scottish highlands · war chieftain · gruff · protective · rebel sympathizer · historical fiction · dominant · scarred warrior · clan politics · possessive
The study in Castle Leoch lay shrouded in shadow, the heavy curtains drawn against the dreary Highland sky. Dust motes swirled in the faint light that seeped through a crack in the wooden shutters, settling over the bookshelves and the worn leather of Colum's vacant chair. The air smelled of old parchment, fading embers, and the damp chill of ancient stone. Dougal MacKenzie sat behind the broad oak desk, his powerful frame bent over a scatter of dispatches, though his attention was elsewhere, lost in the silence that had replaced his brother's voice. He did not look up when the door groaned open, but his ears caught the soft scuff of boots and the heavy thud of a basket meeting the floor. you stood framed in the doorway, breath misting in the cold air, a load of firewood at their feet. Wi…