Page 13 of Savage Kilted Highlander

To her surprise, he burst out laughing. “Would it surprise ye if I said nay?” he asked, amusement dancing in his eyes.

She shrugged. “Not really. I can see plainly how you live.” With that, she wrinkled her nose as she lifted the beaker to her lips.

“But I do have some honey,” he said, surprising her again. He reached over to the pack and took out a small jar. He passed it over to her, along with the blunt knife he used for eating. “Help yersel’.”

“Thank you,” she replied, unable to suppress a smile as she took them. In her dire situation, having honey in her tea was a cause for celebration. But because of her bound wrists, she struggled to open the jar. Seeing her difficulty, he suddenly rose to his feet and came around to her side of the fire.

“I think ’tis safe tae untie ye fer the moment,” he said, undoing her bindings, much to her relief.

“Well, we have already established there is nowhere for me to run to,” she observed, rubbing her wrists vigorously where the ropes had chafed her skin and brought out angry red welts. He opened the honey jar for her.

“That’s nae strictly true,” he told her, returning to his spot and resuming his meal. “There’s plenty of places fer ye tae run. But in the dark and rain, as I said before, ye could end up breakin’ yer neck. A smirk spread over his face. “Or gettin’ eaten by a mountain lion.”

“You sound as though you would enjoy that,” she retorted with a withering smile, loading the knife with honey and stirring it into her tea. She tasted it, relishing the heat and sweetness on her tongue. It was instantly reviving.

“Nae at all! Why, I wouldnae have anythin’ tae ransom then, would I?” he pointed out, eating the last of his bread.

“I admit that is somewhat comforting.” It certainly was. “But I think I might enjoy breaking my neck just to spite you,” she said, growing bolder. “I do not approve of people profiting from the misery of others by criminal enterprise.”

“Of course, ye wouldnae. Ye’ve never had tae go without anythin’ in yer life. Ye dinnae ken what normal folk havetae dae tae survive.”

“That is hardly my fault. It is simply an accident of birth.” She decided not to let him needle her.

“Lucky accident then. I suppose yer family is very rich.” He ate some of the meat, looking across at her with what appeared to be genuine interest.

She thought about it for a minute and then said, “I have two families. The one that raised me in England, and the Scottish one, Laird Kerr and Agnes. The first is very rich indeed. But alas, in respect of wealth, my true father is still an unknown quantity. You probably know better than I do if he is rich or not.”

He chuckled, a deep, rich sound that set her senses tingling. “Och, he’s rich all right, and powerful too. He’s the most powerful man between here and Edinburgh, fer sure.”

“Well, that is good news for me. It means he can afford to pay my ransom,” she replied, giving him another thin smile before drinking more of her tea.

Her remark seemed to upset him because he suddenly frowned and said, “I told ye, I’m nae daein’ this fer money.”

His obvious disquiet on the subject once more piqued her curiosity. She could not resist poking him. “Why does it bother you so much when I mention money? Does it matter? What you are doing is still unlawful, and you could hang for it.”

“Shut up and eat.” He scowled at her.

“Not laughing now, are you?” Constance said, feeling absurdly pleased with herself for wiping the smile off his, admittedly very handsome, face. “By the way, you still have not told me what it is that you want from my father in return for me.”

“I’ve already told ye that’s none of yer business. Stop askin’ me about it.”

“By being so cagey, you are just making me more curious about it. You say you do not want gold. But what could it be that is so valuable to you that you would stoop so low as to kidnap me?”

“I told ye, ’tis none of yer concern,” he snapped, his cheekbones flushing. “Now, stop the questions and drink yer tea. ’Tis late and we need tae get some sleep. We’ll be back on the road at dawn.”

Thinking it better not to provoke him any further, Constance did as she was told. She felt quite warm and comfortable by the time they had finished their meal. Her clothes had dried on her, and she was looking forward to going to sleep. Fortunately, she was very weary from the journey and hoped she would fall asleep quickly and forget that she was sleeping in a cave like an animal with a mad Scotsman.