Captain Liam's Treacherous Mate

Heated Kiss

Liam had been restless for the better part of the day. Finding out that he had a mate and she was just upstairs resting was enough to drive a man crazy. During luncheon, Rowan had noticed his brothers'agitation. He had offered a sparring session to help take his mind off of Maisie. Liam had agreed

Unfortunately, the sparring session did not fair much better. Liam was completely distracted. He kept glancing at the main door to see if, by chance, she would come out. Rowan was able to get quite a few heated blows into Liam before Liam yielded. Rowan let out an exasperated breath. Liam walked over to the small wall of hay near the weapons shed.

"Let us hope ye are not in battle anytime soon. Yer head is lost." Rowan said as he swatted at his brother's arm. Rowan leaned on the other side of Liam.

"It is odd. To go from not caring about any woman to all of a sudden one that I have laid eyes upon once has my head spinning." Rowan could tell that Liam as irritated at himself. Liam was a good fighter, he needed to be, with the threat of pirates on the water during his expeditions. He could not afford to have his head in the clouds thinking of a maiden.

"Hopefully she will be down for supper. After that we can talk with her about ye being mates and all." Rowan patted Liam on the back before sitting up. He needed to go check on his own woman and see how she was doing. Fiona did not move too quickly around the castle and could usually be found in one or two spots as of late. More often than not on the first floor of the castle as she detested going up and down the stairs.

Liam pushed himself from the wall as well and found himself wandering towards the gardens. He used to play in it as a child, but the older he grew, the less time he spent with them. His mother, Alana, had changed it some since his grandmother Eliza's passing. Alana had said that Eliza loved the outdoors and Alana did not want to upset her by changing the garden.

After Liam's grandmother had left the earth, Alana had added in a few more trees and some heather. He had been told that Eliza preferred to pick her own, but Alana liked it nearby. Liam smiled to himself as he recalled his grandmother. She was a kind-hearted woman. Anytime that Liam was in trouble with his mother, Eliza would steal him away and they would go on some kind of adventure outside of the gates. He never told his mother. If he had, Alana would have asked that they stay within the walls of the castle.

His mother had been on edge when it came to her children after the loss of Seamus. Alana had said that it was not worth the risk, but the older Liam got, the more she knew that she could not keep him trapped within the castle for his own safety. Once Liam had found the sea, Alana had embraced it as she could keep her heart from it too. It was nice to have that common love with his mother. Alana had settled down after a while and let her children guide their own destinies once more.

Liam was standing at the base of one of the trees when he was suddenly hit by the smell of Scottish Bluebells. Liam's head snapped in the direction of the scent. Standing at the front of the garden was Maisie. She was wearing a new dress that covered her modesty. Her eyes searched her surroundings. She must not have realized where she was.

"Hello, Maisie," Liam said. He took a deep breath to calm his racing heart.

"Hello." She responded. Her gaze dropped to her hands as they twisted in her skirts. Was she such a timid woman? Liam hoped not. He was unsure how to deal with a woman who swooned easily. The women he had grown up with were all strong willed and spoke their minds freely.

"Were ye able to get some rest?" Liam asked another question.

"Some," She answered. They stood awkwardly for a moment. Liam was unsure if Maisie could feel the pull as well. As much as he was annoyed at her timidness, he also wanted to scoop her up in the same sense. Liam shook his head. Now was not the time for inappropriate thoughts.

"I am sorry, I was not sure where I could go and I could not stay in that room any longer." Maisie finally said before Liam could ask anything else. She finally raised her gaze to his. Once again, Liam was lost in her green eyes. They reminded him of the forest just outside the walls of the castle.

"I dunnae think that Rowan would forbid ye from walking the garden. If it would make ye feel better, I could walk with ye. Then he surely would have no quarrel with it." Liam suggested. Maisie chewed on her bottom lip as she thought about it. The action did not go unnoticed by Liam. His eyes shot to her lips instantly. How he wished he could suck on it as well.

