Free Wed to a Highland Warrior by Donna Fletcher

movement.
    “Love,” he reminded.
    “Aye, love,” she said. “Poor William didn’t believe strongly enough in it. If he had, he would not have suffered so senselessly. You see, he believed the woman he loved stopped loving him, when it was her family who kept her locked away from him, not thinking he was suited for their daughter. Her love, however, was strong, and she waits these many months for him to rescue her . . . she believes in their love.” She grinned. “And now he does too. He’s gone to rescue her.”
    “In a rainstorm when night is nearing?” He shook his head. “Insane, and only someone in love would do something insane.”
    “You understand,” she said, her grin growing.
    “I do; I loved strongly once and would have done the same.”
    “But are you ready to love again?”

Chapter 8
    B liss regretted asking the question, his hesitancy and the dazed look in his eyes having answered it for her. And she regretted being trapped, unable to maneuver herself away. She would have preferred some distance from him right now.
    She wasn’t surprised when he turned the question on her. What better way not to answer.
    “What of you? Are you ready to love?”
    “Aye, I am,” she said, and with the need to step away from him so great, she gently pushed his arm out of her way, jumped down off the table, and walked around to stand in front of the fire, “though I don’t know if love is ready for me.”
    “It eludes you?” he asked.
    She turned with a flourish to face him. If he would not answer her question, she would no longer answer his. “What eludes me is that fish.”
    He seemed reluctant to end their conversation, but he did, turning his attention to cleaning the fish. Love was discussed no more, and well it shouldn’t be. Times were difficult enough in the Highlands and would grow worse before they settled, and Trey was an intricate part of it all. There was no time for love, only survival, the most likely reason fate had brought Trey to her. And hadn’t fate let her know that he would eventual leave her. Their marriage was not a marriage at all, and what a folly to allow herself to think that her situation was anything other than what it was.
    If she would stop these foolish musings and concentrate, there was a good chance she would learn what fate truly intended her to know.
    Bliss was relieved when Trey stepped outside to discard the fish scraps and rinse the stench of fish off him. The cottage was small, and it felt like they were on top of each other most of the time. Or was it that his presence dominated the snug room?
    For a lean man, he could fill a space, but, then, his shoulders were broad, and he carried himself with such distinction. He was not the type to blend with a crowd, but rather stand out.
    And he was magnificent naked.
    Her cheeks flamed red. Whatever was the matter with her? Why couldn’t she get him off her mind? This brief time alone could serve her well if she concentrated.
    She went to the bed and stretched out, forcing her eyes closed, forcing her mind to quiet, inviting fate in. Soon she was lost in the crackling sounds of the fire, the heat that wafted around her, and the delicious scent of the cooking fish, which had her stomach grumbling. Content, she drifted off into a light slumber.
    T rey finished, the air having grown more chilled and forcing him back inside, a place he wasn’t sure he should be at the moment. Bliss was just too tempting, and her beauty wasn’t the only thing that played havoc with his passion. She was strong and confident, and damned if he didn’t find her strange abilities fascinating. She was different, and that difference challenged him.
    He entered the cottage with a sense of anticipation though it faded when he saw Bliss asleep on the bed. He walked over to her. She was stretched out in peaceful repose, her arms at her sides. He drew the warm wool blanket up over her and tucked it gently around her, then quickly stepped away.
    He