Reunited (Book 2 of Lost Highlander series) (17 page)

“I don’t know,” he said, leaning over and resting his elbows on his knees. He pinched the bridge of his nose, not wanting to see her reaction. “One minute I was just here. That’s all I know.”

The silence lasted so long, he had to straighten up and look at her. Her face was bunched up in concentration. She didn’t look scared or even disbelieving, just that she was trying to figure it out.

“D’ye mean ye were in Italy and then in the woods where ye accosted me?” She clapped her hands. “Like that?”

“No,” he said, feeling defeated, knowing he should have never brought his birthplace into it. “Not exactly. I’ve lived in Scotland for a long time now. But I don’t know how I got here.”

“Were ye hit on the head?” she asked.

Bingo. He tried not to act as if he were grasping for the lifeline she’d unwittingly tossed him and nodded slowly, feeling like a jerk, but knowing that the whole truth would probably make her run out into the storm, never to be seen again. She’d already run away from an insane husband. If he started spouting that he thought he might have been transported through time, she was going to start taking it personally.

“Aye, maybe. I was at work, and then nothing, and then I was here.” He let the words slowly unravel and relaxed as she nodded along with his story.

“We’ve had a terrible bit of lawlessness,” she said solemnly. “There was even a murderer about.” She scooted closer to him and brushed his hair off his forehead. “He’s been caught, though. We needn’t worry about him.”

She leaned over and kissed him, sliding her fingers through his hair. “Poor man,” she said against his lips.

Weakened from her stroking hands and increasingly fevered kisses, he completely forgot she hadn’t told him a thing about herself.

Any concern about being chased by castle guards who knew her well enough to call her by her first name flew from his mind when she ran her fingertips down his chest and paused at the button on his jeans.

“Ye should really get out of these,” she said with an inviting smile. “They’re still verra wet.”

Sam pulled the car off the road and parked it next to a low stone wall near the edge of the forest. Evie, who was sitting next to him, started to cry. With a sigh, Piper looked at Sam, who reached over and squeezed Evie’s shoulder. She just bawled harder.

“Come on,” Piper said, getting out of the car.

After some discussion, they’d decided the best way to try and prevent anyone getting caught in the blast radius of the spell was to put as much distance between themselves and anyone else as they could.

They’d shown Lachlan a map of the grounds and woods and he’d picked out where Agnes’ house would have been. Would be, when they returned.

Sam was certain there was nothing left of it now, not even a chimney stone or bit of foundation. Returning to that area had been Lachlan’s idea. It was far enough away to hopefully avoid dragging anyone back, while still being technically on Glen land.

When they arrived, Agnes would be able to get Piper some appropriate clothes, or let her stay with her if need be, while Lachlan took care of things with the Glens. It would also be nice to have someone else helping them search for the elusive great-great etcetera grandfather.

Piper felt a mixture of excitement and stone cold fear as she let Evie strangle her in a goodbye hug.

“I love you,” Evie said. “Be careful. If you don’t come back, who will be Magnus’ or Dakota’s godmother?”

Piper saw Sam’s eyes widen at the mention of the baby names and Evie gave him a quick shake of her head. Piper squeezed her as hard as she dared and laughed shakily.

“Evie, if I don’t come back, you can’t be sad. You’ve got to think of me being happy back there if I stay. Check the history books. I’ll try to cause some sort of ruckus so you’ll know.”

Evie clung to her and sobbed. “Don’t,” she said. “Promise you’ll be back.”

“I’ll be back,” she said, disentangling herself. “You two go to Maison Craig and have a nice lunch. We might even be back in time for you to pick us up on your way home later on tonight.” Her voice cracked on the last word and she cleared her throat vigorously to try to hide it.

Sam dragged Evie away from Piper, and gave Lachlan a hearty handshake. Piper saw that Sam’s eyes were glistening with tears and she had to hurry away, vaulting over the wall and running to the edge of the trees. She took a deep breath and held it, willing her own tears not to spill over.

Lachlan caught up with her and she turned and gave Sam and Evie a wave. She let their images burn into her memory, praying this wouldn’t be the last time she saw them, but having to accept that it might be. She hated goodbyes, avoided them at all cost. This one was the worst.

As Sam helped Evie back into the car, she knew that they would be happy together. She felt a stab that she might never see the baby, but shoved that thought out of her mind. She watched the car until it went around the bend and then she stared at the empty road, clutching Lachlan’s hand.

“Are ye ready for this?” he asked, pulling her close to him.

“Yes,” she said without hesitation, closing her eyes and breathing in the modern air, trying to catch any whiff of pollution, trying to hear any of the sounds she wouldn’t hear in the past.

The Highlands were disgustingly fresh and quiet though, and just as she gave up and opened her eyes she heard an airplane and laughed. She leaned back in Lachlan’s arms and watched as the small plane buzzed by overhead, then enjoyed Lachlan’s amazement.

He’d seen a plane once when he’d arrived the first time. It was the thing that finally convinced him that she and Sam weren’t lying to him about having come to the future. The poor man had about had an aneurism.

Now he watched it until it was lost from sight on the horizon, it’s puffy white trail breaking up into wisps in the pink morning light.

“‘Tis a miracle,” he said, his voice full of emotion. “Have ye ever been in one of them?”

All at once she felt it really was amazing, seeing it as if through his eyes. “Well, sure,” she said, feeling slightly show-offy. “I’m from America, remember? I’d have to, to get here.”

Piper had been all over, it was her life’s goal to travel as much as she could, and had taken her first plane ride when she was just a child. It had never occurred to her how incredible it was that they could fly.

“What is it like?” he asked. “To be so far above the earth?”

 “It’s a little nerve wracking at first, when you take off,” she said, then shrugged. “It’s just a way to get around.”

