Highlander Heats Up

By Laureen Hanley

Monica and her friends were just trying to salvage a weekend gone wrong when her friends, Lily and Terrie, disappeared into the unknown. Now on a mission to save her two best friends Monica must decide on whether she wants to assume the role of wallflower again or become the strong woman she needs to be to save her friends and herself.
Leaving behind everything she has ever known she steps forth into a strange land and embarks on an adventure that even Monica never dreamed of. She must learn to trust herself as well as the people around her or face the disappointment of being alone. Finding her friends is one of the many struggles that Monica must face, but not the hardest as she comes face to face with a highland warrior named Lucas.
Lucas, a spoiled first son, will one day take over leadership of his clan. First he must find a wife, but one escapade after another has produced nothing more than a long line of jealous woman. About to fall victim to an arranged marriage, Lucas is drawn to Monica. For the first time in his life he feels that there could be something more with this girl than just another passing intrigue.
With the odds stacked against them, will each be able to put their issues aside and become one or will the ever growing need to please be more than each had ever anticipated. Will each of them be able to stand up for what they believe is right, or fall prey to the circumstances which are out of both their control.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jan 30, 2013
• ISBN: 9781481708470

Laureen Hanley

Laureen Hanley was born and raised in Corning, NY. She later lived and raised two children in a small Pennsylvania town with her husband. Now she and her husband reside in southwest Florida. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

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2013 by Laureen Hanley. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 01/25/2013

ISBN: 978-1-4817-0849-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-0848-7 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4817-0847-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013901044

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Contents

Acknowledgement

Prologue

 1

 2

 3

 4

 5

 6

 7

 8

 9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

Epilogue

To reach your dreams you must first believe in yourself.

Acknowledgement

O nce again I want to thank my daughter, Tara, who always tries to keep me grounded. To my mother, Myra, and my brother, Michael, who sat through a long and tedious reading of the rough draft. A very special thank you to Nancy for putting in those long hours. Without which this book might not have been the best without your help. I would also like to thank my husband, Shayne, for always standing by my side no matter what. Lastly, to all my loved ones, thank you for all your support.

Prologue

M onica laid on her towel listening to Lily ramble on about the men leaving them there and expecting them to stay put. Suddenly she felt cold water hit her skin and she quickly sat up. Lily had just asked her and Terrie if they were listening to her. Monica glanced at Lily and said, How are we supposed to leave? Like you said, we haven’t got anything on us except these towels. We could get into even more trouble with the way we are dressed. Besides, they could be watching us right now just testing us or something. Remember, they did it once already.

Yes, they did. If you just look at Lily and me, we still wear the proof of those assholes testing us. So why don’t you quit your whining, Monica? And by the way, how is it that not one hair on your pretty little head was ever touched? replied Terrie.

She stared at Terrie and then glanced over at Lily. Both girls wore bruises from the men who brought them here to the beach. Terrie was a petite brunette bombshell. She had short hair with big brown eyes. Terrie was the one who was always getting them into some kind of trouble. And this time they were in big trouble. Terrie had talked her and Lily into coming to Daytona to party with a man called Nicholus and two of his friends. Nicholus was older than his friends, Lee and James. The party had gotten out of hand when Nicholus violently attacked and bruised Terrie’s cheeks. There was also the outline of his hands on her neck.

Lily was her best friend with long reddish brown hair and hazel eyes. She thought that Lily was beautiful even though the girl had a big temper with a short fuse. She continuously had to play peacekeeper with Terrie and Lily since they were always butting heads. Lily had two black eyes and a fat lip that had been split by Lee. Monica felt so bad that the girls had been hurt.

Monica had been lucky, James took her to another room when all hell broke loose. When she saw the two girls she had felt guilty, and now Terrie had to remind her of it yet again. If only they hadn’t come here. She was about to tell Terrie that it was all her fault that they were even there when Terrie pulled something out of her purse.

She couldn’t believe that Terrie had taken a couple of things that belonged to Nicholus. He was already pissed off at them and now Terrie took it upon herself to steal from him. Monica wondered what the hell Terrie was thinking.

