Aye.Whatever doubts she had about him, her body knew who he was, and would not allow her to deny him.She eased closer and raised his hand to her mouth.Would his body remember her?Was there any chance she could make him remember?She had tried this once before and failed, but she was not the sort to surrender.If she was, she’d have curled up and withered the first time her husband took a whip to her back.
She let her lips tickle across the rough skin of his battered finger.Hard work left its mark on his hands.Scratches and calluses were like sand against her mouth but they sent a thread of desire through her.What she would not give to feel those calluses against her bare skin.
Not her back though.Never on her scarred skin.
He stared at the top of her head and his fingers came down to toy with a loose strand of hair by her ear.She kissed the tip of his finger.
“I told ye, it doesnae hurt.”The grating texture of his voice seemed stronger, as if he struggled to push the words past the scarring of his throat.
“Mayhap it doesnae, but nor does a kiss.”
“A kiss from ye, my lady, I fear could do more than hurt.Ye are a dangerous woman.All the men in the keep have fallen for ye.”
She would have laughed had it not been for the way his proximity stole her breath.She had drawn some attention from men in the past, but never like this.There were far greater beauties around than her, so she could not fathom why she was garnering such attention.
“Ye have bewitched them,” he continued quietly.
“And ye?Have I bewitched ye?”she asked hopefully.Aye, say aye, she begged inside.Let him tell her he still loved her, or that he had fallen for her all over again.Let them leave this place and return to her son.
He stiffened and dropped the strand of hair he had been studying so intently.Withdrawing his hand carefully, he stepped back.The gap between them made her cold and she had to wrap her arms about herself to keep from shivering.Curse her foolish words.Could she do nothing right?
“I am sure ye would like that.”
His bitter tone made her wince.“All I would like is for ye to give me a chance.For ye to take a moment and think about what I tell ye.Ye have been lied to, Logan, and ye are too pigheaded to see it.”Heat rose in her face, fuelled by frustration.
“I see that ye are a determined lass, keen to escape, and willing to do whatever she can to make that so.”
“Is that all ye see?”She propped her hands on her hips and stared him down.“All ye truly see?”
The muscle in his jaw twitched—she saw the motion under the thick dark hair.He glared back, his gaze never leaving hers.The throb of her pulse in her ears grew deafening and she held her breath.
“Aye,” he finally said coldly.“Aye, ‘tis all I see.”
The air left her body in a rush, all hope dashed.She rubbed a hand over her face and willed the tears of defeat to stay at bay.“Why will ye no believe me?”Lorna stepped forward and closed the gap once more.She jabbed a finger into his chest.“Ye loved me, Logan.Ye said ye would fight to win my love.Ye were my closest friend.One night, I gave in and we made love.I didnae want to but I couldnae fight it any longer.That desire is still there, I know ye feel it.”She prodded his chest again, just by his heart.He shook his head and his expression remained stoic.Did her words mean nothing?
“The day I thought ye were killed was the worst of my life.I realised much—how much time I had wasted, how I lo—” Her voice split on a sob and she drew in a breath through her nostrils.“That one night together, we...we conceived a child.”
She stared hard, willed him to believe.A flicker of shock skittered across his expression before he schooled it back into one of impassive disinterest.She gripped his shirt and her voice rose with desperation.“He has dark hair like ye.I must return to him.Ye must return to him.”
Logan tore away from her grip and scrubbed a hand over his beard.He refused to look at her.Dare she hope her words had seeped in?Even sparked a memory?
After eons of silence with only her throbbing heart for company, he dragged his hand away from his face and shook his head.“Ye know, my lady, I much admired yer courage, but to see ye sink so low...”He smirked.“I can have little respect for a woman who would tell such falsehoods.”
“Ye must believe me.We have a son.I must go back to him!”She tried to grasp his arm, but he shook her off as if she were no more than an annoying fly.
“Ye tell so many appealing tales, ‘tis hard to know which to believe, Lorna.”He swivelled on his heel and stepped over the threshold.He eyed her with distaste.“I bid ye good night, my lady.Dinnae fear the Viking.I’ll keep watch over yer chambers this night.”
“Logan—”
Her cry was drowned out by the slam of the door.She jolted as the sound vibrated the floor, and her knees buckled.It had been her last hope, telling him.And if he told Gillean, would the laird hunt for her son, the heir to the dowry Gillean now held?She slapped a palm to the wooden floor and an agonising sob rose up from deep within.This time, she held nothing back.Her grief poured out until her eyes were red and itchy, and her chest ached.With no energy to climb into bed, she curled up on the floor and closed her eyes.
Chapter Fourteen
Dragging her spindly fingers through her hair, Tèile followed Logan as he paced up and down, down and up the gallery, agitation making his moves jerky.She was out of time.War would be upon them in a few short days and the Viking would take Lorna far from here...and far from Logan.She curled a fist and fought the rising tingling in her hand.It would be so easy to jog his memory.Just a little sprinkle...
She shook her head, settled on the wooden rafter high above the hall, propped her elbows on her knees and rested her chin in her hands.Below, servants slept on and the howl of a wolf far off breached the sounds of light snoring and shuffling feet outside.Logan’s restless footsteps created the greatest noise, the thud of his boots rhythmic yet antagonising, as if reminding her of the passing of time.
Magic was not an option.Had she not learned her lesson already?A light touch here and there would have no effect, but something as great as returning someone’s memory?That would surely mess with fate and she would be forever trying to fix her mistakes.
