The Condemned Highlander (Highland Intrigue Trilogy 2)

“Find the lass and all will come to pass,” Brogan repeated what the witch had told Annis. “Will it all come to pass on its own? Or is there more for us to do? And does the MacWilliam lass know her heritage or is she as blind as the rest of us?”

“Never-ending questions that can only be answered one at a time or they will overwhelm us and cause chaos. Take the ravens, they helped me to protect you. They give direction to the woman with the limp, so she knows where to go. I would say the ravens are our friends and we’d be wise to pay them heed. I suppose with that in mind we can surmise that the witch helps us.”

“Does she? Why help you break a curse that she helped create? Or does she lead me, Odran, and Rannick to our doom?”

Annis had not given that thought and his suggestion disturbed her. Could she be leading him into a trap? Could finding the MacWilliam lass bring more harm than good? What then would be her sister’s fate?

“I wish I had all the answers,” she said, frustrated. “I want you and Bliss kept safe. Is it possible to have both? I do not know, and I will not know unless I try. Hopefully, the woman with the limp can help enlighten us.”

“I want to believe, to trust,” he said, though skepticism marred his every word. “But I still have doubts, so I say we remain cautious. Enough talk of that for now, tell me what troubled you when speaking with Cala.”

A crack of thunder startled her, or was it that Brogan had noticed her worry? Was he that preceptive or had he gotten to know her far better than she had realized?

Brogan moved the food and drink that sat between them aside and planted himself beside her. “Is it the thunder or me that frightens you?”

“I do not frighten that easily.”

“I know, so what frightened you?” he asked, tugging playfully at one of her springy curls. He did not need to remind her to be honest with him, he knew she would be.

She gladly let him know her concern. “The magnitude of being Lady Annis. You were born a noble, not so me. You were taught what you needed to know in your world as I was taught what I needed to know in mine. The difference between our worlds is like a great chasm that is impossible to merge. I fear I will be completely inept as Lady Annis and while you might think it will not matter to you, what if a day comes that it does? What do we do then?”

He took her hand in his, giving it a firm squeeze. “You and you alone is what matters to me. Anything else can be seen to and dismissed without worry.”

She relished the way his warmth and strength seeped into her. “It is a far different life than I am accustomed to.”

“We do well together. We will see that it does,” he assured her.

She felt comfortable enough with him to voice her other thoughts. “I suppose it would be wise of me to remain wed to you. You do not discourage me from my interests. You let me be me.”

“Always,” he assured her, then grinned. “And do not forget how much you like my kisses. It is good to have a husband who knows how to kiss well.”

“There you go singing your praises again,” she said with a soft chuckle.

“You cannot deny that you enjoy my kisses,” he said with a nudge of his elbow to her side.

“I do not deny it, but… I have nothing to compare it to.” She meant it as a playful tease, but the sudden scowl that surfaced on Brogan’s face told her he did not find it amusing.

“No one, not a soul, will kiss you, only me,” he ordered and tapped her lips with his finger. “Your lovely lips belong to me and no other. I was the first to kiss you and I will be the last man to kiss you.”

Annis did not know quite what to make of his words. Could it be a hint at love? Or was he being overly possessive? Or was it a sign of a demanding husband? He surprised her again when he shot to his feet and ran his hand through his hair as he paced in front of her.

“I have little to offer you being a cursed man and if we fail to break the curse, I will have even less for you are aware that I refuse to father any bairns and see them suffer. The only thing I can give you is more love than you ever thought possible.” He raked his hair with his fingers again. “I never thought love truly existed. I never saw it between my parents or with many other couples, but then noble marriages are arranged, and how does one fall in love with a stranger. I discovered the answer when I found you. You were like a light in the darkness to me and I could not help but be drawn to it—to you. But does an honorable man make the woman he loves suffer a marriage to him when he is cursed?”