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Gabby went very still "How does he look at lances

"Oh, for heaven’s sake," Chloe exclaimed, "she’s as bad as I was, isn’t she, Gwen?"

"I think she ood thing the ood long girl talk"

They rode for hours It was early afternoon by the time they drew their e The sun had passedwith silent impatience

Still, no matter his mood, it was ihlands Froe, the whole vale was spread beneath them like a scooped-out bowl between bens, at the heart of which sprawled Castle Keltar, looking tiny and faraway Miles and miles of untamed, lush country stretched before them, dusted with the soft pastels of summer

Adam inhaled deeply How he loved this land He’d always understood why the Scots had fought so fiercely to keep it "Ah, she’s lovely," he said softly, "Scotia is"

"Aye," Dageus agreed

Drustan grunted, then sighed gustily, as if hours of talking and debating hadn’t done it, but Adas for him "We’ll do it, Old One," he said Gru but conceding the necessity of it

A quiet satisfaction spread through Ada to hear; the only thing that had been keeping him out on a horse, too far away frohts turned with sharp focus to Gabrielle

He knew just what gifts he would give her tonight Tonight he would finally see his ka-lyrra in so at all

Now he had seven glorious days stretching froround, with no pressing concerns Only the concern of sealing his clai her body,to experience sex in hu inside her Making her his Being the one to turn those green-gold eyes all dreamy-sexy, the one to make her whimper, the one to make her shudder with pleasure Who cared what for as he had her in his bed?

"Or, rather, not do it," Dageus was saying, when Adam tuned back in "We’ll sit back and let the walls come down And we’ll speak with our descendant Christopher and see to it he agrees"

Adaazes with unspoken thanks

"But hear this, Adam Black," Drustan added, "if all hell is to break loose a sennight hence, we’ll be looking for you to fight at our side We’ll be expecting you to have our backs, as we’ll be having yours"

Adam inhaled sharply as an emotion unfa at hie battle with theainst whatever may come And he realized that beside them and beside his petite ka-lyrra he would stand Even, if need be, against his queen

"You have my word," he said quietly

And when they both e, that uncoe pressure behind his sternuht, Gabby reflected later that afternoon as she stepped out of the shower--she’d definitely needed so away theand most of the afternoon The three of them had hit it off like old friends She hadn’t realized how desperately she’d needed to discuss things with sohts since the moment Adam had burst into her life, and so h any of it

Gwen and Chloe had helped ie, and were a lot like her friend Elizabeth: s ith big, generous hearts And over the course of the day the three of the nonstop

Gwen and Chloe had taken turns telling their stories about how they’d met their husbands, and Gabby had listened, entranced

Gwen had met Drustan first She’d been on a holiday in Scotland when she’d fallen down a ravine and plunged through the bottootten cave, only to land on an enchanted, sluhlander frouy) He’d sent her back in tieus had broken his oaths to save Drustan’s life so he and Gwen could be reunited