Chapter 1

1

D read poured through her veins as Accalia glanced out her bedchamber’s arrow-slit of a window of Hillshire Keep in the Highlands, looking for any sign of Lord Erik Norwulf and his men’s arrival, and seeing none. She was almost relieved.

“Are you excited about meeting the white wolf chief?” Niamh asked Accalia, helping her dress in one of her nicer burgundy gowns. Accalia’s da felt her blond hair made her look washed out and the more colorful gown would make her stand out. In the worst way, her da wanted her to appeal to the white wolf chief.

Frowning, Accalia shook her head. Her stomach had been tied in knots all morning. She kept imagining what it would be like seeing Erick Norwulf, talking to him, learning if they were wolf compatible.

“You barely ate your bread or venison when we broke our fast.”

“I wasna hungry.” Her da expected her to win Erick Norwulf over from the first moment they met, entice him to mate her over the week he spent with them, and forge an alliance with him. She was sure that wasn’t possible.

Her redheaded friend shook her head, freckles dotting the bridge of her nose, her cheeks, her eyes blue and clear. “You are one of the most positive people I know. This will work out.”

That’s what Accalia had thought with the last wolf she was supposed to mate. “What if Lord Erik Norwulf does the same thing that the wolf I was supposed to mate pulled?” Seasons had changed from spring to summer, but she still hadn’t let go of feeling angry at Uilleam’s or Clodagh’s betrayal.

“That snake. He didna deserve you. What I canna believe is that he took off with Clodagh.”

“You dinna need to remind me.” Accalia had been friends with her since they were young. “I’ve…overheard our people talking about it—saying I didna know how to win a wolf over.”

“Uilleam wasna worth having. Dinna listen to rumors and conjectures. You know how it is. Everyone has an opinion about something, even if it’s wrong.” Niamh sighed.

“’Tis true. Finding the right wolf is the key.”

“You have a whole week to visit each other and learn if you’re right for one another.” Niamh plaited Accalia’s hair. “Before I arrived at your chamber, I overheard your da tell your uncle that Erik was the one who asked to meet you. Did you know that?”

Surprised to hear it, Accalia slipped her sgian dubh into her boot. “I thought my da had been desperate to seek another ally through my mating Erik once Uilleam betrayed me.”

Niamh fastened a belt around Accalia’s waist. “Mayhap the white wolf chief will be the one for you.”

Accalia attached her sword in its sheath to her belt.

Niamh grabbed up her leather pouch and handed it to her. “Uhm, your da said none of us maids can go with you to meet with the lord.”

“Why no’?” Accalia couldn’t believe it.

Niamh pushed a loose red curl of hair out of her eyes. “You know.”

“Nay. Because da is worried some other lass in our pack will entice Erik more?”

“He didna say so, but I suspect that’s the case.”

Accalia let out her breath in a huff, thinking it was the most unreasonable thing he’d ever done. “Does he think to keep all the women in our pack away from Erik the whole week he is here?”

“I dinna know, but all the women are dying to see him.”

Accalia had heard the younger lasses twittering about his arrival, dressing in their finery, their hair plaited beautifully, eager to see Erik. A pack leader who needed and sought out a mate. A clan chief who owned a castle.

Footfalls headed toward her chamber and a chill went up Accalia’s spine. She and Niamh glanced at the door as the footsteps grew closer. Then they stopped at her door and a fist pounded, making her and Niamh jump. “The scouts have reported Lord Erik is nearby. Lord Baldur wants you to join him now,” one of her da’s men said.

It was Tormod, her da’s commander of his forces. She wasn’t surprised her da would send him to fetch her, not one of the guards. Tormod wouldn’t let her wiggle her way into doing something she wanted to do if her da didn’t wish it.

Niamh hugged her, and she hugged her back. “This will all turn out the way it should,” Niamh said.

Accalia sure hoped so, but after her previous near miss on a mating, she doubted that anything would come of this arrangement. Niamh opened the chamber door, waiting for Accalia to leave the room, then joined her.

Accalia planned to take Niamh with her despite her da’s supposed ruling that no woman would attend her even though she knew Tormod would strictly follow her da’s orders.

She took Niamh’s hand, but Tormod shook his head. “Just you, my lady.”

The notion was absurd to think that her da could keep Erik away from other she-wolves in her pack.

Accalia hugged her friend again. “I will see you soon.”

