Page 29 of The Highlander's Kilted Bride
Mamma would likely still be annoyed with her, and then there was Kade. The prospect of facing him again after behaving like a twit made her stomach curl.
Ainsley hooked her arm through Charlie’s. “There’s nothing to worry about, dear girl. I will handle your mammaandcome up with a plan to manage the hapless Richard. Trust me, the poor man won’t know what hit him.”
“Just as long as it’s not me doing the hitting,” Charlie said as her new friend towed her to the door. “Mamma would skin me alive.”
CHAPTER5
Kade frowned at the notation he’d just made on the sheet of music and then crossed it out. Closing his eyes, he tried to hear the right notes in his head, imagining how they would sound in a concert hall. The music usually came as easily as breathing, so much a part of him that he didn’t need to think much at all.
Today he was struggling again. And when he did finally grasp the sounds, transferring the notes to the page and then to the piano, it came out . . . well, not wrong, precisely. But definitely boring.
He opened his eyes and scowled at the keyboard, as if the instrument had somehow betrayed him. Ever since he was fifteen, composing had served as an outlet for all the emotion he’d always locked up tight in his heart. He loved creating unique music that reflected not only his heart but also his experience of life.
Now he had to wonder if he’d stretched himself a little too thin. He’d been writing and performing shorter pieces for the piano and violin for several years, but this was to be an entire concerto with a full orchestra, and for the king, no less. Kade was beginning to think he’d suffered a momentary loss of sanity when he’d agreed to the request, given his concert scheduleandthe fact that he’d been running around Europe acting like the great, bloody spy.
“Great, bloody idiot,” he muttered as he rotated his shoulder, trying to stretch it.
The wound was mostly healed but his muscles still felt stiff, especially when he played the violin. Well, at least he was no longer spying, which freed up time to write his concerto. Too bad all that extra time had failed to free up his creativity, too. He’d fallen out of practice, both mentally and physically, and had only himself to blame.
He began again, determined not to get up until he finished the variation he’d been working on since breakfast. Laroch Manor had everything he needed to accomplish the task. The excellent music room was in a quiet part of the house overlooking the gardens, and Lady Kinloch had made it clear that it was set aside exclusively for his use. Kade was grateful for the refuge. Since their arrival two days ago, he’d spent most of his time right here.
Even Angus had mostly left him alone, but for the occasional effort to force some noxioushealingpotion down his throat.
Putting aside his distracting thoughts, he focused all his attention on the musical worksheet.
Later, when the longcase clock chimed out the hour, Kade glanced up, surprised by how far the afternoon had advanced. Thankfully, he’d finally made progress on the variation. With a few more hours of work, he might even finish the blasted thing before he had to dress for dinner.
As he got up to fetch a glass of water from the sideboard, the door opened and Charlie hurried into the room. When she spotted him, her eyes widened and she stumbled, though she quickly recovered her balance.
“Sorry,” she said, sounding a bit breathless. “I didn’t hear music, so I thought you were finished for the day.”
Ah, so shehadbeen avoiding him. Kade had suspected as much. Since their arrival, she’d barely exchanged two words with him, all but hiding behind Ainsley or Lord Kinloch when they gathered in the evenings.
He smiled to put her at ease. “There’s nothing to apologize for, Miss Stewart. This is your house. I am merely an interloper.”
“No, you’re the guest of honor,” she said. “Mamma has put us under strict orders to leave you alone so you can practice for the recital after the wedding.”
Kade frowned. “A recital? It was my understanding that I was simply to play a few songs in the drawing room after the service and before the formal ball got underway.”
Charlie made a little grimace. “Oh, dear. I’m sorry to say that Mamma has other plans for you, Mr. Kendrick. She’ll probably have you playing an entire concert by the time the wedding rolls around.”
“That might be a bit hard to pull off without an orchestra,” he joked.
“My mother has full confidence in your abilities.” She swept him a flourishing, comical bow. “After all, you’re the great Kade Kendrick, toast of the Continent.”
Kade rounded his eyes in mock alarm. “Please tell me that Lady Kinloch does not describe me in those terms.”
Her lovely chestnut brown eyes twinkled with amusement. “Come to think of it, she might have put something similar on the wedding invitations.”
When he laughed, her mouth quirked up in a fey little smile. “My mother is also under the impression that you’re composing something special just for the wedding. I assume she’s mistaken about that.”
“It’s the first I’m hearing about it,” he wryly replied. “That being the case, I’d best start planning my escape.”
“You can’t do that. Melissa would take to her bed with hysterics, and Mamma would throw herself off one of the turrets. Honestly, I don’t know which would be worse.”
“The second, I would imagine?”
“You’ve obviously never seen Melissa in hysterics.” Charlie gave him a mischievous smile. “I know. You could just play something by a lesser-known composer and tell Mamma that you wrote it for the wedding. In fact, you could probably play Mozart and my family wouldn’t know the difference. They’re not exactly musical.”
