Abducted By the Highlander (Daughters of the Isle #3)

Prologue

“Is it another walk ye want, my darling lad?” Roisin MacDonald smiled indulgently at her beloved terrier, who panted excitedly at the prospect of a third escape from the castle today.

In truth, she was as eager as her sweet Ecne to take advantage of the break in the weather.

The storms that had buffeted the Isle of Eigg over the last few days had finally blown themselves out over the sea, leaving the air bright and crisp.

No wonder her eldest sister, Isolde, hadn’t wasted any time in taking her mysterious stranger from the sea, Njord, up to the peak of An Sgurr, the magnificent ridge that defined Eigg, in the shadow of which Sgur Castle nestled.

Their young maid, Grear, handed her gloves to her.

Roisin smiled in gratitude as they left the castle and entered the courtyard.

Isolde had discovered an unconscious Njord on their beach a week ago.

Although the poor man had no memory of who he was, Roisin knew in her heart that it didn’t matter, for anyone could see he and her sister belonged together.

Ecne raced towards the stables, barking madly at his freedom.

After a glance at Grear, Roisin laughed, picked up her skirts, and they both chased after him.

It wasn’t until she’d caught up with him and had scooped him into her arms that she realized she and Grear were no longer alone in the courtyard.

A dozen unknown men, leading their horses, were following Sgur’s formidable warrior, Patric, as he led them to the stables. To her.

Frozen to the spot, Roisin clutched Ecne to her breast as the humiliating realization hit her that these strangers had just witnessed her unseemly behavior. And worse than that, she had nowhere to hide.

As he approached, Patric gave her a kindly smile but for once his familiar fatherly presence didn’t ease her disquiet. How could it, when she was the focus of twelve strange men who eyed her with varying degrees of interest?

“Lady Roisin, may I present Hugh Campbell. Hugh Campbell, ye have the honor of greeting Lady Roisin MacDonald, youngest granddaughter of Lady Helga of Sgur Castle. Lady Roisin, Hugh is searching for his missing cousin, William Campbell.”

Roisin barely heard Patric’s explanation over the thunder of her heart that echoed in her ears and made her feel faint with nerves.

How could he put her in this situation? She never welcomed anyone to the castle.

If her grandmother wasn’t available, either Isolde or her other sister, Freyja, did the honors.

No one ever noticed her, let alone expected her to assume any responsibility for greeting visitors.

Ecne wriggled in her arms and with deep reluctance she placed him on the ground.

To her consternation, he instantly trotted up to the man who stood next to Patric and gave a welcoming bark.

Before she could find her voice to admonish him, the man crouched and gave her dog a good scratch behind his ears before he stood and his gaze caught hers.

Eyes so blue they reminded her of a perfect summer sky ensnared her senses, and a delightful shimmer of warmth danced through her blood.

Her breath stalled in her throat and her heart slammed against her ribs, but for a reason she couldn’t fathom, she no longer wanted to sink through the ground and disappear.

Hugh Campbell gave an enchanting bow, before once again his gaze meshed with hers. “My lady, it’s an honor indeed to meet ye. May I apologize for disturbing ye at this late hour.”

There was no need for her to answer him. A polite smile would suffice and already Patric was moving forward with the clear intention of saving her from any awkward exchange. And yet, before she quite realized her intention, she spoke.

“There’s no need to apologize, Hugh Campbell. May I welcome ye to Sgur Castle, on behalf of Lady Helga.”

Patric shot her a startled glance, but she ignored him. The truth was, she could not seem to drag her bedazzled gaze from Hugh’s compelling blue eyes and when he smiled at her, she entirely forgot how to breathe.

“Thank ye, Lady Roisin. Yer kindness is much appreciated.”

It was a novel experience to be thanked for her kindness in welcoming a stranger to her home. Those words were always addressed to her grandmother or one of her sisters, but she had to confess it felt immeasurably wonderful to hear them directed her way from Hugh Campbell.

Ecne was still standing by Hugh’s side which was extraordinary, since although her sweet lad was a friendly soul, he wasn’t in the habit of taking such a sudden liking to a complete stranger. But if Ecne put such faith in Hugh, it had to be a sign that this Campbell was a trustworthy man.

She should really return to the castle. It wasn’t her place to question Hugh and yet she couldn’t help herself. “Ye are searching for yer cousin, William Campbell?”