Accalia walked next to the commander, keeping up with his long stride, wishing Niamh could have come with her. Despite concealing her outward nervousness, she couldn’t control her rapidly beating heart or her anxious scent.

She caught him glancing at her. “What?” she snapped as they left the keep.

He cast her a smidgeon of a smile, his long, curly black hair caught in the breeze, his blue eyes filled with dark humor. “Ye are no’ going to the gallows, lass. Just a possible mating.” He looked down at her sword and the sgian dubh tucked into her boot. “Why are you so armed?”

“You never know when you might need to defend yourself.”

His smile broadened and he nodded.

When they reached their horses in the inner bailey, her chestnut mare whinnied at her in greeting, saddled up and ready for their next adventure. She reached out and stroked Whinny’s nose. Tormod helped her up onto the saddle and patted her horse’s neck. He climbed onto his horse and led the way.

“Where is my da?”

“Waiting for you, my lady, out in the glen.”

Annoyed with her da for not allowing her to bring Niamh with her, she followed Tormod out to the glen.

When she arrived at the glen, her da turned to greet her with a nod. She sat with them, her gaze fixed on the rolling hills and valleys, searching for any sign of Erik and his entourage. Trying to settle her nerves, she breathed in the sweet smell of heather in full bloom among the meadow grasses wavering in the steady warm breeze. But the scent of men, leather, and horses kept her grounded in her current situation.

Erik, accompanied by his brothers Logan and Finlay, led a group of six men on horseback towards Hillshire Keep. Eight of his men wore their wolf coats. As the group approached, they could see the majestic outlines of four eighty-foot towers standing in the distance, dominating the surrounding area.

Logan said, “You’ve been quiet this whole trip. Philbin said the lass is bonny and would make a beautiful mate.”

Philbin had been the one to take the message to Baldur, asking for this meeting with his daughter. But Erik still had concerns that he couldn’t shake. “Her da was quite detailed about her talents—that she can take care of the staff and manage the keep while he is battling his enemies. She can travel without complaint on long journeys, is sturdy, and will provide me with more bairns.”

“But?” Logan asked.

Erik gave him an irritated glance.

“Your sons, aye. But her da said she was good with children.”

Erik shook his head. “Many wolves who have lost a mate never mate again. Some wouldna agree with mating a wolf like that.” He couldn’t shake off the concern that Accalia would object to that.

Logan sighed. “You are thinking of our brother Leifson.”

Erik was. When their parents died after their boat had sunk, their older quadruplet had taken over the clan. Leifson had lost his mate in battle and when he tried to secure another, two different families had turned him down. It didn’t matter that he held a position of money and power.

“Well, dinna think of him. He isna half as agreeable as you.” Logan smiled.

Leifson’s policies forced Erik and the rest of his brothers to take those who agreed with them away from their homeland and abandon Leifson. It had been either that or fight Leifson to the death and they preferred leaving and settling in the Highlands under Erik’s rules.

Logan added, “Her da said she was good-natured and that wouldna be an issue.”

Finlay chuckled.

Logan and Erik glanced at him.

Finlay shrugged. “Any da hopeful of mating his daughter to a chieftain would say anything.”

Erik knew that. Her da had not said one thing that was disparaging about his daughter, which was understandable. But the situation with his late mate hadn’t been ideal and he didn’t want to repeat that scenario.

“’Tis unnatural for you to mate your daughter to a white wolf from the northern reaches, whom we know so little about,” Dunbar Hamilton said to Accalia’s da on horseback in the glen, his gray eyes narrowed in irritation.

Accalia’s da, Baldur, was the pack leader and chief of the Hamilton gray wolf pack and clan, a two-and-a-half day’s ride from Erik’s castle and territory. Hillshire Keep loomed in the background, as they waited for Erik to arrive while Accalia listened to her uncle speak his mind. He’d been vocal for a fortnight about her mating Erik.

“Tis no’ a done deal, brother. Erik might no’ want Accalia for his mate. No one wants to war with his pack,” Baldur said, “so dinna do anything to cause discontent between our clans. He has already taken over Crawford’s castle. Do you understand?”

Dunbar, her da’s advisor, spit on the ground. “Accalia should go to a gray wolf pack, not to this—this abomination. As to Crawford, he was an incompetent human asking to be overrun.”

