Page 22 of Cottage in the Mist
Clearly she was insane. The smack on her head must have caused real damage because here she was standing on an imaginary cliff, in some imaginary time, frightened for a man that had probably never even existed.
Below her a horse whinnied, and something clicked shut.
The sound was incongruous with the scene below her. And the gorge began to fade…
Lily jerked awake, her heart pounding. A tiny stream of moonlight shone from a thin opening between the drapes covering the mullioned window. Duncreag. She was safe. In her room. Relief warred with disappointment.
There were no invaders. It had been only a dream.
All of it,the little voice in her mind insisted.
She ran a finger across her bottom lip, remembering his touch, and shivered, suddenly cold. Then she heard a footstep and turned toward the dark part of the room. The shadows were deep. But she was certain she was not alone. Something had awoken her.
She blinked, trying to focus, but suddenly everything shimmered, as if a mist had descended, the room growing hazy. Then as quickly as it had come, it was gone and her vision cleared. She frowned into the darkness. The room was the same, and yet it wasn’t. The window was deeper. Arched. And the bed was larger. More primitive.
And then he stepped into the sliver of moonlight.
Bram.
“Lily?” he asked, his eyes widening with surprise. “How did you get in here?”
She shook her head, unable to find words. But she held out her hands, and he was across the room in two strides, pulling her into his arms as he sank down onto the bed. “I thought I’d never see you again. When I came back this morning, you were gone. I was half out of my mind. I feared my enemies had found you.”
He pushed her hair back from her face, his gaze locking with hers.
“I woke up and you weren’t there,” she whispered. “So I got dressed and came to find you. But before I could, the cottage disappeared.” Her eyes pricked with tears and the memory. “It was gone, Bram. Nothing left but a pile of stones. I thought I’d gone crazy.”
“Nay, you’re no’ daft, we’re just part of something beyond our ability to ken. Somehow your world and mine have intersected.”
“I don’t understand…”
“Neither do I,mo ghràidh.” He kissed her then, the fear in her stomach changing to something more primitive. Imaginary or no, she wanted this man. And if that meant a life lived in half worlds, then so be it.
The kiss deepened as he demanded more, and she opened her mouth, surrendering herself to him, knowing that at any moment the dream—if indeed that’s what this was—might end.
His hands skimmed across the soft cotton of her nightgown, and she pressed herself closer, reveling in the feel of his lips as they moved against hers. He pushed her back onto the bed, straddling her, the hunger in his eyes stoking the passion raging within her.
“God’s blood, I’ve never wanted a woman the way that I want you. ’Tis as if I’ve known you forever and still I canna get enough. Have you bewitched me, then?”
She smiled, her lips trembling with emotion. “Whatever is happening, it’s happening to us both,” she said, reaching for him.
The wind whipped against the window, the howling reminding her of her dream—if this could be counted as reality. Suddenly she was frightened again, and Bram must have seen it in her eyes. He moved to pull her into his lap, concern overriding his hunger.
“What is it, lass? What troubles you?”
She swallowed a bubble of hysteria. That was the sixty-four thousand dollar question. But she knew the most pressing thing was to warn him of what she’d seen. Even if she couldn’t explain how she’d actually been able to see it.
She sucked in a deep breath. In for the penny, in for the pound. “There are men in the gorge. Here. Below Duncreag.”
“How do you know that?”
“I saw them from the top of the ridge. They were on horseback. At least a dozen. They were using the darkness as cover. Oh, God, Bram, I think they’re coming for you.”
“But how could you possibly have seen them?”
“I don’t know. One minute I was dreaming that you and I were…” She stopped, ducking her head, hot color staining her face, but then she shook her head, pressing on. “…together, then you just faded away and I was standing on the cliff. Only I wasn’t really there. It was like I was floating or something. I could see, but I couldn’t do anything.”
“And that’s when you saw the men?” He was listening now, his mind clearly moving to the threat at hand.
