Highlander's Kiss (Clan Matheson #1)

For the hundredth time, he searched for Julia along their link and came up with nothing. It’d been over an hour since Cherub had last returned with an update, although each and every one she’d given him had ended in the same answer. No sign of Julia.

At least they’d won the battle. Two hours past they’d finally sent the MacKenzies fleeing right back to where they’d come from. Kirk and Tor had even found the two cooks hiding in a cave soon after, although they still searched for the serving girl. Hell, he just needed Cherub to return so he could leave and join them all on their search for his mate.

Exhausted, he shuffled into his bathroom and turned the shower lever on. He shucked his theatre smock and clothes, pressed his palms flat against the tiled wall and ducked his head under the steamy, hot spray. Water sluiced down his body and flowed over tense muscles.

He picked up the metal chair Julia had sat in such a short time ago and tucked it back into the corner against the wall. His thoughts barreled back to that day, to that moment when he’d stood right here with her.

She’d grinned from ear to ear and her words once again resonated deeply through his mind. That is so fascinating. ‘Tis like a waterfall of water, a heated waterfall.

The water had flattened the thin cloth of her shift to her body, and her laughter and big blue eyes had captivated him. Never had he seen someone so excited by the simple act of watching running water or feeling it cascade over their skin.

He squeezed a glob of shampoo into his palm and scrubbed the bubbles through his hair. The sweet scent of apples wafted with the steam and brought with it another vivid memory. I feel like I’m in heaven. Thank you for taking such wonderful care of me. She’d tipped her head back in enjoyment and sighed with delight. His heart had near melted when she had.

He’d take the upmost care of her, for the rest of her life and his. He’d certainly never allow another parting such as this to occur.

With his body soaped clean, he tipped his head back into the spray, rinsed the shampoo out and turned the lever off. From the vanity cupboard, he nabbed a fluffy white towel, dried himself then shaved his jaw, and combed his hair. He had to keep his hands busy until Cherub returned, as well as be ready to leave the moment she did.

In his bedroom, he pulled on a pair of black jeans and a loose-sleeved tan shirt, strapped his sword belt on and sheathed his wrist daggers. From the pocket of his discarded pants, he grabbed his cell phone and turned it on. The last picture he’d taken of him and Julia blazed to life and he stroked one finger over her cheek. His heart scrunched in on itself, his pain intensifying. “Hurry up, Cherub,” he muttered as he pocketed his phone and shrugged on his steel-studded gray jacket. His desperate need for Julia beat at him, was carved so deep, right down to the depths of his heart and soul.

At his bedroom window, he gripped the sill and surveyed the inner courtyard below. A good twenty of his clansmen trained. He left his chamber and marched back into the recovery room.

Connor sat in his scrubs next to their patient still in recovery, while Megan, her wavy black bob contained under a white cap, wrote on a chart at the end of the bed then clipped it back in place.

“How’s Matthew?” he asked Connor. “Has he stirred at all?”

“Not yet, but his vitals look good.”

Carefully, Tavish removed the mask over Matthew’s nose and squeezed the elderly man’s shoulder. “I need you to wake up, Matthew.”

Groggily, he opened his eyes then looked about the white-walled room with its stainless steel countertops and white painted cupboards. “Och, I f-feel…” He blinked and tried to clear his vision, his gaze moving from Connor to Megan then back to him. “W-where am I, Tavish?”

“In my time.” He set Matthew’s mask aside. “You’re alive and all thanks to Cherub who brought us both back through a portal so I could operate on you. Meet Megan.” He motioned toward her. “Megan’s the chief’s wife and a highly skilled healer of this time, also known as a nurse. Connor too aided me in your surgery. He’s an anesthesiologist and ensured you stayed asleep during the operation.”