Page 31 of Highlander’s Burning Touch

Whilst they paused, Deva took her chance. “It’s nae naething,” she said, frowning, “Nae if it’s causing ye pain, but I thought we had fixed ye!”

She smiled a curling charm which eventually had the desired result. For the first time, Niven softened.

“Aye, ye did,” he said. At least he was speaking to her, even if it was through gritted teeth. “Like I said, it’s naething… it happened in the joust… let’s just get this over an’ done wi’…?”

This wasn’t the reaction that Deva had been hoping for. Stung, she retreated behind a smile but couldn’t keep the hurt from showing in her eyes.

Right then, Deva wanted nothing more than to be done with the whole thing. With him, with this dance and more than anything, with this marriage.

“All right, naething would give me more pleasure!” she flashed but kept her voice low, so no-one could hear. She needn’t have worried. The harassed servant had finally found the whiskey, and from the whooping of the crowd, they would be busy for some time.

Niven didn’t say anything but flinched slightly from her face. But Deva was just getting started. Everything that had happened over the last few hours built up in her head.

“Ye ken, it’s nae just ye who got a funny turn at what happened today,” she continued, the color of her cheeks beginning to deepen. “So, aye, I lied, and I’m sorry, but I have told ye why,” she explained again. This time she really was in no mood to stop and see whether he was listening.

To hell with him. To hell with all of them.

Just beginning to get started, Deva’s eyes shot over to him. “I mean, ye never told me who ye were. I mean, nae really,” she said, her eyes scanning him hotly.

Niven looked as if he had been slapped in the face. “I did,” he said. She could see he was not happy but was struggling to hold it in. “I didnae tell ye my name was Allyth, at least!”

At the mention of the name Allyth, a small grin played on his lips, making Deva wonder if he was relenting. Well, maybe he was, but she wasn’t!

“Nae,” she hissed, her eyes darting everywhere. Suddenly, she wanted so much for this day to be done. “But ye let me think that ye didnae really have anything to do with yer uncle’s position. I mean, I thought he had a son who would be in the tournament…”

But as her voice trailed off, Deva realized that actually, he had never said that. It didn’t matter, though; she was still raging.

So, he had come to claim her as his prize. To be awarded as a literal trophy to some old fella whom she’d never met. And he had the nerve to act offended!

Before he could reply, the fiddlers took his answer away. Starting with a sharpened note, they ratcheted up a notch. But she could see that he was just itching to answer her. Sure, enough, he cast his face over to hers.

“An’ ye certainly didnae tell me ye were in this daft tournament!” she said, leaping in before he had got a chance to say anything, “I still dinnae ken how ye got here!”

Despite her annoyance, Deva found herself drawn into his eyes. She couldn’t work him out. The flickering of his emotions, by turns, angered, and then unsure, drew her in.

The dance was supposed to be a manly display of Niven’s sword skills, but in reality, it entailed a lot of her weaving in and out of his way.

“I mean, I thought ye were that poor wee laddie wi’ the red hair – the one I met. When ye took that helmet off ye as good as knocked me down with a feather!” she said, taking the breath from him and getting in before he could say anything.

But he just continued their dance around the swords, lain out on the ground before them, studiously avoiding all eye contact with her.

Deva struggled to keep up. A queasy feeling, like guilt, tapped at her. He had every right to be annoyed, but then she did too. What was she meant to do about it?

Then, with the mayhem and noise reaching a crescendo, Deva lost her balance. Just as she was being swung around, her ankle gave way, and she collapsed, crumpling onto the ground.

Niven came rushing.

“Sorry,” he said, helping her up. The sensation of his touch on her arm stopped her dead. Was he still mad at her? One thing she knew was she could not stay angry at him.

“Nae fash,” she said, a resolute grin plastered to her face as their legs thrashed and leaped in opposing directions. But the smile was purely for the crowd. When she spoke to him, she looked at him searchingly. “When I told ye I was Allyth, it was for a reason,” she said, her eyes flaring at him, “It might nae have been right, but I had nae choice in the matter…”

The connection in his eyes told her that she had hit home. Deva continued, “But I dinnae ken why ye didnae tell me about being in this tournament. Ye might have said something in the whole week ye were there.”

Now she had begun, Deva found she was unleashing a torrent within her. She might have forgiven him in her heart, but she still had things to say.

“I asked ye where ye were going, and ye nae said it was to any tournament!” she said.

“So, I was meant to tell ye everything, but ye could lie about who ye were?” said Niven, in between the twists and turns of the jig they were dancing. “Besides, ye had already laughed at folks for taking part in the games, so I didnae bother to mention it…”