Page 50 of Nyall

“You don’t have the same anatomy as the Selseus, do you?” she asked as she waded out of the shallows with him.

“I share their ability to breathe water, and I dinnae age or suffer sickness, but my body, ’tis yet the same as mortals,” he admitted. “So you may cut me behind my knee, and I shall but limp on land until I heal.”

“I’d never try to hurt you.” She reached out and took hold of his hand. “But sometimes I think I do anyway.”

“’Tis never you, my lady.” He raised her fingers to his lips to kiss them. “As you’ve said, we’re good.”

After sunset Caroline also spent time alone with Nyall in the little meadow on the east side of the islet, where he cleared a large circle on the ground and placed torches on poles around the perimeter. There he gave her a crash course in fighting, starting with hand-to-hand and progressing to knife work, which they practiced with wooden replicas of blades.

“As you’re a female you’ve the advantage,” he told her as they circled each other. “Men dinnae expect women shall fight as we do, and most taunt and toy with them. ’Tis best, permitting them believe such until they lower their guard enough for you to strike.”

Before he finished speaking Caroline spun around him and pressed her blade tip against his spine. “One deep jab here, and even an immortal will be paralyzed, right?”

“Aye, but ’tis just as likely your blade shall strike bone.” He pulled her around and repositioned her practice blade to press between his thigh and his genitals. “All males treasure their baws. When you’re grappling, slice inward here if you wish watch them fall.”

“The guy or his balls?” she joked.

“With your strong arm, both.” Nyall tugged her up against him and clamped his forearm around her to hold her there. “Now, show me where else you may strike when so close.”

“Sorry, I’m a little distracted right now.” She deliberately dropped her blade on the ground and pressed her hand against the bulge of his erection. “My, my. You seem to have a problem, Captain. Let me take care of that for you.”

He chuckled and gently pushed her back. “After we practice, you shameless wench.”

The nights Caroline shared with her men only happened a few times a week, and Jamaran could never stay until dawn. What they did together became the most exciting secret she’d ever kept, and made the last of her anger disappear. Sometimes Nyall would show up first, and make love to her until Jamaran arrived. Now and then the commander would finish his duties first, and kiss and pet her until she was so wild she practically jumped on the captain when he showed up. They tried every position, and even tried to invent a few, which sometimes caused them to collapse in a helpless heap of laughter when it didn’t work out. More often than not they were able to give each other so much pleasure that she knew it had changed all three of their lives.

The only cloud hovering over Caroline’s happiness proved to be Shaw, who returned to the stronghold a few days after her men had rescued her from the net trap. She glimpsed him walking the bay’s shore now and then, and once while she was delivering some oysters to Brochan she saw him walking toward the kitchens. He abruptly changed direction, so he must have seen her, too. She took care to stay away from Dun Ard for a few days after that. Although he'd done nothing to make her think he’d come after her, he still creeped her out, and she kept waiting for him to make a move.

Eventually Shaw did, but not in the way she’d expected.

When she didn’t have anything else to do Caroline would spend an hour gathering Fae junk for Duncan. Being out in the open as she walked the beaches seemed safe enough, and the curious things she found made it like a scavenger hunt. Most of the debris she picked up were broken bits and pieces of crystal, wood or stone. When she spotted a solid gold sphere about the size of a baseball half-buried in the sand she expected it to be broken.

As she approached the object she saw it had a swirl of beautiful emerald-green streaks on the top, which lit up as she got closer. She’d already learned from the healer that anything that glowed in proximity to her still contained Fae magic. Since she didn’t want to get spell-zapped, she used a wooden scoop that she carried on her hunts to remove it from the sand, which was when she saw it looked fully intact.

“If you’re real gold, Duncan and I may have to strike a new deal,” she said as she put it in a hemp sack before she added it to her gathering bag. Although she hadn’t touched it, her whole bag took on a green glow, as if the thing was trying to burn its way out of the sacking. “Unless you’re going to blow my face off now.”

A dark blur whirled around her, and then Shaw was there, shoving his inked arm into her bag. Without a word he removed the sphere, which was now practically shooting green laser beams out of its ends, and crushed it in his hand.

“What are you doing?” Caroline stumbled back from him, cringing as he looked at her with very dark gray eyes.

“Saving your life, Mistress.” Shaw transferred the gold ball to his other hand, and opened his fingers to reveal the badly-dented sphere, which he had cracked in half. The inside looked hollow. “’Twas an imp egg enchanted by the melia. If you’d released what they oft keep inside, ’twould eat you alive. Fortunately ’twas an empty shell.”

She folded her arms. “Valerie said all the melia on the island turned themselves to stone.”

“No’ on the mainland. A storm likely swept the egg from one of their woodlands into a river that emptied at sea.” Shaw dropped the pieces of broken sphere back into her bag, and when he looked at her again his eyes were a smoky gray. He also looked just like any other MacMar, just with extra handsomeness. “I didnae intend frighten you. Dinnae punch me.”

“Well, you did scare me, but you also saved my life, so thank you.” She wasn’t entirely sure she believed his story, but she wanted to put an end to the hostilities, so she held out her hand. “Could you not look like you want to rip off my head from now on? That still bugs me.”

“I’d rather no’ touch you with that hand, Mistress.” He glanced down at his tattooed arm, frowning. “I may use the other, if you’ll vow you shallnae run from me.”

“With the way you move, I seriously doubt I could get away, but sure.” Gingerly she took hold of his other hand, watching his ink on the opposite arm as she did. “Looks like nothing is going to twitch this time.” He was also being careful to hold her hand gently. “What do you think?”

Shaw took in a deep breath, and then sighed and released her. “’Twould seem you’ve changed since you came to Caladh.”

Had she? That startled Caroline.

“I guess some stuff is different. I’ve decided to stay here in your time, and I’m working to earn my living. I also have my own place now.” And I’m having lots of sex with your half-brother and his best friend, she added silently. “You seem to be doing okay, too.”

“I found some peace during my travels,” the chieftain said. “If you dinnae mind me, then I shallnae avoid you hence.”