A Highland Werewolf Wedding - By Terry Spear Page 0,2
of fat, and determined, his jaw set, his brows raised a little now as he examined her more closely. He was taking a good long look, not in a leering way but taking in her distinctive appearance.
The three men who had been trailing behind him were now immersed in a brawl outside the alley, fists swinging.
“Are you here alone, lass?” the man asked, his voice seductively low. He was an alpha, in charge, wanting answers.
“Let… me… go,” she growled. She was trying not to make a scene.
“Come with me and my brothers, and I will protect you,” he offered.
A shiver stole up her spine. He must know she was related to the hanged men. The fight was growing closer—she could hear men’s shouts and cries of pain, scuffling, and thuds as some went down.
She tried to wriggle loose of his strong grip, tried to peel his powerful fingers off her arm, but to no avail. He seemed mildly amused that she’d try.
“Let… me… go,” she repeated, scowling up at him.
“If Lord Whittington learns you were one of the Hawthorns’ kin, it willna go well for you,” the man said. “My name is Cearnach MacNeill, and those behind me…” He glanced over his shoulder, then turned back to her, and amended, “Who were following me are my brothers. We will see you to safety.”
If he was not kin, why should he and his family wish to aid her? She didn’t trust his motives.
She shook her head. “You are mistaken about me, sir. Release me at once.”
He did not seem inclined to do so, but a beefy half-drunken man came up behind him, skirted around the Highlander, and slugged Cearnach in the jaw. He immediately released Elaine so that he was free to pelt the drunk.
She darted down the alleyway, glancing back to see Cearnach struggling to rid himself of the brigand. He took a swing at the drunk, and when he had knocked him back several steps, Cearnach looked for her and spied her getting away. Her heart did a flip. He appeared both troubled and exasperated.
She ran out of the alley, dashed down the street until she found another alley, and ducked down it. She would find a ship and return home on her own.
Somehow she had to figure out a way to deal with Kelly Rafferty next.
***
Cearnach MacNeill swore as another lout smashed him in the jaw with a mighty punch. By the time he’d laid the man out with a couple of smashes in the face, Cearnach had lost sight of the she-wolf in the crowd. He suspected she was related to the Hawthorn brothers, which was the only way they would have taken her aboard their ship. He was almost certain that the only reason they had docked in St. Andrews was to gather their stolen goods and squirrel them away in some other location.
Did the lass know where the brothers had hidden the goods?
All he should have cared about was retrieving his family’s stolen property from the now-dead brigands. When he’d looked into the girl’s stricken face, he’d felt a deep regret that she’d just lost her family and now he intended to use her to reclaim his clan’s goods. He was sincere about keeping her safe. At least until he could secure passage for her and send her home.
He’d seen the uncertainty in her dark brown eyes, the guarded hope he might rescue her from this nightmare. He’d felt a twinge of need—to protect her.
He picked up her wolf scent and headed for the wharves. Then he saw Robert Kilpatrick and the McKinley brothers and overheard Robert saying, “We have to get her before Whittington does.”
Were they kin to the Hawthorn brothers? Most likely they wanted the same information from her as Cearnach did: where was the stolen property the Hawthorn brothers had hidden in Scotland?
She didn’t stand a chance unless Cearnach could reach her first.
Chapter 1
Present Day, Scotland
Pacing across his brother’s office in the solar of Argent Castle, Cearnach MacNeill was determined not to back down on this issue with Ian, his older brother, clan chief, and pack leader of their Highland gray werewolf pack. Cearnach had promised Calla Stewart that he would show up at her wedding to lend moral support. Friends did that for friends. He would attend because she had asked him to, even though he knew his being there could stir up real trouble.
Why did she have to marry into the McKinley clan? Pirates, every last one of them, even