Page 65 of Deception of a Highlander

His fingertips brushed the softness of her exposed shoulder where the leine had slipped low. She did not shrink from his touch. “I dinna like to hear ye say things like that, Mariel. Ye think too highly of me and no’ nearly high enough of yerself, but I promise to be a good husband to ye.”

She tucked her chin to her chest, and her hair fell like a curtain of silk, shielding her face from his view. “You don’t know me, Kieran. You don’t know what awful things I’ve done.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Or what I will have to do. If you knew…” She shook her head, and her hair rippled. “You can’t want me, not with the stain I bear upon my soul.”

He brushed her hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. Tears stained her cheeks. “I want to know what ye’ve been through, and I want to be by yer side for whatever ye must face. There is no’ anything that canna be fixed. But ye have to trust me.”

“Not even you can help me,” she whispered.

“Talk to me, lass,” he urged. The sins she spoke of were doubtless insignificant to those of a warrior, but clearly, they weighed heavily upon her. Never had he felt more desperate for someone’s confidence or more helpless to claim it.

She searched his face for a moment and took a breath as though to speak. And then she hesitated. Her tears shimmered in the sunlight and trailed down her cheeks. “I can’t,” she said miserably.

The lack of trust wounded him far more than he would admit. But he was a MacDonald, and he was as stubborn as he was powerful. He would have her trust, no matter how long it took to gain.

Kieran pressed his lips to the smooth skin of her cheek and let the salty anguish of her tears dissolve against his tongue.

A hearty knock sounded at the door, booming through the intimacy of their discussion. Kieran leapt to his feet and grabbed his sword from beside the bed.

“Who’s there?” he growled. His fingers tightened around the pommel of his blade with deadly strength.

“Alec, Laird.”

Kieran cursed under his breath and pulled his discarded plaid around his waist. He glanced back at where Mariel sat up in bed. “Get dressed. I’ll be back.”

He opened the door and quickly closed it behind him to preserve Mariel’s modesty. “There had better be a damned good reason ye are here,” he snarled.

Alec’s cold blue gaze flicked down to Kieran’s half-dressed state, and a slow smile spread over his lips. “That’s Colin’s horse in the stable. But something tells me that isna Colin in the cottage with ye.”

“It’s none of yer concern.”

If Alec noticed the warning in Kieran’s voice, he ignored it as he stroked his chin in mock thought. “If memory serves correct, a certain English lass also dinna return after the storm.”

“Enough.” Kieran glared at him. “What is it ye want?”

The smirk stayed on Alec’s face. He reached into his sporran and brought out a sealed parchment indicating the MacKinnon crest.

“What is this?” Kieran grabbed the letter and cracked the thick wax seal.

“It’s from Laird MacKinnon. The messenger said it was urgent. We knew ye were out in the storm and figured ye’d taken refuge.” He paused and gave a bawdy grin. “But when morning came and ye werena back, we thought it prudent to find ye.”

Kieran unfolded the letter and scanned the scrawled message. His annoyance slid away. “Aye, it is good that ye did. Ready the horses. We return immediately.”

He turned to enter the hut, and one particular line echoed through his mind with blood-chilling clarity.

Beware an English assassin.

He knew exactly what this meant.

* * *

Mariel secured the final tie of her overdress as Kieran burst through the door, his face stern. “We need to leave. Now.”

He strode to the fireplace, the embers still glowing brilliant red, and shoved a bit of parchment into it. The thick paper immediately browned and curled into ash.

“Kieran?” Something was amiss. “What’s happened?” She glanced toward the smoldering embers where the parchment had been.

A dangerous glint sparked in his eye. “Are ye ready?” he asked, ignoring her question.

“I am.” Her heart thudded in her chest.