Page 42 of Highlander’s Hope

“Do people in the future develop magic skills?”

Konnor laughed softly and shook his head. Marjorie smiled with him. He had the most beautiful smile. His teeth were so white, and dimples that were invisible on his usually stern face formed on his cheeks.

“I’m sorry, I’m not laughing at you,” he said. “It’s just so adorable you said magic.”

She wasn’t offended. She hadn’t thought he was laughing at her. He reached out and brushed his knuckles against her cheek. The touch sent a current of pleasant tingles through her.

“It does sound like a witchcraft,” he said. “But it’s not. It’s science. Technology. The world has developed so much since all this.”

He looked around, and Marjorie cleared her throat, suddenly aware she was sitting way too close to him. Their heads were practically touching.

She moved farther away from him, sorry the magic spell had to be broken.

“What about houses? Horses? Or do people fly everywhere in your time?”

“No. Instead of horses, we have cars. They’re like your carriages. Like carts with roofs and a steering wheel. They drive fast, sixty to a hundred miles per hour, and they make it easy to move from place to place.”

Marjorie burst out a small laugh. “But is that nae witchcraft? A cart that moves on its own?”

He laughed, too, and she echoed him.

“You need to see it for yourself,” he said.

Marjorie’s smile fell. She would really love to see all this magic. Was that even possible?

“I’d be a very fortunate person to ever get the chance.”

“Well. I’m fortunate to be able to see your time. When I get back…”

Suddenly, the good mood was wiped off his face, too.

“What then?” she said.

“No one will believe me if I tell them.” He chuckled.

She swallowed, her leg shaking under the table. “Do ye have a wife? Children?”

His mouth flattened in a mournful smile, and he looked down. “No.”

“Oh.”

Something within her rejoiced that he didn’t, but there was a tension in his voice that told her there was more to this.

“Why nae? Ye’re a good man… Strong and capable…”

And handsome and stubborn and so sweet.

He looked at her, and she could see his shields were lifted, and longing and endless pain gazed from within his eyes.

“I wouldn’t want to inflict my darkness on any woman or child.”

She inhaled sharply, studying him, trying to understand what darkness he spoke of. He looked away, and when he met her eyes again, the shields were down.

“Doesn’t matter,” he said. “But it might interest you to hear women have equal rights with men. They work, earn money, they can choose whether to have children or not. There’s excellent birth control.”

Marjorie’s cheeks burned. “Ye mean, women may nae get with child after…”

He looked at her, his eyes dark. “Exactly.”