Ally and James rode out together along the Scottish highlands in a companionable silence for the first half hour. She was so caught up in the mystifying beauties of the highlands that she hadn’t noticed the quiet.
The loch they came upon was still and peaceful with the grassy banks surrounding it. Ally still seated upon Destiny, looked around in awe. James came to a stop just behind her and sat back on his horse to watch her unguarded for a moment.
She felt James’ gaze upon her, and her eyes sought his. A wave of guilt mingled with desire ran through her. The pull for this man was undeniably strong it took all her effort not to throw herself at his feet and beg him to take her, but she resisted. She knew she had to for both their sakes. He would never be happy with anything less, than everything that she was, and she wouldn’t be able to give him that, until she sorted out this mess of information and emotion swirling around her head.
Ally decided to use this time alone to get to know him better and to get some questions answered. Where to begin?
The questions and confusion must have shown on her face for he moved his horse closer to her and asked, “What’s wrong, Ally?”
Ally looked up at him and tried to find the strength she knew was hidden somewhere deep inside. She would need her strength and courage to survive whatever it was that was going to happen.
“I need answers to questions,” she began. “And I need to make sense of everything that I have already been told, but I can’t seem to. I have accepted it, but there is a big difference between accepting and understanding.”
His eyes were full of compassion. “Let me help you.”
She smiled gratefully. “I understand what the Immortal’s purpose is, but I don’t know what they are capable of, what they can do, and all that stuff.”
“Well maybe I can enlighten you a bit.” James smiled warmly. “As for what we can do, well we aren’t limitless but there isn’t much out of our grasp. We can read and control minds with compulsion. Some of us immortals, are also special another way. Most of us are drones, if you like, but a few have extra talents and are more powerful. We have Empaths, Seers, Warriors and Elders,” he paused. “Damian was a warrior. He was one of the most skilled Immortal we had ever seen.” The sadness James felt was obvious in his voice.
Ally felt so sad for him. Like James, she knew what it was like to lose people that you loved. “I see the emotions that run through you and Gran when he is spoken of. He must have been a remarkable man. I’m sorry that he was lost to Vincent.”
She saw genuine gratitude in his eyes. “Thank you Ally.”
He gathered himself and nudged his horse to keep walking while they spoke. Ally did the same and listened intently as he continued telling her of the immortals.
“Apart from reading minds and the like, our abilities are things like creating fireballs in the palm of our hands to throw at our enemies, moving faster than the human eye can see, and we also possess what humans call a sixth sense. We are trained in the art of fighting from a young age, more so the males of our people, but the females are taught also. Our powers come from the energy of the earth. Every living breathing thing creates energy, and we draw on that to create the fire.”
Ally rolled her eyes. “You could have told me the cool stuff at the beginning.”
He felt laughter bubbling up and erupting. “I wish I knew it would have been that easy to convince you. I would have done things differently,” he said once the laughter died down.
“Well I may not have been happy, but it’s nice to know this comes with a few perks.”
“There are a lot of perks to being an Immortal. You’re right though, we have focused on the negative side of things. We were just so worried about you that we allowed fear to grip our hearts. Vincent and the prophecy have been in the front of our minds, so Adele and I fixated on that.”
He was being gentle with her. She appreciated it.
“Anything else I should know about the immortals?” These were her people, and she needed to know everything about them. Ally also needed to know about the vampires if she wanted to defeat them, but one thing at a time.
James looked at her. “There are lots of things, but I think that you’ll find out most of the little things along the way. The only other important thing for you to know about is the Elder Council. It is part of the prophecy was that a council would be formed. It will consist of you and five others.”
Ally raised her eyebrows in surprise. “So I’m now a council Elder as well? What does the council do?”
“Not yet, but you will be soon. The council will be formed, one by one as the new elders appear. Its purpose will be to give guidance and leadership to the immortals. The prophecy states that once all the members have been found and united, it will be time to take out Vincent. With the full power of the council behind you, we should be victorious.”
