Free When a Laird Loves a Lady (Highlander Vows: Entangled Hearts Book 1) by Julie Johnstone Page A

she
gulped. “Unless Father has tied him to the post where he beats people and left
Angus as an example.”
    Iain’s gut twisted in disgust.
“Does yer father do that often?”
    “Yes,” she whispered, her right
hand finding her left and her fingers curling around her wrist. She rubbed the
skin as if in memory of being tied there herself.
    It took all Iain’s determination
not to tell her he wanted to kill her father. She may hate the man, but he was
still her father. “Where is the post?”
    “The bailey near the front gate.”
    He nodded. “What can ye tell me
about the castle, in case I need to enter?”
    “Let me show you,” she countered,
her voice a hopeful plea.
    Though it made a great deal of
sense to have her with him as his guide, he could not bear the thought of
taking her deliberately into danger. If he didn’t come back, Rory Mac would
know to flee and take her to safety. Iain didn’t even need to say it, the Scots
knew each other that well. They’d grown up together, and Rory Mac was like a
brother.
    “Nay,” he said, making sure his
tone brooked no argument. “Stay here.” He turned and caught Rory Mac’s eyes,
understanding passing between them. Iain retrieved his sword from his tethered
mount, and then he headed into the black night to rescue Angus and get the
priest.
    It did not take long, even on foot,
to close the distance to the ditch that surrounded the castle’s outer court.
The bridge was drawn and the towers manned, which meant the only possible way
into the castle was through the dark ,
stale-smelling water that filled the ditch. He’d cross the divide from the side
of the wall, scale the wooden stockade, and make his way across the bailey to
find Angus and the priest. Hopefully they were not in the keep, instead.
    Iain crouched low to the ground,
hidden by trees, and eyed the stockade, searching for the best place to climb
and contemplating how to draw the guards’ attention away from the wall. Perhaps
another fire?
    Just as he settled on the idea, the
pounding of horses’ hooves filled the silent night behind him, and out of the
darkness rode his future wife, the moon shining bright upon her. Her pale hair
glowed in the moonlight, like one of the fairies of Dunvegan Castle. God’s
truth, he blinked to make sure he was seeing clearly, but it was certainly
Marion, calling in a loud voice for the drawbridge to be lowered.
    As she rode by him, a look of defiance
graced her face as his plaid flew behind her and landed near where he was
crouched. As he snatched it up and quickly put it on, two thoughts collided at
once: she was brave and beautiful, and the combination was potently enticing
and dangerous.
    Stay here, he’d told her. She’d nodded her agreement, hadn’t she?
    He thought back to the moment as he
slipped down the side of the ditch into the dark waters of the moat. When he
dove into the slimy water, the recollection came to him. She’d not agreed. Nay.
He’d not waited for it, either. He’d simply assumed she would listen. That was
the last time he’d assume anything about the Sassenach.

Four
     
    The second slap from her father was the one that
sent her to her knees. She wasn’t there long, though. He yanked her up by her
hair and jerked her head back until stars danced in her vision. Truly, they did
a jig. She blinked and the stars in the sky settled and stilled.
    Thank heaven. She was on the verge
of being sick, and she’d almost rather die than show her father such weakness. Her
cheek throbbed painfully, and she considered that, perhaps, riding into the
castle had not been the best idea. When she’d persuaded Rory Mac to walk a
distance away and turn his back to her with the lie that she needed to relieve
herself, she’d only thought of providing the distraction Iain needed to
retrieve Angus and the priest. Hopefully, Iain would consider that if he
decided to rescue her. She wasn’t at all certain that he would come to her aid,
however; he’d likely