Highlander's Heart (Clan Matheson #2)

“How careful are you when you fight for your clan?”


“We fight in a slightly different way as to how wars are fought in this time.” He threaded the rabbit into place and set it to cook over the fire then eased in beside her, his legs extended and crossed at the ankle as he rested his back against the wall. “We join together in teams in order to work high-level government cases. Those cases ensure our country’s villains and criminals get locked away.” He removed his sword-belt, propped it against the wall within arm’s reach then unsheathed his dirk and whittled away at a small chunk of wood. That’d help him keep his hands busy for certain, and off her.

“Then would you say you’re a…fierce steward for your clan and country, a keeper and a guardian?” The firelight flickered over her creamy skin, lit her drying hair with a golden halo.

“Aye, a fierce steward is a good term. At times I oversee these high-level teams as we work together to ensure our mission’s success, missions that sometimes lead us farther afield than Scotland.”

“You mean to say you, ah, sail from sea to sea? To other places?”

“Aye, that is exactly what I’m saying.” Two slightly strange questions, or at least the way she’d worded them they had been. Fierce steward. Sail from sea to sea. Was there possibility another meaning behind her questions?

“Will your team be missing you right now?”

“Whenever one of our clan is away from Ivanson Castle, they are missed. Is it not the same here for you? I’m sure should you be away for some reason then your kin would miss you.” He carved the piece he whittled into the rough shape of a bear then worked on shaving it into even more intricate detail. The muzzle took form, the ears alert and standing up, just as his bear’s did.

“Aye, my father already grieves for my leaving, but the Isle of Skye is where Donnan lives and thankfully ’tis no’ too far away.” She dipped her head, plucked at her shift’s skirts. “At least Father can visit me on Skye, whereas should I accept our bond, I would be over eight-hundred years distant from him.”

“I’d never allow your father to lose you, and Cherub gladly transports Tavish and Julia back and forth, Finlay and Arabel too. I have no doubt Cherub would do the same for you.”

“You’re right. Cherub is devoted to her kin, no matter where they live.” She lifted her gaze to his, tears suddenly welling within.

“What’s wrong?” Hell, if he’d upset her again by one of his comments then he’d need to take his own blade to himself. “Your protection, your needs, and your heart’s desire will always come first with me. You are the missing part of me that I’ve been searching for. I need you to know that.”

“I do, Tor.” She reached out a hand, his name rolling off her tongue so softly, so sensuously as she touched his arm. Never had another spoken his name with such an underlying current of need before.

“What else worries you?” He gripped her fingers, squeezed, her hand so very tiny in his.

“I have so much to think about. That is all.” She frowned, pulled her fingers from his and turned the roasting meat over.

He returned to his carving, shaved down the bear’s legs, accentuating the silky pelt and adding paws and claws as he considered how he was supposed to continue comforting her while remaining completely honest.

“Have any of your kinsmen ever discovered their mate was already taken?” She nibbled on her lower lip. “As I am.”

“You’re not taken yet, and there is only one for us, the other our soul cries out for.”

“None of your clan have ever accepted another, other than their soul bound mate?”

“We accept only our chosen one in order to keep our bloodline’s ability to shift in place. That is why our shifter line now nears extinction. It has come to the point that if we’re now to survive, we need a new infusion of fae blood in our line to strengthen it. Our last clan birth occurred over five years ago, and that can’t be allowed to continue.”

“You wish for children?”

“Absolutely. I adore children, love their energy and exuberance.” He couldn’t wait to have a child he could guide in this world, one he could love and adore right alongside his woman. “What of you?”

“Children bring such joy to one and all, and my father longs for grandchildren. He has told me so many a time.” She wriggled closer. “In all honesty, I also agreed to the betrothal with Donnan so I might be given the chance to have children of my own. My mother loved me, gave her life for mine, and I wish to honor her love by sharing my own love with my children.”