Page 67 of Wedded to the Twisted Highlander

For a moment, Thomas wondered if he should go after Astrid as the memory of tackling her in the glen flashed through his mind. To have her close again…

He paused as a brilliant idea popped into his head, making his face break into a smile.

“Go and hide, Astrid, but I promise ye that when it is me turn, I will find ye. I will always find ye,” he whispered as Astrid slipped into the library along with his sisters.

22

“This way. Quick,” Olivia hissed as she pulled Astrid deeper into the library.

Astrid’s eyes widened as she noticed just how big the room actually was. There were bookshelves on bookshelves, and the sunlight filtering through the stained-glass windows cast a rainbow over the walls.

She could have sworn she had stepped into a cathedral in Paris.

Sure, she’d been in the room before, but she had never expected that the volumes of lore stretched so far. Olivia dragged her along as she tried to stifle her giggles.

“This is where Olivia and I always hide,” Eileen whispered as she craned her neck to spy over Astrid’s shoulder.

“Since we were knee-high to a grasshopper,” Olivia chimed in. “The window over there will provide us an escape route if someone is spotted in the room.”

“Thomas thinks there’s a trap door here.” Eileen giggled. “One summer, he spent most of his time tryin’ to find it.”

“Of course, he failed,” Olivia snorted.

“Ye ken, I think that’s the only thing he has ever failed at,” Eileen said.

Suddenly, the library door groaned, and they all fell silent.

Astrid shifted and inched toward the far end of the bookshelf to peer around it. A smile tugged at her lips as Melody skipped inside.

“I ken ye’re in here,” Melody called, her voice echoing through the room. “And ye’re nae goin’ to get away this time.”

Astrid glanced back at Olivia and Eileen, who had already decided to tiptoe closer to the window.

Shaking her head, Astrid turned her attention to Melody and watched as she strolled around the first few bookcases.

“Come out. Come out wherever ye are,” Melody called.

The window behind Astrid flew open. There was no hesitation—she darted around the corner, keeping to the shadows as she moved. Only when she was hidden by the couch and shelves did she stop to catch her breath.

Peeking over the furniture, she watched as Thomas climbed into the room through the window. She clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter as she watched him struggle to get back up as Melody charged toward Olivia and Eileen to tag them before they could escape.

“How did ye…” Eileen grumbled as she pushed Thomas off her. “We kept that a secret for so long. How did ye ken to go there?”

“Ye have Duncan to thank for that one,” Thomas answered.

Astrid wondered if he had even spotted her. She was surprised she hadn’t been discovered, for her heart was thundering in her chest.

“Found ye,” Melody intoned.

“Aye, ye did. But ye still have to find yer maither,” Thomas said just as Astrid ducked her head.

“Are ye sure she is in here?” Melody asked.

“Yer maither climbed out of the window long before we thought about takin’ that route. In fact, I’m surprised ye didnae find her in the garden,” Eileen said, her voice louder than necessary.

Astrid wondered if Thomas believed what his sister was saying.

Holding her breath, she tried to listen for the sound of heavy footsteps, but there were far too many noises around her. She lowered herself to her hands and knees and slowly crawled to the edge of the couch. If there was any way she was going to be able to escape, she was going to need a route.