Page 77 of A Virgin for the Icy Laird
The moment he arrived at the shore, he pulled his horse to a halt. He jumped off it straight into the frozen loch.
The water was cold, so cold that he felt as if a thousand needles were pricking his flesh, but it was nothing compared to what the sisters were going through. He found the carriage. It was open, devoid of its occupants.
He guessed they were expelled as the carriage sank, so he searched further until he saw her floating down toward the bottom of the loch, the heavy layers of her dress dragging her down.
Diving in, he fought against the current to reach her. Then he grabbed her by the arm, dragged her toward the surface, and carried her out to lay her on the shore. She was as pale as paper, her lips already turning blue.
A moment longer, and she would have died.
He turned back to the crack in the ice, remembering Elize. He made to move, but then he saw Callum’s horse and a ripple in the water, indicating that his brother had dived in as well.
He turned back to Emily, concerned by the weak rise and fall of her chest.
Pressing his ear to her chest, he listened for her heartbeat. He had never been happier to hear a person’s heart beating than he was at that moment.
She was alive. He had saved her. Relief hit him so hard that he felt dizzy with it.
Looking around, he saw Callum wade out of the loch carrying Elize in his arms, covering her with his cloak. Unlike Emily, she was awake, even though she was spluttering and coughing. At least she was safe.
Adair turned to Emily, where she lay lifeless. Her unnatural stillness was unnerving. He immediately pulled her into a sitting position and pounded on her back, causing her to spit out a lot of water. Her eyes were unfocused when he cradled her in his arms.
“Yer eyes… are beautiful. Ye saved me again. Thank ye,” she said with a tired smile, before falling unconscious again.
The rise and fall of her chest quelled his panic. But then he frowned, confused by her words. She thought his eyes were beautiful?
While that was a grand compliment, he was puzzled by what came next. He saved her again? When?
Then it clicked.
His eyes were identical to his father’s.
Considering her state of mind during her first rescue, it made sense that the one thing her mind could grasp was the color ofher savior’s eyes. And now, while she was barely conscious, she must have thought the same person had come to rescue her.
Perhaps if he were in the same predicament, Adair would have looked for anything to help him hold onto some scraps of sanity.
He had been filled with murderous rage and fear before he found her, but now that he was holding the woman that he loved in his arms, his heart was filled with gratitude.
He finally understood why his father had made that sacrifice. If he had not intervened, Emily and Elize would have been lost, and Adair would never have met Emily and felt the sheer happiness that came from simply being in her presence.
She shivered, and he pulled her close to his chest, hoping to warm her with his body heat, but he knew he needed to get her out of her wet clothes and in front of a fire as soon as possible so she didn’t catch her death.
“Daenae worry, lass,” he whispered. “We will be home soon.”
“Laird Scott is nowhere to be found,” one of the guards said, coming to stand in front of them.
“And the driver?” he asked quietly, tugging his cloak tighter around Emily.
“We didnae find him either,” the guard replied, shaking his head.
“It would seem that the loch had done us a great service today, swallowing down the scum of the earth to save us the stress of arresting and trying them before the clan,” Adair said, slowly rising to his feet.
Emily didn’t stir in his arms, and it worried him. The last time she had fallen into the loch, she had lost her memories. What would he do if she forgot him?
No.
He pushed the thought out of his mind. He couldn’t afford to entertain such negative thoughts.
Instead, he directed his mind to more productive ventures, which included taking Emily and Elize home and ensuring they didn’t catch their deaths, which would no doubt have made Malcolm happy in his watery grave.
