Page 28 of Love Beyond Time (Morna’s Legacy #1)

My skill with horses had not improved since our last little journey away from the castle, and so with no other alternative we rode together on Griffin for our journey to MacChristy Keep and Kinnaird Castle.

The proximity of our bodies was doing nothing to help my “friend zone.” In fact, he was increasingly getting more fresh with his hands. Every hour further into our journey, the reins seemed to move closer to the point in between my legs.

The nerves caused by my ever-tingling insides, the soreness of my ass from riding a horse all day long, and the fear of not being able to pull off ‘Blaire’ in front of Donal MacChristy had me on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

I nearly spooked the horse with my erratic jerk at the sound of Eoin’s voice in my ear. “What’s the matter with ye, lass?”

“Nothing is the matter. Why would you think something was the matter?” I exhaled rather loudly.

“Because, I’ve been listening to ye breathe like that for some time now. Ye sound like Griffin.”

“Right. Sorry.”

“Ye doona need to be sorry. Ye need to tell me what’s bothering ye so. I’d like to help if I can.”

“You can’t help. My ass is sore from riding, and I’m about to have a freaking panic attack at the thought of fooling a man who has known Blaire her entire life into thinking I’m her.”

He did nothing to help my mood as he laughed at me. “Lass, ye say ‘arse’ rather strangely. No that ye doona say a lot of things rather strangely. But ye doona need to worry about Donal. He canna hear well, and ye look just like Blaire. He willna be able to tell the difference.”

“I hope you’re right.” I exhaled loudly once more just for good measure.

“I am, lass, so ye doona need to worry about that. And as for yer sore ‘ass,’ I’d be more than pleased to help ye with that.” He moved the reins so that he held them in one hand and deftly slid his other up under my thigh to squeeze the inside of my leg and buttocks.

I yelped and jerked my bottom upward, this time successfully spooking Griffin. As the horse reared on his back legs, Eoin was forced to relinquish his grip on my thigh so as to get the horse under control again.

“No, thank you,” I screeched. “My bottom is just fine, all on its own.”

He laughed heartily in my ear. “Whatever ye wish, lass. But I’ve no doubt ye’d feel much better after a good rub.”

“I’ll rub it myself when we get to the castle.”

For some reason, this made him laugh harder, and I crossed my arms in a sign of annoyance as we continued our journey to MacChristy Castle.

* * *

It was just after dusk when Eoin spotted MacChristy Castle off in the distance. With luck they’d arrive just in time to dine with his father’s old friend.

He couldn’t wait to dismount Griffin and stretch his tired, aching muscles.

He’d no doubt the lass did have a sore arse; his was sore as well, and he was much more accustomed to riding.

He’d most likely have to help the poor lass out of bed in the morning, a torturous task to be charged, he was sure.

He smiled at the thought as he quickly squeezed his arms around the lass to get her attention.

“Ye see that just on the other side of the hill? We are almost there. Would ye like to stop for a moment so we can relieve ourselves and make ready?”

Her response was immediate. He’d expected no less. “Yes, please. I’m about to pee myself.”

He smiled widely into her hair. The lass said the most peculiar and wonderful things.

He led Griffin over to the base of a large tree and dismounted before helping Bri get off as well.

He scooted closer to Griffin than was really necessary, so that the front of Bri’s body slid down his chest as he lifted her off the horse.

She rewarded him with a knowing glare, and he let out a small laugh before walking away to find his own tree behind which he could relieve himself.

He was back at Griffin’s side before Bri, and after a few moments of waiting for her to appear from behind a tree he hollered after her. “Bri! Where are ye lass? Are ye alright?”

A loud “Shit! Gosh damnit! Ow!” came from behind the tree.

“Lass, what the hell’s happened? Are ye covered? I’m coming yer way!”

“No! Don’t! I just . . . I wiped myself with the first leaf I could find, but it was prickly, and now there’s a sticker poking out of my rear!”

The sound of his own laughter rippled through the trees surrounding them. “Come on out, lass. Do ye need my help?”

He did his best to keep his composure as Bri made her way from behind the tree. Carrying the back of her dress with both hands, she hobbled slowly until she stood in front of him.

“I can’t get ahold of it. I think it’s in pretty deep. I need you to grab it.”

He couldn’t keep the corners of his mouth from twitching upward.

“But I swear to God, Eoin. If you look at anything but that sticker, I’m going to give you a swift kick in the balls. Do you understand me?”

“Aye, lass. I give ye me word! Now turn around and bend over.”

As soon as she turned away from him, he let go of the tight rein he’d been trying to keep on the corners of his mouth and gladly let them slide upward as he grinned at her white rear end, beaming in the moonlight.

The sticker was easily visible and, with one swift pull, he dislodged it, flinging it onto the ground.

“Alright, lass, ye can let yer dress down now, even though I’ll be sorry to see ye do it. Now, let’s get back on Griffin and make our way to see yer da!”

