GRAHAM WOULD NEVER forget the feeling he had when Christina walked through him. How remarkable it was. Yet there was something else as well.

Something unexplainable.

Until that moment—when he turned back and saw the shine of the ring for the first time in this strange in-between place—he didn’t know what it was. Yet when their eyes met this time, he finally did. He finally felt the time loop they were caught in. More than that, he, at last, understood the astounding feeling he had. It was the wondrous sensation of not just two hearts beating together in synchronization but three.

It was the feeling of his family coming together for the very first time.

Him, Christina and their child.

“It was never Robert ye were promised to,” he whispered, caught in a dream with her, caught in some strange limbo. “It was our child and me...”

He was certain of it.

Moments later, when everything faded including her, he tried not to panic. Utter darkness surrounded him. As dark as it had been in the cave when they first travelled back to Bannockburn.

Where was she?

Where was he?

Would he ever see her again? His unborn child? Or was he forever caught in the jaws of a closed time loop? Lost in nothingness. Trapped in a curse.

He refused to give into fear though. Instead, he focused on what was most important. Christina and his unborn child. A family he couldn’t imagine living without though he had only just met them.

Moments later he swore he saw her ring flicker in the darkness.

Seconds passed before the flicker became brighter and brighter until it was blinding and he had to close his eyes.

“Graham?” Christina whispered.

When his eyes shot open, she was standing in front of him by the barn. Rona was there, but all he could see was Christina.

“Graham?” Unsure, she looked at him. “Is that you? Really you?” She shook her head, hope mixed with fear in her eyes. “Or the past you?”

He had no idea what she meant. Nor did he understand how they had ended up outside the barn when the last thing he remembered they were in bed. But he didn’t care. Not one bit.

“Aye, lass, ‘tis me.” He closed the distance and pulled her into his arms. “It’s always been me...us...”

When he cupped her cheeks and kissed her deeply, everything began to swirl around them, and the pressure dropped. They were time traveling again. Thankfully, this time they landed right back where he hoped they would.

In front of the fire in MacLomain Castle’s great hall.

They were home.

“Well, it’s about damned time!” came a voice that made them smile against each other’s lips before they reluctantly pulled apart.

Christina offered his mother a warm smile. “Good to see you again, Nicole.”

“I know.” Nicole planted her hands on her hips and shook her head. “And I see you’re still kissing my son.”

Christina cocked her head, grinned and didn’t hold back. “Would you have it any other way?”

“I don’t suppose it’d matter if I would,” his ma muttered, though there was an approving grin in her voice.

“Of course it would.” Christina winked. “Or at least I’d tell you as much.”

Ma’s eyes widened before she chuckled, shook her head and ended up embracing Christina before him. The next thing he knew more and more kin were embracing them. His sister and da, uncles, and aunts. Milly and Adlin. Even Jim and Blair were there.

It was a grand family reunion that didn’t make much sense.

“Conall and Lindsay would have been here too but ‘twas best they stayed at Hamilton Castle for now,” Adlin explained. “Though the countryside isnae as bad as it was, ‘tis still verra unstable.”

“Aye,” Uncle Grant said as he and Aunt Sheila joined the festivities. “But we refused to miss your homecoming.”

“You make it sound like we’ve been gone a while,” Christina said.

“A few months,” Milly said, shocking them as they sat in front of the fire and were handed whisky. “Caught, it seems, in some residual magic plus darker things.”

Graham frowned, pulling Christina down onto his lap. “Darker things?”

“Aye,” Adlin said. “By the sounds of it, possibly a second warlock.”

“By the sounds of it?” Christina frowned and shook her head. “I barely understand what just happened so how can you?”

Grant tapped his temple and eyed her and Graham then her stomach. “’Twas a lot of magic at work. Good and bad. And kin connects with kin in times such as these.” He winked. “No matter how young.”

“All the more reason you should be drinking this instead of that,” Nicole said, beaming as she switched Christina’s whisky for water then ducked away. Graham couldn’t remember the last time he had seen his mother so happy outside of having Rona back in her life. His da either for that matter.

He suspected they were thrilled not only about Christina’s pregnancy but that he and Christina were finally home. He could tell by the thankful looks his kin were casting them that they had given everyone a good scare being gone so long. Lost in a time loop that not even Adlin or Grant could access.

“We thought it seemed almost too easy when the first warlock was killed,” Adlin explained. “So we werenae all that surprised to discover a second one might be at work. A very tricky, well disguised back-up plan if you will.”

“God,” Christina whispered and shook her head. “Graham and I thought there might be a second warlock too.” She frowned. “A back-up plan? As in perhaps Jessie’s back-up plan because she certainly seemed to control the first warlock.”

