THE GIFT: A Highland Novella (7 page)

“
I know how ye like long tales,
”
he said, giving her a wink.
“
There
’
s sure to be plenty of those.
”

“
In
Gaelic
,
”
she said.

“
All the better for learning it.
”

“What about those winter storms ye said would keep me here?” she asked, cocking her head.

“Sailing through the islands isn’t nearly as dangerous as on the open sea,” he explained. “There are plenty of places for a boat to shelter during a storm.”

“Going there would take me even farther away from London,
”
she said.
“
How would I ever get back to where I belong?
”

Where did Lily belong? If she were truly the next seer, shouldn
’
t she have an inkling she belonged with his clan? His grandmother never seemed surprised by anything, but she
’
d had many years to hone her gift.

“
Merchant ships visit from time to time,
”
he said.
“
Once the winter storms are past, it will not be difficult to find a ship to take ye to London.
”

Lily was quiet for a long moment. He wondered why she was so torn, when going with him was clearly the safer choice. But she was a stubborn lass who wanted to believe she could take care of herself. And perhaps she could in London. But not here.

“
This place
—
this island
—
where you want to take me,
”
she finally said,
“
is that where you live?
”

“
Nay, but I
’
ll stay through Yuletide to see that you
’
re settled,
”
he said.
“
Then I must return to my duties on the Isle of Skye.
”

Ach
, the lass looked relieved to hear it. That was a blow to his pride. And yet he did not believe the fire between them was kindled all on his side. If all Lily wanted was a night of passion with no further entanglement, he ought to be relieved.

The fact that he was not annoyed the hell out of him.

***

“
Come to Islay,
”
Roderick said.
“
Ye don
’
t want to spend Yuletide alone.
”

“
I usually do,
”
she said.
“
I prefer it that way.
”

“
Ye don
’
t spend it with your family?
”
He sounded startled.

“
I avoid them as much as I can
—
especially on feast days,
”
she said.
“
My brothers, father, and uncles use any occasion as an excuse to get drunk and into fights, and they
’
re always asking to borrow money.
”

Lily did not know why she was telling him about her family. She never spoke of them with anyone else.

“
After I was apprenticed to the old healer, she and I enjoyed a quiet Christmas, lighting an extra candle and hanging greens in the shop,
”
she said, smiling at the memory.
“
We sold bits of mistletoe and holly all through Advent.
”

Lily still sold mistletoe and hung greens during Advent, but she missed the old woman.

“
Have ye no mother?
”
Roderick asked in a quiet voice.

“
She died when I was a babe.
”

“
My parents
’
boat was lost in a winter storm when I was a wee bairn, so I know something of your loss.
”
He enfolded her hand in his.
“
But I
’
ve always had my grandmother and my clan.
”

Most of the time, Lily did not mind having no one to share feast days with. But on Christmas, she would take out all the old letters from her sister, who lived with her husband in France, and from her friend Linnet in Northumberland.

“
Lily,
”
Roderick said, drawing her attention back to the present.
“
I don
’
t believe I can leave ye in Ayr.
”

“
Why not?
”
Her heart beat fast at the thought, unlikely as it was, that he wanted to be with her a little longer.

“’
Tis not safe for ye to be on your own in Ayr,
”
he said.
“
I
’
d worry about ye there.
”

She was so unaccustomed to being worried about that his words made her eyes sting. When she was only a young child, her family had even moved to a different house without noticing they had left her behind until someone told them hours later.

“
I may not do well in the wilderness,
”
Lily told him,
“
but I can manage the dangers of a town.
”

“
Nay, I
’
ll not take ye there and leave ye,
”
he said, shaking his head.
“’
Tis no use arguing. I
’
ve made up my mind.
”

Now he was being high-handed.
“
That
’
s a shame, because I
’
ve made up my mind to go. I can walk the rest of the way.
”

“
Ye must trust me on this, lass,
”
he said, squeezing her hand.
“
Ye don
’
t know this country, and ye can
’
t speak our language.
”

She hated letting someone else make decisions for her. But, truth be told, Roderick had held her fate in his hands from the moment he rescued her on that barren hillside.

“
With your sense of direction,
”
he added,
“
you
’
d never get to Ayr anyway.
”

She laughed in spite of herself.
“
I
’
d wager all that talk about your grand Yuletide celebrations was just to persuade me to come with you.
”

“
Aye,
”
he said, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
“
But what I said about the mountains of food, great bonfires, and long tales is all true.
”

Lily could not muster any anger over his attempt to control her, since his only purpose was to keep her safe.

“
My grandmother will be on Islay all winter,
”
he said.
“
Ye can stay with her, and she
’
ll teach ye those new cures you
’
re wanting to learn.
”

She remembered hearing rumors that old magic, long forgotten in England, was still practiced in the wildest parts of Scotland. The prospect of learning these ancient skills sent a thrill through her.