“So this is all in the prophecy?”
He nodded in response.
“Where is the prophecy? Can I see it?” she asked feeling slightly overwhelmed at the thought of a whole new responsibility being placed on her shoulders.
“Of course, Ally. You have as much right as anyone to see it,” he said with a smile. “I keep the parchment in my study, in a safe. No–one but I can access it.”
Ally nodded, then decided to tackle another thing that she didn’t really understand fully.
She took a deep breath. This was something she needed to know, but it scared the hell out of her. “Tell me about soul mates.”
He looked surprised, “What do you want to know?”
“Is it always like this?”
“You mean like it is between us?” he asked gently.
She nodded.
“Then yes, it is always like this.”
“Doesn’t it bother you that you have no choice in all this? That your partner is preordained, and you don’t get to choose?” she asked bluntly not stopping to think what she was saying.
He gave a startled laugh.
She realized that she had probably insulted him. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”
“I know what you meant Ally, don’t apologize. It doesn’t bother me because you were made for me, my perfect half. If I had been given the choice to choose for myself, I would never have been able to find anyone more desirable, suited, beautiful or complimentary to me than you, my darling and I am the same for you.”
She studied him for a moment and came to the conclusion that he was right. He was all those things to her and more.
“If you look at it from that point of view, then you just might be right.”
“You will find that I usually am,” he said.
Ally stared at James with a wicked gleam in her eye and kicked Destiny into a canter. She needed to feel the air rushing past her and more importantly she didn’t want to think for a while. She had more questions, but they could wait until later.
She looked behind her to see James hot on her heels, and smiled brilliantly as she drove Destiny harder. The horse beneath her was made to run with its gait so smooth and fast.
Ally felt so happy and carefree out here on her horse, with the beautiful highlands stretched out before her and James riding with her. She now understood completely the exhilaration that was written all over his face this morning. They continued galloping across the highlands until they came across a beautiful grassy hill overlooking another loch and a nearby glen. James called out to stop so they could have lunch.
He dismounted and pulled out a blanket for them to sit on and grabbed the packed lunch that Sophie had prepared for them. Ally sat down and looked around while he unpacked the lunch and laid it before her.
She never wanted to leave this place. The dread found its way back into her mind, and she realized she may never leave, but not in the way she thought. If Vincent finished her off…
James interrupted her thoughts, “Wine?”
Ally looked dazedly at him for a moment before the question registered. “Yes, actually, I would
love one.”
The spread before her was rather impressive. It consisted of a bottle of white wine, cold chicken sandwiches and two mini cheesecakes. It was simple and perfect. She loved it.
“Let me guess, your sources told you I love cheesecake and cold chicken sandwiches.”
He smiled knowingly.
“I think my grandmother should stop giving you an unfair advantage over me,” she joked.
“Lass, I need all the help I can get,” he said dryly.
She couldn’t help but laugh at that. It was partly true; she felt sorry for him but admired his perseverance.
“I don’t know how you left this place, it’s incredible. How long have you been away?”
He looked around at the scene before him. James was glad that she appeared to love this land as much as he did. “I haven’t been home for five years.”
“You haven’t been back once in those five years?”
“There was nothing here for me; my place was guarding you Ally,” he said with a seriousness that surprised her.
“What about Sophie and Henry?”
“I love them like they are family,” he paused not wanting to upset the fragile balance of understanding that they had, but it was time to be honest with her. “You can’t understand yet but you are my life, my love and my world. I would never have risked leaving you even for a day once I found you. I had to stay away from you, but I would never have left you unguarded.”
She felt his pain, watching and guarding something you loved from a distance for five long years, never having it quite within your reach. Her heart broke for him, and the guilt returned. She had essentially been the reason for his pain.
“No you weren’t,” he said firmly out of the blue.
She looked startled then realized he was listening in again.
