Page 16 of See A Highlander (A Highlander Across Time #10)

CHAPTER 16

A nnie was intrigued by the sign that the candle had gone out. Was it just a draft in the castle or was it in fact the Scathach finally responding to her? There was no way to know for sure, but something inside of her told her that it was the enchanted entity.

But what occupied her mind the most was her and Tom making love. She hadn’t expected it to happen, but it did and now thoughts of him weighed heavily on her mind. The stakes felt higher now because she knew that Bella was out to get her. At first it was annoying and frustrating, but now that she had given herself to Tom, it felt a lot more dangerous because he now had even more power to break her heart.

Despite this she still felt incredibly happy and filled with joy. She was on a cloud for most of the day. Every time she closed her eyes, she could see Tom kissing her. It made her excited every time.

Annie decided that she couldn’t wait any longer to see Tom. She opened the door to her room and stepped out in the hall. She stopped when she heard Bella laughing.

Coming down the hall toward Annie was Tom with Bella hanging on to his arm. Tom looked annoyed. He locked eyes directly with Annie and gave a shrug as he continued to walk toward her.

Annie watched as Bella said some flirtatious words and got up on her tiptoes trying to give Tom a kiss on his cheek. He quickly moved his head out of range of her lips. He seemed completely lost not knowing what to do about the situation. Annie wished that he would simply push her away in a rude fashion, but knew that Tom was too much of a gentleman to do that.

“Annie, I just finished seeing to a guard and thought I would come see you. It's been a busy day,” he said as he finally reached her.

Annie crossed her arms across her chest and narrowed her gaze at Bella. “Yes, I can see that you’re busy.”

Bella gave Annie a smug smirk. Annie knew exactly what she was doing and couldn't contain herself any longer.

“Bella I've had enough of you and I'm sure that Tom has as well. Why don't you piss off, and leave us alone,” she said.

Bella laughed. “You don't tell me what to do. No one tells me what to do. I can do as I please. Just like I'm going to do this,” Bella said, then quickly kissed Tom on the cheek and then bounced a way down the hallway.

Tom frowned and gave an annoyed look as he watched her walk away.

“What did she want?” Annie asked.

“She's been pestering me all day every chance that she got. Intruding on my work. I don't know what she wants from me,” Tom said.

“Well I know what she wants,” Annie said walking back inside her room in a huff. Tom followed. Annie poured herself a glass of whisky and gulped it down to give herself Dutch courage to have this conversation.

“Judging by that drink, I assume that it tis something undesirable that Bella wants from me?” he said leaning against the wall watching her.

“Yes, it is exactly that, or at least I think it is. She told me so herself. She plans to steal you away from me like she did with my last boyfriend. Whether you comply is your choice I suppose. It's not like I own you,” Annie said, feeling tears burning her eyes.

“Steal me? Is that so? And what would that entail?” he asked, looking oddly curious.

“You have to know what it means. I told you before about her betraying me with my last boyfriend. She had sex with him behind my back. Not just once but for months and hid it all from me.”

“That's not going to happen again. Not with me,” he said, moving toward her and pulling her to him.

“Good. Then can you at least tell her that. The way she was hanging on you out there was really pissing me off. You could have spoken up at any time and told her to go away. You could have pushed her away. Anything. Instead, you just let her do it. Next time just be rude and push her away.”

“That's not in my nature to treat a lass in such a way. I am sure I can reason with her using my words. There is no need for me to get physical with her.”

“That's what you think. You don't know her. There is no reasoning with Bella. She is devious and secretive, and she will keep this up until she gets you into her b—” Annie said but came to an abrupt halt at the knock on her doorframe.

“Oh, well crap, I’m sorry. Is this a bad time?” Maria stood in the doorway, surprising both Annie and Tom.

“Lady Maria. No, of course not. We were just finishing a discussion.” He smiled and then looked at Annie. “I’ll see you later,” he murmured to her and then looked back to Maria. “Good day to you.” Tom nodded and walked out of the room.

Annie felt embarrassed by what Maria may have overheard. She hadn’t meant to air her dirty laundry where anyone could listen in. “Hey, come in. I wasn't expecting you, was I?” Annie said.