Lily was holding a jeweled dagger in her hands and turning it over, making the jewels glisten in the sun. Lily handed it back to Terrie and then got upset when Terrie gave the other object to her. It was a small wooden box that looked really old. There were carvings on it that were hard to see in some places. Lily told Terrie that it was supposed to be cursed and she didn’t want anything to do with it. Lily tossed it back to Terrie who looked it over. Terrie thought that she could pawn the objects to get money for their trip back home.

Lily and Terrie were discussing the men again when something went horribly wrong. There were beams of light shooting out of both girls. Monica almost fainted when she tried grabbing Lily’s arm, but her hand went through her. The more the beams came out of them, the more the girls faded away till they simply disappeared. The vision of horror on Lily’s face would forever be imbedded in Monica’s brain.

She glanced all around for someone to help, but there was not a soul on the beach. Patting the ground where the girls just sat, she screamed as loud as she could. When she finally realized that the screaming fell on deaf ears, she jumped up and started pacing. She wiped tears from her eyes as she tried to figure out what had just happened.

Talking to herself as she paced she said out loud, What the hell happened here? One minute they’re here and the next they’re gone. Those beams of light, were they even real? This shit can’t be happening. People don’t just disappear into thin air, and they don’t have beams of light shooting from them either. I know, this is all nothing but a nightmare and I’m going to wake up any minute. She looked up into the sky raising her arms. Oh God, please let me know where they are. Lily! Terrie! Where are you guys? Please come back! Don’t leave me here all by myself. Come back, she whispered just before falling to the ground. Monica buried her face in her towel and cried. She cried for her friends hoping that they were alright and she cried for herself at being left all alone to pick up the pieces. Once again she screamed. Between the crying and screaming, it didn’t take long for her throat to become sore.

 1

F inally pulling herself together, she sat up and stared out into the water. Waves gently caressed the beach’s edge. Monica sat there watching as the beach filled with people. She observed children playing in the sand and a young couple splashing each other as they went into the water. An old couple was setting up an umbrella and placed their chairs under it. That’s when she decided it was time to leave. The girls were gone and obviously not coming back.

Monica grabbed Terrie’s purse looking inside. She couldn’t believe what she found. Now she was pissed. If Terrie were there she would beat her up herself. Inside the purse was not only drugs, but there was also about two hundred dollars. What kind of game had Terrie been playing? They could have left as soon as the guys dropped them off. She picked the dagger up and stuffed it in the purse. Grabbing her towel and the purse, she got up heading towards the parking lot. If only she had looked in the purse sooner. She had wasted so much time. Monica hurried as fast as she could, and once reaching the parking lot, she saw the car coming towards her that had the three men in it. Wouldn’t you know, it was just her luck that they would come back now.

Her heart skipped a beat. Monica paused a moment, and then took off running towards the hotel in the opposite direction. With all the people coming and going she hoped to get lost in the crowd. She needed to get to a phone so she could call home. Monica almost fell when she heard someone yell her name. Shit, she thought, they spotted her and were now in pursuit. She ran into the hotel and spotted the women’s bathroom. Ducking inside, she made her way into one of the stalls and sat down on the toilet. Trying to catch her breath, she leaned forward.

She would just wait awhile and then sneak out to freedom. The sound of a toilet flushing made her jump. She sat listening to someone run water in the sink and then the door opened. Monica sat there on the verge of hysterics as she waited. The door opened again and she listened intently. The person walked to the stalls and she held her breath as whoever it was opened each stall door. She thought it odd for someone to do that, but stayed quiet hoping that whoever it was would hurry up and leave.

She was looking down at the floor when she heard a male voice. Open this door right now or I will break it down, Monica. We can do this the easy way or the hard way, it is your choice. Either way, you will be coming out with me, said James angrily. She bit her lip and finally gave up opening the door. He grabbed her by the arm and said, You have a lot of explaining to do. Where are the other two?

Monica gave him a dirty look and said, If you want me to tell you anything, I suggest you take your hands off me. You have a lot of nerve coming in here. This is the women’s bathroom, you know.

Look, we do not have time for games. We are leaving now. He was interrupted when a woman walked in the room. The woman glared at them both and made a disgusted noise as she shook her head. Monica took the distraction as a way to escape him. She darted for the door, but he grabbed her before she could run. He dragged her out of the room by her arm. She couldn’t believe the way he was acting. He was like a whole different person now. Before he had been so nice, and now he was being an asshole. He leaned down whispering in her ear, If you make any kind of trouble as we walk out of here, you’ll be sorry. Do I make myself clear, Monica? She nodded her head as she quickly walked out the front doors.

