HE SHOULD HAVE stayed in medieval Scotland. Life would be so much simpler.

Or would it?

Since the moment Conall and Lindsay defeated their warlock, and the skirmishes at Earnside and Happrew happened as they should, Graham had been braced for the inevitable. Either he or his cousin Bryce was up next.

That meant they were destined for a lass from the future.

Most specifically, a Broun.

Though he had played along thus far when first Milly traveled back in time then Lindsay, he knew time was running out. Eyes were narrowing on him, curious to see what he would do next considering he had already made contact with Christina. Though he had done his best to navigate around things, who knew a lass would end up running straight through him?

A lass he figured for sure he would be able to get out of his mind.

A lass he could never be with.

Even so, Christina was a Broun. So she was meant for one of the MacLomain men, and he needed to figure out which one. Therefore, when Uncle Grant asked Rona to go to the future to help Blair keep an eye on things, he discreetly followed. Had he not, Bryce would have come and who knew what that might have meant for any innocent lass here.

After all, dragons were unpredictable.

Or so he told himself as he watched Christina interact with first Rona then Jim. When she headed inside, he made sure Rona and Blair kept Jim busy so he could finally meet her on his own terms. What he didn’t expect as he used his magic to enter the house undetected and bypassed the lass sitting in front of the fire was to find Christina such as she was.

The moment he stood at the threshold of the kitchen and laid eyes on her, all his magic fizzled away. Her back was to him, and she was clearly enjoying herself. He couldn’t stop a small smile as he watched her dance. Her shoulders bobbed,, and her hips swayed as she cut vegetables. If that wasn’t entertaining enough, she hummed to music in between endless mutterings.

There was no way to know how long he stood there mesmerized. It was clear she was a happy spirit like him, and she wasn’t about to let all this heavy true love connection stuff get her down.

More confident by the moment that she was the lass for him because she was surely too open-minded to commit, he continued enjoying Christina. Her clipped-up sun streaked light brown hair glowed in the sunlight streaming through the window, and she was taller than most lasses. His eyes trailed down her slim back to her tight waist right down to an arse that shot blood straight to his cock.

Bloody hell she was in good shape, wasn’t she?

When her mutters started to address him directly—or her prior meeting with him—he knew he should say something. But he was too caught up in her voice, her movements, and most certainly how good she looked from this angle. He had never been more tempted to touch a lass. To wrap his hands around her small waist, bend her forward as she kept swaying, and see what came of it. Because he didn’t doubt it would be exceptionally rewarding.

“Now your sister’s here,” she muttered. “I can’t help but find that curious, Graham.”

She was still talking to herself.

Yet he found himself responding after she spun and ran right into him.

“My sister is here,” he rumbled. “But I dinnae think ye find it all that curious, Christina.”

In that singular moment, before she stumbled back against the counter, he realized his well-laid plans might not go as smoothly as he hoped. Not when their eyes locked for the first time beyond that ethereal connection they had made before.

He had never seen such a beautiful face or eyes so fetching. Pale smoky green and shimmering, they reminded him of fog curling off the morning loch as sunlight danced over it. She had luminous sun kissed skin that almost seemed to glow. Funny, how everything about her reminded him of the sun. Its warmth and vitality. Because she certainly had plenty of that with her well-toned shapely body 

Once they began speaking, he knew he might be in even more trouble. She had a sultry drawl that made him want to keep listening. Even better? It seemed she had a sense of humor or so said their conversation about ‘you’s’ and ‘ye’s.’

Now she was in the other room seeing to the wee lass named Jessie. A lovely little thing that clearly had no use for men or even dragons. A mythical beastie she seemed all too familiar with. He listened to their conversation with his superior hearing, sure to look distracted when Christina returned.

“Sorry about that,” she murmured as she gestured at the door and offered him a charming smile. “Care to take it outside, handsome?”

“Aye.” He couldn’t help a small grin. There might be no hope for the two of them, but he liked her anyway.

