Chapter Three
Chapter Three:
Painting the Beasts
T he smell of bacon and fresh coffee wafted through the air as Katarina awoke. Her mouth watered at the promising aroma, and she sat up and spotted Lachlan sitting over a boiling pot that rested beside a massive, dinged-up frying pan that held what must have been over a dozen sizzling eggs and thick strips of peppered bacon.
“Where’s Munro?” she yawned.
Lachlan looked up at the sound of her voice and smirked, “He’s off getting more water for us. Are ye hungry?”
“Starved,” she answered, surprised by her own honesty.
While the food was most certainly an appetizing sight, it wasn’t the only thing that was whetting her appetite, however.
Lachlan’s hair was tied back in a leather bind, though several strands had fallen free and spilled over his face. With daylight pouring in through the mouth of the cave—the skin that had covered the entrance pulled aside from what she could see—she could make out even more details than the firelight from the previous night had offered. His face wore a shadow of a beard around his soft-yet-firm-looking lips. Seeing them now, she remembered how Munro’s kiss had felt, but suddenly yearned to see how his compared.
She felt her breath draw up as she realized what she was thinking. Just what are these two turning me into? She asked herself.
“How many eggs would you like?” he gave her a charming grin and her heart began to race.
“Umm… t-two should be fine,” she smiled back and looked over, seeing a beautiful yellow sundress hanging next to her. “Is that for me?”
“It was our mother’s,” Lachlan smiled. “I hope ye don’t mind, but we figured ye’d want to wear something for today.”
She blushed as she realized that she was still topless, her bra folded as best as she would have expected beside the dress. Trying to not seem klutzy, she reached for the bra; the feeling of exposure both embarrassing and liberating, but nevertheless feeling inappropriate. “I don’t wear dresses very often,” she admitted as her hand brushed against the softness of the dress. “Though it is beautiful…”
“ Aye ! Try it on,” he grinned as he continued with the eggs and bacon.
She smiled back and stood from the pelts, realizing too late that her pants were still bundled around her knees. The air grew heated as Lachlan’s gaze fell to her panties and she bit her lip, recognizing the hungry gleam in his eyes.
“Ye best dress yerself, lass,” he tore his gaze from her body and unnecessarily tended to a strip of bacon. “You’ll catch yer death of cold if ye don’t.”
Though she doubted that she’d ever have to worry about the cold after the night she’d had with the two of them, she nodded and secured her pants before shrugging into the sundress.
As Lachlan turned his back to her as he finished with the eggs, Katarina felt a moment of uncomfortable clarity. She didn’t want Lachlan to be a pleasant memory from this vacation. She wanted to get to know him better, and while she had shared the night with him and his brother, there was something about him that compelled her. Guilt and dread washed over her; did her sudden interest in Lachlan over Munro make her a bad person? Was there even any hope for anything of substance? She was a foreigner in a foreign land—a pampered artist; an entertainer!—and they were savage, cave-dwelling hunters. Who knew how many girls they’d had in this cave! And there she was dwelling on thoughts of more; what’s more, she was dwelling on thoughts of more with the one brother that seemed the most distant! As she finished dressing, she shook her head of the thoughts.
This was no time to be thinking like this! She’d found the inspiration she was there to find, and—dammit!—she needed to paint!
“So, about painting…”
She saw Lachlan’s shoulder’s tense. “ Aye ?”
She cleared her throat, “Will you two be willing to accompany back to town? All my supplies are back at the inn.” She took a deep breath, looking over as Lachlan finished plating the food.
“ Aye , once Munro returns, we’ll see to it,” he smiled, handing her one of the plates. “For now, eat up.”
“Thank you, Lachlan,” she blushed at the sound of his name on her lips and looked down to hide her reddening cheeks, “Are you… are you mad at me?”
“What would make ye think I was mad?” he raised an eyebrow, his beautiful green eyes taking her in.
“I… I’m not sure. I guess I didn’t want you to think I was easy,” she looked down. “Last night was… well, it was a new thing for me.” The index finger of her right hand found a loose curl over her ear and began to twirl it absently. Though she’d never been one to fidget with her hair, she felt the need to be more aware of her appearance, and the old resentment to her stubborn curls had reawaken along with her uneasiness of the hard-to-read therion highlander’s stoic expression.
“It was new for me too,” he answered, suddenly not making eye contact. He shoveled an entire egg with a tail of blackened bacon into his mouth and began to chew. As he swallowed, his eyes fell upon her chest, and she wondered what, exactly, he was admiring. “That dress fits you perfectly. Munro was right about it.”
