My Highland Bride (Highland Hearts #2) Read online

  Colum’s deep, rich chuckle interrupted her erotically sweet musing.

  “You were not here first. I would’ve seen you.” Lordy, she sounded like Lilia and Mairi fighting over the best spot on the couch. Kenna relaxed Chloe back into her lap, leaning the child semi-upright against her arm so the babe could enjoy a look around.

  “Ye were nay lookin’ where ye walked. Ye were talkin’ to the wee one.” Colum drew closer, smiling down at the baby. He took the tip of his little finger and gently trailed it across the palm of the baby’s hand. His voice lowered to an awe-filled whisper. “Yer a bonnie wee lassie, I grant ye that.”

  An aching shiver rooted deep in Kenna’s core, then heated its way through her body. She did her best to control her breathing, but if Colum couldn’t hear her heart pounding, the man was stone-cold deaf.

  Colum’s gaze slid from the baby’s face and locked with Kenna’s. One corner of his smile twitched the barest bit higher. Just as Kenna feared. Colum was by no means deaf.

  “I came t’find ye.” Colum knelt at Kenna’s feet, his little finger captured in Chloe’s tiny grasp. “Ye need t’ken…” Colum faltered, lowering his gaze back to the baby as she squirmed in Kenna’s lap.

  Kenna waited. Colum’s pained expression made her heart swell. “I need to know what?” She struggled against the temptation to peek into his thoughts. No. I need to play fair.

  Without looking up, Colum stopped smiling and his brow puckered into a troubled scowl. “I ken ye saw my memories. Ye witnessed all that I have done.” He weakly waved his free hand as though shooing away a fly. “The MacKenna explained yer gift, and I ken what ye must surely think of me.”

  How could he know what she thought of him when she didn’t even know herself? Yes, she’d seen a lot about the man kneeling at her feet that she wished she hadn’t. No amount of brain bleach would ever erase some of those erotic scenes. But she’d also seen a better side to the man. A side she might never have known if she hadn’t walked through his mind. She hadn’t missed the moments of intense loyalty, pride, and courage. When Colum was taken over by his emotions, he felt strongly and deeply. Kenna shook her head and shrugged. “I don’t know what I think of you.”

  Colum inched closer and, ever so slowly, reached for her. His voice returned to the low, deep whisper of just moments ago as his hand gently cupped her face. “All I ask is for a chance t’make ye see.”

  “Make me see what?” Kenna fought the urge to lean forward to meet him, the honey caress of Colum’s rich voice mesmerizing her into a blissful state of breathless cooperation.

  “Make ye see that I can change. I’m no’ the man I once was. I’m no’…evil.” Colum’s warm lips brushed across hers, triggering a burning ache deep within, a delicious hotness that swirled through her like sensual lava.

  An indignant rowr vibrated up between them. Colum rocked back on his heels as though he’d been slapped. Chloe batted both little fists back and forth, her small round face turning a deeper red as she twisted and growled again.

  “Oh my. What a face.” Kenna cradled Chloe higher against her chest and rocked back and forth. “Shh…now. Uncle Colum wasn’t ignoring you. He was just talking to me for a little bit.”

  “Apparently, the tiny lass doesna tolerate inattention.” Colum rose, smiling down at the red-faced infant.

  “Very few women do.”

  A none-too-fragrant aroma wafted up from the blankets as Chloe squirmed even more. Kenna wrinkled her nose against the ever-increasing stink. “Shew, I think I know what the problem is, and it’s not that she was being ignored.”

  Colum’s nostrils flared. He pressed the back of his hand against his mouth and nose and took a step back. “How can somethin’ so small create such a stench?”

  Kenna blinked against the strong odor as she opened the blankets and lowered both blanket and baby to the soft cushion of the moss at her feet. She pointed to the backpack sitting beside the bench. “Hand me that bag.”

  Still holding the back of his hand across his mouth and nose, Colum looped a finger through the handle of the backpack, plopped it beside Kenna, then quickly retreated several steps away. “I’ll fetch one of the maids to tend to the babe and get her clean.”

