The Highlander's Kilted Bride, page 24
Charlie opened her eyes to see Tira standing a few feet away.
“How are you, Tira?” she replied, dredging up a smile.
“I’m fine. I was just in the drawing room, saying good night.” She shook her head. “Everyone was arguing, so I think most of them didn’t even notice I was there.”
“That was rude of them. What were they arguing about?”
“You, mostly,” the girl candidly replied. “And your brooch. And Johnny’s accident. And the curse on your family.”
Charlie couldn’t help smiling. “There really isn’t a curse.”
“I know. That was mostly your sister who said that. Then Grandda called her a jinglebrains . . .” She twirled a hand. “Not to her face, but everyone heard it. So Melissa started crying, and then Lord Kinloch and Grandda started yelling at each other. And then Mr. Campbell started yelling, too. He said that he should be able to court you anyway, even without the blasted brooch.”
“Oh, dear.”
Tira gave her a sympathetic grimace. “That’s when Grandda told him that he was a booby and a descendent of traitors, and that he should be thrown into Loch Leven as his just deserts. Everybody started yelling then, except my mother. She never yells. But people were starting to use bad language, so Mamma thought it best that I leave.”
Charlie rubbed her forehead, unsure whether she should burst into laughter or make her escape. “Very wise of your mother.”
“Mamma is very smart. She was trying hard to get everyone to calm down.” The little girl glanced down the hall, in the direction of the drawing room. “They’re still arguing, though.”
Sure enough, Charlie could hear muffled but decidedly agitated voices filtering their way toward them.
“I wouldn’t go in there, if I were you,” Tira added.
Charlie laughed. “I agree with you. In fact, I think a little stroll in the garden might be just the thing. Would you care to join me?”
“Thank you, but I’m on my way to the library. I found a very good book yesterday, and Mamma said I could read for a half hour before I go to bed.”
“Then I’ll wish you a good night.” She bent down and gave the little girl a hug. “Thank you for the warning.”
Tira flashed an enchanting little grin. “You’re welcome. Good night, Miss Charlie.”
She skipped off in the direction of the library, while Charlie made her way down the central staircase to the ground floor.
A footman stationed by the front door bobbed his head. “Good evenin’, Miss Charlotte. Can I get ye anythin’?”
“Good evening, Hamish. I don’t suppose you have a spare family hanging about, do you? I’m thinking of replacing mine.”
The young man rubbed a hand over his mouth. “I’m afraid not, miss.”
“How disappointing. Well, I’m going for a stroll about the gardens before I brave the lion’s den. Good night, Hamish.”
“Good night, Miss Charlotte.”
She slipped out to the terrace, bathed in a glow of lights from the drawing room one floor above. Through the open window, she could hear her father and Angus shouting at each other, and her mother vainly attempting to calm them down.
Really, it might be best to avoid the whole thing altogether.
Since it was a mild night, with a half-moon softly illuminating the path, she decided to walk to the gazebo. She’d always loved the gardens at night. As a child, she’d chased phantom hobgoblins and searched for fairies amongst the rosebushes and lavender. As she grew up, she imagined meeting a handsome man in the gazebo or down by the stream, a dashing beau who would carry her away into the wide, wide world.
Not that she’d ever had a beau, not really. But she occasionally still dreamed of one who would sweep her off her feet. Not surprisingly, that imaginary beau always possessed the most amazing cobalt blue eyes and a smile that made her heart ache with longing.
It was Kade, always Kade. And now he was here, and he more than lived up to her youthful dreams. He’d also made it clear that he was interested in her. She found that astonishing, because she’d never been the sort of girl a man like him would sweep away to the wide, wide world—especially not his world.
She stepped into the gazebo and plopped down onto the cushioned bench. It was time to stop mooning over Kade and deal with her problems, which now included Johnny’s problems. Her little brother was in trouble up to his neck, and she could only hope he still had the brooch. The notion of slimy Sir Leslie getting his hands on it was simply unacceptable.