Liam cleared his throat quietly. Maisie eventually nodded slowly. She began to walk towards Liam in the middle of the garden. She stopped in front of him as Liam held out his arm. She hesitated but said nothing as she took it. The tingling began once more. Liam could feel it through his tunic. He looked down at Maisie to see if she felt it as well. She gave no indication except for the fact that Liam could see bumps rising on her skin. She certainly did feel it.

"Maisie, have ye ever heard the tales of fated mates?" Liam asked nonchalantly. He did not want to upset her if she had not. The last thing Liam wanted was to make someone feel obligated to have feelings towards him.

"Nay." She responded. "What are fated mates?"

"There was a time, long ago, that nature created mates among wolves. Each wolf had one other person that was specifically created for them."

"Like soul mates?" Maisie asked. She had read one or two stories in her life and they were of the romantic kind. They often spoke of true love and soul mates.

"Aye, but for werewolves like us."

"I have never heard of such a thing. Are the tales true?" Maisie asked. She seemed quite interested in what Liam was telling her. It made him hopeful.

"I would not have thought so, but my parents are actually fated mates, as well as my uncle and his wife and, most recently, my elder sister found her fated mate." Maisie stopped walking for a moment and looked up at Liam.

"Three just within yer family?" She asked. Amazement shone clearly on her face. Liam was hopeful that she would not scoff at the idea, possibly she was open to it, maybe even enough to contemplate giving Liam a chance. He did not like the idea of someone loving him because nature deemed it so. He wanted his future wife to want to be with him, mate bond or not.

"Would ye like to hear the signs of a mate bond?" Liam asked Maisie. She nodded her head and continued walking through the garden. Her arm still firmly planted on Liam's

"The first is special smells. Each mate will give off a smell that only their mate can pick up on." Liam already knew that Maisie's scent was Scottish Bluebells. He wondered what she smelled on him. Maisie gave no indication of the first sign, so Liam continued. "The second sign is a tingling sensation when mates touch. Both can feel it and it only increases with time. It will never go away." Maisie's brows drew together as Liam explained. Liam was again rewarded by her expression. She must feel something then.

"What is the final sign?" Maise finally asked when Liam did not continue.

"Sensing each other's thoughts and feelings," Liam answered. He had not felt those yet, but he had no doubt that they would come in time. His eldest sister, Alexia, fought her mate bond for some time. She was afraid of giving up the Alpha title to Rowan and Liam and disappointing their parents. However, the bond won out and Alexia could not stay away from her mate, Cameron. After Alexia had given in, that is when she could sense Cameron's feelings and hear his thoughts.

Liam and Maisie walked for a little while longer. They ended up back at where they had started. Maisie pulled her arm from Liam's. He instantly felt like something had been taken from him. He almost asked her to return her arm. That was until Maisie spoke.

"Are we mates?" Liam almost missed her question as she asked it so quietly. Her head was down and she stared at their feet that were facing one another. Liam slowly raised his hand to her chin. He moved her face to look up at his. Her eyes were wide as she felt the sparks on her chin run through her neck. It invoked a response she was unsure about.

"Aye." Liam whispered back. Maisie gasped slightly as Liam lowered his head to hers slowly. He did not want to frighten her but also wanted to give her time to push him away. When she did not, Liam lowered his lips to hers. Her mouth was soft and, to his shock, wanting. She opened her mouth without hesitation, which had Liam plunging his tongue inside and tasting every bit of her. She was as sweet as she smelled.

There was a cough from the other side of Liam and Maisie. Maisie quickly pulled her head away from Liam and turned around. Liam was slower to stand straight up but when he did he turned around and noticed Rowan at the edge of the garden. "Supper is almost ready if ye wish to clean up beforehand." With that, Rowan turned on his heel and began to walk towards the castle. Liam caught Rowan's smirk at the last minute.

"I am sorry. Ye must think me a light skirt." Maisie said as she took another step away from Liam.

"On the contrary. Yer response was expected with our connection. Ye donnae need to apologize." Liam gave her a reassuring smile. A small smile played at Maisie's lips as well. Maisie had just found her way into the Douglas Clan.