Once she was more proficient, she would wear her normal clothes. But while she was learning, the “peasant’s garb,” as Robbie had said when he first saw her in the simple linen tunic, would have to do.
Robbie… Annie sighed. The situation with her reluctant instructor was proving more complicated than she’d anticipated. It wasn’t just that she feared Patrick was right—that the young warrior would grow increasingly attached from the time they were spending together—it was also that his discomfort with touching her or getting too close to her was impeding her ability to learn.
When she asked him to show her how to get out of a situation where someone comes up from behind her and grabs her, he’d lost so much color in his face she thought he was going to faint.
How was she supposed to learn to defend herself properly if they were always at arm’s length?
By all rights, she should be the one discomforted by touch or closeness, but Robbie had always been like a brother to her. She could never see him as a threat to her.
In all other respects, however, Robbie was an excellent instructor, if perhaps a little overly cautious. He’d obviously taken her brother’s words about safety to heart. Not only had she yet to see a steel blade, but he’d spent the better part of a week showing her how to properly draw the wooden practice knife from the leather sheath and belt he’d fashioned for her leg that also served as a garter for her woolen hose.
The double-edgedsgian-achlais, which literally translated to armpit knife, worn by Scottish warriors under their coat would be impractical for women’s clothing, so Robbie had to devise something that would be hidden and yet accessible.
She’d been disappointed to not be learning how to wield the longer-bladed dirk, but Robbie assured her that she would be able to do plenty of damage with the five-inch blade of thesgian-achlais, and it would be much easier for her to handle.
In fact, they’d spent the next two days working on her handling of the small dirk. He’d shown her the different ways she could grip the handle in different situations until she felt comfortable.
Finally, the past couple of days, he’d shown her different slashing and thrusting techniques as he came toward threateningly.
Even with a wooden knife, it was harder than she’d thought it would be. She didn’t want to accidentally hurt him. But after he chastised her for hesitating and holding back, she’d increased her efforts, and when she surprised him with a feigning slash followed by a sharp stab toward his stomach, she smiled with glee at his “ouch.”
Her next attempt to trick him, however, didn’t go as well. When Robbie came toward her this time, rather than direct her attack at his torso, she aimed for the deadly place on his upper thigh that he’d told her was a good target as it would kill a man quickly. He blocked her blow, but in her attempt to twist away, her foot tangled with his, and they both ended up on the ground. She flat on her back and Robbie—unfortunately—on top of her.
She didn’t know who was more stunned or horrified by the hard slam of contact. Eyes wide, they stared at each other in silence for a moment until Annie felt the familiar panic crawling up her throat. She tried to tell herself that it was Robbie—her friend—but the press of weight and muscle weren’t of a boy but that of a man.
And then she felt the proof of that manhood.
Something inside her snapped. All she could think of was getting him off her. She went half-crazed, screaming and trying to push him off, while Robbie, obviously shocked by her reaction, tried his best to leap backward off her and calm her down with stumbling apologies.
Annie’s panic cleared as soon as his weight was off her. She blanched with shame and tried to think of something to say that would make the situation less embarrassing and awkward when things took a turn for the worse.
Suddenly Robbie—who was well over six feet tall and must be close to fourteen stone—was lifted off the ground by the scruff of his neck like a pup and slammed against the wall of the barn.
The slam shook the entire building—and the ground she was still sitting on.
A voice that was at once familiar but also changed reverberated through the air. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t snap your foul neck.”
Niall, Annie realized. A darker, gruffer, more deadly sounding Niall, but still the man she’d never wanted to see again.
CHAPTER TWO
Embarrassment forgotten, Annie jumped to her feet, her mouth pressed in a tight, furious line. She knew at once what Niall thought. Ignoring the fact that the same thought had caused her to panic a few moments ago, she hurled herself against Niall—or more specifically, Niall’s far-thicker-with-muscle arm than she remembered that was pinning a red-faced, choking Robbie to the wall.
“Let go of him!”
How dare he try to play the gallant knight riding in to the rescue! It was too late for either. Niall Lamont had lost any claim to gallantry or rescuer on that horrible day over two years ago at Dunvegan.
Annie tugged and dragged at his leather-clad arm, pretty much putting her whole weight on it, but it didn’t budge an inch. Good gracious, what did he do, eat steel all day?
“He can’t breathe.” She turned her head to look at the man she used to love, their eyes meeting for the first time. The hard thud in her chest and jolt that went along with it only angered her more. There was nothing between them anymore. Nothing. No matter how piercing his blue-eyed gaze or how changed his appearance. His arm wasn’t the only thing that had turned hard and steely. He looked every bit as brutal and dangerous as the outlaw he’d become.
What kind of fool woman found that attractive? She must have lost her mind. “Blast it, Niall, let go of him. Robbie didn’t do anything.”
Niall’s expression showed no reaction to her plea. If anything, his gaze only grew more intense. Deadlier. “He was on top of you. I saw you trying to push him off.”
Annie’s cheeks flamed. From anger or shame, she didn’t know which—maybe both. “It wasn’t how it looked. We were training and I tripped. Robbie landed on top of me by accident, and I…” Her voice dropped off. She looked up at him to see Niall watching her intently, his expression still unreadable. But glancing sideways, she could see that he’d released his hold on Robbie enough for her friend to stop making those horrible sounds and for his color to return to normal. But as Niall still looked undecided about whether to let the other man go, she lifted her chin and added, “I forgot who he was for a moment, all right?”
She knew that Niall understood when he finally let Robbie go. But the sympathy in his gaze only increased her embarrassment and thus her anger.
