Callum barked out a laugh. "She's got ye there, me laird."
Alpin's mouth curved into a proper smile now, transforming his whole face. "Aye, well. Ye were runnin' like the devil himself was after ye. I had tae work fer it."
"Ye did," Mhairi admitted quietly. The memory was still too fresh, the panic, the darkness, the way she'd fought him even when he was tryin' to help. "I'm... I'm sorry fer that, me laird. Fer hittin' ye."
"Dinnae apologize fer defendin' yerself." His voice lost its teasing edge. "Ye had every reason tae be afraid. And call me Alpin."
Silence fell between them. Mhairi found herself studying him more carefully now—the way he sat on his horse with easy confidence, the way his hand rested casually near his sword hilt, ready but not tense. The way his men rode around them in loose formation, alert but not rigid.
"How long tae yer castle?" she asked, breaking the quiet.
"Another day, if the weather holds." Alpin glanced up at the sky, which was clearing nicely after the gloom of the previous day. "We might stop at an inn tonight. Get proper rest."
"An inn." Mhairi tested the word. It felt almost normal. Like something from her old life.
"Aye. Clean beds, hot food, and ale that willnae poison ye. What more could ye want?"
"A bath," she said without thinking. Then flushed when both Alpin and Callum grinned. "I didnae mean—I just meant that I?—"
"Ye're covered in dirt and worse," Alpin said easily. "We all are. The inn should have a bath. Ye can scrub yerself raw if ye like."
The thought was almost unbearably appealing. Mhairi could still feel the auction house on her skin—the hands that had grabbed her, the rope burns on her wrists, the stale smell of that underground chamber. A bath sounded like heaven.
"Thank ye," she said quietly.
"Ye keep thankin' me." Alpin's tone was gentler now. "Ye dinnae have tae."
"Aye, I dae." Mhairi met his eyes when he looked back at her. "Ye saved me life. That deserves thanks."
"I did what any decent man would dae."
"Nay." The word came out harder than she'd intended. "Most men wouldnae have done anythin'. Most men were in that room, biddin' on me like I was livestock. Ye're the only one who followed. The only one who fought fer me."
Alpin's jaw tightened. He turned back to face the road, but not before she saw something fierce flash in his eyes. "Then most men are bastards."
Callum cleared his throat. "Speakin' of bastards, what are we daein' about Ashcombe?"
"Hopin' he took the lesson and stays in England where he belongs," Alpin said flatly. "But prepared in case he daesnae."
Mhairi's stomach twisted at the name. She could still see Ashcombe's face—cold, entitled, certain of his ownership. "Ye think he'll come after me?"
"I think he's a man who daesnae like losin' what he considers his." Alpin's voice was calm, but there was steel underneath. "And I think if he's fool enough tae try, he'll regret it."
The certainty in his tone should've been comfortin'. Instead, it just made Mhairi aware of how much danger she'd brought to his doorstep. "I'm sorry. I didnae mean tae cause trouble fer ye and yer clan."
"Ye're nae causin' trouble." Alpin slowed his horse until they were riding side by side. "Graham and Ashcombe are the ones causing trouble. Ye're just the lass who had the misfortune tae get caught in it."
"Still…"
"Mhairi." He waited until she looked at him. "I meant what I said last night. Ye're under me protection now. That means anyone who comes fer ye has tae go through me first. And I promise ye—" His lips pressed together in a frown. "I'm a lot harder tae get through than Ashcombe thinks."
Warmth bloomed in Mhairi's chest. Something deep, something that felt dangerously close to trust.
"Ye dinnae even ken me," she said quietly. "Why would ye risk so much?"
Alpin's jaw tightened. "Because women have been disappearin' from me lands. Three lasses in the past two months—taken from their homes, from the fields, vanished without a trace. I'd been hearin' rumors about an auction, about women bein' sold. I had tae see it fer meself, tae gather proof of what was happenin' so I could stop it."
"And did ye?" Mhairi asked quietly. "Find yer lasses?"
