A Time Apart: Time Travel Historical Highlander Romance (4 page)

Jenny looked away from the hatred etched in Donald’s expression to the smirk on the face of James.

“Oh don’t worry father,” he said. “I’ll keep her well under control.”

Chapter Four

Jenny’s jaw tightened as she looked around the room she slept in the night before. It was now a couple of hours since the clan council meeting in the Great Hall of the castle. Her fears for her safety had subsided to some extent although there was an undercurrent of anxiety in her mind that she couldn’t shake off. There was no doubt she was in a dangerous situation that could lead anywhere.

She shuddered and tried to put the thoughts out of her head as she brought her attention to the bucket of water at her feet and the tattered old brush in her hand. Following the meeting, Aggie was instructed to show her around the smaller building she arrived at the previous evening and inform her of her duties. As a maid she was at the beck and call of the master of the house and in this part of the castle it was James.

She tried to listen as the elderly woman gave her a tour of the building to get her familiar with it, but her mind was elsewhere. Her memory went back to typing the report for Mr. Blair the day before. She might have thought he was a pain in the ass, but she liked working for the company and the relatively comfortable and happy life that gave her. What she was facing now was so far removed from it that she could barely believe what was going on.

When the tour was complete, she was shown the small room in the bowels of the building where some cleaning equipment was stored. She was handed a wooden bucket and brush and taken back upstairs. After filling the bucket with water, she ended up back in the room she slept in.

“Clean the floor and tidy the bed then come to see me downstairs,” Aggie told her.

Jenny just nodded her head and when the door closed to leave her alone, she sat down on the chair. The thought of running came in her mind, but the more she considered it the more it seemed like a bad idea. In the first place it would make her look guilty and she worried that she might be hunted down. Anything could happen to her then and she suspected that Donald wouldn’t hesitate to go through with the threats he threw in her direction during the meeting. Secondly, she really had no idea where to run to. She was apparently in the middle of the Scottish highlands, with no real clue of exactly where.

The idea of getting back to Rannoch Moor and throwing herself in the loch came to her, but she dismissed it straight away. Even if she could get there on foot there was no guarantee that doing it would take her back to where she came from. She could well end up drowning in the murky water. The memory of that almost happening the night before came to mind and sent a cold shiver down her spine.

The sound of the door opening startled her out of her thoughts and she jumped to her feet. It was obvious she’d made no effort to start cleaning yet. She looked across the room expecting to see Aggie, but it was the muscular physique and handsome face of James she found herself staring at.

“Working hard I see,” he commented as he glanced around.

Jenny bristled at the words and couldn’t hold down the irritation that flared in her mind. She was now basically a servant for the man she was looking at and it didn’t exactly sit well with her.

“I was just about to start,” she said.

“Well don’t let me stop you,” James replied.

Jenny was aware of his intense scrutiny as she dipped the brush in the water and slopped it on the floor. She worked it back and forward and heard the laugh.

“What,” she snapped as she looked up.

“You’re not supposed to be tickling the floor,” he mocked. “You need to put a bit of effort in if you’re going to clean it.”

Jenny let out an exasperated breath as she dipped the brush in the water again and this time leant on it with more force as she worked it across the floor. The sparse bristles on the head didn’t help in doing a good job, but she tried the best she could. She expected James to walk out again once she was started, but instead he stepped across the room and sat on the bed as he continued to watch her.

“You need to go right in the corner,” he pointed out in a booming voice.

Jenny bit her tongue and held back the curse that threatened to come out as she brushed right in the corner she was standing next to. She leaned down to bring the bucket with her as she moved around to clean the stone floor. Trickles of sweat began to run down her forehead and neck, but she did her best to ignore them as she carried on.

“Don’t you know you’re supposed to change the water when it gets dirty,” was the next critical comment.

She glared across the room, but again held back the retort that almost came out. Reaching for the bucket, she picked it up and walked through to the bathing area. When she got there she dumped the dirty water out. After refilling the bucket, she returned to the bedroom and continued with her work. The criticism of her efforts continued and her irritation grew towards anger as she endured the scathing comments that were thrown at her. When she’d cleaned the entire floor, she wiped a hand across her sweating forehead.

“You look like you’ve never done a day’s work in your life,” James told her. “Aggie is probably three times your age and she could make a better job of cleaning the floor than you just did.”

The sound of his laughter was the point at which Jenny finally couldn’t stop herself. The brush crashed on the floor as she turned to stare at James.

“Then why don’t you bloody get her to do it,” she yelled at him.

The flare of apprehension was instant as he jumped to his feet and stormed across the room towards her. She backed off until she banged against the wall and the mixture of exhilaration and fear sent a flood of adrenaline through her veins. James kept coming in her direction until he was only a foot or so away.

“Are you challenging me?” he demanded.

“Just leave me alone,” she shouted back.

Her chest heaved and there was nothing she could do but face up to him as his hand pressed on her shoulder to trap her against the stone wall.

“Get off me,” Jenny cried and tried to knock his hand away.

