Page 11 of Sadie's Highlander (Highland Protector 1)

Alec joined her at the wall of windows.

Sadie shifted slightly, doing her best to increase the space between them with as much subtlety as possible. It was amazing how much heat and…and…whateverthe man put out, wrapping her in a tantalizing cloak ofCome closer. You know you want to know me better.The air crackled whenever he was near. Every hair on her arms stood on end. The closer he got, the more she wanted to shiver and snuggle up against him just to see how much that feel-good tingle would grow.

Alec glanced down at the space of floor between them, then fixed her with a knowing grin. He knew exactly what she was doing—and found it amusing. He clasped his hands to the small of his back, eased sideways to close the space between them, then turned his attention to the view out the windows. “Aye. Esme is creative—too creative for her own good, as well as ours sometimes.” He barely shook his head, his amused expression fading to a tensed, unreadable look. “AndAthair’s fine—just a wee bit too old and muddled in the head t’weather many of Esme’s storms.”

He pulled open one of the doors and gallantly waved a hand toward the charmingly rustic cushioned settee and pair of rocking chairs situated in one corner of the wide redwood deck. “Would ye care to sit outside and visit a bit before we go over our duties for the coming weeks? ’Tis a lovely fall day and I wish t’learn more about the gifted writer of the entertaining emails that gave me so many reasons to smile over the past few weeks.”

Every self-preservation alarm Sadie possessed blared out loud and clear, warning her to stay on her toes and be ready. If this was a trap, here was where he’d set the bait for whatever was going to happen that would make her wish she’d never come to North Carolina.

She slid past Alec, the heat of his nearness triggering that same wave of skin-tingling shiver bumps. Sadie avoided his gaze and hurried out onto the deck. The scent of him washed across her. Fresh-scrubbed male. Clean and enticing with just a hint of the wild, as though he’d bathed in the middle of the woods in preparation for the hunt.

Sadie held her breath to stave off the urge to back up, lean in close, and take another long, appreciative sniff of the broad chest that had just been mere inches from her nose. She clenched her fists so tightly all her knuckles popped. Glancing at the cozy gathering of seats in the corner, she barely paused before veering toward the other side of the deck.Don’t think so. No way can I sit still.

She took refuge next to the wood railing hemming in the porch. Perfect spot. She could stand here, enjoy the view, and act like she had everything under control. She could do this. She wasn’t all that experienced when it came to men, but she was no fool.I’ve got this.

Sadie rested her forearms atop the wide plank and leaned to peer down into the woods below. “It’s beautiful here. You are a very lucky man, Mr. MacDara.”

The wood of the railing creaked as Alec leaned on it next to her. “I prefer ye call me Alec—aye?” He took a slow look around the area, then nodded toward the blazing reds, oranges, and yellows of the autumnal wood. Here and there the vibrant colors were interrupted with the rich green of lush pines pushing their way toward the sun. “And yes—I’ve been blessed with many opportunities and the good health to work hard enough to make them a success.”

Hmm…did I word that wrong? Sound as though I thought him entitled?Sadie inched sideways, surreptitiously putting a little more space between them. “I didn’t mean to sound as though I thought you hadn’t earned”—she waved a hand toward the wood—“all this. The park. The lodge…I mean the keep.”Great. And now the babbling begins. Just stop.“Sorry. I don’t always word things right—at least not when I’m talking out loud.”That sounded awesome. Maybe I should tell him when I’m writing, I’m great. I edit out the stupid—talking, not so much.

Alec’s gaze dropped to his arms propped atop the railing, then he subtly shifted sideways, closing the distance she’d just placed between them. Without looking at her, he nudged his shoulder against hers. “Rest easy, lass,” he whispered. His voice vibrated with a deep, soothing tone she’d replay in her dreams. He sidled a glance at her and grinned. “Ye’ve nothing to fear from me. I swear it.”

Maybe if she grabbed this Scottish bull by the horns and got all her misconceptions out in the open, she’d feel better. She hadn’t had this bad a case of uneasiness in years and she didn’t like it a damn bit. She faced Alec, keeping one hand planted on the wood railing. “If I have nothing to fear from you—no worries about ulterior motives or…” she struggled to pick the right words “…or whatever.” She released her choke hold on the railing and flipped one hand in the air. “Then tell my why—straight out and in plain terms: why am I here?” She pointed at him, taking great pride in the fact that she’d managed to keep her hand from trembling. Confidence bolstered, she jabbed her finger in the air. “Why am I here with you for the next six weeks?”

Alec straightened from his relaxed lean against the wood railing, his gaze focused on the colorful tapestry of the acreage of trees surrounding the keep. His smile was gone, replaced by an unexplainable look. He seemed lost in a daydream—a daydream that had him puzzled.

“Thirty-one emails,” he finally said with a decisive dip of his chin.

