Page 5 of A Forbidden Night with a Scot
When he looked back at the two girls, waving the book in his hand, both of them turned beet-red, their cheeks visibly flushed even in the moonlight. Katherine swayed where she stood and her hand shot out to grab Alicia as she tried to steady herself, much to Samuel’s amusement.
He wasn’t going to be too cruel with them, though. Just enough to teach them that they shouldn’t be alone in such a place.
“Will ye tell Faither?” Alicia asked, her voice barely more than a mumble.
Samuel had no intention of telling Gavin any of this, but it was entertaining to imagine the conversation between the two of them. His friend would surely lose his mind and his temper if he found out the truth, and Samuel could imagine him pacing up and down his study, mumbling to himself just as Alicia had done now, but in fury rather than embarrassment.
“I willnae tell him if ye promise that ye will never dae such a thing again,” Samuel said. “Ye cannae leave the castle in the middle o’ the night tae visit such taverns. What if I hadnae been here? Did ye ever stop tae think about what could have happened tae ye?”
Once again, neither girl spoke and Alicia didn’t even try to fight the terms of his deal, which was odd for her. Usually, she was quick to argue, hating anything that restricted her freedom, but now she remained quiet, her gaze lowering to the ground between her feet.
She must ken the danger she could have found this time. She doesnae seem scared, but she is.
An’ she certainly doesnae want her faither tae ken any o’ this.
“Fine,” Alicia said with a sigh, dragging her gaze back to Samuel. “Thank ye fer yer assistance, Laird MacLachlan. I will have the book now, please.”
As she spoke, she approached and tried to grab the book, but Samuel was quick to pull it above his head once more, holding it there. In an instant, Alicia’s face twisted into a mask of fury, a groan of frustration escaping her.
“I paid fer that book!” she said. “Ye cannae simply take it!”
“O’ course I can,” said Samuel. “An’ I ken old habits die hard, but I think ye can both call me Samuel now. Ye’re nae children anymore.”
“If we’re grown lasses,Samuel, then we can read any book we wish,” Alicia said without missing a beat. His given name dripped venom as it came from her lips. “Give it back. It belongs tae me.”
“I dinnae think ye’re in any position tae make demands when ye’ve just been caught out here in the middle o’ the night,” Samuel pointed out. “I could still tell yer faither the truth.”
He wouldn’t, of course, not only for Alicia’s and Katherine’s sake, but for Gavin’s, too. He didn’t want to send his friend to an early grave.
“Ye promised ye wouldnae say anything,” Alicia reminded him, scoffing in disbelief that Samuel would take back his word like that. “How can ye make a promise an’ then take it back?”
“I gave ye a stipulation.”
“Tae never dae such a thing again,” Alicia said. “Nae tae relinquish the book.”
By God’s bones, she’s right! I should have thought twice afore I gave her that stipulation.
In fact, Samuel knew he should always think twice before telling Alicia anything. She was too clever for him to speak without thinking, and whenever they bickered like this—which was every time he saw her—she always had the upper hand in the end. Up until the last time, he could have claimed his wisdom couldn’t be challenged, as Alicia had still been a girl. Now that she was grown, it was difficult to claim he still knew much better than she did.
“Ye are insufferable,” Alicia said.
“I could say the same about ye.”
“Is this fightin’ truly necessary?” Katherine called. She was still standing a few steps behind them, still shaking like a leaf. With a sigh, Samuel walked over to her and placed a gentle, comforting hand on her shoulder, trying to soothe her fears as best he could.
“We’re nae fightin’, Katherine,” he said, giving her a small smile. “We’re only havin’ a discussion.”
“Are we?” Alicia asked as she approached, deftly undoing Samuel’s brooch from his jacket and leaping away from him before he could grab it back. “A brooch fer a book,” she said, pinning it to her dress. “A fair deal.”
Samuel chuckled, easily letting it go. He had more use for the brooch than he did for the book. The only thing he would not allow her to take was the necklace around his neck—a family heirloom given to him by his father as a young man, who had instructed him to gift it to the woman he would eventually love.
“Ye’re a wily wee thing, Alicia,” he said.
“An’ ye’re findin’ joy in irritatin’ me,Samuel.”
“Where is the man?”
Samuel and Alicia turned to look at Katherine, the alarmed tone in her voice startling him. He looked around, noting that the man truly seemed to be gone, no sign of him anywhere.
