“I was scared to death.”

“Aye. But that didn’t stop you, did it?” He leaned over and kissed the tip of her nose.

“One day, you’ll realize you’re brave enough to take me on. But until then,” he said, standing up and carrying her to the bed, “we’ll play by your rules.”

He laid her down, kissed her pale white cheek, pulled one of the blankets over her, and straightened.

She shot up into a sitting position, threw back the blanket, and tried to swing her legs over the edge of the bed. “Are you leaving again?”

He gently laid her back down. “Nay,” he said, covering her back up and then quickly climbing on top of the blanket. “Husbands do not abandon their wives on their wedding night.”

He threw his arm over her waist and pulled her backside into the crook of his body. “We

’ve both had a long day, and we need to get some sleep.” He gave her a squeeze.

“Tomorrow, you and Ian are coming with me to Snow Mountain, to help me hunt for Cùram’s tree.”

She turned her head in surprise. “We can go with you?”

“Aye, but only so that Ian can tell me about the lay of the land before the valley was flooded. Then the two of you are coming straight back here.”

She relaxed and faced the window, actually snuggling her backside against him. “I think we should take Niall and a hundred warriors with us,” she said. “For protection from the MacBains.”

“Nay, no one must know what I’m doing,” he told her, quickly bunching the blanket between them so he couldn’t feel her sweet feminine heat. “I’ve already spoken with Ian, and he’ll meet us out front at daybreak.” Robbie tightened his arm to stop her wiggling.

“Go to sleep, Cat,” he said through gritted teeth. “Tomorrow’s going to be another long day.”

But it was the night that was long for Robbie, as he lay beside his soft, warm, delicious-smelling wife, unable to claim her as his.

“My God, the destruction was great,” Ian said, staring out over the waters of the newly formed lake. “A good deal of Snow Mountain slid into the valley.”

Catherine resettled her stick on her shoulders when her horse sidestepped impatiently and let her gaze follow the densely forested shoreline until it came to the massive earthen dam of boulders, whole trees, and muddy debris wedged between a towering mountain and a smaller hill. Looking up, beyond the dam, she could see a gaping hole in the side of Snow Mountain, making an ugly scar of exposed granite running from its summit down to the lake.

Robbie turned to Ian. “How deep was the valley here?”

“There’s still as much mountain under the water as you see above it,” Ian said, looking at Robbie and frowning. “Do ya think Cùram’s tree was in the valley?”

“Aye, and I believe it still is.”

“But theloch would have drowned it.”

“Nay. Not if Cùram found a way to protect it.” Robbie turned his horse to face Ian and Catherine. “And what better place to hide something than under the water? Who thinks of anything but fish being in a lake?”

“But how did he protect it?” Ian asked. “A tree needs air to live.”

“Do you know of any caves on Snow Mountain, Uncle?”

Ian scratched his beard, staring at the ruined mountain and frowning. His eyebrows suddenly rose. “Aye! When I was a lad, we used to hide from our mamas by playing up here. I remember there were caves.” He suddenly frowned again. “But the landslide most likely destroyed them.”

“Maybe not,” Robbie said. “Exactly where did you play?”

“There,” Ian said, pointing to the other side of the dam. “I remember there was a cave about a hundred yards up from Snow River, that ran deep into the mountain and came up over there,” he added, his hand moving across the scar until he was pointing at an island in the middle of the lake. “Only that wasn’t an island then but a steep hill. The cave narrowed up until ya had to brace your feet and your back against it and climb out like it was a chimney.”

Robbie started his horse through the trees along the shore of the lake, heading toward the dam. “Come on,” he said. “We’ll look for the lower entrance first. If it’s covered by debris, I’ll swim to the island and see if I can find the other entrance.”

Catherine eyed the tiny island as she urged her horse after the two men. It appeared to be a good mile from shore, and the water looked cold. But trying to keep her promise to Robbie this morning, that she would not interfere in his work, Catherine said nothing and followed in silence.

They guided their mounts down through the forest into the deep valley, the earthen dam of boulders and mud and splintered trees rising above them on their right. They finally reached level ground, rode across the dry riverbed that had once been the obviously large Snow River, and started up the other side.

Ian moved into the lead, scanning the forest around them. “There,” he said, stopping his horse and pointing. “It’s been years, Robbie, but I think the entrance to the cave is up there.”

Robbie dismounted and handed the reins of his horse to Catherine. He looked first at the earthen dam, then back at her. “If I find the entrance, I’ll come back and tell you before I go inside. The dam doesn’t look stable to me, so I want you and Ian to wait on higher ground.”

“You won’t go inside without telling us?”

He set his hand on her thigh. “I promise I won’t if you promise not to follow me.”

“You’ve been asking for a lot of promises this morning.”

His grin slashed across his face. “Aye, and I’ve noticed you’ve been keeping them quite well.”

She snorted and urged her horse forward, pulling Robbie’s horse with her. She moved past Ian and picked an easy route up the hill. But when she turned back to look, to remind Robbie to be careful, he had already disappeared into the woods.

“I’m relieved the boy has found himself a good wife,” Ian said, pulling up beside her.

“None of us wanted to see him so dedicated to his calling that he neglected his own happiness. His papa especially was starting to worry.” He grinned at her. “But now he has you. And I wish to tell ya, lass, that I’m proud of how you’re taking all this. Most women would be nothing but a ball of tears for finding themselves on this journey.”

Catherine had no idea how to respond to his relief or his compliment, other than to smile and whisper a thank you. She didn’t have the heart to tell Ian that it was easy for her to be brave in a dream and that once she woke up, she would no longer be married to his nephew.

They dismounted and tied their horses to some bushes, and Catherine sat down beside Ian and accepted the snack he handed her. It was a dry oat cake of some sort and looked as if it had been pounded flat with a hammer and probably tasted like sawdust. But, again, she didn’t have the heart to refuse his gift and took a bite, then quickly washed it down with even nastier-tasting ale. Dreams of living in the thirteenth century were a great way to lose weight, Catherine decided. She’d only been here three days, and she’d dropped another five pounds.

She stood up, surprised when Robbie suddenly appeared after being gone only twenty minutes.

“I found it,” he said, coming over and helping Ian to his feet. “And Cùram’s tree must be in there. I could feel how strong the energy was the moment I stepped inside.” He took hold of Catherine’s shoulders and made her face him. “I want you and Ian to go back to the village.”

“No. We’ll wait until you come back with the root.”

“Nay. I might be a while. The cave forks off in several directions just inside the entrance.

Go back to the village, and I’ll return as soon as I can.” He leaned down, gave her a quick kiss on the mouth, and straightened and smiled. “And then you and I will go home,” he whispered. “I miss our kids as much as you do.”

“Please let us wait here?” she asked, grabbing the front of his plaid. “We’ll keep an eye out for the MacBains. What if they come to take down the dam while you’re inside? The caves could flood.” She tightened her grip. “And Cùram. What if he suddenly shows up?”