Isla jumped from her seat and clapped her hands, full of excitement. “Och, thank ye, thank ye, Ewan. If ye’ll lend me a clean shirt and stockings, I’ll be forever grateful.”
“Aye, ye ken where they are. I suppose ye might as well bring some fer me as well.”
She hurried to his storage chest, extracted two sets of clean things, and bundled them under her arm. She was thrilled she had managed to get him to agree to her plan. She was even more excited at the prospect of bathing than she had been about the party.
“Come on then,” he told her, heading for the exit. “Keep yer head low and stick by me.”
“But I’m the one who kens the way,” she pointed out as they slipped out into the night.
“Well, in that case, I’ll stick by ye,” he said.
They stifled their giggles as they set off for the perimeter of the camp. “Sounds like the party’s still in full swing,” Ewan added as the sound of a fiddle and men singing along to a jaunty tune floated to them on the otherwise still air.
“It’ll keep them distracted while we’re at the pond,” Isla said as they left the camp, her feet moving surely along the path even in the moonlit darkness.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Now, that is a beautiful sight, tae be sure,” Ewan said as they emerged from the trees. He found himself standing in a clearing, where the pond lay shimmering beneath the sliver of moon hanging above them in the dark, star-studded sky. On instinct, he paused and looked around, listening carefully, checking to make sure no one was there.
Once he was sure they were alone but for an owl hooting in a nearby tree and the odd rustling of some small nocturnal creature in the undergrowth, he allowed himself to relax. “What a tranquil spot. It must be lovely durin’ the day,” he observed, breathing in lungfuls of fresh, cool air.
“Mmm, I’m sure it must be,” Annie agreed, even in her man’s disguise, looking radiant under the silvery light cast from above. She was smiling too, which was nice. He felt a strange sort of companionship with her, even though she had tried to kill him and he still had no idea who she really was. He could not recall experiencing it with any other woman. Not knowing what tomake of it, he dismissed it, putting it down to them sharing a confined space for over a week now.
I suppose sleepin’ in the same bed will dae that tae ye.
Side by side, they walked slowly down to the water’s gravelly edge and stood looking out over the water. “’Tis lovely at night though,” Annie murmured. “I think I prefer it like this, so quiet. I cannae wait tae get in the water. Will ye turn yer back while I undress? And nay peekin’.”
He raised his brows and grinned, more at ease than he had been even at the party. The brief respite from the strains of war and the siege was very welcome. What harm could it do to embrace the moment? “Well, I wasnae even thinkin’ about it, but now ye mention it…” he said, allowing his voice to trail off suggestively.
“I mean it!” There was a warning edge to her voice as she began taking off her boots.
“Aye, I ken it,” he replied. “But the same goes fer ye,” he added, smiling as he turned away and began stripping off his coat and waistcoat.
“’Tis far too late fer that,” Annie informed him.
“Oh? How’s that?” He pulled his shirt off over his head and threw it on the ground.
“Because I get an eyeful of ye with naethin’ on every mornin’.”
“Ach! And ye have the cheek tae tell me nae tae peek!”
He heard her snort with laughter and could not resist glancing over his shoulder to catch a glimpse of her. What he saw was… exhilarating! A torrent of golden hair cascaded down a slim, white back, all the way down to a neatly nipped waist, curving hips, and… as she stepped out of her trousers… a pair of peach-like buttocks and slim thighs. Instantly, his manhood stirred.Better get in the water quickbefore she notices,he thought, shocked by his own response.
She caught him looking, gasped, and clutched her hair around her. “I said nay peekin’!” she chided, her eyes glinting in the moonlight.
“Sorry, but fair’s fair,” he retorted, turning around again. A second later, he cried, “Ow!” and ducked as a shower of gravel lightly peppered his back. “I though ye promised nae tae hurt me again,” he pretended to grumble.
“I’ll drown ye if ye’re nae careful,” she threatened, but he could hear laughter in her voice. It seemed she too was being affected by the feeling of freedom.
He had just shucked his trews when he heard splashing as she entered the water. Suddenly, she squealed, “Sweet Jesus, that’s freezin’!”
“That’s Scotland,” he joked. Naked now, he cupped his hands over his private parts for modesty’s sake—hers, not his—turned and ran down into the water to join her. She was alreadyswimming sedately in small circles when he plunged straight in. “Christ Almighty!” he exclaimed, gasping with shock and laughing at the same time as the chilly waters engulfed him. He ducked under and came up again, shaking his head like a dog. “My, that’s invigoratin’!”
The feeling of liberation as the cold water caressed and cleansed his body was thrilling. He found he could not stop grinning, and he felt grateful to Annie insisting they come to bathe. He could not remember feeling so alive for a very long time.
She too ducked under the water, to wash her hair. It floated out gracefully around her head like a golden halo. Her smile flashed white as she dived under again, then resurfaced moments later, water cascading over her white skin. Ewan could not take his eyes off the graceful movement of her slim body through the dark waters. It was entrancing, like a beautiful dream he never wanted to end.
“’Tis glorious,” she breathed, resuming her circular swimming. He joined her, and they swam around for a while like that, not speaking, with nothing but the soft hoo-hoo of the owl, the rippling of the water, and the gentle soughing of the breeze in the trees to break the silence. “’Tis like we’re in a magical place. D’ye feel it?”
