“Finn!”
The boy gasped, ducked behind Lachlann, and whispered a little too loudly, “Hide me.”
Lachlann and Baker exchanged glances, but then the other man shrugged and moved farther down the table to see to another customer.
“Finn!” the woman’s voice called again.
“Ye wouldn’t be named Finn, would ye?” Lachlann spoke out of the side of his mouth, hoping to avoid drawing attention.
“I am.” Finn’s whisper was quite loud.
The woman calling the lad’s name turned in their direction. She was even more lovely than Lachlann had first thought. Though tightened brows gave her a questioning look, she did not seem overly worried. Her long, dark hair hung down her back in a single plait. When she started toward them, the gentle sway of her hips entranced him, walking as she was with a slow gait. Then he remembered the ancient man who’d held her to his side. He blocked out the disappointment washing over him.
Lachlann asked, “Are ye playing a game with yer mum?”
Finn snorted, peaking his head out enough to glare up at Lachlann, his little arms gripping Lachlann’s legs. “Ye dinna play games with yer mum.”
So, she wasn’t his mother.
“Oh, forgiveness, please.” Lachlann sought the woman again, only to find her standing at the opposite end of the table. She stepped closer and stopped in front of him, a slight frown furrowing her brow.
Understanding dawned. Her brown eyes twinkled with mischief. “Do ye have Finn hiding behind ye?”
Lachlann found himself smiling back at her. “I may.”
When the lad decided he deserved a slap on his bottom for the answer, Lachlann jumped. “Forsooth! Verily, I have not.”
The lass’s pretty pink cheeks rounded with a smile, and Lachlann’s breath caught. She was a beauty. Doe eyes and a perfect little nose. Her head was well covered with a separate hood. The longléinewent all the way down to her bare feet.
“Ye’re lying.” She struggled for a straight face.
“I never lie.” He cleared his throat and pressed his lips tight.
“Findláech?” The woman’s warning tone was met with a loud giggle. “Are ye hiding behind a tall man? With long black hair?”
A disgruntled sigh was followed by the lad stomping out from behind Lachlann. His head bent, he grumbled, “Ye always win.”
The lass turned her surprised gaze to the boy and snorted through her nose. “Finn, ye know ’tis not true.Yealways win.”
The dark head bobbed up, his face lit with glee. “I do!” He laughed loudly. “But ye won this time, Ethne. Ye truly did.” Finn cast a sideways glance at Lachlann before his face dropped into a scowl of reprimand. “I think ye could have done a better job hiding me.”
Lachlann raised his arms in surrender. “Think ye I knew I was even playing?”
Finn’s wide smile was contagious. “Ye played well enough, man.”
His response made Lachlann laugh. “Ah, well, thank ye for such a gracious appraisal.”
A glance at the lovely lass, whose warm gaze remained on the boy, filled him with the urge to see if he could receive the same attention. “Shall I try again?”
When she looked up at him, he offered his most dazzling smile.
“How would ye do that?” Finn asked, awe in his voice. “Wouldyehide?”
Lachlann laughed at the question. “I dinna think I’d find any place big enough…”
Ethne glanced beyond Lachlann now, her expression changing to distress. She reached for Finn’s hand. “Come along now.” Her lips were tight. “We should not be here.”
“Is ought amiss?” When the boy glanced the same way and his eyes widened in fear, Lachlann’s confusion increased. Finn latched onto the woman’s outstretched hand.
