Haunted by the Highlander: A BDSM Story (4 page)

Stretching, Samantha blinked and
frowned as she took in her surroundings. Oh yes, the castle. The room was still
dark, the heavy curtains blocking out most of the light but the digital clock
on the bedside said it was 8 am. Bloody hell, she’d slept the whole night!

She sat up suddenly and stared at
the empty pillow beside her.

Finn.

Tilting her head, she trailed her
fingers over the pillow. It was cold. Where had he gone? He’d promised her
more. She hadn’t expected to fall asleep for so long, not with her insomnia,
but she thought he’d still be here in the morning.

The pillow wasn’t even indented.
Had she just dreamt him up? Shaking her head, she forced her stiff body out of
bed, ignoring the sinking in her stomach. Maybe he just wanted one night and
didn’t want to have to deal with the morning after. He hadn’t seemed the type,
but what did she really know about him? Maybe he spent every weekend seducing
lost guests.

Who was he anyway? Staff? He’d
never said and she’d been too lost in desire to ask. She paused in from of the full-length
mirror and turned around to study her arse. She frowned. After the spanking
he’d given her, she expected at least a little bit of redness. Maybe she really
had dreamt him up.

No, it wasn’t possible. She
wasn’t
that
drunk.

Pulling on her jeans, she picked
up her bra that had been flung to one side and glanced around the room. Her
discarded clothes were the only sign that anything had happened, and she knew
that she could have been the one to fling them off.

Grabbing a clean jumper from her
suitcase, she yanked it over her head, brushed her teeth at the sink in the
corner and ran a brush through her hair. She was about to leave, desperate to
see if she could track down the elusive Finn but stopped and put on a dash of
lipstick and mascara, just in case she did run into him. She didn’t want him
regretting what he’d done with her.

Throwing open her door, she
slammed it shut behind her and scurried along the hallway and down the stairs.
Her heart sank as she found the dining room empty. She was about to search the
rest of the house, hoping to catch a glimpse of Finn when Aileen came into the
room pushing a trolley with a teapot and cups on it.

“Oh, good morning. I didn’t think
any of you lasses would be up yet, so I’m a bit late setting up breakfast I’m
afraid.”

“Oh,” Samantha said for want of
anything else to say.

“Sit down and I’ll bring out your
breakfast in just a minute.”

Darting a glance around, Samantha
nodded and sat meekly. Well what else could she do? Start turning the castle
upside down to search for her mystery man?

Aileen was setting out the teacups
when the other girls came into the dining room.

“Sam!” Lucy exclaimed. “What
happened to you last night?”

“I got lost,” Samantha told her
as her cheeks flamed.

“We were worried about you but
when we got back to your room, your door was locked and we figured you’d gone
to bed.”

“Did you find any ghosts?”
Samantha asked brightly, desperate to change the subject.

Annie snorted. “Hardly, but that
didn’t stop Lucy from jumping at every noise.”

“It was pretty spooky,” Fran said
as she snatched a piece of toast from the plate that Aileen placed on the
table. “But we definitely didn’t see any ghosts.”

“I don’t know,” Lucy said with a
mock shiver. “I sure felt some weird things. Changes in temperature, cold
fingers…and I’m sure I saw some orbs.”

“Orbs!” Annie laughed. “What
nonsense.” She took a sip of her tea and eyed Samantha over the rim. “Sorry you
missed out, Sam.”

Samantha shrugged nonchalantly.
“It’s ok. I slept really well actually. I think I needed it.”

Annie’s eyes narrowed but she
didn’t say anything. Of all her friends, Annie was the cleverest. She didn’t
know how, but Annie had definitely figured out that something was up.

Eating her breakfast in silence,
she listened with a vague smile as the girls recounted their adventures. Lucy
was particularly enthusiastic in telling her about her ghostly encounters. “You
should have felt it, Sam. Like cold fingers travelling up my back. It was
definitely a ghost.”

Samantha scowled. Cold fingers?
She shuddered as she remembered the feeling that had spurred her into Finn’s
arms. A ghost? She smirked inwardly.
Don’t be daft, Sam.

When they finished their
breakfast, Aileen cleared away the crockery. “Would you like a tour of the
castle in the daylight?” she asked as she shifted everything back onto the tea
tray.

“Absolutely!” Samantha declared
enthusiastically.

Even Aileen gave her an odd look
at her enthusiasm and Samantha lowered her gaze. She just
had
to find
Finn.

“Let me clear up and then I’ll
give you the tour,” Aileen said as she wheeled the trolley out.

“Didn’t know you were that into
castles,” Annie said with a sly smile.

“I-I just thought it would be
interesting,” Samantha offered lamely.

Lucy, the only one who seemed
unaware of Samantha’s discomfort, piped up, “Well, I can’t wait to look around.
It’s so beautiful here. What I wouldn’t give to live in a place like this.”

Samantha nodded her agreement and
sighed. In spite of the spookiness, the castle was beautiful and almost homely with
its heavy drapery and dark wood furniture. Of course, the fact that she had encountered
a gorgeous Scotsman
and
slept better than she had in months here
probably added to its appeal.

With everything cleared away,
Aileen led them back out into the hallway and into one of the drawing rooms. It
was decorated similarly to the rest of the house with rustic wood furniture,
shields on the walls and family portraits.

Samantha froze as she stared up
at the portrait above the fireplace.

Finn.

It had to be. Stood in the same
kilt she’d seen him in last night, he was posing in front of the windows that
looked out onto the loch.

“Handsome, isn’t he?”

Samantha jolted as Aileen peered
over her shoulder.

“Yes,” she admitted with a smile.

“Laird Finnean McLaughlin.”

