The Highlander's Christmas Lassie — Anna Campbell

Previously published in October, 2020 in the multi-author anthology Have Yourself a Merry Little Scandal.Young love torn apart.As teenagers, Malcolm Innes and Rhona Macleod fell passionately in love. But Malcom’s parents were horrified to think of the aristocratic heir to Dun Carron marrying a humble crofter’s daughter. Desperate to crush the affair, they locked Malcolm up and exiled Rhona to London where she disappears. But Malcolm is faithful and stubborn and devotes his life to searching for his beloved and the child she was carrying when they were cruelly separated.A chance to mend two shattered lives.On a snowy Christmas Eve, Rhona opens the door of her isolated farmhouse to find the man she never thought to see again, the man who betrayed her. When she was pregnant with his son, Malcolm abandoned her to find her way alone in a cold, heartless world. Now she discovers that her long-held hatred is based on lies and that he’s been true to her. Yet surely after all these years, it’s too late to awaken the love that once united them.As Christmas Eve turns into Christmas Day, Malcolm and Rhona discover that their mutual desire has never died. Will this Yuletide reunion lead to a lifetime together? Or has old tragedy ruptured their bond forever?