A Kind of Magic by Susan Sizemore Read Free Book Online Page B

Micaela.”
    “The lass is right. And your Maddie is ill.”
    “She’s not ill, Rosemary. She just fainted. I can deal with her.”
    “I know how you plan to deal with her and I’ll not have it.”
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    A Kind of Magic
    “ You’ll not—!”
    “Not until you’re properly wed.”
    Maddie heard the conversation, though it had a distant, unreal quality to it. It was like hearing a television playing in another room. Some historical program was on, wasn’t it? One with weird fantasy elements and a hunky hero?
    While Maddie listened, the man growled then muttered some unintelligible words.
    A door slammed. The two women giggled. When a cool hand touched Maddie’s forehead, she opened her eyes and screamed.
    She was out of bed and across the room a moment later. When she hit the wall and turned around, she found both women facing her with startled looks on their faces.
    “I think she’s a bit upset,” the young one—Micaela—said to the older one.
    “And so she should be,” Rosemary answered. Maddie watched warily as Rosemary held a hand out toward her. “Come along, lass,” she coaxed. “Let’s get you to bed. A good night’s sleep will do us all good.”
    “Sleep?” The very concept seemed alien. Memories of her last conversation with Rowan came back to her. “I’m already inside a nightmare.” She glared at the women who were dressed in medieval garments in a room lit by candlelight. They looked perfectly natural. She was the one out of place. “Do you know what year this is? Do you know what’s happened to me?”
    As impossible as Rowan’s explanation had been, she believed him. Somehow she had traveled through some sort of time-space anomaly-thing-warp something all the way back to ancient Scotland. Something had to be done about it, but for the life of her she didn’t know what.
    Rosemary took a step toward her. “I know you need to rest.”
    The women meant well, Maddie knew that. She’d probably scared them when she’d jumped out of bed like that. Maddie didn’t mean to scare anybody. Whatever had happened, it wasn’t Rosemary and Micaela’s fault. She wasn’t so sure about Rowan.
    Though he’d acted as surprised to see her as she had him when they met on the road, his behavior since had been completely suspect. He might not be responsible for her time traveling but he certainly meant to take advantage of it. And why did he look like Toby? How did his physical appearance factor into this? It couldn’t be just a coincidence, could it? Was he somehow responsible?
    She had no intention of letting him take advantage of the situation no matter what his involvement. Rowan Murray was far too sure of himself, far too domineering, too full of masculine arrogance for her liking. He seemed to think she’d do whatever he wanted just because he ordered it.
    “The world does not revolve around Rowan Murray,” she told his female relatives.
    Micaela gave her a soft smile. “It will for the woman who loves him.”
    Rosemary chuckled. “Micaela thinks love is everything.”
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    Susan Sizemore
    “Boy, has she got a lot to learn,” Maddie answered. Micaela bit her lower lip pensively and Maddie smiled weakly, apologizing for her comment. “Actually, my mom always says that love’s the answer to everything. Sometimes I think she’s right, but mostly I just—”
    “Run like the devil’s on your tail at the thought of a man in your life,” Rosemary finished for her. “But you’re tired of running.”
    Maddie blinked. “How’d you know that?”
    “She read it in the entrails of a chicken,” Micaela answered.
    “No, Micaela, it came to me out of the herb smoke when I chanted for marriage omens,” Rosemary corrected. “The chicken guts were useless, though the rest of it served well enough in the soup pot.”
    Micaela nodded. “That’s right. Rosemary’s getting quite good with love magic.”
    Rosemary waved away the praise. “I’ll never be any White Lady, that’s for