Rebel Kiss: A Historical Romance Novel (Scottish Rebels Book 1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

when
he was sure that she had a hold of the slippery mast.
    Rowan grabbed onto
the mast and let his head fall forward against the safety of the floating
wood.  It was slick and cold against his forehead.  He closed his eyes and
forced his breathing to return to normal.  His muscles burned fiercely.  Rowan
allowed his legs to hang slack beneath the security of the mast.  Going after
the girl had been risky and fool-hearted.
    He could have been
killed.
    Waves lapped
lazily at the side of the mast.
    “Are ye alright,
Malcolm?” Rowan asked his little brother, his cheek still pressed against the
mast.  The look of panic was still fresh on the Malcolm’s face. 
    “Aye.  Just
wishin’ that we were on dry land,” Malcolm said, chuckling slightly as his head
bobbed above the gentle waves.
    “This is…” Rowan
trailed off as he tried to introduce the young lady to his brothers.  He
realized that he didn’t even know her name.
    “Anna,” the young
woman interjected, reaching out to hold on to Rowan’s shoulder for support as
she tightened her arm about the mast.  “Anna Stanton.”
    Anna rested her
cheek against the wet mast and held onto the slippery beam for dear life.  The
swim had exhausted her.  Her legs burned from exertion, her muscles trembling
beneath the surface of the cool water.
    “Nice tae meet ye,
Anna.  I’m Malcolm, and this is my brother Quinn,” Malcolm said, nodding
towards his oldest brother.  “He wanted tae go down with the ship, sae doona
expect much conversation out of him.”
    Anna’s eyes darted
between the brothers, a look of concern flashing across her face.  She wondered
why Quinn would have wanted to go down with the ship.  Quinn looked angry and
made no effort at casual niceties.
    “And who is he?”
Anna asked as she craned her neck towards her savior, her hand still wrapped
tightly around his biceps.
    “Why that’s
Rowan,” explained Malcolm.  “Was he sae rude as no tae introduce himself?”
    “I was busy trying
tae save her from drowning.  There was no time for introductions,” Rowan said,
annoyance thick in his voice.
    “Mam would be most
displeased with ye brother, I ken that she taught ye how tae behave around
womenfolk,” Malcolm chided, some of the fear dissipating from his green eyes. 
He rested his chin atop the mast and smiled slightly as he goaded his brother.
    “It’s quite
alright, Malcolm.  I can see that your brother needs to learn some manners.  He
already forced me to strip out of my dress.”
    “He what?” Malcolm
and Quinn asked in simultaneous disbelief, eyes focused now intently on their
brother.
    “Aye…I did ask her
to strip out of her dress, but only because she was drowning in it.  She was all
tangled in the skirts and I thought that she might be able tae swim better
without it…” Rowan trailed off, seeing that his reasoning was falling upon deaf
ears.
    Malcolm shook his
head in dismay.  “Ye really asked her tae take off her dress?”
    “Aye, I had to!”
Rowan exclaimed in defense.
    “Anna, I’d like
tae apologize for my brother’s rudeness,” Quinn offered with a hint of a
smile.  “I’m sure that the stress of this adventure has caused him to lose all
rational thought.”
    “It’s quite
alright.  I mean, I can swim better without it,” Anna said, eyes darting
back towards Rowan.
    “Still, it’s
absolutely deplorable that Rowan would disgrace ye in such a way, askin’ ye tae
take yer clothes off.  This being a life or death situation and all Rowan could
think of was how tae get ye out of yer gown!”  Malcolm exclaimed in mock
disbelief, eyes taunting his brother.
    Anna looked over
her shoulder at Rowan, who shrugged in a gesture of innocence.  Surely he had
not just been thinking about how to get her out of her gown and had been truly
seeking to help her chances of surviving this ordeal. 
    Having grown up in
England, Anna had been taught to be wary of their Scottish neighbors to the
north.  She