“
You
’
d do that for me?
”
she said.
“
Ask your grandmother to take me in?
”

“
It would be a favor to me,
”
he said, resting his hand over his heart.
“
She
’
s an old woman, and I don
’
t like her to be alone. And there
’
s bound to be more folk in need of healing at the Yuletide gathering than my old grandmother can manage on her own.
”

A kind man was as rare as a flea-less dog. Roderick
’
s concern for both her and his grandmother touched Lily deeply, and it only added to his already formidable appeal.

She should get on her feet and start walking to Ayr before it was too late for a cure. But the night was dark and cold.

And Lily did not want to be cured just yet.

CHAPTER 6

Roderick stopped breathing as she reached out to him. When her fingertip touched his chest, he felt it all the way to the souls of his feet.

“
Is that dried blood?
”
she said in an accusing tone as she stepped closer and narrowed her eyes at the tear in his tunic.

This was not what he was hoping for.

“
I didn
’
t notice it before against your dark tunic,
”
she said.
“
Why did you not tell me you were hurt?
”

“’
Tis nothing,
”
he said.
“
Harold grazed me as I knocked him to the ground.
”

“
Take that off,
”
she said.

From the determined way Lily was pushing up her sleeves, she was not suggesting they roll around on the grass naked.

“
I
’
ve herbs in my bag to make a salve for it.
”
She marched off into the darkness to retrieve her bag, which was a few yards away with the saddle.

Roderick sighed and pulled his tunic and shirt over his head. When she reappeared in the firelight a few moments later, he had the small satisfaction of watching her come to an abrupt halt and flush pink as she took a long look at his bare chest. She recovered quickly, however.

She sat down in front of him and poured some of his good whisky onto a cloth.
“
This will sting.
”

“
You
’
re making a lot of fuss over a wee scratch.
”
He winced as she began cleaning his wound with the cloth.

“’
Tis no
wee scratch
.
”
She paused to fix him with a hard look.
“
An untended wound can turn feverish.
”

He leaned back on his elbow and watched as she mixed some powder from a vial into his eating bowl with a few more drops of his whisky to create a paste.

When she turned her attention back to him, he swallowed as her gaze drifted across his chest and arms, seeming to take in every inch of bared skin. Did she have any notion what that did to him?

“
I see this is not the first time you
’
ve gotten yourself injured,
”
she said, sounding irritated.
“
I suppose battle scars are a badge of honor for you Highlanders.
”

He shrugged.
“
Every scar provides a tale to share around the hearth.
”

“
You should be more careful,
”
she scolded.

“
I am careful,
”
he said with a laugh.
“
That
’
s why I lived to tell the tales.
”

She blew out an exasperated breath, but a smile tugged at the corners of her pretty mouth.

Roderick tried to keep his thoughts from straying when she edged closer, but he utterly failed when her thigh rested against his and she leaned across him to apply the salve along the narrow line of the wound. His cock was already throbbing when her hair fell over her shoulder and brushed his belly just above his breeks.

Despite the chill in the air, he was beginning to sweat, but Lily was so focused on her task that she did not appear to notice his state. It was a small cut
—
would she never finish?

Jesu
. With every stroke of her finger, the ends of her hair brushed his skin like a tantalizing invitation.

At last, she finished applying the salve. He expected her to move away from him at once. When she remained where she was, he dared to hope.

***

The tension between them was so strong it prickled Lily
’
s skin. When she finally forced herself to look up, the fierce desire in Roderick
’
s eyes stole her breath away. His dark blue gaze held her fast with a question.
Will you?

This sinfully handsome Highlander did not need a woman to cook and clean or do the other things men expected. There was only one thing he wanted from a woman. And to Lily
’
s everlasting surprise, he appeared to want it from her tonight.

She had avoided entanglements with men like the plague she knew them to be. She loved her shop and her freedom. Living a celibate life had been no great sacrifice. In truth, she had not met a single man who tempted her.

Until now. And by the heavens, she was sorely tempted.

Tomorrow they would be on their way, and soon after they reached Islay, she would never see Roderick again. If she was ever going to go to have a night of sinful pleasure with a man, she would never have a more suitable opportunity.

Nor a man she would rather do it with.

Roderick reached out and cupped her face with his hand. His touch was gentle, yet the effect on her was so powerful that she felt it to her toes. She already felt over her head and drowning. Perhaps she should wait and do this with some quiet, unassuming merchant who did not make her heart race and her limbs feel weak.

“
Tell me more about your grandmother, the healer,
”
she said to buy time to calm herself.

“
I can
’
t do that now.
”
He took the bowl of salve Lily still had gripped in her hands without realizing it and set it by the fire.

“
Why not?
”
she asked in a whisper.

“
Because I may not survive,
”
Roderick said, resting his hand on the small of her back,
“
if I wait any longer to kiss ye.
”

As he leaned toward her, her pulse skittered, and she could not get enough air. She recognized these as signs of a woman losing her wits over a man. She had often prepared soothing drinks for women who came to her breathless and agitated.