Page 20 of Reviving Her Highland Spirit

He extended a large, calloused hand, and waited. Maggie found herself eyeing the corded muscles of his forearm, and the swell of his bicep. He’d pull her up beside him with no difficulties at all.

You’ll fall, whispered the nasty voice in Maggie’s head. He can’t save ye. No one can save ye.

“Lady Maggie?” Callum whispered, so softly that she thought she might have imagined it. His hand was still there. All she had to do was reach out and take it. Take his hand, and he would do the rest.

Maggie swallowed hard, and before she had the chance to think it over, she placed her hand in Callum’s.

His hand closed over hers, and she found herself jerked neatly through the air. The world spun for an instant, and then she was seated on the front of the saddle, staring squarely between Stardust’s ears.

You’re going to fall.

Maggie’s breath seemed to stop. She was on horseback again. She swayed with Stardust’s movement, and the ground was so very, very far away.

You’re going to fall.

“Maggie? Uh, Lady Maggie, that is?” came a deep voice right in her ear, and Maggie breathed again.

She was leaning back against Callum’s warm chest. His arms stretched out on either side of her, with a firm grip on the reins. She felt fenced in, solid. Safe.

You’ll still fall.

“Are ye well, Lady Maggie?” Callum repeated, sounding a little more nervous.

“Aye, I’m fine. Just… just feeling very high up,” Maggie said. Her own voice sounded high and nervous. She was clutching one of Callum’s wrists in either hand, not having realized she’d reached out for them. She shifted her hand further up his right arm so that she wasn’t squeezing the bandaged injury.

Where had he been with such vicious thorns?

“We’re going tae go forward now,” Callum said, voice calm and level. Some of his composure was conveying itself to Maggie, or so she hoped. She breathed in deeply, forcing herself to concentrate on her lungs filling with air.

“Aye,” she said, and Callum gently urged Stardust forward.

It was just a step. Not a trot or a canter, just a walk. Stardust stepped forward, calm and sedate. Maggie felt dizzy, the two of them rolling with the movement. The ground was so very far away.

For some reason, she found herself focusing on how Callum smelled. That was mostly because he smelled pleasant. Most grooms and stable boys smelled strongly of horse and dirt, which was to be expected. Callum did have a gentle scent of horse, but mostly he smelled clean, like when you crush greenery between your fingers. It was oddly soothing.

Then Stardust took a second step, and then a third, showing no signs of stopping. Maggie closed her eyes.

Ye are going tae fall.

“Don’t close your eyes,” Callum said lightly. “It makes the dizziness worse.”

Maggie’s eyes flew open. How had he known?

Four steps. Five. More.

You’ll fall, you’ll fall, you’ll fall, you’ll fall, you’ll…

“Stop,” Maggie said, her voice hoarse.

Callum barely touched the reins, but Stardust stopped at once.

“Just breathe, Lady Maggie,” he murmured. “We’ve stopped.”

Maggie swallowed. “I… I need tae get down.”

“Very well,” Callum said easily. “I’ll get ye down.”

In a swift movement, he slipped off the horse behind her. For one awful, stomach-clenching moment, Maggie found herself sitting alone on Stardust’s back, without her feet in stirrups, or her hands on the reins.