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Her cheeks went red again She gave hi in hi has it been since you were here last?"
He let her steer the conversation back to ta the world andBut now that he was back here, the land called to him
"So this is truly a jog down memory lane"
He nodded Meic ones, but he also recollected picnics with his fa the river as their parents lazed in the sun, gazing at their boys with utter pride He re to teach thehts with them and countless tales around the fire
There'd been so hter
Before, Will hadn't re as a boy Now he recalled idyllic times with Munro-forts, hunts, chases He understood Munro's words: Reclaim your past
When Will and Chloe crossed a brook, an offshoot of the Conall River, he found hie ere seven Clan old We were convinced we'd beco-time merchants"
She smiled "Was that before or after the wheel was invented?"
His lips were curling "Nary a year after"
When they passed a flock of sheep, she cooed at the prancing laainst the laws of nature or so? Next you'll tell me fox shifters raise hens"
"Anything goes in the Lore Look at us," he said, earning another appraising look froround with her?
Once they reached the base of Mount Conall, she said, "Race you to the top?" Before he could say a word, she charged upward
He'd been so obsessed with her arse, he feared he'd neglected due attention to her legs and tiny waist To her sliraceful arht red bra
As he watched her body iven her the energy she burned today She was the picture of health, invulnerable to har
Was there any real difference between how other males provided for their mates, and how Will would? Food versus sex?
His Instinct hadn't differentiated last night, co him at once to mate her-and to provide
With Ruelle, he'd surrendered his seed, fully aware that she would have it froive it or not
With Chloe, he'd had to all but force nourishain today?
Munro had asked if Will could handle the veno her, then he'd take on her bond like a sword thrust to the chest-with regret, but valiantly
After giving her a generous head start, he followed, his easy strides eating the distance between them But at the last moment, he let her win
When she cast his became very simple
I feed her; I get days like this
Atop the peak, he dragged her back against his chest, draping his ar against him as they took in the view
He inhaled deeply of the crisp air, s the land and his mate's scent Like this, he was centered as he hadn't been in memory
Mayhap he'd never been this centered-since beco a man
She shielded her eyes fro? It's clear you like it here"
"I dinna reht Will and Chloe belonged here, and as Will gazed out, he suspected his brother e flourished near the keep over there" He pointed to the west "My family were Sentinels here"
"What does that mean?"
"We were tasked with guarding the boundary of the Woods of Murk" He indicated the forest to the south Just gazing at it made his jaw clench
"What did you guard the boundary against?"
"It was once populated with all kinds of creatures Evil ones" Understates in, and kept our kind out"
"So that's why you tensed up yesterday when you gazed out at it Are they still there?"
"Nay" Hundreds of years ago, his rage at Ruelle still burning hot, he'd yearned to make war on the Woods Soon he hadn't been the only one "When those beings got out of control-when Cerunnos were slithering into our lands to steal sheep andto venture into the Woods and hunt them down"
If Will had beenthose grisly battles
Fashioned by what he'd found in a warren in the woods
"All of those beings died in the last Accession," he said "Do you knohat that is?"
"I read about it Every five hundred years or so, fate forces different species to war Lots of death Scary stuff And it's happening now, right? Makesor so"
She had zero defenses, no Fury killer instincts or Fey speed She couldn't trace like a vampire or cast witchy spells All she had was her strehich she would never bloody use on another
"Doona fret You've got yourself a protector" A ruthless one But on the off chance that so her to defend herself Plus, intensive training would provide her a distraction, rief over the Olympics
"Good to know, protector," she said lightly, almost as if she doubted he could protect her
Or doubted he would?
"So what did you do once your Sentinel gig was over?" she asked
"When the Woods grew light once more, Munro and I were freed to leave, to see the world"
"Did you?"
"Oh, aye Every continent, many times over" It hadn't been all travel and exploration They'd loyally served King Lachlain for centuries When Lachlain had been lost to the va for him
With the loss of their king, many members of the clan had wanted to leave Scotland Will and Munro had helped the Bheinnrose
"And now back you've come," she said
He rested his chin on her head "Munro expects us to live here"
"Aren't you the chieftain of the Nova Scotia clan?"
"He's far better suited for that job I could step down Then this could be our horuff tone, insecure with this He'd never even asked a woman out on a date, much less to live with him "We could be content here"
She tensed against him "MacRieve, you don't have to say that We don't have to talk about the future Let's just enjoy the day I don't want you to say soret later"
"In other words, you doona want me to make promises I will no' keep"
"Can you understand why I'un-shy here?"
She'd accused hi liar with her Which meant she didn't believe him when he told her he would be her protector, or that they'd live here together
"I understand your hesitation" And for the first tian to sweat
See determined to avoid any deeper discussion, she asked, "What about the woods to the north? Are they empty too?"
"Legend holds that the Old Ones live there-primordial Lykae"
"What are they?"
"If Lykae are men who become wolven, primordials are wolves that become human They never hurt our kind-indeed, there are anecdotes of the to our aid But I have no' scented theret "They ht have died out"
She pointed to a distant loch with a waterfall "Is that part of Conall too?"