Fortunately, his sister and cousin were still off poking around at the Stonehenge with Jim, so there were no distractions as he followed Christina outside. She tossed him a smile over her shoulder and headed down the drive. “C’mon, this way. Nobody except Jessie ever seems to wanna head out of this place, so we should find some privacy in this direction.”

“Ye arenae afraid to go off alone with me?” he asked. “A man ye just met?”

“Not in the least.” She eyed him over her shoulder again. “Should I be?”

“Nay.” He smiled. “Not at all, lass.”

Graham was just fine with privacy if it meant he could continue to admire her. It was only a matter of time before Bryce arrived and he hoped to get to know her a little bit better first. He wasn’t all that surprised to see she wore a Claddagh ring to match Milly’s and Lindsay’s. The gem at the center of its hand held heart was clear whereas it would eventually shine the eye color of her one true love.

That is if an evil warlock didn’t get in the way first.

He frowned as he joined Christina and watched her out of the corner of his eye. He had known her mere minutes, and already the idea of evil going anywhere near her made his insides twist.

“You look about as happy now as your sister did when I first met her,” she commented as they walked. “How come? Because scowlin’ doesn’t seem natural to you, sweetheart.” Her eyes narrowed as she considered him. “Not to say it doesn’t hold a certain appeal in a bad boy sort of way.”

He liked that she was straightforward and said what she was thinking.

Though he had far more important things to discuss with her, he found himself saying, “So ye like bad boys then?”

A sly grin curled her lips. “I’m surprised you know what that means.”

“I have a mother and aunts from the twenty-first century,” he reminded, trying to keep his eyes off her sinfully long legs. He wished more lasses from his time dressed like her. What sort of trousers were those anyway? They didn’t leave much to the imagination. Not that he was complaining.

“I’ve had a bad habit of going for the wrong kind of man in the past,” Christina continued, well aware he was discreetly admiring her based on the knowing look she shot him. “Or maybe it’s the other way around. Not quite sure.”

Now that got his attention. “So ye were a bad girl?” He couldn’t stop a wide smile. “Tell me more.”

“Me? Bad?” The corner of her lips hitched, and she winked. “Naw.” Then she shrugged. “What I meant was I never stuck around long because men always end up showing signs.”

Enthralled, he cocked his head. “Signs?”

“Yeah, signs that they can’t handle me,” she muttered, then frowned and shook her head as they continued walking. Before he had a chance to ask her what she meant by that, she flashed a smile at him. “Sorry, forget I said that, okay?”

Christina might be smiling, but he recognized the wary glint in her eyes. She had said more than intended. She had secrets, and he well understood that. So he changed the subject.

“What do ye know about everything that’s happening in my era, lass?” he asked.

“I’ve been filled in on a lot of it.” She shrugged, clearly relieved they had moved on. “I think the bigger question is how well I actually understand it.” Her eyes slid his way. “Blair and Jim shared a lot then Lindsay caught me up on what’s happened in medieval Scotland since then, but I’ll be honest...” Her voice dropped an octave. “It’s a whole lotta crazy, and I’m having trouble wrapping my mind around it.”

“Aye.” He nodded, charmed by her odd accent and the way she phrased things. “I cannae imagine what everything must seem like from yer viewpoint.”

“Scary as shit,” she said bluntly before muttering something under her breath. “But I’m doing my best to take it in stride.”

“What was that?” he asked. “I didnae quite catch what ye said in between.”

“What?” She frowned in confusion before she realized what he meant. “Oh.” She chuckled. “Old habit. I tend to apologize to my granny when I swear. She wouldn’t like it. Bit of a Bible thumper, that one.”

He nodded in understanding before resuming their original conversation. “’Tis good that you’re taking everything that’s happening in stride. I’m glad to hear it.” He eyed their surroundings. The riot of colors and the beauty of the forest lining the dirt road they walked along. “Yer not from around here, are ye?”

“Nope.” She sighed and met his eyes again. “Do me a favor?”

“Anything.” And he meant it.