  “I don’t need any help changing a diaper.” Kenna unzipped the bag and fished out a colorful bundle, then glanced around before she pulled out a modern-day canister of baby wipes. “Don’t you dare tell anyone you saw these. Granny already chewed me out for bringing all this stuff to Trulie.”

  Colum frowned down at the white canister and the rainbow-striped pair of snap cloth diapers. “What do ye mean to do with those things?”

  “Hold your breath and see.” Kenna took her own advice, barely puffing in and out between parted lips. Trulie had warned her about little Miss Chloe’s unpleasant surprises. She unsnapped the soiled cloth from about Chloe’s waist, clamping her mouth shut and holding her breath as she quickly rolled the messy diaper into a wad. She popped the top on the baby wipes and completed mop-up operations.

  Chloe gurgled and cooed, kicking her tiny feet to and fro after Kenna laid her back on the blanket-covered moss, a bright clean diaper snapped in place. She fished a leather bag from the backpack, all the while wishing she had smuggled back a box of zip-top plastic bags along with the other contraband. As quickly as possible, she shoved the soiled cloth diaper into the leather pouch and yanked the strings closed. “There. All done. Do you want to hold her now that she’s clean?”

  Colum backed up another step, repeatedly glancing toward the pouch holding the foul diaper as though he feared Kenna would throw it at him. “Nay. I dinna ken a thing about bairns. She looks right content where she lies.”

  Kenna scooted over to the tree and placed the aromatic pouch between a couple of knobby roots. “I’ll tend to that later. I’ve got to hide all this stuff before someone else sees. Granny will skin me alive for bringing these things out of Trulie’s chambers.” Kenna patted a mossy spot next to her, then held up her hand. “Come sit down. Or do you have something you need to do?”

  Colum’s face brightened with a relieved smile as he lowered himself to the ground. He nodded toward the articles Kenna was hurriedly stuffing into the backpack. “Why would Mother Sinclair be cross about what ye brought from yer time?”

  “Because we have to be careful about changing history whenever we travel back. Promise me you won’t tell a soul.” A wave of guilt washed over Kenna. She’d violated one of Granny’s cardinal rules. Modern-day clothing was risky enough, but Kenna had brought back things that affected everyday convenience. Inconvenience, necessity, and searching for an easier way to accomplish tasks inspired humans to better their lives. It spurred their creativity to invent a solution to their problems. The items she’d smuggled back would deprive them of that natural process if anyone were to discover them.

  Colum leaned over and scooped up Kenna’s hand. He stared down at it as he tickled his thumb across her knuckles. “Ye can always trust me.” He fixed gurgling Chloe with a weak attempt at a stern look and a playful wagging finger before turning back to Kenna. “Tha’s what I was tryin’ to tell ye before the wee lass soiled her trews. Ye can always trust me and know I’m a man of m’word.”

  Kenna’s heart warmed and pounded faster. Whether it was from Colum’s caring touch or his camaraderie with the baby, she didn’t know, and she guessed it really didn’t matter. A firm knowing settled across her. Colum knew she could travel through time and read minds, and he didn’t care. He hadn’t run away screaming, threatened to burn her at the stake, or even acted as though he found her the least bit strange. Colum had accepted her for what she was. How could she not accept him? “I’m looking forward to getting to know the new and improved you.”

  “I can ask for nothin’ more.”

  Kenna forced herself to look away, busying herself with the unnecessary refolding of Chloe’s already neatly swaddled blanket. Colum’s gaze was filled with such emotion, and the deep timbre of his voice threat
ened to pull her in, mesmerize her into a state of total abandon. She shifted on the mossy ground, fluffing her skirts with her free hand and resettling them around her. Damn. Her body needed air. She was about to burst into flames.

  Colum rose to his feet, then held his hand down to her. “Come. Walk with me. Surely the wee one would enjoy seeing the rest of the garden.”

  Holding Chloe in one arm, Kenna slid her hand into Colum’s, and a warm sense of completeness surged through her as he helped her to her feet, then gallantly tucked her hand into the crook of his arm. A quiet chuckle escaped her.

  “Ye laugh?” Colum arched a reddish blond brow at her as he led her through the tangle of tree roots.