The kiss took her by surprise and she struggled as James moved forward. She was all too aware of his muscular torso crushing against her and despite her anger at him, couldn’t stop the flush of arousal it brought out. Their eyes met when the kiss ended and they stared at each other in a moment of silence. Jenny knew she should shove him away as he leaned forward, but the rush of heat was stronger as his lips pressed on hers again. A shudder rippled through her body as her desire came out and it was unstoppable for them both.

“I want you,” James said when their lips parted.

Jenny rocked her head back against the wall and closed her eyes. What was happening was more than crazy, but the urge to stop it faded from her mind as his palm softly caressed her cheek. Her breathing grew heavier as the longing for his touch grew in her mind.

“Promise you’ll protect me,” she said as she opened her eyes.

“Haven’t I shown you I will already,” he replied.

His hand slipped lower to brush gentle touches on the sensitive skin of her neck. It sent more shudders rippling through her body and she grabbed at his head when he leaned down to kiss on her throat. She closed her eyes again as the flush of pleasure erupted and let out a quiet moan as his lips came back to hers. His body moved forward to pin her against the wall and it wasn’t just the hardness of his taut muscles she was aware of this time. His erection pressed against her belly and the longing for it welled up in her mind.

She was letting herself get carried away by the burning passion of the situation and when James backed off and grabbed her wrist to take her over to the bed, she didn’t resist. Her squeal was loud as she was thrown down on the mattress and she stared up at the man looming over her.

“You’re mine now,” he said. “You know that don’t you.”

“Yes,” Jenny replied in a hushed voice.

When he moved forward, she sat up before he could drop on the bed. A smile spread across his face as she reached out and pressed a hand against his strong erection through the rough material of his kilt.

“Good girl,” he told her.

He reached a hand down to put fingertips under her chin and tilted her head up to make her look at him. His piecing brown eyes bore into hers and she couldn’t look away from them. Her excitement grew at the throbbing against her palm and she could make out how strong his stiff shaft was becoming for her.

“Take off your kilt,” she said.

“You do it,” he told her.

His hand stroked her hair as she reached out to the large clasp holding the green tartan in place. She got to her feet to remove the material from over his shoulder then sat down again to unwind it from his waist. It dropped to the floor to reveal hot, hard flesh and her eyes fixed on it. The long, curved shape of his cock made it stand out from his body and she glanced up as he removed the white vest he was wearing. It revealed his muscular torso in all its glory and she knew that she was with a powerful man that was used to getting what he wanted. At that precise moment in time it was her he wanted and she caught his gaze again.

His fingertips brushed across her lips and it was a signal of what he wanted. Jenny reached towards him and let out a rush of breath as her grip circled around his cock. Hot blood pumping was making it twitch and throb and she tightened her grip as the touch of his fingers continued to play on her lips. She stroked slowly up and down and could feel the sticky pre-cum smearing on her palm. It made her look down and she saw the glisten on his skin.

Jenny’s breathing became increasingly ragged as she pleasured the man standing over her. She was submitting to his will and it was bringing out a surging arousal that was coursing through her veins. It made her squirm as the heat blossomed between her thighs and her hand slid along cock at a faster pace. She glanced up at the sound of the loud groan and saw James rock his head back. When she lowered her gaze again the hunger grew within her and she leaned forward.

The touch of her lips on the slick head gave her the taste and her longing for it came out even more. She flicked out her tongue to touch the tip on her new lover’s cock and worked it down to balls. The sound of her shriek filled the room as her hair was grabbed to roughly yank her head back up. It showed his urgency for the soft warmth of her mouth and she gasped as her lips were forced against the tip of his erection.

Jenny gave him what he wanted and opened her mouth to engulf the thick head of his raging cock. He thrust his hips forward and the grip on her hair held her in place as his stiff shaft slid deeper. She struggled for breath as her mouth was filled, but when the grip eased she started to work her lips up and down. They grazed over burgeoning veins and her desire grew stronger as she gave the oral sex that James so obviously wanted. His muscles tightened as the tension grew in his body and his gasping breaths grew louder.

Jenny bobbed her head to a faster pace as she was caught up in the thrill of the sex and cock began to fuck down her throat when James thrust his hips at her again. There was no backing off as he grasped her hair tightly and she winced as the slight pain added to the pleasure. He finally moved back to throw her down on the bed again and his gaze went down to the hem of the tartan dress.

“Hitch it higher up your legs,” he told her.

Jenny complied with the order straight away. Her chest heaved as she revealed more and more of her naked thighs to his watching eyes and it turned her on. She was wearing nothing below the dress and stopped just short of exposing everything to him. He fell on her and dragged the hem up to get a first glimpse of her naked pussy. He roughly spread her legs apart and she groaned as his fingers rubbed along her already swollen lips. It made her hips buck up from the mattress and she closed her eyes as the pure bliss of the touch turned her on even more.

She could do nothing to stop the onslaught as she was turned over and cried out as a hand spanked on her naked ass. Her dress was yanked up her body and over her head to leave her naked and at the mercy of a dominant man. His cock pressed in the crease of her ass when he dropped down on her and she could feel him humping against her as he swept her hair to the side. She froze as a kiss played on her neck then moved up to nuzzle her ear.