Page 19 of The Highlander's Inconvenient Wife
“Does your mother enjoy reading books on cooking?” she asked as she suddenly stopped and felt a heavy force bumping into her back.
She hadn’t realized that Jasper had been following so close behind her. “I’m sorry,” she hurriedly apologized as she felt his strong hands gripping her shoulders in an attempt to keep her from stumbling.
“Doesnae matter,” he said quietly with his hands still on her shoulders. “To answer yer question, maither likes to cook. We do have a cook, but she likes to go to the kitchens an’ make food herself. She came from a very poor family a’fore she married me faither; her mother taught her how to cook when she was a wee lassie. She made the stew that ye ate in the cell.”
“That’s why it tasted so good,” she remarked, remembering the rich flavors of the stew and the hearty smell.
“Maither always says that ye can taste the effort someone puts into their cooking.”
“I think I’m inclined to agree with her.” She cleared her throat and continued walking along the length of the shelf when she noticed that his hands were still resting on her shoulders. The feel of his skin through the fabric of her dress made her mind wander in directions that were far too dangerous at present.
Jasper followed along behind her again, and even though he seemed to take a great interest in the titles of the books, she was sure he had seen them a hundred times at least.
The atmosphere between them had suddenly thickened again, leaving in its wake the fluttering sensation in the pit of her stomach that seemed to have started the day before. His presence affected her body in ways that she was reluctant to admit.
Reaching for a book that seemed particularly interesting, she stood on her toes and froze when Jasper’s hand suddenly engulfed hers, enclosing her fingers in a warm grasp. The feel of his rough skin against hers made her arm jolt as if she had been struck by lightning.
Jasper quickly withdrew and cleared his throat as he looked away, but it was obvious to her that their interaction had been just as surprising to him as it was to her.
“I wanted to ask ye a question,” he quickly started a new subject as they both left the book where it had been. “I hope ye willnae be offended.”
Her mind suddenly raced with all the possibilities as her heart galloped at ten miles per hour. “Go ahead,” she hesitated at first but accepted his request. “It’s the least I can do after everything you have done for me.”
Is he going to ask me to stay at the castle for a little while longer?Her breathing deepened with panic.
“I wanted to ask if ye would be comfortable telling me why ye are runnin’ away.” He quickly looked into her eyes. “Ye dinnae have to if ye dinnae want to. I’ve just been concerned about yer safety.”
Joan took a deep breath as she looked at him. “Well, all of London already knows what happened, even more so now that I’ve run away. I may as well let Scotland know as well.”
“I willnae tell anyone what ye tell me.” He looked at her earnestly. “Anything ye say in here is safe with me.”
“I’m betrothed to a baron who tricked me into a marriage of convenience with him by means of a scandal.”
“Go on,” he said with a frown as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the shelf with his shoulder.
“He had been following me for quite some time in London. The man showed up to every ball and social event I attended. I had thought him harmless at first, but he soon became persistent with his advances and would never accept no for an answer.”
Jasper seemed completely enthralled by her story as he hung on to every word, listening intently to everything she had to say with a dark look in his eye.
“A week ago, he came to a ball that was being hosted by a prominent family of the ton. The night was dragging on, and I was getting tired of deflecting his advances. I went onto the empty balcony for a breath of fresh air, and he ended up following me.”
Joan could see a muscle jumping in his jaw as she told her story.
“I made polite conversation with him for a few moments in the hopes that I could slip away, but some of the gossips had already noticed that we were alone and decided to come and investigate.” She looked down as she thought of the events of the evening. “Looking back now, I’m sure that he had planned it all along.”
“I dinnae ken the man, an’ I wasnae there, but I’m sure the scoundrel planned it,” he said bitterly, visibly angered by what she was saying.
“To make a long story short. He attempted to kiss me just as some women came walking into the balcony. I tried to push him away, but it was far too late; the damage had already been done. My reputation was compromised, and he went ahead and made a very public declaration to marry me.”
“Surely yer faither didnae agree to that?” Jasper asked as he took a step forward and placed his finger under chin, lifting her face toward his when she continued to examine his shoes. The whole ordeal had left her feeling embarrassed; telling the story was difficult enough without looking someone in the eyes.
“They understood that I had been placed in a very difficult situation that was beyond my control, but a scandal is a scandal, and the damage needed to be controlled. My parents agreed to the marriage and helped the baron obtain a special licence that would allow us to wed in a week.”
“Ye ran away from home because ye didnae wish to marry the bastard,” he stated rather than asked as he lowered his hand, finishing her story for her.
“A cowardly thing to do, I know, but I felt as if I had no other choice if I wasn’t to spend the rest of my life trapped in a loveless marriage.” She looked to the side to avoid his gaze. “I don’t think I could ever love a man like him, not one that would compromise a woman like that.”
“I dinnae think ye are a coward,” he said to her great surprise. “It takes a strong person to ken when it’s time to fight an’ when it’s time to retreat. Ye knew that there were nae any other options available to ye. I can respect a decision like that.”
