Текст книги "Charmed by His Love"
Автор книги: Джанет Чапмен
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Текущая страница: 15 (всего у книги 21 страниц)
the firemen work.”
“Please put the boys down, Duncan,” she said when Alec
headed to the driver’s door to shut off the truck instead.
“Your ribs aren’t healed enough to hold them.”
“I’m right as rain, Peg,” he said, his eyes lighting with the
first rays of sun peeking over the mountains across the
fiord. He gave the boys a jostle. “In fact, I do believe I’ve
never felt better in my life.”
Charlotte and Isabel jumped out of the back, dragging
the blankets with them, causing the poor pup to tumble out
of the truck with a yelp of surprise. Duncan walked over and
set the boys down, took one of the blankets and folded it
lengthwise on the ground, and then sat down on it. He
leaned against the truck and patted the blanket on either
side of him. “Come on, people; I need to borrow some of
your body heat.”
Peg stood blinking at him as Alec walked up to her.
“What he’s needing is to hold ye al , lass,” he said softly,
giving her a nudge. “It was a hel of a boat ride.”
Robbie came striding up the knol just as al four children
did indeed cuddle up to Duncan, apparently needing him
as wel . Robbie silently shook his head at Peg to let her
know her house was a complete loss, then looked at
Duncan. “There’s something I think ye might want to see,”
he said quietly.
“Whatever it is can wait,” Duncan said, snagging Peg’s
hand. He moved Jacob and Peter onto his lap and pul ed
her down beside him. “Charlotte, hand me that other
blanket, would ye, lass?” He then tucked Charlotte up
against his side next to Isabel and covered them al with the
blanket, wrapped one arm around Peg and one around the
girls, and pul ed them al together with a sigh—the group
hug completed when the pup landed on top of the blanket
and flopped down with a doggy sigh of its own.
“Go away, you two,” Duncan said to Alec and Robbie,
who were both grinning at the picture they must have made.
“We’l be right here when Jeanine and Bea have breakfast
ready.” He sighed again when Peg tucked her head in the
crux of his shoulder. “Just have them feed the firemen
before they feed our crews.”
Oh yeah, Peg thought with a sigh of her own; a hug from
a big strong man was exactly what they al needed this
morning.
Chapter Eighteen
Since her beachfront was ful of men gathered around a
campfire, Peg sat on her deck steps waiting for Duncan to
get through talking to his newly returned crew before she
rode into town with him to attend the hastily scheduled
Sunday night meeting. Folks in and around Spel bound
Fal s had decided it was time to openly discuss the little
resort problem that seemed to be growing into a big
problem, considering the fire marshal had declared her
early Friday morning fire had been arson.
There had stil been puffs of smoke wafting up from the
ruins of her burned-down-to-its-foundation house when
Duncan had Peg’s property turned into Fort Thompson;
complete, she was afraid, with armed guards. Honestly, al
that was lacking were cannons, and she wouldn’t be
surprised if one of those showed up in the back of
someone’s pickup next week. Three of the ten bunkhouse
trailers and Duncan’s own private trailer slated for the camp
up the road were now parked at her pit instead, al plumbed
into her newly expanded septic system—she had no idea
how he’d gotten thatpermit in only six hours—and tapped
into her wel .
Come to think of it, Peg couldn’t remember Duncan
asking herpermission, either, but she wasn’t complaining
because she liked feeling safe when she flopped into her
tiny bed, which Duncan had final y vacated Thursday.
Except now he was sleeping on the other side of her
bedroom wal in his private bunkhouse—that he’d perfectly
aligned so their bedroom windows faced each other.
Peg’s neighbors to the west weren’t very happy with al
the activity so close to their … garden, although Evan and
Carl had come over to say they certainly didn’t mind waiting
until that gosh-dang arsonist was caught before they put out
this year’s crop of hardy seedlings.
