Page 40 of A Highland Lass for the English Duke

Lissie looked as if she had been slapped. Then, she looked as if she was going to slap Will. Bearing in toward him, Lissie stared. She was so close that Will could feel her heartbeat.

"No head start," she said fiercely. "We are running this race fair an' square. An' if ye win, then so be it, but I am telling ye, lad, ye wilnae!"

Her eyes flashed vehemently. Will could not help but laugh.

"Very well." He moved right beside her, her body heat radiating into his. The sensation of her flesh, right there next to him, close enough to touch, was too much to bear.

Suddenly, he sprung into life. Then, he looked thoughtful.

"Who's going to call it?" he asked suddenly. "You or me?"

Lissie pursed her lips up irrepressibly. "Noo!" she cried, as Will scrambled to get a start. Before he could get moving, Lissie elbowed him out of the way, tearing past him at speed.

And before he had even staggered to his feet, she was halfway across the hunting ground, heading toward the boundary mark as fast as she could. By the time he had made it properly upright, she was almost there.

Cursing beneath his breath, Will got into his stride. He was big, and his legs were long. Ordinarily, his running speed was fast, but he had already been blindsided by a false start. All the same, he resolved to give her a proper go.

"Come on, lad!" laughed Lissie, but Will could barely see her; she was disappearing fast in a whirlwind.

Will sped up, but it was to no avail. She was already too far ahead. Then, just as he was getting close to catching up, out of nowhere, the ground slipped in front of him and swallowed him up.

With no warning, Will was on the hard land, staring up at the twinkling sun. Light streamed in through the woodland, dappled and hazed. Lying back, Will groaned as Lissie streamed into the first place. Seeing him dangled there, his limbs splaying everywhere, Lissie tutted.

"Come, lad, shake a leg!"

Will had gotten himself upright and now did not waste a single second longer. Before she could get any further, he was sprinting toward her, closing the gap in seconds.

If Lissie was surprised, she did not show it. However, she pulled a reserve of energy from somewhere and literally blasted off forward.

By now, they were neck and neck, Will having made up for his earlier lack of speed. Panting, he struggled to get his breath.

God's tooth! Why am I so out of breath?

But there was no time to think. Lissie was closing in. And she appeared to be having no problems breathing. Worse still, she was getting away.

Will tried his hardest, but Lissie remained infuriatingly one step out of reach. Just as he was narrowing in on her, a sudden cheer went up.

Thrashing his head around, Will saw Lissie crossing over the invisible boundary by the edge of the hunting ground. As she passed through, she shouted in exultation, "I won! I won! I won!"

She was laughing so hard she almost fell from her shoes. Will looked on in curiosity as, once more, she was shoeless, with nothing but her stocking feet on display.

"Awfu' clarty clogs!" She grinned.

Will was not too sure he understood, but sought to smile in the right places anyway. But he just could not stop watching.

Perhaps he watched too long, as she turned to see him. "Still think I needed a head start?" She smirked.

Will just shook his head. His eyes darted toward her feet.

"Come, lad, havenae ye seen a foot afore?" she teased, leaving Will hot under the collar. Will just smiled. He had already abandoned the trail and had conceded defeat gracefully. The next thing to deal with was Lissie and her family.

But that could wait. Will wanted to check all was well. The lass herself seemed fine, but he could not be sure. There she was, standing against the light, her long, almost-black hair cascading down in ringlets. And her cheeks glowed, full of the sun of the last few days.

She looked so sweet, he just had to possess her.

A heat was taking him, and if the look he sent her way had anything to do with it, it was affecting her as well. Moving closer, Will felt the pull from her body. She was reeling him in like a spider snagging its prey.

Lissie glanced, her shawl discarded, sending the shape of her shoulders into sharp relief. The dress revealed the upper tip of her décolletage, where her chemise lay beneath. Will's eyes could not help be drawn to it.