Lois Greiman (21 page)

T
hey were married at Arborhill. The ceremony was small and private. A reception of sorts was served in the dining hall, but the newlyweds slipped away early.

Amid a thousand nodding roses, they stood alone. Keelan wrapped his arms about his bride. She leaned her head back against his shoulder.

“I did na actually think ye would do it,” he said.

“Let you stand up naked in front of your forefathers?”

“Ye’re cruel, lass,” he said then, “how the devil do ye get in me dreams?”

She smiled. “There seems to be a good deal that can’t be explained. But I believe you were meant for me, Highlander. It was not some simple coincidence that awakened you from your slumber. You were sent to Crevan House to set
things right, for your parents, for my mother…” She touched his hand. “For me.

He tightened his grip about her waist. “Thank ye, luv.”

“For the dreams?”

He grinned. “That too,” he said, “but I’ve been talking about returning the horrid thing to the depths.”

She sighed, face solemn. “It’s done no good in this world, Keelan.”

“I know, but…’twas
gold.
” He shook his head.
“
We held it in our hands.”

She gripped his arms. “And now we hold each other. ’Tis far better.”

He shook his head as if bemused. “I feel I dunna know ye any longer, lass,” he said, and she laughed, turning in his arms.

“You’ve never known me, Highlander.”

“But I plan to set that right,” he said, and kissed her. The world was right, happy, smiling. “I hope ye dunna mind that we must live here at Arborhill for a time until I come into me own.”

“This is a beautiful place,” she said. Lambkin wandered up, head tilted at an odd angle. The ribbon tied about her woolly neck was beginning to fray and she staggered a little.

Keelan scowled. “What happened to me Lambkin?”

“I believe I saw O’Banyon’s daughter feeding her punch.”

“She’s intoxicated?”

“I believe so.” Bending, Charity picked up the little creature, cuddling her between them before lifting her gaze back to his. “What
is
your own, exactly?” she asked.

“’Twas a time I was quite wealthy, ye ken.”

“A hundred and fifty years ago?” she guessed.

“Just aboot that, aye.”

“I’m not certain how that’s going to help us now.”

He nodded. “I’m a fair charlatan,” he said. “I could join the Gypsies and tell fortunes.”

“A fine idea,” she said, “but perhaps we should live on our own estate.”

“’Tis a lovely thought,” he agreed. Lambkin belched softly. “And I do hate to be the one to remind ye, but we dunna own an estate.”

“Chetfield was my father,” she said. “And very wealthy. Land, jewels, coin.”

“Somehow I dunna think the Crown will accept ye as his rightful heir.”

“It’s true that I have no proof.”

“They’re sticklers that way.”

“Maybe this will help us then,” she said, and dipping into her cleavage, pulled out an ancient
coin.

He stared at it. “What’s that?”

“I believe it was called a doubloon.”

“Ahh. And where did you get it, lass?”

“It was with its mates,” she said.

“It has mates?”

“A thousand or so.”

He stared. She smiled.

“I didn’t spend six months at Crevan House sitting on my thumbs, Highlander.”

“I knew I loved ye,” he said.

“Prove it,” she whispered.

And suddenly…they were naked.

This book is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, and dialogue are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

BEWITCHING THE HIGHLANDER
. Copyright © 2007 by Lois Greiman. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

Microsoft Reader June 2007 ISBN 978-0-06-146600-7

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