Page 26 of The Veiled Wish of a Highland Bride

"Ye have to ken, Laird Macnab, there was nothing to be done at the battle. It was a lost war from the moment the French troops failed to appear."

"Still, I would never have left my men," Archibald replied, his fists curled into balls.

"My laird, I must call yer attention to the present. We areallon the same side."

Archibald saw reason in his words. No matter how angry he was at how things had turned out, he could not deny the fact that there were worse alternatives. He saw now why Lennox had initially chosen not to tell him about the council's visit. As much as Archibald hated to be left in the dark, he knew he could never have given the council a hearing of his own volition.

"Tell me more about this word ye have received," Archie finally asked.

"We are glad ye have asked," Alastair said. "Bonnie Prince Charlie's whereabouts are now kent. They have found him."

Archibald was stunned. The Prince had been missing for weeks now, and many believed him to be already dead. Even though it was common knowledge that he was not killed on the battlefield since he was seen fleeing. The British Army were currently tirelessly searching for him.

"He is travelling North with our allies, and he needs help to ensure safe passage from the Scottish Highlands to France. We, Laird Macnab, are going to be of service to the Prince—the true heir to the Throne. We are aware ‘tis going to be high risk. But this is why we have made provisions to ensure the secrecy of this mission."

Archibald had no objections to helping the Prince, but he asked himself what kind of Laird he would be if he put his clan in danger by hiding a man whom the British Army would tear down the whole of England to find.

Still, he knew he had no choice.

“All right. What plans have ye made?"

"Our plans are nae to be discussed here. We are aware ye just arrived from Murray land, but ye are to travel back there again. At Murray Castle all will become clear. Laird Murray is already waiting to welcome ye once again," Alastair capped off as all the members of the council got up to leave.

As they walked out escorted by Lennox, Archie was left with the weight of the task that had been assigned to him.

CHAPTERTEN

Mia had been tossing and turning for hours.

Her experience earlier that week had been haunting her mind. She wondered if people looked differently after the first time they had intimate relations with someone. But after staring at herself in the mirror for several hours, she realized the answer wasno.

She hoped to the heavens that Bram would not see a difference in her—she never was a good liar, after all.

Mia, to her utter annoyance, could not dispel the images of the Laird who had made her his own. She was plagued by the memories of his skin against hers, the way his hands traced the curve of her hips, giving her more pleasure than she cared to admit. Then she had ruined it by mentioning her husband.

For the entirety of the experience, Bram had crossed her mind only once things were over. Yet the moment she spoke his name, the gravity of what she had experienced dawned on her.

Still, in that instant she cared for nothing but the man who was holding her in his arms. The angles of his face still flooding her fantasies.

As she noticed the morning sun slowly creeping through her open window, she dragged herself out of bed and quickly dressed. She intended on going to the kitchen to request that her breakfast be brought into her room, not being bothered to wait for her maid.

Mia didn't want to be disturbed.

Her thoughts were drawn yet again to Archibald's touches, and she felt anger afresh for Bram for refusing to share such intimacy with her first. She sighed.

All she wanted was a happy home.

* * *

The portrait of the Laird and Lady of Murray castle hung heavily on the wall of the great hall, opposite the entrance. It was almost intimidating how steely set the face of the Laird was, and Archibald assumed that was its intended purpose. Other than that, the hall was almost identical to that of Ledoch Castle.

“Ye ken,” Lennox said, jolting his Laird out of his reverie, “if ye keep putting this off, we’re going to find ourselves flat on our backs when the danger comes.”

This was Lennox’s umpteenth attempt at bringing up the topic. Archibald had shut him down over and over again, not because he didn’t care about the danger his brother posed, but because he had more pressing issues on his mind. Like not failing the council,anda certain Lady.

Archibald was not particularly proud of favoring a woman over the safety of his clan, but he barely felt like he had a choice in the matter.

Lennox stepped closer to him where he still stood facing the portrait, and reduced his voice to a whisper. “Dallas could follow us here, my laird, and even go as far as compromising the plans for the Bonnie Prince. He hates ye that much, and ye ken it. He despises ye enough to take down the hopes of all Scotland just to get to ye.”

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