“Oh? And what did Munro say?” she smiled, beginning to eat.
“Only that the dress would fit ye like a glove,” he chuckled.
Katarina paused and smiled, looking down at the intricate pattern woven throughout the dress. It was beautiful. She looked up, wondering why the two would keep their mother’s dress with them in a cave.
“Where is your mother?” she asked.
He paused for a moment, staring into the dying flames of the cooking fire to avoid eye contact with her. She noticed the sudden tension in his shoulders and she instantly regretted having asked.
“She… passed away,” he muttered, shoveling another bite into his mouth, then adding “Several years ago” around the bite. Lachlan looked down, shaking his head. “We were only lads then…”
“I’m so sorry, Lachlan,” she bit her lip. “I didn’t mean to pry…”
“It’s no’ a problem,” he smiled warmly towards her, but it seemed forced. “She was a fine woman—a fierce woman—an’ she loved us with all her heart ‘til ‘er dying breath. She didn’t die in vain.”
“‘Tis no’ a conversation to be had this early, Lachlan,” Munro stepped through the entrance, his eyes sunk to the floor with the same pain as his brother’s.
“And what would ye have me do?” Lachlan turned, “Lie to her? Tell her our mother’s lively about, prancing through the meadows?”
“ Och ! Haud yer wheest !” Munro growled out, his accent growing thicker with emotion before turning to Katarina and calming. “Sorry, Kat…”
“It’s okay, it was my fault for asking,” she shook her head. “Thank you both for being so kind to me.”
“It’s no’ a problem,” Lachlan smiled, turning to Munro. “She asked about us taking her town to paint.”
“Well, what are we waiting for?” Munro grinned, snatching a handful of bacon from Lachlan’s plate and stuffing it into his mouth, “Ask and ye shall receive.”
The trip into the village of Inverness was quiet as the brothers led her to the inn. They stood fiercely on either side of Katarina, and she could barely contain herself as the villagers gazed at her, jealousy evident in the women’s gazes and shame growing in the men’s. It was like a parade of sex, and everyone’s eyes showed want for what she had. The women all wanted to be her and the men all wanted what those two had.
It was a powerful feeling, and one that Katarina realized she could quickly get addicted to.
As they navigated the streets, Katarina noticed that Munro was much more open to the flirtatious looks made to them—basking in the attention and offering it back with winks and blown kisses—whereas Lachlan was made all the more rigid and solemn. When one of the village girls made a gesture or call to them, Munro’s eyes darted to the source while Lachlan would steer his attention away. Katarina smiled at this, enjoying the defining traits that she could see between the two. More than that, however, was the ripening intrigue she felt for Lachlan. Though his brother had no reservations against reciprocating the admiration of other women, it seemed to reinforce Lachlan’s solidarity with her; his broad, powerful frame inching ever-nearer as they walked.
Finally they reached the inn, and, with Lachlan holding the door and Munro motioning for her to take the lead, she stepped through.
The old innkeeper barely batted an eyelash at Katarina as she stepped through, flipping through a dated magazine and drinking from a dirty-looking stein, but the moment the brothers sauntered in she leapt from her stool.
“ Och ! Lass! What happened to ye?” she cried out, stepping forward to the counter, “I’ve been worried sick! Where did ye disappear—” she paused, acting as though she’d just noticed the brothers then. Her bushy eyebrows raised as she took them in, her weathered features livening. “ Och ! And what ‘ave we ‘ere? A fine pair ye found there, no?”
“Thank ye for worrying over the lass,” Munro smiled as he winked to the swooning older woman. “But as ye see, we’ve got her protected.”
“ Aye ! Verra well,” she blushed and fanned herself with her weathered palm as she stepped back. “Will ye be needing anything today, lass?”
“Could I get a pitcher of water? I’m going to be painting for most of the day,” Katarina forced a smiled, fighting the urge to pluck the old woman’s eyes out as she shifted her ogling gaze to Lachlan and wetted her dry, crusty lips.
Whoa! Where did that thought come from?
Katarina frowned at the sudden strong jealousy she felt. She’d never been one of those ninnies who fell desperately in love with a man just because they shared some heated kisses and touches. After all, she’d been through a prior relationship with a rising artist and never once felt such pangs. Moreover, where were these feelings when it came to Munro? Granted, he was handsome—gorgeous even—but she couldn’t bring herself to feel the same heated sense of ownership that she did for…
She shook her head. She didn’t own either of them! She couldn’t even convince herself that there was anything more to this than a night of heavy petting and a modelling session as a polite gesture. And yet she was already harboring jealous feelings for one over the other?
