Read Samantha James for Free Online Page A

whole.
    He was back within seconds, and it appeared he was not through with her. She stared—indeed, warily!—as he dropped to one knee before her.
    Dangling within one large brown hand was a small length of chain.
    Boldly he reached for one slender wrist. Meredith jerked at his touch, for he was so very warm! He paid no heed but placed the shackle deliberately around her right wrist. In shock she watched as he then proceeded to place the other end about his left.
    She wet her lips. “Is there a key?” she heard herself ask.
    He raised his head, his smile almost goading.“Aye, but you’d best watch your tongue and mind your manners, lest I lose it.”
    A sizzle of anger shot through her. “Ah,” she said sweetly, “but I wonder…which of us is the prisoner?”
    His smile vanished. He bestowed upon her a look so quelling, her bravado was gone in an instant.
    Without a word, he turned to his side and lay down upon the cold hard ground. Meredith felt herself jerked down beside him, for the length of the chain was such that she could not sit while he lay. His back to her, he drew the corner of his plaid over his head and slept.
    Meredith was left huddling in the chill night air.

Three
    Sleep departed little by little. Meredith was still caught in the murky web of the night’s slumber. Somewhere in the back of her mind was the awareness that morning was nigh, the light of day trickling brightly upon the world. She lay on her side, but her backside was still wretchedly cold, and the chill damp seemed to penetrate to her very bones.
    But there was warmth emanating from somewhere. She could feel it, and instinctively snuggled toward it, this wall of ovenlike heat…ah, warmth! Faith, but it was bliss. Like a cat nuzzling its mother, she stretched into it and against it.
    A vile curse ripped through the air just above her. Meredith’s eyes snapped open; the warmth she sought was no more, the swiftness of movement but a blur. She blinked as the shackle around her wrist dropped to the ground.
    Cameron MacKay stood high above her, his feet braced wide apart. For the space of a heartbeat their eyes tangled interminably, his virulently accusing, hers still puzzled and confused.
    All at once the air was filled with a thundering tension. He did not speak—and indeed, what need wasthere? She glimpsed within those harshly drawn features a blistering condemnation.
    Just when she thought she could stand it no longer, he spun around and was gone.
    Slowly Meredith pushed herself upright. The venom she sensed in him pierced her to the quick. She could not fathom the burning in his soul. He regarded her as if she were some vile ugliness that stained the world, and all because she was a Munro.
    Egan and Finn were just beginning to stir as she crept by them. After tending to her needs, she made her way to the stream. She splashed her face with water, then picked her way to a gnarled oak tree that stood guard near the pathway leading back to the clearing. It was here she knelt down upon the soft, mossy ground. The voices of the men flitted to her ears, but she ignored them. It was tranquil and peaceful here beneath the shade of the massive oak. Though her life was now in turmoil, she would begin this day as she had every day for the last year and more. Dutifully Meredith folded her hands, closed her eyes, and bowed her head low.
    Her lips moved silently. She prayed for strength and vigilance, for the safety and wellness of her father and Uncle Robert, the sisters at Connyridge. She prayed most diligently…prayed for deliverance from Cameron MacKay.
    A twig snapped behind her.
    “It’s time,” intoned a voice that was already far too wretchedly familiar.
    Meredith determinedly ignored him, continuing her prayers. Her skin prickled, for she could feel his regard as surely as if he touched her. Then, all at once, he was touching her. An arm slid hard about her waist, lifting her up and around and fully off her feet.Her prayer—and her