Her children were taking losing their new house
fairly wel , with no obvious signs of distress or lingering
fear, likely because al the activity had created quite a
distraction. Wel , that and Duncan’s parents had been
spoiling them rotten for the last two days.
Cal um and Charlotte MacKeage had arrived Friday
afternoon, only to have their son introduce them to Peg and
the kids then rush back into the chaos issuing orders—
after, that is, he wolfed down half a pan of maple-glazed
apple crisp smothered in whipped cream. Cal um had also
eventual y moseyed away, and Peg had watched in awe as
he’d pul ed a virtual town of smal buildings out of the back
of his truck, carried them down to the beach where Peter
and Jacob were playing, and the three of them had gotten
real y serious about the twins’ construction project.
Charlotte had divided up what was left of the crisp
among Peg, her girls, and herself, and they’d spent the
afternoon ignoring the fortress being built around them as
they’d al gotten to know one another. That’s why Peg didn’t
have any problem letting Cal um and Charlotte babysit her
heathens tonight while she went to the town meeting with
Duncan. The meeting that was slated to begin in two hours,
she realized as she glanced down at her watch, which
meant they needed to leave now if they wanted to stop by
the Drunken Moose first.
She fidgeted with the strap of her purse as she watched
Duncan in the last rays of the setting sun quietly talking to
his men sitting around the campfire. His feet were slightly
spread as he stood with his arms folded over his chest in a
stance of authority, and Peg felt her insides suddenly
clench.
Damn, her desire for him was starting to get out of
control, and Peg was worried she was going to act on it
one of these days. She sighed, resting her chin on her fists
as she continued watching Duncan. He hadn’t stolen any
more kisses since the morning of the fire, when he’d gotten
al growly because she’d final y kissed him back. Granted,
her house had been burning down to its foundation at the
moment, but he’d felt so solid and strong and invincible,
and she’d been so scared and needy. Al she’d wanted to
do was lose herself in the passion that had been building
inside her for the last three nights he’d been sleeping in her
bed, while she’d been out on the couch wanting to be in
there with him.
Peg stood up when she saw him striding toward her and
slipped her purse over her shoulder with a fortifying breath.
She walked to her SUV, brushing down the front of her old
spring jacket in an attempt to appear nonchalant. The last
thing she needed was for him to see how scared and
needy she stil was, considering this was the first time since
their picnic, when Duncan had declared she wouldn’t
always have the twins stuck to her like glue, that they would
actual y be alone together.
Peg dropped the truck keys into his outstretched
palm without so much as even a scowl and climbed in the
passenger side of her SUV when he politely opened the
door. Because honestly, not only did she know better than
to argue with an old-fashioned man, she kind of wanted to
pretend this was a date, even if they were only going to a
town meeting. But taking her to the Drunken Moose for a
piece of Vanetta’s famous blueberry pie first was sort of
like a date, wasn’t it?
At least it was according to Charlotte, who’d managed to
find a pair of actual dress slacks in the back of Peg’s
closet, and then insisted Peg wear the top from one of her
funeral outfits with them along with the smal pearl earrings
her short-lived stepdad had given Peg for her wedding. So
she was dressed like she was going on a date, she
decided as she watched Duncan walk around the front of
her truck, even though he was wearing jeans, a heavy
chambray shirt under his leather jacket, and work boots.
He climbed in behind the wheel with a chuckle when he
caught her glancing toward the house. “Your babies wil be
fine. They have the movies Mom brought that they can
watch together, and if those fail, Dad’s one hel of a
storytel er.”
“Actual y, it’s your parents I’m worried about,” she said
with a sigh. “Peter and Jacob like to pretend they’re each
other just to mess with people, and sometimes Isabel can
be … wel , Isabel.”
“I believe they can handle your heathens,” he drawled as
he turned the truck onto the main road and accelerated.
Peg folded her hands on her lap so he wouldn’t see them
trembling as she once again reminded herself this was not
a date. “They real y didn’t have to stay a day longer than
they’d planned. My mother-in-law said she could watch the
kids tonight.”
