Page 52 of Bound to a Scot
It was Maddox’s turn to frown. He needed an heir eventually, that much was true. But the thought of having a woman who didn’t want to be with him produce that child turned his stomach. He knew some men in his position didn’t care whether a woman wanted to be with them or not. They saw them as things they possessed and used them as they saw fit. Laird Macfie was a prime example of that. But he couldn’t have an heir out of wedlock either, it would not be accepted as the laird of the clan. It was a thorny bramble he was going to need to find a way to navigate and just another problem this marriage was going to give him.
“We dinnae nae need tae worry about that right now,” he said. “That’s something we’ll talk about another time.”
She pursed her lips and looked deeply into his eyes for a moment, a pained uncertainty etched into her features as she considered his words. Maddox wasn’t good with things like emotions. And he wasn’t the best when it came to putting people at ease. That just wasn’t in his nature. But he found himself wanting to lighten the burden that was obviously on Cecilia’s heart and soul. He reached out and took her hand.
“Why dinnae we start as friends?” he said. “Let’s learn tae get along. Let’s get tae ken one another and learn tae like each other as people first. How would that be?”
Her smile wavered but she couldn’t hide the look of relief on her face. Despite that relief though, he could still see the underlying uncertainty and even a touch of fear, which he thought was perfectly natural. Maddox himself felt the same to a degree.
“Friends, eh?” she said.
He nodded. “Friends.”
“I can dae that.”
“Good,” he replied. “So can I.”
They turned and started down the path again. Maddox felt a bit better than he had earlier in the day. Perhaps he and Cecilia would find a way to make this marriage work. He wasn’t sure how just yet, but maybe they’d find a way to navigate it together.
“Want tae hear somethin’ funny?” she asked.
“Please.”
“When I was younger and thought about me marriage, I always wanted it tae be tae a man who looked at me the way ye look at Emmy.”
The blood in Maddox’s veins turned to ice and his stomach clenched so tight, it was painful. He tried to swallow the lump in his throat and turned to her.
“What did ye say?”
She rolled her eyes but smiled. “I’m nae a fool, Maddox. I’ve seen the way ye look at her. The way ye feel about her is obvious,” she said pleasantly. “All I was sayin’ was that when I was younger, that’s the way I wanted me husband tae look at me. That’s all.”
They walked on in silence. Maddox’s heart thundered in his chest and waves of nausea rolled through his stomach. She was indeed a perceptive girl. But if his feelings for Emmeline had been that obvious to her, who else were they obvious to?
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Emmeline unceremoniously dropped the bundle of wood to the ground with a grunt, then stood up and put her hand to the small of her back and groaned.
“That was heavy,” she said.
Lorn chuckled. “I tried tae tell ye nae to take it all at once.”
He set his bundle of wood on the ground gently, then turned to her with a grin tugging one corner of his mouth up.
“Nobody likes a showoff,” she said.
“That’s nae true. Plenty of these kitchen lasses are impressed.”
Emmeline laughed. “Ye are terrible.”
“Aye. Sometimes, I suppose that’s true.”
A few of the serving women hustled and thanked them before carrying away the wood they’d brought for the ovens. Their task done, they turned and walked out of the courtyard outside the kitchens and moved through the corridors of the castle.
“Thank ye fer yer help with that,” she said.
“Of course. I’m happy tae feel useful fer a change.”
“What dae ye mean?’
