Highland Warrior Woman (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read Online Free PDF

face. “Did these men hurt ye?”
    Maeghan gasped when Alec placed his hand on the hilt of his sword and glared at Hamish. With speed she wouldn’t have thought such a large man capable of, he pulled her away from Hamish and into his side. His arm wrapped around her shoulders when she tried to move away.
    “Nay!” Maeghan cried. “The Campbells saved me.”
    “Come and be seated,” Calum called. “My brothers have yet to hear what happened to the lass. I had Ewan bring ye here so ye could hear the telling the same time they did. I donnae want any dissension between our clans. We found Maeghan on the border of Campbell land close to the MacLeods.”
    Maeghan let her laird guide her to the table. He placed a large hand on her lower back and gently urged her forward. Once they were all seated and goblets of wine had been poured all the men looked to her.
    Picking up the wine with trembling hands, she took a sip to ease the dryness in her mouth and throat and tried not to grimace at the bitter taste. Taking a deep breath, she explained how she had been captured, what had been done to her, and how she had escaped the MacLeods’ clutches. When she had finished, she found each of the men looking at her as if she had grown another head. She wished she knew what they were thinking. Hamish’s angelic features had tightened with anger. Ewan’s face showed nothing except the ticking muscles on either side of his clenched jaw. Calum was staring at her with a blank expression but had a funny look in his eyes.
    Gathering her courage, Maeghan finally turned her head and looked up at Alec MacTavish. He was looking at her as if she were a curiosity. But as she watched, his puzzlement turned to fury. Turning his face away from her, he looked to the Campbells.
    “They die!”
    Maeghan’s ears rang from Alec’s roar and watched in confusion as anger swept over Calum’s, Ewan’s, and Hamish’s faces. They each moved their hands to the hilt of their swords and nodded in agreement.
    “Nay!” Maeghan yelled, rushing to her feet.
    “Ye dare defy yer laird, lass?” Alec asked softly.
    “Aye. Nay.” She clutched her hands nervously. “I cannae let ye avenge me.”
    “Why the hell no’?” Alec roared.
    “I will no’ have ye, or anyone for that matter, in danger over my own stupidity.”
    “I should punish ye for leaving the village without an escort, but I fear it is yer sire’s fault for the way ye are. If he hadn’t treated ye like a lad, ye would never have been alone,” Alec said, running a hand over his face. “Sit down, lass. Ye are still in pain.”
    Maeghan sat down and took another sip of wine. She wondered if her laird was correct. If her father hadn’t taught her how to hunt and defend herself, would she have had the courage to go about so freely? Aye, she would have. Maeghan didn’t like having to rely on others for her own existence. She was so unlike all the other women in the MacTavish clan. Maeghan Fraser liked to be independent, and no matter what, she wouldn’t change for anyone.
    “We need an alliance,” Calum said, drawing her gaze. He was looking at her, and even though she tried to stare him down, she looked away first. “There has been too much dissension between the clans. Ye and I both have the largest clans in the highlands. It would be a bloodbath if we were to war against each other.”
    “What are ye talkin’ aboot, Campbell?”
    “We have a responsibility, and we aren’t aboot to give that up,” Calum answered.
    What in the hell were they talking about? Placing her goblet on the table in front of her she lifted her head and froze. Four sets of male eyes were looking at her. Heat stole into her cheeks at the attention, but she didn’t lower her head again. Maeghan lifted her hand and brushed a strand of hair away from her face, wincing and gasping when her fingers touched her swollen face.
    “When a life is saved, that life becomes the property of the savior,” Ewan stated in a