Page 47 of The Beast of the Highlands
“We can wed before ye leave for yer home, and I can announce I’m abdicatin’ me position when ye get back.” Flynn walked to her side and took hold of her face. “I daenae mind, lass. As long as there’s a Duncan as Laird, all will be well. And until Leighton is older, there willnae be much change.”
Autumn stared at him. “I cannot believe you are considering this. Both of you have gone quite mad.” The ghost of a smile played upon her lips. “I am not worth this generosity, nor this sacrifice.”
“Ye’re worth it and more,” Flynn insisted.
Leighton jigged happily in his chair. “If Autumn is returnin’ home on Saturday, then ye should marry in secret on Friday. Ye’ll let me bear witness, I hope?”
“There is no priest to perform such a thing.” Autumn pressed her palms to Flynn’s chest. “It cannot be done so soon, if it should be done at all. We would require a priest who does not know us, or the clan. For if Keira should find out before you make your announcement, she will rid this castle of me.”
Flynn grinned. “I’ll contend with that. All ye have to do is meet me in the woods—I’ll think of a place—on Friday night.”
For several minutes, Autumn did not say a word. Instead, her expression flitted from confusion, to elation, to fear, and back to happiness again. He did not blame her. As far as proposals went, this was somewhat abrupt.
“I cannot believe I am agreeing to this,” she breathed, her eyes wide with hope. “This is utter madness… and yet, I cannot bring myself to refuse. I want nothing more than to be at your side, and I have learned that Keira will never allow me to remain as your… I will not say it in front of young ears.”
Leighton cackled. “A tawdry mistress?”
She whacked him lightly on the back of the head. “I shall have to scold someone for teaching you such words.”
“Then ye’ll have to scold yerself,” Leighton fired back delightedly. “Ye were the one tellin’ me about the Hetairai—the Greek courtesans who brought kings to their knees.”
Flynn raised an eyebrow. “Is that what ye’ve been teachin’ me brother when I amnae here?”
“It was one story, and a valuable one about how wit, and intellect, and humor can make you legendary,” Autumn defended, leaning closer to Leighton’s ear. “And I told you not to tell him about that one. He would only desire to read it for himself.”
Flynn urged her head back up, so she could look him in the eyes. “Does this mean ye’ll agree? If I can arrange it, will ye accept and be me wife? I ken it’s outlandish, but I amnae losin’ anythin’. I’ll still have me brother, and me beloved, and I’ll still be involved in the runnin’ of the clan.”
Autumn hesitated before inclining her head in a small, nervous nod.
“We need to hear ye say it,” Leighton prompted, smiling with such genuine glee that it made Flynn certain he was doing the right thing. Indeed, he would have given up his title ten times over if it meant seeing his brother so joyful.
Autumn rolled her eyes. “Yes… Yes, I will be your wife, and I will not object as you do this ridiculous thing.” She dipped to place a kiss on Leighton’s head. “And I will not allow you to slacken in your learning, simply because you will be a Laird. You will be my brother-in-law, and if you were to ask my own brother, he would tell you that I am a tough sister.”
“Ye’ll have to send word to him,” Flynn said enthusiastically. “Once we’re wed, and Keira has scurried away without her marriage, we can have yer family visit. Do ye think they’ll be cross that I havenae asked their permission first?”
Autumn’s expression turned solemn. “They will not have cause to be cross. Indeed, I rather think they will celebrate this turn of events.” She paused, glancing away. “I will inform them when I visit and write of the news to my brother.”
“He doesnae reside at the manor?” Flynn canted his head.
“No. He was forced to leave the manor to seek employment, as I was. I believe he is somewhere in the south of England, at present.” Her voice sounded odd, but it did not arouse any suspicions in Flynn. There was a great deal of conflict within her family that he did not know about, though he had asked on many occasions. Perhaps, one day, she would tell him everything.
Giddier than he had ever been, he drew Autumn into his arms and held her close. He wanted to kiss her fiercely, but not in front of his younger brother. The boy might have been reading of saucy things, but that did not mean he needed to see them in action.
“I love ye, lass,” he whispered.
Her arms looped around him, hugging him tight. “As I love you.”
It should have been the most contented moment of his life, and though the joy in his heart was unbridled, there was a dark spot hidden within it. For though everything sounded straightforward, he sensed there would be chaos to come, once Keira found out that she had been fooled.
I willnae let ye out of me sight, lass. From the day we’re wed to our last, I’ll keep ye safe.
Come Sunday night, when Autumn returned and the truth would be out, he knew he needed to find a way to ensure that Laird Dunn’s men were all outside the castle walls. He would not have a war inside his own home, and he would not risk the lives of his clan, for the sake of his own happiness. After all, if Laird Dunn’s men turned on the MacLennan clan, that happiness would be short lived indeed.
As for Keira… He did not yet know what he would do with her. But as long as she lacked her father’s army to do her bidding, surely there was only so much trouble she could cause.
29
In the days that followed Flynn’s peculiar, and tremendously risky proposal, Autumn tried to remember that the marriage would not be a certainty until they were bound together by a priest. However, she had not had to worry about being caught with her beloved, for he had been noticeably hard to find.
