Page 13 of Taken By the Heartless Highlander
Slowly he sank back onto the log, moving away from her, his breathing coming more quickly than it had been.
“I dinnae ken yer name, Me laird,” she said softly.
He turned back toward her, his eyes moving over her face, down to her lips, and back again. She watched his throat contract as he swallowed.
“Laird MacAllen,” he replied, just before he raised his shoulder, as though testing the movement.
“Stop movin’ it,” she said, placing a hand over his shoulder, only to have him grip her wrist, pulling her hand away. In the same movement, he dragged her toward him, forcing her to place a hand against his bare chest to stop herself from colliding with him.
“Stop tellin’ me what to do,” he growled.
* * *
Noah battled not to grip her by her arms and drag her in for a kiss. He had not expected to be half-naked in front of her, and he certainly didn’t need to be any closer to those full lips.
She glared at him, her hand still motionless, held in his wrist.
“I cannae treat ye if ye dinnae let me examine ye.” Her eyes flicked down to the sight. “It is bleedin’ again, let me go, Me laird. I must see to it.”
“And what if I forbid ye from touchin’ me, lass?” he whispered.
He watched her tongue wet her lips as her wide eyes came up to meet his gaze.
“Ye arenae a fool, Me laird. Ye ken it needs tendin’ to.” Her voice was soft, but her eyes were on his mouth now, and he felt arousal stir in him at her proximity.
Alarmed by his body’s reaction, he slowly released his grip on her wrist, and she retracted her hand.
She returned to the site of the wound, adjusting the bandage. He could not help staring at her face. He realized he was counting the freckles on her nose only as she finished her work, and he hurriedly looked away.
“Ye said ye have a method for treatin’ burns,” he found himself saying. “I have never heard of a healer who doesnae amputate a burned limb.”
She shook her head. “I try nae to do it if I believe I can fight the infection.”
“With what?”
She looked up at him then, her eyes inquisitive. It was clear that she did not get asked about her trade very often.
“Ye are interested, Me laird?”
“I wouldnae ask if I wasnae interested, lass.” He paused, scratching at the wound absently. “A friend died on the battlefield from his burns. They left him to die for days; nothin’ could be done.”
Her eyes turned sad, and a haunted look swept across her face. “I am sorry. A battle would be a difficult place to tend to the wounded without the proper supplies. Burns can sometimes be too severe to treat, and that must have been the case with yer friend. There is nay guarantee that anything could have been done.”
As she spoke, the tension that had sprung up in his chest eased. Warwick had been a fine man, but there was no dignity in death. He wished he had not seen him in his final hours, begging for relief, sobbing for his mother. Noah closed his eyes as she continued, her voice soothing him like a cool breeze.
“Yarrow is very good for swelling; I often add a mixture of honey, yarrow, St John’s Wort, or comfrey. Cold water is as good an option as any and helps to soothe the skin. If ye are ever burned and near the source of a river, it can be a balm to the skin.”
She was folding everything from the bag into neat sections now. Her brother had brought it with him, seemingly out of habit, and the inside of it was a sight to behold. Noah had never seen an item with so many pockets.
“Honey?” he asked.
“Aye. Honey is a great healer for wounds. I found a nest of bees not so far from home the other day. Delicious and useful.” She looked up at him with a coy smile, and he felt his heart beating like a battle drum inside his chest.
She had such full lips, the lower one larger than the upper, and long, extremely dark eyelashes to match her hair. He found himself wondering how they might look when it rained, with droplets catching in her hair and over her face.
He stood up abruptly and received a tsk in response.
“Ye shouldnae move so fast,” she scolded, but as she stood up beside him, she looked satisfied, too. “I think it has stopped bleedin’,” she said, sounding relieved. “Make sure that ye dinnae overuse yer shoulder for the next few days and rest it.”
