Wed to a Highland Warrior Read Online Free PDF Page B

Whatever was the matter with him? He was sounding like a fool in the throes of love. He and Bliss barely knew each other, or did they?
    She had healed him with tenderness and caring, and such a deep, abiding love that he longed to feel again. He had felt a distinct emptiness when she had left, that he had wondered over it. Had that been the way of it, or had something happened between them that neither had realized?
    “Tell me more of your grandmum,” he said eagerly.
    And she did, regaling him with stories that allowed him a peek into her past and a peek more deeply inside her.
    After a time, Bliss said, “I have talked enough about myself. What of you?”
    He grinned. “Your tales are entertaining, mine would not be so.”
    “I would rather determine that,” she encouraged. “Besides, I did hear some stories while at the keep.”
    Trey winced as if wounded. “You must not believe all you hear, especially if it comes from my brothers.”
    Bliss laughed. “I often wished for siblings. You are lucky to have them.”
    “You will think differently when I tell the tales,” he said, and soon had her laughing with stories of his childhood.
    “So no matter how many times you hid in the trees to escape your brothers, they did not find you?”
    “I climbed higher and higher each time, so they could not see me amongst the leaves and branches.” He grinned proudly. “And from my perch, I delivered deadly dirt bombs I had skillfully armed myself with, and won many battles.”
    When he finished detailing various victories and her laughter subsided, she said, “I hope to have many children so that they will have the chance to tell funny and endearing tales like yours.”
    “Aye, I wish the same,” Trey said. “Seeing my brothers and their growing brood, I long for a family of my own.”
    Silence settled over them after that, he lost in his thoughts and she in hers, both thinking of the future and what it might bring.
    With dusk not far off, they needed to find shelter. There was a glen not far ahead, and it they decided that it would be best to climb the rise and settle in the valley below for the night. Bliss was sure that a stream with cool, clear water waited there.
    It was an easy climb, especially with each having the other to rely upon, and they stopped for a brief rest once they reached the top. Trey didn’t wish to rush her. They had walked a good distance and kept a good pace today, and she had not complained once. But dusk was fast fading to night, and he wanted to get a fire started to chase away the chill, which grew ever colder with the fading light.
    “We should go,” he said, and she agreed with a nod.
    The arrow came out of nowhere, slicing past Bliss’s arm and causing her to stumble and lose her footing, sending her tumbling down the hill so suddenly that her hand was ripped out of his. Trey knew it would be a waste of time to look back and try to spy the culprit. He was more concerned with trying to reach Bliss. He charged after her, but her tumbling body gained momentum as she continued to roll rapidly down the hill. Try as he might, he could not catch her and stop her plummet.
    His heart hammered in his chest as he raced down the hillside. Fear prickled along his skin, and worry gripped him like never before. She lay in a heap when the tumble finally was over, and he fell to his knees beside her when he reached the bottom.
    He wasn’t sure what to do. She was the healer, but instinct took over, and he gently eased her on her back. He pushed the strands of blond hair out of her face, which looked to have suffered no more than some dirt and scratches. A quick glance over her found no signs of blood, but there were broken bones to consider.
    There was also the worry about those on their trail. He grew angry with himself. He had been so engrossed in conversation with her that he hadn’t paid heed to his surroundings. He knew better than that. He had allowed his interest in her to interfere with