Claiming the Highlander (3 page)

Sin nodded. “You, Kieran, Braden and Ewan are all I ever missed from this godforsaken place. No offense, but I much prefer English luxury to this rough existence.”

“Spoken like a true Sassenach,” Ewan said, his lip curled in repugnance.

Sin’s eyes narrowed at the insult.

“Enough,” Lochlan intervened before Sin could respond. Sin had never been the type one taunted with impunity, and the last thing he wanted was any more blood spilled between his brothers.

Regardless of the past, and all the words spoken in anger, Sin was always welcome in his home.

“There will be no insults here,” Lochlan said to Ewan, his voice stern. “At least not against Sin. Braden, on the other hand, you may feel free to attack.”

“Och, now,” Braden bristled, “where’s your brotherly love?”

Lochlan smiled devilishly. “That
is
my brotherly love. Notice I have yet to taunt you.”

“Aye, but I’m sure it’s nothing more than an oversight.” Braden turned and looked expectantly about the hall.

Even before Braden spoke the words, Lochlan knew what was on his mind. This was the only time in his memory that Braden had returned home without an entire army of women running out to greet him, elbowing each other in an effort to gift his younger brother with food and other things they were only too happy to offer.

“Where are the serving maids with something for us to eat?” Braden asked.

Lochlan opened his mouth to explain, but Ewan stopped him.

“Nay, please let me be the one who tells him.” Ewan’s blue eyes twinkled in rare humor.

“Very well,” Lochlan said. “If it gives you pleasure.”

“Aye, that it surely does.” Beaming in satisfaction, Ewan turned to Braden. “You remember Anghus and Aidan’s little sister, Maggie ingen Blar?”

Braden frowned. “The little hellion with red hair, freckles and buck teeth? How could I
ever
forget her?”

The harsh words set Lochlan aback. He’d never in his life heard his brother describe a woman as anything save beautiful, and Maggie was anything other than bucktoothed.

Hellion, on the other hand, he would gladly concede.

“I don’t recall her having buck teeth,” Lochlan said.

“That’s because she never
bit
you with them,” Braden responded. “Me, on the other hand, she seemed to love to attack. Never knew why.”

“Must have been your charming personality,” Sin said dryly.

Ewan threw his hands up and stepped in front of Braden. “Do you mind? I’d like to stay on the point.” He glared meaningfully first at Lochlan, then at Sin.

“Seize the moment,” Lochlan said.

“Thank you.” Ewan placed a hand on each of Braden’s shoulders so as to savor his reaction. “Anyway, Maggie, whether she has buck teeth or not”—he glared at Lochlan in warning, before turning back to face Braden—“has led all the lasses into hiding.”

Braden’s frown deepened. “Hiding from what?”

“From us wicked, lustful men.”

Braden stared blankly at Ewan as the full, horrific impact of the words dawned on him. “Surely you jest.”

Braden looked to Lochlan for verification. “He jests?”

“Nay,” Lochlan sighed. “He’s telling the truth. It seems the women have decided that I must put a stop to the feud against the MacDouglas or else they’ll serve us no more.”

“In
any
capacity,” Ewan added for effect.

Braden’s face actually paled as he stepped away from Ewan. He reached out and grabbed a handful of Sin’s cloak. “By Satan’s hairy toes, Sin, it appears I’ve died and gone to hell.”

Sin snorted. “Guess again, little brother. ‘Tis too cold here to be hell.”

Braden shook his head in disbelief, then a dark look came over him as he faced Lochlan. “All right,
laird
, what did you do to the women to get them so riled?”

“Me?” Lochlan asked, stunned by Braden’s assumption that he had done anything to the
women. “I did nothing. Why, I’ve tried everything I can think of to make them see reason. I’ve threatened and cajoled. Hell, I even tried seducing Maggie myself, but—”

Braden’s derisive snort interrupted him. “Well, there’s half your problem. I can assure you, ordering a woman to lift her skirts isn’t the way to get her into your bed.”