She hugged him close, feeling guilty for taking all her plane trips for granted. She either watched movies or took a pill to fall asleep, never once savored the wondrous fact that she was actually flying.

“Are there no more ships?” he asked, still watching the jet trail break up in the sky.

“For cargo mostly. You can take a pleasure cruise, too. I used to work on a cruise ship. They’re not so much to get somewhere as to just be out on the boat.” She smiled at his grimace.

“I dinna think I would like that,” he said, then blinked down at her in disbelief. “Ye worked on a ship? A wee lass like yerself, a sailor?”

She laughed at him, wondering what he must have been picturing. “I think you’d love it. There’s a ton of food and gambling, drinking and dancing and shows.”

She wanted to take out her phone and find pictures of a cruise ship, with its swimming pools and waterslides right on the deck, to blow his mind.

Her heart stitched up a little. Would she love his time as much as she thought he would love hers? Would she be able to adjust if he didn’t want to come back? She could hear Evie’s voice in her mind, telling her she should really get these issues dealt with.

“I hope I would have the courage to get on one,” he said, nodding at the empty sky.

She pulled out of his embrace and set off slowly into the woods, letting him take the lead. He knew roughly where Agnes’ place was and they wanted to be close, but not right in her backyard when they arrived.

“Would you want to come back, if we can get everything sorted with my ancestors?” she asked.

“We will get it sorted,” he said firmly, then wrinkled his brow. They walked in silence for a few minutes. “I would like verra much to come back,” he finally said shyly. “If that is what ye want as well?”

“You wouldn’t miss your family?” she asked.

“My mother died when I was a lad, and my father a few years back. I have a half sister who lives wi’ an aunt on my land, and I care for her, but we are no’ close as she is verra young. My idiot brother Quinn is a thorn in my side. I couldna in good conscience leave the running of the clan in his hands. But I wouldna miss him, and I could leave instructions with my steward. He is a good man, and can be trusted.”

“I’d be sad if I never saw Evie or my mom again,” she said, when she’d gone over what he’d said.

“Then we shall return.” He stopped and turned, looking all around and down at the ground. “I think this is it.”

His readiness to give up his old life for her took her breath away, and when she stopped and looked around all she saw were trees and vines. How he could tell where he was, almost three hundred years after the fact, was beyond her comprehension, but she was too happy to care. She stood on her tiptoes so she could kiss him.

“If we can’t come back to this time, I won’t care,” she said. “I want to be with you whenever.”

He nodded and kissed her back, brushing her hair behind her ears. “I love yer glossy hair,” he said, then frowned. “It’s verra short for my time, though.”

She grinned and rummaged in her bag. “Evie thought so as well,” she said, whipping out a soft woven scarf, which she pulled over her chin length bob like a kerchief. She grinned and struck a pose. “Stylish, and will also cover my shame.”

He frowned at her teasing, and pulled off the scarf, tucking it around her shoulders.

“Never say that, Piper,” he said. “Ye are beautiful, no matter.”

They stood and looked at each other, their moods slowly dampening as they realized now they were in the right spot, it was time to get ready.

Piper swallowed her nerves and set her bag on the ground, kneeling beside it to take out the carefully wrapped objects. Lachlan sat down beside her, looking grim.

“We need something, a marker, no? So we go to the right year?” Lachlan asked.

“We have something from the right year,” Piper said shortly. “You. Just concentrate on your life in your time.”

“Aye, I suppose. I hope we dinna go to when I was a wee lad, or any other time in my twenty-five years.”

She looked at him in a new light. Was he only twenty-five years old? He was the same age as she was, but he was so big and capable and sure, the leader of his clan. He seemed older to her.

“Well, don’t think about when you were a wee lad,” she cautioned. “Think about the last time you were there, that’s all. I don’t think we can be super specific anyway. Let’s just aim for the right year.”

Her stomach started to churn and a sour taste rose in her mouth. She held up the pendant and tugged it over his head, untangling strands of his hair from the chain.

“What shall ye use?” he asked, closing his fist around the pendant.

She knew he despised it, but she wouldn’t take a chance.

She shrugged. “I only have the one. Do you still have the one from last time?”

He shook his head. “It was gone. Disappeared. I looked through every blade of grass where I landed. I dinna understand why it was gone.”

“It’ll be fine,” she said with more confidence in her voice than she really felt. “Don’t let go of me during the spell.”

She’d joked about it, but she didn’t want to end up lost and alone in medieval times.

“Never,” he said fiercely. “And if we must, we shall take turns wearing the vile thing.”

Piper unrolled the cloth wrapping up Daria’s grimoire and the disgusting packet of finger bones. She shuddered when they clattered together in their bag, and once again hated herself for keeping them, while at the same time being relieved that she had.

With a last look at Lachlan, she opened the book to the page that was still marked with a strip of paper from the last time she’d done the spell.

Time slowed down around her and she was taken over by the book. All the sounds of the forest dropped away and she heard words coming out of her mouth that she didn’t understand.

Without a conscious thought of what she was doing, she arranged the bones in the proper way on the ground in front of her. Keeping one hand on the page of the book, she took a knife out of her bag and handed it to Lachlan.

Wordlessly, he dragged the razor sharp blade across the inside of his forearm, leaving behind a thin line of blood. Several drops fell onto the bones, and while part of her felt sick, another part of her felt invigorated.

The bones began to swirl and she blinked to clear her vision, but soon the bones were whirling around so fast they disappeared. In their place on the ground was an opening, through which Piper could see a cloudy sky and the edge of a wooden fence.

With a glance at Lachlan, who was looking at her intently, she ran her fingers down the page. More words rose unbidden from her mouth, and the window in the ground started to close up, become the pile of bones again.