* * *

I’d never been more humiliated in my entire life. Not only did I get a giant sticker stuck in my ass crack while peeing in the middle of a forest, I had to have the most beautiful man I’d ever seen pluck it out.

At least, it would be easier to keep him in the friend zone now.

We’d just arrived at the castle, and Eoin was handing Griffin off to the stable master, when what I could only assume was my ‘dad’ burst through the large main doors of the castle.

“Blaire! Ach, I’m so pleased to see ye, lass! I doona like not having ye here by my side.” Mary was right about his screaming, and as he picked me up around the middle and swung me in a circle, I was sure my eardrums would burst.

When he sat me down and stepped toward Eoin, I nearly choked on my own spit when I got a good look at his face.

No wonder Blaire and I resembled one another so strongly.

He looked exactly like my own father. Same dark hair, same blue eyes, same small, circular patch of gray which stood out among his otherwise ebony-colored hair.

I had to blink quickly, swallowing hard to fight back the tears that threatened to break loose at the sense of overwhelming nostalgia. While my parents had divorced when I was young, I’d stayed incredibly close to my Dad up until his death only three years ago.

It turned out that I’d no real reason to worry about fooling Donal. He gave me little time to speak or respond to him in any way, immediately jumping into a conversation with Eoin and ushering us inside for supper.

As we sat down at the grand dining room table, I sat sipping on the glass of ale I’d been given and listened to the two men converse.

* * *

As he’d expected, Donal had immediately consented to bring all of his men to Conall Castle to help with their defense on December twenty-sixth, two days before the expected attack.

In fact the agreement had been made before the first course was laid out, and the rest of the evening passed easily as the two men reminisced about his father and years past.

Eoin had known Bri had no reason to worry. Donal did not converse easily with women, and he’d have little to say to his daughter, despite his claims of how much he’d missed her.

Worry about Bri filled him. As Eoin glanced in her direction, he tried to cast a frown at the servant who was silently refilling her goblet for at least the sixth time.

Bri’s eyes were visibly glazed, and she looked unsteady as she rested her chin against the hand she’d propped on top of the table.

She’d said nothing throughout the meal, and with the amount she’d now drunk he greatly hoped she would continue to stay silent now.

He’d never seen her drink more than one cup-full during meals, but then again, Mary never allowed any of them more than that. Mary always said that Arran did a fine job of finding drink on his own. She wasn’t going to aid him in his task.

A large belch from Bri’s end of the table was enough to make him certain it was time for him to make his excuses and take her away to their shared bedchamber. He could only hope no one else had heard the location of the unladylike sound.

Raising his voice so that Donal would hear, Eoin stood from the table. “I find myself weary from the long day’s travel, Donal. If it pleases ye, I believe I will take my wife upstairs so that we may retire for the evening.”

His old friend stood and clasped him on the shoulders. “Aye, o’ course! It was wrong of me to keep ye so late after the long ride. We will talk more tomorrow. Would ye accompany me on a hunt?”

Eoin smiled and nodded as he walked to Bri’s side. “Aye! I shall look forward to it.”

He bent to place his hand under her arm and help steady her as he pulled her up out of her seat.

“Goodnight, daughter. I’m glad to have ye home, if only for a short time.” Donal stood waiting for Bri’s response, and Eoin bent to whisper in Bri’s ear.

“Tell him, goodnight. Doona say anything else.”

“Goodnight.” She smiled sloppily, and Eoin found himself glad that the old man’s sight wasn’t much better than his hearing as he watched him turn and leave the room.

“God, lass! What the hell do ye think ye’re doing? I’ve no had that much to drink since I was a young lad.” He took one step away from her, but quickly reached to grab her once more as she swayed on her feet.

“What are you talking . . . ?”

She left off the end of her sentence, but Eoin understood her meaning well enough. “Ye are mighty drunk, Bri. Ye have no stopped drinking since we sat down to eat!”

“I am not! I’ve only been sipping. What was I supposed to do while y’all were visiting?”

“Well, not drink them dry, Bri! If ye’re no drunk, why doona ye walk a few steps and show me, aye?” He stepped out of her way while she grasped onto the edge of the table to support herself.

“Fine.”

He watched as she took three or four wobbly steps in his direction before swaying widely and falling into his side. “Ye are no drunk, ye say?”

“Ok, fine. But I didn’t mean to. They just kept refilling it, over and over again, and this hasn’t been my most favorite day.”

“Aye, I saw them, lass, and I no suppose that it has.” He bent to scoop her up around her knees, cradling her against his chest as they made their way up the stairs to their guest bedchamber.

She was asleep by the time he lay her on the bed, and gently tucking the covers around her, he moved to find himself a spot on the floor.

As much as he wanted to cradle her in his arms all night long, he wouldn’t share her bed until she asked.