When she heard footsteps crunching on the gravel, she craned her neck out to see who it was.
Hell and damnation.
It was Richard, heading right for her.
“There you are, you sneaky thing,” he exclaimed. “I’ve been stumbling about like a blasted fool, trying to find the right path to this gazebo. Although it’s a mighty romantic setting, Charlotte, I’ll give you that.”
He flashed what he probably thought was a charming smile. Sadly, it more resembled a leer.
Mentally sighing, Charlie rose. “What the devil are you doing out here, Richard?”
That gave him pause. “What?”
“How did you find me?”
“Things were getting rather hideous in the drawing room, so I decided to nip out and get away from all the brangling. I just happened to hear you telling the footman that you were going out to the garden, so I decided to find you.” Again, his unctuous smile. “Carpe diem and all that, eh?”
“Oh, God,” she muttered.
“What’s that?”
“Nothing. Actually, I was just about to join the others in the drawing room.”
Richard shook his head. “Don’t want to do that. Trust me.”
“Then I suppose I’ll just excuse myself and go to bed. Good night, Ri—”
He suddenly seized her hand and clasped it to his chest.
“Please do not flee me again,” he announced dramatically. “Allow me to make my case, once and for all. Surely you know how I feel about you, and yet you push me away at every turn. You are too cruel, my beautiful Charlotte. But please take pity on your helpless swain and make me the happiest of men.”
When he tried to kiss her, Charlotte dodged and yanked her hand from his grasp. “Really, Richard, you forget yourself.”
He tried to back her up against the cushioned bench. “If I do, it’s because you’re so lovely in the moonlight. A veritable Diana, a goddess of the hunt.”
She dodged him again. “I don’t mean to be rude, but would you please stop blithering such twaddle?”
“It’s not twaddle,” he replied, offended. “It’s how a fellow is supposed to talk to a lady he’s courting.”
“What a gruesome notion. But in any event, I’ve made it quite clear that I don’t want you to court me. You know we would not suit.”
“Of course we would. Your parents are keen on it, and so are mine.”
“I’m not going to marry you—or anyone—just because my parents are keen on it.”
Now he was scowling at her. “But I’m keen on it, too. Or I would be, if you gave me half the chance.”
Charlie checked her rising temper. “Richard, your father is pushing you onto me because of my dowry. We both know that it’s the main attraction. So, I repeat, we will not suit.”
“You’d be perfectly happy to let me court you if it wasn’t for Kendrick sniffing about your skirts like a hound,” he said in a surly tone. “He’s ruining everything.”
Charlie’s anger flared, and she had to repress the urge to pop his cork. “What an incredibly rude thing to say. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going back to the house.”
When she started to march past him, Richard grabbed her arm and tried to pull her against him.
“Let me go, Richard,” she said through clenched teeth. “Or you’ll regret it.”
“I bet you let him kiss you,” he retorted. “So maybe you should let me kiss you and see if you like it better.”
He bobbed his head, trying to kiss her. Charlie was about to knee him in the privates when a large hand landed on Richard’s shoulder and jerked him back.
“Keep yer dirty hands off her, ye bastard,” Kade growled, his voice a guttural snarl. “Or I’ll rip yer bleedin’ head off yer shoulders.”
CHAPTER 16
Robert let out a strangled yelp as he released his grip on her. Kade then tossed him to the side, where he landed on the bench in a hard sprawl.
Charlie sighed. “Kade, please don’t hurt your shoulder.”
Seething at Richard, he snapped his attention back to her, and her heart skipped a beat. Kade looked positively murderous, his gaze glittering with cold fury, his features sharp as shards of ice.
He ignored her comment. “Are ye all right, lass? Did he hurt ye?”
“I’m the one who’s hurt,” Richard blustered as he struggled to right himself. “Bloody hell, man! It’s a wonder you didn’t break my arm.”
