All The Time You Need by Melissa Mayhue Read Free Book Online

you want to do, as you should well know. I’ve always been the one to support yer eccentricities, have I no'?”
    Too often, it now appeared. Maybe if he had been on their father’s side rather than hers, he wouldn’t be faced with this challenge now.
    “You have,” she answered meekly. “And yer right, of course. My apologies, brother. I’ll no' challenge you publicly again. Our arguments are best left to be carried out in private.”
    “Good enough, then,” he muttered, turning once again to return to the meal he’d left behind.
    He sat down, took a bite that felt as wood shavings in his mouth and looked up to the spot where Lissa had stood only moments before. Something about his sister giving in so easily didn’t set right with him.
    “She’s a fiery lass, for a fact,” Finn commented, his attempt to hide his grin failing miserably. “With a temper to match her beauty.”
    “Neither my sister’s looks nor her temper is any of yer…” Alex automatically began, his words trailing off as he considered what Finn had said.
    His friend was absolutely correct. Another marked difference between Alex and his twin had always been his long-simmering, calm demeanor as opposed to her quick, fiery temper. Meek was not something she did. Ever. No wonder the exchange between them hadn’t sat right. He might have been gone for a long time, but he had little faith that Lissa would have changed so drastically. Though they were different in many ways, his twin was every bit the stubborn fighter he was. Maybe even more so.
    With a huff of frustration, Alex rose from his chair. Confronting her directly without taking the time to check would only make the situation between them worse. Especially if he were wrong about this. But even as the thought crossed his mind, he knew he was rarely wrong when he had one of these feelings.
    “Want company?” Finn asked, rising to his feet.
    “Yer welcome to come along if you like,” Alex answered.
    If his suspicions were correct, having a second swordsman along could well end up being a good thing.
    They strode out into the hallway and beyond, all the way to the laird’s solar. One look inside confirmed Alex’s suspicion. The keys his sister had wanted were missing from the peg where they were kept.
    “Damn my slow wits,” he growled, grabbing his sword from the bench where it rested and hastening toward the massive wooden door at the entrance of the keep. It was the fastest route to where his sister was headed, and no doubt the way she had gone. “You’ve yer weapon on you?”
    A low snort was Finn’s first response. “Even if I didn’t, I’ve got Dog. Though think upon it, my friend. Have you ever seen me without my weapon close at hand?”
    Now that Finn pointed it out, Alex realized he hadn’t. He also had never seen his friend without his huge, scraggly dog at his side, a formidable weapon in its own right, just as he’d indicated.
    “Lissa’s gone outside the walls. We’re going to bring her back.”
    Not too much information, but enough to alert his friend to the potential for danger. Finn simply nodded, his face an expressionless mask.
    Alex picked up speed as he crossed the open ground between the keep and the wall, with Finn matching his stride, step for step. By the time they exited out through the tunnel gate, they were trotting, comfortably keeping pace with one another.
    The arbor was set a goodly distance away, well beyond the back walls. If the Gordons were roaming the area looking for a chance to strike, the laird’s only daughter would make a fine target indeed. As far away as they’d be from the keep, no one would hear her no matter how loudly she might scream. And considering it was no secret that the Gordon laird had declared that he would stop at nothing to claim a piece of the MacKillican lands for his own, Lissa would make an attractive bargaining chip.
    A noise ahead of them brought a knot to his stomach. Next to him, Finn unsheathed his sword