Heat rushed into her face, and she snapped her head up. His smile was downright sexy and had her knees turning to jelly. Quickly sitting down, she grabbed the poker and prodded the fire around.
“I’ll take a bucket of water with me.” He chuckled and went outside.
The lightness in his voice didn’t fool Abby. His legs shook with the effort of hauling the bucket, and she gnawed her bottom lip at the sight of his flushed face. He might think he had the strength of a healthy man, but he was still weak and too ill to be wandering about unaided. What if he fell? Her mind seesawed back and forth. Should she go with himor not? But she decided he needed some privacy, so she stayed inside, busying herself by cleaning as best she could.
When he came back, he seemed more in control of his limbs.
“The fresh air helped me.”
He stretched out on the bed and Abby propped up the blankets behind his back.
“Thank ye, lass.”
Before she knew it, Iain had closed his hand around the back of her neck and brought her lips down to meet his.
She squirmed out of his grasp before their lips met. “We... we need to go before the English come.”
He drew his brows together and said, “Ye have the right of it.”
She only wanted to make him better but was worried any undue exertion might set him back. She hoped with all her might he would soon be capable of leaving the area. The constant threat of the English finding them weighed on her every waking moment.
Abby knew she had to deal with getting out of there before someone found them, but right at that moment, she wished she had let Iain kiss her.
Her whole body was on fire, and if he tried to get close to her to kiss her again, she wouldn’t be able to resist him.
She gazed up at the blackened ceiling. Why the hell shouldn’t she have him? She would never get another chance to be with a hunky Highlander like him.
Because it’s not right, Abby.She grimaced at the voice in her head and returned her gaze to Iain. He watched her with no expression whatsoever on his face. Confusion had her mind whirling. The voice continued to intrude on her enjoyment.You must leave him.
With an inward sigh, she pulled her hair back and tied it with one of the strips of cloth.
He gazed at her, disappointment washing over his face. “Aye. I understand.” He threw his legs off the bed with a grunt. “Ye have to get back to yer family.”
He slowly and methodically started packing up the few belongings they had. “I have my family to return to as well.”
Abby wanted to tell him he didn’t understand. She wanted to tell him the truth, but she couldn’t risk it. He could have her burnt at the stake for being a witch.
Chapter 16
Iain couldn’t understand the woman. He was sure she was as attracted to him as he was her. He was enamored by her, but his feelings for her went deeper than just wanting her physically. He enjoyed his time with her, talking to her, listening to her.
He wanted to know more about the wonderful Abigail, everything, both physically and emotionally. She was a puzzle, but she was no angel. He knew that the moment she kissed him. She had wanted that kiss as much as he had.
His body had never reacted to a woman like it did with her. His mind too seemed to turn to peat moss just at the sound of her voice.
As they worked, Iain’s gaze kept returning to Abigail. Mayhap he was too hasty; mayhap she needed more time.
He tore his gaze from her. She was right; they had more important things to see to than letting their physical attraction to one another get in the way.
He had to get to Dorpol. He had to get to his lands before the English did their worst. His sister needed him. He’d left the weight of seeing to the keep and crofters to her for toolong now. He also had to make up his mind about Fiona MacKinnon. If he married her, the merging of two clans could only be a good thing for his clan. They needed strength, and the MacKinnons had that in abundance.
Standing and moving to the door, Iain said, “I thought I heard a horse neighing last night. I will see if I can find it.”
Abigail tilted her head and gazed at him with serious eyes. “I can’t ride a horse.”
“There are no horses in your land?”
“Yeah, some people, like my sisters and brother, ride them, but I don’t.”
