Page 59 of The Highlander’s Savage Vow

"Of course I remember." She broke off another piece and held it out to him, just as she had all those years ago. "We used tae steal them from the kitchens."

She watched him take the offered morsel, saw the memories flicker across his face as the familiar taste brought back summer afternoons and shared secrets. For a moment, the present fell away, and they were just children again.

They ate the rest of the pastry in comfortable silence, passing pieces back and forth. It should have felt strange, this quiet sharing in the aftermath of violence. Instead, it felt like something healing—a bridge across all the years that had separated them.

When the last crumb was gone, Ruaridh brushed his hands clean and stood up.

"I need tae see tae the men," he said, moving toward the door. "Make sure there are nay more surprises waiting."

"Ruaridh." Her voice stopped him at the threshold. "Be careful. There could be more infiltrators anywhere."

He turned back to look at her, noting the worry in her hazel eyes. "Aye. That's exactly what I'm going tae find out."

"How will ye tell who's loyal and who isn't?"

"I'll find a way." His hand rested on the door latch, but he hesitated. "Iona, while I'm gone—lock this door. Dinnae open it fer anyone except me. I dinnae trust anyone but Duncan, me faither, and me maither. Nay one else."

Her eyes widened slightly. "Ye think there might be more of them inside the castle?"

"I think I cannae afford tae trust anyone right now." The words came out harsher than he intended, but they were true. "Promise me. Nay one else gets through that door."

"I promise."

He nodded once, then stepped into the corridor. She heard him wait until he heard the heavy bar slide into place behind him and then listened to his footsteps receding.

Alone in their chamber, Iona touched her fingers to her throat where his fingertips had been so gentle. The fury she'd seen in him should have frightened her. Instead, it had made her feel something she'd never experienced before—truly protected. Truly cherished.

He would burn the world down tae save me.

The thought filled her with a warmth that had nothing to do with the fire crackling in the hearth.