Page 64 of Once upon a Summer Night

He nodded grimly. “Claire. She’s not being careful enough, and needs a bit of protection for the next week or so.Some sort of battle between clans, though the details are unclear.”

“Oh for the love of—” Colin stopped himself. “How many times will she put herself in danger before she realizes her importance?”

“You’d think the lass would be more careful with whom she spends her time,” Reilly agreed.

Claire MacWilliam was a headstrong young woman. Her father hoped she would marry into a neighboring clan, but the last Colin knew, Claire wanted nothing to do with marriage.

The shock had nearly done in her father, Nioclas, which Reilly thoroughly enjoyed until he realized that meant more work for him. Brianagh wanted to give Claire more time, as the lass was but sixteen at the time, and Nioclas was insistent that she marry before she turned twenty.

It was a mess Colin wanted no part of.

“Am I needed?”

Reilly shook his head. “Nay, not this time. I tried to figure out how we could manage to extract you to come with me, but your promise and your duties collided.”

And that, Colin supposed, was the crux of a Protector’s problem. Soul mate or not, his first duty was to protect his family—if he didn’t, he very well could cease to exist. History would be altered in unfathomable ways; entire lineages would be erased.

“When you saidlife binding…” Colin started.

“It means just that—you’re bound to your mate for life. And then not only are you an O’Rourke Protector, you’re hers as well. Are you ready to say the words aloud, then?”

Colin stared at him, words failing him. “No. Because…what if she’s not my mate?”

“Only you can answer that. If she isn’t, you can travel freely and leave her side without repercussions. I should’ve explained all of this to you,” Reilly admitted. “I’m truly sorryI didn’t. I thought once you found a mate, we would have time to discuss the ramifications before you went and made such promises to her.”

Colin’s resignation sounded in each word. “I didn’t make any promise to my mate, since I have none. But I’m done defending my position to everyone. I’ll do what I need to here, and you let me know if you need me there. We’ll ensure Claire gets safely through whatever is happening. I’ll find Ellie a husband from home. I don’t think I need to be here, either.”

Reilly stopped him with a large hand on his arm. “O’Rourke. Our lives serve a bigger purpose.”

Colin felt—and knew—the loneliness behind Reilly’s hollow words. “Right. They do.”

“A walk?”Colin looked up at the cloudy sky.

Ellie laced up her runners and nodded. “Yes. Exercise. It’s just the thing to take our minds off of everything.”

He nodded in agreement. “Excellent plan. I’ll say my goodbyes now, then.”

“Now?” Ellie squeaked. She cleared her throat. “Where are you heading?”

Colin refused to look at her, instead busying himself with the company papers that seemed to always be around him. “I’m going back to Boston. We’ll talk by phone for the next few days, if you decide you need anything. I’ll give you a call in a few weeks to check in, or you can call me if you run into any issues. Reginald has to head to California in a few days, but I’ve been assured he’s busy planning your second date. I’ve given him your number, and I’ll send his to you.”

Stunned, all Ellie could do was blink. He wasleavingher?

The past couple of weeks felt much longer than that. Seeing him every day, listening to the timbre of his voice as heread funny bits from his phone, watching his brow crease while he was working…

Oh boy. She was definitely in serious trouble.

Gwen tugged insistently on Ellie’s arm. “Have a safe flight, Colin. Come on, El, let’s get going before the rain comes.”

Ellie allowed herself to be pulled out the door, her mind whirling. This was what she wanted, right? For him to go away?

No.

“Come on, let’s go this way,” Gwen said.

Ellie shook herself. “What way?”

Gwen glanced over her shoulder, towards where Reilly had disappeared earlier in the day on his own hike. “I’d like to see the forest a little.”

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