“Mayhap,” Graham responded before anyone else could. “But if ‘twas her, keep in mind she might have been trying to warn us about that one too, lass. Dinnae forget our strange dream when we saw her and the warlock flee the Stonehenge.” He arched his brows. “A warlock that you said was long gone when we arrived there.” He shrugged. “If she truly meant us harm dinnae you think a warlock would have ambushed us at Mystery Hill the moment we left Robert’s encampment and travelled forward in time?”

“Good chance,” she murmured, resting her hand on her belly protectively. “So what was the point of a time loop then? My dream and then starting the same day over again?” She swallowed as her eyes flickered over Aunt Cassie and Uncle Logan before they landed on Grant and Adlin. “Because I’m pretty sure I was warned or better yet helped by a...relative of yours beforehand.”

When both appeared confused, she described the dream. How the man looked and sounded. What he had said.

“Bloody hell,” Rona whispered, tears in her eyes. “That sounds just like Fraser...minus the beard.”

His aunt and uncle nodded, hope in their eyes.

“And he was where?” Grant asked, perplexed. “At sea?”

Christina nodded. “Most definitely.”

“On a Viking ship?” Adlin said.

“I’m not sure.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry.” Confusion lit her eyes. “What do you think he meant? Don’t forget my promise to a Highland Laird?”

“My guess is your promise was always to protect your unborn child,” Grant said softly. “I would also venture to say that someday he will be a chieftain...or a Highland Laird.”

“He?” Graham smiled broadly at Christina. “We’re having a son.”

“I know, I heard.” She smiled just as broadly, their eyes lingering on one another’s before she looked at Grant and Adlin again. “So how does our son tie into it all? When I first ran through Graham, I couldn’t have been pregnant.” She shook her head. “And when I dreamt of Robert I definitely wasn’t.”

“Aye, but ‘twas all part of the same time loop, was it not?” Adlin reminded. “A time flux or loop in part created by Conall and Lindsay and I’m beginning to think, by Jessie as well. Then, as it turns out, the unforeseeable addition of your wee one. He would have most certainly assisted in helping you two come together.”

“Wow,” Christina whispered. “That’s pretty epic.”

When her eyes met Graham’s to see what he thought, he only nodded and rested his hand on her stomach. It was hard to believe she was already pregnant. That it had happened that fast. But he could not be happier. “As I believe two wise arch wizards recently said, anything is possible.”

“We are quite wise,” Grant murmured, amused. “Arenae we?”

“Aye, old friend,” Adlin agreed, chuckling.

Meanwhile, Christina’s eyes stayed with Graham’s. “Anything is possible.” A soft smile graced her lips as she looked down. “Seeing how I’m on birth control.”

Yet she still worried as her eyes went from Grant to Adlin again. “So what about Jessie? Was she really there in the twenty-first century? Was the second warlock truly killed though I never saw it?” She frowned. “And what about Bryce, Sven, and Aðísla? Have they returned?” She shook her head. “And who do you suppose provided our clothes when Graham and I travelled to the future after we...” she cleared her throat, not mentioning the sex. “After the Battle of Bannockburn was set back on track.”

“Nay, none have returned, I’m afraid,” Grant replied. “As to what you witnessed in the twenty-first century, ‘tis hard to know but my guess is you defeated any hold the last warlock might have had on Scotland’s history by remaining true to Scotland and those you love.”

“I don’t understand.”

A warm smile came to his lips. “Anyone in your position would have grown verra angry with Jessie. Most in fact. You had your friend right in front of you. Someone you thought had caused so much harm. Yet you didnae lash out.” He gave her a pointed look. “You wanted to but you didnae. You remained calm and kept the bigger picture firmly in mind. That evil could be at work. Therefore, Graham’s or any of our lives could be at risk.”

She nodded though a frown tugged at her lips. “I really did want to kick her butt and strangle some answers out of her.”

“Had you, things might have gone verra differently,” Adlin responded. “Keeping that fire burning and not attacking Jessie when you had the opportunity were two verra wise decisions, lass.”

“Why the fire?” Graham asked, his interest piqued. “And though I’m glad she didnae attack Jessie, what makes you say that with such conviction?”

“Sven,” Grant provided. “He felt fire was verra much connected to Jessie. That she has some sort of control over it.” His eyes flickered between them. “Seeing how you often travelled through time together when near a fire, ‘tis verra likely she controlled your adventure.” He shook his head. “Which means, assuming she had some dark control over the time loop, had you hurt her, the loop might have been destroyed taking you with it.”

“Or released from it,” Adlin remarked and frowned. “Though ‘twould not have been good to test that theory.”

“So if we’re to ken things correctly,” Graham said. “If Jessie controlled our time traveling and adventure, then would it not stand to reason she was trying to bring Christina and me together? Which means she would have been helping Scotland, not hurting it?”

