Heather was torn. Should she go after him or not? Part of her wanted to run up to Gavin as he marched away, demand he stop and explain to her what on earth the kiss meant. That was selfish of course. The castle was under siege. He was laird of an entire clan. He had far more important things to deal with than her emotional state.
Better to forget it had ever happened. Focus on what mattered, like the fact she was in a besieged castle, at risk of actually dying.
As she stood in the courtyard, thoughts continued to whirl around her head. Her emotions were in turmoil. She should definitely not be throwing her arms around the laird of the MacGregors, the man she was here to steal from.
That wasn’t the point though. The point was how the kiss had made her feel. There was no denying it had done something to her. It had woken her up in a way she couldn’t have explained to anyone else.
From the moment his lips touched hers something passed between them, a spark of something bigger than either of them. Her lips still tingled as she thought of that kiss. It had been all she had ever hoped and dreamed an embrace could possibly be.
She had read about other kisses in books. She had thought the authors were exaggerating to make the books more interesting. Her kisses with David were nothing but a light breeze compared to the hurricane of sensation that Gavin had just given to her.
Yet he had pulled away from the kiss almost at once. He clearly thought it was a mistake. No doubt he wished her to never mention it again.
She thought all this and more in the few seconds it took him to disappear from sight. Before she knew what she was doing, she was running after him.
“Wait for me,” she shouted.
He reappeared at the top of the steps, looking back at her. He looked furious. Was this really the same man who’d protected her for the last couple of nights? He couldn’t have looked any colder if she were a complete stranger who’d just tried to stab him in the face. “What?”
“Where are you going?”
He ignored her, shouting past her shoulder, “Susanne!”
A figure emerged from a wooden building to her left, carrying an armful of folded linen. “My laird?”
“Take our guest to her room and ensure she is safe. I have no time for idle gossip. We are in the midst of a siege.”
“Siege is it? It’s been a while since we had a decent siege. I love a good one. Who is it this time?”
“Outlaws and Frazers. Take her upstairs.”
Then he was gone, leaving Heather wondering exactly what she’d done wrong. In the time it took for Susanne to walk over to her, she had passed through pain and was enjoying a roadtrip around anger and bitterness.
Just who did he think he was talking to her like that?
“This way, my lady,” Susanne said, heading into the keep. “I will have some food brought up to your room.”
“One minute,” Heather said, running over to Lairdkiller as the grooms circled him warily. She reached past them into the saddlebag to bring out the silver key.
She gripped it in her fist as the grooms looked at her. “What?” she asked.
“He’s not kicked you,” one of the grooms said. “How did you do that?”
She shrugged. “No idea.”
Susanne grabbed her by the arm. “No time for gossip with grooms.” She took her up the steps to the second floor of the keep.
“It seems different,” Heather said as she stepped inside. “Smaller, somehow.”
“I brought some furniture in for you,” Susanne replied. “You can sew by the fireside if you wish. The clothes you came in have been cleaned. I found some items with them.” Here her voice turned cold. “I have left them by your bedside.”
“Thank you,” she replied as Susanne withdrew, pulling the door closed as she went.
There was a click and then the door was locked. That didn’t matter. She had the silver key. She smiled as she realized what that meant. She could unlock it at any time and go home. Having the key in her possession again took away some of the fear of the siege. There was little risk of dying if all she had to do was unlock a door and return to her own time.
Her thoughts turned to home. Donna was there. Her job was there.
Her job. She was supposed to be stealing Gavin’s knife and then returning home. That was all. It was a simple enough task yet she’d managed to screw it up pretty well so far.
She held the key in her hand, turning it over slowly. She could put the key in the door and go home at that very moment. Forget about the knife and just leave. Sure, she might lose her chance at promotion, but was that more or less important than the fact that the castle might be overrun and she could be killed anyway?
She’d seen men die. The image of it would stay with her forever. Did she really want to hang around to see more deaths?
She walked over to the door, looking at the lock. One twist of the key and she’d be home. With quite the story to tell too, not that anyone was likely to believe her. Maybe she could take something from this time with her, something that would prove she’d been here.
Yeah, she thought, like the knife you were meant to get.
The key was in the door. How had that happened? One twist of her wrist and she’d be back. All this would be behind her. Gavin would be back in the distant past where he and all his people belonged. She didn’t belong here, she belonged in her own time.
She took one last look behind her. It was time to go home, forget about all of this. Put the laird and his castle and his soft gentle kiss far behind her where it all belonged.
She sighed. That thought made her hand hesitate. There were things about this time she was enjoying, weren’t there?
It would be a shame to never see this room again. It fitted perfectly her dream of the life of a medieval princess. No one else could say they’d seen a room like this. Tapestries on the wall, a desk and quill pen over by the fireplace, lit by a single candle in a silver candlestick. The rugs, such primary colors amongst the sheepskin. The bed, so much more comfortable than it looked.
