Page 16 of Bound to a Warrior
Still, Duncan chose to whisper. “We need to move fast and quietly.”
Mercy nodded.
“Stay extra close so that the chain does not make noise,” he said.
Watching every step they took, Duncan and Mercy left the protective covering of the bushes and quietly made their way in the woods, opposite from where the two soldiers had gone.
It was at least three hours before either of them spoke. And it was with a quick nod to the heavens that Duncan said, “A storm brews.”
“Then we best pick up the pace,” Mercy said, doing just that.
Duncan matched her new rhythm, having thought the same himself. But then the will to survive could certainly produce parallel thoughts. Or was it that they were similar in nature, thus thought alike?
How odd that they should work so well as a pair when they barely knew each other. Normally, it took time to get to know one another and yet it seemed that Mercy and he were far from strangers, or even acquaintances. They were more like old friends who long understood each other. And yet he knew little about her.
The thought had him asking, “Will your family search for you?”
“The last of my family is gone.”
He almost halted in his tracks, but caught himself and kept his pace. “If you have no family, where will you go?”
“I have friends,” she said.
He noticed her response held a hint of hesitation. Assuming her situation was more precarious than she admitted, he offered her a safety net.
“You are welcome to remain with my people as long as you’d like.”
“That’s kind of you, and while I may rest my weary feet for a few days, I will no doubt soon be on my way.”
He smiled and said, “As you wish.”
However, he had no intention of letting her take her leave on her own. A beautiful woman just wouldn’t be safe traveling alone and for some reason he felt her safety his responsibility.
A crack of thunder had them both stopping abruptly and casting anxious glances to the heavens.
“It won’t be long before the rain starts,” Mercy said.
Duncan was conflicted. He wanted desperately to forge ahead regardless of the weather, gaining as much ground as they could. He doubted the storm would stop the soldiers, which would make travel even more dangerous for him and Mercy.
He knew their chance of survival would increase the closer they got to his home. Sentinels were kept posted on the far perimeters of the land just for that reason, to make certain that approaching clansmen reached home safely.
“You don’t want to stop, do you?” Mercy asked.
He voiced his concern. “I doubt the soldiers will stop.”
“Then we can’t.”
“We’ll get soaked again,” he said.
“That doesn’t matter,” she said. “We keep going and dry out when we can.”
He grinned. “I wouldn’t mind you naked in my arms again.”
“Enjoy it while you can, Highlander, nothing lasts forever.”
He surprised himself when without forethought, he slipped his arm around her waist and drew her up against him, settling his mouth close to hers.
“Love,” he whispered. “Love lasts forever.”
