Page 21

E mma couldn’t believe it was happening. Aidan MacWilliam, no longer in an almost-too-small white towel, was kissing her like he was a starving man and she was a full-on feast.

All of the deep fear she’d felt a moment ago vanished when his lips moved over hers.

She knew Ben was close, but here in Aidan’s arms, she felt safe.

Protected.

It was a heady feeling, to be important enough to someone that they were willing to protect you with their life.

She clung to him tightly, reveling in the feel of his chest pressing against her shirt, dampening it with the water he hadn’t bothered to towel off.

His tongue shut off her brain, and her body took over.

She was all sensation, his hands leaving a fiery trail wherever they touched.

He broke the kiss to lift her shirt over her head, and in that moment, she was more than thankful for the baby-blue lace bra in the suitcase he’d brought for her.

She swallowed hard at the expression in his eyes.

Gently, Aidan laid her on the bed, kissing her lips, neck, ears. Her desire was building to a fever pitch. She trailed her hands down his sides, reaching for him, but he caught her wrist and gently brought it back to his mouth.

“If you touch me, this will be over before it begins,” he said with a grin, tracing the back of her hand with his lips.

“We wouldn’t want that,” Emma breathed as he nibbled the inside of the wrist he held.

She cupped his face, and his green eyes intensified. “Emma, I will make this so good for you.”

“If your kisses are any indication, I’m in for the time of my life.”

“’Tis just the start, lass. I believe I owe you a ravishing.”

“Promises, promises,” she murmured. He arched a brow at her, then traced her breast with his fingertip, effectively cutting off any further conversation as she sucked in a breath. “Oh…”

He kissed her again, smiling against her lips. She couldn’t help but grin back.

He unzipped her jeans, and a slow, sexy smile spread across his face when he saw that her panties matched her bra. “I don’t expect to be finished for a long, long time.”

In one fluid movement, he pulled her jeans off and kissed her belly. Everything south of her navel clenched in anticipation, and she closed her eyes and dropped her head back.

If this was the path the Universe wanted her to take, then she had no problem marching happily onwards.

Someone banged on the door, hard. “My laird!”

Emma’s eyes flew open. Aidan ignored whoever was at the door and placed a palm on her stomach, rooting her to the spot. He kissed the inside of her thigh, and a small moan escaped her.

“My laird—they went after O’Rourke as well!”

Aidan’s demeanor changed so fast, Emma was still trying to identify what his expression was when he leaped off the bed and strode to the door. She barely managed to cover herself with the bed comforter when he flung the door open.

Sans towel.

“Explain,” he barked.

Cian didn’t even blink at Aidan’s nudity. “Colin called. He just arrived here, and is safe ’tis but for a scratch on his arm.”

Aidan swore and punched the wall next to the door, his fist making an impressive hole. “How did he track us so quickly?!”

Well. The Universe couldn’t have made that any clearer. Emma pulled the comforter tighter around herself, her fear returning in full force.

Cian leaned in and whispered something, and Aidan nodded grimly. “We leave within the hour. Call Les, get the jet ready. I want to be on Irish soil by tonight.” Aidan slammed the door, then walked to the bed and shrugged on a tee shirt.

“You put a hole in the wall,” she said, her voice shaking.

He sat swiftly and handed her shirt to her. “I’ll never hurt you, Emmaline. You have my word. But there’s something you should know about me.”

Emma fumbled with her shirt. It was slightly damp from where Aidan had pressed against her.

“I’m a bit…traditional.” He slid the zipper closed on his jeans, and Emma tried really hard not to take a moment to enjoy the way they encased his behind.

“How so?”

“When you signed that contract, you signed on for a bit more than just the job.”

Emma paused, her shirt over her face, and thought, Did I read that contract all the way through?

“It’s not in the document itself,” he added as though he read her thoughts.

She quickly tugged her shirt the rest of the way down. “I don’t understand what you mean.”

“In medieval Ireland, each clan has — had — a laird. A man who offered protection from those who wished to harm his clan folk.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “For the MacWilliams, my brother was the laird.”

“I didn’t think there were lairds in Ireland still? Unless you mean he’s nobility. Oh my God, you’re nobility —”

“Nay, lass, I’m not nobility,” he chuckled.

“That would explain your money, your connections—”

Aidan gently grasped her arms. “Emmaline. I am not nobility. But I am the current laird of the MacWilliams, small in number we may be.”

A small frown marred her face. “Okay. Congratulations on your title?”

He laughed then. “Thank you, but that’s not why I’m telling you this.

When you agreed to work for me, you came under my protection.

