He took her hand, and she watched the movement, her lovely lips parted to take in a surprised breath. “Will ye forgive me?” he asked, and he leaned down to kiss her hand, keeping his eyes on her, and she lifted hers up to meet his.
“Aye,” she said softly. “But there is nae much tae forgive. I was also being rude tae ye at dinner.”
He kept hold of her hand and grinned. “I could use some of that now and again. I did tease ye mercilessly when we were children.”
Grinning, she pulled her hand away and looked up at the bright sky. “That ye did. Now, I will be going for a walk. Too lovely a day tae spend another minute of it inside, where all sorrows seem tae lie. A good walk in the sunshine will do me a world of good.”
She smiled at him. “Goodbye, Bryce. Until we meet again; if we do.” She nodded her head and walked away. For a few seconds, Bryce just stared after her, realizing that he didn’t yet want to go. It would’ve taken the strength of a thousand men to get him to turn around and head for home, and he found he didn’t have it in him.
He called out, searching for something to say. He didn’t even realize what he was about to say before he said it. “I will accompany ye, lass! Before I leave! Seems only right.” He jogged up to her and, turning to face him, Lorna looked at him as if he was a fool.
He wondered if she was going to reject his offer, but she shrugged. “I suppose that wouldnae be terrible, but nae teasing, mind.” She smirked with a warning gleam in her brown eyes. “Nae like when we were children.”
Bryce grinned, pulling Gaisgeachd along with him as he followed her. “Now that, I cannae promise.”
* * *
Was she glad to see Bryce again before he left? She had remained upstairs for as long as possible before it seemed like she would go mad with the desire to get out and move and get away from the people in the castle. The bright, lovely day was calling to her, and she knew the fresh air would help her to think more clearly and set her path anew after what had happened with Watt.
Her family, Kyla, and Bryce had all made their thoughts known about how she’d acted, and she wanted to prove them all wrong. But first she wanted to get away for a little while. Too embarrassed to even face anyone that morning, she left the castle to walk on her own, and then she’d seen him, jumping down from his horse, almost racing to get by her side.
He was smiling as he ran over to her, pulling his horse along beside him, and her heart did a little flip at the sight of his eager face. Even though he was now a famed warrior, a little scarred and a little hardened, he reminded her of young Bryce in that moment. He would race after her in the past to tease her and make her laugh, even though sometimes he made her angry.
Now, she wasn’t sure what to think of him as he finally approached, his body looming in her sight, making her think about the way she’d seen him bare-chested the day before. The warm, thrilled feeling was returning, and she tried her best to swallow it back.
She agreed to allow him to escort her on her walk, but she had no idea why. Perhaps it was because his apology had thrilled her to the bone, and the way he’d kissed her hand so softly and lingered over it made her not want him to go. Not just yet.
“Ye cannae seem tae get enough of teasing, I think. I suppose there wasnae much occasion for it during the war years.” She felt so ignorant about all of it, and she was sure it was difficult, but she still couldn’t help but envy Bryce the freedom he’d had. To make all his own choices and to be trusted to make good ones.
“Nae, lass,” he said with a surprising laugh. “Nae much occasion. So ye must allow me me chance tae tease ye when I can. Such as, why are ye dressed so very much like a lady when ye go on yer walks? When we were younger, ye would be racing about so much that a dress made nae sense at all. Yer mother would get so furious with ye,” he laughed, “she sometimes thought tae give ye lad’s trousers tae run about in.”
Lorna laughed at the warm memory, even though it included her mother getting angry at her yet again. Trudging along beside Bryce, she took a deep, refreshing breath of the warm summer air. In the Highlands, a day like this was rare, even in summer, and she meant to enjoy it.
It is even better with a handsome man at yer side, is it nae?
Feeling her cheeks heat at her own silly thoughts, she knew she needed to speak to get her mind off it. “Aye, well, I sometimes wish I could wear trousers again. Skirts and tight bodices are very uncomfortable. Especially if ye want tae fight.”
“Och, aye! I forgot tae ask ye about that. Kyla told me ye were a good fighter.”
“That’s right, she did,” Lorna said and then realized that she wasn’t supposed to remember that, for she had been pretending to be asleep when Kyla told him. When Bryce gave her a confused look, she added, “She told me later.”
“Och. Well, I would love tae see that. Ye should have joined us in the training ground yesterday. Ye ran away before ye could. Why?” She could feel his eyes on her as they passed down a little hill toward the river. It was practically overflowing, spilling over the muddied banks, and Lorna could feel her boots starting to stick in the ground.
Trying to think of a proper answer, she felt her boot push a little too far into the ground, and she cried out in surprise, when her boot didn’t come up when she pulled. Instinctively, she reached out for Bryce’s strong arm, and he brought his other one to her waist to support her.
“All right, lass?” He laughed. Looking down at her muddied boot, far too deep in the ground, he said, “Yer a bit stuck.”
She rolled her eyes, angry that he had to help her. “Aye, if ye cannae see that, then perhaps I should nae ask ye tae help me.”
He laughed. Dropping Gaischead’s reins to the ground, he started pulling on her in earnest, on strong arm wrapped snugly about her waist, his breath on her neck.
“One, two, three,” he said, and then with a big squelching sound, he was able to yank her up and out of the mud, and she almost fell to the ground as they stumbled back a bit. He stood strong though and steadied her, both hands on her waist now. Slowly, she looked up at him and found his eyes, his deep blue, mesmerizing eyes, as engaging as they always had been.
Swallowing hard, she tried to think of something to say. But all logical thought fled her mind, and she struggled to string a few words together. Lorna gasped when she felt his hand come to her face. It was rough and calloused, but it sent lovely shivers down her spine.
“Lorna, bonny Lorna,” he said softly with a wide smile. Her heart melted, and the feverish heated feeling came back with a vengeance moving up from her toes all the way to her cheeks. She wondered if she was red all over.
He brushed a thumb across her bottom lip, making her mouth open, and in that moment, all she wanted was for Bryce MacDowell to kiss her. Not Watt, not anyone else. Bryce was the one she wanted right then. Her breath slowed, and her mind grew hazy as he drew nearer. Her eyes were just about to close, to feel the sensation of his mouth on hers, but they were caught by something in the river. Something big.
“Bryce,” she said, her hands moving to his chest. “Will ye look at that?”
