Page 5 of The Highlander's Auctioned Bride
“Dae ye think the only plants worth tendin’ to are those with beautiful blooms?” he asked as his eye skipped over her face. “Some might agree with ye. Many only chase pretty things and leave the rest to rack and ruin.”
She frowned up at the darkness in his tone and glanced again at the ivy.Is he still talkin’ about plants?
“Ye havenae answered me question,” she said pointedly.
“How about ye answer mine? What wereyedoin’ leavin’ the party? And what business have ye got with the coachmen?”
She gasped. “I wasnae goin’ to thecoachmen, I was tryin’ to find me carriage.”
“And I say again, for what reason?”
“Ye are very impertinent.”
“Answer the question.”
She sucked in a breath at his tone; it was not to be argued with, steady and commanding. It made gooseflesh leap to life on her arms, and the back of her neck prickled at his proximity.
Who is this man?
She looked him over. He did not look particularly remarkable, wearing a simple kilt and a white léine, he could have been anyone. Perhaps a man-at-arms?
“I dinnae like to be kept waitin’, lass,” he said, and she was immediately compelled to answer.
“I was… tryin’ to get away.”
“Away?”
“Aye. If I can make it out of the castle, I willnae have to sit through this farce of a feast.”
He cocked his head at her. “Ye’re one of the potential brides then, are ye?”
She snorted. “I wish I wasnae. What kind of a monster makes women compete for his affections like that? It isnae proper.”
There was a long silence above her, and she looked back at him warily. She was not sure what had made her speak so brazenly to him, but now she was regretting it.
To her shock, he stepped forward, put his hands on her upper arms, and pulled her to her feet. He moved her back, so she stood just shy of the doorway she had entered through and gave her a long, penetrating stare.
“If ye go through with this plan, the servants will just bring ye right back to where ye came from, lass. If I were ye, I’d return to the crowd and see what comes of the feast. Monsters have ways of tamin’ girls like ye. And ye never ken,” he said with a smirk. “Maybe ye just might like it.”
CHAPTER 3
Maisie gapedat him as he released her and walked away through the gardens. He was so tall he was almost at head height with some of the trees in the orchard, and his strong muscles lengthened and bunched as he moved.
She became aware she was staring and dragged her gaze away.
He is right; I cannae escape with all of these servants around. They would just discover me and bring me right back where I dinnae wish to be.
With one last wistful glance at her would-be escape route, she went back toward the crowds. She had just faced down a giant who had forcibly prevented her from leaving, she was confident she could deal with a gaggle of simpering ladies.
What did he mean ‘taming’ women like me?She mused, feeling a thrill at the thought of it.How would a man like that tame anyone?
Her breath stuttered in her throat as she imagined those large hands gripping her body and physically preventing her from acting against his will. The thought was more arousing than it should have been.
Her gaze was caught by the sun as it crept out from behind a cloud and sent a shaft of light over the hills in the distance. Maisie sighed.
The thought of escape was still at the forefront of her mind, but now she had returned to the crowds; another thought blocked that desire.
If she were to run, it would destroy her father. She knew it with cold certainty. He would be devastated should she abandon him. Running from this world would not be easy—there were too many eyes upon her.
