Left to die? Rowan stared at the stunning vampire in disbelief. With his immense power and intelligence, he was dangerous. Whoever dared cross him was a fool.
"By whom?" she asked.
"Come," he said, his voice rough with exhaustion. "We both need sleep."
She paused. "You will nae answer my question?"
"It is unimportant."
"Unimportant?" Did he not understand? "As long as I am with you, if you are in danger, it affects me."
His jaw tightened. "As I said, as long as you are in my presence, I can protect you."
"As you protected yourself within the stone circle?" His face darkened, and she hesitated. Was she a fool to challenge him? If he wished, he could kill her in a trice.
"La.s.s, "tis best if you do not know."
"For whom?"
"You ask too many questions," he said with quiet warning. "Do not invite danger.
"Why-" A heaviness weighed upon her, and she grew sleepy. Her legs walked toward him. "Stop making me tired. I wish answers."
"The time to talk will come later. Now, you will rest-with me." Her mind blurred, and Rowan struggled for coherent thought. She needed to warn him. "Nor am I safe."
"Aye." He reached up, wrapped his strong hand around hers. "Now, lie with me."
As if "twas that simple? She scowled at him, but found her gaze lingering on his naked magnificence. Heat stole up her face. "Lie with you? "Tis indecent!"
" "Tis only for sleep," he a.s.sured.
Hesitant, she settled onto the ground near him.
A smile touched his impossibly handsome face, a face crafted for charm and, as well, a face crafted for sin. "I sense you are a healer." He stroked the curve of her cheek. "Have you never seen a male unclothed?"
She angled her chin. "Indeed, I have tended many a man, but only when they are ill, which you are not."
"I was dying," he said, his face growing solemn. "Because of you, I live."
The sincerity of his words moved her, left her torn. Well she knew her place within the clan. Or, lack of. "Do not paint me heroic. It was you who summoned me to you."
"Mayhap, but it was your blood that saved my life."
He stared at her a long moment, the intensity of his gaze sizzling through her body, igniting a longing within her that left her aching.
"Aedan," he whispered, his soft burr wrapping around her like spun velvet. "I wish to hear you say my name."
"Why?"
He arched an expectant brow. "Must you challenge my every request?"
She remained silent, unsure why this moment seemed momentous.
"My name."
Stubborn he was. "Aedan."
He smiled as if given a precious gift, a smile of satisfaction, one that sent ripples of awareness sliding through her body. "Rowan," he said, his burr dark with need. "Lie with me."
"I ..." She wanted to, but for reasons other than to pursue sleep. Foolish thoughts.
"I agree your thoughts are foolish."
His breath slid over her face like a soft caress. She hesitated. "Why?"
"Never mind." He drew her against his muscled body, her soft, flowing gown offering but scant separation.
Rowan expected to feel fear being so close to a vampire. Instead, she found his presence a balm of comfort. More unsettling, she wished for no barrier, to feel his naked flesh against her.
On a groan, he pressed a kiss against her brow. "La.s.s, do not think overmuch."
Simple for him, but her body ached in ways she"d never imagined. Another surge of tiredness swept through her. Rowan yawned, her indecent thoughts fading into a blur of exhaustion. Her lids grew heavy, and, against her will, she tumbled into the black void of sleep.
Aedan stared at Rowan asleep within his arms, the sweet taste of her humming through his mind, her erotic visions feeding his own. She was a virgin. When he took her, he would be her first. Never would another touch her.
Ever.
And they would make love, of that he held no doubt. Though she was an innocent, he"d sensed her growing excitement; her visions of them entwined were simple yet devastating.
He inhaled her scent, shaken by how much he wanted her. Sweat beaded his brow, and his fangs lengthened. With sheer determination, he willed away his desire to feed as well as the gut-wrenching need that demanded he claim her for his mate.
He must not forget the reason they"d met. Someone within his clan"s trusted circle wanted him, their laird, dead. What had his enemy used to leave him in such a disabled state? Senses alert, he scanned his body. All but dissolved, a trace of foreign substance lay near his heart.
Foxglove.
A dangerous herb, but not strong enough to kill a vampire. A fact a vampire understood, and the reason why Aedan had been left within the stone circle. Unconscious, and with the circle of stones slowly drawing his power so that he would be unable to move if he awoke, he would have been burned to death by the morning sun"s rays.
Sunlight washed the earth beyond the cave"s entry, wrapping the roll of land within its warmth. Aedan"s lids grew heavier. Aye, "twas time to sleep. Whoever plotted against him would be seeking rest as well.
He settled more comfortably against Rowan, and her flaxen hair spilled from its hastily woven plait across the paleness of his arm as if fairy dust. A smile touched his mouth. Aye, he was a man enchanted. Intrigued, he lifted several locks of her hair, let the strands slide through his fingers to spiral back against her windswept mane.
Rowan, a fitting name. The rowan tree was a symbol of strength. The five-pointed star at the base of each berry was a symbol of protection to the ancients. The hearty white flowers that grew upon the st.u.r.dy limbs were a symbol of innocence, appropriate as the la.s.s was innocent of a man"s touch. He would not dwell upon the latter.
Another wave of fatigue settled over him. This day he would rest, but this night, once he"d fed, he would keep watch over the stone circle and wait. Whoever had left him there should return to ensure his body lay charred inside.
