Page 37 of The Highlander's Auctioned Wife
Gordon turned, leaning back against the sill. “What I ken is that it doesnae matter who they were, or what their standin’ was in the hierarchy of whoever had me and me family’s death on their mind.”
“Of course it matters!” David protested. “Someone out there is tryin’ to kill ye, to finish what they started twenty years ago!”
Gordon shrugged. “It could well be someone else, considerin’ how much time has passed between then and now.”
“Aye, and it also might be the same person,” David insisted, his expression tense.
“Whether it is or it isnae, I willnae give them the satisfaction of seein’ me flounder and fumble, tryin’ to find them, instead ofconcentratin’ on the future of me clan. Whoever they are, theywinif I waste all me time on the past and daenae take steps to secure the future.” He downed what was left in the cracked glass. “I willnae become like those revenge-hungry bastards that lose their minds, devoted to one selfish cause. I’ll live me life instead, and whoever wants me, they can try to get me—it willnae end well for them.”
Moving to the decanters of whiskey at the rear of the room, refilling his glass, David shook his head slowly. “Things have changed now, M’Laird.” He paused. “Ye have yer bride to think of. I’ve nay doubt that ye can face any situation and come out alive—ye’ve proven it enough times—but… does this nae putherin danger? If she’s the key to that future ye speak of, and the continuation of yer blood, is she nae the biggest target of all?”
Of course, Gordon had considered that. It hadn’t left his mind, in truth, since he had ridden away from Castle MacTorrach with her. It was why he hadn’t insisted that she return to the carriage right away, feeling that there was nowhere safer for her to be than in his arms, on the back of his horse.
The incident in the inn had added to his wariness, and though it took a great deal to unsettle him, he was not exactly at ease, or oblivious to the mark that being his wife would put on Anna’s back.
He thought of her sweet, ceaseless chatter, the feel of her in his arms, the softness of her lips and the eagerness of her kiss, and felt his expression harden.
With an ember in his chest, adding fire to his voice, he replied, “If anyone tries to get to her, they must go through me. They can attempt to strike me down with a hail of arrows, or a blade to me heart, or poison in me whiskey, and I simply will nae die if she is in danger. If it’s a Devil they want, it’s a Devil they’ll get.”
The m an-at-a rms blinked, clearly unaccustomed to such intensity from his Laird. It was new to Gordon, too, who didn’t give rousing speeches, even before a battle. Yet, he knew every word to be true; he had let Anna choose him, he had brought her into the problem, and he would ensure, to his last breath if he had to, that she wouldn’t pay the ultimate price for her decision.
All of a sudden, David’s face cracked into a grin, nodding his head as he declared with a raised glass, “Good luck to them then. After that, Heaven kens they’ll need it.”
CHAPTER 18
Despite Jane’sinsistence that Anna ought to stay in her chambers and have breakfast there, Anna had refused, determined to show that she was not afraid of these new circumstances. After all, she’d chosen to leave with Gordon; she couldn’t claim to be surprised that he wasn’t the fawning, false romantic that Laird Glendenning might have been.
He's honest in everythin’ he does. I should admire that,she told herself, as she made her way down to what Jane had referred to as the “ Sea Hall”.
She understood why as soon as she entered.
Long, crosshatched windows made up most of the farthest wall, offering the most exquisite view across the glittering, endless sea, all the way to the hazy horizon. And the thud of the waves against the cliffs was louder here: a sonorous drumming that seemed to start in her feet and vibrate up into her chest, where it beat alongside her heart. A pleasant feeling, a pleasant rhythm,though the same couldn’t be said for the squawking seagulls that had woken her at dawn.
“Good mornin’!” a cheery voice welcomed, followed by a blur of flesh and gown, and slender arms looping around Anna’s neck, hugging her tightly.
Startled, Anna hugged the figure back before she had a moment to realize who it was: the young woman from the night before, who hadn’t been introduced.
“Did ye sleep well? Are yer chambers to yer likin’? If there’s anythin’ at all that ye want changin’, all ye have to do is tell me, and I’ll see it done,” the woman said, pulling back. “Apologies. I’m bein’ too forthright. Forgive me—I’m just… so excited to meet ye.”
She couldn’t have been more than twenty, with long dark hair, braided out of her face, and huge gray eyes that were somehow familiar. At that moment, however, the woman’s extraordinarily expressive eyebrows were proving far too distracting for Anna to place the particular shade of gray.
“I daenae think I heard yer name last night,” Anna said, grateful to have had such a warm welcome.
It certainly took the edge off her nerves, though they bristled afresh as she glanced across the table, and saw Gordon seated to one side. He hadn’t bothered to look up at his betrothed’s entrance.
“Och, what a dolt I am!” The woman took Anna’s hand, leading her to the far end of the table, closest to those magnificent views. “I’m Sophia. Gordon’s cousin. Daughter of that man there—Matthew Shaw.”
She gestured to another familiar face, who’d been there in the courtyard last night. There could be no denying the blood relation between Matthew and Gordon, their features so similar that one could have mistaken them for father and son, rather than uncle and nephew.
“Is there somethin’ in the water here?” Anna asked with a nervy laugh.
Sophia frowned. “Do ye mean the sea? There’s naught but salt in that.”
Anna chuckled more freely. “Nay, I meant that everyone here is so… tall.”
Even Sophia wasn’t lacking in height, standing half a head taller than Anna, who had always thought of herself as being rather tall for a lass.
“Oh, I see!” Sophia laughed right along with Anna. “Aye, the Shaws are well kenned for growin’ large as trees, though me faither claims the years have shrunken him somewhat.”