Accalia had heard stories of Erik's noble battles and how he liberated Crawford's people from their oppressive leader. But the reason for Erik and his people’s departure from his northern home remained a mystery. She’d been to Crawford’s castle before and knew the lecherous old man had wanted her as his bride, even when she was a young lass. She wasn’t sad to hear of his demise, but she had liked the members of his staff.

“’Tis said the white wolves descended from the great lights in the sky in the distant north. Mayhap their gods are as impressive as ours. We dinna want to offend them. So you will welcome them to the family while they are here as I am bound to do for the sake of our clan, our pack.” Baldur sat taller in his saddle. “It would be wise to ally with them. Neither Erik nor I trust Freigard, and we may need their support if he tries to push our boundaries. And we both know he will.”

Then they saw Erik ride forth, six warriors flanking him and eight white wolves running beside them. Some of their wolf coats were like wind-driven snow, others with a goldish tint, and others wearing a little gray on their faces and the saddles on their backs.

Her da and his brother were as tall and broad-shouldered as Erik. They were dark-haired, whereas she was blond, and Erik Norwulf had light brown hair with golden streaks and braids draping over his shoulders.

As much as she didn’t want to mate him when she didn’t know what he was like and how he would treat others of her clan and his own, she couldn’t help but find him physically appealing. Muscled, tall, impressive as a warrior, his jawline strong, his face chiseled, a bow at his back, a sword at his waist, he looked ready to do battle.

“This is a mistake.” Dunbar shook his head again.

“God’s wounds, brother. We need another alliance. If we dinna have one, Freigard will claim Accalia, and we will have no alliance with him.” Baldur gave his brother a condemning look. “You know how much Freigard wants her, but they wouldna make a good match. She is way too headstrong. No’ only that, I willna give my daughter up without getting something in return.”

Accalia smiled about her da saying she was headstrong, though she hid the smile when her da caught sight of it and frowned at her.

“You believe she will be less stubborn with the white wolf chief?” Dunbar asked, sounding incredulous.

“I can always hope. No one else is suitable to marry her off to unless it’s to that young Ian Sutherland.”

“Nay,” Accalia said. He acted way too young, and he was arrogant and spoiled.

Her da glanced at her. “Then you better behave while you visit with Erik, or I’ll have to resort to the offer with Ian’s da. But it doesna mean his da will want you to marry his son, or that his son will be agreeable, though his da has said he would like an alliance with me. Erik is our best bet. He was willing to see you sight unseen.”

“We will be in battle with Freigard over this. You know we will. You should have conceded and let him have her,” Dunbar said.

Baldur stiffened in his saddle. “Enough. You have said enough. I will hear no more on the matter. While I rule the clan, ‘tis my decision to make. Besides, Erik’s men look as though they can put up a good fight against a foe and win.”

Accalia’s da glanced back at her to ensure she held her head high, her gaze fixed on the man who would be her husband in a week if she pleased him. Which irked her. What about him pleasing her?

Her da nodded, looking pleased she behaved like a warrior in front of Erik, not fearful or cowering in his presence. She had to admit he was a formidable-looking chieftain, but would he be as arrogant as Freigard?

“Times are dangerous for our kind. Too few of us exist and keeping our secret is tantamount to our survival,” Baldur said.

Wild wolves were being hunted down too, which made it even worse for the lupus garous .

“With fewer prospects to choose from, those with any power in the region to make the alliance worthwhile must mix their blood with the few packs in the area to provide healthy and thriving offspring.” Baldur moved a little on his saddle to get comfortable.

Erik and his wolves and men were close to them now. She knew he would look at her, to size up her appearance, but she had thought his stern gaze would turn to her da. But it didn’t. He focused only on her.

Without warning, Erik spurred his horse forward, closing the gap between them. The vibrations of hooves hitting the ground caused Accalia to grip her horse’s reins tighter. Her horse’s muscles coiled and tensed beneath her. Erik reached her horse, a breeze from his sudden movement and the heat from the animal's body colliding with her.

The scent of horse sweat, leather, and wolf caught her attention. His blue-eyed gaze caught and held hers for a moment suspended in time. Her throat felt parched, her tongue drawing over her suddenly dry lips, his gaze following her innocent action. She swore he almost smiled, but she could have been mistaken. His brow furrowed, and he didn’t look pleased to see her.

She expected him to greet her da first and then acknowledge her with a smile. Unless he felt that was unbecoming of a clan chief and a warrior.

