Timeless ~Outlander~

Sgian Dubh

"Murtagh?" I asked him as we rode through the countryside once more, me perched in front of him on the horse.

"Aye, my dear?" I smiled at the term of endearment Murtagh had used, my heart warming at the connection we were building. "My dear," I repeated softly, savouring the way the words rolled off his tongue.

His chest vibrated with a chuckle in response to my muttered repeat of his words. "What'd ye want to know, lass?" He had distracted me momentarily, but I remembered now what I had meant to ask.

"How many more towns must we go to before we can go back to Leoch?" I was sick and tired of spending so much time on a horse. Murtagh had been teaching me how to ride and I'd had some turns controlling the horse by myself by now. But knowing how to ride didn't make it any less of a pain in my ass, literally.

"No more now, we'll be heading home just as soon as we find this Horrocks man Jamie's lookin' for." Home. It felt strange hearing him refer to Leoch as our home, not just his. Strange in a good way, though.

"Thank the heavens for that," I muttered, half to myself. Murtagh's chest rumbled with a soft chuckle.

"Aye, lass, I ken the feeling. The road can be a wearying place, especially for one not accustomed to it. But don't ye worry, I'll have ye home and in my bed in no time," he said, whispering the last part in my ear.

"Murtagh!" I scolded him, hoping the others hadn't heard his little comment. He merely chuckled in response.

"Come on, we both know ye've been dying for another go at me," he teased, resting a hand on my upper thigh and giving a gentle squeeze.

Murtagh's playful comment made me blush slightly, and I responded with a teasing tone. "You're as confident as ever, aren't you?"

He wasn't wrong, though. His hand on my thigh and the memory of our intimate moments left me with a mixture of anticipation and desire. I had discovered a new facet of our relationship, and I couldn't deny that I was looking forward to exploring it further.

His laughter was a low, comforting rumble, and I felt his warm kiss on my head, a sweet gesture that conveyed both affection and reassurance.

"Why do we need to find this Horrocks guy again?" I asked, hoping to change the topic of conversation.

"Word is, he was there when Jamie escaped Fort William. Ye see, the price on Jamie's head is for killin' a Sergeant, which he didna do, and this man says he saw who did kill the man. If he can bear witness that Jamie is innocent, the price on his head could be lifted. He'd be a free man."

"He'd be able to go home then? He wouldn't have to stay at Leoch under his uncle's protection?" I asked.

"Aye, he'd be free to go back to Lallybroch and take his rightful place as Laird of Broch Tuarach." I didn't know Jamie was a laird. His oath to Laird MacKenzie made a little more sense now. "For my oath is pledged to the name that I bear."

"He's a laird?"

"Aye, he's meant to be anyway, if it weren't for those bloody redcoats. Owns about sixty crofts and a small village he does. Not as much as Laird MacKenzie but a substantial amount of land, nonetheless. A good place to call home once he's free."

Realizing how little I knew about the people I'd spent so much time with was jarring, and it made me wonder what kind of things I didn't know about my own husband.

"And you? Do you own any land? A place to call home?"

"I'm afraid ye've married a man without much prospect. My father was a drunk who gambled away all he had. I've made what small fortune I have on a soldier's pay. For now, Leoch is the only place we've to call home. But I promise ye, everything I have is yers. And should Jamie become a free man, they'll be a place for us as Lallybroch. We can live there if ye prefer it." I could tell he felt bad at not being able to give me more.