Page 25 of Highland Prince of Darkness

Chapter Eleven

“Here we are,” May sighed as she dismounted from her horse on top of the large hill. The wind had tousled her hair and she quickly smoothed it down while Iain dismounted from his house. “I could have sworn that we’ve been here before together.”

“Perhaps,” Iain shrugged it off.

May still didn’t know what to think after the kiss. It had brought back a lot of memories that she hadn’t been expecting.

“I always love it up here, it’s so peaceful,” May said, as she looked out over the land.

Silence settled over them as May didn’t feel the need to say anything and she let her thoughts run wild as she thought about all of the times that had been much better between them. She thought about how Iain used to hold her and how safe she had once felt in his arms.

A presence at her side alerted her to the fact that Iain was standing rather close to her. Their hands weren’t touching, but May could feel the energy between them, and the sensation made her shudder. She wanted nothing more than to reach out and close the small space that was separating them, but May knew that it would do her no good. This Iain, this Diabhal character that stood next to her would no doubt pull away and simply sneer in her face about how much she needed him.

May couldn’t deny that she did need him. He had occupied her thoughts for the six years that she hadn’t seen him and she had always silently prayed that one day she would see him again.

“What are ye thinking about?” Iain’s question shocked her slightly.

“Well,” May begun after a moment of hesitation, “I was thinking about ye and all of the lost time that we should catch up on. I want to hear about where ye went during yer travels.”

May watched as something in his face shifted. It was only subtle, but it closed off his expression to any kind of warmth that she might have thought to give him.

“Ye dinnae want to ken,” was all that he replied.

“But I dae, we’re to be married and I’d like to ken these things about ye.”

However, Iain continued to shake his head as he glanced around at the scenery in front of him. To their right, the castle loomed up like a gray blur that mingled with the low-hanging clouds. May couldn’t help but grimace as she thought about what horrors he must have done to not want to own up to them.

“I’m sure they’re nae that bad,” May said, more to herself than to Iain.

“Trust me, there are things that I’ve done that even I dinnae like to think about.”

Another chill ran down May’s spine upon hearing his words. She didn’t like the darkness that laced his voice when he spoke about those times.

May wanted to ask about the kiss that had shared. She wanted to question him as to why he had thought it would be a good idea after the harsh way that he had been treating her. But May knew what kind of answer she would get, it would be akin to the kind that she had just received when questioning his past.

“Are ye excited about the wedding?” she asked instead.

May was beginning to hate the way that their conversations felt so labored. It was as though they were strangers that had been placed into a marital agreement, rather than old lovers.

“I’m just excited for it all to be over with so that we can get on with our lives,” Iain shrugged off the question.

“Well, it will be nice to have one big celebration, especially with my father.”

“What dae the healers say’?” Iain asked.

“Not well,” May admitted and scrunched up her face, “The healers that I’ve spoken to aren’t very confident. I’m glad that they’re not keeping the truth from me, but it’s still a tough burden to bear.”

“Aye, I’m sorry to hear that.”

May didn’t know if Iain was being genuine when he said that. She knew that it would be easy for him to make a comment about how her father had once been the driving force behind him leaving. But while he was so sick, she was glad that he had refrained from doing so.

“I dinnae ken how much longer he has,” May admitted with a slight pinch in her tone of voice. The last thing that she wanted to do was to show emotion — especially weakness — in front of Iain.

“Death is just another part of life though, yer father has lived a long and important life. He’s looked after this clan, but everything has an ending.”

May nodded at Iain’s wise words. They weren’t the words that he would have been able to tell her all those years ago, for he hadn’t been that well-read. A frown pushed May’s eyebrows down as she thought about how much they really had changed. The Iain she had once known would have said nothing more than a comforting comment about being there for her always. He would have reassured her that she would never be alone in life, even after her father’s passing.

“Did ye always ken that ye would find me again?”