Highland Captive by Hannah Howell Read Free Book Online Page B

he will do ye little good as a mount.”
    “Mayhaps,
but he could still be put to stud. I would wager he has weel proven himself in
that area.”
    She
thought about lying but knew the man would simply test the truth for himself. “Aye.
He hasnae had a miss yet.” She could not restrain the impish twinkle that
entered her eyes. “Another year or twa of letting Elfking do what comes
naturally and I will be a rich woman.”
    “Ye
claim a fee?” Parlan asked in mild surprise.
    “Do
ye not if a man uses Raven for stud?”
    “Aye,
but”—he frowned—“payment went to Lachlan, did it not?”
    “Nay.
Elfking is mine. I take money or one of his offspring. The horse Leith was on
is one of Elfking’s spawn.”
    “Whose
mare?”
    “One
of Alaistair MacVern’s.”
    Parlan
gave a soft whistle for the man was well known to have prime horseflesh. Then
he chuckled to himself. It must have been a sore trial for the stiff-necked
Alaistair to deal with a slip of a girl. That he did at all only verified
Elfking’s worth.
    “Then
he could weel richen my purse,” Parlan observed, and met her glare with a
smile.
    “Aye,
that he could but t’would be a waste to use such a fine horse for naught but
that.”
    “True
but who is to say he will never turn to me? Given long enough away from ye and
good care at my hands and the bond that ties him to ye could slowly weaken,
even break.” He took careful note of the fear that briefly flashed in her eyes.
“‘Tis worth a chance.” He let her think on his words for a moment before
drawling, “I may be willing to bargain.”
    Her
impulsive start of hope was quelled briefly by the strange glint in his eyes. “What
sort of bargain?”
    Leaning
forward, he murmured, “Ye or your horse.”
    Aimil
frowned in confusion, wondering why the other men at the table were suddenly so
quiet. “I dinnae understand.”
    A
slow smile touched his face as he traced the gentle curve of her face with one
long finger. “Nay, ye truly dinnae. ‘Tis astounding. I want your horse. I also
want ye.” He smiled a little more when she blushed. “I willnae steal your horse
if ye come to my bed.”
    The
outraged refusal she knew she should make immediately did not come forth. “I
must speak to Leith.”
    He
sat back with a nod and signaled Malcolm to take her to her brother. “I will
have my answer this night, Aimil.”
    She
paused in the doorway to look back at him with all the icy hauteur of a duchess
despite her tangled hair and odd attire. “Sir, I dinnae recall giving ye leave
to address me so familiarly.” She turned sharply on her heel and left before he
could reply.
    When
Parlan had stopped chuckling, Lagan ventured, “So ye ask her to choose one
stallion or another.”
    Parlan
frowned, wondering why being termed a stallion should bother him. “Aye, in a
manner of speaking.”
    “Why
dinnae ye just seduce her? For such a stud as ye, t’would be easy or so says
your reputation with the ladies.”
    “I
dinnae think she would be an easy one to seduce and I havenae the patience to
wait long for her.”
    Lagan’s
brows rose sharply in a gesture of surprise. “If ye are that hungry for a wench...”
    “I
am not that hungry for a wench. Leastwise, I shouldnae be after Catarine wrung
me dry but twa days past.” He grinned when Lagan laughed. “Nay, I am hungry for
Aimil Siubhan O’Connell Mengue and I mean to have her.”
    “Even
if she doesnae come to your bed this night?”
    “Aye.
I will simply find another way.”
    “I
think ye also mean to try for the stallion as weel.”
    “Aye.
I said I wouldnae steal it. I didnae say I wouldnae try to win the beast over.”
    “Parlan,
ye are surely destined for hell.”
    “Aye.
Nay doubt, but I mean to have a taste of heaven first.”

Chapter Four
    “He
said what?”
    Aimil
looked at her brother, thinking how much a warm, dry bed and food had restored
him. He was as weak as a baby and the fever still lurked in his blood, but she
no longer feared