Page 14 of Desiring the Highland Laird (Highland Destiny #1)

T he following morning, Evie awoke to find she was alone in the chamber. The fire had gone out, leaving the hearth cold and dark. She sat up in the bed, looking at the empty chair, wondering where Callum was and when he had left the room.

Try as she might, she couldn’t forget the way he had looked in the firelight. The way his strong jaw had clenched when she told him she had two sisters. She felt that was significant to him, but she didn’t understand why.

Before long, Roslyn arrived to help her dress for the day.

She brought her newly hemmed gown with her.

Evie was aware of the worried expression on her face and the way her lips were pressed together as though there was something bothering the woman.

She did her best to pretend everything was fine with her forced sunny disposition.

That concerned Evie. She tried to push that thought away, though, because today was about hope. Today, Callum had promised to return her to her sister. In her mind, that meant she was going to get the mysterious stone and use it to go back to her own time.

Finally, she could stand the woman’s silence no longer. “Is everything all right, Roslyn?”

“Och, fine, lassie. Dinnae fash over me sour disposition this morn. I dinnae sleep well, that’s all.”

She nodded though Evie didn’t believe her.

“Come, now, and break yer fast. Callum says he wants to ride out as soon as possible.”

“Ride out?” Her brows drew together.

“Aye. To find yer kin.”

“I see.”

Though she didn’t see. Perhaps his idea was to return her to the place they found her in the hopes the stone would work there.

She followed her out of the bedchamber and to the great hall. There was no one about. “Where is Callum?”

“Readying the horses,” Roslyn said. “Ye must eat something.”

She motioned to the table where a bowl of thick oatmeal sat steaming in front of one of the chairs.

Roslyn disappeared out of the great hall, making an excuse that she had things of her own to tend.

Evie sat and picked up her spoon, digging in to find it was instead some type of porridge.

Next to it, an oat cake which she devoured in a matter of seconds.

When she was finished, she rose from the table, wondering what to do with her dishes when Callum entered.

He was dressed in a long sleeve tunic with a plaid wrapped around his waist and over one shoulder. The plaid was clasped with a silver pin on the shoulder. He wore breeches and boots, a sword strapped to one side.

“I’ve come to fetch ye,” he said.

“Good morning to you, too,” she replied, feeling as though something was off. “Where are we going?”

“I told ye. To return ye to yer sister.” He waved for her to follow. “Come, now.”

“And where would that be?” A wave of unease shifted through her as she followed him through the keep.

He exited and headed across the courtyard toward a building that looked like the stable.

This was her first time leaving the keep.

The wind whipped through her, cutting her right through her wool gown and stockings.

She clutched her elbows and clenched her jaw to keep from shivering.

But then she remembered she was in a medieval castle and craned her neck to gape up at the soaring towers.

There were three rising up into the morning sky dotted with gray clouds threatening rain.

Standing there, gazing at the structure, a sense of belonging came over her. For the first time in her life, she felt as though she belonged somewhere—strange that it was in Scotland’s past.

Roslyn came running out of the keep then, a garment in her hand. Her skirts flapped as she hurried to catch up to her.

“Ye’ll need a cloak, my lady,” she said, a bit out of breath. “There’s a chill in the air.”

A chill in the air was an understatement, she thought, as she accepted the cloak. It was more than a chill to Evie. As she pulled it around her, she was grateful for the warmth from the wool garment.

“Thank you, Roslyn.”

Roslyn’s sharp eyes cut to Callum who waited a fair distance away behind her. Then she reached for Evie, taking her hand in her cold ones and squeezing it. Distress flickered through her eyes, as if the woman was sad to see her go.

“Godspeed to ye, lass.”

Evie squeezed her hands back. “Thank you for everything, Roslyn.”

Again, a strange feeling flickered through her as she clutched the material of the cloak around her thin frame and turned back to Callum, who waited patiently. When Roslyn returned to the keep, he started toward the stable once more.

Inside the stable, Malcolm waited with two horses. He held the reins of both. One was a large black horse that looked to be a war horse. The other was a smaller gray horse that was likely meant for her. A moment of panic shifted through her.

“Can ye ride, lass?” he asked, glancing down at her.

She eyed the big beast as apprehension shifted through her. It wasn’t that she was afraid of horses—she had always been told they were gentle animals—but the sheer size of the horse was intimidating.

“I’ve never ridden a horse in my life,” she said.

Malcolm chuckled. Callum frowned.

“Ye best ride with me, then,” Callum said.

He went to the large black horse and stuck his foot in the stirrup. He settled into the saddle as if it was something he did every day and likely it was.

“Help her up, brother.” He reached a hand to her.

She stepped forward and placed her hand in his as Malcolm put his hands on her waist. Callum gave her a gentle tug while Malcolm lifted her. In a moment of awkwardness, she was unsure what they meant for her to do.

“One leg over, lass,” Callum said.

