Page 21 of Wedded to the Devilish Highlander
He finally sighed and crossed to the table near the window, where a kettle and two cups she had not noticed earlier sat. He poured her a drink without asking and handed it to her.
“Ye feelin’ well?” he asked quietly.
The gentleness of his question threw her off.
She stared at the cup, the scent of mint and honey wafting to her nose. “Aye… I mean, I dinnae ken,” she admitted.
And just like that, the memory of the guard’s lifeless body and the blood crashed back in. The smell.
“The guard,” she croaked. “Has anyone found out who?—”
“Nae yet,” he interrupted, his voice tense. “Still searchin’. The men are combin’ through the records. Calum’s got eyes on everyone. But whoever did it… they were trained. Kenned our patterns.”
She looked away, her heart pounding. “It could have been aimed at ye.”
“Itwasaimed at me, lass.”
He said it so flatly that it made her stomach twist. That quiet certainty was worse than any panic.
“Why did ye come here?”
He arched an eyebrow. “Ye were here. Alone. I came to make sure ye were safe.”
Silence stretched between them, filled only by the rain.
She didn’t thank him. She wasn’t sure she could. Not with everything that still sat between them.
“I… I ken we dinnae get on all that well, but I wouldnae wish death on ye or any of yer men. The guard was so young. I just cannae imagine…”
“Aye,” he uttered.
It was a tight reply, one tinged with a hint of sympathy but laden with lashings of vengeance.
“I come to yer castle, and the very same day, one of yer men is murdered, and?—”
“Och, hold yer wheesht,” Archer interrupted. “This wasnae yer fault. Whoever came for me meant to do it afore ye got here, lass.”
“Aye, but what if O’Gunn captured Reid for some reason? What if he kens about me bein’ here because he has spies or somethin’? If he’s willin’ to kill ye because of me, then I cannae let that happen. I should be the one to go up against the sword.”
“Ye are brave, I mean that, but ye’re mighty foolish too,” Archer said. “If ye think I’m lettin’ a woman be put to the sword, then ye dinnae ken me very well.”
“Aye, but it’s me mess, and I need to deal with it,” Eileen argued. “If goin’ to O’Gunn and acceptin’ his proposal saves Reid and yer clan from a war, then I have to do it.”
“The clans have been at war long afore ye stepped foot into this world, lass, and they’ll be at war long after we’ve taken out last breaths. Some reputable lairds might use circumstances as justification, but that doesnae mean ye’re to blame. And I’m nae lettin’ ye wed that man.”
“So, ye have a claim to me now?” Eileen asked.
“Nay, I dinnae have a claim to ye, and I dinnae believe any man will ever have a claim to ye. Nay matter what ye think about me, and despite yer impudence, I dinnae want to throw ye to the wolves.”
“I’ll walk into that devil’s lair meself and offer him me hand if it means me braither walks free and nay more of yer guards are slaughtered.”
Archer’s eyes darkened, the warmth in them vanishing like smoke. “Ye dinnae even ken whether he has yer braither. Little, brash lass.”
“I’m doin’ what I feel I must. Ye said yerself I shouldnae go off alone, but I will if I have to.”
He stepped closer, his shadow falling over her. “Did anyone tell ye what happened to his last bride? Did Thomas? Did Reid?”
Eileen blinked. “His last… bride?”