“Mom and Dad are in no hurry to leave.” He smiled over
at her. “When Dad saw my crew returning this evening, he
said he wanted to stay and watch the big boys play with the
big toys tomorrow.”
“I can’t believe he got down in the dirt to help the twins
expand the town they’re building. You said he’s eighty-two.”
Peg shook her head. “I think that’s a flat-out lie, because
that would mean he was what … nearly fifty when you were
born?”
“Forty-eight, actual y. Dad is Mom’s second husband and
I’m her second family. In fact, Alec’s mom is my half sister,
which makes my mom his grandmother and me his uncle.
And his dad and my dad are cousins, so Alec and I are
also cousins.” He grinned at her again. “We’re al just one
big happy clan. Now, about your new house; have ye
decided yet to let me build it?”
“You don’t think you’d be spreading yourself too thin,
what with building a road and then the resort site itself up
on the mountain for Mac?”
He waved the fingers on his hand holding the steering
wheel. “I can do it al . Like I said, the men wil welcome the
extra income. And I agree you should set the new house on
the tote road overlooking the fiord. The old site was good,
but that was before you had oceanfront property.”
Peg leaned back against the headrest with a sigh. “Yeah,
I like the idea of building it there so we’l be able to watch
the sunrise from our kitchen table.” She glanced over at
him. “And with the insurance money, I might be able to
afford to have you build a house for me. As long as you let
me do the electrical wiring,” she added, smiling when she
saw his jaw go slack.
But then he snorted and shook his head. “Why am I not
surprised?” He held his hand toward her. “Okay then, deal?
I’l build your house.”
She also reached out, but stopped short of actual y
shaking on it. “It’s a deal if the bid you give me is in line with
Grundy Watts’s.”
He snapped his hand away. “You’re taking bids?”
Peg looked down to hide her smile and brushed
absolutely nothing off her jacket. “Is that a problem?”
“No, it’s not a problem at—” He stopped in midsentence
and frowned into the rearview mirror. “Do ye recognize the
truck pul ing up behind us?”
Peg craned around in her seat to look out the rear
window and also frowned when she saw the old pickup
closing in on them rather quickly. “It … I’m pretty sure that’s
Chris Dubois’s truck.” She spun around with a gasp when
Duncan put on the brakes with a muttered curse to avoid
hitting another pickup that suddenly pul ed out in front of
them. It straddled the center of the road, and she saw the
brake lights come on as it slowed down enough to make
Duncan brake again.
“Check that your seat belt is secure,” he growled as he
quickly glanced in his rearview mirror before stepping on
the gas again. “Christ, it’s an actual ambush. Hold on.” He
pressed the accelerator to the floor and the SUV surged
forward.
Peg grabbed the handle above her door with one hand
and covered her mouth with the other so she wouldn’t
scream when Duncan drove the SUV’s right front bumper
into the left rear fender of the pickup in front of them. With
the sickening sound of metal making contact overriding her
scream, he then cut the wheel to the right without letting up
off the gas until the pickup started to fishtail. He
immediately slammed on the brakes only to step on the gas
again, pul ing around the pickup when it swerved toward the
ditch, his eyes going to his rearview mirror with another
curse.
Peg looked out her side window as they sped past the
now stopped pickup to see Aaron Jenkins’s widened eyes
staring back at her. She craned around to look between the
seats to see Chris Dubois speeding toward their rear
bumper, Aaron pul ing back onto the road behind him.
“I can’t believe they’re doing this!” she cried, turning
forward and grabbing the handle over her door again as
Duncan floored the SUV. “Why on earth are they attacking
us? Oh God, Duncan, can we outrun them?”
“Not by the sounds of that motor in the truck behind us;
it’s obviously been tricked out, and I told ye this one was
bought for its economy.”
Not that her poor beautiful truck seemed to know it was
supposed to be a dog, she thought hysterical y as the trees
zoomed past her side window. “Why is Chris doing this?”
she repeated without real y expecting an answer.
