Page 14 of Claimed by a Highlander
“Shite!” he said under his breath as a rider emerged between the hills.
Sybil’s heart thudded in her chest as one rider quickly became two, then three, then a dozen.
Rory clicked his tongue, and Curan came at a trot. Under the cover of a clump of spindly alder trees, Rory lifted her onto the horse. Leading Curan by the reins, he splashed through the middle of the burn at a run for several yards before crossing to the other side.
As soon as the horse’s hooves were on dry sod again, he leaped onto its back behind her, and they took off at a gallop.
***
Rory cursed himself as he crossed streams, changed directions, and rode as fast as he dared. That had been too close. After he was certain no one was on their trail, he forced himself to slow Curan to a walk to spare the horse.
Less than a day after he collected his bride, she was nearly captured before his eyes. How could he have let that happen? Sybil’s long silence felt like an accusation.
“I should not have let those men get that close to ye,” he said. “I’ll not let it happen again.”
So long as he kept his wits about him and avoided the places her enemies would expect her to go, they should not run into them again. Keeping his wits about him would be considerably easier, however, without her sweet bottom pressed against his groin and her open thighs rubbing against his.
“I’m the one who ought to apologize for bringing ye into such trouble,” Sybil said.
“’Tis not your fault your brother got on the wrong side of the queen and the regent.”
Archibald Douglas and the other men of Sybil’s family should be flayed alive for leaving her to face the danger they created while saving their own skins.
“Ye saved me again today,” she said. “I’ll always be grateful.”
Evidently her brothers’ shameless behavior had given her low expectations of men.
“I expect we’ll reach the Highlands without further trouble,” he said to reassure her. Once in the Highlands, they would have to travel through lands belonging to other clans, which was never safe, but there was no reason to tell her that now.
“Ye believe we’ve truly lost the queen’s men this time?” she asked.
“Aye.”
When she leaned against his chest and dozed off, he was startled to hear himself sigh aloud. The lass did feel good in his arms. So good that a couple of hours later he was in the midst of a heated daydream when she jolted his attention with a question.
“Why did ye come for me after all this time?” she asked.
“The matter needed to be settled,” he said, and that was all the explanation he was giving.
“After waiting more than eight years,” she said, turning in the saddle to face him, “why did it need to be settlednow?”
Because he had to know if he still had an obligation to her before he wed the Grant chieftain’s daughter—but only a fool would tell her that. Bringing home his unexpected bride was going to cause difficulties. The clan needed the support of the Grants.
“Why now?” Sybil repeated.
Rory recalled advice he’d been given by Malcolm, the revered old warrior who had served as his grandfather’s captain of the guard. Malcolm said that when it came to women, it generally saved a lot of trouble to apologize right off, whether you’d done anything meriting an apology or not.
“I should have come sooner,” Rory said, and it sounded good.
“Then why didn’t you?”
So much for Malcolm’s wisdom about women. “I had my reasons.”
“Tell me one,” Sybil said.
“Are ye always so persistent?” he asked.
“Aye.”
