An Original Sin (29 page)

She was sure that wasn’t where his fingers should be, but when his hands moved lower to cup her buttocks and urge her closer, she forgot all about traditional dancing positions.

This
was the right way. And as his steps guided her across the moon-silvered lawn, she gloried in the lithe movement of his body against hers.

Lifting her head, she met his heavy-lidded stare. No laughter glittered in his eyes, only searing intensity, and a need that seemed more than physical. Wishful thinking? She didn’t know. “This moment is perfect, Leith.” She
reached up to stroke a strand of his dark hair that lay on his shoulder.

“ ’Tis what I’ll remember, lass.” Leaning over, he gently kissed her forehead. “The moon, yer eyes, and…the music.” He glanced away as he swung her in a circle that lifted her hair in the breeze, but not before she saw his sudden flush.

Her heart turned to mush. He was embarrassed, and she loved him so much she could cry. “Just my eyes? What about my dress? It’s red. I mean, I don’t wear red for just anyone, you know.”

His gaze returned to her, and he smiled. But his smile didn’t touch the sadness she saw in his eyes. “I dinna know where the Fates will fling us, lass, but, I want to stay wi’ ye.”

She started to speak, but he lightly kissed her lips, effectively silencing her.

“Every year on this night, I will dance wi’ ye in the moonlight.” As he swept her into another circle, the skirt of her dress billowed in a scarlet cloud around them. “And ye’ll wear this dress for me.”

Suddenly the night sparkled with diamond shards of hope and happiness. She laughed and buried her face in the warm hollow of his neck, felt his pulse beating strong beneath her lips. “It’s a deal, Campbell.”

He hadn’t said he loved her, but surely the fact that he wanted to stay with her meant something. She felt like a child again, with the world alive to wonderful possibilities, all of which centered around her Highland warrior.

The magic faded as the castle door swung open, allowing light to stream onto the lawn. A couple they’d met at the party walked toward them. The man grinned at Leith. “Hey, you guys left a while ago. Aren’t you ever going home?”

Fortune searched her brain for a reasonable excuse, but she might as well not have bothered.

“ ’Tis a beautiful night. Fortune and I were enjoying it together.” Leith’s easy smile made everything perfectly reasonable.

“Gotcha. How about a ride home? Michael said you don’t have wheels yet.”

“Aye. If ye dinna mind taking our cat home also.” Leith nodded his head toward where Ganymede sat beside a lion statue.

The woman spoke for the first time. “Of course he can come.” She walked over and scooped Ganymede into her arms. “Is him my widdle kitty?”

Her “widdle kitty” wore a pained expression as the woman squeezed him to her chest.

Fortune climbed into the car’s backseat beside Leith. She remained quiet while Leith carried on a companionable conversation with their new friends. Right now she didn’t want to talk. All she wanted to do was absorb the solid feel of Leith’s arm around her and his side pressed against her. And think. She had a lot to think about.

She was still thinking when they reached the house. Automatically, she scooped up Ganymede and headed for the door. She’d already swung the door open when she realized Leith wasn’t behind her. Turning, she saw he’d stopped to speak with an older woman who held a bored-looking poodle on a leash. Mrs. Hyperstein must be taking her nightly walk.

Fortune grinned, then continued into the house. Poor Leith. Mrs. Hyperstein probably wanted to warn him about the dangers of keeping saber-toothed panthers on his front lawn. Fortune counted herself lucky to have escaped the inquisition. Setting Ganymede down, she walked into the bedroom to wait for Leith.

Tonight was a magical night, and it would end magically with Leith in her arms. Tonight was made for love.
She grimaced. And love was making her think in clichés. Or maybe clichés were simply universal truths.

Hmm
. Leith had been gone quite a while. Maybe she should take pity on the man and rescue him.

When she stepped out of the house, it took only a quick glance up and down the road to realize Leith was nowhere in sight. Mrs. Hyperstein was wending her way down the street, stopping at every tree or bush to let her poodle do his thing.

Where…? She ran quickly to the backyard. No Leith. He wouldn’t just leave without telling her where he was going. Unless…The thought rocked her, and for a moment she forgot to breathe. Cosmic forces wouldn’t do this, not with her mission unfulfilled. She couldn’t believe he’d been sent back to his own time. Not like this.

With panic born of despair, she raced down the street in pursuit of Mrs. Hyperstein.

Completely out of breath, Fortune could only tap Mrs. Hyperstein on the shoulder when she reached her. The woman dropped the leash, then spun with a cry that sounded sort of like those martial-arts movies Leith liked to watch.

