Stranded By The Highlander: A Scottish Time Travel Romance-Highlander Forever Book 2

by Preston, Rebecca

  “I’m definitely not from here, no,” Nancy said, feeling a little self-conscious about her accent.

  Kaitlyn spoke with the same beautiful Scottish lilt as Maggie. Nancy couldn’t help feeling like her own broad American vowels were ugly in comparison. But Kaitlyn’s eyes had lit up to hear her speak, and she clapped her hands together, delighted.

  “You sound like Anna! Just like Anna, I swear it. Maggie, have the Sidhe brought us another new friend?”

  “Seems that way,” Maggie said, giving Nancy a conspiratorial wink from behind Kaitlyn’s back.

  The girl looked like she was going to explode with excitement. She rocketed over to Nancy, clearly forgetting all about her lessons, and perched in the armchair beside her, peering down at her with her wide blue eyes as round as saucers.

  “Where are you from? When did you get here? Do you know why the Sidhe brought you? What kind of danger were you in?”

  “Woah, woah.” Nancy laughed. “I don’t know! This is all pretty new to me.”

  “You know where you are though, right?” Kaitlyn looked over her shoulder at Maggie, who just nodded. “You’re in Scotland. It’s the seventeenth—”

  “— century, I know. I’m still wrapping my head around that.”

  “So exciting,” Kaitlyn breathed. “I wish the Sidhe would take me to a whole new time and place. I can’t believe what an exciting adventure that would be.”

  “What, and leave old Maggie behind?” Maggie said with mock-hurt in her voice. “I see, I see.”

  “You’d have to come with me, of course,” Kaitlyn said quickly, and Nancy laughed aloud at the quick recovery. “Does Donal know yet?”

  “She pulled herself out of the Loch in the middle of the night,” Maggie said. “I haven’t had a chance to send word. But if you’re offering…”

  Kaitlyn groaned. “Do I have to? I want to know more about where Nancy’s from!”

  “You have to,” Maggie said flatly. “Quicker you run, the quicker you’ll be back here to hear all about — where’d you say you were from, Nancy?”

  “Raleigh,” Nancy replied, grinning a little at the look of absolute fascination on Kaitlyn’s bright face. The idea that her hometown was some kind of exotic mystery to anyone was deeply amusing to her. It was home, and she loved it, but she’d be very surprised if anyone in history had ever been as excited about it as Kaitlyn looked right now.

  “Go and fetch Donal and Anna,” Maggie instructed Kaitlyn. “Tell them the Sidhe have brought through another guest like Anna, and that they might want to compare notes.”

  “I’ll run,” Kaitlyn promised. She’d brought a basket with her, and she dropped it unceremoniously on the table before tearing out of the room, almost knocking over a shelf of vials on her way. Nancy looked out of the window — sure enough, the girl was bolting up the path at quite a pace, her red hair flying out behind her with the speed of her flight.

  “That’s Kaitlyn,” Maggie said, sounding amused. “She’s a little firecracker.”

  “Are you really teaching her witchcraft?”

  “Not yet. Just herbs and healing, for now. She’s got the touch, but I won’t be telling her about that for a little while. A girl like that doing magic? Not until she’s calmed down a little.”

  “Who are Donal and Anna?” Nancy wanted to know. It seemed there was quite a cast of people to get to know — she’d always been bad with names, and she hoped she could keep everything straight in her head. There was a pretty steep learning curve ahead of her, it seemed.

  “Laird Donal Grant’s the Laird of the Sept of Loch Ness,” Maggie explained. “Big castle, about a half-hour’s walk down the shoreline. Can’t miss it. Anna’s his wife. The Sidhe sent her to us a couple of years ago. She’s from your time,” Maggie added, her eyes twinkling. “I imagine you two will have a great deal to talk about.”

  “Wow,” Nancy breathed. Another time-traveler? The tiny voice of dissent in the back of her mind — the voice that thought all of this might well be a dream — was getting quieter and quieter.

  Chapter 9

  Maggie bustled about the cottage for half an hour or so, muttering about a visit from the Laird and the need for cleanliness. Nancy hovered, wanting to help but not sure where anything was meant to be put. From what she could see, Maggie was just moving piles of untidy things from one place to another… the overall effect wasn’t so much of cleaning as it was of rearranging, but she was sure there was some kind of internal logic to the situation. At some point, the woman clattered upstairs, returning with a bundle of cloth in her arm and hurling it toward Nancy.

