Page 29 of The Lady in Pearls
“It’s a wonderful day. Come and walk with me.” She held out her hand.
He descended the stairs and took it, loving how their fingers intertwined, and headed toward the gardens. Once there, he tugged her against his body, delighting in her gasp and sigh as he covered her mouth with his. Daphne gave freely of herself and he whispered soft words of encouragement against her skin when she clung to him. The velvet warmth of her kisses cocooned him inside a private heaven that he never wished to leave.
He wasn’t sure how much time passed before they broke apart. That single kiss had seemed endless. He never knew that simply kissing a woman could fill him with such pleasure.
Lachlan grasped her hands and grinned. “Let’s go inside and continue this.”
She giggled. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.”
As they walked back to the house, Lachlan had to stop himself from whistling. In the distance, he heard the crack of gunfire.
“What’s that?” Daphne asked, looking over the fields beyond the castle.
“The farmers are hunting deer. The herds need thinning. I have quite a few on Huntley lands, and I let the tenants hunt during the winter to keep the poor beasts from starving. The extra meat will be a welcome for the tenant farmers come wintertime.”
“Can I meet the tenants?” she asked. “I would like to know as much as possible about your life here.”
“Ourlife,” he corrected.
“Our life,” she echoed with a blush.
“I can take you to meet them tomorrow.” Lachlan paused as he reached the door and stole one more kiss before he gestured for her to precede him.
“Lachlan?” His mother’s voice stopped him in his tracks.
Moira stood in the hallway, her face pale. She clutched a piece of paper. She stood only a few feet from his study, or rather, William’s study. Moira’s eyes darted to Daphne, a mixture of horror and pain so stark it made him suck in a breath.
She knew.
“Moira, are you all right?” Daphne let go of Lachlan’s arm and started toward her. Moira retreated a step as though Daphne would attack her.
“I need to speak with you,alone.” Moira told him, refusing to look at Daphne.
“Lachlan, should I…?” Daphne began.
“Go upstairs to my chambers and wait from me.” He moved toward his wife.
“But—”
“Go.” He pushed her gently toward the stairs.
Once he was sure Daphne had reached the upper floor, he escorted his mother into William’s study and closed the door.
“Youhidthis from me.” His mother shoved the paper at his chest and he caught the slightly crumpled letter. “I found it locked in his desk drawer. Youknew, didn’t you? William never locked those drawers, butyoudid.” Moira’s eyes were rimmed with red as she looked at him, then she collapsed into a chair in front of William’s desk, her head bowed.
“I couldn’t let you know the truth.” He set the letter down on the escritoire, his throat suddenly tight. Why hadn’t he burned the letter? He should have, but he’d foolishly been unable to let go of it. They were William’s last words and he couldn’t let go.
His mother lifted her head. “He said he was involved in something with Sir Richard Westfall. That’s Daphne’s father, isn’t it?” It was less a question than an accusation.
“Yes.” He wanted to lie to her, but he couldn’t.
“You knew before you married her, didn’t you?” Moira sniffed. Tears trickled down her cheeks. His mother’s agony cut through him hard enough that he could feel his heart bleeding.
“Aye. I knew.”
“But ...how could you? The daughter of the man who-- Why? Did you think to find some justice in it or did you have other designs for her? What were you thinking?” her words crumbled into a breathless inhalation as she fought off a sob.
“I married her to hurt her, to hurthim. I didn’t love her, mother. It was a marriage arranged from spite and vengeance. I wanted to make her miserable. It was my only way to hurt him, through her.” A great weariness settled on him.
