Page 65 of Intrigued By A Highlander

“None wanted to. They were too fearful their parents would sell them again. I knew some good people. Farmers who needed help with endless chores and who would treat the lads decently. I stop now and again to see how they are doing, and I’ve been pleased to see how happy they are in their new homes and how pleased the farmers are to have such hard-working lads.”

“Of course they would work hard,” Dru said. “They’re probably still fearful of being returned to Phelan.”

“Aye, they are, no matter how much I tell them that will not happen.”

“You are a good man, Knox,” Dru said and ran her hand slowly down the side of his face and his eyes drifted closed as he turned his face into her palm.

She caught her breath at the way his lips grazed her palm before he kissed it, and it sent an unexpected but pleasurable shiver racing through her.

“I like your touch, wife. It excites me and I look forward to properly making you my wife.”

She rested her brow to his, for the first time realizing what her mum meant about how dangerous it could be to love a man. She could easily surrender to her desires, to him, but she couldn’t, not if she truly loved him.

“I apologize ahead of time for disappointing you,” she whispered, hoping he would recall her words when he discovered her gone.

He eased his brow off hers to look bewildered at her. “You can never disappoint me, Dru. I do not know love—how it feels—but if what I feel for you is love then it is the most wonderful feeling I have ever known, and I never want to lose it—lose you.”

A tear slipped down her cheek. “I know love and I know that I love you more than anything in this world. And I will do anything to keep that love safe.”

He smiled softly as he brushed the tears off her cheek. “We will keep our love safe together.”

She kissed him with lingering strength, knowing it would be the last time she ever kissed him. Then she hurried off his lap, leaving him smiling while her heart continued to break.

It wasn’t long after they ate that Knox started yawning.

“Go and lie down. I will be right with you,” she encouraged. “I just wish to freshen myself a bit.”

“Don’t be long,” he said and went to kiss her, but a yawn interfered.

“Go,” she urged with a playful shove. “I won’t be long.”

She waited and when after some time had passed and he didn’t call out to her, she entered the room. He was naked, the blanket half covering him. She went and tucked it around him, then added more logs to the hearth so he would stay warm.

She didn’t dare glance his way one last time, for she feared she might not have the courage to leave him. Then she slipped on her cloak and walked out the door, the pain of leaving him so unbearable that she feared she might not survive it.

CHAPTER 18

Dru’s breath came fast and shallow, each step pushing her farther from the man she loved, from the life she had just begun to think might be possible. The night had swallowed her whole, and now dawn threatened to expose her, painting the world in streaks of pale gold.

She couldn’t stop. She couldn’t think. If she did, she might turn back.

The road ahead was long and dangerous, and she would have to once again become the lass no one would look twice at. A wretched thing with tangled hair and the stench of filth clinging to her. It was the only way to survive.

Tears threatened, though she didn’t know how that was possible since she had cried copious tears after leaving Knox. They left her drained and now she was exhausted after walking all night. She would need a place to rest—a place where she wouldn’t be found.

She treaded lightly, not wanting to be heard in case someone was in the area… mercenaries mostly.

A sound brought her to an abrupt halt. What was it she heard? She listened, waiting to catch it again.

It came. A sharp, ragged cry.

Dru stilled, every nerve in her body tightening. The breeze carried more sounds—gruff voices, the unmistakable thud of a blow landing, and a muffled grunt of pain.

She dropped into a crouch, keeping low as she crept along, what could barely be called a hill, toward the noise. The trees thinned, giving her a glimpse of the clearing below.

It didn’t surprise her to see four of Phelan’s men. It was why she intended to avoid the roads and take paths less traveled.

What did surprise her were the people they held captive and how badly they’d been treated.

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