Enchantment of a Highlander by Madeline Martin

Author:Madeline Martin [Martin, Madeline]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781626819214
Publisher: Diversion Books
Published: 2016-01-19T06:00:00+00:00

• • •

Celia jerked from her restless slumber and listened to the stillness of her cottage. No sounds emerged save the soft hiss of the burning embers in the hearth. The meager moonlight from her slatted shutters revealed nothing in the shadows.

Yet her pulse throbbed in short, staccato beats and the air snapped around her with unseen energy.

She closed her eyes and the dream fogged thick in her mind.

A blanket of gauzy mist rolled out across the forest floor, lit a brilliant, glowing white in the full moon. Everything held an unnatural still, the air too balmy for the heart of winter.

Thundering horse hoofs echoed off the surrounding trees and the sedentary mist stirred, shifting with anticipation before breaking apart into graceful curls. Blackness flashed through the trees, fast and determined. It raced toward her, but she was not afraid.

Her eyes flew open and she threw the coverlet from her body. Her breathing quickened. Her muscles fired with the burn of agitation.

Alec.

She could lie in bed no longer.

He’d not returned by the time she left the castle.

The press of time weighed heavy on her shoulders. Her feet hit the cool ground and she crossed the room quickly.

In a run.

She had to get outside, to see if the mist was there, to see if the chilled air had warmed.

To see if her dream was real.

She yanked the door open to a gentle breeze. A balmy breeze.

Her heart lurched into a frenzied beat.

Mist clung to the darkened forest.

And stirred.

Hoof beats sounded in the distance, rushing to her with incredible speed.

She sprinted across the yard, heedless of the wet, cold grass stabbing at the soles of her bare feet. The mist parted in wispy strands and the ground trembled against the great steed flying toward her.

The horse smashed through the veil of haze and sent tendrils of mist scattering in whirls around it and its rider. Steam fogged around the beast’s nose in great white puffs. Its speed increased and Celia caught the musty scent of its sweat on the wind.

She watched it without fear, without moving. The rider remained hidden in the shadows, yet she knew him by the familiar way her body ached.

The horse stopped several feet before her. His hoofs slashed into the tender moonlit grass and the rich scent of turned earth filled the air.

The rider slid from his steed and stalked toward her, shoulders squared with determination.

“Celia.” Alec’s voice was thick. Beautiful.

His arms went around her, pulling her with desperate hunger against the hard strength of his body. She did not fight his touch, not when she had thought she’d never have this again.

Not when she’d thought she’d lost him.

Not when everything in her cried out for this.

Her fingers threaded around the back of his neck where his braid hung like a thick rope. His skin was warm, firm, and very, very real. She clutched herself to him.

This was no dream.

He caught her face in his hands and stared down at her. Shadows consumed most of him, but she could make out the glint of his eyes, the line of his lips.

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