“What do ye know about the bastard?”
“Um, he was a year ahead of me in school, and he tried
to get me to date him, but I already had my eyes on Bil y.”
She snorted. “Chris was a braggart and a sleaze even
back then. He’s also Spel bound Fal s’s most notorious
criminal, although he never seems to get caught. But if
there’s a way to make money, il egal or not, he’l have his
hand in it. I heard in town that he and Aaron Jenkins—he’s
the guy in the other truck—are al fired up over the resort,
claiming it’s going to end their logging business. I suspect it
was one or both of them who spray-painted my van,
because I know they were in town that day. Chris has
always been pissed that his mother sold Bil y and me the
pit, because he thought he should get it.”
Peg realized she was on the verge of hysteria when she
couldn’t seem to stop babbling. “Chris started dropping by
not six months after Bil y died, trying to get me to go out
with him. But I knew he was more interested in getting his
hands on my land than on me—although that didn’t stop him
from trying.”
Duncan glanced over sharply. “Did he get aggressive
with you?”
Peg dropped her gaze and shuddered. “A bit,” she
whispered. She turned in her seat to look out the rear
window again and saw Chris trying to pul around them as
Duncan veered to the center of the road. “I never thought
he’d do something this bold, or get so fired up over a stupid
resort. He and Aaron must be drunk.”
“This isn’t about the resort, Peg,” Duncan said quietly.
“It’s about you. Not only did you reject him twice, the
bastard’s seeing you making money off land he thinks
should be his.” He glanced at her briefly before going back
to watching his rearview mirror and the road, and shook his
head. “He’s likely the one who burned down your house.
This has nothing to do with the resort,” he repeated.
“Ohmigod, I never—” She snapped her mouth shut when
the SUV lurched forward with a violent shudder and
fishtailed slightly before Duncan brought it under control,
Peg’s scream lost in the sound of Chris’s pickup slamming
into the back of them. “No!” she cried, bracing her hand on
the dash when Duncan slammed on the brakes, which
made Chris ram into them again.
Tires screeched and she smel ed burning rubber as
Duncan kept braking despite the deafening rev of the
pickup’s engine as it continued trying to push them down
the road. Duncan final y brought them to a stop and slipped
the SUV into reverse, hit a button on the dash, and stepped
on the gas. “Face forward,” he snapped as he grabbed the
back of her seat to look behind him. “And hang on.”
“Duncan, no! Just try to outrun them. Please, we’re
almost to town.” But the screeching tires drowned out her
petition as the SUV relentlessly backed up, first slowly and
then with increasing speed as it pushed against Chris’s
truck.
“He might have more engine but we’re heavier,” Duncan
growled just as he let up off the gas. “Cover your face with
your hands.”
He then stepped on the accelerator again as he cut the
wheel and rammed into the pickup behind them, the sound
of crunching metal slamming through the interior of the truck
as its tires continued to grasp for purchase on the
pavement. Peg heard what sounded like glass breaking
and slouched down in her seat to peek through her fingers
at her outside mirror to see the tail ights of Chris’s truck
sticking out past their rear fender, and she realized Duncan
was pushing him sideways down the road.
She then saw smoke rol ing up over the front fender of
the SUV and realized he had it in four-wheel drive. She
moved her hands to cover her ears against the deafening
screech, but then quickly covered her mouth to catch her
scream when they suddenly stopped and she watched in
the mirror as Chris’s truck rol ed into the ditch onto its side.
Duncan hit the button on the dash and pul ed the gearshift
down and floored the engine again, snapping Peg back
against the seat when the truck lurched forward and once
again sped toward town. She turned to look back between
the seats and just caught a glimpse of Chris jumping out of
his truck and hopping into Aaron’s before Duncan pushed
her back around.
“Face forward,” he growled, glancing in the rearview
mirror. “It’s not over.”
