Page 47 of Wild Scottish Beauty

A shout at my back had me twisting in Ramsay’s arms to see Sophie, sword raised, Lachlan at her side as the Kelpies raged to a stop at the shoreline, dissolving in a shatter of icy seawater.

It was shocking, really, how fast they disappeared. It reminded me of a water balloon exploding on a sidewalk. In one second, the Kelpies were a very real threat, and in the next, they matched the droplets of rain that smashed the surface of the loch.

“Holy hell,” I breathed at Ramsay’s neck, my heart hammering in my chest. Something squirmed at my chin, and I leaned back to see the kitten poke its head out from the neck of Ramsay’s sweater.

“Meow.”

Its meow was just a rasp in its throat, and it blinked greenish yellow eyes at me, its fur matted and spiky around its head.

“Okay, bud. We got you now. You’re safe.”

“You’re both okay?”

Ramsay’s voice was a rumble at my ear, and I looked up at him. Water dripped from his chin, his face set in stone.

“Seems so. We’ll get him dried off. You’re a hero, Ramsay.”

Heat flashed in his eyes, a barely restrainedstorm, and for one insane second, I thought he was going to kiss me. His lips hovered close, adrenaline racing through our systems, and my chest heaved as I shuddered in a breath.

Kiss me.

I wanted it. I realized that immediately. I wanted his lips on mine, to taste him, to feel what it would be like to have a man like him protecting me. I eased closer, the movement almost imperceptible, desperate for just a taste of him.

“Willow!” Sophie called and Ramsay turned, his lips brushing softly across my cheek with the movement.

My skin burned at his touch.

My eyelids fluttered closed, and I inhaled the salty sea air, trying to calm myself down.

It was just an impulse born of adrenaline. That was all.You’re not a damsel in distress, Willow. Just because a strong man swoops you up into his arms doesn’t mean you need to kiss him.

But the princess kissed the hero in the movies, didn’t she?

“Are you guys okay? What happened?” Sophie asked as Ramsay stopped at her side, gently placing me back on the sidewalk before cupping the kitten that wiggled underneath his sweater.

“Let’s get inside. We need to get this guy warm.” Ramsay nodded to the kitten that now poked its head fully from his sweater, and if I hadn’t been attracted to Ramsay before, it would be almost impossible not to be now. Both kitten and man were soaked, and there was just something about the juxtaposition between a big, strong dripping-wet man and the teeny-tiny kitten that he’d saved that made my heart melt.

“Awww,” Sophie said. She clutched my arm after Ramsay walked away, and correctly interpreting my look, raised her eyebrows after him.

“Nope.”

“Or, maybe, right? Why not?” Sophie hissed, dragging me with the arm that didn’t carry the sword. Lachlan trudged in silence next to us, continuing to dart glances over his shoulder at the stormy loch until we clambered through the door of the shop.

“Towels. Flip the lock.” Ramsay nodded to a pile of towels from where he sat on the floor by the fire. He’d already wrapped the kitten in a fluffy pink towel, its fur spiking around its head. It let out another small rasp.

“Oh, he’s super cute. He was in the loch?” Sophie crouched and handed me a few towels. I did my best to dry off my sodden hair, before wrapping another around my shoulders and dropping to the floor next to Ramsay to peer at the kitten.

“Should I heat up some milk or something for it?” Lachlan asked, crouching.

“I don’t think you can give kittens milk. It gives them a sore stomach,” Ramsay said. “Maybe just a little fresh water? See if it takes it?”

“Should we get him checked at the vet?”

“Closed for the day now, I think. But if we think it’s an emergency, we can call.” Sophie eased back, reaching for a towel to wipe the rain from her face. We sat in silence, drying ourselves, and nobody seemed quite ready to speak about the Kelpies.

“It’s pretty cold in the loch, though, isn’t it? I’mworried about the kitten’s water exposure,” I said, my eyes going back to the kitten.

“But not mine?” Ramsay arched a brow at me, and I smiled.

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