“Don’t dance around information you already have to get my take on it,” she said. “Because my bet is before you arrived you already knew I was from the South and moved up here less than a year ago.”

“I did know that,” he conceded. “And yer right, I did want yer take on it. I wanted to better understand ye and mayhap yer life.” He gave her the sort of mischievous grin that made most lasses swoon. “Can ye blame me for doing my research?”

“No, I suppose not,” she replied, a small smile hovering on her lips. “Just so long as we’re honest with each other from here on out.” Her brows shot up with curiosity. “Can you do that, Graham? Can we skip all the BS I know we’re muddling through with the MacLomain, Broun connection and save-Scotland’s-history thing and just be honest with each other? Because I sure would like one person in all this that tells it to me straight.” She shrugged. “If something’s on your mind just say it, don’t dance around it.”

He couldn’t stop a smile if he tried. Where had she been all his life? Clearly not in medieval Scotland.

“Aye, lass.” He nodded and kept smiling. “I would verra much like us to be honest with each other.”

“So would I.” Her eyes lingered on his for a moment, her smile just as wide as she nodded then looked ahead again. “Good, I’m glad we got all that awkward stuff out of the way.”

Graham nodded and kept grinning. About the last thing he expected to find when he traveled to the future was a lass like Christina. It almost seemed too good to be true. She was most certainly the one that should be meant for him, and he said as much. “So will ye travel back in time with me, lass?” He gestured at the ring. “Will ye agree to be mine so we can ignite the gem’s magic, and defeat our warlock?”

Christina stopped short, a hint of amusement in her narrowed eyes. “Are you tryin’ to skip all the fun stuff to get to the boring stuff?”

“The fun stuff to get to the boring stuff?” More confused by the moment, he cocked his head. “Shouldn’t it be skip the fun stuff to get to the better stuff?”

“Not in my experience.” She chuckled, following his meaning. “Though I’ll say up front I’m happy that it has been for you.” That same smirk still hovered on her lips. “So there’s been nothing but flirting, fun, happiness and then great sex with all your women, huh?”

Maybe not now but most certainly at one time. So he kept being honest.

“Aye.” He winked. “Verra good sex.”

“Hmm.” She twisted her lips and eyed him up and down with appreciation again. “I really do get it.”

They met each other’s smiles, not a bit of discomfort between them as they discussed things that would be entirely inappropriate with any lass from his time. More than that, anything he would ever talk so casually about with a lass he just met.

“So back to fun stuff not becoming better stuff betwixt us as we move forward together and try to save my country.” He considered her. “Are ye up for it, lass?”

She seemed to contemplate it as she continued eying him. “So let me get this straight. You want to skip all the love and sex and see if we can get out of this ring-binding thing while we pretend to be together?”

“More the pity on the sex part but aye,” he said. “What about ye? Do ye want to move forward with me and take control of our own destiny rather than have anyone or,” he glanced at her ring, “anything dictate it for us?”

She crossed her arms over her ample enough chest and tapped her foot as she thought about it. “Y’know what, Graham, I reckon I do.” She shook her head. “But can it be done? Can we be together without actually being together?”

“I think ‘tis best that we give it a try.” He nodded, more sure of this quickly hatched plan by the moment. “Just as long as ye realize we cannae truly be together.”

“That sounds doable.” Yet he saw the curiosity in her eyes. “So what gives? Are you in love with someone your kin has forbidden?” Her eyes rounded in intrigue. “Secretly married?”

“Is it so important to know?” He remained perfectly honest with her. “Because I would rather not share quite yet.” Graham issued his most charming smile. “Right now, ‘twould be best if, by the time we return to the house, we could say we’re smitten and desire one another.” He shook his head. “And no one else.”

Christina’s full, perfectly shaped lips twisted as she considered his offer. “What’ll happen if we don’t?” Her foot tapped a little faster. “Is Bryce gonna want me?” She cocked her head. “And is he a real dragon?”