Fortune stared blankly at the objects Mrs. Hyperstein clutched in each hand.

“I’m armed and dangerous, scumball. If the hat pin doesn’t get you, the pepper spray will.” Mrs. Hyperstein blinked at her, then smiled. “Oh, it’s only you, dearie. A helpless old woman can’t be too careful nowadays.”

If Fortune hadn’t been so terrified, she would’ve laughed. She pitied any muggers who tried to work this street. “Mrs. Hyperstein, you were just talking to my husband. Do you know where he went?”

Mrs. Hyperstein reached down and picked up her poodle’s leash. “Of course, dearie.” She carefully put her lethal weapons away.

Fortune counted years off her life while she waited for the woman to continue.

“I gave him a message from that man, Bones. Then your husband rushed right off to meet him.” She frowned. “I suppose this Bones didn’t want to wait on your lawn because of your panther. Can’t say that I blame him.” She brightened. “Anyway, I happened to be nearby, so this Bones asked if I’d give your husband a neighborly message.”

Get to the point!
“What message?”

“Hmm. Let me get this exactly right.” She dragged her dog over to a promising-looking bush. “This Bones—who is a seedy-looking character if I ever saw one, but who am I to comment on your friends—wanted your husband to meet him down by the lake.” She frowned at the poodle, who showed no interest in the bush. “Oh, and he wanted him to come alone.”

Damn you, Leith Campbell. Damn you for thinking you could keep me safe by going off to meet him alone.
Didn’t Leith know she’d never feel safe again without him?

Not even stopping to thank Mrs. Hyperstein, she spun and raced back to the house. Picking up the phone with a trembling hand, she quickly punched in a number.

A few minutes later, still clutching the phone, she ran out to the lawn to wait. If a phone made a good enough weapon for Leith Campbell, then it was good enough for Fortune MacDonald. Vaguely, she wondered where Four-Two-N had gone. She glanced down as she felt the weight of a body against her leg, then smiled weakly. “You should’ve gone with him, Ganymede. He needs you.”

Ganymede’s amber eyes locked with hers, and she could’ve sworn worry moved in their depths. More likely she merely saw a reflection of her own distress.

Thoughts of Ganymede disappeared at the approaching rumble of powerful motors. When they finally broke into view, she started to tremble. She couldn’t do this.
But she had to, for Leith. Taking a deep breath, she stepped to the curb and waited.

Ganymede waited beside her.

Leith had miscalculated. He’d underestimated how much Bones wanted to get rid of him—permanently. He’d thought they’d simply beat each other to a bloody pulp and that would be that. Honor would’ve been served.

Staring at the gun Bones held, Leith tried to gauge the deadliness of the threat. He knew how fast a gun could kill, and he doubted Bones would hesitate to pull the trigger.

“I dinna understand why ye feel the need to threaten me wi’ death.” Leith shifted his weight, preparatory to diving for the gun. “Why canna we fight like men?”

“Shut up.” Hate shone from Bones’s eyes. “They kicked me outa my own club, and it’s all your fault.”

Leith frowned, trying to follow Bones’s logic. “They wouldna do that just because I won the fight, nor because ye had a wee tussle wi’ my cat.”

“Enemies. The club was full of dirty sneakin’ enemies. They wanted to get rid of me, but they were afraid. They knew I’d kick their asses if they made a move.” His voice was a vicious snarl. “But when you beat me, you made me lose face. And when I tried to tell them your panther messed me up, they laughed. Laughed at me!” He was almost shouting, and his gun hand shook. “Blade spread it around that all you had was an ordinary black cat. It was a panther! I know a friggin’ panther when I see one.”

Leith could hear Bones’s control slipping, and he considered how fast he could reach the knife strapped to his ankle. Not fast enough to avoid a bullet. He eyed the distance to the water. Too far. “If ye shoot me, all will know who did it. Ye’ll have to run, ne’er knowing when the police will find ye.”

“The cops won’t find me. I’m good at goin’ to ground.”
His grin was an evil twist of his lips. “Maybe I’ll kill your old lady for good measure before I go. Yeah, I like that idea.”

Bones had just made a mortal mistake. Leith felt the icy stillness flow through him, the current of death he’d felt so many times in the heat of battle. No one threatened his woman.

His woman
. The words echoed in his mind, in his heart, and they sounded right. Fortune wouldn’t appreciate their possessiveness, but he came from a world where a man protected his woman with his life, if need be.

