A Time & Place for Every Laird by Angeline Fortin (reading comprehension books .txt) 📗

aboot. Yestay wi’ these people. Dinnae gae off by yerself, do ye ken?”

Claire nodded jerkily. “What if they see me?What if they try to take me away?”

“They willnae get the chance, I promise ye,”he swore solemnly, his blue eyes intense on hers.

“Hugh, be careful,” she whispered, catchinghis hand as he turned.

Hugh grinned then, his white teeth flashing.“’Tis what I do, lass. I am the savage, remember? They’d be besttae fear me, aye?”

Claire met his eyes and saw the humor andexcitement reflected there. “Oh, God, you’re going to enjoy thisaren’t you?”

“A wee tussle will be good for my hearthealth,” he teased, tweaking her chin.

Shaking her head, she squeezed his handbefore dropping it. “You’re such an ass.”

“That’s nae verra flattering, lass.”

Her response was nothing short of a snortbut it seemed to please him, as his grin grew even wider and hepressed a kiss to her forehead. “There’s my bold lass again. Nowstay.”

“I’m ever obedient,” she whispered,swallowing back her fear.

“Och,” Hugh scoffed in turn as he meltedinto the crowd. “There is nothing obedient about ye!” Just likethat, he was gone from her sight, and Claire felt the urge to standon her toes to try to catch sight of him but refrained, knowingthat in doing so she might give whoever was looking for her an easytarget. And there was no doubt in her mind that they were outthere. She trusted Hugh’s instincts on the matter absolutely, soshe tried to look casual, taking another doughnut from the bag andtaking a bite. It was sawdust in her suddenly dry mouth.

“Ya-a-a-ah!” The shout came again and Claireeased further into the crowd as they pressed around the fishmarket. The fish flew back and forth as her eyes followed theaction, but her mind was fogged with worry for Hugh, his safetyrather than her own at the forefront of her mind. For all hisbravado, these were modern times with modern weapons that hewouldn’t be able to combat.

Bodies pressed in from all sides and a voicewhispered close to her ear. “I hae them. Walk now. Leave the way wecame. I will follow.” Claire turned but Hugh was already gone.

Her feet began to move automatically andClaire thought with a touch of wonder that if Hugh had asked her inthat particular moment to follow him to the moon, she would havecomplied without hesitation.

Chapter 30

On shaky legs, Claire walked woodenly out tothe street, along the sidewalk, and around the corner from Pike’sMarket. In less than a block, she was on an empty narrow laneheading toward a deserted alleyway. Traffic hummed from nearbystreets, but all Claire could focus on was the footsteps echoingbehind her, calling for her to look back. Clutching her purse, shefought the urge to do that or to run. Bold lass? Ha! This sickeninganxiety was akin to being stalked by a mugger, knowing that theywere there and knowing that trying to flee was the quickest way toprovoke an attack.

“Mrs. Manning.”

The voice was closebehind, but Claire ignored it and walked faster. A car passed byand she resisted the impulse to call for help. Was it one agent ortwo, she wondered, fighting the panic welling up inside of her andtrying to remember what she had learned about self-defense, but hermind was clouded. How had she put this danger aside all week? Howhad she forgotten about it? Where was Hugh? What did he meansee Scotland withhim?

“Mrs. Manning?” A hand landed on hershoulder and, unnerved, Claire swung around to face her dark-suitedpursuer just as Hugh emerged from between two buildings and slippeda brawny arm around the lone agent’s neck. She stepped back withsurprise, a hand to her throat, as the agent struggled againstHugh’s unyielding grip and kicked out.

“This guy botherin’ you, ma’am?” Hugh saidin a brash Southern drawl, dragging Claire from her shocked stupor.“Do you know this guy?”

“I’ve never seen him before in my life,” sheanswered honestly, raising a brow at his “good ole boy” accent.

The man tried to pull Hugh’s arm away, to noavail. “I’m a Fed …”

Hugh tightened his arm around the man’sneck, cutting off the words that would have been impossible toplausibly defend against. “A fiend? A thief? A molester of innocentwomen?” He looked at Claire. “Are you all right?”

“I’m okay,” she said, nothaving to fake the quiver in her voice. It was an agent! And he would have hadher if not for Hugh. Thank God for his instincts! “Thank you, hewas really creeping me out.” The agent’s eyes bulged, his faceturning red then purple before her eyes. She darted a look atHugh’s determined face and then back to the agent. “Umm, maybe youshould …”

The agent sagged and fell to the ground atHugh’s feet, unconscious.

Claire gasped. “Oh, my God, is he …?”

“He’ll be fine.”

Claire threw herself into his arms, hugginghim fiercely before pulling back with a frown. “Are you crazy? Youcould have killed him!” she scolded.

Hugh lifted a brow and waited a moment forsomething further before asking, “Am I tae assume by yer tone yewould consider that a bad thing?”

“Yes, it’s a bad thing!”she huffed, slapping ineffectually at his chest. “We don’t need togive them more reason than they already have to hunt us down. Oh myGod, how did they find us? Me? How did they know I’m here? What dowe do now? And ma’am? Ma’am? Where did you get thataccent?”

“Heard it from a man in the market.” Hughbrushed her hair back tenderly and pressed his lips against herforehead as he soothed away her fear and panic.

“Well, it was smart,” she told him with aslight smile, his touch having worked its usual magic and herheartbeat returning to normal. “He never saw you and will hopefullyassume that some tourist came to my ‘rescue.’”

Hugh shrugged off the compliment. “I hae mymoments. Come, we need tae away quickly. He wasnae alone in themarket, and there may be others tae follow.”

“What about him?” Claire asked. “Would it bewrong to just leave him here?”

Hugh shook his head. “But it willnae be longbefore he awakes. We need more time.”

“He might have some handcuffs,” Claire said,then reconsidered. No, they couldn’t leave any indication that theyhad