Embrace the Highland Warrior

A spark of mischief lit his eyes. “I don’t know. For someone so agile, you don’t do so well with water. I’d hate to call Nina and tell her you drowned in the bathtub.”

“Get out of here!” Without thinking, she swatted him playfully, as she would have in the past.

“I’ll be outside. Yell if you need anything.”

After he left, Shay removed her damp, dirty clothes and slowly lowered her body into the water. Her right arm stung. There was a long scratch at the top. Had the owl done that, or a branch? She leaned back and closed her eyes, letting the warmth seep into her bones. Her head slipped lower and lower into the water as she listened to the rain pattering at the window, the rhythmic sound reminding her of whispers and the brush of wings.

Her throat tightened as she approached the three graves. What did she hope to find? Reconciliation? Closure? To make sense of the lies? A whisper brushed her ear, a fluttering sound, and she tilted her head, listening. Skin prickling, she turned. A statue stood in the corner, an angel watching over the dead? She didn’t remember seeing it the last time she was here, but it had been years before, and her head had been blurred with pain. A soft breeze ruffled her hair and stirred the dying October leaves. Just leaves rustling, not whispers. After the last few weeks, she jumped at every sound.

She studied the names engraved on the larger headstones, then knelt before the tiny one cradled between them. Her finger traced the worn name— Dana Michelle Rodgers—under the angel’s outstretched wing, thinking she should have some sense of recognition.

After all, it was her grave.

Something flashed in her mind, a memory, a dream—fire and pain. Shay shook her head and frowned. Some guardian angel. The clouds shifted, and a shadow crossed the angel’s face, as if he didn’t appreciate her disrespect. She heard the whisper again. It came from near the statue. Was someone hiding there? What if it was him? She squinted, trying to focus, and then watched in horror as the statue turned and looked at her.

A pounding noise yanked her from the dream. Shay sat up quickly, bumping her ankle on the edge of the tub. She gasped in pain.

“Shay, you’d better answer, or I’m coming in.”

“I’m fine. Just give me a minute.”

Still trembling from the dream, she grabbed the side of the tub and the built-in soap dish for support and eased up on her good foot. She was in mid crouch when the soap dish broke. She fell back into the water with a screech.

The door banged against the wall, and Cody rushed in. He stopped, sucked in a breath, and stared at her naked body, limbs askew. “Shi—”

“Get out!”

“I thought… sorry.” He turned and smashed into the door casing. “You and water,” he said, holding his forehead as he shut the door.

A blush warmed her entire body. She hadn’t laid eyes on him in nine years, and now he’d seen her naked twice in one night. She quickly dried off and put on Nina’s sweater, belting it tight. Shay pulled her wet hair into a ponytail, brushed her teeth, and then gathered her damp clothes. Blowing out a breath, she opened the door.

Cody had turned her bed down. He gave her an awkward glance. There was a red mark on his head where he hit the doorjamb. “Are you okay?”

“Yes.”

“You screamed.”

“I did?”

“Bloody murder.”

“I must have been dreaming.”

“Sounded more like a nightmare. I found soup and some Tylenol.” He pointed to the tray next to the bed.

“I need to wash my clothes first.”

“I’ll stick them in the washer on the way out. You heal fast, but you need to get off that ankle. It’s probably sprained.”

She sighed, dropped her dirty clothes in the doorway, and crawled into bed still wrapped in Nina’s sweater.

“You’re gonna sleep in that?” he asked, one brow cocked.