Page 16 of Time of the Warlord (Stones of Scotland #5)

C iaran didn’t wake Sadie until dawn broke and soft golden light filtered through the jagged lines of the thorn bushes. He couldn’t help but brush a kiss against her flaming hair, lit up in a thousand shades of bright gold by the dawn light. Never in his life had he seen such incredible hair.

“Time to ride on,” he murmured as she groaned and wrinkled her nose. It had been occurring to him more and more over the past few days that it really was an adorable nose.

“Do we have to go already?” Sadie mumbled. She shifted a little closer, burrowing into his side. Sometime during the night, she’d thrown one leg over his, so that they were all tangled together, his legs half-trapped in her skirts. Despite the hard ground and the need to sleep lightly, Ciaran found himself equally reluctant to leave. It had been a magical night.

But a terrible idea. He had to remind himself of that. This woman was a mystery at best, and an accomplice to the king’s attempted murder at worst. Getting involved with her like this was absolute madness. So, he firmly removed her arms and legs from his body, and shifted her off him. She grumbled a little more, but it seemed to have worked. Slowly, she sat upright and brushed her tangled hair from her face.

“No breakfast?” she asked.

He shrugged.

“There’s not enough food in the saddlebags to last two people. I’m going to save the last of it. With any luck, we’ll find a farmer willing to share his morning meal. For now, we need to get riding.”

Sadie climbed to her feet, moving slowly and stiffly. Ciaran felt a pulse of guilt. He’d pushed her hard yesterday, riding cross-country at high speed when she was still wet and tired from being pushed overboard. Their after-dark activities couldn’t have helped, either. She must be stiff and sore this morning. Still, there was nothing to be done for it. They needed to push on and reach Dunadd as soon as possible.

He helped Sadie up onto her horse, trying not to let his hands linger on the curve of her waist or the elegant line of her thigh. Today was about speed, not seduction. Some madness must have come over him the night before. He must not let it happen again.

They set off again with barely a dozen words spoken. It was not far to the road, which allowed them to ride a little faster. Ciaran did not set as rapid a pace as the day before, but he still did not want to waste time.

“You mentioned last night that we might be able to find a boat,” Sadie said at last, her voice a little hoarse. “Would that mean a quicker trip to Dunadd?”

“It certainly would,” Ciaran said. “We’d reach Dunadd tonight, or maybe tomorrow morning, depending on the tides.”

“A boat sounds nice,” Sadie said, a touch of longing in her voice. “Anything that’s not a horse sounds nice.”

Ciaran laughed, despite his earlier resolve to keep his distance from her.

“Well, we must keep an eye on the coast,” he said. “If we see a boat near the shore, we may just get lucky.”

“A boat like that one?” Sadie asked hopefully. Ciaran squinted out at the horizon. They were not far from the sea - you could never be far from the sea in this part of Scotland - but there was no fishing village along this stretch of coast. He hadn’t expected to see a boat for a few hours at least. But Sadie was right - the distinctive red sails of a royal ship hovered just a little way offshore.

“A boat exactly like that one,” he said, feeling a powerful mix of relief and excitement - tempered with a little regret. He’d expected to have one more night on the road, alone with Sadie. Still, this was not an opportunity to ignore. What was a royal ship doing this far south?

He turned off the road and rode hard for the coast, leaving Sadie to trail along behind him. Riding across the rough fields was harder than the dirt track of the road, but soon the fields gave way to sand dunes and then the beach. By the time Ciaran’s horse splashed into the shallow waves, a small rowing boat lay on the golden sand, two familiar faces peering up at Ciaran.

With a laugh of surprised delight, he jumped down from his horse and waded over to them.

“Iaian! Seumas! What are you doing here?”

They looked just as surprised to see him.

“We were sent down with the king’s guard. We’re looking for-”

Ciaran knew the moment they spotted Sadie, riding towards him with her red hair flaming. He sighed.

“Don’t worry, boys,” he said. “She’s not who you think she is.”

Just who was this woman, Sadie’s twin, who’d sent everyone into such an uproar? Ciaran couldn’t get back to Dunadd soon enough.

“I’m afraid I need to commandeer your boat,” he said. “You can always come back to fetch the other guardsmen later, or they can make your own way back. It’s vitally important that Sadie and I reach Dunadd as soon as possible.”

Iain and Seumas looked uncertain, but they’d known Ciaran a long time. Amongst the king’s guards, Ciaran’s word was very nearly law.

“We’ll prepare to cast off, then,” one said. “You’re lucky that the tide’s with us.”

Ciaran nodded, feeling suddenly cheerful. After a difficult few days, it seemed that luck was finally on his side.

“We’re getting a boat?” Sadie asked, splashing down into the shallows beside him. He nodded, and her smile of relief made his day just that little bit better.