Page 31 of The Runaway Bride and the Highlander
“So, are ye going tae tell her?” Bram said, a grin beaming from ear to ear.
Maxwell looked at him, a frown sat on his brow. “Tell her what?”
“That ye almost killed all o’ yer council members over her.”
Caelan chuckled a little and looked over at Bram. “Aye, did ye see James’s face? When Maxwell said he would kill each and every one o’ them if they didnae arrange it that he would marry her instead of ye, I thought the old man was going tae keel over in his chair.”
Bram let out a booming chuckle. “I ken, the poor man.”
“I dinnae think I’ve ever seen those men looked so disturbed. But then,” Caelan shrugged, now smiling, “Maxwell did look as though he was going tae explode.”
“Are ye ever going tae tell her?” Bram pressed again.
Maxwell did not find their conversation as amusing, and growling toward Bram, he said, “I willnae, and neither will either of ye.”
* * *
When Skylar left Maxwell’s study, she was still caught in a whirlwind of astonishment. While she might at first have been embarrassed to see him again that morning, any discomfort she had experienced was quickly replaced by surprise at what she had been told. And yes, she had been told, not asked. She had entered the room as a free woman, but she had certainly not exited it the same way.
All around her, things continued on as normal. Maids and manservants hurried through the corridors, seeing to their duties. Brass was polished, floors were swept, and fires were tended. Wandering through the corridors in some kind of daze, Skylar passed the entrance to the great hall. Already, the huge room had been cleaned after last night’s festivities, which now meant nothing at all because the council had forced Maxwell to marry her instead of Lady Fiona MacTavish. Even as the laird had said those words to her, he had looked annoyed, frustrated, as though her coming to the castle had entirely ruined his life.
It had come as more than a shock to her that she would be married in no more than a day, but seeing the laird’s anguish had made it all so much worse. He had been betrothed to one woman, and at the council’s bidding, he was now forced to wed another. Like an intricate web, more than their three lives would be affected, but ultimately, Lady MacTavish would not have her desired husband, Maxwell would lose his desired wife, and Skylar would be treated as she had always been treated, a pawn in a game of death. In the end, not one of them would be happy with the outcome.
The council are foolish men! Did they nae realize what their decision meant?
Of course they did, but they had come to such a conclusion for the greater good. Skylar had been surprised, as Maxwell had talked about the older men’s decision, that he had gone along with it at all. Surely, as laird, he must have some say in the matter. Evidently, in situations as serious and dangerous as these, it appeared even his title did not hold such weight.
He had made his feelings about it clear, however, for his words had been certain to convey that he had been forced to marry her and given no choice but to call off his union with Lady Fiona. The idea that he had not shown even a small flicker of satisfaction hurt Skylar deeply. He did not want to be with her, and eventually, he would resent her. Their marriage would be an unhappy and loveless one, but she supposed, it was still better than being married to Laird Johnson. She had clearly given too much credence to what had happened between them the previous night. For Maxwell, it had been lust and pleasure only. But for Skylar, it held far more meaning.
Katherine found Skylar in her bedchamber sometime later. Upon entering the room with eager excitement, she practically ran to Skylar.
“Is it true? Is it really true? Are ye tae marry the laird in the morning?”
Katherine beamed with happiness, and evidently not knowing if she ought to believe the rumors that Skylar assumed now circulated the castle, was breathless to discover the validity of them.
Skylar nodded. “Aye, Katherine. ‘Tis true,” she replied with little enthusiasm.
Katherine’s excitement quickly waned, and a deep and confused frown replaced her beaming smile. “Are ye nae excited at all, Skylar? Do ye nae want tae marry him?”
“I barely ken him.”
“What’s that got tae do with anything? I’ve kent women tae wed men they’ve never met until they were stood at the altar.”
Skylar raised her eyebrows in surprise and, with that revelation, swiftly felt sorry for such women. Arranged marriages were hardly a new thing, but of those she had known about, the couple knew each other or had at least met once. She couldn’t imagine the thought of walking down the aisle and only seeing her husband for the first time.
“They’re already preparing for the feast,” Katherine continued, moving to the fireplace and adding more logs to the glowing embers in the hearth. “I’ve been instructed tae make sure ye look beautiful on yer wedding day, but,” she beamed back at Skylar, “that will hardly be any work at all.”
Skylar smiled weakly as Katherine continued telling her all the things they needed to do to get her organized. There was the dress and decoration for her hair. Someone was already gathering flowers for her bouquet, and of course, she would need better shoes. She could hardly get married in boots. A great search was going on throughout the castle to find some that would fit her. While Katherine was clearly besotted with the idea of it all, Skylar let much of the maid’s hurried chattering wash over her. It said a lot when a woman’s maid was more excited about the wedding day than the woman getting married.
In the evening, Skylar stayed in her chambers. The idea of being the main subject of everyone’s attention in the great hall did not appeal to her at all, and given that the news of the wedding was now clearly known throughout the castle, she could only imagine all eyes would be upon her if she joined them. She could hardly conceive what everyone must be thinking. The night before, a feast had been thrown for Maxwell and Lady MacTavish. Not a day later, the laird was now to marry a woman he hardly knew, a woman who had been present in the castle for less than two days.
No doubt there would be ruminations, as imaginations worked overtime. Was Skylar blackmailing the laird? Who was she? What did she want? The knowledge that she would be married tomorrow was enough for her to contend with. She could not, therefore, deal with the curious or accusatory stares from people who had known Laird Maxwell Macleod far longer than she.
Unable to settle, even as the evening drew into the late of the night, Skylar found herself wandering the castle halls when everyone had long since retired. It occurred to her, as she meandered about the cold and empty corridors, that she had not checked up on the small boy she had discovered in the woods that day. With that in mind, she decided to make her way to the castle healer’s room. Not only did she want to see how the young child fared, but such a distraction would help her from going quite mad with all the other thoughts and considerations about tomorrow.
“His fever broke a little earlier today,” Kendrick said. They both stood over him, still lying on the bed. As his chest slowly rose and fell in his deep sleep, his features relaxed and his face became less ruddy.
“I gave him something tae settle him,” Kendrick continued. “While the fever has settled, he’s still in some discomfort. And o’ course, once the delirium wore off, he was desperate tae ken where he was and what he was doing here.”