There parked out front, was the car with the other two men in it. James pushed her towards the car, opened the back door, and shoved her inside. Getting inside, he told the men it was time to leave because the other two girls weren’t with her.

The man driving was called Lee and he said, Where the hell is Lily? I cannot believe that she would take off leaving this one here alone. Terrie, on the other hand, I could see doing it, but not Lily. What is going on, Monica, you are way too quiet?

She looked at Lee through the rearview mirror. He looked to be in his late twenties. Lee had blonde shaggy hair with big brown eyes and had a very tan, muscular body. He was really good-looking, and she could easily see why Lily had been infatuated with him. But for some ungodly reason he thought he owned Lily.

Before she could answer Lee, the other man in the front turned towards her and pointed his finger at her. I want to know where the hell those two bitches are, and I want to know right now! Do not dare tell me that you do not know where they are either, said Nicholus.

Nicholus was the man who had invited Terrie to his place for the weekend. Terrie had brought her and Lily with her, promising them a weekend of fun. Their weekend had turned into a nightmare from hell. The man was older than the others, but rather attractive with his sharp nose and olive skin tone. He wore his hair slicked back, with grey streaking through at his temples. He brought her back from her thoughts by yelling, Well, are you going to answer me or what? I do not want to hurt you, but I will if that is what it takes.

Monica swallowed hard and sighed, I have no idea where they went. We were sitting there one minute, and the next, they were gone. They just disappeared into thin air. She looked over at James with tears running down her cheeks. He stared at her with raised eyebrows. He had short dirty blond hair that always looked messed up. He looked to be only a few years older than her, but what drew her attention to him were his eyes, he had one blue and one green eye. She said while glancing at him, I’m telling the truth. They were talking about that little box and it being cursed. Terrie said she wished we could go back in time to 1513 when that story that Lily was reading about took place with the highlander, and then they just… disappeared.

All three men stopped talking and Lee swerved the car, stopping along the side of the road abruptly. They all looked at her like she had horns growing out of her head. What? What’s wrong? It finally dawned on her, it had something to do with that box they had held. You guys know what happened, don’t you? It had something to do with that box, didn’t it? Do you know what happened to them, where they went? With a glimmer of hope she watched both Lee and James glance at Nicholus, who had suddenly gotten very quiet. His face had turned a dark red like he was going to explode any minute.

Nicholus sat there a few minutes, and then said calmly, We need to get home so we can figure this out. I cannot believe this shit is happening. This was supposed to be a good weekend and it all went to shit when I brought those damn girls here. I should have listened to you, Lee.

She watched them from the backseat as Lee headed back to Nicholus’s house. Monica had a sinking feeling but couldn’t do anything about it. What was she going to do now? There was no way that they would let her out of their sight. She leaned back against the seat and shut her eyes. How did she always get herself into these situations? Oh, listening to Terrie and her bullshit, that’s how. Monica would have to play their game, because she knew they were the only way she could find out about her friends. She was at least hopeful that the two girls were still alive. If they didn’t think so she figured she would not be here with them now.

It didn’t take long to arrive back at the house. They exited the car and the men led her to the side of the house. They walked along the side to the backyard where there was a small trailer. Lee opened the door and told her to go inside. She stepped up into it and saw a small door. To the left was a little sink, stove, and half-fridge all in a row. Opposite them was a small table with benches on either side of it. Lee told her to sit down at the table, which she did reluctantly. Further down she could see the sheets and blankets on the bed were rumpled.

Lee grabbed the clothes on the bench across from her and threw them on the bed. Then opened the fridge and grabbed a beer for each of them. James sat down next to her and Nicholus sat down across from her. Lee leaned up against the sink and put his foot up on the bench next to Nicholus. She watched Lee take a long swig of his beer before he said, Okay, Monica, now tell us exactly what happened today starting with us dropping you guys off at the beach. We want to know every detail no matter how small. You might not think it important, but we might. So if you want to see your friends again…

Sighing, she took a long sip of her own beer. Looking at Lee she told them everything that happened. One thing she was good at was telling every detail of a story. She slowly walked them through the events of the day, leaving nothing out. When she was done they all looked at each other but said nothing. She laid her head down on the table a moment, looked back up at them, pushed her hair behind her ears, and asked, Well, did any of it help? Do you know what happened to them? Please tell me what you know. Do you think they are still alive? Will I ever see them again?

