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“Shut yer mouth,” Cameron growled as a deep crimson blush covered Serene’s cheeks.
She focused on Lachlan, a scowl now marring her lovely face. “My memory is of his hands.”
“That about suits what I’m saying,” Lachlan replied with a chuckle.
“Brother,” Cameron warned at the same moment Iain did.
Serene set her hands on her hips. “My memory is of his hands on a dagger.”
Lachlan’s smile turned into a smirk. “Some lasses would say—”
“That’s enough,” Cameron barked, clutched his older brother by the arm, and fairly dragged him toward the door. He stormed out with Iain on his heels.
The door slammed shut behind Iain, and both Iain and Cameron glared at Lachlan as they stood in the hallway. “What’s the matter with ye?” Cameron growled. “Ye kinnae speak of my past to that lass.”
“Yer past?” Lachlan remarked, cocking an eyebrow. He had a smug look on his face as he slid his gaze to Iain. “I told ye.”
Cameron frowned. “Ye told him what?”
“Ye did tell me,” Iain remarked, studying Cameron.
“What in the name of God are ye two speaking of?” Cameron demanded.
“Lachlan whispered to me in there”—Iain motioned to the healing room—“that ye were behaving out of sorts.”
Cameron tensed, and Iain clamped a hand on his shoulder. “Ye kinnae get under the skirts of that lass.”
Cameron narrowed his eyes on his brothers, but before he could respond, Lachlan spoke. “She’s bonny, to be certain, but she may verra well be our enemy, and even if she’s nae, the king has other plans for her.”
“I ken,” Cameron growled, though his chest tightened with the knowledge.
“We’ve already defied the king once,” Iain added, referring to when they thwarted the king’s order to send their sister, Lena, back to her abusive husband. The king did not know of their outright failure to obey, but it was obvious from comments he’d made that he suspected it. The MacLeod clan had always been a strong supporter of David, particularly since Iain and David had grown up together, but the king’s insistence on reuniting Lena with her husband had put a strain on the relationship they had with the king.
“I dunnae have plans to seduce the lass,” Cameron muttered.
“Then why did ye nae want her to ken of yer reputation with the ladies?” Lachlan asked.
“And why do ye keep defending her?” Iain added.
Cameron sighed and glanced at the door that separated him from Serene. It was a good thing to have space. A relief almost. Ever since he had beheld her face in the forest and recognized her, he had felt drawn to her, and his feelings were growing and changing at a rapid pace. She was a stranger, yet his instinct was to protect her as if he had known her all his life. He had not wanted to tell his brothers of Eolande’s prophecy, but now he felt obligated to do so. “Ye ken how I said I met her at one of the St. John’s Eve festivals?”
“Aye,” came the immediate response from both Iain and Lachlan.
“Eolande stopped me from chasing Serene that night after she bested me and the others in the dagger-throwing contest. ’Tis why she got away and I never learned her real name.”
Iain frowned, but Lachlan’s face turned dark and wary. Cameron understood why. The seer had prophesized that Lachlan and Bridgette’s love would drive a wedge between Lachlan and Graham, who had at one time wanted Bridgette for his own out of a need to best Lachlan. Eolande had foretold that one brother would end up dead as a result. This prophecy had kept Lachlan and Bridgette from acting upon their feelings, and it had nearly destroyed any chance for them and almost cost Bridgette her life. Lachlan had ended up pursuing Bridgette despite the curse, but most of what Eolande had prophesized had come true.
“I dunnae allow that seer’s prophecy to rule the choices of my life,” Lachlan said in a steely tone.
“I dunnae, either,” Iain added, “but I dunnae dismiss it. Most of what she says comes true. So if there’s a way to do what she tells ye, I believe it’s wise.”
Cameron noted that Lachlan did not disagree. Instead, he jerked his head in a nod. “I suppose I agree, but for me, I would have rather faced the worst of what she prophesized than live a life without Bridgette, so I pursued her. Ye ken the rest.” He grinned. He often smiled when speaking of his wife.
“What did Eolande say to ye?” Iain asked Cameron.
Cameron’s skin prickled with the recollection. He hesitated to speak aloud what she had predicted, yet he felt compelled to, given his intense response to Serene. “She told me that I would forsake everything I hold dear for the lass. King David.” Cameron swallowed and forced himself not to glance away from his brothers. “The family.” Iain’s eyes went wide, and Lachlan’s nostrils flared. Cameron curled his hands into fists. “And my honor,” he added in a flat tone. He turned his face away for a moment, shamed by the foretelling of his weakness. “She said that the lass was the mate of my heart and enemy of our clan.” He had to force the last words out. “And that with her comes life and death born of my choices,” he finished, turning to look at his brothers once more.
“Stay away from the lass,” Iain pronounced without hesitation.