Then, the traitor would die.
Confident he would soon have vengeance against whoever had dared to try and kill him, Aedan cast an invisible shield upon the cave"s entry, allowing no one to enter. With the scent of Rowan filling his every breath, he closed his eyes and gave in to much needed sleep.
A wisp of chilled air skimmed over Rowan. With a shiver, she reached for a blanket, and her hand sc.r.a.ped upon the cold dirt.
Dirt?
Where was she?
Memories flooded her, of running for her life after being branded a witch, of finding herself before the stone circle, then of helping save a vampire"s life, of his unexpected tenderness, and of how he"d held her in his arms and pressed a kiss upon her brow as she"d fallen asleep.
She opened her eyes. Blackness engulfed her. Heart pounding, Rowan stumbled to her feet. "Aedan?"
From deep within the forest a wolf howled, the lonely sound macabre.
"Aedan, are you here?"
A gust, rich with the scent of the night, tumbled past.
On cautious feet she crept to the entry. She searched the midnight sky, thick with stars against the moonless night. Though he"d taken a few drops of her blood, hunger must have driven him to feed.
She listened, thankful the forest did not ring with the angry shouts of men in search of her. No doubt they were scouring the woods. Should she use the blanket of night to put more distance between them, head south where she could begin a new life? Or, should she stay and trust Aedan to keep his word to protect her?
Tingles of sensation edged up her skin.
Uneasy, she scanned the distant line of trees, found her gaze drawn to the stone circle, its st.u.r.dy columns black against the star-washed night. As she stared, a pulse filled the air, slow, steady, growing stronger. The need to move toward the ancient circle filled her.
Confused, she took a step forward.
Mist swirled around her; then fully dressed, Aedan stood before her.
Rowan jumped back. "How did you do that?" She held up her hand. "Nay, I do not want to know."
Black eyes held hers, their intensity stealing her breath. With a curse he caught her wrist, his hold gentle, then turned her away from the circle and led her toward the cave.
"Aedan, what is wrong?"
At the nervousness within her voice, Aedan relaxed his stance. She was perplexed; how could she not be? He was as confused. "The stone circle drew you, did it not?"
"Aye." A blush colored her cheeks. "Though it sounds foolish."
"Far from foolish," he replied. "To humans a stone circle is a place of power, a place for ceremony, but for vampires "tis fatal." He took her hand, needing to feel the warmth of her skin against his own. "If a vampire is caught within, the stones draw his strength, and over time we become unable to move."
"And with the morn, you would be burned to death. Oh G.o.d." A shiver wove through her, and he folded her within his arms, their bond growing stronger with each pa.s.sing moment.
Worry-filled turquoise eyes met his. "Aedan, why would I be drawn into the circle?"
He frowned. "Mayhap it sensed our bond." But, doubts lingered.
"Mayhap." She exhaled a ragged breath. "Do you have any idea who tried to kill you?"
He shook off his disturbing thoughts. "Nay, but I will find my enemy." He scanned the night-blackened stones, the shiver of starlight glinting off each. Majestic. Powerful. "Whoever dared such a traitorous act will return to ensure I am dead."
"What will you do then?"
Aedan remained silent. Soon he must explain he was laird of the Highland Coven, and that he could not allow anyone near him he could not trust. But he did not want to trouble her when she already had so much to worry about.
And what of her being his mate? When would the time come when he must share such critical information?
A stick cracked nearby.
Hands strong and gentle lifted Rowan. The earth blurred, and she found herself pressed within the shadows inside the entry of the cave.
"Stay!" Aedan whispered. With a swirl of mist, he vanished.
Heart pounding, she stared into the shadows of the night.
A wolf howled, closer this time.
p.r.i.c.kles slid up her flesh. Someone was watching her. Pulse racing, she scanned the looming blackness, the air growing cooler with each breath.
Mist engulfed her. "You are safe."
On a half scream, Rowan turned. The swirl of white cleared, and Aedan again stood before her, his body taut, his gaze searching the forest beyond. After a final scan, his eyes met hers.
Would she ever grow used to his appearing out of nowhere? "What did you find?" Nerves tangled her voice.
"Naught. Neither did I pick up any unusual scent. Most likely, a roebuck or another animal of the night pa.s.sed nearby."
She should agree, a.s.sure herself all was well, but ...
"What is it?"
At the edge in his voice, she searched the night-blackened land. "I am unsure, but it was almost as if I sensed someone was out there. Oddly, with the pa.s.sing moments, the air grew colder."
"Foxglove," he said with a hiss.
"What?"
"Whoever drugged me did so with foxglove, which has dulled my senses."
A tremor rippled through her. "Another vampire is nearby?"
"Mayhap."
"But you are not sure."
Aedan shook his head, his frustration easy to read. "Nay."
"Most likely you are right; it was an animal," she said. "Or, if another vampire, he or she could have been far away."
"Do nae make excuses for me. I have sworn to protect you," he said, his voice grim. "If another vampire was nearby, I should have been able to detect him. I had not considered the drug"s effects, a mistake I will not make again." His hands clenched into fists at his sides, then slowly released. "However much I wish to take you elsewhere to keep you safe, it is imperative that I remain here another day, mayhap two. If anyone returns to confirm my death, I must know."