Chapter Seven
Brianna burst through the kitchen, startling the maids and the others who were working there.
Tears clouded her eyes as she ignored their gaping stares and ran to the other side, through the door, and found her way into the great hall.
Jamie and Callum were still there, sitting at the table and conversing when she made her sudden appearance.
Jamie shot to his feet, but she ignored him as she made for the door. Without stopping, with her heart ramming against her chest and her feet pounding the strange straw-mat flooring, she barreled through the great hall door and back into the late afternoon.
The cold wind bit through her, stinging her cheeks and eyes.
She paused there, her gaze scanning the area, looking for a way out.
There were no cars within sight. Fine. She’d ride out of here.
She ignored her stinging eyes and made for the stables.
She ran across the greenway until she came upon the building, falling through the doorway and gasping for breath.
She startled a poor stable boy who was grooming one of the horses. His head shot up, his eyes wide.
She swiped the tears from her frigid cheeks as she stumbled inside the stable. The air was thick with the smell of hay, leather, and musk of horses, a familiar smell that soothed her agitated soul.
“You,” she snapped. “Can you saddle me a horse?”
Mute, he nodded and dropped the brush he was using.
He set about saddling a gray horse in the far stall while Brianna tried to collect herself.
Her sisters were insane, and she was getting out of here.
She was going to ride back to the nearest city and rent a car.
Then she’d go back to Edinburgh and catch the first plane back to Nassau.
As soon as she got back on that sunny beach with the crystal-blue water, she was never leaving.
She would spend the rest of her life there, living alone.
She didn’t need anyone or anything. She didn’t want anyone or anything. All she wanted was solace.
“Going somewhere, lass?”
Jamie’s voice behind her made her spin to face him.
He leaned against the doorframe, one ankle crossed over the other and his arms folded over his chest showing off his thick forearms. His dark auburn hair was not quite as long as Callum’s but long enough to brush his shoulders.
When the firelight from the interior torches hit it just right, glimmering golden strands intermingled with the dark red.
“Yes. I’m leaving and I’m not coming back.”
“Are ye?” He tipped his head to the side in amusement. “Where are ye going then?”
“I’m going to find the nearest town and then call a cab or rent a car. And then I’m going back to Edinburgh,” she said, strong and confident as she tried valiantly to ignore his rugged good looks. “When I get there, I’m booking the first flight back to the Caribbean.”
“I dinnae ken this place, nor do I understand what these things are ye mentioned,” he said. “The only way to Edinburgh is by horse. But are ye sure ye want to be riding there alone?”
Horse? Fine. She’d ride all the way there if she had to. She was good in the saddle.
“Yes,” she said, her voice terse.
The stable boy walked the horse to her, saddled and ready to go. She gave him a nod of thanks, then reached for the saddle, ready to step into the stirrup.
“Are ye sure about that, lass? ’Tis a fifteen-day trek, at least.”
“Fifteen!” She gaped at him.
There was a quirk of a smile on his lips. “Och, aye. It’s no easy ride traversing the terrain on horseback. And then there’s the weather. Rain, wind, snow.”
“Snow?” Her confidence faltered. She wasn’t prepared for snowy weather.
“Aye. Not many inns between here and there, either. Ye would have to camp in the wilderness. Do ye have provisions?”
Her shoulders sagged as she realized her idea to ride to Edinburgh—alone—was a terrible one. There was no way she would be able to navigate the rugged landscape alone, without food or water, facing the elements.
The reality of the situation settled deep within her. She glanced around the stables, saw nothing but horses and tack. A few stable hands were busy tending the stalls and the animals. There were no cars. No taxis. No airplanes. No way to get back home.
A sick feeling clenched the pit of her stomach as the reality became clear. Evie and Chloe were telling the truth. She was in the past.
Holy hell.
“No,” she said at last.
“They told ye, did they?” he asked, moving closer.
“Told me about what?”
“That ye time traveled to the past,” he said.
“You make that sound like it’s a normal everyday occurrence,” she huffed.
He chuckled, a sound resonating deep in his broad chest. “I witnessed the two lasses arrive here in the last few months, so, aye, it is.”