Peg buried her face in her hands again and mumbled
something.
“What was that?” he asked in another growl.
She dropped her hands, then used the sleeve of her
jacket to wipe her eyes. “I … I said I’m glad I didn’t insist on
driving tonight.”
He snorted. “Not as glad as I am.” He reached over and
actual y patted her arm. “Now do ye see what I meant about
this truck being safe?”
“I … It’s al but totaled,” she whispered, looking at the
crumpled front fender as the trees sped past in a blur
again.
“I’l buy ye a new one.” He blew out a harsh breath and
seemed to relax slightly. “The other truck doesn’t have the
bal s to catch us, so we should make it to town okay.” He
glanced over at her, then back at the road. “I believe I’l park
behind the church,” he said, apparently voicing his plan as it
came to him. “And we’l go for a walk on the docks behind
Ezra’s store to calm down instead of going to the Drunken
Moose.”
“Works for me,” Peg said, releasing at least some of her
tension with her sigh. God, her clothes were soaked with
sweat and she was worried she might have peed a little.
She sucked in another shuddering breath and covered her
face with her hands again even as she wished she kept a
diary. Because honestly, as sort offirst dates went, this one definitely needed to be recorded … somewhere.
Duncan pul ed her hands down and held on to the one
nearest him, giving it a gentle squeeze before rubbing his
thumb on her knuckles. “Ye did good, Peg. I only heard one
little scream,” he said, smiling over at her.
She pul ed in another steadying breath and brushed
nothing off her jacket with a trembling hand. “You just
couldn’t hear al of them over the screeching tires and
smashing metal.” She final y found the nerve to glance over
her left shoulder, then quickly looked forward again, but it
had been long enough for her to see the back hatch was
folded in, the rear and both side back windows were blown
out, and the third brake light was flapping in the breeze as it
dangled from the top of the mangled back door.
“You do know that even though your mom signed the title
over to me Friday, that I haven’t had time to register or
insure the truck yet, don’t you?”
He gave her hand another squeeze. “It’l be covered
under her policy, and I was the one driving.”
“There’s a good chance the sheriff wil be at the meeting
tonight because of the controversy,” she said, “especial y
since the fire marshal decided my house fire was arson.
We can tel him what happened tonight and he can arrest
Chris and Aaron. I definitely recognized them. Um, but let’s
not tel him about my van, okay?”
“Why?” he asked, slowing down because they’d reached
the edge of town.
“I don’t think it’s al that legal to push a vehicle into a
flooded quarry pit.” She final y felt relaxed enough to smile.
“Although they’d probably have to sift through a bunch of
other vehicles looking for it, along with al sorts of other stuff
people have wanted to disappear. I read where the state
sent divers down in a quarry south of here several years
back, and they found over twenty cars and trucks, several
motorcycles, lawnmowers, tractors, snowmobiles, and even
a skidder; anything a person could file an insurance claim
on was down there.”
Duncan gave her one last squeeze and put both hands
on the wheel as he gave the rearview mirror a glance, then
slowed to an idle as they came into town. “I’m glad it’s dark
enough that no one wil notice the condition of the truck,” he
said, pul ing into the church parking lot and driving down
past it. “We real y don’t need an audience,” he added as he
pul ed around the back of the church and eased the nose of
the truck into the bushes. He shut it off, unfastened his seat
belt, and turned to her. “Are your legs steady enough for a
short walk, lass?”
Peg unfastened her seat belt. “What, you think that little
carnival ride rattled me?” She opened her door and slid
out, only to yelp when she kept right on sliding—only to be
snatched up and hauled back into her seat.
“Aye, I can see how unrattled ye are,” he said with a
laugh. “Stay put.”
He got out and walked around the truck, his face
completely serious when he reached her door. “Do me a
favor and just walk away without looking back, okay?”
“It … it’s that bad?”
