Page 43 of The Highlander's Fake Wife
“At least they seem to be on speaking terms again,” Flora added, sitting back in her chair as she awaited her brother’s move. “I could barely sleep last night, worrying about Olivia waking today without her maither by her side.”
“Aye, but why does she have to be so close to her side?” Arthur grumbled, moving his piece in order to box in Flora’s king once more.
“Ye should try and talk to her yerself,” Elspeth offered gently.
“I only had the time ye gave me today, Mam. An’ we dinnae have enough to really discuss.”
“ImeantOlivia’s maither, love.”
Arthur furrowed his brow, hand stroking his beard thoughtfully. “Her…she wouldnae go for it.”
Flora let out an annoyed huff, raising her hands in surrender as she glared somewhat at their game board. “Aye, ye boxed me in good an’ well, Arthur.”
“He did, didnae he?” Elspeth observed, a slight smirk crossing her lips. “A shame ye cannae apply yer hnefatafl tactics to real life.”
Arthur couldn’t help but roll his eyes as her cheeky tone. “Ye might as well have yelled it to me, Maither.” But, she had an excellent point, and the laird of clan MacDonnell was already working out his next move. To move forward, he had to get Olivia’s mother on their side. So he had no choice; Arthur was going to have to engage in a new sort of war.
“Sorry–Maesie did what?!”
Arthur did his best to maintain an even tone, keeping his expression commanding, but cautiously approachable. He stared into the library at his guests, both with a book in hand and practically sitting in the same chair. Olivia looked completely taken aback at Arthur’s news; her mother, meanwhile, looked incredibly suspicious from the start.
“Aye; she took off in the forest and Flora’s having a hard time callin’ her back,” Arthur explained.
“I would think the lord o’ this keep would take care of this,” Olivia’s mother said wryly.
“Maither.”
Arthur shook his head, interrupting Olivia’s sentence with a raise of his hand. “She’s grown awful fond of ye the last few days, Olivia. And Flora may be a touch crabbit with me, on account o’ me beating her in hnefatafl this afternoon.”
“Aw, ye wouldnae lose fer yer own sister?” Olivia chuckled, though her budding mirth died completely under her mother’s withering gaze. She then stood from her chair, gently loosening her mother’s grip from her arm. “Maither, it wouldnae be proper to leave a laird’s wish unfulfilled. I’ll be back in a moment.”
Olivia’s mother eventually relented, and as Olivia passed Arthur, he gave her a reassuring wink. She managed a slight smile in return, ducking out from under the archway and vanishing down the hall. Arthur remained where he was, crossing his arms loosely as he stared across the room towards his newest guest.
Olivia’s mother sighed lightly, shutting her book and placing it in the chair where daughter once sat. “Alright, then; what do I need to do fer ye to let us go, yer lairdship?”
Arthur couldn’t help but grimace slightly. This was going to be harder than he thought. “Lady MacCulloh.”
“Katherine,” she corrected. “I have no husband or title anymore.”
Arthur nodded, doing his best to keep his voice even. “Katherine, I daenae expect anything from either o’ ye.”
“Ye expect me daughter’s hand,” Katherine pointed out.
“She agreed to it–”
“--she made the only choice she could,” Katherine snapped, suddenly standing from her chair with a bite to her tone. Arthur couldn’t help but raise a brow at such a brazen display; for an elderly woman, she certainly put out an intimidating aura. He could see where Olivia got her fire from. “Do ye really think she’d choose to deny yer lairdship, given her situation?”
Arthur wasn’t sure how to answer the question.
“I ken men like ye, my Laird. Think they can throw their weight around ‘cause they can wield a sword and shout louder than the others ‘round them.” Katherine’s gaze hardened, but Arthur could have sworn something fearful swam beneath her gaze. Something she was trying very hard to repress. “Me own husband killed those very men to save me, and with him no longer here, ‘tis up to me to protect Olivia in his stead."
It really was like staring at Olivia’s future self. Arthur softened himself and stepped forward, clenching his teeth as Katherine visibly flinched. “Katherine, I cannae claim to ken yer life. All I ken is what Olivia has told me, what she’s shown me of herself.” He clenched his fists, using his frustration, the judgement oozing from Katherine’s hateful glare, to fuel his own determination. “Ye may see me as the monster who killed yer husband an’ son, but if ye keep on this path, ye may lose Olivia, too.”
“Or she’ll wisen up and free herself from yer machinations,” Katherine spat. “And the sooner the better, before yer ‘needs’ grow to be too much fer ye to,”
“Daenae think o’finishing that thought,” Arthur snarled, briefly losing his temper. “I havenae laid a finger on yer daughter during her stay at me keep, per her own request, and I willnae stand here and let ye assume I would evenconsiderforcin’ meself onto her.”
His anger caught Katherine off-kilter, the scowl on her face completely wiping away and replaced with startled surprise. Her hand reached behind in search of her chair, nearly collapsing into it as she visibly began to tremble, her breathing somewhat laborious.
