Page 14 of Wedded to the Twisted Highlander
He pulled in a long, deep breath, hoping to clear the smoke Astrid’s presence had left in his mind. It was like a battlefield, with him the only one left standing. How could she disarm him so easily? Was it her tale of abuse?
Moving back to his desk, Thomas forced all thoughts of her to the back of his mind. He couldn’t afford to become distracted by her. As far as he was concerned, he wouldn’t have to see her again. She’d tend to his father and be on her way once he passed.
It was a simple plan, one Thomas could easily get behind.
As he lowered himself into his desk chair, the leather moaned. It was a familiar sound accompanying a familiar feeling, so why did he feel as if he were on the eve of battle?
A harsh rap on the door pulled him out of his thoughts.
He sat straighter—he needed the distraction.
“Aye, what is it?” he called as he sorted the papers on his desk, hoping to look at least busy.
The door creaked obnoxiously as it swung open—just one more thing he would have to fix.
But it wasn’t the rusty hinges he’d be calling a blacksmith for, but his brother’s charming smile as he strutted into his study like a rooster.
“What have ye done this time?”
“Why on earth would ye think I’ve done anything at all? Is it nae proper for me to greet me braither?” Reid drawled as he plopped down into the chair across from the desk and swung his feet over the armrest. The smirk on his face irked Thomas, but that was precisely why he had it on his face.
“What do ye want? And if ye’re goin’ to ask me to increase yer allowance again, the answer to that question is nay,” Thomas said, rising from behind his desk. Thomas kept his eye on Reid as he movedaround the desk for one reason only, to purposefully knock Reid’s legs off the chair.
The thud, followed by Reid’s muffled complaint, made Thomas smile. He moved around until he completed the circle and stopped in front of Reid once more. Reid’s face twisted with contempt. Thomas watched his brother chew over the words he so desperately wanted to say. Thomas couldn’t help but find the situation somewhat comical as Reid wrestled with his composure before exhaling sharply..
“I’ve come to ask me dear braither if he is aware of the new face in the castle,” Reid said through clenched teeth.
Thomas’s eyes narrowed as his chest tightened. Heat rushed out of him in a pulse. Like a stone being dropped in water, the feeling intensified and expanded.
“Aye. She’s under me protection,” he revealed. “As well as her daughter.”
“A child? Really?”
The disappointment in Reid’s voice was all Thomas wanted to hear. If there was one thing that warded his brother off women was the idea of children.
Of course, Thomas couldn’t blame him. The thought left a sour taste in his mouth. He didn’t have the time to care for a familyandthe clan at once. No, he’d leave the wooing to his younger brother.
“Aye,” he answered. “Cute as a button too. Such a wee thing.”
“So, ye’ve seen them? Did they speak wit’ ye? Och…” Reid trailed off, a mischievous smirk tugging at his lips. “I see. Ye like the fact that she’s experienced, is that it? And she was returnin’ from seein’ ye… Now, that explains it.”
“What?” Thomas asked, trying not to show too much interest in anything his brother had to say.
“The blush on her cheeks as she passed me by. Turns out me braither isnae as big of a prude as I thought him to be,” Reid cooed as he jumped up from his seat, grinning from ear to ear.
“Watch yer tongue,” Thomas warned. “Ye will behave yerself around her. I’ll nae have ye tarnishin’ the family name.”
“Och, I see how it is,” Reid huffed as he rolled back his shoulders. “Ye can have yer fun, but the rest of us will just have to watch. Is that it?”
“Do ye nae have someone else to torment?” Thomas asked as he plucked the rent ledger off the bookshelf. He had no intentions of going over the numbers so soon, but if it was the only way to get his brother out of his hair, he’d do it. “Or perhaps ye’d rather go over the books? I could always use a second pair of eyes.”
“Where’s Olivia when ye need her? Ye ken she’s better with numbers than I.”
“That’s only because ye dinnae push yerself to do better.”
“I push meself each night to do a little better than I did the day before.”
“We both ken I’m nae talkin’ about polishin’ off a barrel of whiskey or gin. When are ye goin’ to take life more seriously? Ye cannae keep goin’ through this world so haphazardly,” Thomas said as he moved back to his desk and sat behind it like he always did.
