Chapter 31

31

S he could tell no one about Viscount Hampton's threat. The more Maeve tried to ignore and forget, the harder it was to hide her fear.

Erin and Ayda nearly died because of me. Worse, Archer took an arrow to his heart for them. Maeve knew she would never forgive herself if anything happened to him. Her heart ached as she watched him laugh with her sisters then teach them a little more about fighting with a sword.

"Ouch," Ayda cried out when Erin mistakenly poked her with the stick she used to practice. "Erin be careful!" Both girls laughed as Ayda chased Erin around.

Yuletide season was always full of laughter and celebrations. Maeve was grateful to be in O'Kane to celebrate this year. She was more grateful to Archer because he made it possible. He saved me and brought me home. She could never thank him enough for that.

It was why Maeve could not deny her worry as she watched her family joust in the O'Kane castle courtyard. The Yuletide log still burned, and the flames would stay bright for the next six days before the end of the season. She had an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach about the coming end of the year.

Like all of this is about to come to an end. Maeve couldn't explain the feeling, but it nagged at her every moment of the day. She didn't realize Archer was watching her till he strolled over to where she sat by a corner, and he took the spot next to her.

"Ye are awfully quiet today," he observed, smiling as he looked down at her. "What bothers ye?"

"Naethin'," she lied in a heartbeat then feigned a smile.

Archer's eyes searched hers for a long moment before he reached out, brushed a hand over her forehead, then stroked her cheeks. "Liar," he accused. "Ye are worried over somethin', and I cannae help ye if ye dinnae confide in me."

Maeve drew in a deep breath, and Archer instantly took her hands in his. "Maeve…"

"You almost died," Maeve whispered in a pained voice as he stroked her hands and drew them to his lips for a kiss. "It is all my fault," she sobbed. "I should have said something. I should have…"

She hiccupped just before he drew her into his arms and hugged her tight. Maeve let the tears flow freely down her cheeks now, and she heaved out a deep breath as he consoled her with slow, gentle strokes.

"You nearly died saving my sisters. If anything happens to you, I will not survive, Archer." Tears blurred her vision, and Archer's solemn eyes caught hers as he drew back to stare at her face.

The gentleness of his fingers stroking her skin helped ease her discomfort. I must protect him, too. Archer had risked a lot to save her and her sisters from England. Now he risked his life without hesitating to save them again.

"I will do anythin' for ye, Maeve. Yer sisters are me sisters too. Ye are my family, now, and we protect each other. It is what we do for the people we love."

The weight pressing down on her chest doubled at the mention of love. He did not say he loved her, but the words were close. Maeve could sense it, and she also felt the first sprouting tingles coming alive inside her. It warmed through her nerves and settled deep inside with a bubble of hope.

He loves me? She never imagined marrying a Highlander, let alone falling in love with one. The race of her pulse made her shiver inside. Maeve could only stare at Archer as she held her breath and waited for his next words. The tears on her cheeks began to dry under the ruffle of the windy air kissing her skin.

She sniffed, and he hugged her again and this time took her lips for a tender kiss that stoked the flames of a growing passion in her. Archer and Maeve sprang apart when his aunt and Quinn joined them in the courtyard with servants trailing behind with trays of fruits and nuts.

"Everyone gather around," Quinn announced as they served them on the grounds. Ayda and Erin were the first to sit down then Archer drew Maeve to the circle forming around the fruits, and once they sat, he smiled at her.

The corners of his eyes wrinkled, and the full smile showed off most of his teeth. Maeve noticed he had shaved off most of his beard. He still had his roughish looks, but he was even more handsome this way.

He fed her some berries, and she ate them with gusto, licking off its delicious nectar from her lips before she caught him staring at them. A fiery rush of heat scalded through Maeve.

Without thinking, she reached out and stroked his hair, gently pushing it back until he smirked at her.

"Look at ye two," Lauren said with a sheepish smile. "Ye look so much in love." She clapped her hands together, showing off her excitement as she said the words. "That's it; you two should spend time explorin' this side of the mountain together. Laird O'Kane tells me there's lots of red deer to hunt this season. Ye can teach Maeve to hunt."

"Would ye like to join me, Me Lady?" Archer asked her almost immediately and extended a hand. Maeve flushed hard, knowing that Lauren's attempt to make them spend more time together was not spontaneous.

Judging from the gleam in Quinn's eyes and her sister's light, muffled chuckle, Maeve could tell Lauren had planned this earlier.

