Page 95 of Taken By the Ruthless Highlander
With the questions mounting, Morgana was at a crossroads.
“My Lady, Feya is waitin’ for ye. Are ye comin’? Or shall I tell her ye were too busy for her at the moment? Besides, the horses are bein’ prepared for the others as we speak. I promise they’ll be right behind us. If we leave now, ye’ll have a moment alone with her before the questionin’ starts,” Cohen pressed.
His words should have reassured her, but she couldn’t understand the rising anxiety in her chest.
She rolled her shoulders back. With Feya’s return, there would be questions asked, and it would be a madhouse trying to get her siblings to give them a moment alone.
“Let’s go,” she said. “Are ye certain the others will follow?”
“Aye, My Lady,” Cohen answered as he escorted her out of the castle and to the stables.
Morgana’s heart fluttered with excitement. She had known today was going to be special the moment she woke up. She just never thought it would have anything to do with Feya’s return. Overjoyed with the idea of seeing her sister again, she walked faster to the stables.
“Yer sister’s in a little cottage nae far from here,” Cohen explained as he lifted her into the saddle and mounted behind her.
“What are ye doin’?” she asked, feeling uncomfortable in his proximity.
She didn’t like being between his thighs nor the prospect of what Ryder would do to him if he saw them together like that.
“The other horses are bein’ readied for the Laird and his men,” Cohen said as he turned the horse to the open stable doors. “My horse is by far faster than the lot of them, and I doubt ye can handle him on yer own. Scribe here likes to buck other riders, and I willnae let my horse harm ye, so I ride with ye.”
Alarm bells went off in Morgana’s head. She wasn’t sure why she was feeling such an overwhelming sense of dread as they headed out. One thing was certain, though—her nerves were on edge, and she wasn’t about to miss the chance to see her sister once again.
As they charged out of the stables, she glanced at the gray walls of the castle. She searched the dark windows, wondering if Ryder was standing behind the glass, watching her.
Sorry, my love, but I have to go.
33
“Will ye listen to yerself?” Felix scolded as Ryder paced the length of his study.
Ryder knew he’d have to face Morgana, eventually. After all, it wasn’t like he could give her the cold shoulder indefinitely. There would come a time when he’d have to face her well before she gave birth.
He swallowed hard. All these years, he had been careful, on his guard, and closed off… only to be knocked down by his wife’s wild, turbulent winds.
He let out a heavy sigh as he turned to the window. “Ye dinnae understand. Ye werenae there when I watched my maither pass in my arms after what he had done to her. I vowed I’d never… and now…” He hung his head as he rubbed the tension from the back of his neck.
The fact that he was bedazzled by Morgana didn’t bother him one bit. She was a beautiful woman, with eyes that sparkled like diamonds.
“Oh, I hear ye.” He watched through the glass pane as Felix folded his arms over his chest and shook his head. “But I dinnae think that ye’re fully understandin’ what goin’ on here.”
“She manipulated me,” Ryder growled, offended that his man-at-arms wouldn’t see how horrid the situation was.
“Nay, mate.” Felix dropped his arms and moved closer to him. “Ye fell in love with yer wife. That’s what happened—it just hasnae hit ye yet.”
“Nonsense,” Ryder scoffed, shrugging Felix’s hand off his shoulder. “I’m nae in love with Morgana. If I was?—”
“Ye’d be willin’ to give her the heavens and move mountains,” Felix cut him off. “That’s what ye did. Ye were so caught up in her that ye gave yerself away. It’s all right. It happens to the best of us.”
“Ye’re speakin’ as if ye ken about such things. And when was the last time ye gaveyerheart away?” Ryder snapped and threw a frustrated hand up in the air. “See, ye spout things as if ye ken, but ye’re just as clueless as I am.”
“Tell me somethin’,” Felix drawled as he moved to the desk and plopped down on it as ifhewere the Laird.
Ryder’s eyes narrowed in warning, and his nostrils flared.
Felix kicked his feet up on the desk, unfazed. “Why did ye order me to send her away, when ye should be havin’ this conversation with her? Is it because ye think I will see yer side and validate yer insecurities? I ken how yer faither was, but ye’re nae him. Ye could never be him.”
“I ordered ye to send her away because I didnae want to see her.”