Leith’s smile promised death; his narrowed gaze suggested it would be soon.

Bones reacted to the silent threat by waving his gun wildly. “Don’t move, Campbell.”

Leith’s plans for how best to tear Bones limb from limb were shattered by the sudden roar of distant motors.

“What the hell…?” Bones glanced nervously to each side.

Leith peered into the darkness. Those were motorcycles. Lots of them. What were they doing on this road at midnight?

Then he saw the lights. Shading his eyes against the glare, he squinted to make out who was driving the front bike.

He made out a silhouette that looked like Tank. There was something braced against the front of the bike, and someone riding behind Tank.

God’s teeth!
He didn’t believe it. Briefly closing his eyes, he prayed to whatever gods protected foolish women and demon cats. He would need all the help he could get tonight.

I am really not happy. How unhappy am I? Thank you for asking. I’m butt-kickin’, where’s-a-plague-of-locusts-when-you-need-it unhappy.

Right. They don’t have locust plagues in Houston. What would I do without you to point out these minor, unimportant details?

Why don’t humans ever do what you expect? Who woulda guessed Leith would go off to tackle Bones without his
compadre,
his fellow warrior, me?

Okay, no excuses. I messed up. Now I’m payin’ for my mistake. I’ve had comfier rides on camels during sandstorms. Humans have weird ideas of fun. Give me a big Mercedes with a leather interior, and I’ll die happy.

But this isn’t about my comfort. I gotta get to Leith before anything bad happens. I promise you, if Bones hurts Leith, I’ll tear Bones apart, use his head for a bowling ball, stomp on his liver…Then I’ll really get nasty.

So I’m gettin’ a little carried away. But no one messes with my human. And Leith
is
my human. I mean, we understand each other. He takes care of my needs, even though he knows I’m not your regular garden-variety puss. Hey, he can look past our differences and see the real me—loving, loyal. Yeah, I guess you don’t buy that crap, but I do have feelings for him. I’m not quite sure what they are, but until I figure them out, everyone had better keep their hands off my man.

Once I make sure Leith is okay, I gotta start plannin’ the final act in this play. October 31 is…hmm. Only one more week. How time flies when you’re havin’ fun. Look, I’ll level
with you. Somehow I don’t have the enthusiasm for this like I had at the beginning. But I can’t back out now. The Big Guy frowns on changes of heart.

Right. I don’t have a heart. I forgot. Anyway, I’ve got a reputation to uphold, and Halloween is the big payoff.

You know, I don’t feel too hot. Must be motion sickness.

Leith blinked to clear his vision. No, he wasn’t seeing things.

An army of leather-vested warriors rode to his rescue. Two by two, a long line of Harleys roared toward him out of the darkness.

But he had eyes only for the front bikes, the ones Tank and Blade were riding. Behind Blade sat Lily—majestic, larger than life—with a knife that glinted in the moonlight raised above her head and another knife gripped between her teeth.

And behind Tank…Behind Tank sat Fortune, every inch of her body language screaming her fear. He remembered her vow never to climb on a motorcycle and felt humbled by her courage.

She’d conquered her fear for
him
. Somewhere in the darkest corner of his heart, the last stones of the wall he’d built to protect himself from her crumbled forever.

His woman was coming for him. Then he noticed something else. The front of Tank’s bike had gained a new figurehead.

Ganymede stood on his hind legs, his front paws braced against the bike’s handlebars. His ears were pinned back, and fury gleamed in his amber eyes.

And even though Bones still held his gun, Leith felt wrapped in triumph. His friends, his
family
, were ready to do battle for him.

Then reality intruded. Leith could see panic growing in Bones’s eyes. A frightened bully was far more dangerous
than a calm, seasoned warrior. He must get the gun from Bones.

Bones swung the gun in an arc, trying to cover both Leith and the new danger. “Tell them to go away, Campbell, or your old lady gets it first.”

“I dinna think so,” Leith murmured as he dived for the gun.

Bones brought the gun over to aim at Leith, and as Leith’s fingers closed over the weapon, Bones pulled the trigger.

A sudden burning pain in his upper left arm sent Leith to his knees, but he didn’t release the gun. Forcing the muzzle aside, Leith gathered his strength to launch himself at Bones again. He knew his own power, and if he could land one solid punch with all his fury behind it, Bones would drop the gun.

Leith didn’t need to bother. Suddenly he heard a shrill, savage scream and saw a flash of red. Before he could even blink in surprise, Fortune had leaped onto Bones’s back and was pummeling him with…a phone?

