I'd run off ta London?"

Caitrin looked over El's shoulder toward the window. "Aye. I've seen it." Then she focused her eyes on Elspeth. "Ye ken I love ye and I want the best for ye?"

"Aye."

Her friend smiled wistfully. "Good. Because I'm no' givin' up on ye. If yer mother stayed with the coven despite mama's vision, I'll fight 'til the end of time for ye."

"Cait—"

She waved her hand as she rose from her seat. "Doona even think ta stop me. Ye're the closest thing I have ta a sister."

The others would probably have been offended if they'd heard that, but Elspeth knew the words were true. From their youngest of years, the two of them had been closer than the others. Caitrin threw her arms around Elspeth's neck. Then she stepped away. "He's been outside ever since I arrived. I suppose I should leave ye."

Elspeth gaped at her friend. She was just going to leave her with Ben after all this? "What happened ta fightin' for me 'til the end of time?"

"Oh, if he tries anythin', I'll ken it. Then I'll ask Alec MacQuarrie ta toss him out on his ear." With that Caitrin walked across the room, opened the door, and strode out into the night. "I ken ye're out here, Westfield," she called. "No need to hide like a dog."

Ben stepped out of the shadows, a look of boredom pasted on his face. "Ah, Miss Macleod, what a pleasure it is to see you again."

"Just so we're clear, Westfield, if ye do anythin' ta hurt Elspeth, I'll see ye boiled in a cauldron of oil."

"With your scintillating personality, Miss Macleod, it is easy to see how you've charmed so many admirers," he responded drolly.

She tipped her nose high in the air with a wicked smile. "Just remember what I said."

Ben didn't even watch the haughty chit disappear into the darkness, as his eyes were focused on Elspeth. Her hair hung wildly about her shoulders, and the fire from the hearth inside gave her a radiant glow. She stepped toward him, a pretty blush staining her cheeks.

"I'm sorry about that."

Ben smiled in return. "Not to worry, love. Miss Macleod doesn't bother me." Then he ushered her back inside the cottage.

She gestured for him to sit on the worn settee, then vanished into the kitchen area. "Good, the tea is still warm," she called.

Ben looked around the small room. Again it struck him that she deserved more. Before he could expound on that thought, Elspeth turned the corner with two mugs of tea, offering him the unchipped one. "Chamomile and blueberry," she said.

"Blueberry?" Ben echoed. It smelled delicious.

"Aye, blueberries encompass the aura of the moon. Ye should eat some the night it's full."

Ben chuckled. "You think blueberries can heal me?"

Elspeth took a sip of hers. "I doona think it can hurt."

She did have a point. He took a swallow and closed his eyes, savoring the flavor in his mouth. He'd never had more delicious tea. "So," he finally said, "are you going to tell me why Miss Macleod despises me?"