“No, you weren’t. Sorry to just show up at your door during what looked like a serious discussion. I really didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“It’s fine. Just dealing with my cousin and—” Annie cut herself off and waved her hand in the air, as though to dismiss it. “Did you need me for something?”

“Not really. I just stopped by to see how you were getting on.” Maria shrugged.

“Yeah, I’m doing okay, I guess.”

“And Tom has helped?” Maria asked, a grin on her lips.

Annie blush a bright red. “Um, yeah, he’s been a good friend,” she replied.

“Friend? Is that all? Really?” Maria arched a brow at her, teasing her.

“Fine. You’ve caught me. In fact he’s driving me a little nuts,” Annie blurted out, “As you may have heard in that discussion before you knocked.”

“Guilty. I did hear part of it, but what I’m wondering is, how serious have you and Tom gotten?”

Annie sighed. “You’d better come in and sit down.” She gestured toward the wooden table and chairs. As Maria poured them each a whisky, Annie closed and locked her bedroom door. The last thing she needed was Bella making an appearance.

“Okay, spill the tea,” Maria said.

“Before I do that, what do you know about Tom? Is he a good guy? I know that doesn't make a lot of sense where we come from but I'm realizing that I don't actually know a lot about him at all.”

“I’m going to be honest here. I don't know him very well. He only recently arrived back at the castle several months before you. He’s Cameron’s cousin, of course, but then nearly everyone here is related. I’ve not heard anything bad about him, but I'm not sure that I would. My husband and I tend to deal to the bigger problems of the people here and the castle, but he’s not been involved in any of that,” Maria said.

“Of course. That makes sense.”

“What I can tell you is that Cameron thinks very highly of him. He kept in touch with him while he was away learning to be a doctor, or rather a healer, but basically, it’s the same thing. Cam told me he was always very studious, and serious. I can’t imagine that much has changed as he still seems that way. Very conscientious in his duties and respectful. As far as I’m aware there’s never been any hint of a scandal around him.”

Nodding, Annie said, “Okay, I can see that about him as well.”

“So, why do you doubt him? What am I missing?” Maria asked.

Annie was hesitant. “I told you what Bella did to me, right?”

“Yeah, and that was pretty shitty of her.” Maria raised her glass and took a drink.

“Well, she blames me for us coming here, as if I am somehow responsible for us coming back in time.” Annie rolled her eyes. “Anyway, she’s basically told me she was going to get me back for it. She wants to hurt me, and she’s seen that Tom and I are close, so naturally…” Annie let her sentence hang.

“So naturally she wants to take him from you, or at the very least try to?” Maria asked.

“Yes. That’s what she says anyway. I told Tom about her threat and my past experience with Bella and he doesn't seem to think it's a big deal. He said it won’t happen, but she’s been hanging all over him and I’ve asked him to avoid her and push her away instead of allowing her to get away with it like he has been, but he said it’s not in his nature to do that.”

Maria frowned and looked confused. “So he's returning her feelings?”

“No, not that I know of. At least I’m pretty sure he has no feelings for her. He just simply won't put his foot down and tell her to go away. And he won’t make her keep her hands to herself and it’s pissing me off.”

“Okay so first of all, you can’t control Tom or Bella. They are going to do what they’re going to do. The only person you can control is yourself and your actions. You’ve voiced your concern, and you’ve told him how you feel, right? So now you’ll have to trust Tom to handle it in a way he’s comfortable with.” Maria sighed. “Being here is so different from being back home. The men are wired different. They are protectors and even if she’s the worst female on the planet, they’re going to treat her gently. They don’t get handsy or violent toward women and look down on any man who does.”

“I haven’t thought of it that way. I guess you're right. I can't even control where my body goes because I ended up here. Why do I think I can control Tom or even Bella for that matter?”

“I find that it's best to follow your heart and have faith in him. If you think that Tom is a good man, then he probably is, and he’ll find a way to deal with Bella that won’t be physical.” Maria smiled. “You know, you’ve really grown since you’ve been here. I’ve seen the change in you since you first got here. I think Tom has a lot to do with that.”

“Really?” Annie asked.

“Yeah really. You’re glowing, so give him a chance,” Maria said.

“I just don’t want to get hurt again, you know?”

“I do, but you’re going to have to trust him. I honestly don’t think he’s going to let you down.”

“I hope you’re right,” Annie replied, feeling more optimistic than she had in a long time.