Unable to cope with this new attack, Bones dropped his gun. Fortune didn’t seem to notice.

“You hurt him, you bastard!” She emphasized her observation with a whack from her phone. “You son of a bitch!”

Leith winced at the sound of the phone connecting with bone.

Abandoning all pretense of aggression, Bones tried to protect his head from Fortune’s lethal attack. Suddenly he screamed and started shaking his leg in a bizarre jig of pain.

Glancing down, Leith grinned. Ganymede had his claws firmly attached to Bones’s leg and was climbing methodically toward his goal. Leith followed Ganymede’s obvious route up Bones’s leg and realized what would happen in a matter of seconds.

As enjoyable as this was to watch, he’d better stop it now before Fortune and Ganymede reduced Bones to a battered eunuch. There was no need for further violence. Fortune would be proud of his decision.

Struggling to his feet, Leith pulled Ganymede from Bones’s leg. Damn, the wee beast had dug in like a starving tick on a fat dog.

Ganymede growled his dis pleasure at having his attack aborted. But Leith couldn’t worry about him.

Moving around behind Bones, Leith grabbed Fortune’s arm just as she was about to deliver another phone message. “Ye can stop now, lass. ’Tis over.”

She stared at him out of eyes glazed with fury and fear. “He hurt you. I’ll kill him.”

He watched as her gaze grew calmer, and when he felt it was safe, he released her.

Now free from attack, Bones turned to flee, only to find himself ringed by angry bikers. Tank climbed off his bike and walked over to Bones. “You’re alone, Bones. You don’t have anyone to stand behind you. Everyone in your club is glad to see you gone. If I were you, I’d get out of Texas fast. Oh, and if you ever come back, we’ll know.” Tank smiled—not a nice smile. “And we’ll find you wherever you try to hide.”

Like a whipped puppy, Bones nodded, then ran to his bike. They listened as the sound of his motorcycle faded into the distance.

Bones’s public humiliation could almost make Leith feel sorry for him. Almost. Until he remembered that Bones had threatened Fortune. His lips tightened as he thought of the punishment he would have liked to mete out.

Tank moved over to Leith. “Are you okay? We can take you to the hospital.”

Leith shook his head. “ ’Tis not serious. I’ve seen on
television that a doctor must report bullet wounds, and I dinna want to answer questions from the police.”

Tank nodded his understanding.

With mounting panic, Fortune watched Leith’s lips tighten. He was in pain. Even if his wound was serious, he wouldn’t admit it to Tank because he didn’t want to involve the police. She had to see his arm for herself.

“Let me help you get that shirt off, Leith. I want to see your arm.” Without waiting for permission, she unbuttoned his shirt and slid it off his shoulders.

Wincing, he let the shirt slip completely off.

She drew in her breath at all the blood. One of the bikers handed her a clean cloth, which she used to dab at the wound. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ganymede race into the bushes, but she couldn’t worry about the cat now.

When she’d finally wiped enough blood away to see the injury, she sighed with relief. The bullet had gouged a shallow groove in his upper arm, but the cut didn’t look serious.

For the first time since she’d realized what Leith planned, she allowed herself to relax, to release the terrible fear that she might lose him, not to the past, but to death. She refused to admit they were one and the same, that if they both returned to their own times, Leith would’ve been dead for almost six hundred years.

“Let’s go home so I can take care of this, Leith,” she murmured softly. Without conscious thought, she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist and laid her head against his chest, glorying in the steady beat of his heart.
Alive
. She blinked rapidly to keep the tears at bay.

“Aye. Home.” She felt his hand glide over her hair in a gentle caress.

“We’ll give you guys a ride home.” Tank’s voice shattered
the moment. “Someone will drop your cat off as soon as he gets through throwing up behind the bushes.”

Leith shook his head. “Dinna bother. I’ll get him. He deserves to go home wi’ us. He fought bravely today.”

Tank looked puzzled, but then shrugged. “Whatever you say.”

Soon they were home, and with Leith settled in bed, Fortune could breathe easily again. Sitting on the bed beside him, she still shook with the horror of how close they’d come to—

She couldn’t even form the possibility in her mind, couldn’t conceive of losing him. But the probability was that it would happen. She’d been sent for a purpose, and even if she failed in that purpose she’d be called back.

No
! She clenched the sheet tightly in her fist, the way she wanted to squeeze every last moment of joy with Leith, make it last forever. But there were no forevers, not in this lifetime.

