Page 35 of A Dangerous Highland Affair

He led the brown mare through the sodden wet fields and out into a thicket of trees. Once in the middle of the little glade, he gently helped Teasag down.

“I reckon we should be safe here,” he said, his blue eyes glinting in the failing light. His hand was still wrapped around hers, holding it tight. Teasag felt that as long as she was with him, she was safe from whatever lurked over the horizon. Nodding, she leaned into him, bringing her head to rest awhile on his firm torso.

It was still raining, but not quite as hard. Neacal brought their sacks over to the largest tree in the glade and set down a blanket from one of the packs. Teasag immediately recognized it as the same tartan design that he was wearing.

Taking the blue and red spun cloth, she briefly wondered what clan it was from, although stupidly, felt too shy to ask him about it. Neacal was so reticent with details about his own life.

Instead, taking the brat around her, Teasag wrapped it over her shoulders and shivered deeply. Until that minute, she hadn’t noticed just how cold and damp she was feeling.

Without Neacal’s touch to warm her, the cold intensified, sending its damp tentacles straight to her bones. As she shivered, Teasag watched Neacal with interest.

First, she wasn’t quite sure what he was up to, wandering around the fields and placing something unseen on the wet ground. Then, he hunted around, picking things up again and drying them down on the edge of his cloak.

Every now and then, he came closer, dipping into his haversack, which was a few feet from where she was sitting. She couldn’t see anything but heard a soft clanging coming from within it as if it contained something metallic. Then, just as silently as he had come near, he had gone again.

“Neacal?” she inquired softly as he moved further away. For a moment, Teasag stiffened as his shape dissolved against the horizon, becoming darker and more uncertain the more he moved away.

In her heart, Teasag felt her heart quicken as her only companion disappeared into the thick of the night, leaving her alone in a sodden field.

“Neacal?” she called faintly again. By now, he had been gone a while, and Teasag was beginning to get worried.

What could he be doing for all this time? Just when she was on the verge of getting up to look, a rustling sound behind made her spring to a stance. With heart in mouth, Teasag pressed her body hard against the tree, as if that would somehow save her.

Then, she relaxed as she saw the small shape of a rabbit scrambling nearby. All of a sudden, there was a squeak, and the creature lay still. Before she could get to look more closely, she heard footsteps advancing, and the shape of Neacal came into view once more.

“Got one!” he grinned, pulling the rabbit from the trap. Teasag watched, amazed. Before she could say anything, he flung the animal across to her, leaving her to catch it with surprise.

“Finally got something for tea. See if ye can clean this up, an’ I’ll start a fire…!” he laughed.

Taking the still-warm rabbit in her hands, Teasag looked up in admiring amusement. There was still so much she didn’t know about this man, but one thing she did know - he was a doer.

With the night falling hard around them, it was clear he was not the type to sit about and wait for something to fall into his lap. Instead, he was hard at work trying to find them something to eat, and now was beginning the makings of a fire to warm them.

While Neacal started building a fire, Teasag busied herself preparing the rabbit with the black sgian dubh that he had given her. In between her skinning, she paused to look at Neacal, his light brown hair flaring in the wind as he worked.

Teasag couldn’t stop smiling. Her plans had been blown off-course, but she didn’t care. More still, she was actually pleased about it.

As the first flame crackled into life in the small bonfire, Neacal came over and took her hand.

Watching the rabbit cooking on the spit, he came to sit beside her, and for a few minutes, they sat, complete in each other’s presence.

Teasag pressed her head into Neacal’s shoulder and sighed. Even though they were cast out in the open wilderness, she suddenly felt secure.

For the first time since leaving the McCallum Keep, Teasag felt vindicated. The decision she had made for walking away from her old life was had been the right one. And even in the middle of a rainswept field, she felt more at home than in that rough tavern back in town.

Neacal placed his arm protectively over her, bringing the rest of his brat over her head to stop the rainfall. But Teasag did not notice. She no longer felt the rain or the cold, only the sensation of his touch on her shoulder, invigorating her slowly and rousing her gently from within.

“Look at ye,” he teased. “As snug as a bug,” Neacal grinned. She could no longer see his face, tucked up in the shadows of the tree, but she could hear his smile in the way he talked.

She looked up, feeling for his face as she watched.

“So, what about a bedtime story….?” he said, his eyes alight with passion. He locked eyes with Teasag until she dropped her gaze, abashed. “…An’ ye look all ready for one. Listen, when I’ve finished this tale, ye’ll sleep for a million years,” he quipped. Resting her face against his, Teasag felt she would happily give it a try!

CHAPTER TWELVE

“T he sun, an’ t’ sister of t’ moon, from t’ south

Wi’ her right haun cast to the rim o’ the heavens;