Page 75 of Wedded to the Twisted Highlander

“I think we’re bein’ summoned,” Thomas whispered, before crushing his lips to hers.

Taken aback by the kiss, Astrid gulped in the air the second he jerked away from her.

“Here we are. I think Astrid is the new seeker.”

Astrid’s head spun as Thomas stepped out of their hiding place among the ferns and citrus trees. The ground wobbled under her feet as she tried to take a step. Without Thomas there to guide her, she felt like a sailor during a storm.

Brushing back a fern, Astrid stepped out of her hiding spot and moved to the doorway.

Melody shook her little head as she scowled at them. “Did ye forget that we were playin’ a game?” she scolded as she folded her arms over her chest. “What were ye doin’ in there?”

“I was lookin’ for Astrid,” Thomas explained.

His cheeks burned a darker red that only stoked Astrid’s embarrassment. She smoothed the wrinkles from her dress and cleared her throat. At least it was Melody who had discovered them instead of Reid—or heaven forbid, Olivia.

Astrid chuckled to herself as she made her way to Thomas and Melody.

“Shall we play another round?” she asked as she took Melody by the hand.

“Laird McFair, yer presence is requested in the hall,” Duncan shouted as he came barreling around the corner.

Astrid’s heart sank. How quickly reality set in, stealing the joy from them.

“It would seem that I have prior engagements,” Thomas said woefully.

Astrid shook her head. He was, after all, the leader of the clan and couldn’t spend his day gallivanting about the castle like a youth.

“Think of me,” she whispered as he took her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles.

His kiss seemed to slither through her veins and up her arm until it reached her heart and wrapped around it.

“As if I could do anything other than that,” Thomas answered.

Duncan cleared his throat. The sound made it seem as if it were the final note of an opera.

“Aye, I’m comin’. Give me a moment.”

“Will I see ye tonight?” Astrid asked.

Her heart fluttered as the question escaped her lips. She wondered if Thomas could catch the underlying question.

Flashing her a crooked grin, he nodded. “It would be me pleasure to see ye later,” he answered as he took a step away from her. “Or, how about this? I’ll clear me schedule tomorrow and take ye far away from pryin’ eyes and itchin’ ears.”

“Ye mean it?” Astrid asked, astonished by the fact that he was ready to leave the castle for even a moment. For her.

How she longed to see the moors and play in the mist of the valley again. It had been too long since she had let her toes squish in the mud of the bog.

“Before dawn, meet me in the foyer. I will show ye a place that ye’ll nae forget,” Thomas said.

Her anxiety spiked as he took another step back. Astrid felt as if a cord had been attached to the very core of her being and stretched to meet his heart.

“Can I go?” Melody asked as she followed Thomas down the hallway, with Astrid in tow. “I want to see what ye’re goin’ to see.”

“I’ll take ye another time, lass. This time will be just for yer maither,” Thomas said with a smile that could convince a spider to give up its web.

“Will it just be ye and me the next time?” Melody asked as she planted her hands on her hips and glared daggers at him.

The audacity to leave her out of anything seemed to offend more than it should have.