Page 123 of Sighs of the Highland Wind
He stumbled forward, almost knocking Norah down as the tension on the rope suddenly slackened, but although she took a step backwards, she stayed upright and wrapped her arms around him.
“I thought I might not see you again,” she whispered. Her anxious gaze traveled all over his face. “I thought they might have killed you!”
It was on the tip of his tongue to put on a show of mock bravado and say, ‘those stupid redcoats could never kill me!’ but he realized that this was not the moment for levity. He smiled at her grimly and held up his wrists. “They wanted to,” he grunted.
“Oh, god, Tearlach!” she said tenderly. “I am so sorry! Your poor hands!” Carefully, she cut through the bonds on his wrists and kissed the raw and bloody surface of his flesh. “We had better take care of these.”
19
However, she never got the chance. A split second later Tearlach’s lips descended on hers and kissed her fiercely as he pulled her so tightly into his embrace that she could hardly breathe. She felt again the familiar sensations inside her that she only felt when she was with him. Her nipples were tingling and sensitive, there was a sweet ache and moisture in her core, and she had the consuming urge to rub her hips against his and feel the hard ridge of his arousal. As his tongue stroked hers, Norah thrust her hands into the thick mass of hair at the back of his head and heard him give a low growl of satisfaction.
Tearlach was lost in her. He had kissed many women in his time, but not like this. Her mouth tasted of the rough ale she had been drinking, but there was a sweeter, more elusive flavor that was all her own. He could have spent his life standing here holding her with his arms wrapped around her tender body, her breasts pressing against his chest.
Her warm, earthy, womanly scent was invading his senses and driving him almost to madness as he shifted his body against herinstinctively, driven by an impulse that was too primitive for him to understand. He was becoming consumed by Norah. She filled every one of his senses, and when they finally drew apart, he was breathing heavily and staring at her in disbelief. No woman had ever made him feel this way before. It was intoxicating.
He leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes. They stood together, motionless for a moment. “Thank you,” he said at last.
“What for?” Norah was puzzled.
“For saving me,” he whispered. “And for everythin’ else.”
Norah had opened her mouth to reply, but at that moment they were interrupted by Tommy, who was dashing towards them furiously. “Hey, you two! Get a move on!” he yelled, with a face like an approaching thunderstorm. “Ye cannae stan’ there cuddlin’ all day!
We might have got rid o’ this lot but there are dozens more o’ them filthy redcoats out there, an’ when they find out what’s happened to their pals they will no’ be happy. No’ happy at all.” He pointed at them to emphasize his point. “So you two had better get movin’ because we need to go an’ get the horses.”
“How far away are they from here?” Norah asked anxiously as she looked at Tearlach.
“No’ far,” Tommy replied. “But we need to get out o’ here quick, Norah, so let Murdo an’ I take Tearlach between us. You have done your bit now.”
“I think ye had better leave this to the menfolk, Norah,” Tearlach advised. “I saw how it tired ye out last time.”
Even though she was tempted to protest, Norah was glad, since she had helped to carry Tearlach before and it had almost broken her back. She nodded and smiled, but just as they were about to set off, Tearlach looked at her mischievously. “Just one more,” he said, and his lips swooped down on hers for a blistering kiss that left Norah trembling.
He smiled at her wickedly as Tommy and Murdo put their arms around him and once more began to help him along the broad path. While they were walking, to distract him, Norah began to recite aloud from ‘Gulliver’s Travels’ from the beginning of the book, and despite his discomfort, Tearlach began to find himself absorbed in the tale.
The distance to the place where the horses were grazing was about a quarter of a mile from where they had ambushed the redcoats. Tearlach listened to the mellow sound of Norah’s voice as they moved along, and for a while he forgot his pain, but as they drew near to the horses, he was stabbed by another pang of heartache.
“If only Rory was here,” he said miserably. “I miss him so much. I wonder what the redcoats did wi’ him.”
Norah said nothing, but as soon as they reached the clearing where the horses were grazing she excused herself.
Thinking that she was obeying the call of nature, Tearlach allowed himself to be escorted in beside the other men and the horses, and sighed as he ran his hands over their smooth flanks and kissed their velvet noses. He knew every one of them by name, since he had been around them for a long while, but no horse had ever been as dear to him as Rory.
To add to their problems, with Rory missing, there were not enough horses to go around. Two men would have to double up, which meant traveling very slowly.
“Tearlach, look who I found,” Norah said from behind him, hardly able to stop herself from laughing out loud as she watched his face.
Tearlach turned around and his heart skipped a beat as he saw his own beloved horse for the first time in weeks. A rush of joy overwhelmed him, and he struggled forward to greet his friend, cursing his own weakness.
However, Rory had no such problems as he trotted up to Tearlach to rub his soft nose against his hair, whickering softly. Rory might not have been able to speak, but he danced around his master for a few moments, expressing his gladness to see Tearlach with every movement of his body.
Tearlach hugged the big animal’s neck and laughed with sheer happiness at being reunited with him. In fact, he could have wept for joy, and only just held himself back from doing so. “Where did ye find him?” he asked as Rory continued to mess up his already unruly red mop.
“The redcoats had him,” Murdo answered. “They were all very pleased wi’ themselves, an’ they couldnae wait to put a Sassenach in his saddle! Well, we couldnae let that happen, could we? A good Scottish horse fightin’ his own countrymen - it would have been treason!” He laughed and stroked the big animal’s neck, but Rory ignored him. He only had eyes for Tearlach.
Tearlach looked his horse up and down carefully. “Well, at least they took good care o’ ye, Rory,” he observed, grinning. “An’ yestill remember me! I am that glad to see ye again!” He hugged Rory’s neck and looked him over from his nose to the tip of his tail, making sure that all was well with the animal he loved more than all people - except one.
Norah felt joy welling up in her as she watched Tearlach’s reunion with his oldest friend. “I am glad to see you so happy,” she said warmly, as she stroked the big horse’s neck.
