Amanda had been giving so much of her attention to her patient that she had forgotten how cold and wet she was. Nowshe looked down at herself and became aware again of the cold, which was making her shiver and her teeth rattle uncontrollably.
To add to her woes, a headache was beginning to throb behind her eyes. She knew that she should dry off and warm up, but she had no idea of where to go or what to do. She was hesitant to leave her patient, but she knew she had to at least get out of her wet clothes.
Hamish, seeing her plight, came to help her up, but Amanda shook her head and pushed him away, then rose to her feet unaided.
“You are very cold and wet,” he pointed out. “You must dry off and get warm before you become sick.”
“So are you,” Amanda pointed out. “Are you not worried about your own health?”
Hamish looked down at her, smiling warmly. “Do you always think of others before yourself?” he asked.
He had taken a woollen blanket from one of the other beds, and he draped it over her shoulders as he spoke.
Amanda looked utterly exhausted, he thought. Her face was pale, her eyes were bloodshot, and she was trembling all over. He was too, but there was a fragility about her that he knew he did not possess.
Abruptly, Hamish felt something within himself that he had not experienced for ages; he cared about her welfare. He was absolutely astonished at himself, since tenderness was completely alien to his nature, or at least he had thought it was after his family had died, and his brother had robbed him of his birthright.
Perhaps he had just never allowed himself to feel it, building a wall around his heart so that he would not fall prey to the pervasive power of caring. It weakened many men and led them to do the most stupid and outrageous things. No. He wouldnever be like that. He had made that promise to himself when Struan stole his birthright.
Amanda began to walk out of the tent beside him, but she managed only three steps before she could go no further. She gave a long moan as her knees buckled, she closed her eyes and began to fall. Hamish felt her weight shift against him, but he was able to catch her before she sank to the ground, and hefted her into his arms.
She looked at him for a long moment and began to whisper something, but before she got the words out she closed her eyes, her head lolled back, and she went completely limp in his arms.
“Amanda!” he cried frantically, but getting no response, he strode over to his own tent and laid her on his cot, telling himself not to panic.
He had handled worse situations than this before, so why was he so worried?
7
Hamish called for the women to bring him whatever blankets and furs they could find and drape them over Amanda. She was shivering so much that he could feel it against his own skin. He stripped off her dress, leaving her only in her chemise, and reasoning that there was no time to be concerned about modesty; Amanda needed to be warm straight away.
“Get a hot stone for her feet,” he ordered one of the guards.
The man took one look at Hamish’s face and ran to do his bidding as quickly as he could. Meanwhile, Hamish tucked in the blankets around Amanda, wishing he had some magical power to warm her up. All he could do, however, was to chafe her hands between his, hoping that friction would do the trick.
When the man came back with the blanket-wrapped stone, Hamish placed it at Amanda’s feet and tucked the blankets around her again. He began to murmur one of the stories his mother had told him when he was a child, which often comforted him in times of stress and trouble. This was one of the peculiarities which made him special to his men, since it made the big, powerful figure more approachable and less fearsome.
Hamish sank down into a chair beside his cot, then leaned his elbows on his knees and gazed at Amanda. He had seenbeautiful women before, of course, many of them, in the years when he had been one of the most eligible bachelors in Scotland.
During that time, it had been easy for him to take the availability of lovely women for granted, since they flocked to him in droves, and he had never been short of female companions to warm his bed.
However, since the fateful day when Struan and his men had invaded his chamber and snatched away his title, birthright and home, there had been a dearth of such eager young beauties. Hamish had always known that his looks were attractive to women, but it seemed that his medium-height, average-looking brother’s wealth and status were far more so.
There had been a few dalliances with Fiona, of course, but that had been a huge mistake on his part, since she had read too much into them, and wanted far more from him than he could give her. He was not in love with her and never would be.
And now there was Amanda, who had dropped into his life like a tiny spark that had lit an inferno. He watched her as she slept, looking at her full, Cupid’s bow mouth and thinking about what it would be like if she smiled at him and kissed his cheek.
Then he gasped, and his heart skipped a beat. Where on earth had that thought come from? He shoved it away brutally, trying to bring sense and reason back to his mind.
She is useful,he thought.No more than that, but once that usefulness is no longer needed she can go her own way. I have no intention of getting attached.
Hamish took out his hip flask of whisky and took a long sip, trying to calm down a little, but as long as he could see Amanda’s fine, sculpted features he knew he would find it impossible. But he would not care for her. He would not fall for her. He had enough to trouble him without adding more.
Gradually, Hamish’s head began to nod, and he fell asleep, then plunged straight into a dream; a dream about the womanwho was lying a few feet away from him. However, she was not sick, but smiling happily and glowing with health. She came to sit on his lap and kissed him, and he moaned with pleasure as he felt himself stiffen in response to the pressure of her soft lips.
He woke again, then seeing that Amanda was resting peacefully, he drifted into a gentle, blissful doze. In the morning he would remember nothing of the dream, and despite the discomfort of the chair, he slept lightly until he heard a soft moan which jerked him into wakefulness straight away.
Amanda’s eyes were open, glinting in the light of the single candle that lit the tent with a soft glow. She was looking straight at him, but did not seem to be aware that he was there.