Her gaze met his. When it did, her stomach flipped. It was hard not to notice how handsome he was. It was also hard not to notice that he seemed a bit younger than her.
“And you believe that? You believe that we—the three of us—are from the future?”
“I have no reason no’ to believe it, lass.”
The wind whipped through the stables, making him shiver.
He pulled up his tartan to cover his head and wrapped it around his shoulders.
Brianna turned back to the horse, her hand still on the saddle.
Indecision flashed through her. Riding to Edinburgh was likely out of the question.
If she made it there, then what? There were clearly no airplanes that would take her back to the Bahamas.
That was, if she were truly stuck in the Middle Ages, and she was starting to understand that this was her new reality.
She was going to have to come to grips with that new reality at some point.
She took a deep, steadying breath. “If you knew I was from the future, why didn’t you tell me?”
“Would ye have believed me?” he asked.
It was a valid question. She considered that for a long moment, thinking back to waking up on the cold ground with him standing there gazing at her as if her arrival was expected.
No, she would not have believed him if he’d told her she was no longer in her future.
He’d given her the stone as though he knew she was supposed to be the keeper of it.
Finally, she shook her head. “I suppose not.”
“I thought it best the news come from someone ye trusted.”
Her sisters, of course. And he was right. Though she trusted them because they were her blood, she still did not quite believe their story about a prophecy foretelling their arrival.
He pushed off the stable wall in a slow, languorous motion that reminded her of a graceful lion.
There was something about him that was alluring in every way—aside from his good looks.
He appeared to be a hardened warrior, someone who knew his way around a battle and how to use a sword.
The muscles in his hands and forearms were evidence of that.
She found she was drawn to him in a way she had never been drawn to anyone else.
He moved deeper into the stable, his gaze never leaving hers and it sent a shiver of delight right through to her very core. It was not wise to allow herself to get caught up in the charming young Highlander.
Jamie reached for the nose of the horse she still stood next to and patted it.
“Since ye already have the horse saddled, we may as well go for a ride.” He made a motion for the stable boy. “Fergus, my horse.”
“You mean, ride like in the grounds?”
“Och, no. I mean outside the gates.”
She almost refused but then stopped herself. Here was a handsome young man asking her on a ride. It was impossible to say no.
“Is it safe?” she asked.
He chuckled, that smile lighting up his eyes. “Aye.”
Fergus brought his horse and handed over the reins.
Jamie took them and mounted in one fluid movement.
Her heart beat wildly as she hoisted herself up into the saddle of the gray horse she’d tried to commandeer.
Together, they trotted out of the stables and toward the portcullis.
As they headed through the bailey, she caught a glimpse of Evie stepping out the door.
Their eyes met for only a moment as Brianna looked away.
She didn’t want to deal with her sisters right now.
They exited the castle grounds with Jamie in the lead.
Brianna followed closely behind and for the first time in her life, she felt a sort of freedom that made her heart light.
She’d spent her adult years as a nomad, moving from place to place and seeking solace in the arms of rich men who weren’t interested in long-term relationships.
That worked for her at the time, especially after a marriage that had lasted only a year to a man who was emotionally unavailable.
That failed marriage had caused a rift between her and her parents. The twins were young at the time and had no idea of the heartache and hell she went through. She’d bottled that up and buried it deep inside to never think of again.
Jamie led them away from the castle to a cluster of trees swaying in the late afternoon breeze and beyond that, the loch where the last remnants of sunlight flickered over the waters. He came to a halt there under the trees and dismounted. She did the same.
He turned to her, reaching a hand out, which sent her heart thudding harder against her chest. It was a simple gesture but one that made her melt. When she took his hand, he laced their fingers. Together, they walked from the trees to the loch.
“It’s beautiful here,” she said and meant it.
She had never seen the likes. Frothy waves spilled over the craggy shore with that soothing rhythm she’d come to adore about living beachside. But this was no beach she was used to.
“Aye,” he said.
He lifted their clasped hands to examine the burned imprint of the stone on her palm. With a gentle touch, he traced the outline of the lines, sending delicious shivers rippling through her.
“Does it hurt?” he asked.
“No,” she said.