“Aye. He went missing in the storm as we were returning from Skye to Oban, and we fear the worst, yet hope for a miracle that we shall find him safe and well.”

Was it possible that Njord was Hugh’s missing cousin? Certainly, the poor man had been half drowned when Isolde had found him upon the beach, and they all believed he had fallen overboard during the storm. And then the significance of the name occurred to her, and she gave a soft gasp.

“William Campbell, the man who is betrothed to my sister, Lady Isolde?”

“Indeed, my lady. Patric tells me there is a man with no memory of who he is staying at the castle. It is perhaps too much to hope he is my cousin, but it’s possible.”

“Oh, I do hope he is.” She clasped her hands together at how perfect that would be.

Isolde cared deeply for Njord, and she had never wanted to wed the unknown William Campbell.

But if they were the one and the same man, then surely Isolde would be thrilled by how destiny had delivered her intended husband to her very feet.

“I hope so too.” Hugh smiled again, and her insides melted at the sight.

“Ye and yer men must certainly stay for supper,” she said before she could think better of it.

What on earth had come over her, inviting strangers to stay for supper in the castle?

And yet it was only something her grandmother would say, for whether or not Hugh found his cousin at Sgur, he and his men would still require hospitality.

It was simply that she had never said such a thing to anyone before.

“We should be most gratified, my lady.”

Patric cleared his throat. Loudly. And she realized she was smiling at Hugh in a completely besotted manner. Heat flooded her cheeks, and she quickly inclined her head in the faint hope he might not notice. “Ye are most welcome.”

Hugh bowed his head, but as he passed by her, following in Patric’s wake, he turned his head her way.

“I hope I’ll see ye again.” His voice was low, meant only for her ears, and there was no time to respond, even if she had thought of something to say.

Instead, she silently admired him as he strode after Patric, leading his horse.

His midnight black hair was pulled back with a length of velvet, and surely she had never witnessed such fine, broad shoulders before on a man.

As the rest of his men followed him, she hastily made her way back to the castle, and as she and Grear entered the great hall, her grandmother and Freyja greeted her.

“Campbells from Argyle,” Freyja remarked. Clearly, Patric had sent a message to them before he had led the men to the stables. “Let us hope they recognize Njord and can return him to his kin.”

Roisin pulled off her gloves before catching her grandmother’s eye. She supposed she’d better let her know what she had done. “Amma, I invited Hugh Campbell and his men to stay for supper.”

“Ye did what?” Freyja sounded astonished. Not that Roisin could blame her. “Ye spoke to them?”

“’Twas hard to avoid them.” She busied herself by taking off her surcoat and handing it to Grear, so she wouldn’t need to look at her sister. “I only did what Amma would have done herself.”

“Ye did the right thing.” Amma gave her an approving smile before turning to Grear. “Let the cook know, Grear, and see that more places are set for our guests.”

Grear bobbed a curtsey before leaving the hall and Roisin went over to the hearth to warm her hands.

As Amma and Freyja pondered the likelihood of whether Njord might be the missing William Campbell that Hugh sought, and Isolde’s intended, no less, Roisin gazed into the flames of the fire, but all she could see in her mind’s eye was Hugh’s captivating smile.

She dearly hoped she had the chance to talk with him again before he left Eigg.

Her daydreams were interrupted as Patric strode into the hall with Hugh and his men, and Roisin spun around from the fire as her grandmother welcomed them to the castle. Servants brought out jugs of warm mead for their guests and after giving Amma an elegant bow, Hugh came over to her.

“We meet again, my lady.” His voice was low, his gaze focused entirely on her, and her cheeks heated.

No man had ever sought out her company before, although to be fair she had never wanted a man’s attention before.

But there was something irresistible about Hugh and she had no wish to melt into the shadows the way she usually did when strangers invaded her peace.

“’Twas inevitable.” Good Lord, had she really said that out loud? She had never made a teasing remark to anyone she hadn’t known all her life. But it came so naturally when Hugh was standing in front of her.

Ecne pawed Hugh’s boot, and he grinned before giving her dog a friendly pat. “There’s a good lad.” He glanced at her. “What’s his name?”

“Ecne.” She was inordinately thrilled Hugh paid such kind attention to her sweet lad.

Hugh cocked his head. “’Tis an unusual name.”

“I named him after the god of wisdom from the Tuatha De Danann.” How she loved those myths from Eire. But not everyone was aware of them. “Do ye know of the legends from Eire?”