  “Warmer more appropriate clothes. You’ll need some. Summer or not, what you’re wearing isn’t what people round here are used to seeing, nor do I fancy they’re warm enough. You’ll catch your death if you go out in that.”

  Nancy went through the pile of clothes, pulling out what she thought was a thick woolen sweater that looked about her size, then thanked the woman, who dumped the rest of the clothes into the armchair. Nancy pulled the sweater over her head and it fell almost to her knees. Though the wool felt scratchy to the touch, it was soft and warm, and didn’t itch at all once it was settled against her skin.

  “You’ll be needing a pair of boots as well,” Maggie said, her arms full of little bottles of herbs. “There are some on the porch that ought to fit you. And don’t forget the socks there on the armchair.”

  Nancy remembered seeing the boots the night before. She frowned, realizing Maggie was already wearing a pair of boots — and looking with some doubt at the size of the old woman’s feet in comparison to hers. “I don’t know if your boots will fit me —”

  “They’re not my boots, they’re yours,” Maggie said, not looking up from her tidying. “Go and check.”

  So Nancy padded out onto the porch in her now stocking covered feet to retrieve the boots. To her surprise, they were bigger than the ones Maggie was wearing — and to even more of her surprise, they fit her perfectly. It almost felt like they were molded to her feet — they seemed to fit every curve and contour of each foot exactly. And that was no small accomplishment — her feet were about a half-size different in size, and it was often a hassle to get shoes that fit. She’d had to have her fins custom made.

  “These fit perfectly,” she exclaimed, stomping back into the cottage with her new boots firmly on her feet. “What are the odds?”

  Maggie just grinned at her. Nancy thought a little about witches, and magic, and faeries, and decided not to question the coincidence of the perfectly-fitting boots any further. One thing at a time was enough to be dealt with — and for now, that thing was finding out more about how exactly she’d travelled through time and space to this strange and wonderful new world. (And ideally, she’d love to go and visit the Loch Ness Monster again…)

  Before too long, Kaitlyn was back, the girl breathing hard as she sprinted up the road. From what Maggie had said, the castle was a half-hour walk — the fact that Kaitlyn had run there and back in about twenty minutes was rather impressive. She leaned on her knees, breathing hard, trying to catch her breath long enough to speak.

  “They’re coming,” she forced out finally, her cheeks flushed with the exertion of the run. “Anna — and Donal — and Malcolm.”

  “Malcolm?”

  “He’s the Tanist,” Kaitlyn explained brightly, having caught her breath. “Donal’s second-in-command. Very curious about you and where you’d come from!”

  “And Anna’s coming too?” Maggie tutted. “In her condition.”

  “She’s pregnant, Maggie, not dying,” Kaitlyn said, rolling her eyes. “You know Anna.”

  “Aye. It’s not her I’m worried about, it’s Donal. The poor man’s nerves are shot, poor thing. I know Anna will be fine, but he imagines she’s made of glass.”

  “They’ll be here soon,” Kaitlyn said, shifting excitedly from foot to foot. “I told them to bring horses, but Anna said she wanted the walk. She says it’s good for the baby, or someth
ing.”

  Anna is the woman who also came back in time, Nancy thought. A year or two ago, from what Maggie had said… well, she’d certainly moved fast, getting married and pregnant in such a short space of time. It was strange, to think of the idea of travelling hundreds of years back in time and then settling down and starting a family. What if your descendants moved from Scotland to America… and met your past self? For all Nancy knew, the friends she’d had in Raleigh could have been her descendants. Some of them had had Scottish ancestry, way back… what if she’d been hanging out with her great-great-great grandchildren? It made her dizzy to think about. Of course, that would mean she’d have to have children … which would mean she’d have to meet a man who wasn’t absolutely terrible, which would be a miracle in its own right. Maybe travelling through time and space would alleviate the strange curse that seemed to be on her head when it came to romance… but somehow, she doubted it.