Charlie rounded on him. “You should be grateful for Mr. Kendrick’s intervention, Richard. I was just about to knee you directly in the privates. And I never miss.”
That precipitated another round of protests from Richard, which she ignored.
“Are you sure you’re all right?” she asked Kade.
He was staring at her, looking a trifle bemused. “Were you really about to knee him there?”
“Yes, and I believe the colloquial term is nutmegs.”
He choked out a laugh.
Richard had awkwardly clambered to his feet. “Really, Charlotte, what would your mother say at such language and behavior?”
“What would my mother say if I told her that you accosted me in the gazebo?” she replied.
Richard drew himself up. “Both your parents approve of me. I’m supposed to be courting you, and that’s what I was doing.”
“You don’t have my blessing, and if that’s your idea of courtship, it’s appalling,” she sternly replied. “When a girl doesn’t wish to be kissed, you must respect her wishes.”
“I thought you were just being coy,” he protested.
When Kade took a menacing step forward, Richard retreated back to the bench.
“Let me tell you something, Campbell,” Kade said in a lethal voice. “When a woman tells you no, that is exactly what she means.”
“Richard,” Charlie said, exasperated, “in all the years that you’ve known me, when have I ever been coy?”
“Well, never, I suppose. But your mother said I was being too cautious, and that I should make a go of it.” He twirled a hand. “You know.”
“Did my mother actually send you looking for me?”
He bristled. “I didn’t need her to tell me. You’re not the first girl I’ve wooed.”
Kade snorted. “Obviously with a complete lack of success.”
“I’ll take no insults from you, Kendrick,” Richard huffed. “If it wasn’t for you, Charlotte and I would be doing just fine.”
“No, we would not,” she said.
“But if I find the brooch, you have to marry me,” he replied. “It’s a matter of family honor. Besides, your mother said—”
Charlie jabbed a finger at him, having had quite enough. “If you bring my mother up one more time, I will toss you into the pond.”
“And if she doesn’t, I will,” Kade added.
“This is ridiculous,” Richard snapped. “I’m going back to the house.”
He stomped past them, then turned to glare at Charlie. “Are you coming, Charlotte?”
She frowned. “Why would I?”
“Because if it’s not proper for you to be alone with me, then you certainly shouldn’t be alone with Kendrick.”
She gave him a smile that was mostly teeth. “Why not? We’re just old friends, you know.”
Richard flapped an agitated arm. “He’s not. He’s . . . he’s . . .”
“Yes?”
“A rogue.”
She felt her mouth sag open. The man was truly an idiot.
“A rogue?” Kade said with disbelief. “I thought you said I was a pompous ass?”
“That too,” Richard retorted. “In any event, you’re not to be trusted with an innocent girl.”
“It’s a little late to be worrying about my virtue,” Charlie said. “But if it’s any consolation, I promise I will knee Mr. Kendrick in the nutmegs if he starts behaving like a rogue.”
While Kade started to laugh, Richard swelled with outrage—rather like a frog in high dudgeon—and then turned on his heel and stormed out to the path.
“This isn’t the end, Charlotte,” he yelled over his shoulder. “Your mother is going to be most displeased.”
“You don’t have to tell her,” she called back as he disappeared into the night.
Kade was doubled over with laughter.
Charlie poked his arm. “You’re only laughing because you won’t have to face an epic scold. No doubt Richard will tell Mamma every gory detail of this hideous encounter.”
He straightened, trying to catch his breath.
“Not every detail, I suspect,” he managed to gasp.
Charlie eyed him with concern. “Are you all right? Do you want me to thump you on the back?”
He wiped his eyes. “I’m fine. I’m astonished, however, that I could go so quickly from almost throttling Richard to thinking he’s an utter boob.”
“Yes, but he’s mostly harmless.”
“What he was doing didn’t look harmless when I first came upon you.”
“But twenty seconds later you would have come upon a much different scene. I really was going to knee him in the privates.”
Kade shook his head. “It’s still risky, though. You shouldn’t have been outside here by yourself, not with everything that’s going on.”
