Highland Heat Read Free Page A

primary desire.”
    That challenge returned to his eyes, flashing brightly as heat twisted through her belly. It was such an unexpected response that her hands moved to cover her lower body, the instinct to protect herself too strong to ignore.
    “Enough out of ye.” She shook her head. “I’m nae impressed, I assure ye. Only more disgusted by yer lack of respect for this holy place and the way that ye know ye should be behaving.”
    His lips rose into a smile that showed his teeth. “But I am impressed with ye, Deirdre Chattan. Ye are too much woman for this abbey, and I am very displeased to be so burdened with finding our queen, because it does nae leave me any time to enjoy yer fiery spirit.” His smile faded as his eyes darkened, and a promise lurked deep inside them. “A true pity that is, I’m thinking.”
    “Well, stop yer thinking when it comes to me. It’s naught but a waste of time.”
    He chuckled. “Aye, but a pleasant one, and I’m spending too many hours trying to keep our Highlanders from fighting one another nae to take the opportunity to enjoy something when it stands directly in front of me.”
    The man had the audacity to reach for her face, but she slapped his hand before he touched her. The sound bounced off the stone walls, and he chuckled once again.
    “A true shame, for I’d enjoy seeing what ye thought of me inviting ye to ride off with me, Deirdre.”
    “I’d curse ye, and that is a promise, yer lairdship.”
    He chuckled but it was a dark sound full of promise. “That makes me even sorrier that I cannae devote any time to discovering how to make ye purr for me.”
    Her mouth dropped open in surprise when she heard such brazen talk in the doorway of the abbey. Two of the nuns crossed themselves in the yard when they overheard him.
    His men began returning. They shook their heads, which made him frown. Laird Cameron sent them back to their horses with a flick of his fingers. His attention remained on her.
    “If Her Majesty should arrive, be sure to tell her she will be better off with me than William Crichton.”
    “I cannae imagine the queen coming here.”
    Quinton Cameron’s expression hardened. “I can. It is the only reason I would have sent my men into an abbey. Her Majesty is first cousin to the king of England, and there are many who will extort her if she makes the mistake of becoming their prisoner.”
    Deirdre discovered herself shocked into silence. There was no missing the fact that Quinton Cameron had no real liking for what he had just ordered done. But he stood firm, facing what he considered a necessary task.
    She might not care for his method, but she couldn’t fail to respect him for the dedication he applied to keeping the clans from feuding. If the Highlands dissolved into bloody raids, England would find it simple to invade. Joan Beaufort wasn’t just queen of Scotland. When she and her husband, James I, had arrived after being ransomed from England, Scotland’s nobles had sworn their allegiance to both of them. Many considered her a monarch in her own right, and the English might use that to overthrow her young son, who had been crowned James II.
    Quinton Cameron was watching her, studying her reaction to his words.
    “Go on with ye now that ye know the queen is nae here.”
    He grunted, narrowing his eyes for a moment, the fact that he wanted to remain evident in them. Deirdre lifted one hand and pointed toward the doorway.
    “Do ye need a map to find yer way, my fine Earl of Liddell?”
    He groaned and thrust his hand out faster than she could avoid. This time, he captured her wrist, closing his fingers around her smaller arm. She gasped, but not because his grip hurt. The man controlled his strength expertly, tugging her hand up until she felt the warm brush of his breath and a moment later the soft press of his lips against the inside of her wrist.
    “Nay, lass, I know my way around a spitfire sure enough, and if ye needle me, be very sure I will