Beside the bed were her clothes. How had she forgotten them? If she was going to go home, it might be best to change back into her jeans first. What would the people of 21st century Scotland make of a dress like this?
She pulled the key back out of the door, keeping tight hold of it as she crossed to the pile of clothes. She stopped dead as she saw what had been left on top. That reminded her of something Susanne had said. She’d been too distracted at the time to notice but she remembered all of a sudden. Found some of your things. Put them on top.
On top of the neatly folded jeans was the item that explained Susanne’s tone of voice. It was her cellphone.
What had Susanne thought of it? Mercifully it was turned off. Had she just thought it was a strange black box or were rumors of witchcraft already circulating?
She pressed the power button. The cellphone lit up, coming to life. No signal, of course. No way of making phone calls. She was about to put it down when something occurred to her. The Kindle app.
She loaded it and there in her library was the most useful book she could imagine having at that particular moment.
She turned the cellphone off again as the door unlocked behind her.
She was still cramming it into the bundle of clothing when Susanne walked in carrying a loaf of bread and an apple. “For you,” she said. “I will have wine sent up once the stores are unlocked.”
“You don’t have the key? You seem to have all the others.”
Susanne frowned at her before smiling, something flashing in her eyes for a brief moment before it was gone. “During a siege there is a risk people might try to grab all the food. It must be rationed and only Gavin keeps the key during such times. He gave me these items for you. Do you need anything else?”
“A hot bath and the wine you mentioned would be a good start.”
“The kitchen fires are dead but I may be able to procure hot water in the morning. I will fetch the wine presently.”
>
“Do you know anything about the siege? You don’t seem too worried about it.”
“Don’t I? I suppose we’ve been besieged so many times over the years, you just get used to it. Everyone comes together, all arguments stop. It’s very peaceful in its own way.”
“Have you ever had anyone break through your defenses?”
“MacGregor Castle is the strongest fortress by far in these lands and it has had extra defenses built in the last few years. I’ve no doubt that rabble out there will give up soon enough. Dinnae worry, lass. You are perfectly safe here.”
Heather knew that. She was safe because she could go home any moment she chose.
Susanne left and once again she was alone, She found it hard to be as calm as Susanne. Despite knowing she was safe, she could not help feeling nervous about the siege. She had no idea how it would go.
There was an easy way to find out.
She listened at the door to make sure there was no one out there. Once she was certain she was truly alone, she dug out her cellphone and switched it on. The battery would not last forever but it should last long enough for her purposes.
A History of Scotland and the Clans.
Buried in her Kindle library. One more among dozens of history books she had yet to get around to reading. Would it have the answer she was looking for? She would just have to see.
“The infamous siege of Clan MacGregor in 1300,” she read out loud, smiling to herself. “Time to enjoy some spoilers.”
She pressed the chapter heading but just as it loaded she heard footsteps outside the bedroom door. Quickly switching the cellphone off again she barely had time to conceal it before the door was once again unlocked. “Is that the wine?” she asked.
It was the wine but it was not Susanne bringing it inside. It was Gavin.
“Oh,” she said, her insides churning at the sight of him. “It’s you.”
“I want to apologize,” he said, placing the goblet beside her untouched bread. “I was rude to you before.”
“Oh, that? Hadn’t given it a moment’s thought.”
“I wish to speak to you.”
“I reckon I can spare a couple of minutes.”
He closed the door behind him, crossing to the fireplace and looking down at it for a moment before turning to face her. His expression gave nothing away.
“You look frightened,” he said after a long pause.
She glanced to where the cellphone was hidden, wondering if he’d seen it. “Aren’t you?”
He shrugged. “I have nothing to fear.”
“Except the men with pointy swords outside the castle. Why do they hate you so much, exactly?”
His expression did not change. “They are outlaws. If I had my way they would all be dead or imprisoned.”
“Not fans then?”
“What would you have me do, leave them to attack innocent people?”
“I would prefer to not be inside a castle under siege. I would prefer not to have people chasing after me with swords. I would prefer not to have to watch anyone else die, especially not you.”
“Why especially not me?”
“Nothing. Never mind.”
He said nothing for some time, staring at her in silence so intensely she had to turn her eyes from his burning gaze. She looked at the fireplace, the ceiling, anything but him.
“I should not have kissed you,” he said at last. “It was foolish.”
“Yes, it was,” she replied, her lips tingling at the memory of those soft lips of his brushing hers.
“It will not happen again, you have my word.”
“Good.”
“It is just…” His words fell away. He took a step toward her. “I am not good with such things.”
“With what? Kissing? Or apologies? For the record, you’re pretty good at both.”
His eyes smiled though his face was set firm. “I like you, Heather Frazer. If this siege should end badly, I want you to know that.”
“Well, thank you.” She paused, wishing her heart would stop pounding so violently in her chest. Did he know what she was thinking? How much she wanted him to kiss her again? Could he tell? Should she just ask him? “What do you think of me, just for the record, you know?”
