Read Online Highland Protector (MacCoinnich Time Travels Book Five) by Catherine Bybee - Free Book Online

beside her, his arms
crossed over his chest.
    “I’m Kincaid. I’m here searching for
a friend.”
    “Who?”
    His first instinct was to hold his
tongue. He did and the room grew silent.
    “Not going to tell me?”
    “I have no idea if I can trust you,”
he stated the obvious.
    “And we don’t know if we can trust
you. The time travelers I’ve met all knew when and where they were going. They
didn’t end up in a random location.”
    She had him there. “What’s your name,
Irish?”
    “Half Irish, half Scot.”
    Beside her Jake huffed out a laugh.
“And half witch.”
    She rolled her eyes. “Selma Mayfair.”
    “Selma?” The name tickled his memory
and then he realized why. “A direct descendant of Elizabeth and Finlay.”
    The snarky expression fell from her
face. Obviously, she had no knowledge of her very distant heritage. Lucky for
him, Giles traced several names down and Selma was used in every generation for
centuries.
    The cat circled his legs and snarled
at the barrier of his shield.
    “My parents aren’t Liz and Fin.”
    “I didn’t say they were. I said
descendant. But since you’ve used Elizabeth and Finlay’s familiar names, I
assume you know who I’m talking about.”
    The cat bumped up against him again.
Instead of letting the cat bring attention to his shield, he allowed the feline
to move closer. The small lift of his protection brought on a wave of power
that stole his breath.
    “Listen, Kincaid…you need to start
trusting me here. Start talking. Who are you looking for?”
    He shifted on the balls of his feet
and felt a snap in the air. Was that Selma?
    “Before I tell you anything, I need
to know what you know about Liz and Fin.”
    Jake took a step forward. “Listen,
asshole…you came to us—”
    The other man didn’t finish his
sentence before the space inside his shield expanded and sparked. Within a
blink of an eye, the cat at his feet shifted and Kincaid found his neck in the
tight grip of a very large, very naked warrior. His angry eyes and set jaw told
Kincaid he’d have no problem snapping him in two.
    Jesus…a shifter. That’s rare.
    “Elizabeth is my mother, Finlay my
father…now answer the lass. Who are you looking for?”
    Kincaid stared into the eyes of a
MacCoinnich. A man he was sworn to protect. “Giles,” he choked out.
    The grip on his throat eased.
    “Who is this Giles to you?”
    “He’s a librarian.” If the man
holding him was anyone other than a MacCoinnich, Kincaid would have him at
arm’s length. Instead of engaging a fight, he calmly answered this man’s
questions. “He’s a friend.”
    “ What are you?”
    The question would have sounded odd
to an outsider, but to Kincaid it was about rank. “I’m a warrior. A branded
warrior.”
    The hand holding him eased now, but
it hadn’t slid away from his neck.
    “One last question, Kincaid. What
were you and Giles speaking of when he disappeared?”
    He narrowed his eyes, stared directly
into those watching him. “We were talking about a portrait of a woman.”
    The hand at his neck fell away. With
the connection broken, Kincaid’s shield shot up. Not that he worried this man
would harm him now. Still, he’d take no chances.
    “I take it his story checks out?”
Jake said behind them.
    “Ah, Simon?” Selma said. “Much as I
like the peep show, I think it’s kinda creepy that I’m no longer guessing what
you wear under your kilt.”
    Jake grunted. “You don’t have to look.”
    “Like you’d divert your eyes if a hot
chick was standing here naked. Such a hypocrite.”
    “You’re Simon MacCoinnich?” Kincaid
asked.
    “Aye.”
    From behind him, Jake handed Simon a
throw from his sofa. He wrapped it around his waist.
    “And you know where Giles is?”
    “Aye.”
    This was going to be easier than he
originally thought. “Then you can take me to him and we’ll return to our time.”
    Simon looked between the couple
standing behind them and back. “No.”
    “Excuse me?”