A Highlander's Obsession (Highlander's Beloved) Read Online Free PDF

She chewed on the corner of her bottom lip for a beat. “Gram also wants to see a lot of Scotland, to revisit her roots while we’re here.”
    “Ye care a great deal for yer grandmother.” He watched her over the rim of his snifter.
    A shy smile spread, its warmth touching something in his heart. “Yes, I do. Gram is all I have. All I’ve ever had.”
    An odd thing for her to say. What about her parents? Would her devotion cause her to go along with her grandmother’s schemes?
    “What happened tonight would weigh heavily on her.” She pushed her hair off her forehead. “I’ll have to keep it to myself.”
    He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees and the glass cradled in his fingers. “Won’t ye tell me what troubles ye, lass?”
    Paisley lifted a shoulder; the slight movement caused the plaid to shift, exposing more of her thin T-shirt, as well as her unfettered breasts. “There’s a lot troubling me tonight.”
    She stretched those long, shapely legs, drawing his gaze downward from her breasts.
    Good God, I’m a lecher. I can’t keep me eyes off her
. He sat back, sipped his Camus and forced his attention to her blue eyes behind her awful glasses. A small smile plucked his lips. At last, something about her he didna like—those black, owlish frames. He swirled the amber liquid in the antique goblet. “Such as?”
    “For one, the cold spot and whispers in the hallway just before one reaches the steps. I’m sure I heard something.” She shook her head once. “Someone. And the temperature has to be twenty degrees colder in that spot.” A shiver shifted his plaid off her shoulders a bit more.
    “My great-grandparents, no doubt.” How would he explain this? Would she freak?
    Her eyebrows rose above her glasses. “You … you’re not suggesting …”
    “Aye, lassie. I am. Me great-grandparents were killed in their sleep by a family enemy. Their spirits remain.” At her shocked expression, he quickly added, “They’re gentle spirits. Ye and yer grandmother will be safe, I assure you.”
    Paisley reached for her brandy snifter, her hand trembling as she brought it to her lips. “Great. Just like some old movie—a haunted castle. Well, don’t expect me to scream and faint into your arms.” She drained the amber liquid in a few quick gulps and shuddered.
    Another smile threatened and this time he gave it full rein. “Ye’ve already done that.”
    Her eyes narrowed and her lips formed a thin line. “I’ve never fainted before. I hope you’re not going to keep throwing that at me.”
    Och, she was sensitive, this one. Well, he’d not mock her. “There are spirits everywhere if we’re only in tune with our surroundings. The world is more than what we can see and touch. As fer our ghosts, ye have nothing to fear. When ye encounter them, call them by name.”
    “By name?”
    “Aye. Broden and Ainsley Matheson.”
    She leaned back against the stones of the massive fireplace. “What a trip. Three cramped, noisy planes. Two ghosts. And one bear everyone says doesn’t exist.” She sighed and closed those mesmerizing eyes. “I can’t wait to get back home.”
    Shifting had definitely been a mistake. She’d seen him. “Bear?”
    “Yes. I stood at my window earlier, listening to the storm rage, and a bear stared at me.” She pushed her glasses to the bridge of her nose, and that one action made him want to protect her. Her vibrant blue eyes studied him, no doubt waiting for his reaction.
    For the first time in his life, he wished he wasn’t a shifter bound by all the responsibilities and duties of his firstborn status. He emptied the snifter, relishing the burning, bracing warmth flooding his system. He took a deep breath. “That was me. I always take a walk around the grounds to see fer meself that everything is secure before I turn in fer the night.”
    While part of that statement was true, his bear had planned to search for predators on the estate. Sheep belonging to him and other