Page 9 of Highlander’s Dangerous Love

If he’d caught anyone else in such a situation, he would not have cared. But the fact that the laird’s wife was in bed with his right hand man, ruining the sanctity of their marriage — in their marital bed no less! — was unholy. It was dishonorable. They snubbed their titles and duties in the face of the clan. Bryce was incensed at such a feeling of betrayal. His own mother and the father of his best friend…it was a horrible situation. He wondered if Colin knew. If he did, that would make him nearly as guilty as the offending parties; but just nearly. If he did not know, then he pitied the man. This situation put his mother and Captain Frazier in a terrible position. Adultery of this gravity was punishable by death. Killing his own mother — or seeing her killed — for such a crime would be horrible. He did not want that to happen. But such selfish actions needed punishment. When he became laird, he would have to make tough decisions like these on a regular basis. His mind whirled with all these unpleasant thoughts, making his head injury hurt even more. At long last, he decided he’d inform Colin. If Colin truly did not know, he would be outraged indeed. If he publicly condemned his father, it might save his family reputation. Maybe both their parents could be exiled instead of killed.

Bryce hated all of this. He wished he’d never looked through that keyhole. There was always the option of pretending he never saw it, but…that was dishonest. If it came to light through another means and it was revealed he knew, he would also be in trouble. He had to expose them now or never.

“I need a drink,” he muttered, trying to sit up. But he was too groggy and it was too painful, so he fell back down to the pillow and drifted off to a fitful sleep.

The hunt had gone quite well,despite Bryce’s absence. The party had managed to bring home a boar, a deer, several waterfowl and some other birds. After cutting and draining them, Colin was quite tired. Boars were heavy, and it took several men to lift it into position to hang upside down for the cutting. When it was over, Colin felt like he could collapse. He looked a fright and smelled even worse. A bath was in order. Rather than trouble some poor servant to fill a tub for him, he decided to find some soap and fresh clothes and go down to the ocean instead. It was not a far walk and he rather preferred the salty sea air anyway.

On his way to his chamber to procure such items, he saw Bryce. He looked a little tired, but at least he was moving about and no longer unsteady.

“Bryce! How’s that head?” he asked brightly.

“I’ve had worse,” Bryce answered gruffly.

“Ye gave us all a good fright.”

“Well, I’m fine now,” he snapped and brushed past. Colin looked after him as he stalked down the stone corridor. Well, that was simply unlike him. Perhaps the fall had addled his brain a little harder than he’d realized.

No matter. Colin would be upset and grumpy too if he’d fallen, hit his head, and had to miss the hunt. He supposed he understood.

As he walked down to the seaside to his favorite cove encased by large rocks so no one could see him, his mind drifted to Gemma. They were supposed to meet that night, away from the prying eyes of the castle. But after the conversation with Bryce earlier that day, he wondered if their relationship would change. It was up to Gemma, but choosing either Colin or Bryce would make the un-chosen one feel alienated from the group. They’d been inseparable friends since they were wee bairns. Was love really worth risking friendships?

The sea calmed him down, as it usually did. It was fortunate that the castle was so close. That meant they could see incoming invaders if they came across the water, or send boats out to greet the ships that wandered into their waters. But right now, it was Colin’s refuge. He laid his fresh clothes on a nearby rock in the sun, then stripped bare and walked into the sea. The water was colder than normal for this time of year, but it was nothing a good plunge wouldn’t fix. When he came up for air, he felt exhilarated. There was nothing but him, water, and sky for miles. The waves lapping gently on the shore were at such a steady rhythm that Colin wanted to float on his back and fall asleep. That was a horrible idea — a riptide could take him out far at any point, or he could forget he was sleeping and drown. Neither of those seemed like a very nice option. And Gemma was too important to him. He needed to see her again.

With a sigh, he began to scrub himself clean with the soap and the rag. He wanted to look his best for Gemma, after all. She deserved only that.