Page 51 of Beguiled By the Highlander
“It was our lady mother’s bed.” There was a reverential note in Margaret’s voice as she traced her fingertips along one of the carved oak posts.
“Just so ye know,” William said, giving her a smile that made her treacherous toes curl. “When this was my bedchamber, I had nothing as grand as this to sleep on.”
“My lord father moved the bed in here when William claimed Creagdoun,” Margaret said. “When we received the message earlier in the week that ye were arriving, I had the chamber aired and bed linen freshly washed. If there’s anything ye need, my lady, please let me know.”
“Ye’re very kind.” She smiled at Margaret, for how could she not? The girl was delightful and certainly not in league with her brother’s deceptions.
But what does she mean when William claimed Creagdoun?Maybe she merely meant when William had inherited the castle from their father.
“Thank ye, Margaret,” William said, and his sister beamed at him before leaving the chamber. Patric, after casting a critical eye around the chamber, nodded at her before ushering Emer away, and she and her husband were finally alone.
She gave him a sideways glance as he shut the door.My husband. How strange that fact hadn’t crossed her mind before.
“Yer sister is most attentive.”
“She takes her duties seriously.” He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. His body was a wall of solid muscle against her back. How she longed to melt against him. But she’d melted beneath his charm before, and she doubted her pride would ever recover from it.
She dragged her scrambled thoughts to order. She wouldnotlet him see how easily he could shatter her defenses.
“Yer lady mother?” She left the question hanging, suddenly unsure if he’d wish to speak of her, when he hadn’t mentioned her before. But then, he hadn’t mentioned any of his family to her, and surely, now she was his wife, she had the right to know.
A great shudder ripped through his body, and she bit her lip, glad he wasn’t facing her. She didn’t need to see the pain in his eyes to know how deeply he’d loved her.
“She died in childbirth. I was thirteen. Margaret is the image of her. I think somehow that gives our father comfort.”
“I’m so sorry.” Her voice was soft. For such a natural event, childbirth could be so cruel. How many times had Freyja raged in the night when a new mother she’d cared for had succumbed, despite all her efforts?
He rested his jaw on the top of her head, a tender gesture, and she blinked back the unexpected prickling behind her eyes. She didn’t want to feel sadness for him. He was her husband, and she would do her duty, but not because she wanted to.
Because she had no choice.
How bleak that future would be, when once she’d imagined so much more could be theirs.
“I must speak with my father.” He sounded reluctant, and his arms tightened around her before he slowly released her. “I’ll send Emer in, to tend to yer needs.”
She turned and gave him a perfunctory smile, even though it foolishly hurt her heart. It wasn’t Emer she wanted. It was her sisters.
But most of all, she wanted her imaginary Njord back.
Chapter Sixteen
William found hisfather in the courtyard, talking with Hugh, David, and Malcolm. Several of the men had gone their own ways after they’d docked, and while he’d rather keep any possible enemy close, he could hardly demand they remain without explaining why. And as soon as he alerted his would-be murderer that he recalled those last moments on the ship, the slender advantage of using their ignorance against them would vanish.
Admittedly, it was a shit advantage, since he still had no clue who wanted him dead. But it was the only one he had.
At his approach, the men made their excuses and left the two of them alone.
“What the hell happened?” His father kept his voice low. “Ye fell overboard?” Skepticism dripped from every word.
“I don’t know who hit me on the head and left me for dead. But if not for Lady Isolde and her kin, the assassin would’ve succeeded in their mission.”
“Christ.” His father exhaled a long breath. “Who the devil was on the ship with ye?”
“I’ve known every man for years.” Frustration clawed through him again, the way it did every time he thought of what had happened. “Only Hugh knows the truth. Safer that way.”
“Aye. I agree. It sickens me to think we have a traitor among us. It’s good Lady Isolde has her own band of warriors to protect her.” He drew in a deep breath, and William refrained fromtelling his father that Isolde was his responsibility and only he could protect her.
God damn it, he couldn’t even trust the people closest to him. How could he ever entrust her safety to them when he wasn’t around?
