Captain Liam's Treacherous Mate

Favorite Place

Liam woke the next morning with more energy than he had felt before. He would spend time with his mate and get to know her and allow her to get to know him in return. He quickly dressed and left his bed chamber. He made his way to her room and knocked lightly on the wooden door.

There was silence on the other side of the door until the knob turned and Maisie slowly peaked around the side of the door. "Good morn." Liam said, he could feel his grin upon his face and knew that he probably looked a little crazy. He cleared his throat. "I was wondering if ye would care to join me for a ride this morning." Maisie looked back into her room for a moment.

"Yes. I just need a moment to right myself," Maisie said and she slowly closed the door. She had yet to dress for the day before she had a knock on her door. She was accustomed to dressing herself as she had never had a maid, but the garments that were given to her proved to be more intricate than her previous dresses.

Once she had the gown on and her hair was tied up at the back of her neck, Maisie opened the door of the bed chamber and walked out into the hall. Liam was leaned up on the same wall as her door. One of his legs was bracing the wall as well. As he saw Maisie, he pushed his foot from the wall and held his arm out to her.

She took it and felt the sparks once more. Subsequently, her hand tightened and relished the feeling even more as it ran up her arm. Liam smiled down at his mate and she seemed to like the feeling as well. They walked in silence down the main staircase and out to the barn. Liam asked to have two horses readied. As the grooms readied the horses, a maid appeared with a basket. It must hold food for Liam and Maisie's outing, Maisie thought. No one seemed to question where he was going or why he was taking a stranger with him. It must be due to the fact that Liam was the brother of their Alpha.

Maisie was still confused why Liam was not the Alpha. She wondered if she should ask him. It could be a touchy topic and the last thing she wanted was Liam to be upset with her. She would get nowhere if she were to upset him. Liam helped Maisie to climb onto the back of a tan mare.

Once seated, Liam grabbed the reigns of another darker horse and began to walk towards the main gates. Maisie looked around at the warriors as they began sparring in the bailey. It was not a new sight to her, but each man looked at her in question. They must be wondering what Liam was doing. Maisie kept her gaze forward. That was until there was a shriek from the other side of the bailey.

A woman, slightly older than herself, came rushing towards Liam and Maisie. She almost startled the horses. Liam settled them down quickly and then turned towards the woman. Maisie felt herself grow irritated at the idea that this woman might have a claim on Liam that she was unaware of.

"Ye have a mate and dinnae think to let me ken to that information?" The woman yelled at Liam as if she was an older sibling. Maisie knew that his older sister lived in another clan though, so that was not the case.

"Ye can lower yer voice. I am not trying to alert the entire clan, Maya." Liam said in hushed tones. He walked closer to where Maisie sat on top of the horse. He gave her a small apologetic smile. "My apologies, this is the daughter of my mother's eldest friend. She is basically another sister to me and Rowan." Liam said to Maisie in explanation. Liam then turned to Maya and said, "This is Maisie. Yes, she is my mate, but we are taking time to get to ken one another. So please do not be yer overbearing self." Maya's expression turned to one of utter shock. It made Liam chuckle.

"I would never." Maya held her hand to her chest as if wounded by the thought. She quickly looked up at Maisie and gave her a broad smile. "When ye are free to move about on yer own, come find me. I have some good tails about yer mate here." Maya winked at Maisie and she could not help the little chuckle that escaped her. Her hand flew to her mouth in surprise. The action did not go unnoticed by Liam. Maisie noticed a small appearing on his lips as well.

"Alright, let us pass." Liam jokingly pushed past Maya and continued to the main gates. Maya waved at the pair and turned on her heel back to her sparring circle.

Once Liam and Maisie had passed through the main gates, Liam threw himself onto his horse and headed towards the large trees of the forest. Maisie nudged her horse forward to follow. She caught up quickly enough and they rode in silence for a moment. "Apologies for Maya. She can be a bit forceful when she wants to be. She takes after her mother, Marie."

"She seems free-spirited," Maisie commented. Liam laughed into the space in front of him.

"Aye, that is one way of putting it." They continued to ride for some time. Being away from the castle was proving to help Maisie not feel as though her every movement was being watched. She glanced over at Liam from underneath her lashes. He was a very handsome man. His hair was slightly longer than most. He had a large build but not as large as some of the warriors she had grown up around. One could tell that he proffered other means of staying in shape. His face was tanned from the sun. She wondered if he was a farmer and preferred to be outdoors.

Liam continued to guide her towards somewhere. When they did not stop, Maisie finally decided to ask, "Where are we headed?" Liam looked over at her, a grin spread across his face. As she asked, they came to the edge of the tree line. Before them was the ocean.

Liam slowed his pace as he got closer to the cliff edge. "It is my favorite place in the world."

"This spot?" Maisie asked as she came to be by his side.

"Nay, the sea. Ye see, I gave up the Alpha title to Rowan because at a young age I ken that my heart belonged to the ocean and its waves," Liam said as his gaze was still held by the sea under them. Maisie looked out over the fast sea and the waves that crashed against the rocks of the cliff that they stood upon.

"Ye are a captain?" Maisie finally asked. Liam turned his head and smiled.

"Aye. I am. Hopefully it does not disappoint ye that I am not an Alpha."

"On the contrary, ye are an Alpha of the sea." Maisie said, returning his smile in earnest. It did something to her insides to see him look upon the ocean with so much love. She could not help the feeling of wanting to also receive that kind of look from him.