Suddenly Nicholus hit the table so hard that she thought it would break in half. She jumped about a foot off the bench. That fucking bitch! First she steals drugs from me, then it is a dagger, and of all the things, one of my boxes. I swear to God that when I find her, I am going to kill her. That bitch has no idea who she is dealing with, he roared. The man was so mad that she expected his head to spin around any minute. She actually thought he started foaming at the mouth.

Scared to death she quietly asked, So, do you know how to find them? You actually think they are still alive, don’t you?

Yes, we think that they are still alive. We need to talk in private, and then we will explain. Stay here and we will be back in a few minutes, said Lee.

They all got up and left her alone in the trailer. Monica stood up and tried the door, but it was locked. She couldn’t believe that they locked her in. Suddenly she heard voices, whispers actually. The noise was coming from the sink area. She looked around and lifted the doors to a cabinet above the sink area. There in the cabinet were four little TVs that had sound coming out of them. The first one was of the bathroom that the girls had tried escaping from, second was of the kitchen, the third was of the media room, and the fourth was of the study. The men were in the kitchen arguing. She turned the volume up a little so she could hear them better.

I cannot believe that they were both able to use one box. You told us only one person per box. I left the woman I loved, because you told me that only I could use the box. I cannot fucking believe this, Nicholus. I guess you do not know as much as you think you do. Or did you know all along, and just chose not to tell us the truth? yelled Lee.

I was told only one person per box. Why would I lie to you, Lee, think about it, yelled Nicholus.

Oh, I think you would have told us anything to make sure that only we came with you. You seem to forget that I know about your lies to get Lee to come, said James calmly.

She watched as Lee jumped James and held him by his neck. What lies are you talking about, James? Tell me or I will kill you right here and now.

Then do it, Lee! Do it! But it will not get us any closer to bringing them back. Face it, you need me, said James.

Let him go now, Lee. He does not know anything. He is just trying to get you all worked up, demanded Nicholus through clenched teeth.

I do not think so, Nicholus. I think he knows quite a bit. Right, James? Now tell me or else.

Let go of me and I will tell you, gasped James. Lee let go of him and James continued as he rubbed his neck, You did not kill that man that night you were so drunk. You had passed out and Nicholus killed that man blaming it on you. It was the only way he could make sure you would come with us. For some reason he thought he needed you, too.

Shut up, James, you run your mouth way too much. You forget that you would be nothing if not for me. Start using your brain for once in your life, yelled Nicholus.

Is what he said true, Nicholus? Why would you do that? You made me give up everything and everyone, for what? To live here in this time with nothing to do? You are insane. I should kill you now, you bastard. Lee ran his hands through his hair as he paced back and forth across the kitchen floor. He stopped after a few minutes and stared at Nicholus. You do know that we have to go after those two girls. How ironic that they picked the same time period that we are from. What are the chances of that? We need to go get them and get back before anyone finds out that we are there. I sure hope that you have a plan, said Lee.

Not yet, but I will. I only hope that they are still alive. I want the pleasure of killing that bitch myself, after I fuck the shit out of her first. I want to hear her beg for me to stop, laughed Nicholus.

Monica made a face as she listened. That man was really evil, she thought as she continued to listen to them. They were all crazy thinking that they were from the past. It was even crazier to think that her friends had traveled back in time. They never mentioned her once. She needed to leave before they decided to kill her as well. Monica walked over to the door and tried once again to open it. Mad, she kicked it as hard as she could and the door flew open. That was a surprise. She went back to make sure they were still in the kitchen. Seeing that all three were still there, she grabbed the purse and a shirt off the bed and sniffed it to make sure it didn’t stink. Monica threw it on as she headed quietly out the door.

She carefully stepped along the side of the house to the front. Monica ran as soon as she got to the front. Remembering a store a couple of blocks from the house, she slipped the purse strap over her head, but still held it close because of the weight, and ran as fast as she could. When she reached the store she went in and bought a soda, a pack of cigarettes, a candy bar, and a pair of flip flops. Once outside, Monica walked to the end of the building. She ate the candy bar as she put on the sandals. From where she was, she could see people coming in, but they couldn’t see her. There hadn’t been a phone, so she needed to find a place that had one. While she drank her soda and smoked her cigarette, she scanned those coming and going for a potential ride.

