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Sometimes, she takes him outside to get some air. Sadly, all Brenna wishes to eat is haddock. He has come close to swooning.”
    Lachlan laughed. “A fish can bring down the feared Viking Highlander. I cannot wait to see him. Our meal is ready.”
    He took it from the fire and laid it out. “’Tis hot; be careful not to burn yourself.” He blew on it, and then ripped off a chunk. He held it out to her.
    She took the piece. He took a piece for himself, and then another one for her. She chewed on it.
    “Do you plan to feed me?”
    “Do you wish for me to cease?”
    “Nay.” She closed her mouth around the chunk and his fingertip. He pulled free his canteen. Wine filled the leather pouch so the seams seemed near to bursting.
    “If I did not know that a highlander is always prepared, I would have thought that you planned this.”
    Lachlan glanced about the loch. “Aye, it is near perfect.”
    “Near perfect.” Her tone rose questioningly.
    “But for the rain.”
    She shrugged. “’Tis Scotland.”
    “Samhain is approaching,” he said around a bite.
    She made a face. “At least, I am not with the Murrays. I would have been most uncomfortable.”
    “They will not stare at you for long.”
    “But until that time comes…” She shrugged. “You even stared at me.” She peered up at him through the veil of her hair.
    He flushed. “Aye, I admit you shocked me when I first saw you. Then again, I was not to blame. The mist was thick about you and you approached me. You fixed your regard on me. I had felt as if you had come for me. Then I realized how bonny you were—are. My heart stopped. It still does when I look upon you.”
    “Nonsense, I was nothing but a lass. You nodded, and then I only saw glimpses of you.”
    “I was but a boy myself. I stayed away then, not because of you, but for another reason.” He felt the twist in his stomach.
    “Truly, why?” She looked at him from the corner of her eye. He hated that searching visage. Rowen always saw beyond the act he showed.
    “I did not like being around families.” He surprised himself at how the truth had dulled.
    “You are around them now.” She flicked her hand as if a dozen families circled them.
    He dug his heel into the earth. “I still feel odd in their presence, but it doesn’t make me angry anymore.”
    “Most men are jealous of you. You are Laird MacLean’s trusted man. You have respect through the highlands. And I love you.”
    That knowledge held no importance since he was not the man wedding her. “Aye,” he said to end this discussion.
    He held out another bite for her and his smile returned. He didn’t think he had ever smiled so much. He had spent time with her before, stealing kisses, but this time was different. Though, he would be losing her, he couldn’t stop from feeling he finally had all of her.
    With the fish picked clean, he washed his hands in the loch. Bent over, Rowen knelt beside him. Her hair fell across her face. The ends dragged along the surface of the water. He bunched the strands in his hand and lifted it from the water. He tossed it over her back.
    She rose, sending him a smile. On the tips of her toes, she darted to the plaid and crumpled onto it. She lifted her hand, waving him over.
    He went at her call. He grasped her hand and gathered her close. He cradled her long fingers in the palm of her hand before he turned it over. With the tip of his forefinger, he traced the lines of her palm.
    “That tickles.”
    He placed a lingering kiss in the center. “Did that tickle?”
    “Nay. My skin is tingling.”
    Not removing his touch, he ran his hand down her arm as he leaned over her. He angled his mouth over hers. Their lips cradled each other. He just wanted to feel her and the little shock that struck him when she kissed him. This drawn out kiss was the most intimate he had ever shared. It was not about lust. This was pure love…him luxuriating in loving her.
    The kiss faded away as if his body knew that it