After fumbling, she managed to settle on the back of the horse behind Callum. Her gown was not fit for riding and hiked up around her legs. She positioned the cloak so it would cover most of her and keep her warm.

“I’ll see ye after,” Malcolm said as he looked up at his brother.

Callum nodded. “I should be back by nightfall.”

And then they were off, trotting out of the stable toward the gatehouse. The portcullis was up to allow them to exit. Evie wrapped her arms around his solid waist, holding onto him to keep from falling off the back of the horse.

She didn’t want to notice how muscular he felt. Nor did she want to notice how warm his body was against hers. She was still unsure why they were riding away from the keep when he could merely give her the stone and send her on her way.

But she didn’t question his method. She went along with it, assuming he was taking her back to the field where he had found her to give her the stone. Perhaps that was the best place to use the stone’s power to send her back to the future.

He was quiet as he galloped across the field, the cold wind whipping through her. She pulled up the hood of her cloak and ducked her head to keep her face out of the wind, pressing it against his back for warmth.

When she did, he grunted.

She took that as a signal he was okay with her huddling close to him. If he wasn’t, too bad. She was freezing.

She didn’t even have the forethought to take in her surroundings until they were riding for a good bit. Finally, she lifted her head and saw the rugged mountains of the Highlands and realized they were not going to the field where he’d found her.

“Where are we going?” she demanded. It took a good bit of strength to keep her teeth from chattering in the wind.

“I told ye. I’m returning ye to your clan.”

Fear punched through her, hot and wild. “My clan? What do you mean, my clan?”

“The Sinclairs. That’s where ye belong.”

Confusion etched through her. Did he not believe she was from the future? If he was taking her to the Sinclairs, then he must think she was some intruder instead of who she said she was.

“I don’t understand.”

“Ye said ye wanted to return to yer sister. I’m taking ye back there.”

“Where?” Her heart pounded a wild beat as she realized he was taking her some place she most certainly did not want to go.

“To the laird of Sinclair. Their keep is not far.”

Oh, God. He was taking her some place she didn’t want to go. Panic bubbled through her as she clutched him.

“Callum, I don’t belong to them,” she said, trying to keep the hysteria out of her voice. “My sister won’t be there.”

“’Tis the place for ye,” he said, a stubbornness to his tone that made her want to punch him.

She would have if she wasn’t sitting on a horse behind him. “Callum, please don’t do this. It’s a mistake.”

When he said nothing as he continued to ride on, hot tears sprang to her eyes. “You don’t believe I’m from the future, do you?”

He tugged on the reins, pulling the horse to a halt. He turned in the saddle to look at her over his shoulder. “My da believes ye are.”

A lump formed in her throat, making it difficult to respond. “But you don’t.”

He turned away, facing forward again. “I cannae believe it, no.”

How the hell was she going to convince him if he didn’t believe it? She had to stop this madness and get him to listen.

“Everything I told you was the truth.” When she spoke, her voice wobbled with emotion. “Why would I lie?”

Again, he was silent.

Stubborn man!

“My name is Evangeline Sinclair. I was born in Dallas, Texas. My sister, Chloe, is my twin. My other sister, Brianna, is ten years older than us. Our parents were killed in an accident when we were fifteen. A car accident. Do you know what a car is, Callum?”

When he didn’t reply, she continued, desperate to make him understand.

“A car is a thing people ride inside with four wheels. Like a carriage except it’s powered by an engine instead of horses. My parents were celebrating their wedding anniversary when they were killed by a drunk driver on the wrong side of the road.”

When he heard this, he pulled the horse to a halt once again. “I dinnae ken what ye mean, lass, but I’m verra sorry for the loss of yer mam and da.”

“A horseless carriage driven by a man who had too much ale murdered my parents with his vehicle. Do you understand?”

He remained silent. Perhaps he didn’t understand.

When she said this, she sucked in a breath and released the pent-up emotion she was holding in.

She hadn’t thought of the accident that took away her parents’ lives in years.

Years since she allowed herself to remember what had happened.

The raw emotion that took over her and Chloe as they wondered what to do next.

Calling Brianna and telling her the news.

The silence on the other end of the phone as their sister processed what it meant for her. For all of them.

It changed all their lives forever.

And now here she was in a time that she didn’t understand with a man who wouldn’t listen to her. A man who was sending her away to a clan she had never met, giving her away to them as if she were nothing more than a piece of discarded clothing.

Brianna had never listened to her or Chloe either.

She was merely doing her duty as their legal guardian to make sure they made it to the age of eighteen.

She couldn’t wait to get back to the Caribbean where she resumed her beach bum lifestyle, leaving her and Chloe to figure things out on their own.

Evie had taken charge of most everything, allowing Chloe to focus on college.

“You still don’t believe me,” she said when she finally got her emotions in check.

“I—”

“It’s fine,” she snapped, cutting him off. The anger replaced her frustration as it burned through her. “Do as you will.”