Chapter 20
Evan had known for the better part of a mile that he was being followed.
It began as a prickle between his shoulder blades—that old instinct, honed by years of running. But he didn’t turn to look.
Instead, he shifted slightly in the saddle and let his horse lengthen his stride. The ridge sloped down toward the woods—dense, dark, and threaded with narrow tracks only someone raised on this land would know.
How had MacInnes’ men found him so quickly? Not many knew this route. Had others been lying in wait? Had they watched him leave Niall’s manor house and then followed? If that was the case, it was troubling. Evan had detected nobody as he’d slipped away which meant his skills had failed him.
The horse snorted as the grass gave way to uneven earth and roots. As he entered the woods light was swallowed quickly, branches knitting overhead. Evan slowed his mount, listening.
There. Faint hoofbeats in the distance.
He veered off the main trail and into a narrower cut through hawthorn and low birch, ducking beneath branches. He rode another hundred yards before dismounting in a small hollow shielded from view.
“Easy,” he murmured to the horse, stroking his neck.
He dismounted and led the animal into a thick stand of gorse and bracken, looping the reins around a branch, then slipped a knife from its sheath. Keeping low, he moved forward on silent feet, weaving through the brush until he reached a point where the main trail was visible through a break in the foliage.
He crouched behind a thick cluster of broom and waited. The hoofbeats grew louder, closer. Carefully, he counted them. One horse. Only one. Yet he’d heard three earlier. That suggested the others had fanned wide, sweeping around to try and flush him out. Fine. Let them try.
The hooves slowed to a halt not twenty yards from where he crouched. Leather creaked. A bridle jingled softly. He heard the thump of boots on ground as someone dismounted.
He couldn’t see the figure clearly through the layered branches, only a dark shape stepping onto the path and pausing to look around. Instinct took over and he exploded from cover in a single, fluid surge.
One hand clamped around the figure’s arm, momentum carrying them both to the ground. They hit the earth hard, and he threw his weight against the figure, pinning it under him, knife flashing as he pressed it against the exposed throat.
“Who are—”
The words died in his throat as he found wide blue eyes staring up at him—shocked, frightened. Rich chestnut hair spread out like a halo around her head.
He jerked his hand back as if burned, the knife thumping into the leaves. “Ruby?”
He barely heard the word over the rush of blood in his ears. He could have killed her. He dragged a shaking hand down his face.
“Dear God, Ruby. Are ye hurt?”
She blinked up at him and swallowed a few times. “No, I’m fine. Bloody hell, Evan, remind me never to sneak up on you.”
He became acutely aware that he was pinning her beneath him, that he was leaning so close he could feel her warm breath against his chin and the curve of her lips was only inches from his. Shock warred with something far more dangerous: the desire to kiss her.
The urge hit him like a blow—primal, overwhelming. It took an effort to push himself upright. He rose and stepped back, hauling her to her feet.
“What are ye doing here?”
“What do you think? If you thought I was going to let you disappear without so much as a by-your-leave, then you’re an idiot!”
The corner of his mouth almost twitched. Idiot. Aye, that was one word for him. He could think of several others. A surge of fierce, irrational elation flared through him. She had followed him, refused to let him go. Did that mean—
Just as quickly, the elation became fear. “Ruby, ye canna be here. It isnae safe. MacInnes—”
“Sent men to the manor house. I know. Hamish told us. They’re safely tied up back at Charlie’s place.”
“It doesnae matter,” he said, shaking his head. “MacInnes will just send more. The only place safe for ye is far away from me.”
“So that’s your answer? You’ll just keep running? How’s that worked out for you so far?”
He pressed his lips into a flat line. “That isnae fair.”
