But he carried on as if he hadn’t let that slip. Instead, he started a new song. One Eilidh was familiar with. It told the story of a couple that fate deemed to keep apart. Their love was strong, but not strong enough to win over what the universe had challenged them with. The song ended and they sat in silence, letting it stretch betwixt them. The story of the song lingered. It could have been written about them.
Fated love. Love that wasn’t meant to be.
She almost scoffed. Her thoughts of love were misplaced. She had only met this man. There had been no courtship. It was too soon for that.
Their eyes locked, and Eilidh’s heart skipped a beat when Torquil reached for her hand. Her breath caught when he stopped just short of touching her. She didn’t pull away.
She did the opposite and closed the small distance betwixt them, tangling her fingers in his.
Time seemed to stand still.
They spoke no words, but yet, they didn’t have to.
They understood each other, as if it were destiny.
As if the world around them had worked its magic to bring them together.
Chapter Six
The sun dippedbehind the hills, turning the forest a lovely shade of gold. Neither of them moved. They sat there, fingers entwined for a long time. Eilidh’s fingers were thin and long, but they still looked so tiny compared to his. He squeezed her hand and she blessed him with a lovely smile.
“I meant what I said earlier when I said ye were beautiful. Ye are. Anyone would have a difficult task in comparison. Yer playing is advanced and the best I have e’er heard, but…”
Beside him, Eilidh stiffened.
He squeezed her hand in reassurance. “But as phenomenal as ye play yer fiddle, it doesnae hold a torch to yer beauty.”
“Ye jest. I bet ye say that to all the lassies ye come across.”
Torquil could tell that she said that to deflect, but the look in her dark-blue eyes—longing, hope—told him that she wanted it to be true. He got the feeling that she did not receive compliments often. Which, if the way some of the villagers had spoken of her was any clue, he could see why.
“I would ne’er tell untruths about such things. I dinnae believe in being dishonest.”
Eilidh stood and walked around in a small circle, pacing the area.
His house was not far from here. Just on the other side of the hill. If Eilidh had seen it, she made no mention of doingso.
He watched her walk, seeing her in silhouette. A beautiful silhouette that he hoped never left his vision. The day was growing later and he kenned she would soon need to return home. But he wanted to stall her retreat as much as he could.
“Tell me aboot yer family. I ken ye are a Hart. But ken naught about ye or them, really.” He chose to ignore the information Evander had told him about earlier.
A look he couldn’t decipher crossed her face, but she masked it afore he could figure out its meaning. He waited, wondering if she would answer. After a long pause, she did.
“I have two brothers and two sisters, which ye are probably aware. My older sister, Moira, married this past year. So did my older brother, Rory.” She looked up at the trees. “He would verra much enjoy this place. He has always spent more time hiking hillsides and scaling cliffs than stuck inside.” She smiled wistfully and Torquil could see that Rory meant a lot to her. “When he married, instead of living at Hartsmoor with the family, or building nearby, he built a house deep in the highlands, far away from e’eryone on the Hart border. He and his wife, Alana, are raising their family there.”
“Sounds isolated, and beautiful.”
Eilidh’s eyes clashed with his and she nodded. “’Tis perfect for them. My younger sister, Morven, is still at home, of course. She is like the smaller version of my mother,” she chuckled, “if ye can see that. And then there’s Alpin, he’s the oldest and will be our next laird. But we have many years ahead of us afore that happens,” she added quickly.
Torquil stood up and stretched. “That is what we always wish for. ’Tis hard to see yer loved ones move on.”
“Father is strong as an ox, he will live long, with my mother by his side, of course.”
“Of course. I didn’t mean to fash ye.”
She took a deep breath and clasped her hands together, as if cleansingherself from any unhappy thoughts of things yet to come. “How about ye? I ken ye have an older brother, aye?”
Torquil nodded. “My brother, Evander, and a younger brother, Callum. Our parents passed when we were young. I only have vague memories of them.”
