Midnight's Kiss (7 page)

“As you know, the days are really long this time of year. I like to take advantage of that.”

His smile was slow as it spread. “Aye, lass. And you’ll come to learn we Highlanders doona mind hard work. Or long hours. We have natural endurance we use every chance we get.”

His voice had a teasing lilt to it, but she saw the seriousness in his golden eyes as well as the sexual undertone. And how she loved his brogue. She could listen to it all day.

“It appears all your muscles are going to be needed throughout the day. I just don’t want you wasting them too soon.”

“Doona worry. I doona tire easily.”

She nodded and walked away before she did something really stupid like reach up to touch his muscles again. Or kiss him. When all she wanted to do was keep talking to him, to get close and feel the heat radiating off him. Ronnie hated herself for it, too.

The morning soon turned into noon, but she hardly noticed. She drank when a bottle of water was put in her hand, but she rarely looked up from her work.

Unless she heard Arran’s voice.

His was the only thing that could break into the growing song that occupied her mind. There were artifacts all over the land, but the ones in the area where she dug were important.

It’s the only reason they would be so loud and insistent. At least that’s what she told herself. There had been relics before who had been almost as loud and been extremely important.

What would she find this time? An ancient sword? Maybe a hidden burial chamber? She loved to guess and see if she was right when she finally did unearth it.

She just hoped it wasn’t another mass grave like the one she’d found two years ago that dated back to the Saxon invasion. There had been over thirty bodies in that grave, all of them women and children. It was those times she remembered that the UK had seen many bloody wars.

The sound of Arran’s voice pulled her gaze to him once more. A couple of times he’d come to her side and helped her move a large rock, but he kept his distance. Ronnie was thankful and angry about it all at the same time.

She finally called for lunch at half past noon. When she stood, she saw just how much progress they’d made.

“Wow,” Andy said as he came up beside her. “We’ve never dug a section so quick.”

“No,” she said, but she knew a large part was owed to Arran.

“We’ve done five times as much this morning as we did yesterday alone.”

Ronnie glanced at the other sections. “What’s the update on section three?”

“We found nothing until about thirty minutes ago, and then we found an arm bone.”

“Human?”

Andy nodded. He hated to find remains, but it was something they ran across frequently.

“Any other parts of the skeleton?” she asked.

“Possibly. I’ll let you know as soon as something is found. In section two, there’s been nothing.”

“Hmm. Keep digging the rest of the day. There might be something under all that dirt yet.”

“A bowl matching the one dating back to Rome would be nice,” Andy said as he walked away.

Ronnie drained the rest of her water. When she turned to make her way to the food tent, it was to find Arran blocking her path.

“They made you a sandwich,” he said, and held out a wrapped package.

She took it and a bag of chips. “Thanks.” Though she knew she shouldn’t, she found herself saying, “Why don’t you eat with me?”

He gave a nod and followed her to her tent. Inside, Ronnie sank onto her narrow cot and let Arran have the chair. They ate in silence for a few minutes before she couldn’t hold it in any longer.

“What do you think of your first day so far? Want to return home?”

Arran chuckled, his gaze locked on her, and finished swallowing his food. “Nay. I’m enjoying it immensely. I’m used to a lot of activity, and over the past few months, there hasna been much to do. This is just what I needed.”

“And you’re getting everyone to work, and work hard. How did you do that?”

He shrugged. “I didna do anything.”

“Where do you live in Scotland?”

He put down his sandwich and said around his food, “The Highlands, of course.”

“Of course,” she said. But she saw the look of pride and satisfaction that came over him when he spoke of the Highlands.

“Do you have a family?”

“What’s the sudden interest in my life?” he asked, though a grin played at the edges of his lips.

It was her turn to shrug. “I’m just curious to know one of Saffron’s friends. I’ve known Saffron awhile. She’s spoken of her husband and new baby a lot, and every once in a while she’ll mention something about her husband’s friends. You’d be one of those, right?”

“Aye.”

“I get the feeling you all do something important. What do you work for, MI5 or MI6? Scotland Yard, maybe?”

