Page 23 of Kilted Abduction
“Aye,” she replied. “I suppose.”
Chuckling to himself, Magnus stood and slung his pack over his shoulder again and settled his sword on his hip then gestured to the path.
“Let’s go then,” he said.
“This would be a lot easier if ye unbound me.”
“Nice try. Let’s go.”
“Are ye always so disagreeable?”
He shrugged his broad shoulders. “Probably.”
Ciara grinned despite herself but quickly turned away and walked on. As she did, she continued fumbling with the ropes, trying to slip out of them. Magnus though, had apparently learned from his previous mistake and bound her wrists with a knot she couldn’t wriggle out of. He was smart. Learned from his mistakes. Along with his size, speed, and skill with a blade, that made him formidable. If Ciara was going to get away from him,she was going to have to use her head. She was going to have to outthink him, to outmaneuver him.
CHAPTER TWELVE
The young woman was trouble. She was slippery and clever. She was a lot to handle, and Magnus knew he couldn’t afford to take his eyes off her, for even a second, or she might manage to wiggle away again. And with the storm bearing down on them, Magnus knew they didn’t have time to keep playing those games. She limped along on the trail ahead of him, clearly in some discomfort but unwilling to give him the satisfaction of showing it. The girl was tough, he had to give her that.
“Are ye all right?” he asked.
“What dae ye care, then?”
He rolled his eyes. “I’m nae a monster.”
“Nay? Ye could have fooled me,” she replied, holding her bound hands up as evidence.
“If ye’d behave, I might nae have tae keep ye bound.”
“Ye’re abductin’ me and ye expect me tae be nice?”
“I dinnae expect anythin’,” he replied. “But I’m nae tryin’ tae hurt ye. I need ye tae believe that. I dinnae want tae hurt ye.”
“If ye didnae want tae hurt me, ye’d let me go.”
“I’m afraid I cannae dae that.”
“Then we dinnae have nothin’ else tae talk about.”
Magnus blew out an exasperated breath then fell silent. If that was how she wanted it to be, that’ was how it was going to be. It was unfortunate. He found her to be intriguing and wouldn’t have minded hearing her story. More than anything, he wanted to hear how the English had seduced her into turning on her own people. He was curious about what they had promised her. Magnus couldn’t conceive of the idea of turning on his people and wanted to understand what it took for somebody to turn their back on their clan like that.
However, despite it being difficult for Magnus to admit even to himself, his interest in Ciara went well beyond just picking her brain to find out what had made her turn traitor. There was something about her that intrigued him on a deeper, more primal level. It wasn’t just that she was beautiful, although she was. It wasn’t her intelligence or wit. And despite her surliness toward him and the constant barrage of acerbicremarks, Magnus sensed something deep down inside of her that resonated with him. He couldn’t put his finger on it exactly, but in her, he sensed a kindred spirit of sorts. Why he got that feeling about her was a mystery.
It was a question he’d asked himself many times over already and had yet to come up with a satisfactory answer. But he felt it and didn’t like unanswered questions. Magnus always sought to understand himself. To have clarity of thought and firm control over his emotions. In the short time he had known this woman though, she had challenged all of that. He was confused and didn’t understand his thinking toward her, nor could he manage his emotions. It was frustrating and yet, at the same time, it was somewhat exciting.
Rarely in his life did he not have the answers to the questions that fired through his mind. It was one of the things that had made him such a good strategist and valued advisor to his older brother. And where the control of his own mind and emotions left off, his gift picked up. Being able to get into somebody’s head and listen in on what they were thinking was incredibly helpful in a host of different ways.
And yet, when it came to this woman, not only did he not have control, he couldn’t get into her mind. He couldn’t hear her thoughts. It left him flabbergasted. It was a challenge he’d never faced before, and Magnus was a man who enjoyed challenges. She was a mystery to him. An enigma. And something about that was exhilarating to him. He was sure Domhnall would say he wasn’t right in the head—something his older brother liked to say—but Magnus could no more change how he was than he could change the direction the sun rose in every morning.
“How long are we goin’ tae have tae walk?” she asked, breaking the silence between them.
“Until we get tae where we’re goin’.”
“And how far away might that be then?”
“I thought we had nothin’ tae talk about?”
“Would it dae ye any harm tae tell me where we’re goin’ and what this is all about?”