“What?”

He turned and faced her, dead serious, with a look in his eyes that made her forget to breathe. “Thirty…one…emails,” he repeated, enunciating each word slowly and clearly to prevent the slightest hint of misunderstanding.

Sadie traced her fingers along the rough grain of the wood plank, willing the board to give up all its secrets about Alec MacDara. The disturbingly handsome man was so damned unreadable. “What do you mean by thirty-one emails?” she finally asked, while staring down at the rough-grained board and tracing the pattern with her fingernail.

“Ye asked why ye were here.” Alec leisurely turned around and leaned back against the railing. Fingers laced together, he folded his hands across his middle and propped his elbows on the sturdy banister behind him. “ ’Tis because of yer emails. Yer way with words.” His voice dropped lower, took on a quiet sultry tone—and sounded almost…lonely. He looked at her—not just a glance, but something more. His gaze heated, growing more personal and soul-piercing by the second. “Each email ye sent drew me in—touched me in ways I canna explain. I heard yer laughter in each line. Felt yer joy. I glimpsed yer heart in those words. Saw their purity. Learned yer truths.”

He reached out and smoothed a curl of hair away from her cheek and tucked it back behind her ear. The unexpected gentleness of the touch stole her breath and made her heart double-thump with a giddy rhythm.

“The more I read, the more I realized I needed time with the writer of those messages. I needed time with you,” he finished, his expression almost…hopeful.

“They were just emails,” Sadie whispered, mesmerized by the softness of his touch and the turbulent storm of emotions she saw in his eyes. A hungry loneliness was reflected in their depths and Alec no longer attempted to hide it.

She’d written the first missive in standard marketingsnag their attentionstyle. But then after a spark of intuitiveness—or maybe what some might call divine guidance—she’d been inspired to write the rest of the emails as though she were clueing in a long-lost friend on all the silliness of the fool’s-gold glitter of Hollywood. The more she wrote, the more she envisioned the reader as a cherished pen pal she hoped to meet someday.

Delia would have fired her on the spot if she’d read any of those emails. Of course, Sadie had also figured the reader of the emails was some grossly underpaid assistant working in small-town North Carolina—maybe even a woman her own age—lonely and looking for a friend. Sadie tried not to flounder even deeper into the mire of need reflected in Alec’s gaze. She had so figured this all wrong. Who would’ve thought Alec MacDara would have read those emails himself? All thirty-one of them.

“J-just emails,” she hesitantly stammered. Her alarm bells clanged even louder, and a sense of imminent danger surged through her like the burn of good whisky. “I thought I was sending them to…y-your assistant. You know…a counterpart. Somebody on my level. They weren’t addressed to the CEO. I wouldn’t have used such silly words to the…b-boss of the company.” The way Alec’s tempting mouth quirked to one side as his full lips barely parted made it difficult to speak intelligently, and even more impossible to think.

“They were no’ just silly words.” Alec leaned in close, barely frowning as he slid his fingers from behind her ear and cautiously cradled her cheek in his large, callused hand. “Ye ken that I mean ye no harm, Sadie Williams,” he said, ever so slowly drawing her in. “Ye ken that for certain…aye?”

Ken?She had a pretty good idea whatkenmeant but damn sure didn’t trust herself to answer. At the moment, standing upright with a minimal level of composure instead of either tossing caution to the wind and climbing aboard this delectable Scottish mountain of a man or turning and running like hell in the other direction was all she could manage. She wet her lips and focused all her senses on the totally kissable mouth hovering so close she could almost feel the velvety heat of their pending touch.Yeah. I’m so not running.

“Ye dinna answer,” he whispered, shifting ever so slightly and brushing a hand down her arm from shoulder to elbow with an awkward, hesitant stroke. “I do mean ta win yer trust,” he finally said. Then he fell silent, his mouth still excruciatingly close to hers. All she needed to do was lean in—just lean in a little closer.No. He needs to do it.She felt the warm, soft brush of his breath against her skin. Sadie held her breath. She waited and hoped like hell that Alec MacDara would finish what he had so artfully started. He needed to be the one to kiss her. Not the other way around.

Alec’s hand that had been hesitantly brushing up and down her arm paused just above her elbow and squeezed, holding tight as though he suddenly feared she was about to turn and run. Running had left the list of options at least a dozen heartbeats ago. She wasn’t running anywhere. She wasn’t about to leave until she figured out what the devil was going on. And she also wasn’t about to miss what promised to be the best kiss of her life.

Just one kiss. No harm in a little kiss.Sadie risked sliding a hand to the center of Alec’s firm chest, tracing her way up the ridge of buttons tight between his pecs, until she brushed her fingertips along the heat of his bare throat. His pulse was pounding out a rhythm just as thunderously scattered as hers.Damn. He’s as scared shitless as I am.

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