Arran shook his head, a half grin pulling up one side of his lips. “Nay, nothing like that. No’ sure why she thinks we’re important.”

“She said it was you all who found her.”

It didn’t go unnoticed how still Arran got at her words. “Aye,” he finally said. “What did she tell you?”

“Only that. The papers made light of her disappearance, but I saw in her face that there was much more to it. Three years is a long time to be gone. I’m so glad you all found her.”

“Us as well.”

Ronnie smiled and cracked a chip in two with her finger. “I also gather that you all are a rather tight-knit group.”

“You could say that.”

“So you can’t tell me, because you do work for the government, right?”

He leaned forward and peered at her. “Why does it matter?”

“I don’t know,” she lied. She couldn’t exactly tell him she wanted to know all there was about him because she couldn’t stop thinking about dragging him into bed with her. “I just like to figure people out, and there is so much about you that doesn’t fit together nicely like everyone else.”

“It makes me more interesting.”

That it did. “Listen, I know Saffron knows you, but … I don’t.”

“And you’re leery,” he finished for her. “I’m just here to work.”

It was time to get to the heart of things. “Things have been stolen from me in the past. I like to know the people working for me, whether they’re being paid or not. Saffron gave me her word you were a good man. Can I trust that? Should I trust that?”

“Saffron is no’ a liar. That’s the first thing you should know,” Arran said softly. “Second, I doona claim to be a good man, but if I give you my word on something, it’s my bond. I’ll work as long and as hard as you ask of me, and I give my vow I willna steal anything.”

“Thank you.” It was just what she’d been looking to hear, but she hadn’t expected to believe it in every fiber of her body.

Whoever Arran MacCarrick was, he was becoming more and more dangerous to her sanity. Too bad she needed him so desperately for the dig.

CHAPTER

SIX

Arran tossed aside another shovelful of dirt and wondered why the hell he promised Ronnie he wouldn’t steal when he had sworn to Fallon he would if it came down to it.

What a bloody damned mess he’d gotten himself into.

His family came first, and that’s what everyone at MacLeod Castle was. But it didn’t explain his need to comfort Ronnie, or vow he wasn’t going to steal.

There had been something in her voice when she spoke of thefts. Once he’d heard that, he found himself giving a promise before he realized it.

There wasn’t much he could do until he found the spell, and then he’d have to do his damnedest to convince Ronnie to let him have it.

“No’ going to happen,” he mumbled.

“What?” a woman beside him asked.

Arran shook his head and shoved the shovel into the ground. Memphaea, his god, wasn’t exactly content, but he had calmed tremendously since Arran arrived at the dig site. At least now Arran didn’t have to worry about his god pushing for his need for blood and death, not with the way Arran was working his body.

His muscles strained, and he pushed himself harder. It felt good to be doing something physical. For too long he’d sat in the castle idle. That wouldn’t happen again.

Magic washed over him, strong and forceful, taking his breath as it did. It was so powerful, it caused him to take a step back.

He stared at the ground, trying to see through the dirt to what was beneath. There was something under the ground, something that had been buried a very long time.

If it was the cargo of magical items lost as it traveled from Edinburgh to London, then there was no telling what they would unearth.

There were things that could potentially harm someone. Or something that, in the wrong hands, could bring about war. None of the Warriors or Druids knew exactly what was in the shipment. Anything could be under the dirt.

Anything.

Arran glanced up and saw Ronnie staring at the ground intently. He narrowed his gaze at her. She cocked her head to the side, as if listening. Her lids began to lower, and then suddenly she was digging faster.

In that instant, Arran knew. Ronnie was the Druid he’d felt. As soon as he realized it, he felt her magic. It pulsed over him stronger than any of the other magic around. It swarmed him, submerging him in the delightful magic that was Ronnie’s alone. He took a step back from the force of it, his body tensing from the effects of her magic.

He’d wanted her before. Now … he
needed
her.

