Loving A Highlander Read Online Free PDF Page B

aid.  They would arrive in the middle of the night to cause her harm.  The number of witch burnings had increased over the months.  The poor women and a few men who died had been accused of causing crops to fail, turning milk sour, as well as putting curses on entire villages.  Fueled by superstition as well as fear, Gerard knew that it would only get worse before it got better.
    No, he had to convince her to leave.  He would take her to the castle where he could keep her safe.  He folded his arms and frowned.  “You can’t stay here, lass.  Winter is fast approaching and then what will you do?”
    The fire flared in Isabella’s eyes.  “I will make do.  I am not as naïve as you think.”
    Gerard’s tone gentled.  “Aye, lass, I can see that you are quite capable of managing things,” he said, even though he secretly doubted it.  Isabella may be a strong woman, but even she wasn’t capable of holding off an angry mob.
    He arched a brow.  “Winters can be harsh and you are on your own.”
    Isabella watched as emotions flickered in his eyes.  It was as if he waged an eternal battle, and she briefly wondered what the outcome would be.
    “I will be perfectly fine here,” she said, as she stared into his eyes.  He was worried about her; that was plain to see and it warmed her heart.  She couldn’t remember a time when a man had cared about her safety.  Owen certainly hadn’t.  He had often sent her out in the dead of night to see about a noise that had awoken them from sleep.  Most times it had been nothing, but one time she had noticed a set of footprints outside their cottage window.  Footprints that were too big to belong to either one of them.  Someone had been spying on them in the middle of the night and the thought could still make her blood run cold.
    Gerard’s voice was hoarse when he answered.  “Why don’t you come with me?  I am heading to the Mackenzie castle.”  His gaze clouded, but he pressed onward.  “It will be good to be home.  I have been away a number of years.  There was a time when I thought I would never leave it.  As captain of the guard, I thought my duty lay in defending its walls.”
    He sighed as if the weight of the world rested upon his strong shoulders.  “Life has a way of changing things.”
    Isabella fought the urge to give him a hug.  She wasn’t sure he would welcome it and didn’t want to offend him by offering him comfort like she would a hurting child.
    She walked behind him as they entered the cottage.  Her home seemed smaller now that he was here.  It was as if his very essence permeated every nook and cranny and she knew that he would leave a void when he left.
    She gave a dry laugh.  In just a short time, Gerard had made more of an impression on her life than Owen had during the years he had lived here.
    Isabella turned her back while Gerard changed into his own clothes and busied herself preparing what little food she had left.  Gerard would have to be content with oat porridge, because there wasn’t much else.  The chickens hadn’t laid eggs in weeks.  She was afraid an animal had been creeping around their pen at night and scaring them, but at the moment, it couldn’t be helped.
    “What do you want me to do with the clothes you loaned me?”  Gerard held the bundle out to her.
    Isabella stared at Owen’s old clothes.  She didn’t know why she had kept them.  She didn’t need nor want a reminder of the man.
    “Burn them.”
    Gerard arched his brows and looked at her as if he hadn’t heard correctly.  “Pardon?”
    “Burn them,” she repeated.  “I don’t want them.”
    Gerard shook his head, but didn’t argue.  He tossed them into the fire and then stood back and watched as the flames licked greedily at the material.  It wasn’t long before they were consumed entirely.
    He turned back to Isabella, but she refused to meet his eyes.  Instead, she busied herself placing a bowl of porridge on the