He stopped immediately. “I’m nae goin’ to hurt ye, Piper. I promise ye that.”
“Ye just fought a man for the right to claim me,” Piper said, her voice shaking. “What exactly do ye think claimin’ means?”
“It means keepin’ ye safe,” Elijah said quietly. “It means gettin’ ye out of this nightmare. But to do that, ye need to trust me.”
“Trust ye?” Piper let out a bitter laugh. “I’ve known ye for five minutes, and ye’re already askin’ me to trust ye?”
“Aye,” he said simply. “I am.”
They stared at each other across the small clearing. Piper’s mind raced. Could she believe him? Could she trust that this man—this laird who’d paid to participate in a hunt—actually wanted to help her?
Or was this just another trick? Another way to make her compliant?
“Come here, lass,” Elijah said, holding out his hand. “We need to go before any of the others come lookin’.”
“And if I refuse?”
His jaw tightened. “Then ye’ll be caught by someone far worse than me. Someone who really does see ye as a prize to be claimed. Is that what ye want?”
Nay. God, nay.The thought of that other laird—the one who’d chased her, who’d looked at her like she was meat—made bile rise in Piper’s throat.
But goin’ with this man… trustin’ him…
“How do I ken ye’re tellin’ the truth?” she asked.
“Ye daenae,” Elijah admitted. “Nae yet. But ye will. I swear it on me clan’s honor, Piper. I’m nae goin’ to hurt ye.”
His clan’s honor. That was supposed to mean something, wasn’t it? Lairds didn’t make vows lightly.
But me parents vowed to care for me, and look how that turned out.
Still, what choice did she have? Run deeper into the woods and hope she wasn’t caught? She’d barely survived the first ten minutes.
Slowly, Piper pushed away from the tree. Her legs trembled as she took a step toward Elijah. Then another.
He waited patiently, his hand still extended. When she was close enough, he reached out and gently took her arm. Not grabbing, not forcing. Just… guiding.
“There’s a good lass,” he murmured.
Then, before Piper could process what was happening, he bent and swept her up into his arms. She let out a startled yelp, her hands instinctively clutching at his shoulders.
“What are ye—put me down!”
“Ye’re exhausted,” Elijah said, carrying her toward where his horse waited. “And we have a long way to go. This is faster.”
“I can walk!”
“Aye, and ye’ll slow us down doin’ it.” He looked down at her, and something flickered in his green eyes. Something that made her breath catch. “Besides, I rather like holdin’ ye.”
Piper’s face flamed. “Ye… ye cannae just say things like that!”
“Why nae?” He settled her more comfortably against his chest, and Piper was horrified to realize how good it felt. How safe. She hadn’t been held like this since Alexandra died. “It’s the truth.”
“Because… because I’m…” She gestured at herself helplessly. “Ye heard what that other man called me. Plump. I’m nae the kind of woman men like ye hold.”
Elijah stopped walking. He looked down at her with such intensity that Piper forgot how to breathe.
“That bastard was blind,” he said softly. “Hush now,” Elijah murmured, reaching his horse. He mounted with her still in his arms, settling her across his lap with practiced ease. “Time for us to take you to your new home.”