He nodded and took hold of her shoulders and slid her
out, then pul ed her into his embrace. “I’m sorry, Peg. But ye
need to give the truck credit for keeping us safe.” He turned
while slipping his arm around her with his hand grasping
her waist, closed her door, and started walking toward
Bottomless only a few yards away.
“My purse.”
She heard the truck give a mournful beep and realized
he’d pressed a button on the key fob in his pocket. “We’l
get it later. I was wondering,” he said conversational y, “if
you’ve given any more thought to believing in the magic?”
Okay; mundane conversation was good. “Wel , I might
believe,” she said, wrapping her arm around his waist when
she realized she real y was wobbly, “if a house fairy were to
make a special delivery up on that knol overlooking the
fiord.”
His arm around her tightened and he steered her toward
the path that ran behind the stores. “The magic prefers to
be more subtle, I’m afraid, and having a house standing on
a lot that was vacant the day before is a bit much. I was
thinking more along the lines of the kind of magic a person
feels when they realize they’re right in the middle of
something wonderful happening.”
She looked up at him and smiled. “You mean like walking
into a hospital to give birth to your third child and walking
out with two babies?”
He looked down in surprise. “Ye didn’t know you were
having twins?”
“Nope. We were al set to bring Peter home, but when
Jacob popped out, Bil y shouted, ‘Oh God, it’s a repeat!’
That’s how the poor kid got his nickname.” She smiled up
at him again. “Is that the kind of magic you’re talking about?
Because personal y, I don’t think there’s anything subtle
about having twins when you’re not expecting them.”
He turned them onto a newly constructed boardwalk
stretching across the low tide and continued down to a set
of floating docks. “Maybe not subtle,” he said with a
chuckle, “but ye have to admit it counts as something
wonderful.” He stopped, turning her to face him. “That’s the
magic I’m talking about; wonderful … surprises.” His grip
on her shoulders tightened slightly, and there was just
enough moonlight for her to see the planes of his face grow
more pronounced. “I’ve a favor to ask ye, lass.”
Peg tensed at the seriousness she heard in his voice.
“What?”
“I would ask that ye trust me enough to get in a boat and
go for a little ride with me.” He grinned, but it didn’t come
anywhere near his eyes, and his grip tightened again when
she tried to step away. “I was going to ask you to go after
the meeting, but I believe it would be best if we leave right
now.”
“Go where?”
“To my mountain. Can ye trust me enough to wil ingly get
in the boat, Peg?”
She dropped her eyes because she couldn’t quite face
the intensity in his any longer. For the love of God, what was
he doing? “I … I’d rather not. I feel just fine now, Duncan,”
she rushed on, looking back up at him. “And we need to tel
the sheriff what just happened.”
He pul ed her forward into an unbreakable embrace the
moment she tried to pul free, and Peg felt his chest expand
on a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry, lass,” he murmured as one of
his hands slid up her back to her neck. “Christ, I’m sorry,”
he growled against her forehead just as Peg felt pressure
on the base of her neck and her legs buckled and
everything went black.
Chapter Nineteen
Duncan was so goddamned sorry he was shaking
with anger—at himself, at his mountain, and at Providence
for giving him such a contrary woman. But mostly he was
angry at Mac for orchestrating this entire mess and then
walking away. The bastard better hope he didn’tfind the
instrument of his power, because he was going to use it to
blow the top off Mac’s mountain and then his own and cave
them into that damned fiord. Duncan gave one last glance
around as he sped up the mirror-calm waterway past the
pit, then looked down at Peg cradled against his chest.
Christ, she appeared so damned vulnerable, he wanted to
roar for what he was doing to her.
She’d dressed up tonight—more for him than for the
meeting, he was afraid. He real y wished she hadn’t,
though; she needed rugged clothing for their little …
adventure. He snorted, wondering if she’d see it as
something magical or a short vacation in hel .