  There were footsteps on the path outside before she knew it, and Nancy got to her feet, feeling oddly nervous about meeting the Laird and his wife. Kaitlyn rocketed to the door to open it, and Nancy followed her, somehow feeling that the cottage was a little too crowded for three more people to enter.

  The man on the porch was foreboding. He was at least six feet tall if not taller, with keen gray eyes, sandy blond hair, and a sharp, handsome face. He was clad in armor with a sword at his hip, and Nancy felt her heart beat a little faster at the realization that this was a Laird — that sword wasn’t a prop, or a decoration, it was a deadly weapon, and one that had probably seen a fair bit of use in its time. She swallowed hard as she met his eyes.

  “Good morning,” he said, that same beautiful accent lilting his vowels. “You must be Nancy. Welcome to Loch Ness. I’m Laird Donal Grant, of the Sept of Loch Ness. This is my wife, Anna, and my tanist, Malcolm.”

  She’d hardly noticed the people behind him, so taken aback had she been by the armor and the sword, and she looked at them now. Malcolm wasn’t quite as tall as the Laird, but he still had a good few inches on her. He, too, had a sword at his hip, but he was wearing less armor than the Laird, emphasizing his leaner build. His beard was the same coppery color as his hair, and his eyes were bright green. Like hers, she thought, disarmed despite herself. For some reason, she’d been expecting these men to be in their forties at least, but to her surprise she realized they couldn’t be too much older than her. Malcolm didn’t look a day over twenty-three, despite the beard… maybe he grew it to seem older, more authoritative? She didn’t mind. It suited him.

  Beside him stood a woman with short dark hair and brown eyes. She stood with an easy confidence, and there was something about her physical presence that was so assertive that it took Nancy a moment to realize how surprisingly short she was. Why, she couldn’t be much over five-feet tall. Still, there was something foreboding about her. Nancy wouldn’t have liked to get on her bad side. So it was nice to see a smile on the woman’s face.

  “It’s so good to meet you, Nancy,” Anna said — and Nancy almost gasped to hear an American accent.

  “Good to meet you all —” Nancy started, but she was cut off by a gasp from Anna.

  “You sound like me!” Anna said, her eyes wide. “Oh my God, I hadn’t realized how much I’d missed that. Come here.” And before Nancy could react, Anna had charged forward and pulled her into a hug.

  She laughed, hugging the woman back, surprised and charmed by the gesture. Malcolm was chuckling, but Donal was still looking at her closely, watchful. What was he worried about? Protective of his wife, perhaps? Maggie had said he was worried about her pregnancy — sure enough, when Anna disengaged from the hug, Nancy could see the discrete swell of her belly under the tunic and pants she was wearing. Four or five months along, maybe.

  “Where are you from? What do you do? Tell me everything,” Anna was saying. Maggie, behind them in the doorway, cleared her throat.

  “I’ve got lessons to be getting on with,” she said pointedly, fixing Donal with a beady-eyed stare. The Laird jumped, looking almost guilty, and Nancy grinned, realizing that for all the pomp and importance of his title as Laird, Donal still answered to Maggie. “Or are you all going to stand on my porch all day?”

  “Nancy, we’d love to invite you to the castle for lunch,” Anna said smoothly, giving Maggie a smile. “I’m sure we’ve all got a lot to talk about.”

  “That would be lovely,” Nancy said, glancing back over her shoulder at Maggie. “But —”

  “I’ll keep your things safe,” Maggie said, waving her hand dismissively. “Go on to the castle. Come visit whenever you like. I like this one,” she added meaningfully, looking at Donal hard. “She’s sharp.”

  “Can I come to lunch too?” That was Kaitlyn, also loitering in the doorway behind Maggie. The old woman tapped her on the arm in warning.

  “Nosy. You can interrogate Nancy later. Plenty of time for that. For now, we’ve got herbs to study.”

  “Fine,” Kaitlyn sighed. “I’ll see you soon, Nancy?”

  “Absolutely,” Nancy grinned. She liked the plucky young girl from the village. “You’ll have to tell me what it’s like growing up in Scotland.”

  “Only if you tell me about Raleigh. We can trade stories.”

  “Deal.” Nancy laughed.

  “Good. Now stop distracting my apprentice,” Maggie said crossly, then slammed the door on them.

