Page 7 of Kiss Me, Macrae
She wished she’d made the trip months ago. Years ago even.
Aside from how much she was coming to love the highlands, it was also wonderful to see her friend so well settled and so utterly adored by her husband.
Though the marriage between the Earl and Countess of Darrow had come about as a business agreement rather than a courtship, it was clear the handsome, dark-haired Scotsman loved his American bride, as she did him.
Seeing the happiness her friend had claimed despite the difficulties she’d faced during her first years in England was heartening. Though her own life had turned off in a direction she hadn’t anticipated, Allegra refused to accept that her dreams were no longer attainable. She’d simply have to form them out of new material.
Deciding to go a bit farther on her walk today than usual due to the milder weather, Allegra found herself on a path that wound between craggy boulders on its ascent up the side of a rock-strewn mountain. The air wasn’t quite as frosty as it had been in the last few days and though the land remained covered in patches of ice and snow, the narrow footpath she followed was well worn and clear.
When she finally reached the summit, her lungs ached from the exertion of the slow and steady climb, her cheeks were chafed, and her eyes teared from the brisk wind buffeting her face, but the view was enough to steal her breath in the most invigorating way.
Laid out before her were hills and valleys surrounding a dark blue lake that hadn’t completely frozen over. Tucked in against a dark forest not far from the lakeshore stood what looked to be a gamekeeper’s cottage or a hunting lodge of some sort. Smoke drifted from the chimney.
The scene was so quiet and lovely, Allegra breathed deep to dispel the ache of longing that suddenly tightened her chest.
A few more cleansing breaths of highland air quickly dispelled the regret she refused to empower. There was much she’d lost as consequence to her Great Mistake, but it had brought her here to this amazing place. For that, she had cause to be grateful.
The unexpected sound of someone approaching shot a spike of awareness through her—and no small bit of annoyance. She was no longer alone on the barren mountaintop.
Turning, she saw a large man ascending to the peak from a path opposite the one she’d taken. He wore a thick overcoat of dark brown wool and had one large hand wrapped around the end of a walking staff while the other carried a large stone. Though a woven scarf of blue and green was wrapped around his neck, he wore no hat, and his reddish-blond hair had become tousled by the wind.
Allegra’s heart came to a sharp and abrupt halt before leaping back into a frantic rhythm.
When he lifted his gaze to see her staring at him, familiar green eyes brightened with recognition and a wide smile flashed within a scruffy beard. “Hiya, lassie.”
His tone showed no surprise at discovering her presence there. In fact, he seemed rather pleased.
Allegra ignored the warmth his rugged baritone sparked in her core to give him a frown. “What on earth are you doing on the Earl of Darrow’s land?” she asked sharply.
She wouldn’t have thought it possible, but his grin widened even more as he continued to approach her. “My land,” he stated in a low-toned burr.
Allegra almost snorted at his gall and took a breath to refute his claim when he lowered his chin and raised his brow in a challenging expression. “D’ye really wish tae go down this road again?”
She resisted her blush to argue. “This cannot possibly be your land. I just came from the earl’s home and I happen to know his estate extends for a significant distance.”
“In all directions but one.” Taking a deep breath, he turned to gaze over the view below. The crisp air and natural background suited the rugged lines of his face and the vivid green of his eyes. He nodded toward the path she’d ascended. “Back along that way, ye’d have passed between a pair of standing stones that make a gateway between Darrow’s lands”—he brought his smiling gaze back to hers—“and my own.”
Allegra vaguely recalled walking between two large stones standing on end.
But she’d last seen him almost a half day’s ride away. “Are you telling me you live near here?” she asked.
He directed another nod toward the cozy little lodge nestled in the forest along the lake.
Allegra’s stomach clenched. She could so easily imagine the large, rough-hewn man residing in the ancient stone-built lodge. It was very likely he was telling the truth, but that meant she’d managed to trespass against this man twice.
He was apparently thinking something similar. “Ye seem tae be rather drawn tae me, lass,” he teased.
A wave of heat rolled through her as his words brought to mind just how closely she’d been drawn to him during their last encounter. “Or I have really rotten luck.”
Her response caused him to give a low, textured chuckle that only heated her further. “Ye’re visitin’ with the earl and his countess, then?”
Allegra nodded. “And it’s time I headed back.”
“I’ll walk with ye.”
“It’s not necessary.”
“It’d be my pleasure,” he replied with another wide grin. “Just tae the standing stones.”