  “Sorry.” Another soft giggle escaped her. “I was just remembering how much it pissed you off the first time you offered me your arm and I didn’t take it.”

  “So ye knew ye shouldha taken my arm like a proper lady?” Both his brows now arched nearly to his hairline in a mock look of disapproval.

  “Well, of course I knew.” Kenna squeezed his arm with a playful shake. “But I wasn’t about to let you win the first round.” She lifted Chloe a bit higher as they reached the topmost point in the garden and looked out across the sea. “Look, sweetie. Isn’t the water pretty?”

  “Win the first round, indeed.” Colum shielded his eyes and peered up at the sky. “The owl doesna approve of having the babe in the sunlight.”

  Chloe’s owl circled above them, hovering and maneuvering against the breeze to keep the shadow of his wings across the baby’s face.

  Kenna reluctantly slid her hand free of Colum’s arm, immediately missing the warmth of his touch as she pulled a flap of the light blanket over little Chloe’s face. “He’s right. I shouldn’t have her out here in the direct sunlight. She’s still too new for such brightness.” A pang of guilt twitched through her as she turned and hurried to the shaded canopy of the newly leafed-out trees in the corner of the garden. “I’m sorry, Chloe. Auntie Kenna will do better.”

  Colum smiled down at the drowsy-eyed infant. “She looks no worse for it. Sunshine and fresh air are good for bairns.”

  “In small doses.” Kenna swayed back and forth, rocking Chloe in her arms until the baby’s eyes finally closed. “When she’s older, I’ll take her for walks outside the garden. It’s so beautiful here, I can’t wait to go exploring.”

  Colum’s face hardened into an immediate look of disapproval. “Ye must never travel alone outside these walls. Never. Do ye understand?”

  “Calm down. It’s not like I’ve never walked around in the woods before. I’ll be careful.” Kenna resettled the baby in her arms as she rose and started back across the garden to the bench beside the oak.

  A strong grip around her upper arm stopped her in her tracks. Colum turned her back to him. “Whene’er ye wish t’do yer explorin’, I will accompany ye—see to it that yer properly protected. Swear it. Swear ye will ne’er stray from these walls without me.” His hand tightened the barest bit as he continued. “The only safe place for ye t’walk alone is in this private garden.”

  Kenna didn’t know if it was the urgency in his voice or the look in his eyes that touched her most. “Protected,” he’d said. No one but Granny and the girls had ever fretted about whether or not she was safe. A warm feeling blossomed through her. “I swear I will never go exploring without you.”

  She flattened her hand on his chest, smiling as the pounding of his heartbeat thudded against her palm. Colum was dead serious. She felt it with every beat of his heart.

  It was time to change the subject and ease Colum out of overprotective mode. “You’ll find I never break my word—ever. But I do have a favor to ask of you.”

  Colum’s eyes narrowed the barest bit, wariness reflecting in their depths. “A favor?”

  “If I’m going to stay in this time, I’ve got to learn to ride a horse, and who better to teach me than you? Would you have time tomorrow to show me a bit of the land?” Kenna bumped against him with a playful nudge. “You said you’d accompany me anytime I breached the safety zone.”

  Kenna didn’t know if it was the sun’s rays flooding Colum’s face or that he heartily approved of her suggestion, but the man fairly glowed. He brought her hand to his lips and pressed a warm kiss into her palm. Kenna shivered clear down to her toes, then shifted in place against the sensual ache that was currently making her more than ready to divest herself of her virginity.

  Colum treated her hand to another kiss, a slower kiss spiced with a knowing look as he held her palm to his mouth. “Aye. Yer riding lesson will be on the morrow.”

  Riding lesson. Tomorrow. Horse totally optional. Kenna wet her mouth and nodded. “Tomorrow, then.”

  “Aye. Tomorrow.” Colum flattened her hand to the center of his chest, then leaned forward and nibbled the softest of kisses across her mouth.

  “Oh my,” Kenna whispered as a tingling shiver fluttered through her.

  “Aye,” Colum responded, then gently deepened the kiss.