His body was on fire, and only she could quench the flames. Their gazes clashed when she suddenly looked up. Worry clouded her hazel eyes for a moment. Then she seemed to accept … what? That he was watching her? That he wanted to push her back and take her right there in the dirt in front of everyone, to claim her as his own?

There was no way she could know he’d guessed she was a Druid or that her power was unearthing artifacts. He’d bet most of what she uncovered were magical relics as well.

Everyone thought she was one of the best archeologists because she was lucky in where she excavated, but Arran knew the truth now. It was no wonder she didn’t like it when Pete tried to brag.

“Forget it,” said a man beside him.

Arran turned his head at the sound of the Irish accent. “Forget what?”

“Her. Dr. Reid. Every mon here has tried to get her attention. I don’t think she likes men.”

Arran recalled how she’d looked at him, the flare of interest in her hazel gaze had been unmistakable. “Maybe she just hasna found the right man to show interest in.”

Irish snorted. “Not likely, mate. She’s a cold one. Her only interest is what’s in the ground.”

Arran turned his gaze back to Ronnie to find her kneeling and bent over, looking at something in the ground. Cold? Ronnie was anything but cold. She was passion and fire, and with the right man, she would glow with it.

He’d like to see if he could bring out her passion, and maybe once he found the spell, Arran would take up the challenge. He wanted to find the spell soon, because he wasn’t sure how long he could retain control over the unbendable need that pushed him.

With a shake of his head, he went back to shoveling to work off some of the frustration of his body. Dirt covered his jeans, and he’d long ago given up his shirt. Sweat ran down his back. The sounds of boots stepping in squishy earth along with the scrape of spades scooping and tossing dirt filled the air.

To anyone who looked, he was concentrating on his job. In truth, Arran was focused on Ronnie. There were many conversations, but Arran blocked them all out. All except for Ronnie’s. With his enhanced hearing, he was able to pick her voice out of so many.

Just by listening to her, he found she was precise in her management of the dig, and took no quarter from anyone. She worked harder than those paid and the volunteers.

And her excitement when an artifact was found made him smile. She truly loved what she did. Even if she did use her magic to do it.

Hours faded away while Arran continued to dig and push the others to keep working. By the time the bell for supper was rung, it was clear whatever they were uncovering was large.

What it was was another matter entirely. Everyone speculated, but no one had any idea. Even the way Ronnie looked at the rocks that clearly formed some type of roof had her stumped.

Arran wanted to keep working, but his strength and endurance were beginning to look conspicuous. He slammed the tip of the shovel into the ground and stepped out of the dig site to call it a day.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t keep his eyes from Ronnie. He heard her voice before he found her inspecting another section. Section two, and one that everyone said wouldn’t yield anything worthwhile.

Yet Ronnie kept having them dig.

While everyone made for the food tent, Arran went to wash the dirt and sweat off. The bucket of water waiting for him in the tent wasn’t nearly enough. He’d prefer a nice long swim in a loch. There was one near. Near enough to visit.

As tempting as that was, Arran pushed aside the swim for another time. He stripped out of his dirty jeans and scooped the water in his hands and over his body.

When he’d gotten all the dirt and sweat off, he ducked his head in the bucket and scrubbed his fingers along his scalp. Only then did he lift his head from the water and towel off.

He pulled out a pair of cargo pants and a plain white tee that he put on. After raking his hands through his hair and scratching his jaw, which was in need of a shave, he put his boots back on and headed for the food.

“You’re late,” Andy said when he saw Arran walk into the food tent.

Arran shrugged. “Aye, but clean.”

Andy laughed and reached for another shepherd’s pie. “The food isn’t all that great, but it’s food. Tomorrow some of the volunteers are heading into the nearby town to stay at the hotel for hot showers and hot food.”

“You have no’ truly experienced Scotland unless you sleep beneath the stars and hunt for your own food.”

“Ah … yeah. I think I’ll pass on truly experiencing Scotland, then, dude. I wouldn’t know the first thing about where to hunt for food, much less what to do with it after I caught it.”

“
If
you caught it,” Arran said, trying his best to keep the smile from showing.