a woman?
So many years had passed since he’d last seen her and though he knew her being here was inevitable, it still caught him off guard…that he could still want her so very much. With a low growl, he spun and walked in the opposite direction. Before he gave it too much thought, his eyes reached through the night and saw her walking toward the castle.
He should let her go. Whatever this was between them couldn’t be. He should let her go. Even as he turned away, Adlin slowed. Unfamiliar pressure squeezed his chest. How much time might pass before he saw her again? Years? Decades?
Not this time.
Stopping in the shadows he turned back and whispered into the wind, called her to him. He watched her stop and turn. Though she couldn’t see him, Mildred walked in his direction.
It was dangerous using magic like this around the MacLeods. Bruce knew magic and if Adlin wasn’t careful, he’d ruin everything he and Iosbail had worked so hard to achieve. Everything Iosbail had sacrificed so much for.
Nobody would follow Mildred into the dark woods, nobody without magi that is. And those without magi would never see her walking into the woods to begin with. Adlin was very good at what he did, with or without the help of the gods.
Mildred slowed within feet of him and confusion passed over her delicate features. Adlin released the magic and took her hand.
“Come,” he whispered.
Though he sensed a brief flicker of hesitation, she followed his lead. “Where did you go? One minute you were in the stall then you were gone. What’s happening here, Adlin?”
Instead of responding, he pulled her after him. What was happening here? Simple. He’d turned coward. Run from something he knew would change his life then decided against it. The truth of the matter was sometimes a man grew tired of playing it safe, even if he risked everything.
“This way,” he said softly and led her down a path that cut between two walls of mountain, twin cliffs. The way became rocky and uneven but he led her with sure foot. After all, he’d walked this path a thousand times in his dreams. Eventually, the walls narrowed then widened and a small, secluded nook of beach unraveled through the moonlit night.
“Ohhh,” Mildred murmured, her eyes wide.
Adlin couldn’t help but stare. Not at the glorious and angry Scottish sea but at the way the wind blew thick hair around her slim shoulders and down her narrow back. The full moon swelled overhead, dusting flecks of silver over the fine slopes of her all-too-familiar features.
She was absolutely breathtaking.
With a quick movement of his wrist, he summoned a fur cloak and wrapped it over her shoulders.
Her eyes flickered from the water to his face. “Why did you bring me here?”
What a loaded question. And one he intended to answer in full. “Because I owe you many answers, Mildred.” He brought a fur cloak over his own shoulders. “And I owe you memories.”
Startled by his honesty, she pulled her cloak tighter around her neck. “That sounds rather ominous.”
Adlin dragged his eyes from hers and looked out over the darkened North Sea. “Ours has been an unscheduled and much welcome interlude to what has been a very long life for me.”
“Obviously I don’t understand.” Mildred’s voice softened, “But as incredible as it seems, I now know that Iosbail is…” She cleared her voice, and continued. “A very distant relative of mine, frighteningly distant in fact.”
Adlin nodded but didn’t meet her eyes. Not quite yet. “Aye, she is. Iosbail has seen much in her life.”
“And you are her brother,” Mildred whispered. “What does that mean exactly?”
Instead of answering he asked, “How old were you when you first started dreaming about me, Mildred?”
“Young.Too young.”
“Tell me about your dream… nightmare.”
“You really don’t already know?”
Adlin turned to her but didn’t touch. “I know that you were on a cliff and being led by very bad men. I know that you eventually felt no fear.”
“What do you mean eventually? I never felt fear.”
“But you did, Mildred. You just don’t remember. That’s what it is when a child’s dreams become a woman’s. They change. Become something else.”
Her lower lip curled in and she shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
“So young,” Adlin whispered and touched her cheek. “But have lived so many more memories than your age should allow.”
When her brows lowered in confusion he continued. “We’ve shared many dreams together, Mildred. However, your mind will only focus on the cliff. It’s plagued