Page 48 of A Dash of Scot
“Oh,” Lady Cullen said, glancing toward Dougal, her eyes narrowing a bit.
“I promise to take good care of your daughter,” he said. “No seaside calamities on my watch.”
Lady Cullen nodded. “I believe you, sir. Shall I call for our curricle, then?”
As the trio waited for the horses to be rigged up to the curricle, Dougal offered his arm to Poppy. She didn’t take it, but she did walk beside him, and that was a huge win in his book.
They meandered away from the cottage, heading toward the sea-salt air of the cliffs. He contemplated at least thirty different ways to open the conversation and found each lacking.
“And what if I had said I wanted iced cream?” she asked, breaking the silence.
“I’d have gone with ye there.”
“But you clearly wanted to get me alone.” Was that a hint of teasing he heard in her tone?
“Dinna make it sound so nefarious, Miss Featherstone. I just wanted to talk.”
“I’m listening.”
Dougal had one chance to get this right, and he needed to tread carefully because if he failed now, there was no telling if she’d give him another shot. “I didna lie when I said I was no’ engaged. And I didna lie when I said the only place I wanted to be was by your side.”
Even though they did not touch, the air around her seemed to stiffen, and he could sense her shoring up her fortifications against anything he might say.
“Allow me to share a story of a foolish youth?” he asked.
“Sounds entertaining.” She shrugged, and it was hard for him to get a full read on her tone.
Dougal grinned hopefully. “Entertaining if ye are no’ me. Nearly ten years ago, I was deep in my cups with a bunch of lads from school. We were carousing harder than we should have. And a few ladies had sneaked out to partake with us. I think with the added feminine presence, we might have been competing a bit for attention.”
Poppy gasped, and she glanced over at him, truly shocked. “Ladies? Alone? Drinking spirits?”
“Aye. It happens, though ’tis rare. Nothing untoward in the physical sense, but they did drink and dance, and mostly it was fun. But that night, I decided I was in love with one of them. And I told her that if I’d no’ married by my twenty-ninth birthday, we should we. She agreed. I admit to being a total idiot, though at least I was an idiot who didna want to be tied down immediately.” There, he’d said it, given her the entire sordid, stupid truth.
Poppy remained silent for a few moments, mulling over what he’d said, no doubt. “And how old are you now?”
“Twenty-eight.”
“And your birthday?”
“Less than two weeks.”
“Ah.” Poppy drawled out the sound. “So, she has come calling.”
Dougal let out a sigh, glad that Poppy seemed to understand exactly what he was trying to relay. “She has. I found out she was invited by my sister. I suspect for other reasons as well.”
“Mary invited her?” Now Poppy looked annoyed.
“Aye, though I didn’t know that before. I thought Lucia had only sent a letter to my aunt.”
Poppy was silent, and when he glanced her way, he could see she was staring at the ground as they walked, her steps getting slower, brow furrowed.
“Why?” She glanced up at him, her nose wrinkled. “Why would Mary do that?”
Dougal let out a long sigh. “I have no idea. It’s hard to guess the reason behind most of my sister’s actions. Sometimes she’s a gem, a real sweetheart, but those moments are so…”
“Rare?”
“Aye.”
