Niall nodded grimly. “Aye, it seems so.”
“But it’s not true!” Charlie exclaimed, her voice rising in pitch.
“I know that, Charlotte.” Niall’s voice was steady, his gaze unwavering. “I wouldnae mind the gossip so much if it was.”
He said it flippantly, jokingly, as he often did when trying to hide what he really felt. But as she met his gaze, Charlie saw something entirely different. His eyes were dark and deep as he stared at her, something flickering in them that made her heart race a little faster.
Stay.
I wouldn’t mind the gossip so much if it was true.
That warmth in her chest spread down into her belly and her pulse went up a notch. She’d been attracted to Niall from the start. How could she not be? He was sexy as hell, quick-witted, and charming.Thatwas the Niall Campbell he let most people see. But there was another Niall Campbell, one that she was beginning to realize was the real one, and this one was warm, kind-hearted and caring.
The kind of man she could fall in love with.
Charlie froze. Wait. What?
She most definitely wasnotgoing to follow that thought any further. She glanced at the pamphlet in her hand, the gossip that labeled her as Niall’s mistress. What if itwastrue? What harm could it do?
Don’t be an idiot, she told herself.Do not go there.
She crumpled the pamphlet in her hand and shrugged. “The day I worry what a bunch of overstuffed, snot-nosed rich people say about me will be the day hell freezes over.”
Niall chuckled at that. “That’s the spirit, lass,” he said, the crinkles around his eyes deepening. His gaze lingered on her face, as if he was trying to read her thoughts. “Ye dinna worry about yer reputation?”
Charlie snorted. “Hardly. People don’t care about that kind of thing where I come from.”
“They dinna? Is Cardiff society so very different then?”
Charlie cursed inwardly. Damn. Sometimes it was easy to forget that she was in a different time and that Niall knew nothing about it.
“Just a bit more...enlightened,” she said. “But what about you? This will affect you too.”
He shrugged, a casual lift of his broad shoulders. “I’ve never cared much for society’s opinions. They are quick to judge and slow to forgive, and think they are so far above the rest of us. They can go hang for all I care.”
Charlie laughed. “That’s the spirit!” she said, echoing his words. “Although I’d like to get my hands on the smarmy little bastard who wrote those things about me.”
“I dinna know who wrote it but we know who’s behind it. I would bet my last penny that this is Boyd MacAllister’s work.”
“Him again. I’m really starting to dislike that guy.”
Niall arched an eyebrow. “Lass, ye have no idea. He’s been the bane of my life since we were children. He and Bryce are of an age and when we were children Bryce used to step in to stop MacAllister from bullying me. That all changed when our father died. Then hejoined inthe bullying.”
Charlie stayed quiet, letting him talk.
“We should have stood together. But instead, Bryce aligned himself with MacAllister. Became cruel and self-serving, just like him. Said I was too soft, too sentimental. He thought I was weak for caring about the people who worked our land, for seeing them as more than just tenants.” Niall gave a humorless chuckle. “He said I’d end up losing everything if I didn’t learn to put myself first. Maybe he was right.”
Charlie frowned. “You don’t believe that.”
Niall exhaled, his eyes meeting hers. “I’m not sure what I believe anymore.”
Charlie hesitated, then reached out, covering his hand with hers. His skin was warm, rough with calluses, and for a second, neither of them moved.
“You’re not weak, Niall,” she said softly. “You care about people. That’s not a flaw—it’s what makes you worth following.”
Something flickered in his eyes. He glanced down at their joined hands, then back up at her. “Ye dinna know that,” he said in a whisper. “Ye dinna know what I’ve had to do, who I’ve had to become to survive.”
“It doesn’t matter,” she replied softly. “I knowyou, Niall Campbell.”
