Page 23 of The Lady of Her Highland Clan

They still did not stop until they reached the top of the steep green glen side, overlooking the Duncan castle. Only once at the top did Clyde pause, signaling to Fiona that he was ready to stop for a while.

Battling on behind him, the wind shaking the caul from her hair, Fiona was only too grateful to stop and take a break. The winds were exhilarating, and the early morning ride had certainly done everything to blast the cobwebs from her mind.

But despite everything, Fiona was most annoyed with herself. Her promise to herself had already been broken—dinnae go anywhere wi' him ane yer own—and she felt herself

wavering about the rest of it.

Why was it so hard to stay firm when she was with him?

As they came to a stop, she found herself pulling up toward Clyde, admiring the view below.

"All yers," said Clyde, beaming. "Ye must be vera proud."

He glanced at her. Fiona knew what this was. He was buttering her up. But as she smiled at him, and his clever green eyes flashed teasingly, she was minded to let him.

"Aye," she said, and she was. The green glens spread pleasingly in front of her. It was strange to think that all of this was hers. Nearly.

"A large clan, an' all the wealth," said Clyde, tiptoeing to the point.

Internally, Fiona rolled her eyes.

"Aye," she said again, her smile confronting his.

"But yet, we're nae quite sure exactly which hill this treasure is hidden on," said Clyde, his light eyes flickering softly.

An' there we have it,thought Fiona. That's all he's here for.

But Fiona was not about to show her disappointment. And she also was not ready to show her hand. She merely nodded as Clyde's eyes glistened with the prospect of treasure.

"It could be that it is nae on the Duncan side at all," said Clyde thoughtfully, as Fiona felt a ripple run through her. Her father's letters had rung a bell with her, and unbeknownst to Clyde, she thought she had a pretty good idea of where the treasure was.

That was if it existed.

"Aye, it could be," was all she said, with a curious glance to Clyde. His fresh complexion looked even more toned in the early morning light. Looking at his glowing skin, Fiona was taken with a sudden desire to run her fingers through it. It looked so lush.

Then, she coughed. She could not allow him to distract her like that. Instead of looking at him, she cast her eyes out to the horizon around them.

"Maybe we'll find it in the Greenock clan end," said Clyde hopefully. The naked cheek of his words made Fiona laugh out loud. She could not fault him for trying!

"Aye, we might," said Fiona, keeping her lip buttoned down. "An' maybe there'll be a pot o' gold by the rainbow, an' we'll find a pack o' unicorns there, too."

Clyde looked at her unsurely. Now that she had his interest, she smiled slowly.

Fiona sat up properly on her horse. Already, Lizzie May was showing signs of tiredness, leading Fiona to worry about returning home. The skittish mare seemed to be all over the place today.

"The thing is," she said assuredly, "it doesnae matter where we find it, just that we wouldnae find it at all wi'out the help o' the Duncan clan."

Her voice said the last part sternly, leading Clyde to watch her seriously.

"An' o' course, the coin is originally ours in the first place," said Fiona swiftly. She looked at him coolly. Clyde did not say anything. He just looked at her.

Wondering what he was thinking, Fiona dived in quickly.

"Also, I wondered why it was ye waited until now tae decide tae look for it," she said in a quieter tone. The pitch of the wind had dropped, and a sheer silence enveloped the glen for a good few minutes.

"Good question, bonny lass," said Clyde slowly. He finally moved his face, chiseled by the wind, toward her. "Well, then, aye, ye shall have yer explanation."

Fiona waited avidly. The wind that had dropped momentarily suddenly picked up speed, rocking them both about on the tops of their horses.