"Better?" he asked gently.
"A bit." Her voice still shook. "But Alpin, if Ashcombe is out there…"
"Then we deal with it." He kept his voice firm, steady. "Taegether. Ye're nae leavin’. Ye're nae runnin’. And ye're certainly nae going back tae him."
"But what about yer people?"
"Me people ken the risks of protectin’ someone who needs it. And they stand with me on this, I promise ye that."
"He'll try," she whispered. "Ye ken he will."
"Let him try." Alpin felt his jaw tighten with anger—not at her, never at her, but at the bastard who'd put that fear in her eyes. "He'll find that MacDougal warriors are nae as easy tae intimidate as auction house guards."
Something shifted in her expression. Not quite hope, but... trust, maybe. Faith that he meant what he said.
One of Alpin's hands slid from her shoulder to the small of her back. He drew her closer—not forcefully, but gently. Steadying her. Grounding her.
The contact was more intimate than anything they'd shared before. He could feel the warmth of her body through the fabric of her dress. Could smell the faint scent of chamomile that clung to her from her day in the healing chambers.
Her breath caught, and color rose in her cheeks. But she didn't pull away.
"I willnae let him have ye," Alpin said quietly. "I willnae let anyone have ye. Yer life is yers, Mhairi. And I'll defend yer right tae that with everything I have."
"Why?" The question came out barely above a whisper. "Why dae ye care so much?"
Alpin's free hand came up almost of its own accord, brushing a strand of dark hair from her face. His fingers lingered against her cheek.
Because when I saw ye on that platform, something in me recognized something in ye. Because the thought of losing ye makes me chest feel like it's being crushed.
But he couldn't say any of that. Not yet. Not when she was still healing, still learning to trust again.
"Because it's the right thing tae dae," he said instead. "And because ye deserve better than what the world has given ye so far."
Her eyes searched his face, and Alpin wondered what she saw there. Whatever it was, it made her lean slightly into his touch.
"I'm scared," she admitted.
"I ken. But ye're safe here. I promise ye that."
The sun was setting now, painting the sky in shades of orange and purple. The garden was quiet except for the evening birds and the distant sound of the castle settling in for the night.
They stood there as the light faded, his hand at her back, her eyes locked with his. The moment stretched between them, intimate, charged with something Alpin didn't have words for.
He should step back. Should put proper distance between them.
But he couldn't make himself move.
And when Mhairi's hand came up to rest lightly against his chest, just above his heart, Alpin felt something shift inside him. Something profound and terrifying and absolutely inevitable.
He was falling for her.
Had been falling since that first moment in the forest when she'd looked at him with those fierce grey eyes and demanded to know why she should trust him.
And God help him, he had no idea what to do about it.
"We should go inside," he said finally, his voice rougher than he'd intended. "It's gettin’ dark."
She nodded.