Instead, he seized her reins. “We will send word in a week if she suits me, Chief Baldur.” The white wolf pack leader galloped off, pulling her horse with him.

Shocked, she gasped. Glancing back at her da, she expected him to force Erik to release her.

“You must stop them!” Dunbar cried out.

Baldur’s guards remained where they were, watching Baldur’s reaction, prepared to fight Erik’s men on his command.

“He is a chief in his own right. He will convince her she wants to be his if we are lucky,” Baldur said. “If this is how he feels he must learn if she will be the right woman for him, then so be it.”

She couldn’t believe Erik would take her away like this. Or that her da would allow it.

Erik’s commanding voice was impressive, and powerful, brooking no argument with her da, which meant he had the skills of being a powerful pack leader. No she-wolf would want to mate with a weak leader. Still, she prayed to the gods that her da had not made a mistake in agreeing to unite with Erik’s forces by marrying her off to him, should he be as much of an ogre as Freigard.

“Bah, you have lost Accalia and with no alliance in the making,” Dunbar said, still within her excellent wolf hearing.

“In a week, we will have an alliance,” her da said to his brother, typical of what her da would say when he wanted to will something to happen.

She knew her da had prayed she would prove to Erik that he needed her .

Then she could no longer hear their words, though with their excellent wolf hearing she knew the white wolf chief had heard both her uncle and her da’s conversation.

They rode hard for a while, their horses snorting, their hooves pounding the green grassy meadows as they headed for a hilltop, her horse straining to keep up with Erik’s mount as if her mare was thrilled to run with him. Traitor. He soon released her reins so that she could ride beside him. The wolves ran on either side of the horses, keeping out of their path, panting, tongues lolling out of their mouths, chests heaving, appearing to enjoy the run.

Her heart was beating as hard as the horses’ and wolves’, her thoughts in turmoil. She always planned out her days, and now she was at the mercy of the white wolf chief?

Angry that she had no say in her life, she was still curious about the rumors she had heard about him. “You are as much a beast as they say,” Accalia said to Erik. Aye, he was a chief, and she was but the daughter of one, and that didn’t give her much choice. But he had agreed to visit with her da and her for a week at her castle and not steal her away to his domain.

Erik was so intense, so focused on leaving the area, she didn’t think he heard her. After a couple of hours, he stopped and began giving orders in a strange tongue. It got worse and worse.

They stopped high on a hill covered in rocks and bracken, perfect for watching for anyone approaching from some distance

She glanced at a nearby loch, looking for any signs of danger, but only saw the green leafy trees bordering it, reflecting in it. Light wispy white clouds drifted across blue skies, ground fog rising off the loch to the south of them. Fog could hide trouble, she knew, and she stared at it for some time, trying to see any movement there.

A rainbow of light formed over the fog with the sunlight hitting it just right. The sight captured her, but then she peered around for trouble again. Her skin prickled with unease. She usually loved riding her horse, but she just felt…unsettled.

Erik rode up to her on his black stallion. His blond hair was tousled from the wind and his eyes were full of determination. “We take a short break now.” He slid off his horse and came around to her as if he would help her down, but she didn’t want his help.

“My da,” she said, dismounting on her own, “said you would visit us for a week. No’ abscond with me like this.” Though she had admired Erik’s taking charge as he did, which could prove he could make strategic plans in battle and succeed, she wanted him to know how she felt about the whole matter.

She had envisioned riding with him in the glen and forests around her castle. She looked forward to taking walks and watching him spar with his men, trying to outdo each other as warriors. They would talk about their interests and dreams for the future.

But she knew her role would most likely be limited to being a mate and mother, though she also planned to take on the leadership of the wolf pack and manage his staff in his absence during battles. “I will have no interference from your family in this matter,” Erik said, his deep voice capturing her attention.

“My da planned a feast to treat you like an honored guest.”

“Some would not have it so. His brother, your uncle?” Erik arched a brow as he towered over her. She was tall, but he was much taller.

“I doubt he would have bothered you.” She didn’t believe Erik would bow to anyone, which, for a pack leader, was important to keep the pack together and for that, he impressed her.

His eyes captured hers, blue like the sea, mesmerizing. He looked at her like a wolf determining her strengths and weaknesses like she was his. “I will have no interference from anyone and that includes from you.”