  They could hear her muttering to herself as she shuffled back into the cottage with Kaitlyn in tow. Nancy glanced up at Malcolm, who was clearly suppressing laughter, and Anna, whose eyes were shining with mirth.

  “She must like you,” Donal said gravely as they made their way down the steps. “She’s usually a lot more crotchety than that.”

  “She didn’t warm to me for ages,” Anna agreed, falling into step with Donal. He slipped his hand into hers, gently guiding her down the path to the main road.

  “That was because you wouldn’t believe you were really in Scotland,” Malcolm cut in, rolling his eyes.

  “Speaking of,” Anna said thoughtfully. “How are you coping, Nancy? Did Maggie let you know — you know, what happened, and everything?”

  “Oh, yes,” Nancy said brightly. “I was in a dangerous situation back in my time, so the Sidhe, who are kind of these dimension-hopping creatures, grabbed me, saved my life, and put me back in the world through the burgh at the bottom of Loch Ness. But of course, their world exists outside of our own time, so they didn’t put me in twenty-first century Scotland, they put me — well, here and now.”

  Donal stared at her. Malcolm was still trying not to laugh, and even Anna looked shocked.

  “How long did you say you’d been here?” Malcolm managed, giving Anna a sidelong glance.

  “I came out of the water at about midnight last night,” Nancy said cheerfully. “Oh! And I met the Loch Ness Monster!”

  That proved too much for Malcolm — he doubled over laughing, and Anna punched him hard on the arm, scowling.

  “Did I say something funny?” Nancy asked blankly.

  “No, actually, you didn’t —”

  “She’s miles ahead of you,” Malcolm choked out, still spluttering laughter. “You didn’t even believe we were in Scotland until we’d all beaten you over the head with it, let alone the time travel part, let alone the Sidhe —”

  “Shut up,” Anna growled, shooting a look up at Donal.

  The Laird was doing his best not to laugh, which was setting Malcolm off more. Nancy couldn’t help grinning herself.

  “What can I say? I’ve always been kind of gullible.”

  Chapter 10

  “I don’t think you’re gullible,” Malcolm said a little while later, after he’d managed to calm himself down a little. Anna was still shooting him dagger-eyes, but she seemed to have settled down a little, and was even grinning a little ruefully. “It’s refreshing, actually, to meet someone so open-minded.”

  “I’ve always been interested in — cryptids, and things. Faeri
es and monsters and myths,” Nancy explained as they walked. “My mother used to tell me all kinds of stories when I was a girl. I’ve always kind of hoped that paranormal stuff was real. So when I came face-to-face with the Loch Ness Monster… well, I kind of thought it might be a dream for a little while, but it was pretty clear that it wasn’t. I was too cold and tired for it to be a dream,” she said, grinning. “I guess Anna is more of a realist?”

  “Yeah, I am,” Anna grumbled. “Forgive me for being a bit of a skeptic about faeries and time travel, before I understood they were real.”

  “It takes all sorts,” Donal said solemnly.

  “I have a question,” Nancy said thoughtfully — then giggled. “I mean, I have about a thousand questions and no idea where to even start, but…”

  “Go for it.” Malcolm smiled. “It’s about a half-hour walk back to the castle, we can at least get started before you meet everyone.”

  “Why can I understand you all?”

  Malcolm blinked at her. “What’s that?”

  “I mean — it’s what, the sixteen hundreds? I don’t remember a lot of History class, but I know the English language evolved heaps between then and now. I mean — now and the future. I mean…” She gave up. “Between my time and this time. So I shouldn’t be able to understand the English you’re speaking.”

  “I hadn’t thought of that,” Anna said blankly. “But you’re right. These guys should all sound… Shakespearean, right? But they don’t.”

  “Maybe it’s the Sidhe,” Donal suggested. He still looked preoccupied. “They have all sorts of magical influence that isn’t immediately apparent. Maybe part of the travelling process is a charm that helps you understand us.”

  “I don’t understand Gaelic, though,” Anna said. “Even when the Sidhe were speaking to me, I didn’t understand them.”

  “You met them too?” Nancy’s eyes widened. “The tall, glowing people?”

  “Yeah! I thought it was a dream! Then the next thing I knew I was at the bottom of the Loch.”