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Ah wid nae expect it, child. Tis nae yer place. Ah ll ask one o th maids.
Absolutely not, Dreya declared. No woman...young, old or half
dead...would be safe with that man.
He s a gentleman an harmless enough. A wee bit o female companionship
shuid improve his spirits.
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The Macgregor s Daughter
I don t give a fig about his spirits.
Och, lass. How does he upset ye sae?
I don t trust him. And neither should you.
Aye, but ye ll listen tae that black-hearted Quinn? Edwina admonished. Th
mon wid sell his ain mither fur a gold coin, an yet ye v taken his word as th
blessed truth? She shook her head. Na, thare be somethin else botherin ye,
child. Somethin ye v tried tae bury, but ye cannae fin a hole whit s deep enough.
The healer read emotions like others read books.
Dreya rose from the chair and headed for the warmth of the fire. For eighteen
years I believed the lie my mother concocted to hide her past. If she had trusted
me with the truth, that I wasn t John Richardson s daughter, I would ve
understood.
Even th vast ocean couldnae keep Jessamine s secrets frae follaein her. It
wur a difficult decision fur yer widowed uncle tae break his word tae yer mither,
but he did sae in order tae save ye frae an English prison.
I realize that. Dreya faced her. And I m thankful he sent a message to the
Macgregor, but it was my mother s place to tell me about my father long before
Uncle Charles did.
Mibbie she tried.
I doubt that. She did, however, destroy my faith in her.
Dae ye regret th Macgregor is yer faither?
No, of course not.
Then dinnae fault yer sweet mither or th mon wha raised ye as his ain fur
daein whit thay believed richt. If ye hud drawn thair lot in life, cuid ye swear ye
wid dae different?
Dreya turned her back, tears gathering in her eyes. Whatever she would ve
done, whatever the outcome, she would ve told her child the truth. A huge lump
formed in her throat. She stared into the fire, and her thoughts drifted backward.
Jessamine and John Richardson died of consumption within hours of one
another. They were laid to rest on a cold December day. Icy rain pelted her face as
she and her cousin Derek climbed the hill toward the old cemetery overlooking
the sea. Before lowering the two coffins into the frozen ground, the vicar offered a
few meaningless words of prayer.
Her life might ve returned to normal except for the unexpected arrival of a
well-dressed Englishman eighteen months later who claimed to be her uncle.
Lord Hawthorne be a guid mon, Edwina said. Whin he wrote th Macgregor
o Jessamine s death, Ethan cuid nae be consoled. Yet whin he learned he d sired
a daughter, his sorrow turned tae joy, an he swore tae protect his ain blood wi
his life.
I m grateful to my father for helping me escape England, but it doesn t
change the fact that I m illegitimate.
Nothin kin change that, lass.
Dreya turned. You don t understand. If I d known the truth
Whit wid ye huv done? Ye wur blessed wi a kind mither wha shared her faith
in th Guid Faither, her laughter, an her loove. Twas her shame she didnae wish
tae burden ye wi .
Dreya swallowed around her anger. If I sound bitter or selfish, it s just...I
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The Macgregor s Daughter
missed so much. I never got the chance to meet my mother s parents or
Grandfather Macgregor.
Edwina s expression grew distant. Simon Macgregor ne er considered
Ethan s happiness afore he promised that lowlander Campbell his ainlie son.
Thay struck th deal by Ethan s tenth year. By his ain da s words, Ethan wid forfeit
Dragon s Breath if he wed anither.
Father told me, and I do not blame him.
But ye cannae forgie yer mither?
If she had told me the truth, yes. I m nothing but a mistake, Edwina.
Oor blessed Faither created ye, child, an He does nae mak mistakes.
Would you still believe this if you born on the wrong side of the blanket?
A twinkle entered the healer s eyes. Whit causes ye tae think Ah wisnae?
Dreya smiled. Oh, very well. I surrender. I ll appoint someone to escort our
pirate about the castle grounds, but one of the castle guards will accompany them
as well.
Urr ye feart o a blind mon, lass? Whit harm haes he done ye?
What harm?
Dreya s heart raced at the mere sight of his crooked pirate grin. And with his
touch, heat rushed to her cheeks and intensified before it moved to more
sensitive areas of her body.
I m not afraid of any man. Our guest is nothing more to me than an
irritation.
Ye v met yer match wi this one, an that s th truth. But Ah imagine it s a wee
bit difficult fur a lass tae keep a level head around such a handsome mon. Dinnae
tempt fate, Ah say. Edwina shook her head, making a clucking noise with her
tongue. Aye, ye r wise beyond yer years, child. She headed toward the door.
Best lea this mon tae a mair experienced lass.
* * * *
You look rather decent this afternoon, Dreya Macgregor remarked in a
casual tone.
Then you approve of me, mademoiselle?
That s not what I meant.
If this vixen thought to goad him into saying or doing something to end such a
pleasurable afternoon stroll, she would suffer extreme disappointment.
Your hair tied at the nape suits your profession.
My profession?
Sailor, seaman, or whatever it s called.
They walked on in silence for several minutes.
You re unusually quiet, monsieur.
And you re complaining?
Not in the least. Your unexpected silence is quite refreshing, yet it also
prompts me to question what s going through your mind.
All the thoughts generally present when a man finds himself alone with a
beautiful woman.
You cannot see my face, so you ll have to do better than that.
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The Macgregor s Daughter
If you recall, cherie, I drew a mental portrait of you some time ago.
Ah, that explains things, she quipped. Such fair winds are unusual for the
second week of October, but they are most welcome. Our warm weather will end
soon, for already the sky turns a dismal gray. After the rains pass, snow will
follow.
He cocked his head to one side. I realize this must sound ridiculous, but I feel
as though we ve met before. These past two weeks, that same thought crossed my
mind numerous times, especially during our daily jaunts to the beach, but I must
be mistaken. Where would we have met?
Where, indeed. She tightened her grip on his arm. Watch your step. There s
a small tree lying across our path.
I can manage it. He cleared the obstacle then assisted her. Last night s
storm sounded fierce. The wind must have uprooted everything that wasn t nailed
down.
Dragon s Breath was built atop the highest crag, but the gale winds usually
sound more violent than they actually are.
That s good to know.
So.& you think we ve met before?
I realize that s rather unlikely, but it certainly feels like it.
The villagers on this island are superstitious. Edwina is their healer, and they
look to her for everything from broken bones to broken vows. She believes
nothing is left to chance but that a person s life travels in a familiar pattern or full
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