She straightened, hoping to make herself appear more formidable. “If you think to win me over…”

“There’s no need.”

She arched a brow. Ohmigoddess, he was as arrogant as Freigard!

“This is a matter between your da and me. He needs my help to fight Freigard and any other clan who plans to battle with yours. I wish to know if you are worth the trouble.”

She was so angry, that she wanted to strike out at the beast, despite how tall and muscular he was. But she feared she would entertain his men—and him. And she had no intention of entertaining any of them.

“Your da said you have ridden for days without complaint. You will do so for me.” He motioned to a man who joined him and Erik spoke in his northern language.

She felt alienated from them at once, wondering what he said, and why he wouldn’t speak so she could understand him. “Doesna he speak Gaelic?”

“Aye.” But Erik didn’t say anything more about it, which concerned her. “He’s bringing us food.”

Would they keep secrets from her by speaking in their strange tongue while she was at their castle?

The blond-haired man inclined his head and left to get her something to eat while the rest of his men were eating some distance away—all watching for any signs of trouble.

The man Erik had sent to fetch their food returned with brown bread and cheese for Erik and her and she ate some of her bread. Then the man who had brought the food walked off to survey the land below them while they ate. She ate the food after having had very little to eat to break her fast this morn and drank the ale.

Erik continued to eat his food and tossed down some ale. “It’s time to go.” Then he rose and held his hand out to her, but she ignored it.

She knew she was stubborn, but she didn’t want him to believe she was some silly maid who couldn’t take care of herself. She rose to her feet and walked to her horse.

She saw him hesitate to help her mount her horse. To her frustration, she couldn’t climb onto the saddle because of her long gown. Without a word, Erik stalked over to her and hoisted her onto her saddle. Grateful, she took a deep breath.

Niamh was right. Accalia had a pure drive to succeed at anything she tried to accomplish. And she needed to think more positively while she was in their company. “Thanks be to thee.”

“Think naught of it.” He climbed onto his horse.

“Why did you agree to this arrangement?” she asked, as they began to ride off again, her mare jostling her with every step. She needed to know what he hoped she would provide for him, just as she had needs in a mate.

“The same as your da wished—an alliance, and to get you with child to expand his legacy and mine.”

It was the way of their wolfkind and clan chiefs in general. She’d considered having a child by the chief, but she hadn’t considered how tall he would be. Freigard was much shorter in stature and not half as muscled.

“And we couldna do this at my castle?” They were supposed to get to know each other’s worth during the weeklong visit.

He raised his brows at her, a small teasing light in his eyes.

Her cheeks burning with embarrassment, she scoffed. “I dinna mean getting me with child. Do no’ say it. You wished no interference.” She wondered what he thought she would have done to interfere. She would have tried to be on her best behavior under her da’s watchful eye as she had always longed to do what he approved of. Not that she hadn’t gotten herself into much mischief over the years. But she had attempted to please him.

“Our travel days dinna count toward the week we have to get to know each other. According to your da, we could handfast for a year, and if in that time we didna have any offspring?—”

“‘Tis no’ true unless we were?—”

“Human, aye. He was talking about humans. I dinna believe ‘tis a bad notion.”

“We are wolves,” she reminded Erik as if he had forgotten that.

“Aye.”

“We…we…” Well, goddess take him. “We dinna attempt to have children unless we are mated…for life.” This man was infuriating. She wasn’t about to hear anything more from him about making love without agreeing to be mated. “And if we dinna suit?”

“I will send word to have your da come for you.”

She scowled at Erik. “You know he is as much a chief as you are.”

“Aye, and he is glad for the arrangement.”

“Taking me to Ice Haven was not what he agreed upon.”

“Whitehaven.”

She feared she would accidentally call it that if she didn’t watch herself. Everyone in her pack called it Ice Haven, believing the northern men were made of ice and could fight any foe. Which would be a reason to be allied with Erik.

“Has your da followed us to take you back?” Erik asked.

“Nay,” she said, reluctant to admit it. She hadn’t wanted her da to have to fight on her behalf. But she wished he’d stood up to Erik to let him know he couldn’t have his way in all things concerning her.

“Then by leaving matters as they stood, he has agreed.”

“My da didna tell me you were a tyrant chief, either.”

He cast her a small smile, but then it faded. “’Tis better to be quiet in this area. Danger lurks nearby.”