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And that had been the extent of Tavish’s words of wisdo her In thehad wor her around the property when she walked or ran, chasing after the deer with her when she could hunt, and curling at the foot of her bed as she slept She knew that her rooed to break in, the dog wouldn’t be able to wake her Still, for the first ti creature in close proxi instead of nerve-wracking Brigid was grateful for the coentle beast

She walked along the edge of the lake, stripping off her sweater to play with the gold fire that had beco, its presence had beco Fire was her armor Her protector She felt its residence under her skin like a faid let the amnis run down the back of her neck, over her shoulders and arms, until it bloo the twin globes of fire hang over the water and reflect in the dark ripples of the lake Madoc grew excited as she played, yipping and dancing in circles like the overgrown puppy he was

She focused on the fla a rise in the hill, juht

"Madoc?" What was he on about? He never reacted like this when Tavish was approaching "What is it, you an to pick up a slow beat as she saw the ground shift under Madoc’s feet What the--

The ground burst open with a shout as Madoc pounced Brigid ran over, her ar She ih and the loud voice

"I heard you barking from twenty feet below, you mad hound! Haven’t you ever heard of the ele you on any missions of stealth, you can be sure of that"

His dark red hair was flaked with dirt, and his skin was black withhis vivid blue eyes She broke into a smile just as he rose to his feet She started toward hier

"One rin Then he stripped off his shirt, tossed it onto grass and dove into the water with glee Madoc barked along the edge of the lake, waiting for hisnow Did he remember it had been a year? Did he coht from her mind Of course he didn’t co out for her Like… a priest Or a friend Which he was A priest A friendly priest

Then he rose fro from his arms as he pushed back his unruly wet hair Rivulets ran over the dark freckles on his shoulders and down his torso Thick muscles flexed as the cool moon reflected off the solid planes of his chest Dark red hair ran in a line down his flat sto wet trousers that covered his hips and ain by his size Caras enormous Tall as a small tree and solid as the earth he controlled He should have been inti But he wasn’t

He was back

Damn it

Priest! Herlike that Had Carwyn always had so many muscles? There seemed to be more than the last time she had seen hi out? He strode toward her with a s?"