Series: Highlands (Book 4)
Lady Murine Carmichael has known her share of bad luck. But when her debt-ridden half-brother tries to sell her off in exchange for a few Scottish horses, it’s the final straw. If keeping her freedom means escaping through harsh countryside alone, so be it. She has barely begun her journey when she lands an unlikely escort -- the brawny Highlander who just refused to buy her virtue.
Dougall Buchanan was disgusted by Lord Danvries’ shameful offer, but Murine tempts him beyond measure. Even bedraggled and dusty, the lass glows with beauty and bravery. Dougall wants to do more than just help her flee. He wants to protect her -- with his life and his heart -- if she’ll only let him. For Murine may be pursued by a powerful foe, but nothing compares to the fiery courage of a Highlander in love.
Fun book. We first met Murine and Dougall in the previous book, The Highlander Takes a Bride. Murine and Saidh became good friends, with Murine having a big part in saving Saidh's life. Dougall is one of Saidh's seven brothers. He and his brothers were fun characters, especially with the way they had influenced Saidh while she was growing up. The closeness of the family impressed me in that book, and I hoped to see some of the Buchanan brothers get their own books. This one is a good start to that wish.
Murine has had a rough few years. Her beloved younger brothers and one older half-brother have died. Her mother became ill and also died. Though her father had been sick, he was getting better just before she went on the journey in the previous book. Unfortunately, her father died suddenly while she was gone, leaving her in the care of her remaining half-brother, Montrose. Montrose is weak, lazy, selfish, and a gambler. As the book opens, he is attempting to talk the owner of some Scottish horses into giving him credit so he can purchase the horses. Failing that, he offers up Murine for the Scotsman's pleasure instead. The Scotsman in question is Dougall Buchanan, brother to Saidh. He is disgusted by Montrose and his attempts to weasel out of paying, and even more so by the attempts to sell his sister. He can't get out of there fast enough to suit him or his brothers.
Horrified by her brother's plans for her, Murine immediately packed a few things and left, determined to go to her friend Saidh for help. Next thing we see is Murine riding her pet bull up the road as Dougall and his brothers overtake her. Recognizing her right away, Dougall and his brothers hide her when her brother's men come looking for her. Unfortunately, their methods brought on one of her fainting fits, leaving them no choice but to take her with them. By the time she finally comes to, they are well away from her home. I liked Dougall's decision to help her even before he found out about her connection to his sister. That connection made it even more important to all of the men. Dougall did not expect his attraction to her, and that attraction made him even more protective of her. It was sweet to see the way that he worried about her and her fainting fits. It was fun to see all the guys falling over themselves to take care of her, especially once they figured out the reason for her fainting.
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Murine and Dougall. He was attracted to her from the moment he saw her but tried to resist due to differences in their stations. However, that resistance was futile as the sparks between them continued to grow. Murine was attracted to him also, but having heard him say he had no plans to marry any time soon, also tried to resist the sparks. It didn't take long for the idea of marrying her to gain in appeal for Dougall, though it took a while for him to let her in on that decision. When the sparks became overwhelming, the passion between them was pretty intense. I loved how good they were together, with no regrets afterward.
As the group continued their journey, they ran into unexpected trouble. Though they were worried about Montrose attempting to reclaim Murine, there was also something else going on. From strangers in the woods to Murine being shot with an arrow to a fire that nearly killed them all, it seems that someone has it out for either Murine or the Buchanans. I was on the edge of my seat when it came to the fire. Murine was fantastic in her efforts to save Dougall. All of this worked to convince Dougall that he needed to marry Murine sooner rather than later.
The suspense built when they got to Saidh, and they anticipated finally getting to confront Montrose. While waiting for that to happen there were some interesting discussions among the men regarding Murine and her troubles. It was all stuff that was blazingly obvious to a reader, but I enjoyed seeing the men work it all out. The final confrontation had a couple of unexpected twists to it, but in the end, Murine was safe. I was a little dissatisfied with the ending, as I felt that it left the fate of the Carmichael clan up in the air. In his fears for Murine's safety, I loved seeing Dougall finally admit his feelings for her.
I loved seeing more of the Buchanan brothers. They were quite an impressive group. It was fun to see them falling all over themselves to take care of Murine. I especially enjoyed Conran and the way he gave Dougall such a hard time over his interest in Murine. Alrick was fun as the youngest and his occasional cluelessness. I'm most interest in Aulay and what happened to him. I look forward to reading his story.
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