Lochlan felt his jaw drop in indignation. “I beg your pardon, I have more subtlety than that.”

“The devil you do. You forget, I’ve seen your clumsy attempts at seduction firsthand.”

“Clumsy? Why, I’ve had more women than you, you whelp.”

Braden cocked one arrogant, taunting brow.

“Well,” Lochlan conceded after reflecting on the matter for a second. He doubted if a Saracen sheikh with a harem could claim more women than Braden. “Maybe not more than you, but certainly more than Ewan.”

“That’s not saying much,” Braden inserted. “My left boot has had more women than Ewan.”

“Hey, now,” Ewan snarled. “You’d best be keeping your insults directed at the brother who tolerates you. I’ll not take kindly to such.”

Ignoring him, Braden draped an arm over Lochlan’s shoulders and pulled him close, as if about to impart some great secret. “Now, listen to me, my dearest brother who tolerates me. You are laird to a powerful clan. ‘Tis not your feeble attempts
that seduce women so much as your title and fair face.”

“My what?” Lochlan asked, offended by his condescending tone.

“‘Tis true,” Braden continued. “There’s not a woman among them who wouldn’t love to lay claim to a night with a laird. Is that not right, Sin?”

“Why ask me? Am I a woman to know these things?”

“Well …” Braden paused.

Whatever thought he had, he must have reconsidered, for he quickly returned to Lochlan. “As I was saying, your title and face are all you need.”

“Aye, well, neither impressed Maggie. She dispatched me in record time. At this point, she’s left me with no alternative that I can see. If they aren’t out by midday tomorrow, I’m leading a raiding party against the kirk and dragging them out by force.”

Braden released him. “You don’t want to be doing that. They’re women, Lochlan.
Our
women.”

“You think I don’t know that? Our mother is in there with them. But what choice do I have?”

A speculative look came over Braden’s face. Lochlan could almost see the workings of his mind. Good, Braden was always a mastermind when it came to dealing with women.

“I can think of another choice,” Braden said. “What say you, I talk sense into the wench and
get the women back where they belong—in the kitchens and in our beds?”

Lochlan considered it. If Braden could end this peacefully, then it was certainly worth a try. He didn’t like the thought of hurting one of their women any more than Braden did.

Perhaps his brother
could
succeed where he had failed. Braden had always been good at settling hot-blooded issues peacefully.

There had only been one time when he had failed. Lochlan winced at the memory.

There had been enough tragedy in their family. The last thing he wanted was to add anything more. He would give Braden a chance to talk the women out.

But only one. He couldn’t afford any more than that.

“Very well. But know this: At the rate Maggie’s going, my men will either storm the kirk on their own, or they’ll toss me out on my arse and elect a new laird.”

“Women,” Sin muttered. “I can’t believe they’d construct this rebellion against you while you have a feud to contend with. The last thing you need are your men distracted by women’s foolery while they have lands to protect.”

“Aye,” Braden agreed. “I’m surprised the MacDouglas isn’t taking advantage of this mutiny.”

Lochlan glanced out the window in the direction of the kirk. In spite of his anger, he did take a moment to savor the amusement he felt over the
bit of news he’d received. “I’m sure he would have, had his own women not done the same thing to his clan.”

“What?” Braden asked.

“It’s true,” Lochlan continued. “His own wife has joined them. I received word of it just three days ago. The Lady MacDouglas has made a laughingstock of her husband.”

“Is he willing to talk peace, then?” Sin asked.

“Nay. Even if we could agree to terms, neither of us dares it. If we concede to the women over this, then they’ll think they have power over us and anytime there’s a matter they don’t like, they might very well hie themselves into hiding again. I shudder to think of the consequences. Can you imagine?”

“Aye,” Braden said with a wicked smile. “It could be amusing.”

Lochlan glared at him.

“Well, it could,” Braden said, dismissing Lochlan’s ire.