“Half dragon,” he said, sure to sound grave. “But aye, the MacLeod can easily shift into a ferocious beastie.” He shook his head. “One that is frightening to behold.”

A little smirk returned to her lips as she listened to him. “You’re exaggerating, aren’t you?”

“Nay.” His brows flew up. “I’ve seen my cousin embrace his dragon, quite recently in fact, and ‘twas terrifying.”

Her smile didn’t budge, and her bonnie eyes never wavered from his. “You’re determined to play this up I see.” She stepped a bit closer, her tone that of a co-conspirator as she looked right then left before she met his eyes again. “All right, I’m game.” She pointed between them. “You and me. How do we go about it without everyone knowing we’re trying to trick ‘em?” She held up her hand between them and eyed the ring. “And what about this?”

“I think, for starters, we let my cousins see how intense the attraction is betwixt us already.” He nodded. While he had intended to spend more time getting to know her, it really wasn’t necessary now. She was on board with deceiving everyone, and that’s exactly what he needed.

“Wow, glad to see you’re decisive,” she commented, but he could tell she approved. “Just wondering...won’t your kin see right through it? Especially your sister?”

“Nay, they havenae been around me enough to know better,” he provided.

“Ah.” She gave him a knowing look. “So you really are off with lots of women.” Her look turned sly. “Or one extra special top secret mystery gal.”

“I didnae say that,” he denied.

“You didn’t have to,” she said with approval, eying him over again. “Like I said, it makes sense.”

He smiled. “Thank ye.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Yer quite bonnie yerself,” he said, comfortable with how frank they were with each other.

She grinned, and said, “Hell if I don’t know it,” before she promptly apologized to her granny for cursing.

“So we are in agreement then?” he said, still dishing out his most charming smile though he knew he didn’t have to. “We were smitten the moment we met, and refuse to be with anyone else.”

“That sounds about right.” She held out her hand. “Walk back with me authentic-like then?”

“’Twould be my pleasure.” He slipped his hand into hers, caught off guard by how soft it felt. “What will we say when we get back? We’ve only known each other for a verra short time.”

“Isn’t that all it takes?” Christina gave him a pointed look as she wiggled her ring finger. “From what I’ve learned, this thing’s supposed to declare us together so why don’t we let it?”

Intrigued, he murmured, “Go on.”

“Well, who says we don’t see this gem matching your eyes from the get go?” She peered at it mockingly and squinted. “Not sure what you see, but it’s a rich dark brown as far as I can tell.” She grinned at him. “The exact same shade as your eyes, I’d say.”

Something about her smiling at him made it impossible to do anything but smile in return.

“Aye.” He nodded, peering at it. “’Tis verra much the shade of my eyes.”

She chuckled and shook her head. “I thought meeting you and facing this whole MacLomain, Broun thing was gonna be a lot harder,” she said. “And a whole lot scarier.” Relief lit her eyes. “But it’s not.” Her smile only grew warmer as their eyes held. “Thanks for that, Graham. For making this feel so normal.”

“Aye, my thanks to ye as well,” he replied, feeling the same way about her. “’Tis no easy thing knowing yer expected to fall in love. ‘Tis unnatural in some ways, in my opinion.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” she exclaimed and shook her head. “I still find it hard to believe Mil and Linds fell so hard so fast. Sure, maybe in Mil’s case but Linds is a huge stretch. She swore up and down she’d never hook up with a guy. Not like that.” Her eyes met his as they walked. “You saw it all happen, didn’t you? First Mil and Adlin then Linds and Conall?”

“Aye, a good part of it in both cases.”

“And?” She watched him closely. “Did it seem unnatural?” Her eyes narrowed. “What you saw happen between my friends and your cousins? Were the connections they made somehow against their will?”

“Och, nay.” He shook his head. “What I saw betwixt my kin and yer friends was genuine. ‘Twas verra real from nearly the moment they met.” His eyes stayed with hers. “But such cannae happen with me. ‘Tis important ye ken that.”

“Ken?”