“James,” she said as she threw him a look to get out of her head.
“Sorry,” he said looking sheepish. “Old habit, I do it without realizing.”
“So let me get this straight. You listened to my thoughts for five years.”
“It sounds so bad when you say it that way,” he laughed softly.
“Well?” Ally wasn’t going to let this go.
“Not all your thoughts, not even the majority to be honest. I only listened in when I lost track of you, or if I thought you were sad about something. I was only trying to keep you safe.”
“I know James, but from this point on, no breaking and entering if you don’t mind.”
He laughed hard. Ally’s sense of humour was one of the many things that he loved about her.
“You might want to tell Adele the same thing. I’m not the only one who was eavesdropping.”
“What! Her too?”
James held back the grin that was threatening to appear on his face. He could practically see the flames coming out of her ears.
“What’s so funny?” she turned on him.
He threw his hands up in a mock surrender, “Nothing my little spitfire.”
Her mouth dropped open, and she lightly shook her head. She did have a short temper, and she secretly liked that he called her on it.
“So no more eavesdropping from anyone,” Ally said firmly all the while planning to get her own back when she could read minds.
“I agree to that.” He paused. “There is something I want to clear up with you, though. You are not the reason for my pain. I love you Ally; I won’t deny that, but it’s not your fault that I am hurting. You have enough courage to stand up and say that you aren’t ready yet. You want to do it when it’s right for you, and I admire that.” He took her hand in his.
She looked at their hands touching and that familiar wave of dizzying desire was trying to overcome her senses. He appeared to be suffering from the same affliction.
“How do soul mates get anything done when every time they touch, look at one another or seemingly are in the same room feel this?” she asked quietly, not wanting to ruin the moment.
“I would suggest at first they spend a lot of time,” he cleared his throat, “elsewhere…”
“Elsewhere?” she said confused, then it dawned on her, he meant they spend a lot of time in the bedroom at first. She blushed from head to toe at the thought. She wasn’t completely innocent but there had never been any man in her life that had tempted her enough in that area. Come to think of it, with James lurking in the shadows she had a feeling that even if there had been someone he wouldn’t have gotten all that far with her.
Ally hadn’t thought about being intimate with someone all that much in the past, but suddenly it was all she could think about. The most alluring images floated through her head, and she imagined what it would be like to be with James. She knew it would be unlike anything she would ever experience with anyone else, and she was suddenly glad that she hadn’t given it up to just anyone. It was something special that she had kept unconsciously for this man.
She flicked her gaze back to James, and she saw he was thinking something along the same lines.
Ally felt like she was going to melt under the heat coming from his gaze. Those eyes were looking at her with something akin to a predator stalking its prey. The color had changed from emerald to a deep green that would have blended in perfectly with the grass beneath them. He lifted his hand from hers and moved it to cup her cheek. James moved in slowly, as if testing the waters but unable to control himself any longer.
He was mere centimeters from her lips.
“Stop me, Ally,” he whispered, “because I can’t hold myself back anymore.”
“I can’t,” she whispered back and moved in to close the distance between them.
It was all the encouragement he needed. He let all the pent up passion and desire flow from his lips to hers. She gave back all that she received and matched his desire with her own. They both felt like they could go up in flames at any moment, and neither would have cared. James felt something shift in Ally. She was awakening in ways that she never knew she could. It drove him further and higher than he ever thought possible, and it was only going to get hotter as they continued.
He pulled her closer and gently laid her back on the blanket. His hands were reverently and slowly making their way all over her body. It was like nothing Ally had ever felt before, she never wanted it to stop.
“Ally,” he groaned. “You need to stop me before we go too far.”
She could feel the heat burning her up inside. She wanted something, needed something, but she didn’t know what. “Not yet,” she said breathlessly.
He was losing control, he could feel it, soon there would be no turning back.