He had clothes for her in the backpack he’d stashed in
the front of the boat this afternoon when he’d rented it off
Ezra. A bigger boat this time, and faster. He’d packed two
outfits for Peg because he didn’t know if they’d be gone a
day or a week, but he’d purchased them at a store in
Turtleback so Ezra wouldn’t get suspicious of his shopping
for women’s clothes. He leaned forward to glance down at
her feet, hoping he’d bought the correct size boots. He was
thankful he’d thought of them at the last minute, seeing how
she was wearing shoes with a slight heel.
She was going to kil him when she woke up, then
probably tie a rock around his neck and deep-six him just
like she had her van. Hel , he was tempted to save her the
trouble and jump in the water right now and hope the whale
swal owed him whole. Surely Peg was capable of driving
the boat back all by herself.
Duncan broke into a cold sweat as he pictured her
crawling into that cramped cave—out of his sight, knowing
he couldn’t get to her if something happened.
Oh yeah, he had already damned himself to hel , but did
he real y have to take her with him? He had, in fact, decided
not to when she’d handed over the keys to her truck and
climbed in without so much as a scowl. And his decision
had been reinforced when she’d gotten al sassy about
letting him build her new house. But then they’d been
ambushed and Duncan had realized Peg was the target,
and he’d known deep in his gut that he couldn’t keep her
safe without the magic. But to get it beforeal hel broke
loose, according to Mac, he needed her less broad
shoulders and smal er hands.
Dubois and Jenkins were loggers as wel as what
passed for local hoodlums, and if they decided they didn’t
want to be arrested, an army of sheriffs wouldn’t be able to
find them. Duncan was pretty sure the magic could, though,
once he got his hands on it and accepted his cal ing—
whatever in hel his cal ing was.
He’d had a long talk with Ian when he’d gone home last
weekend, and his nephew had told him that he hadn’t
known he’d had a cal ing, either, until good old Roger de
Keage had al but hit him over the head with it. But Ian had
assured Duncan that the moment he’d touched the staff
Roger had given him, he’d instantly understood the ful
scope of his power and how to control it.
Christ, he hoped that’s how it was going to work for him,
because he real y needed some clarity about what he was
doing. He sighed, wondering if Peg might be wil ing to
watch sunsets instead of sunrises from her kitchen window,
because he was pretty sure he needed to build their home
on the seat of his power.
Duncan felt her stir and instantly stiffen, obviously so
scared that she didn’t dare move even a muscle. He
slowed the boat to an idle then shut off the engine, and
gently cupped her face to look at him. “I’m sorry for putting
ye out like that,” he said as he brushed his fingers over her
forehead, hoping she could see his smile in the moonlight.
“I’m guessing ye have one hel of a headache, but I thought
it would be less traumatic than a rope and gag.”
Okay, that probably wasn’t the brightest thing to say,
seeing how she shrank away from his touch and stopped
breathing, the moonlight showing the terror in her eyes. He
sighed again and slowly sat her up on the floor in front of
him—ready to grab her if she decided jumping in the water
might be preferable to being in the boat with him. “This isn’t
what it seems, lass. I’m not real y kidnapping—wel , okay, I
am, but not to do ye any harm. I have a powerful favor to
ask, but I … You’re going to have to trust … Aw, hel , Peg,”
he growled, scrubbing his face with his hands. “My word of
honor, I’l have ye back home safe and sound an hour after
sunrise.”
She scrambled away with a gasp until she bumped into
the next seat. “I can’t be gone al night. My children!”
“They’re perfectly safe with Mom and Dad.”
“But your parents are expecting us back no later than
ten!”
He shook his head. “I told Dad that if we’re not home by
eleven, then we won’t be back until morning.”
“Your fatherknows you’re doing this to me?” She
dropped her gaze to his feet. “Please, Duncan, just take me
home.”
“I promise I wil —in the morning.” He reached forward to
lift her chin. “But ye need to know that the magic’s going to
make it seem like we’re gone for several days.”
She gasped again, clutching her coat closed at her throat
as her eyes searched his. “Are you insane or am I?”