"I would be delighted," she answered anyway because she loved to spend time with Archer. Maeve wanted to savor every moment they had together now and cherish it.

Who knows how long it will last? The next time Guilbert Hampton threatened her, she knew he would not stop at shooting an arrow towards her sisters. Maeve knew he would hurt everyone she loved, including Archer.

Her heart rose with the emotions swelling inside her. Maeve knew then that she loved Archer, and just like he protected her, she had to find a way to protect him too— no matter what it took.

Maeve waited patiently by his side as they watched the red deer sauntering around in the wild. Hunting was more enjoyable than she imagined it would be, and she stole glances at Archer the entire time, wanting to take in all of him.

So that I never forget. These were probably her final moments with him. Maeve wanted to savor every bit, so she could remember forever how much she loved him.

Tears pinched her eyes, but she shoved them away quickly and kept her attention on the deer. Archer fired his shot right then, and it hit the deer right in its mid-section.

"You did it!" Maeve celebrated and jumped out of her hiding with a wild laugh. He joined her, and his eyes sparkled as he tossed his head back to let the rumble of his laughter ebb freely from his throat.

The guttural sound left a quake in her. Maeve drew closer to him because she could not help herself then she snaked her arms around his neck, raised herself to meet his lips, and kissed him with all the passion burning in her.

Archer was still for only a moment before he kissed her back. His tongue ran over hers, toyed and stroked until she leaned closer to him and ground her body against his.

"Mo chridhe," he whispered as he cupped Maeve's chin and pulled away from her. "Maeve…"

"Kiss me, Archer," Maeve ordered before her lids fluttered close. Her lips parted with a sigh. Anticipation sparked a raw hunger in her nerves, and she knew only his kiss and his touch would make her feel whole.

Archer slid his tongue into her mouth again then lifted her into his arms and carried her to the clearing close to where they stood. He backed her up against the tree first then slid his hands under the skirts of her earasaid.

When she whimpered in his mouth and nibbled on his lower lips, he rocked his hips into hers. Maeve wanted him right there and then in the wild. An insane feeling swept through all of her, and she tugged at his leine, wanting to feel the walls of his hard chest.

"Maeve," he growled, releasing her lips with a pained groan. "Not here…Not like this."

She shook her head. "Just like this," she muttered then stroked his chin. Maeve did not want him to resist her, so she kissed him gently again. Archer led the pace after that. He lowered her to her feet, went down on his knees, then lifted her skirts to give him access to her body.

She cried out as he kissed his way up her thighs, pushed aside her chemise, and drew down her garters.

Maeve gasped, her fingers dug into his hair, and she rocked into his lips as the undiluted waves of pleasure raced through her to the core. She lost control after that and was transported to heights of arousal she had never reached.

He kept stroking her with his tongue and caressing her buttocks with his lean fingers. When she felt his fingers slide in and out of her entrance, her body convulsed and released all of her wetness.

Maeve's eyes stayed close as she gasped for air and trembled against the tree. He rose to his feet again, his eyes burned into hers, and his hands circled around her waist to draw her to him.

"I willnae be gentle," he said in a rough voice, skimming his lips over hers as he turned her around, so her buttocks pressed into his erection. Archer parted her legs with one knee, bent her forward, then thrust into her fully.

She gasped; her eyes widening from the fierceness of his stroke. He stayed still in her while kissing her neck and touching her hair. Maeve could not hold back as her hunger grew. She needed to feel him slide his velvety heat inside her, drag her over to the edge of fervent madness, and make her body convulse with excitement.

"Maeve," he growled out in a quaking voice when she moved first and forced his strokes. Nothing else mattered that as they clung to each other and rode out the waves of their pleasure, crying into the sky, so it heard the shattering throes of their completion.

Archer and Maeve kept giggling and smiling when they made it back to the castle with their kill. He did not waste time to scoop her into his arms and carry her into his chamber after delivering the deer to the kitchen servants.

Maeve laughed and snaked her hands around his neck. "Ye seduce me, Me Lady. Tonight, I shall show ye what desire is," he said as he lowered her to the bed and began taking off her clothes slowly. His trembling voice hinted at a threat Maeve could not wait to feel.

Maeve gave into the thrill spreading through her and let him make love to her one last time. She committed every inch of him to memory, knowing she might never get the chance to after tonight.

She knew what she had to do to protect the people she loved from Gilbert Hampton. Maeve had to summon up the courage to defend herself for the first time in her life.

She would go to Gilbert, and she would end him with her own hands— even if it means dying too.