Page 123 of The Scottish Duke
He stood silent as she sailed out of the room, a thin smile on her face.
Chapter 31
Lorna put Robbie down for his afternoon nap and crept out of the bedroom, closing the door softly behind her.
Grabbing the book she’d taken from the library earlier, she tucked herself into one of the wing chairs in front of the fireplace and savored the quiet. It wouldn’t last long. Robbie seemed to know when she was gone. But for the time she had, she was going to enjoy every second.
Instead of reading, however, her mind replayed the scenes in the past few days. Not only the frenetic activity to save Nan, but also the times with Alex. She hadn’t expected him to be so protective, not just of Robbie, but of her.
How was his meeting going with Mary? Would the woman finally leave Blackhall?
How could someone try to deliberately harm another person? She remembered asking her father that question after one difficult afternoon. He’d been sitting with an old woman outside her cottage, taking down notes as she expounded on various formulas she’d devised through the years. Lorna noticed that he was watching the woman with a curious look, one she’d rarely seen. Only then did she pay attention to what the woman was saying. She used her knowledge for ill as well as good. If someone slighted her, she gave them a stomachache that lasted for days. If they cheated her at market, she sold them a salve that made their skin break into a pustulelike rash.
Later, when they made their way back to their lodgings, she asked her father why he hadn’t spoken honestly to the woman, telling her that what she was doing was wrong.
He’d answered her in a subdued voice. “She would never have seen the truth, Lorna. Some people don’t. They think they’re not harming others as much as helping themselves. They never see their actions as aggression as much as protection, but the result is the same.”
Had Mary seen her actions as protection? Had she thought that by eliminating her she’d win Alex?
Mary wouldn’t have been pleased to know that she understood. For two years she’d yearned after Alex, knowing that nothing would ever happen between them. She could almost feel sorry for the woman except that Mary had almost killed Nan and wanted to harm her.
But as far as her fascination with Alex, yes she could well understand that.
Whenever he kissed her, she lost all her thoughts, all her abilities to tell the day, the time, the place. She was simply Lorna and he was Alex and nothing else mattered.
Really, he had to stop doing that.
Please, no. Never stop.
She was probably seeing something that wasn’t there again, just as she had earlier. But wouldn’t it be wonderful if she weren’t? If what she wanted so desperately was coming true after all?
Alex would love her. She’d be free to tell him exactly how she felt about him now. Surely he could see how much she loved him?
“I beg your pardon, Your Grace,” Peter said from the doorway. “There’s a letter for you.”
One of these days she would get used to being called “Your Grace,” especially by people she used to work with, but she wasn’t comfortable with it now. Yet she knew if she asked Peter not to call her that, he would balk, turn red, and stammer.
The problem was hers, not his.
She stood and walked toward him, taking the envelope from the silver tray he extended.
“And I’d like to thank you, too, Your Grace.”
“What for?”
Peter smiled brightly. “I’m to be apprenticed to Mr.Stanton. He says that he has lots of work for me and I’m to learn the trade.”
She knew Stanton. The carpenter was employed at Blackhall, lately working on the restoration of the Great Hall.
“It’s because of the duke’s recommendation, Your Grace, but he’d never have known about my work unless you pointed it out to him.”
“No, it’s because your work is beautiful. But is this something you want, Peter?”
He nodded emphatically, his blond hair flopping on his brow. “Yes, ma’am. The duke says I have a lot of talent that shouldn’t go to waste. I’m to start next Monday.”
“Then I’m glad for you,” she said.
“It’s more money than a footman pays, Your Grace. I’d have enough to put by for the future.”
