Page 5 of The Beast of the Highlands
He laughed. “Aye… I reckon I deserved that.”
As they headed down the road, toward MacLennan Castle, Autumn wondered if this had been a peculiar twist of fate, or if she had just missed her last opportunity to turn around and go home, putting this risky plan behind her.
A beast does not always show his true form right away. This may just be another lure, and I have just taken the bait.
3
Settling into the rhythm of his mount, Frost, named for the icy sheen of the beast’s hide, Flynn tried his best to keep a polite distance between his body and Autumn’s. He had decided to have her ride with him, so she could relax and feel secure after her ordeal, but he was beginning to wonder if he had made the wrong choice.
How could she feel safe, after those snakes were clawin’ at her like animals? I amnae the culprit, but I’m a man, and that might be bad enough.
His eyes fixed on the road ahead, where dawn’s purple light was bringing the landscape out of hiding. They would soon be at MacLennan Castle, where he would have chambers prepared and a healing woman sent for, so Autumn could find some semblance of peace. Until then, he would have to keep shifting his thighs backward, so as not to frighten her further.
“What are yer merits?” he asked, growing tired of the silence.
Autumn twisted her head back to look at him. A wariness sparked in her beautiful, enchanting blue eyes. “Whatever do you mean?”
She thinks I’m one of them. I can see it in her face. She doesnae trust me. Nor would I, if I’d been dragged through a hedge to face a grim fate.
“I mean, what are yer merits when it comes to teachin’ me brother?” He paused. “I want him to learn Latin, Greek, music, and everythin’ else ye fine Sassenach folks get to learn.”
He observed her as she visibly contemplated her reply. In all his seven-and-twenty years, he had never seen a woman so beautiful, nor one so fiery in character. Then again, he spent most of his time overseeing the running of his castle and his clan, and when he ventured away from the castle, it was never for leisurely pursuits. As such, he had no opportunity to meet new, intriguing young ladies, such as Autumn.
Indeed, it had been a rare chance that he was there to come to Autumn’s aid, for he had received word a couple of hours ago that there were skirmishers lurking in his territory. He had gone to investigate and, in doing so, had happened upon Autumn.
If I’d hesitated to give orders, or ventured elsewhere in my territory, I might’ve missed her. I daenae like to think what state I might’ve found her in, if I had.
“I am well versed in all of those, Laird MacLennan, as well as literature, poetry, mathematics, the sciences, and anything else you care to have thrown at your brother. I also have the experience of educating my younger sister, if that is of use to you?” Autumn finally replied. “We had no money for a tutor, in recent years, so I took on that mantle.”
Flynn nodded. “Is she of age, then? Is that why ye stopped educatin’ her?”
“Um… not exactly, but it was necessary for me to seek paid employment as a tutor,” she answered quietly, as though ashamed.
Flynn tilted his head so he could view her better, noting the dip of her neck as her chin touched her chest. He felt a sudden urge to trace the slight bump where her neck intersected her shoulder blades, but he resisted. Though he could see that her skin was smooth and inviting and would likely feel buttery soft to the touch.
“Ye must be from some kind of station?” he prompted.
She gave a small shrug. “My father is a baron.”
“Is his barony failin’ or is it somethin’ else?”
Flynn wanted to reach around and lift up her dainty chin, and brush his thumb across her plump bottom lip, in an attempt to coax her mouth into a smile. He had a feeling she would look all the more charming if she were to smile. Although, there was a beauty in her melancholy too, for it made her striking blue eyes shine and seemed fitting against the pale translucency of her skin.
If he were to dare to touch her, he could map out the lines of bluish veins that trailed down from the hairline of her long, wavy blonde hair, which had come undone from its bun during her ordeal, and down the rise of her rosy cheeks, before ending at the narrow vee of her jaw. They disappeared for a moment, underneath her chin, before resuming down the smooth line of her throat, which moved subtly with the occasional gulp.
“I suppose you could say it is failing,” she replied. “For many years, it has been crumbling, and this is the only way it may be remedied.”
He sighed. “That’s brave of ye. There are nae many barons' lasses who’d do that for their family. Ye must care for ‘em deeply.”
“I do.” Her breath hitched, making her shoulder rise against his chest.
Not wanting to push her, he let silence wash over them again. Clearly, she was suffering additional torment to the night’s events, and he felt he had no right to continue prying. At least, not yet.
Though, maybe if she stays, she’ll open up…
He kept the thought in his mind as MacLennan Castle appeared on the near horizon. An elegant structure, shaped in a square, with a turret at each corner and an inner courtyard that served as the beating heart of the castle’s life. He adored standing inside the western facing turret, so he could look out upon Ettrick Forest. Perhaps he would take Autumn there to admire the view, if she remained.
Perhaps not, if she found him to be the beast she feared he was… though he would not give her cause to. It was a nickname gained in times of war, and he was not at war. Unless she had an ulterior motive for being here.