“Understand,” he explained.

“Ah.” She nodded. “I ken then. Totally get it. No worries.”

Based on the look in her eyes, she meant it, and he couldn’t be more grateful.

“So what happens next?” she asked.

“After we reconnect with Rona, Blair, and Jim, we travel back in time.”

She flinched. “Are you sure there isn’t any way we could pull this off from right here in New Hampshire?”

“Nay, Christina.” He stopped and made sure her eyes stayed with his, so she understood how serious he was. “Ye face many things, lass. Love being the least of the threats.”

“Right.” She sighed. “Evil.”

“Aye, and ‘tis verra real,” he said. “That’s why ‘tis so important to leave and return to Adlin and Grant. They are the strongest of us all and ‘tis best to travel alongside them if possible.”

“And where is it we’ll be traveling again?”

He could tell she was trying to seem unaffected by all this. Trying to put on a brave face.

“First, if all goes as it should, to my home,” he replied. “MacLomain Castle.”

“Adlin’s castle,” she said. “Right?”

“Aye.” He nodded. “I’m his first-in-command.”

“So unlike the rest of your male cousins, you’re not a chieftain.”

“That’s right.” He grinned. “’Tis a rather simple life all things considered.”

“Somehow I doubt that,” she said softly. As her eyes lingered on his, he swore for a moment she saw deeper, that she caught a glimpse of things she should not.

Jim’s muffled words drifted through the forest, interrupting the unexpected connection. He and Graham’s kin were nearly back.

“Are ye sure yer up for this?” Graham asked her again.

“I am.” She nodded. “Just as long as you’ll stay by my side no matter what.”

He was touched by how much trust she already put in him.

“Aye.” He nodded. “I will, to the verra best of my ability. Ye have my word.”

She grinned, clearly trying to find humor rather than fear in all she faced. “You mean you have my word.”

“Nay, I mean ye have my word.” He chuckled and pulled her after him. “Come, lass. ’Tis nearly time for us to play our parts.”

They had almost reached the oak in front of the house when Rona, Blair, and Jim appeared out of the forest. Everyone’s eyes immediately fell to Graham and Christina’s hands.

It didn’t take long for their interest to turn to doubt as they approached.

“Well, that happened fast, Cousin,” Blair commented, her eyes flickering from Christina’s face to his. “Faster than usual, that is.”

“Aye.” He nodded as Jim shot Christina an odd look then headed inside. “We’re verra lucky.” He pulled her against his side and wrapped an arm around her slender shoulders, pleased by how well her height suited his. “’Twas instant betwixt us.”

“I can see that.” Blair’s eyes narrowed. “How...convenient.” Her brows drew together. “Christina’s gem still looks clear to me.”

“Aye, but it isnae,” Graham assured. “’Tis the color of my eyes.” He shrugged. “Mayhap ye dinnae see it yet because of the warlocks’ influence over its creation.” He smiled at Christina. “But my lass and I see it, and that’s all that matters.”

“Good then.” Rona smiled at them, her gaze less doubting and more interested than anything. “The gem’s glow can only help things.”

He was a little surprised his sister wasn’t more doubtful. But then, her attitude, in general, had changed since their last adventure. Though he wouldn’t call her chipper she was far less dour. Not only that but she was here in New Hampshire. Truth told, whether it was Grant asking or not, that she had finally left Conall’s side in medieval Scotland spoke volumes.

“Aye, ‘tis good the gem glows the color of Graham’s eyes,” Blair murmured, clearly not convinced. “Though I didnae think these MacLomain, Broun connections happened quite that fast.”

“Well, we’re living proof it can happen that fast,” Christina began before Jim appeared at the door, worry in his eyes as he said, “We’ve got a problem, Christina.”

Her eyes whipped his way as if she knew what was coming. “Oh, no, tell me she’s still in there...”

“Can’t do that. I’ve checked the whole damn house, and she’s gone.” He shook his head, upset. “Jessie’s nowhere to be found.”