Page 43 of Highlander of Steel
“Honestly, ye’re all like wee ladies runnin’ wild, except the games ye play are far more dangerous,” Ailis muttered.
She shot both men a dark glare and turned to walk off, grumbling under her breath.
Once she was a safe distance away, Killian fixed Murdock with a deadly look. “Therewillbe a weddin’,” he growled. “And I daenae want to see ye on me lands again unless it’s to congratulate us. The invitation stands.”
“I’d rather gouge me eyes out than see ye wed me sister,” Murdock spat.
Calmer now, Killian took a deep breath. “This could mean peace, Murdock. Just give it some thought.” He paused. “Yer faither willnae live forever, and take it from me, the last thing any heir wants to inherit is an endless war.”
He dropped Murdock’s blade onto the man’s outstretched legs, hoping it wouldn’t end up buried in his back, and took off after his bride.
“Leave me alone!” Ailis snapped as he fell into step with her a few moments later.
“Do ye ken where ye’re goin’?” he asked.
She came to an abrupt halt, her eyes flashing with fury as she turned to him. “I daenae care if I get lost for a while; I daenae want ye near me.” She jabbed a finger toward the spot where he had left Murdock, now hidden by the crowded trees. “Ye would have killed him if I hadnae stopped ye!”
“A wee scratch or two, maybe,” Killian replied with a sigh. “I couldnae let him take ye, lass. He might’ve killedye.Ye said it yerself that ye were worried he might—thattheymight—if ye returned.”
She balled her hands into angry fists. “Maybe I did, but I realized somethin’ today.” Splotches of red colored her plump cheeks. “I cannae leave one bloodthirsty family just to join another.”
“Did ye want me to just stand there and let them run me through so they could take ye away?” he protested, his tone bitter. “Did ye want me to stand aside? I asked if ye wanted to go back, and ye didnae say aye.”
As if there was a wasp close by, she shook her head in little jolts and jerks. “I’m… confused. I’m so confused by all of this that me head is about to explode.” She drew in a shaky breath. “Nay, I didnae want to return, and I didnae want ye to get hurt, but I didnae want anyone to die either. And I’ll still marry ye if I must, because I want peace and I want Fraser to live, and so help me, ye’ve made me think it’s possible… but ye willnae touch me again. Ever.”
With one last pained look, she turned and tramped off through the forest. Mostly heading in the right direction, though Killian couldn’t help but feel as if they had just taken a wrong turn somewhere, no longer walking the same path together.
16
“What has ye so distracted from the thrill of ledgers and correspondence?” Peter asked, the bulk of him blocking the study doorway.
Killian struggled to tear his gaze away from the gardens, where Paisley and Ailis were wandering. They were laughing about something, too far away for him to hear the jest, but it lifted his spirits to see Ailis smiling like that again. Had she been aware of his eyes on her, he had no doubt that her joy would have vanished in an instant.
“Anythin’ could distract me from this,” he said grimly as he set down his quill and stretched out his arms. Stealing one more glance through the window to where Ailis and Paisley had paused to pick herbs.
Peter entered the room and walked right up to the window to peer out. “Ah, I see.”
It had been three days since the incident in the forest. Three days since Killian had been in Ailis’s company. She dined in Paisley’s quarters in the evening and had been doing her very best to ensure that they were never in the same room.
They had crossed paths no more than a handful of times. He had seen her in the hallway with an armful of books, though she hadn’t seen him. He had felt eyes on him while out in the training yard, and when he had turned, he had seen her figure retreating swiftly. He had seen her twice in the gardens, once in the cloisters, and once in the entrance hall, where she had promptly turned around and walked in the opposite direction.
“It doesnae matter,” he said firmly. “She doesnae trust me, but the weddin’ will still take place, and the maids tell me that she’s been eatin’ more lately. As long as she’s nae around me, she seems happy enough.”
Peter gave a pitying smile that Killian didn’t appreciate one bit. “Ye ordered the maids to spy on her?”
“They’rereportin’on her welfare to me,” Killian corrected. “That isnae spyin’.”
Peter took the seat opposite. “I imagine Paisley isnae sayin’ much to ye, though. She’s taken her side.”
“I daenae mind that,” Killian said. “The lass could use a friend here, and it keeps Paisley from comin’ to me every five minutes, askin’ me what I mean to do about Fraser. As if that doesnae occupy at least half of me mind all the time.”
Peter brushed a patch of dried mud off his knee. “Aye, well, the plan is mostly in place. All depends on Ailis’s map now, but Paisley told me she’s in the midst of drawin’ it.” He paused. “Do ye think they’ll come to the weddin’ after all?”
“I cannae guess, at present.” Killian let his gaze wander back to Ailis as more laughter rose to greet his ears. “But, either way, we’ll get them both—Fraser and the wee lassie. I ken it willnae be easy, and I wish it were me leadin’ the rescue, but I have faith in ye, Peter.”
Peter laughed, though his eyes betrayed an inner pride. “I’m just sorry I willnae get to see the great Killian Lennox married at last. Ye’ll have to save me a cup of good whiskey for when I return triumphant.”
“I’ll save ye a whole barrel,” Killian promised, the first wave of unease writhing in his stomach.