The urge for soul mates to bind their union was incredibly strong. James could feel Ally losing the battle. He had to find a way to stop. This was not how he had planned on doing this. He loved having her in his arms and touching her the way he was, it was painful to even think about pulling away, but he had too.
“Ally,” he warned her, trying one last time to get her to make him stop.
“James, I can’t fight this, and I want you.”
He groaned with pure lust and pulled himself back enough to break the contact.
She looked at him startled then realized why he had sounded so desperate. His eyes had become two black onyx’s staring back at her. Desire had almost taken him over completely and there would have been no going back. She knew that he felt things stronger than she did, but she hadn’t realized how far apart they were in the strength of the feelings. She admired him for pulling back when he looked like he might explode at any moment.
James looked at her and shook his head, “I’m sorry, Ally.”
She was concerned about him. James appeared quite shaken up. “What for?”
“I almost lost control and that’s not what I had planned on doing. I said I wouldn’t rush you.”
“You weren’t the only one rushing,” she said making light of the situation in an attempt to make him feel better.
“No, but I knew what would happen.
I just couldn’t resist you.”
Ally felt the heat begin to rise again, and she felt warm and fuzzy from the compliment.
He locked eyes with her. “Ally,” he said with a shaky breath. “I can sense what you feel remember?”
“Yeah, I remember but what’s that,” she trailed off realizing that he felt her desire rising again. “Sorry…I didn’t mean it.”
He laughed at her words despite feeling breathless from desire. “I know little one, I know.”
“Is there any way we can be around each other without feeling like this? We are going to drive ourselves insane.”
“There is only one way to lessen, actually lessen is the wrong word, these feelings will never diminish, but you can control them better once you well…” he left off gesturing to the scene of the crime from a moment earlier. He couldn’t bring himself to even say the words.
“Right, so until then we are walking pressure cookers,” she laughed softly.
“In essence,” he said agreeing with her analogy.
She stared thoughtfully at the loch in front of her, the sun was beginning to hide behind what looked to be thunder clouds, which appeared to be moving at an alarming rate.
“James, do storms have a habit of sneaking up on you in this country?” she asked.
“They can why?”
She pointed at the clouds approaching them in the sky.
Something seemed off about them. He looked harder and sent out his senses to detect if anything was amiss. It took about thirty seconds for him to realize that they weren’t storm clouds…they were danger.
He grabbed Ally and ran to the horses. She was seated on the horse with her hands on the reigns before she had even registered that James had moved. She looked up, and he was on Cooper opposite her.
“Oh God, what is it?” she asked, terrified.
He looked her in the eyes and said very firmly with a touch of compulsion for her to remain calm. “Ally, we are in danger. You need to ride Destiny as fast as you can back to the manor. I’ll be right behind you.”
He could see the fear in her eyes.
“I will protect you Ally,” he said with such conviction, she could do nothing but believe him. “Trust me! Are you ready?”
She nodded in acknowledgement. “Then ride like the very hounds of hell are on your tail.”
Ally looked away and kicked her heels into Destiny’s side, and she took off with a start. She was moving so fast that she was almost flying! Destiny knew instinctively where to go, so Ally gave the horse her head and focused on getting back to the manor. She looked behind her a few times to make sure that James was there as promised. He was following but his face was covered in terror, not for himself but for Ally. He knew what was hiding in those clouds. She could hazard a guess, but she didn’t know for sure.
James watched Ally riding fast and hard in front of him. Ally had been the one that spotted it.
What is wrong with me? James thought. He had lost all focus on keeping Ally safe and had become focused on bedding her, it would seem. He groaned internally with frustration.
James turned back to check that they were still in the clear, but it appeared, they weren’t.
He called out to Ally, “Whatever you do, don’t look back!”
Ally heard what he said but ignored it. When someone said that you had no choice but to look. The desire to was too overwhelming. Ally turned around and immediately wished to God she hadn’t.
Chapter Eighteen