“I think you have come to my castle as my guest and I did not treat you as a guest should be treated. I ask your forgiveness as I neglected you in order to deal with events affecting the castle.”
“I’m not offended that you have a siege to deal with. Don’t worry.” She found herself feeling sorry for him. He looked hurt. “There is something else, isn’t there?”
“The clan think you might be a spy for the Frazers. They think I should send you away.”
“And what do you think? Do you think I’m spying on you?”
“I dinnae ken yet but you must agree to stay in here for now unless I am with you. I cannot vouch for your safety if you were to wander about unchaperoned.”
“And how long do I have to agree to be imprisoned?”
“I do not ken but I have already sent a messenger out. We will hopefully soon discuss peace with these outlaws and with the Frazers.”
The peace negotiations, Heather thought. Of course, that was what her deadline was. She had to get the knife before the peace negotiations began if she was to succeed in her goal.
Could she betray the man standing in front of her? All of a sudden it seemed impossible. He looked handsome. So handsome. He yawned, stifling it behind his hand.
“Sit,” she said, tearing off a hunk of bread. “You look exhausted. When did you last eat?”
He took the bread from her and crammed it into his mouth. “I must go,” he replied. “There is much I need to attend to. Do not be afraid, Heather Frazer.” He squeezed her arm with his hand. I will make sure you are safe while you are here.”
She looked at his hand, watching as it let go of her. She tried to speak but nothing came out.
He turned and headed to the door. In the air hung all the things he had not said. She looked at him, aware too of all the things she could not bring herself to say.
He was gone a moment later and then she was alone again. She hurriedly dug out the cellphone, reloading the book and skipping through to the chapter on the siege.
Something was wrong with the file. The page was blank. She scrolled forward. Blank all the way to the end of the book. Scrolling back, the text was there. Everything was fine up until this chapter. No, half the previous one was gone as well.
All of a sudden she realized. She could only read up until the point when she arrived in the past. Nothing after that.
With her head throbbing from the effort she tried to wrap her thoughts around what that meant. The future wasn’t in the book because 1300 had become the present. It hadn’t been written yet.
Did that mean things could change? For all she knew the future had already changed just from her being here.
The battery flashed a warning red light so she turned the cellphone off once more. It didn’t matter. She couldn’t find out the information she wanted. No spoilers for her about the siege. She would either have to go back to the future and read about it or stay and experience it.
She fingered the key slowly. She could still go home. What would happen if she did? Tony Carson would take the key back off her and probably fire her from the company. Or get Boris to send her to run a brand new Antarctic suboffice as punishment for not bringing the knife back.
Her family would remain failures, bitter, angry, losers. She would end up back with David, marrying him and then have to watch him having an affair with his first love, the stock market. At least Donna would have some help at her wedding though. That was something, right?
But what if she stayed here? Firstly, she might get killed. She might end up falling completely for Gavin and that was just stupid. He was going to marry some noblewoman from another clan like they all did at that time and she’d be just one more spinster rattling around the castle, lonely and miserable
.
What a choice. Misery in the future or misery in the present. Or was it the past?
Her head hurt trying to work it out. She lay back on the bed, suddenly exhausted. The thoughts of the siege died away. It was as if her brain just couldn’t cope anymore with the sheer amount of tension she was experiencing.
She closed her eyes, thinking hard. Gavin was going to go out to the peace negotiations and Mungo, her ancestor, would be killed.
That would set off the chain reaction that ruined the Frazers. She thought about what Tony had told her when he’d sent her back here. He’d made no mention of a barefoot man, some devil of superstition, no doubt embellished after generations of storytelling.
She had completely forgotten how frightened she’d felt in the mountain pass, how the old crone had sent icy chills down her spine. Her mind was protecting her, not letting her remember. The only problem with that was the memories were bound to come back at some time. They couldn’t stay hidden forever.
It was when she fell asleep that her thoughts really began to churn. In her dream she was a noblewoman. She was married to Gavin MacGregor and they had a family together, a boy and a girl. She wore tartan and the air was sweet and clean.
There were no wars anymore, no barefoot man, no old crone, no sieges. There was just a stony shore beside a loch. The children were rowing with their father and she watched from a picnic blanket, waving back when they called to her.
She sat bolt upright in bed, her eyes open. She was crying before she even knew it was happening. Why was she crying?
All of a sudden the dream came back to her. It had been so real, so vivid and all the more cruel for that. An impossible future she could not have. A family that would never exist.
It wasn’t the dream that had woken her. The bedroom door was ajar. There was a smell of smoke in the air. Smoke and something else. Was that lemon? A candle had been lit nearby, the light flickering in the corridor. Why could she smell lemons?
“Is there someone there?” she asked.
A creaking floorboard in response but no one spoke. There was someone out there. “Who’s there?”
She got to her feet and crossed the room quietly, peering out. The light vanished around a corner in the distance. She went to follow but tripped over something, crashing to the ground with a thump.
The Key to His Castle: A Clean Time Travel Romance (Clan MacGregor Book 5) Page 10
