Page 5 of A Highlander’s Heart

Despite wanting to shrug her off, he quirked a smile back at her. “Aye.”

“I have dealt with many patients, injured and in pain. ’Tis no’ a nice thing to go through, especially for a warrior. I ken yer injury is painful and ye are stuck at the verra castle ye tried to breech. But, to me, all patients are just that. My patients.” She took in a deep breath. “I will mix ye up another tisane if ye wish.”

Morgan was amazed at the woman’s kindness, something he’d never experienced much of in his life. “Why would ye do that?”

Emma shrugged. “I doona like to see people suffer. ’Tis probably why I find healing such a satisfying way to fill my days.”

The longer they spoke to each other, the more Morgan calmed. The lass definitely had a way with people. But she was still an Emma he reminded himself. And, a Mackenzie. His enemy.

*

Emma spent most of the night tossing and turning. She’d worked at healing dozens of warriors in the time she’d been a healer, but never did she have the same reaction to them as she did to Morgan Gunn.

The man would catch any lass’s eye. Tall, strong body—that of a typical warrior—with wavy dark hair that fell on his forehead. She had been so involved with tending to his leg and chest and ducking his insults that it hadn’t been until she brought him the second tisane that she had looked right into his deep-brown eyes.

And almost dropped the mug.

Morgan Gunn.

The enemy.

From the clan that killed her da in battle.

The next morning, she broke her fast and then checked on her patient. Before she was able to even speak with him, Edith Mackenzie came barreling into the healing hut, holding a screaming, bloodied toddler.

“Emma, please, my little one fell from the tree in front of our bothy and he’s all scraped up and I’m afraid he’s broken his arm!”

Emma moved to the mother and put her hand on her shoulder. “These things aways look worse than they are. It will help him if ye calm down.”

Edith licked her lips and nodded. “Aye.”

Emma took the little one from her arms and placed him on her examination table. She made soothing sounds as she looked over his little body. The child continued to scream and kick.

“He has some scrapes and will probably have a little bit of bruising, but nothing is broken. I am a little concerned about the bump on his head, though.”

She used a wet cloth to wipe down his scrapes before she scooped out a bit of the healing cream from the jar on the shelf above her, and smoothed it over his injuries. “I suggest ye keep an eye on the bump. If he seems unusually drowsy, which is possible with how upset he is, let him sleep but wake him up every quarter hour else he sleep and ne’er wake up again.”

Eventually the bairn calmed down and reached out for his mam. Edith bundled him up and hugged him, her own eyes filled with tears. Emma gave him a small biscuit which brought a smile to his face, with one lone tear tracking down his chubby cheek.

The mother left hugging the child and speaking with him. He seemed more interested in the biscuit.

“Why were ye no’ so nice to me?” Morgan sounded like a bairn.

Emma walked over to the counter and picked up a biscuit, handed it to him, and smirked. “Here ye are. Now I expect better behavior.”

“If ye hug me the way that mam did, ye might see better behavior.” He took a bite of the biscuit and grinned, something she had not seen him do since he had been carried bellowing into the healing hut. It softened his hard, warrior features and made him even more handsome to look at, which he probably knew.

“If I hug ye, the pain would require ye to take the ‘lasses’ tisane.’” She grinned, but quickly reminded herself that any exchange between them except for as healer and patient was not something she wanted to entertain. Handsome or no, he was still a prisoner of her clan.

Reminding herself of her duty, she placed her hands on her hips and said, “I am going to examine yer leg now and check the stitches. I doona want any improper or lewd comments from ye.”

He glared back. “Just do what ye need to do so I can return to Clyth Castle.”

She huffed, not sure why he didn’t understand Daniel was not likely to return him or any other prisoners back to Clyth Castle anytime soon.

She reached out and touched his bare leg. He had been wearing only a léine that went halfway down his legs since it was easier for him to go back and forth to relieve himself without his breeches.

He jumped a bit when she laid her hand on him.