Chapter 4 #3
Darack's touch, his hard body pressing into hers, felt so right...
so good, she forgot about the fear of darkness.
The wee room almost seemed... cozy now. Deliciously snug and intimate.
Shivers of excitement covered her. With her rational mind, she knew she shouldn't be drawn to Darack so quickly after leaving Alec, but she had no control over her body or her emotions.
Maybe it was because Darack was the only rock she could cling to in the midst of this gale storm her life had become.
'Twas as if some deep part of her took over her body and dragged her mind and emotions along a path she could not have imagined.
One she hadn't chosen. Somehow fate had chosen this situation with Darack for her.
"You're shaking," he said, pulling her closer. "Are you cold... or reliving being lost in the dark passages?"
"I'm not certain." She suspected her body shook because of him, but she couldn't tell him that. It didn't even make sense.
"You're safe here with me." He stroked a hand over her back. "I'll not let any ghosties or goblins get you. Nor any wee beasties." Now he was teasing her, blast him.
"My hero," she said drily.
He chuckled, a brief, warm breath in her ear, which only disturbed her more.
What was this strange, compelling feeling?
Arousal? It was the most thrilling, exciting sensation she'd ever felt.
Why had Alec never affected her in such a way?
Was it simply a physical response? Some animal side of herself that responded to Darack alone?
She could not judge whether it was a good thing or a bad thing, but 'twas certainly intense.
It made her heart pound harder and her breath come quicker.
"Relax," he whispered. "I feel your heart pounding. Surely you're not afraid with me here."
Mortified that he was completely aware of her erratic physical responses to him, she took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to calm herself. "Nay, I'm well."
"I've been thinking," Darack said. "Alec knows you're heading for Rornoch, aye?"
"He does."
"We'll have to go someplace else."
His words startled her, although they made perfect sense. She simply hadn't considered not going home. "Where?"
"As I mentioned, my cousin is Chief Ewan Grant of Glenmoriston.
Some of the MacGregors secretly joined his garrison in exchange for protection, and some are crofters, tilling his land.
'Tis where my mother lives and I stay there often.
You would be safe hiding at Dunmoris Castle for a short time.
The castle has thick walls and Ewan has a large garrison. "
Uncertain, she shook her head. "Your cousin might not want me or my problems there."
"He would want to help you. He's a goodhearted chief, and he trusts my decisions."
Well, she certainly did need the help until she reached her brothers. "How far would we have to travel?"
"We would take a ship to Inverness. Dunmoris is easy to get to from there by galley."
"How would I then get to Rornoch?" she asked.
"I could send a missive to your brothers and have them bring a large guard to take you to Rornoch, or I could escort you there myself, with the help of a Grant garrison. Either way, you need several men protecting you should Alec and his men show up."
She saw no other option at the moment. She couldn't hide in a cellar for the rest of her life. "Whatever you think best. I trust you, Darack, but I hate to put you to so much trouble and impose on the Grants."
"You wouldn't be imposing. Just promise me something."
"What?" She held her breath.
"That you won't willingly go back with Alec, no matter what."
"Of course, I won't. I never want to see him again. I don't know why I was so drawn to him in the first place. Mayhap his handsomeness blinded me."
Darack snorted. "In truth? You put that much stock in looks?"
Her face felt flushed with heat. "Now, I know 'twas shallow and immature of me. But I've learned my lesson."
"Next time, you'll be drawn to the ugliest man in the room." His teasing tone gave her a renewed tingle.
She smiled. "I wouldn't say that at all." Nay, indeed. Darack was just as handsome as Alec, if not more so, just in a different way—Darak's hair and eyes were dark as midnight, whereas Alec was blond with blue eyes.
Being in such close quarters with Darack, she continued to experience a powerful animal attraction to him.
Something she hadn't even realized existed.
Was this normal? Was this magnetism what she was supposed to be looking for in a husband?
She had no inkling. Most ladies looked for wealth and social station.
Those things were important, but she now knew they would not make her happy. 'Twas all so confusing.
"You're thinking so hard, I hear the wheels turning in your head," Darack murmured.
"Humph. You're mad," she said, but because he'd been right, heat rushed over her. She wished he wasn't so perceptive.
He chuckled.
The sudden scraping sound of the trunk being dragged aside, outside the door, startled her.
Saints! Had Alec found them?