Page 22 of A Highlander’s Heart

She turned them toward the kitchen door when she heard a great deal of yelling and cheering. “Oh! I believe Gregory and Megan have returned. The laird said we’d be expecting them.”

“Is that the lass my uncle had his eye on? The one that this entire debacle was for? The reason we fought a useless battle? I will have a few words to say to my uncle when I see him again.”

“If your uncle wanted to marry the lass, I assume he lost if she has returned with her husband.” She didn’t want to say any more about it, afraid she would slip and say something about his uncle’s execution.

Morgan shook his head. “Had I known beforehand that kidnapping a woman to have her marriage annulled was what those two lairds had in mind, I would not have led my men into battle.”

She shrugged. “I doona think ye would have had a choice.”

He offered her a smile that lit up his eyes and tightened the muscles in her stomach. “I have my ways. My uncle is no’ a verra good laird.”

Once Emma had him back in the healing hut, she gathered a few pouches and turned to him as she headed to the door. “I have to gather herbs from the garden, I am running low in my supply. Before I leave, I will stop at the kitchen to remind them to bring ye a tray for lunch.”

He gave her a look that made her body warm. “My lunch tastes much better when ye bring it.”

Emma was growing concerned at her body’s reaction when he looked at her a certain way. Morgan had gone from enemy to she knew not what, but after his unexpected kisses, it was growing hard to remember who he was and who she was.

Just as Emma prepared to leave, Janet returned from a trip to the village and stopped in to share her news. “I stopped in to see the new mam and her babe. Aside from crying all the time—both mam and babe—they are doing well.”

Emma smiled, knowing new mams often cried as much as their bairns did. “I’m off to replenish my herb pouches,” she said.

“Megan and Gregory have returned,” Janet added.

Emma nodded. “I ken. I had Morgan out for a walk, and we saw them arrive with our men.”

Janet’s brows rose. “Morgan walked outside?”

“Aye. He did verra well, but was impatient at what he thought was his lack of progress.”

After clearing his throat, Morgan said, “I’m right here, ye ken. Ye can ask me how I did.” He winked at Emma.

Emma laughed. “Doona pay him any mind. He’s supposed to be resting, no’ listening to my conversations.”

Morgan looked at Janet. “See how she mistreats me? Her favorite patient.”

Janet frowned and looked back and forth between the two of them just as the door to the hut opened and one of the younger warriors walked in with blood dripping from his hand. Even from this distance, she could see it was a simple slice and nothing too concerning.

“Janet, do ye think ye can tend to him? He might need sewing up?”

The lass paled but nodded. “Aye. I’ve seen ye do it many times.”

Emma patted the lass on her shoulder. “Ye will do fine.”

Chapter Twelve

Morgan watched Emma leave, studying her graceful body as it moved, her tempting, swaying hips that he wanted to place his hands on.

As much as he enjoyed their walk and the feeling of being out in the fresh air, with the healer’s arm around him, and her soft curves pressed next to him, his body had taken notice of those things more than their surroundings, his cock increasing. and his temperature rising. Her scent of lavender and lemon grass was much stronger when he was closer to her. It lured him into considering leaning his head into her neck and running his tongue over the tempting, sensitive space between her shoulder and throat.

If only she wasn’t such a wonderful woman. He’d always known he’d need to pick a wife one day, and in spite of her name, Emma was just the type of woman he would want to make his life with and birth his bairns.

The thought had occurred to him more often lately that if his uncle was unable to produce an heir, then he himself would one day be laird of the Gunn clan.

He’d always felt he could do a much better job than his uncle did. He would clean up the keep, get the new—and old—warriors into better shape, and forge alliances with the neighboring clans.

All that thinking had him lying in his bed, his hands tucked behind his head and his mind racing with thoughts of his future.

With a sigh, and nothing solved, he flipped over, satisfied that he was able to do that without help, and began his exercises.