Forcing herself to take a deep breath, she watched as the old woman turned and ordered up a pitcher for her. Nodding to the brothers, she took both by the hands and she led them to her room.
“Are ye angry, lass?” Munro’s voice sounded amused.
“What? Of course not!” she frowned, “Why would you think that?”
“I could feel the tension off ye as the woman stared at us,” Munro winked. “Don’t worry though, our eyes are all on ye.”
“Why would we have any interest in that ol’ badger anyway?” Lachlan growled. “I could see how fake her act was from the very start.”
“You noticed that phony routine too, huh?” Katarina turned to him.
“Lass, the woman holds no worry for ye,” Lachlan sighed. “I doona verra much like ye staying here; makes me uneasy t’think about. Do ye have anywhere to go after this?”
“I leave to head back to the States in two days,” she admitted. “I should be able to hold out here until then.”
“Two days?” Munro pouted, following her into the room with Lachlan right behind him. “That’s so soon!”
“What did ye expect?” Lachlan frowned as Katarina closed the door, “That she’d be staying after last night?”
Katarina fought the urge to tremble at the stabbing pain she felt at Lachlan’s uncaring attitude towards her leaving. Had she been right to assume it had meant nothing to him? Did she want him to feel some sadness at the thought of her leaving? Once again she felt unsure of the feelings that were growing within her; even she couldn’t decide what she’d want if she could shape her own outcome.
There was just something about Lachlan…
“Anyway, where would ye like us?” Munro changed the subject.
Katarina looked around the room and grinned, finding a spot beside the window overlooking the village.
“There’s perfect!”
The painting was perfect!
She gazed lovingly at the portrait of the two brothers. Though the setting around her was drab and lifeless, she’d painted the scenery to set the two in a dilapidated church with a colorful stained-glass backdrop where her room’s window should have been. Several looming shadows and a snarling wolf painted between the two offered an extra touch of fantasy that the brothers seemed pleased with, and as she gave a few final highlights to the masterpiece she felt a swell of pride and admiration from her subjects as they watched the final steps of the process.
“Thank you so much for this!” she smiled at the two. “This is exactly what I needed!”
“It’s no’ a problem,” Munro winked. “Anything for ye.”
“We should be getting back,” Lachlan frowned, looking out at the dimming sky.
“Why?” Munro pouted, “Can’t we just stay for a drink or something?”
“And if the vampires find us here?” Lachlan growled, narrowing his gaze to Munro. “If ye haven’t noticed, it’s nearly nightfall! Their time, an’ we’re on their turf! An’ after the beating we gave ‘em las’ night they’ll be aching t’return the favor!”
“What are you talking about, Lachlan?” Katarina frowned. “The vampires own this land?”
“ Aye , lass. T’was a settlement made long ago,” Munro answered solemnly. “Our kin used to run all across the highlands, but vampires began to flock in on European trade-ships, eager t’see what else they could bleed in the world. The truce they made was shady, but they were quite convincing in having the townfolk agree to let them chase the wolves out’ve their hills. T’wasn’t long ‘fore they’d chased almos’ all o’ us out. Those that didn’t go easy they ripped t’pieces.”
“They took out several packs of us. Eventually it was enough to drive most of us out, but our mother was one of the unfortunate ones they made an example of,” Lachlan finished for Munro.
“Then why are you two…?” she stifled a sob, nearly driven to tears by their story.
“We tried to leave,” Munro nodded, “but we were only lads at the time. We knew the vampires stayed in the highlands except to visit the villages they’d claimed, so we kept to the forest and stayed hidden in our cave.”
“Over the years they’ve lost interest in tracking ‘wolves,’” Lachlan shrugged. “We’re pro’ly all that’s left, an’ the two o’us doona stand a chance against them.” He frowned at Munro. “It’s an unspoken truce that’s held up to now, but they will’na take kindly to us being here after sundown.”
“And you two still came to town for me?” she bit her lip, remembering Lachlan’s tension when she’d first asked about escorting her there. “You shouldn’t have done that!”
“It was our choice, lass! You have nothing to apologize for,” Lachlan stood, taking Munro by the arm. “But we must leave now.”
Munro frowned, turning to her and gave her one last wink. “It was nice to model for ye, lass.”
She frowned, frozen at the sight as the two stepped out, leaving her alone in her room. Biting her lip, she turned back to the painting, looking at the fantasy that the two had become.
Was that it then?
As the loneliness set in, Katarina let the first of the tears fall as she crawled into bed.