  The babe rustled in Kenna’s arms, reminding her that she should be tending to her niece and not her libido. With a bit of guilt pinging her conscience, Kenna regretfully eased a step back. “I need to get the little miss back to her cradle.” She cleared her throat, struggling to steady her voice. “I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”

  “Aye,” Colum replied with a knowing smile. “As am I, m’love. As am I.”

  Chapter 13

  “Ye must do yer best to be one with the horse. Geal can feel yer every move. Relax, lass. Use the pressure of yer knees to tell wee Geal where ye wish her to go.” Colum urged Rua a few steps closer, grinning his encouragement from the huge mount’s back.

  “Be one with the horse”? Was he serious? Kenna plucked the reins free of the rippling strands of Geal’s white mane. Geal calmly glanced back and flicked a disinterested ear. Kenna lifted the reins higher, then leaned to one side and looked up and down the length of the horse. “Well, then what are these for? Don’t you steer with the reins?”

  She had asked for a riding lesson, but she was also hoping for some greatly needed sexual relief if they happened to find a nice secluded spot along the way. Lord have mercy, she’d been one big knot of preorgasmic misery ever since that damned tingle. She wouldn’t let him pop her cherry, but he could damn sure heat up her pie. The mere thought of a little blanket bingo made Kenna squirm in the saddle.

  Thumbs rubbing against the coarseness of the heavy reins, she smoothed them neatly across her lap. She’d had no idea riding was going to be this complicated. Thank goodness sitting on gentle Geal’s back reminded her of waiting for Granny to put a quarter in the mechanical horse in front of Thatcher’s Grocery. Geal resettled her stance, then patiently waited for Kenna’s orders.

  Colum and Rua circled about. The reddish stallion pranced forward, then danced back, anxious to get on with the outing. An overstuffed leather pouch and a skin of wine hung down from a strap tied to the saddle.

  Kenna’s stomach growled. She’d fallen in love with Cook’s delectable barley and oat breads and could clearly see the outline of several rounded loaves in the bag. Colum had promised a fine picnic if she did well with the lesson.

  Kenna didn’t miss the fact that more than one blanket was rolled and tied across Rua’s rump. From the look of that bundle, Colum had brought along enough plaids to make quite the comfortable pallet. A shiver of anticipation triggered another aching surge of heat. A lovely picnic in the Highlands, and Colum for dessert.

  Kenna’s heart fluttered again as she remembered overhearing several serving lads grumbling about betting away prized possessions because one of MacKenna keep’s infamous playboys no longer played. They’d tested him by allowing the fairest of the serving maids in on the wager—even going so far as to hide the women in his private rooms. But Colum had held strong—firmly sending the maids out of his chambers and bolting the door behind them. Bless his little sexually starved heart.

  “Yer no’ listenin’.
” Colum brought Rua closer and tapped Kenna on the knee.

  Kenna blinked and straightened in the saddle. “Oh. Sorry.” She lifted the reins and wiggled in the saddle until the folds of her skirts were bunched up across the tops of her thighs. She scooted forward and tried to reach Geal’s creamy sides with her bare knees. This had to be why she hadn’t seen any women from the keep riding horses—it was damned uncomfortable. “I don’t think this is gonna work. My legs are too short.”

  Colum arched a brow at Kenna’s legs, bared to mid-thigh. He turned away, expanded with a deep breath, then turned back with his mouth clamped shut. After another glance at her awkward position in the saddle, Colum shook his head, then quickly looked away again.

  Kenna glared at Colum’s trembling shoulders. “You said you wouldn’t laugh at me.”

  Colum snorted and turned Rua farther away.

  “Fine. I’ll just figure it out myself.” Kenna rocked forward and hugged her knees as close to the horse’s sides as she could get them. “Giddy up, Geal.”

  Geal flipped an ear.

  Kenna blew out an exasperated breath and lightly flipped the reins. “If you’ll go, I promise I’ll get you a carrot when we get back.”

  Geal slowly swayed three steps forward, then stopped again.

  Colum’s deep, rumbling laughter filled the air just as Rua deftly swooped close enough for Colum to reach out an arm, scoop Kenna from the saddle, and plop her down in front of him. “Enough wi’ the lesson. I hunger.” He leaned forward and deftly kissed a searing trail along Kenna’s neck as Rua headed them up the hillside.