Page 43 of Siren of the Highlands

“Then, it is worth exploring.”

“Castor would never let me see Fin again,” Ivy said, a tone of dejection in her voice. “He all but forbade me already.”

Mira gave her a devilish smile and a wink. “Who says Castor has to know?”

“You are a terrible influence.”

Mira laughed. “I am. And you need more of my influence in your life.”

“You might be right.”

Their laughter was cut short though when the door to her bedchamber opened, and one of her brother’s pages stepped in. He was a boy who was no more than two and ten, with shaggy dark hair and green eyes. He was tall and gangly for his age and looked at them curiously.

“Beggin’ your pardon, Miss,” he said. “But your brother is askin’ after you.”

Ivy sighed heavily. “Fine. Tell him I will be along shortly.”

“I’m sorry, Miss,” the page said nervously. “But he said he would like to see you in his office immediately.”

Ivy leveled an icy glare at the boy, and he swallowed hard as he shifted on his feet nervously.

“Tell him I will be along shortly,” she intoned. “Do not make me repeat myself.”

“Yes, Miss,” the boy said as he backed toward the door. “Right away, Miss.”

He turned and fled from her bedchamber, slamming the door behind her that set her and Mira off into another fit of laughter. They leaned against each other and laughed until tears stood out in their eyes.

“That poor young man will be having nightmares tonight, thanks to you,” Mira said as she brushed the tears from her cheeks.

“It is not my fault; he has such a delicate constitution.”

“No, but to have the big, bad Lady of the house staring at him like she would enjoy having him drawn and quartered might try even the hardiest of men.”

Ivy shrugged. “I enjoy knowing I can still have that effect on a man.”

“I am certain you also enjoy the effect you have on a certain Scotsman.”

Ivy laughed and got to her feet. “You truly are incorrigible.”

“I am told it is one of my better qualities.”

“It is certainly not your worst,” Ivy said as she arched an eyebrow at her. “I suppose I should go see what has my brother in such a state.”

“We will talk about your Scotsman later,” Mira warned. “I will not forget, you know.”

“He is not my Scotsman. He is a Scotsman,” Ivy reminded her.

She left her bedchamber and walked through the winding halls of the keep, taking her time. Even though she knew it would be wise, she would not give Castor the satisfaction of thinking she would jump at his commands. She was well beyond tired of being the pawn her brother moved around the board on his whims and was determined to start acting for herself.

As she walked, her thoughts drifted to Fin once more. He seemed to be dominating her thoughts more and more lately. The further away from York, they were, the more she realized she was thinking of him. It was as if his absence and the void he had left inside of her was wide and deep. She was stunned by it simply because they had not known each other very long. And yet, the impact he had left on her was profound. Far more profound than she would have thought or expected.

She finally arrived at Castor’s office door and took a deep breath. She let it out as she pushed it open and stepped inside. He was behind his desk, looking at some documents in his hand and raised his eyes to her. He grunted and dropped the parchment, then gestured to the chair in front of his desk.

“Close the door and sit down,” he ordered.

Rolling her eyes, Ivy closed the door harder than was necessary and walked to the chair he had motioned to and sat down heavily. She pursed her lips and gave him the most irritated expression she could muster.

“So, you have deigned to speak with me again, have you?” Ivy snapped.

---