“It seems more probable than not,” Grant murmured. “I suppose we will just have to wait and see where your friend really stands in the end, Christina.”

“I guess we will,” Christina said softly, frowning. “Still, could the last bout of evil really have been that easy of a test?”

“You underestimate just how hard that test would have been for most,” Grant said softly. “You showed great restraint and a sound mind. One that’s valued among our kind and most welcome in our family, lass.”

“Our kind,” Christina murmured, grinning a little. “You make me sound pretty important.”

“Because you are,” Grant said. “A wise warrior with godlike abilities who can find reason and restraint in battle. Within what some might have considered their darkest hour. Yet still, you were a warrior who knew when to fight and when not to. ‘Tis a rarity indeed.”

Christina kept with that charming grin of hers. “If you say so, sugar.”

Yet Graham knew as he held her close and they continued enjoying everyone’s company, that Grant’s words had meant a great deal. That being accepted so readily into the family meant a lot as well.

“Just one more question and I'm almost afraid to ask,” Christina said, her worried eyes flickering over everyone.

“What is it, lass?” Adlin asked, clearly concerned.

“Scotland.” She trembled ever-so-slightly. “Does it still exist in the twenty-first century?”

“Aye.” Grant nodded. “It does.” His eyes grew troubled. “Why do you ask?”

Though they had heard about the picture in Jessie’s book thanks to Jim, Blair, and Rona, they were surprised to hear Scotland had vanished on Jim’s cell phone the next morning.

“That morning never happened, Christina,” Jim said. “Not like that.” He shook his head. “You had to have been living your own reality in your time loop because when we woke up the next morning, you and Graham had vanished. Again.” He offered her a look of reassurance. “No worries though because Scotland definitely still existed.”

Relief lit her eyes. “I can’t tell you how happy I am to hear that.”

“Aye.” Adlin offered a wide smile. “See, you really did save Scotland by handling the remainder of your time loop so well. Because as Grant said, had you handled it differently, things might have changed in dire ways indeed.”

“Well, I’m just glad it worked out.” Her eyes warmed as they met Graham's. “More than you know.” She looked at the others again as one more thing occurred to her. “So why do you suppose Jessie’s cryptic words kept popping up through our journey? Death to those who fly. Death to Scotland.”

“I’m afraid that remains a mystery,” Adlin replied. “But I strongly suspect it has more to do with Bryce’s adventure and mayhap Sven’s. ‘Twill be them that gets to the bottom of things once and for all.” A renewed smile lit his face as he eyed everyone. “Until then, we will rejoice in the fact that Scotland still exists far into the future and that things, no matter how small, do seem to be improving for the better.” He nodded, pleased. “So we are making a difference.”

Everyone agreed, content enough for now to enjoy the reunion. Graham and Christina visited for a little while but not too long. He could tell she was drained from their traumatic experience and could use some rest. Besides, he wanted to spend some time alone with her.

Before they left, however, Adlin took him aside and put his mind at ease.

“The MacLauchlin clan have heard of Kenna’s unfortunate outcome,” he said respectfully as he met Graham’s eyes. “The remainder of the clan is now safely within our castle walls under orders of protection from ye, Cousin. He who would have been their new chieftain had ye married Kenna.”

Graham nodded, grateful. “Thank ye, Adlin, but ye should have told them that ‘twas ye that saw to their safety.”

“Why?” He clasped Graham’s shoulder and shook his head. “When ‘twas clearly my first-in-command who has all along.”

“Why did you never say anything if you knew?” Graham asked softly.

“Because I didnae feel ‘twas my place to interfere. I knew well the dynamics between ye, Kenna and Fraser.” He shook his head. “’Twas enough that I became chieftain when ‘twas clear ye would have welcomed such a position. Not out of a need for power but because ye truly love our people.” His eyes stayed with Graham’s. “So I suppose in matters of the heart, I wanted ye to remain in charge.” His voice grew softer. “I could only protect Kenna so much against the chieftains she was promised to. She needed a marriage alignment with a powerful clan.”

“Which you always knew would be ours one way or another,” Graham murmured.

“Aye.” Wisdom lit Adlin’s eyes. “And we both know ye would not have allowed her to be married off to one of our clansmen. Ye cared about her and Fraser far too much to let that happen.”

“Aye,” Graham agreed, realizing it could have only ever gone the way it did.

“I should go see to her people. ‘Tis the least I can do,” Graham began before Adlin shook his head and cut him off. “Ye’ll do no such thing. The MacLauchlins are well cared for, and ye can visit with them later. Now go see to yer new lass and wee one, aye?”

Though tempted to argue he recognized the stubborn notch of Adlin’s chin. He would not budge on his request. Probably for the best considering Christina was waiting for Graham and she needed rest. Not to mention he was eager to see her again though it had been mere minutes.

