Page 12 of Trapped with the Vicious Highlander
Her thoughts were swiftly interrupted by the door creaking open. She narrowed her eyes. She didn’t knock, did she?
Margaret looked up at her, a weak smile playing on her lips. As much as it hurt her to say, Ava could see the resemblance with Brodrick. The girl had his eyes, his hair, and a softer shape that was reminiscent of his face.
She stepped aside, the smile still lingering on her face.
Ava walked in, looking around the room. In just the one week Margaret had been moved to her new room, she had managed to make it fit what Ava assumed to be her personality. The room looked quite regal and was similar to how Margaret carried herself despite being just a child.
She always had the grace of royalty, like the daughter of a king.
Or a powerful laird.
Of course.
Ava swallowed and closed the door behind her as Margaret hurried back to her bed, the parchment she had given her pinched between her fingers.
“I assume you are finding the letters quite interesting to read, are you not?”
Margaret looked up, a wide smile on her face.
“He is gone, by the way. The brute that tried to attack us in the kitchen.”
Margaret nodded.
Ava shuffled her feet, wondering what would be the best possible way to break the news to her.
“Margie,” she started, refusing to linger and letting her thoughts consume her. “You shall go on a trip tomorrow. What do you think about that?”
Margaret shrugged.
“It is quite an important one, you see. It might help us learn where you come from. And possibly help us figure out your little speech problem.”
Ava watched Margaret’s hand tighten around the parchment, a worried look crossing her face.
“Oh, it is fine, you see. I shall be with you the entire time.”
She watched as Margaret’s features softened in relief. Her grip on the parchment slackened.
“We shall be leaving tomorrow with the Highlander. But do not worry, we shall be in another carriage. He will not scare you any longer.”
Margaret said nothing. She did nothing either.
Ava swallowed. “I shall come later this evening to prepare you for the journey. Is that all right with you?”
Margaret nodded.
Ava threw her a slight smile before turning around. Her walk to the door was slow, deliberate, and slightly expectant. She kept waiting to see if Margaret would do something—or say something. Something like she didn’t want to go, she wasn’t ready, she loved it here.
But she heard nothing.
Resigned, she quickened her steps and closed the gap between her and the door. She pulled it open and walked out, giving Margaret one last gentle smile before shutting the door behind her.
She stood outside the hallway and swallowed. She would need to delegate her duties and prepare herself as well if she was leaving tomorrow. She would need to properly make sure the place was still up and running before she left which meant there was a lot she had to put in place. Sure enough, the highlander said she would have a month. What if it was more than a month? What if Margaret never learned to speak for the next six months. She needed to make sure this place could survive longer than that without her. Her eyes searched the cottage premises as if taking in the view one last time.
Eventually, she walked back to her room and shut the door behind her. She headed to the mirror in the corner and took a look at her dress.
For a minute, she had let several thoughts bounce around in her head. What had the Highlander thought of her? Of the fact that she was curvier than most women, the fact that she was bigger, the fact that she didn’t let him step all over her. But then her mind started conjuring images, like her staring into his eyes, wrapping her hands around his muscles.
She gave herself a shake, startled by her wild imagination. Then, she took a few deep breaths and headed out of her room again.
