Read The Highlander Next Door for Free Online Page B

were practicing.
    “I swear to God,” Macie said tightly, “you’d better not tell anyone it was Dan who helped me escape. I told you that in confidence.”
    Johnny gave a humorless laugh. “Exactly which god are you swearing to, Mace? Certainly not the one we’ve been trying to call forth, because he’s
still
not here.”
    Aye, but he was, Niall thought with a scowl, only nobody knew what the bastard looked like or where he was hiding.
    “That’s because he’s supposed to be a
goddess
,” Macie shot back. “And why would
she
be in a hurry to show up if it means having to deal with Sebastian?”
    There was a long silence, then a heavy sigh. “Are you ever going to forgive me?”
    “Are you ever going to leave the settlement?”
    Another silence, and then, “Getting close to the kind of magic that can move mountains was your dream, too, Mace.”
    “It was, until Sebastian showed up and started bossing everyone around,” she muttered, standing up and starting back toward the park.
    “But the baby’s gonna be here in a couple of months,” Johnny said as he ran to catch up with her. “And I really want to be part of its life. And yours.”
    Unable to hear Macie’s answer because they were too far away, Niall got to his feet and followed. He watched Johnny catch hold of Macie’s hand when they reached the park and give her a hug that lasted until a group of people walked past. The young man stepped away, hesitated, and made a helpless gesture, then turned and walked up the path to the trestle.
    Macie continued staring after him until he disappeared down the road in the direction of Turtleback, then sat on one of the benches along the outer edge of the park. Niall walked over and stood in front of her, breaking into a grin when she gasped and nervously glanced at the trail she’d just exited before looking up at him in horror.
    “Would ye care for some company, Miss Atwater?” Niall asked. He gestured at the woods behind her. “And maybe allow me to meddle in your business a little?”
    She dropped her gaze, her cheeks clearly flushed in the lamplight, and scooted over to make room for him on the bench.
    Niall sat down beside her and stared at the mist rising from the pool. “I don’t have Miss Callahan’s schooling,” he began, keeping his voice only strong enough to be heard over the noise of the falls. “But I do seem to have a knack for taking a man’s measure.” He shot her a grin. “As well as an occasional woman’s. And from what little I overheard of your conversation, it appears to me that your child’s father is a good man. He might have his priorities confused, but his heart seems to be in the right place.”
    “Johnny didn’t do anything when Sebastian realized I was pregnant and dragged me out of the bathhouse wearing only a towel and then locked me in a room for
two days
,” she returned, a touch of anger in her voice. “There’s no telling what would have happened if one of the other men, a guy named Dan, hadn’t helped me escape.”
    “I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Sebastian,” Niall said, nodding when she looked over in surprise. “I made a point of introducing myself the day after I became chief of police to let him know I was dealing with the people protesting the colony.”
    “I’m never going back there.”
    “What I’m trying to say is that I can see how your young man got caught up in Sebastian’s vision. Charisma is a powerful force, and when someone like Sebastian shows up with an agenda similar to your own . . . well, few men are immune to that sort of passion.”
    “Then how come none of the women fell for his charisma?”
    “Because history has taught women to distrust power. Tell me, did ye not find it odd that Sebastian made Johnny one of the five priests, when there were older men to choose from?”
    She looked toward the pool and frowned. “Most of the older men left with their wives and children a couple of weeks after Sebastian showed up