Free For the Love of Two Highland Bears by Tianna Xander Page B

the legs of her loose fitting denims tucked inside thick, woolen socks. He cast a glance to her companion to note they dressed in a similar fashion. They were of a similar size, except the redhead was about two inches taller. He would have had a difficult time telling them apart at a distance had it not been for the long, fiery hair the one possessed.
    “Aye, it is.” He smiled. “More like two-hundred and thirty.”
    “You could have fallen!” The redhead looked genuinely worried for his wellbeing. It made his smile grow larger. Why, he had no idea.
    “Aye.” He nodded. “ Ye could have fallen, as well. The narrow path tae the cave isn’t much safer.” Malcolm didn’t mention that he would heal much faster from greater wounds than either of the women could. They were human. He and Gavin were not.
    “Did ye have a guide, a local tae show ye around?” Gavin asked as he moved forward and offered his hand to the lass with the short-cropped dark hair. “Because if ye did, I’d like tae know who would bring two such bonnie lasses up here and leave them tae themselves.”
    “No.” The two women said at the same time.
    The gorgeous redhead shook her head, blushing prettily. “We couldn’t find anyone to lead us here.” She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. “I had this map my grandfather drew for me.”
    Malcolm glanced at the paper, his temper flaring. “Did ye tell the locals what ye were about?”
    “Of course we did!” She bristled. The action only made her more attractive. However, Malcolm doubted she would appreciate his saying so. “Do you think we have a death wish? We wanted help. We even asked for help. All we got were chuckles and innuendo.”
    “Damn those hu—”
    “Huge pains in the arses at the pub,” Malcolm finished for Gavin when the other man would have said humans .
    “Aye. They are that,” Gavin agreed, shoving his hands in his pockets, his gaze shifting to his feet.
    Do ye scent something different about the bonnie redheaded lass, Gavin? Malcolm asked as she moved toward the path down the cliff.
    Aye, old friend. She smells sweet, like candy.
    Malcolm’s skin prickled as he looked at the woman and took another deep breath. I think she’s my mate. He looked to his friend. Tell me ye scent it, as well. I dinnae think I could bear tae share her with a man I dinnae know.
    Aye. I scent it too. Best we get them out of the cold and into the castle afore they slip away without a trace. We dinnae have an idea where tae find her should she disappear. I dinnae know about ye, but I want tae know where tae find her should she decide tae go home.
    Malcolm wanted that as well. They had lived alone too long to lose her now. Let’s get them home and see if we can convince them tae stay awhile. Maybe her friend is someone’s mate, too. He wasn’t sure the men of their clan could get that lucky. However, he knew Gavin was correct. They needed to get the two females to go with them so they could learn more about the woman who just might be their mate.
     

Chapter Three
     
     
    Sunshine stared up at the two men and swallowed thickly. Hard pressed to decide which one was more handsome, she decided not to try. Instead, she would just admire them both while she could and listen intently to their sexy Scottish accents as long as they remained together.
    “We still need a guide if you have anyone in mind,” Roxie said as she batted her eyes at the one with the green eyes.
    The man stood approximately six-foot four with pitch black hair and dancing green eyes. Sunshine didn’t know what it was about Scotland, but the men here seemed to grow rather large. Maybe it had something to do with their Viking ancestry.
    “We’d be happy tae lead ye back down the mountain, but ye have no doubt seen that it’s nearing late afternoon. Soon it will be dark and the path down the mountain is best traveled in daylight.”
    “What are you suggesting?” Sunshine asked, wary. “We