“How did I know my ridiculous mother was going to send Richard out looking for me?”
“What if she’d sent Sir Leslie?”
“He’s not interested in me.”
“He is now, apparently.”
She winced at that unappealing notion. “Really? That’s annoying.”
“Charlotte—”
“It’s fine.” She took his arm and steered him to the bench. “It’s you I worry about. I’m afraid you hurt your shoulder when you threw Richard off me.”
“My shoulder is fine.”
She gently pushed him down and then sat beside him. “Stab wounds are nothing to be sneezed at.”
“I’m well aware. Fortunately, we have a doctor in the family, and he took excellent care of me.”
She hesitated for a moment before letting curiosity overcome caution. “You still haven’t told me how you got stabbed by a Russian spy. It sounds . . .”
“Idiotic?” he dryly replied.
“I was going to say dangerous. Are you ever going to tell me what happened in Paris?”
He affected astonishment. “Do you mean my grandfather has yet to disclose the details?”
“Yes. He’s been annoyingly closemouthed since you scolded him.”
“Will wonders never cease?”
“Kade,” she said in a warning tone.
His smile briefly flashed in the moonlight. “Someday I’ll tell you. But for now, we have other matters to discuss.”
“I’m aware, but can you at least tell me what transpired in the drawing room? The arguments, and such.”
He cocked his head. “How do you know about that?”
“Your niece very kindly warned me off.” She frowned. “How did you know where to find me?”
“I happened to glance out the drawing room window when you were crossing the terrace. Unfortunately, I couldn’t make my escape immediately, but I came down as soon as I realized Richard had slipped out.”
“Lucky for him,” she wryly said. “Tira did say that Richard thinks he should be able to marry me, even without the brooch. And Sir Leslie has decided to enter the fray. Do I have that right?”
“Mostly. Your father also wants to put out a discreet word to local swains who might be interested in pursuing both you and the brooch.”
“There is nothing discreet about my father, I’m afraid.”
“Yes, my grandfather told him just that, in slightly more colorful terms.”
She smiled. “I would have liked to have heard that.”
“Especially when your mother began yelling at them,” he wryly replied.
She winced. “If Mamma’s yelling, matters are getting out of hand.”
“So we need to find that damned brooch before your entire family comes apart at the seams or someone really gets hurt. Which brings us to Johnny. How did you get on with him?”
She waggled a hand. “As I suspected, he’s lost a considerable sum playing cards.”
“Most of which he owes to Morgan, I assume.”
“Yes, although I’m to mind my own business, Johnny insists. It’s a matter of honor, you see.”
Kade’s mouth turned down with disgust. “There’s nothing honorable in a genuine rogue taking advantage of a boy like Johnny.”
“Johnny thinks he’s man enough to handle the situation on his own, unfortunately. He also rejected the suggestion that his fall was anything but an accident.”
“Hmm.”
Kade stretched an arm along the top of the bench, brushing her shoulders. He was probably just settling in for a chat, but Charlie had to resist the overwhelming temptation to snuggle against him. This was a serious discussion and not the time for mooning over the man of her dreams—or climbing into his lap and making mad, passionate love to him.
“Did you ask him about the brooch?” he asked.
“Yes. Point-blank. And he denied it, which I expected. Johnny is frightened.”
“Of Morgan.”
“Yes, but of my father finding out, too.”
“Your father won’t shove him off an embankment,” Kade dryly commented.
She grimaced. “I know, but no one will believe that Sir Leslie would hurt Johnny. And I’m not sure it was even done deliberately. Perhaps it was a shove done in the heat of the moment, and Sir Leslie didn’t intend for him to take such a tumble.”
Kade shook his head. “I’m fairly certain it was deliberate.”
Charlie frowned. “Why?”
“I know the type. He’s a bad actor, and he’s obviously desperate for the money. That’s why he’s thrown his hat in the ring to find the brooch.”