A car with a couple of boys pulled in and she thought that this might be her chance. When the driver came back out she waved him over. She asked him if he could give her a lift and he agreed. Monica got in the backseat and saw the car with the three guys pull in. She ducked down as they pulled out of the parking lot hoping they did not see her. Her heart was beating wildly as she sat back up looking behind her. The boys were on their way to the mall and she told them that would be great. On the way there the boys smoked pot and drank the beer that they had bought. She didn’t think that the driver looked old enough to drink, let alone buy it. Monica watched out the window as the boys talked shit and she just smiled nodding, like she even cared what the hell they were talking about. All she could think about was getting to a phone so she could go home and get away from all this shit.

Monica panicked when she noticed that they drove past the mall. Hey, I thought you said that you guys were going to the mall? Maybe you better let me out here. Thanks for the ride, but I need to get to a phone now!

Laughing, the driver said, We are going to the mall, but first we want to finish drinking our beers. Don’t worry, it won’t take us that long. The boy punched the other boy in the arm as they laughed.

She was getting scared and had a bad feeling about what was happening. They pulled the car over along a side street that appeared vacant with lots of trees and bushes. Once they stopped the car she jumped out. They quickly jumped out after her. The one boy grabbed her wrist, spun her around, and tried kissing her. The more she fought him, the more violent he became. The other boy came up behind her grabbing her hips and pushing the shirt she wore up her body.

The one driving said, Oh yeah, I knew you had to have a great body under that big shirt. This shouldn’t take long… as long as you don’t fight us too much, he said smirking.

Boy she wished she could smack that smirk off his face. The boy yanked at her bikini bottoms trying to rip them off her. She kneed the boy in front of her making him drop to the ground, and she turned to the other boy who slapped her. Knocking her to the ground, he jumped on top of her. She fought him; scratching and kicking, trying to get him off of her. Monica screamed for him to stop, but he acted like he didn’t hear her. While she thrashed around, she was able to somehow knee him in the groin. He stopped for a moment, and then glared at her before he punched her in the face, not once, but twice. He ripped the shirt down the middle as he called her all kinds of nasty names. She still fought him, crying and screaming for him to stop as he yanked the bottoms of her bikini down her legs. The other boy came over, grabbed her arms, and held them above her head. The boy holding her arms yelled for the other to hurry up, because he wanted to make her pay for kneeing him. Monica felt him touching her body with his filthy hands. As a car pulled up, the boy let go of her arms. If only she could reach the purse to get the dagger out. She would kill them for what they were doing to her.

The next thing she knew, the boy on top of her was yanked off from her. Lee had the boy by the back of his neck and he punched him in the face. The boy flew to the ground. He scrambled backwards begging Lee to leave him alone. James had slapped the other boy around as well, and both boys were now crying.

She told us that she wanted us to show her a good time. She was all over me at the store.

You fucking liar! All I asked for was a ride to a phone, you asshole, she screamed as she sat up trying to pull up her bottoms. Monica was crying and trembling all over.

Lee yelled, I should kill you now for trying to rape this girl. Do you not know that when she said no, she meant it? You two have five seconds to get out of here before I lose my temper and kill you both. The boys ran to their car and squealed the tires as they left. Lee walked over to her holding out his hand to her. Stop crying and come on, Monica. We better get out of here before they bring the police back. By the way, you owe me for the shirt, it was one of my favorites.

She grabbed his hand letting him pull her up off the ground. Monica figured the shirt comment was his way of trying to make light of the situation. Trying to cover herself, she stumbled, and Lee quickly scooped her up heading for the car.

She got into the car next to James who reached over to hug her. Why did you run? We were not going to hurt you, Monica. I thought you wanted to find your friends?

I do want to find them. This whole thing is such a nightmare. I really don’t know how much more of this shit I can take. I heard Nicholus talk about wanting to kill Terrie, and I’m afraid that he will want me dead next. She took out a cigarette and lit it with shaking hands as she wiped tears from her eyes.

"Well, you are lucky that we were able to follow you. You are fortunate those idiots did not kill you. When we get back to the house, we have much to