The thought appealed to him. He had enjoyed sparring with the warriors at Castle Treun. If he stayed, he could be with Brenna. That thought eased the ache that had been in his heart since she walked away, but he just couldn’t picture himself living the rest of his life here. “I can’t. I have the studio to run and I love what I do, you know that.”
“Arenae ye planning to take Brenna back with ye?” Logan asked.
An uncomfortable feeling came over Zeke. He couldn’t possibly stay here with Brenna, but bringing her back to San Francisco was out of the question.
“Brenna? Whose she?” Sara’s excitement at seeing Zeke had yet to wear off. “Come in and tell me all about her.” She took Zeke by the arm and led him to her front door. He glanced over his shoulder to see Logan seeming quite amused. “Logan, are you coming?”
“Aye, love. I’m right here.”
They entered the main living space of the tiny cottage and Zeke had to say he was quite impressed with how functional it was. A cozy little hearth was blazing away, warming the interior perfectly. There was a table with chairs for dining and an area that served as a kitchen with storage for their things and a rope was strung across the room where herbs were hung to dry.
“What do you think?” Sara asked.
“It looks like you,” Zeke smiled. “And before you ask, that’s a good thing.”
“I knew you’d love it,” she gushed. “I’ve even got a room for you, big brother.” She dragged him through a doorway and into a small bedroom that would be more than adequate for his needs.
“I’m sure I’ll be very comfortable here.” He glanced around at the small bed and hoped he’d fit. There was a chest for his things, which he placed beside it. He didn’t have much, so it was perfect.
“Are you hungry? Can I get you some tea?” Sara asked.
“Not right now. Let me look at you.” He placed his hands on her shoulders and gazed into the face of a woman who was overflowing with joy. She really was happy here. Getting her to leave may be harder than he’d imagined.
***
“Brenna, let me tell Helene about Zeke,” Dougall said.
“Why?” Brenna asked, stopping to wait for Dougall’s reply.
He turned to look at her. “Brenna, there are some things that ye dinnae ken and I’m nae sure how to tell ye.”
“What things?” She now stood hands on hips impatiently waiting. “Say what ye need to say.”
“Och! Yer nae going to believe this, but ye’ll come to find ’tis true. Did ye nae think there was something different about Zeke?”
“Aye. He speaks differently for one thing. He’s the laird of some place I’ve never heard of before. Is that what ye mean?”
“Laird?” Dougall sounded confused.
“Aye. He told Da that he was the Laird of San Francisco. Da was most impressed.”
“Interesting. I imagine he was.” Dougall took a deep breath and let it out. “Brenna, do ye believe in time travel?”
“Nae. ’Tis a crazy thought.”
“’Tis what I once thought, but ’tis true. I’ve done it, Brenna. I’ve time traveled and so has Helene. When ye helped her to leave Castle Treun, she wandered through the countryside for some time before a witch sent her to the future.”
Brenna tried not to appear too shocked by this news, but she could tell from the way Dougall was looking at her that it wasn’t working. “Go on.”
“Well, while Helene was there, she met a man named Zeke Barrett. He took her in and she lived with him until I traveled through time with Logan to find her.”
“Yer speaking of me Zeke, arenae ye?” She had a sinking feeling in the pit of her belly.
“Aye. He was Helene’s Zeke at that time. He was verra good to her and he took good care of her. I believe he loved her, but he knew that she and I were meant to be together and so he sent her back to me.”
“Do ye think he still loves her?” She felt as if she’d been punched in the gut.
He shrugged his shoulders. “’Tis why I want to be the one to tell Helene. I dinnae wish her to be shocked to hear the news, ye ken?”
