Page 30 of Love Beyond Words
“Ah.”
It came to him in an instant. Sydney. Laurel’s accent was much like Sydney’s. In truth, she was like Sydney in many ways. They shared the same speech, the same casual mannerisms so different from most women he knew. He expected that if he was given a chance to know this woman more, he would find that she was as loose with her speech as Sydney was, as well.
Smiling, he thought of Harry’s claim that they’d found her in the stables. The assumption that was forming in his mind truly was the only explanation.
“Are ye one of Morna’s lassies?”
Laurel straightened and smiled as she pointed to him in her relief.
“Yes. Yes, Morna. That’s what I was working up to, although I had no idea how you’d react. So you know her?”
Even before Sydney entered his life, he’d known of Morna. From the way his grandfather had always spoken of her, he wondered if perhaps he’d been in love with the witch. Though, for the sake of his grandmother, he’d never asked him outright.
“I’ve never met her, but she was a dear friend of my grandfather, and I know another lass she sent back.”
Laurel looked immensely relieved.
“Oh, good. That must be why she left instructions to ask for you. So, you will believe me when I tell you that she sent Marcus and me two nights ago? We landed in your stables.”
“Aye, lass, I believe ye.” He chuckled as he thought of Sydney and all the other tales he’d heard of Morna’s time-traveling lassies. “Are ye being truthful when ye tell me ye doona know why ye are here? I’ve only ever known of one reason for Morna to send lassies through time. She means to see ye matched with another.”
He wondered if perhaps it might be him, and it shocked him to realize that the idea wasn’t unappealing. God knew it had been too long since he’d taken a real fancy to any woman.
“Nope. That’s not it this time.”
He didn’t quite care for the disappointment he felt at her quick dismissal.
“I know that’s her usual thing, but she assured me that it wasn’t this time. In all honesty, we didn’t have time to get much explanation from her. She sort of sent us back against our will. She used some excuse that I might be able to get some ideas for my next book.”
Curious, he interrupted her.
“Yer book, lass?”
Her cheeks blushed bright enough that he could see it through the fog of his vision.
“Yeah. I’m a writer. Or at least I used to be. It’s been a while since I’ve been able to get myself to write anything.”
He’d never known of a female to write before. Most didn’t even know how to read. With so many opportunities for women in the time these lassies came from, he couldn’t imagine how difficult it must be for each of them to wind up here.
“’Tis impressive, lass. What do ye write?”
She smiled and shook her head.
“It doesn’t matter. In truth, I don’t believe that’s the real reason Morna sent us back here. I think it has something to do with my frie…” She hesitated and changed her wording. “With my brother, Marcus.”
Raudrich had yet to meet this Marcus, though he already knew what the receiving end of his fist felt like, and he didn’t wish to anger the man ever again.
“Why do ye say that?”
“Before I tell you, will you explain to me what the deal is with this place? I’d like to know how much of the legend is true.”
He knew there were stories about him and the rest of The Eight throughout Scotland now, but it shocked him to hear that this woman—born centuries after all of them would be dead—knew anything about them at all.
“Do ye mean to say that in yer time—whenever that is—ye knew of us before ye came here?”
She nodded. “Yes. There are books written about you, even a documentary.”
He had no idea what a documentary was.
