Page 6 of The Veiled Wish of a Highland Bride

“I look piqued? I lookpiqued?!” she shouted and snapped her head around.

The storm in the woman’s eyes was fierce enough to make any ordinary man cower, but Archie stood tall. “I am stuck in this tomb with a beast of a man whom I do nae ken and ye are asking me if I amall right?!” she cried.

Archie was amused. Most women tended to hold their tongues. This woman was different. He could feel her anger flowing around them, creating enough tension in the air that he could slice through it with his dirk.

Her chest rose and fell as she spoke, drawing Archie’s attention back to her heavy bosom. He cursed himself once more for being so eager to taste her fire.

“…and I tried to get ye to hold the door, but ye just stood there looking at me like ye’ve never seen a woman in yer life! Now, we’re stuck in here with the mice and—are ye even listening to me?”

Archie could not help but laugh. “Of course, I’m listening. Ye don’t like mice and we are stuck.” He paused, grinning. “Ye dinnae look like a lass to be scared of anything. Ye are so much bigger than them anyway.”

“It dinnae matter that I am bigger than them.” She took a threatening step towards him. “Naething matters except getting out of here.”

Quirking his brow, his head tilted slightly, Archie looked more intensely at her. “What is yer name, lass?”

“Of what concern of yers is that?”

He scoffed. “Ye seem to have forgotten that my intention coming in here was to help ye out, but I have heard nothing but insults from ye. Is that what yer great knight in nae-so-shining armor deserves?”

The woman scowled and turned away. “Just stay away from me. None of this is appropriate anyway,” Mia replied. “I will stand here by the door and scream for help. As for ye, just stand there and ward off any rats that might be coming to get us, instead of gawking at me and grinning. Ye are a warrior by the looks of it. Protect me, then.”

Archie's eyes had been widening with every word the girl had said. Before she had even finished speaking, he knew that he wanted her. He wanted her in his bed. He wanted to see how she would challenge him. And the things he could do to her… His blood boiled in his veins at the thought of breaking her.

“And if I dinnae?” he asked, taking a daring step towards her and closing the distance between them. “If I dinnae want to be commanded by a brat like ye?”

She did not flinch. “If ye dinnaewhat?” the beauty inquired. “Stand guard?”

“If I choose nae to stay away from ye? What will ye do to me,brat?” Archie replied, his face mere inches from hers now. He glanced down at her plump lips, red and wet, and he wondered if she had ever been kissed before.

The lady said nothing, still staring him down.

“Ye should ken, my darling,” he whispered, “that ye are hard to stay away from.” He moved in even closer. He was merely a breath away from her now, and his voice was thick with desire. “Especially in a space as small as God has granted us. Surely there are better ways to spend our time here than standing guard and cowering from mice.”

Archie took her silence for compliance, and with a victorious smirk he closed his eyes and leaned in…

And the woman hit him square in the face. He suddenly felt his cheek sting from the impact of her palm, and it hurt. He had never thought that such a delicate-looking woman could hit a man so hard.

“Ye will step back or I will break the door open with yer thick head. That too would be a better way to spend our time here,” she growled.

Archie knew anger. He certainly knew pain. But with her it was different. She was on fire and it wasbeautiful. He had never seen a woman with such a fierce temper, a woman so bold who refused to back down. But he saw her hands trembling and she hid them behind her back. It was all a mask—but to protect her from what?

“God’s teeth, I was only teasing ye, my lady.” He bowed. When she seemed to calm down, he leaned forward, pressing his lips almost to her ear as he whispered his next words. “Ye can say all ye want that I must stay away, but the passion in yer eyes speaks louder than yer words. I’m listening, my lady. Has anyone listened to ye before?”

She seemed to want to answer, but that same instant the door swung open. The two of them hopped back from each other. A man was standing in the doorway, and Archie recognized him as Bram, the Laird of Clan Murray.

Bram glanced at Archie, but his glare quickly turned to the woman next to him. He stared at her for a few seconds as though trying to make sense of things, before grabbing her by the hand and pulling her away.

“We will speak of this outside, wife,”Bram said between his clenched teeth, dragging the woman out. “First, our guests are expecting ye.” With his last step, he turned his face back to Archie. “Laird Macnab, pray that we dinnae cross paths again this eve.”

Archie didn’t bother answering. His eyes were fixed on the fair-haired woman. She was Mia Murray, the Laird’s wife. Andhehad just accosted her.

CHAPTERTHREE

Bram was livid. Mia could tell as much by the way his fingers dug into her wrist. His silence sent chills down her spine as he walked her to the great hall, trying to keep his composure. To any onlooker, they probably looked like the great couple everyone believed them to be, as they held hands and walked towards the open doors.

She looked up at him, her eyes pleading for him to set her free; but he looked head-on, his eyes as dark as his hair. She understood why the maids were so easily tempted by her husband. His white shirt was crisp under the brown vest he had chosen for the night, and it matched the gentle brown tartan of his sash. Helookedlovely.

Mia could not help but wonder how she looked in comparison, with her messy blonde hair and umber-colored gown. She had heard that the people of the village called them an unusual couple. She had always scoffed at that. But now, as she stalked beside him, she began to understand what they meant.

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