He swept a confident look over the three of them. “For years the lot of you have mocked me over the fact that no woman can resist me. Well, now, my brothers, you shall be grateful to me for my gift.”

Braden’s look had never been more cocksure. “Come and bear witness to how quickly I end this matter. I’ll wager it’ll be less than a quarter hour before I have Maggie feeding from my hand.”

“I’ll take the wager,” Ewan said. “Especially after
the way I saw Maggie send Lochlan packing. It’ll do you good to fail.”

“Me, fail?” Braden asked in disbelief. “Hah! There’s no woman alive immune to me.”

“For once, I hope you’re right,” Lochlan said. “I can’t afford for you to lose this wager.”

“Then come and see my most tender triumph.”

Ewan clapped Lochlan on the back. “I don’t know about you, but this is one confrontation I canna wait to see.”

  Chapter 3

B
raden MacAllister could very well mark the end of all her grand plans.

Maggie ingen Blar froze at the window of the kirk as she saw the small group of men headed her way. If ever the four riders of the Apocalypse appeared in the flesh, it would be in the form of the four men gasconading down the road toward the small kirk where she and the other women had taken refuge.

It would be any other woman’s dream to have four such sinfully handsome men headed toward her, knowing she was the one they sought with such determination.

For Maggie, it was a waking nightmare.

The handsome Lochlan she’d expected to see again. Standing six-foot-four, he was one of the tallest men of the clan. His fair hair looked as if it
had literally been spun from gold. And when it came to his features, she doubted if the angels in heaven could compete with the gentle sculpted face or dimpled smile that had made many a maid sigh.

But there was no smile in place today. Only a grim, lethal stare.

Lochlan’s younger brother Ewan stood two inches taller and possessed broad shoulders and a deadly swagger that made the men of the clan scurry at his approach. His darkly handsome face had rendered many a woman mute. But it was his dangerous countenance that kept any woman from pursuing him.

Most women were as afraid of him as were the men.

The third man stood between their heights and was dressed as an Englishman, and she knew him not at all. Still, he possessed that same lethal aura of all the MacAllister brothers, and his confident stride held a captivating, seductive quality to it. He reminded her of a dangerous dark beast pursuing his prey.

And the fourth …

He was the one her eyes feasted on, for she knew Braden MacAllister well. A friend to her older brothers, he had come often to her home while she was growing up.

Like some lovesick mooncalf, Maggie had adored him always.

Would there ever come a time in her life when
the very sight of him wouldn’t quicken her breath? Make her heart beat out of control?

All of the MacAllister brothers were handsome, but there was something special about Braden. Something about him that was truly irresistible.

His wavy black hair fell just past his muscular shoulders and Maggie could easily recall the scent of elderberries that clung to the silken strands. Not that she knew for certain his hair felt like silk. ‘Twas merely the sheen of it that suggested it would be wondrous to brush her hand through the long, dark locks.

He had a high forehead with finely arched black brows that lifted up when he laughed. And he laughed often. It was a deep, throaty sound that filled the air with music and warmth.

And his lips …

Full and well shaped, they were the kind of lips a woman went to bed at night dreaming of kissing. Or better yet, the kind of lips that could kiss a woman senseless.

Or so she had been told.

Unfortunately, Maggie had never known the pleasure of those lips herself. Braden had always viewed her as a pesky child, even though only three and a half years separated them in age.

Ever since she’d turned twelve, she had tried to get him to notice her, even to the point of biting him once when he failed to look her way. Yet she seemed to be the only woman alive he truly had no interest in.

Her brother Anghus had told her it was Braden’s loyalty to her brothers that kept him from looking twice at her, but inside she suspected it was more than that. Maggie wasn’t a fool.

She had never been the type of woman men pursued for anything other than a hot meal or advice on how to attract some
other
female.

As her twin brother Ian so often said, she was a good, reliable friend; the kind of woman a man could turn to for advice and never worry about her judging him.