Read Online The Thief by Allison Butler - Free Book Online

leaped onto one large rock and then another, before his feet found purchase on the opposite bank. Crouching low, he studied the nearby row of trees for any additional intruders. Nothing. Every muscle in his body coiled and tightened in readiness.
    The moon’s glow failed to reach his opponent’s hiding place, but he’d have to be blind to not see the faint puffs of human breath floating on the freezing air like small clouds of steam. His hand dropped to the hilt of his dagger.
    Duff’s shout rent the air, heralding he was in position. A gasp rang out, bouncing off the still quietness like a scream.
    Legs braced wide, Lachlan waited as hurried footsteps headed his way. Knees bent, arms tense, his fingers clawed like a mighty eagle’s talons, Lachlan stepped out of the shadows and into the moonlight.
    A small figure ran toward him, too busy looking behind to see him standing in their path.
    His stitches tingled. Impossible. It can’t be.
    Her pretty head jerked around. Shock painted his little thief’s face and widened her eyes. Her steps faltered. She slid to a stop an arms-length from where he stood. Lachlan glared at her in disbelief. Silvery lips, tinged blue, shivered open, but no sound slipped out of her mouth.
    Hands shaking, he jammed his dagger safely into the waistband at his back. He fought to steady his fury by inhaling a deep, full breath, but it failed to quell the rage burning inside. His marriage could have been over before it began. He could have killed his future wife.
    He took a step toward her, his anger breaking free. ‘What in Christ’s name are you doing here, Kenzie?’
    ***
    ‘I …’ Kenzie had no ready response to Lachlan Elliot’s roared question. None that he’d like anyway. What in Mother Mary’s name was he doing on Irvine land? Her arms stiffened by her sides. He wasn’t supposed to be here. She stared into his face. While his features were familiar, the expression of fury he wore was not. His ever-present smile was missing. And he didn’t yet know what she’d done to escape.
    Grasping her skirts and cloak, she stumbled back two steps and ran into the darkness to her right. An ungodly oath erupted from behind her, moments before a firm, unseen weight settled on her shoulder.
    She dipped and twisted, trying to shake free of his hold. An arm circled her waist and her back collided with a wall of muscle.
    ‘Let me go,’ she yelled, pushing at his forearm with frozen fingers.
    ‘So you can run again and likely break your fool neck.’
    His free arm wrapped around her middle, trapping her arms. Pinned against him, his heat seeped through her borrowed cloak and thin gown to warm her chilled flesh and shivering bones. She fought the urge to press more firmly against him and soak in his warmth.
    ‘Curse you,’ she said, loathing her body’s weakness.
    ‘I’m thinking I’m already cursed.’
    ‘You’re supposed to be in Dumfries.’
    ‘And you should be tucked in your bed.’ His quiet words rumbled through her. His warm breath tickled her ear, her cheek and the fine skin of her neck. She shivered and closed her eyes.
    ‘We’ll talk about why you’re out here later, Kenzie. Right now it’s time to go home.’
    Home? The single word rang with promise, but the meaning escaped her. Despite weariness dragging at her lashes, she forced her eyes open. She needed to stay alert for any opportunity to escape his hold. His heat.
    Her captor straightened and turned them around. A shrill whistle echoed into the night. The clicking of hooves on ice sounded before the call had faded to silence. The warmth about her withdrew, his hold shifting a moment before he lifted her and set her atop his horse with surprising gentleness. He mounted behind her and drew her back against him. She stiffened and leaned forward.
    ‘Anything I can do, laird?’
    Kenzie searched for the voice in the dark and found a lone rider waiting in a strip of moonlight.
    ‘Nae, Duff. Ride ahead, we’ll not be far