“Aye, Cousin.” Graham embraced Adlin and was about to head off but paused, wondering. “Did ye ever discover who shot that arrow at my ma then?”

“Nay, but ‘twas an interesting thing.” A twinkle met Adlin’s eyes. “Not long after that, the arrow vanished but not before several people claimed it glowed first.”

“Glowed?” Graham didn’t have to consider that long. “Like mayhap a godly sort of glow?”

“Aye, I would say so.” Adlin kept grinning. “If I didnae know better I would say Fionn Mac Cumhaill might have verra well been behind it. A means to push Christina to embrace her gift for all to see.”

“And, in effect, fuel the continuation of a journey we needed to see through,” he murmured. “Not only with each other but with Kenna.”

“That would be my guess,” Adlin agreed before he ushered Graham along. “Now go be with yer lass, aye?”

“Aye.” Graham grinned before he did just that.

“They never did answer my question about who they thought might’ve left our clothes at Mystery Hill,” Christina remarked as she and Graham made their way upstairs a few minutes later.

“Because ‘tis likely they dinnae know,” he responded. “Any more than we know who provided clothing for us at the tavern on Conall and Lindsay’s adventure. Whilst some speculated it might have been Adlin’s sister, Iosbail, from the afterlife, others felt it might have been Jessie.”

She frowned. “Why Jessie?”

“Because ‘tis strongly suspected she was at the tavern that night caring for Grant when he was wounded,” Graham reminded. “Though ‘tis truly hard to know.”

“It sure is,” she agreed softly. “Like Grant said, I suppose we’ll just have to wait and see how this mystery unravels. In the end, is our friend our enemy or our enemy our friend?”

Graham offered no response but knew she was right. Either way, he had no intention of discussing it anymore right now. He was happier than he imagined possible that she was so happy as he showed her his chambers.

Their chambers hopefully.

“Well, where else am I gonna sleep?” she remarked, reading his thoughts as she grinned at him. “I know we didn’t plan the whole pregnancy thing, but I was really hoping...”

That’s all he let her get out before he pulled her into his arms and kissed the words right out of her. He kept kissing her long and hard, making sure his actions got through just in case his words didn’t.

Yet when he said them, he cupped her cheeks, stared into her eyes and made sure she knew just how much he meant them. “I’d never assume or expect you to stay in medieval Scotland because you’re carrying my child, lass. ‘Tis your right to do as you please.” He tilted his head. “But you should know that nothing would make me happier than you staying.”

He remained perfectly honest because she deserved it.

“Though I will be around more often than before ‘tis important that I continue to help out surrounding clans.” He hoped he didn’t drive her away with his words. “’Tis important that I dinnae abandon them and hide behind these castle walls.”

“I agree,” she said readily. “Don’t forget how I passed the majority of my time back home.”

“Running for charity,” he said.

“Right,” she replied. “And I don’t intend to stop doing that here. I just have to figure out how to put my gift to good use and continue helping those in need.”

“Aye,” he agreed, proud. “After the birth.”

“I’m not sure I said it quite like that.”

“But ‘tis surely how you meant it.”

“I meant it like I said it, Graham.” She frowned. “I want to help.”

“And you will,” he conceded. “I dinnae doubt it.”

“Great.” She perked up. “So we understand each other?”

He frowned. “We do?”

“Ye willnae win this argument son,” his father’s amused words floated through his mind. “I have been there, done that.”

“Damn straight he has,” his mother’s words echoed, just as amused. “And he never did win that argument.”

“We will speak of this later, aye, lass?” he murmured to Christina.

“You bet we will, handsome.”

His parent’s chuckles echoed away as he scooped her up and at long last, brought her to his bed.

“So you’ll be staying,” he whispered as he came down over her and their eyes held. “You’ll remain with me?”

“Of course I’ll stay with you,” she whispered back, giving him the one word he had been waiting for. “Always.”

After that, they forgot all about talking and moved on to much more pleasurable things.

Things born of friendship and the wonders it could lead to.

The country was still in rough shape, but at least it was on the map again. It existed. Loved ones were lost but wouldn’t be forgotten. Wrongs had been righted, and famous battles won.

History was once more on track, and everything was almost perfect...

“Did I mention I love you, Graham MacLomain?” she whispered in his ear.

There it was. Now things were perfect.

“Aye?” He met her eyes. “’Tis good that.”

“I know.” She lifted her brows. “What about you?”

He grinned. “You mean ye?”

She met his grin. “No, I mean you.”

They laughed as he flipped her and proceeded to show her all night long how much he loved her, his murmured words making her smile.

“Aye, lass, like I said before and will never stop saying, I love ye...and I love you too.”

The End