Leaning over, she smoothed his hair away from his face, touched his cheek with her lips.

He opened his eyes and stared at her.

If she could sink into him, become part of him, then there’d be no good-byes, no tearing pain of separation. She didn’t attempt to hide her need, her fear, her love. In her eyes he could read all the emotions she didn’t dare speak.

Pushing the sheet down to his waist, he continued to hold her gaze. She’d seen so many emotions in his eyes since they’d met, but now, when it mattered most, she saw…nothing. It was as though he’d pulled a mask over his soul. Why? What did he fear she’d see?

“For a woman who swore she’d ne’er resort to violence, ye played the warrior queen well.” He pulled the mask slightly aside for a moment, exposing something hotter,
more elemental than his teasing words indicated. “And yer curses were fine, lass. I couldna have done better myself.”

“You’ll never let me forget this, will you?” She tried unsuccessfully to match his light tone.

“I’ll remember it always, Fortune.” He reached up to trace the line of her jaw with his callused finger. “I’ll remember
you
always.”

She knew at any moment she could explode with the emotions struggling to escape her. “It’s amazing. When I knew you were in danger, nothing mattered. Not values instilled in me since birth, not anyone’s opinion of me. Nothing mattered except you.”

He moved his hand behind her neck and gently massaged the tense muscles there. “Ye are the first person to come to my rescue armed only wi’…”

Love? Say it! Damn you, say it.

“…a phone.”

Even as he said the words, the mask fell away and she looked into the tortured depths of his soul. She spun like a leaf in a maelstrom—with no beginning, no end, just the endless battering by emotions he’d never admit, wouldn’t want her to see if he could control them.

But he couldn’t control them, and she gloried in his weakness. His inability to hide all his feelings from her was a small victory, but a victory nonetheless.

He gave her no time to think further as his grip tightened on her neck and he pulled her down to him. His lips touched hers with need, hunger—searching for something.

Remembering his injured arm, she held his face in her hands and kissed him deeply, letting her lips speak of her love.

The phone rang. Pulling away from him, she allowed the shimmering colors of love to fade into reality. She
heard Leith’s harsh curse as she picked up the receiver. “Hello?”

“Hi. It’s Blade. I forgot to tell you guys we’re having a Halloween party next week at the Cajun Café. Y’all get costumes and come on down.” He chuckled. “You were great tonight, kid. Fastest phone in the West. And what about that damned cat? Tank said he’d trade his Rottweiler straight up for that cat. Oh, and Lily says for you to take good care of your man. See ya.”

Fortune hung up the phone and savored the warm glow from Blade’s praise. How could she return to her time, where emotions ran cool and contained, after experiencing the hot and explosive feelings she’d gotten used to in just two weeks?

She met Leith’s questioning gaze. “That was Blade. We’re invited to a Halloween party next week. We have to come in costume. Any ideas?” She gently touched the bandage on his arm. Never would she get her fill of touching him.

“Aye.” His gaze sizzled with ideas. “But not about costumes.”

Something pulled at the corner of her consciousness, and she fought its insistent demand, but to no avail. “You’ll…you’ll be finished with Mary’s work by next week, won’t you?”

He simply nodded, and the silence said all that needed saying. Could one week be all that remained of the universe he’d forged in her heart? Would she try to take him back with her? How could she do that to the man she loved? How could she
not
bring him back, knowing that humanity’s very existence hung in the balance? And even if duty won, how would she convince him to return to the rest-over room with her? The multitude of questions swirled in her mind, her heart, making her feel slightly nauseous.

“Come back to me, Fortune.”

For a moment, his demand eerily mirrored the battle she fought in her soul; then she saw the concern in his eyes and tried to relax. “I’m…I’m fine. So what costume do you think you’ll wear?”

She saw his sigh and knew he’d humor her need to avoid the subject that writhed between them like a poisonous Tiran cloud.

“Mary’s husband collected copies of Campbell clothing. Mayhap she’ll let me borrow something. What will ye wear?”

Who cares? Just don’t leave me, Leith Campbell.
“OK, if you’re going to dress like a Scottish warrior, I’ll dress as your common ordinary woman in 2300.”

He captured her hand where it lay on the sheet and brought it to his lips. “Ne’er common, lass. Ne’er ordinary.” He softly kissed the inside of her wrist, and shivers of desire worked their magic until her entire body thrummed with want.

Forcing herself to stand, she moved a safe distance from the bed. Fine, so no distance would ever be safe enough from him.
How about six hundred years
? She shoved the thought aside.