If we were in medieval Ireland, and you were, say, a blacksmith, and you came to work for me, you would then become one of the clans folk.

Clans folk belong to the laird, and they all fall under my protection.

I’d house you, feed you, and ensure you had adequate clothing to do your job.

In return, you would create my swords, my eating utensils, and shoes for my horses. ”

Her eyes widened. “I belong to no one.”

“Aye, I imagine not. But like it or not, you’re now under my protection. I’m effectively your laird.”

She blinked at him. “I’m sorry, what ?”

Aidan looked at Emma, wondering how he could possibly explain it better without making her think him insane.

Brianagh had taken it well when Nioclas explained it to her. Of course, she was actually in the Middle Ages at that point, so perhaps she had a better sphere of reference…

He sighed. “I’m not sure that as a modern woman you can understand the mentality behind it. ”

“Modern woman?” she echoed. “That sounds vaguely patronizing.”

He sat on the edge of the bed. “Another cultural difference, I assure you. But as your laird, you have my full protection.”

“What if I don’t want it?”

He frowned severely. “Why would you not? You’re in a bad place. This ex of yours is determined to harm you. I can offer you protection.”

“What’s that mean, exactly?” she demanded as she hopped into her jeans.

He scratched his neck. “Well…I take care of you until you’re safe.”

“Take care of me?” she repeated, her eyes hardening and tone flattening. She dropped back onto the bed. “Listen, Aidan. I appreciate the clothes. I appreciate the opportunity for this job. But I am not a charity case. I’ve taken care of myself my entire life.”

Independence and trust issues. He knew much of those himself. The lass was stubborn, to be sure, but he found that it didn’t bother him as it once would have.

The thought gave him pause. He avoided stubborn women like the plague; he had too many of those in his clan, saw too many men led around by their stubborn wives, to ever want one of his own.

Or so he used to think.

“You need to disappear. No paper trails, no way to link your whereabouts—and I can make that happen.”

She scuttled backward on the bed. “ What ?!”

He didn’t move. “MacDermott won’t stop until you’re six feet underground, Emmaline.”

Her eyes filled with tears that she rapidly blinked back. “I’ll figure out a way to shake him.”

“I can keep you safe. You just have to let me.”

“I can do it on my own,” she whispered. “It’s easy enough to disappear.”

Aidan regarded her for a long moment, weighing his words. Finally, he asked, “How?”

Emma opened her mouth, then paused. “I don’t know yet. Give me some time.”

“You don’t have any time.”

Aidan’s gut twisted with her look of helplessness. It was one he figured she didn’t wear very often, if ever.

“I just need some time,” she repeated.

“Allow me to help you,” he asked softly. She jumped up from the bed and started to pace. “Like it or not, I’m involved. I have ways to protect you from him.”

“I don’t want to need your help,” she whispered, losing the battle against her tears as they spilled onto her cheeks. “I didn’t ask for this. You didn’t ask for this.”

“We didn’t,” he agreed. He stood and stopped her, sliding his hands down her arms to join hers. “But you have me. And I can help you. But you have to let me.”

A moment passed, and while she silently considered, Aidan said more prayers than he had cumulatively in the whole of his life.

Finally, she closed her eyes in defeat.“I don’t want to. But I think I have to.”

He released a breath and wiped her tears. “Your trust isn’t misplaced, Emma.” His voice firmed. “You have ten minutes to be downstairs, and we’re leaving in fifteen.”

“But —”

“Grab what you can and I’ll buy you more when we get there!” he called over his shoulder as he thumped down the stairs.

“I’m not calling you my laird ,” she muttered. “Ever.”

“…a month, maybe more.” Aidan was on the phone when Emma cautiously entered the kitchen. “Make it happen.”

“Let’s roll.” Reilly bounced on his heels. “I’m ready.”

“Reilly loves to fly,” Aidan explained wryly, hanging up his call.

“I do,” Ry confirmed. “A metal bird in the sky that I control? Oh, aye. Definitely aye.”

“Wait. You pilot the plane?”

Reilly smirked. “Private pilot’s license.”

“Les will be flying this time, though,” Aidan said with a roll of his eyes. “He’s meeting us at Logan.”

“We’re really doing this,” Emma said, dazed.

“Cian, bring Ms. Perkins’s bags to the car,” Aidan instructed. “Colin, tell your mother that I’m sorry to have missed her.”

“No way,” Colin said with a glare. “ You can tell her when you next see her.”

Aidan gave a slight shake of his head, and Colin paused before he nodded back, resigned.

“Be well, uncle.”