Samantha’s brows darted up.
“Laird?”
Holy shit, I’ve slept with a laird!

“Yes. This was painted about
twenty years ago now…”

“Twenty years—?”

“…shortly before he died,” Aileen
continued.

Samantha gulped. “He died?”

Aileen offered her a sad smile.
“Yes, far too young, I know. A road accident.”

“He’s dead?” Samantha stared back
up at the picture, her gut churning. The man she had made love to was dead? A
sharp pang of sorrow struck her heart, mingling with the incomprehension. What
was he then? A ghost? Samantha snorted at herself. No, don’t be ridiculous. It
was a dream. It had to be. But how had she known what he looked like?

Aileen gave her a funny look and
moved away to the other girls who were admiring the view outside. Samantha
couldn’t pull her gaze away from the handsome man in the painting. He had
seemed so real. She’d even hoped that maybe… maybe there would be a future...
I’m
losing my mind.
That was the only explanation.
I was planning a future
with a figment of my imagination.

Unless…unless he really was a
ghost. What had he said? That places like this held memories. He’d told her
that this castle dated back to the 11th Century. How could she have made that
up? She didn’t even know that until he’d said so.

Bloody hell, she’d made love to a
ghost. It all made sense now. The way he’d disappeared, the strange sensations,
the amazing orgasms… Jesus, he’d even known her name and she didn’t pick up on
the fact that she’d never told him it.

One of the girls called to her,
but she didn’t register who as she turned dazedly away from the picture.
Walking over to the window, she nodded numbly as they made comments about the
scenery.

Something caught her eye and she
looked up and jumped. “Finn!”

He strolled into the room and
Samantha could feel the blood drain from her face. She backed away as he
approached. She darted a glance at Aileen who appeared completely unperturbed
by the ghost of the dead laird.

The other girls all fixed her
with a look of concern, which quickly gave way to simpering smiles as they
spotted Finn.

He looked so real. They probably
didn’t even realise he was a ghost. She edged behind Annie as he greeted them
warmly. Samantha could feel her legs quaking beneath her as she stared at him.
How could he just be strolling around like that? Didn’t ghosts only come out at
night?

“Did you have a fun night?” he
asked them, fixing his gaze onto hers.

Her cheeks flamed and she took
another step back, her head swimming. With a sudden cry, she spun on her heels
and ran out of the room and up the stairs, taking the steps two at a time. A
ghost! She’d shagged a ghost!  Sprinting along the hall, she fumbled with the
lock on her door. As she pressed it open, he came to her side and grabbed her
arm.

Samantha screamed and tried to
tear herself away from him but his grip was too strong. The spinning in her
head increased and stars swam across her vision as the shock took hold. How
could she possibly escape a ghost?

Her legs gave way and he scooped
her easily into his embrace. She was vaguely aware of him kicking open her door
before slamming it firmly shut and laying her on the bed.

“Sam?” he said quietly.

Her vision cleared and she bolted
upright, huddling into the headboard and pulling her knees to her chest as she
stared at him, wide-eyed.

“Sam, what’s wrong?

“Y-you…you…you’re…” she
stammered.

“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t see you
this morning. You were fast asleep and I couldn’t bring myself to wake you. I
had to help Aileen with the breakfasts.”

“B-b-but you’re…you’re a ghost!”
she managed to squeak out.

He laughed and then paused as he
noted her quivering body. “What are you on about, lass?”

“Y-you’re dead.”
God, he
didn’t even know it
. “Aileen said. You died twenty years ago.”

“You really think you slept with
a ghost last night?” His eyes twinkled with amusement but Samantha couldn’t
feel anything but pure sadness. Maybe he had unfinished business. She’d have to
help him find his way to the afterlife…or something…

“I think…” He reached out and put
a very warm, very real hand over hers. “…that Aileen may have been talking
about my father.”

“Y-your father?”

“I’m named after him and I bear
quite a resemblance to him. He died when I was ten.”

Samantha sagged against the
headboard and buried her head in her hands. “Oh my God.”

“You really thought I was a
ghost?”

She peeked at him from between
her fingers. “No…?”

“You did, didn’t you?”

“Well, it was so spooky, and you
just turned up out of nowhere, and then you disappeared this morning and…and
you were so good in bed…”

“I was, was I?”

“Yes,” she said tightly, swatting
at his arm. “Oh my God, I am such an idiot.”

Finn shuffled forwards and drew
her into his arms. She relaxed into him, enjoying the warmth of him. How could
she ever have thought he was a ghost?

“You know, I may not be a ghost
but it is said that the real ghosts of Inverrock like to try their hand at
matchmaking. Maybe they delivered you into my arms.”

Samantha considered the strange
sensations that had urged her into his embrace and nodded. Instead of feeling
scared, she could only feel grateful. Maybe ghosts weren’t so bad after all.

“So…what are you planning for the
rest of the day?” he asked as he stroked a thumb across her hand.

“I don’t know. I think the girls
wanted to go out on the loch.”

“And after that?”

“We hadn’t decided yet.”

“Room service?”

Samantha laughed and tilted her
face to his. “Maybe…”

Finn enveloped her jaw in his
hand and coaxed her lips open with his, delving into her mouth with his tongue.
“You know I’m a laird, right?” he murmured as he kissed down her neck.

“And…?” she said with a sigh.

“Well, that means whoever I marry
would become a lady?”

Samantha grinned and twisted her
hand into his hair as he worked his mouth across her collarbone and his hand forged
a path up her jumper and over her breasts.

“And…?”

“Wouldn’t you like to be a lady?”

“I’m definitely not a lady,”
Samantha said with a laugh.

“Hmmm,” he said as he tweaked at
her hard nipples, “you may be right. But you could be.”