Page 3 of A Forbidden Night with a Scot
“Why did ye have tae buy the book?” Katherine asked as though she had hardly heard Alicia. Whenever she was nervous, she talked a lot, Alicia knew, and it was no different now. “This could have very easily been avoided.”
Alicia reached over the table, grabbing Katherine’s hand and holding it in hers, trying to calm her as much as she could. “Ye ken why,” she said. “Faither said it is time fer me tae wed an’ I willnae wed without kenning any o’ what happens between a husband an’ wife.”
All she knew about it was the little she had heard from the maids. At first, Alicia had thought about asking them, but every time she tried to steer the conversation towards such matters, she quickly lost her courage and ended up changing the subject. It was simply too embarrassing. There was no one in the castle whom she could ask for advice.
“Ye could have written tae Emmeline,” said Katherine. “She would have told ye everythin’ ye wished tae ken.”
“I dinnae wish tae ask Emmeline,” Alicia said. She had thought about that too. In fact, asking her older sister had been her first thought, and she had almost written her a letter to her to ask about her first night with her husband, but then the knowledge that he was a cruel man had stayed her hand. What if he had mistreated her, even in the bedroom? What if by asking Emmeline to teach her, she ended up upsetting her, reminding her of the ten years of anguish she had already spent by her husband’s side?
She hated that thought. She never wanted to upset her sister.
“Well… ye should ken about this, too, anyway,” Alicia added, looking at her sister in the dim light of the tavern—the dark hair she shared with her, the striking features which often made people think she was older than Alicia, who had taken after their father’s side with her more delicate characteristics. Sooner rather than later, Katherine would have several offers for her hand and there was only that much Alicia could do to protect her when she lacked knowledge herself. This book was for both of them, to keep them both safe. “One must be prepared when headin’ tae war.”
Her words pulled a laugh out of her sister. “War? It is only marriage, Alicia. Hardly a war.”
“What word would ye choose, then, if nae war?” Alicia asked, pinning her sister with her gaze. It didn’t take long for Katherine to understand what Alicia refused to say out loud. For their sister, marriage had always been war.
Katherine fell silent, sinking into her seat. The silence stretched between them, filled by the sounds of cups hitting the tables, men shouting and laughing, the distant howl of the wind. Alicia looked around the room, trying to see if perhaps the man they were supposed to meet was already there, but now that the novelty of their presence had passed, no one was looking their way.
Perhaps he hasnae arrived yet.
She hoped he would arrive soon, though. The longer they stayed there, the more uncomfortable Alicia felt, concerned not only about herself but about Katherine as well. If anything happened to her sister, she would never forgive herself.
The maid who had arranged this delivery for her had assured her that the man would show. Alicia held onto that hope and onto the small pouch of gold in her pocket that she would use to pay for the book.
It was only a little while later when the door opened and a man walked in, looking around the room as though he was searching for someone. When his gaze found Alicia and Katherine, he made his way straight to them, but Alicia was quick to stand, pulling Katherine along further into the deepest corner of the room, where they would have even more privacy. It was an illusion of privacy, of course—everyone around them could still see them, but Alicia hoped they were all too drunk to notice or that they wouldn’t care about such an exchange.
The man followed them, coming to stand in front of Alicia with a smile. He was a little older, she saw, perhaps in his thirties, but he looked like the kind of man who had already been through a lot in his life. Scars covered much of his face and his hair was tied carelessly at the nape, light blonde and tangled up in knots. His eyes, dark and beady, stared at Alicia and Katherine in a way that made Alicia’s skin crawl and her stomach churn.
“Are ye the lass who wants this?” the man asked, holding up a package that looked like a book wrapped in brown paper. “Ye must be… nay other lass looks like ye here.”
“Thank ye,” Alicia said, ignoring the man’s words as she held out her hand for the book. The man, though, didn’t give it to her.
“The Canterbury Tales…ye’re a naughty lass, are ye nae?” said the man and Alicia swallowed drily, trying to ease her racing heart. “Ye ken this isnae the kind o’ book ye should be readin’.”
“What I read is nae o’ ye concern,” Alicia said. “I doubt ye can even read.”
The man gave a shrug, seemingly unfazed by the insult. “Nae everyone is noble born like ye,” he said, hand reaching out to tap at the tip of Alicia’s nose before she could pull back from him. The gesture left her stunned, mouth hanging open as she stared at him in disbelief. “But I ken what this is about. Heard o’ it.”
“Well! Good fer ye,” said Alicia and once again held her hand out. “I will have the book now, thank ye.”
The man placed the book on the ledge of the window that protruded right next to him. He took a step towards Alicia, and instinctively, she pushed Katherine behind her, shielding her with her own body. She felt Katherine’s hands on her shoulders, her sister standing right behind her, like a solid wall on her back.
Alicia looked around them, at all the people who sat at the other tables. A few of them were looking their way, but no one seemed to be interested in intervening, even as they saw the terror on her face—even as she stared at each of them in turn, silently pleading with them to help her.
Nay one will help us here. We are alone.
The realization sank in her stomach like a stone in a river and Alicia’s bottom lip trembled as her gaze fell back on the man in front of her. He had not stopped looking at her and Katherine for a single moment, and now he was leaning even closer, until Alicia could feel his breath on her face.
“Ye have the gold?” the man asked.
“Aye,” Alicia said quickly, reaching into her pocket to grab the small pouch. Perhaps if she paid the man and grabbed the book, she and Katherine could flee this place before the man could do anything else. The man took the pouch, but he made no move to leave. Slowly, Alicia reached for Katherine’s hand and began to pull her towards the side, but the man moved with them, blocking their way.
His fingers were feverish as they brushed over her cheek, a smile spreading over his lips. “Ye’re both bonnie lasses an’ the night is still young. I have somethin’ ye’d like more than the book.”
Before she knew what she was doing, Alicia’s palm collided with the man’s cheek. The crack of the slap echoed around them, and the force of it whipped the man’s head to the side. There was a moment when no one spoke. Alicia looked at him, wide-eyed, her heart beating wildly in her chest. The man turned to look back at her, rubbing his jaw, a snarl forming slowly on his face.
This is it, he will kill us both an’ nay one will dae anythin’ tae stop him.
