“On that, I am sworn to absolute secrecy. My oaths silence my tongue oneverythingthat pertains to Madeline’s life before Laverloch, particularly the details of her parentage. And I am a gentleman. When I swear an oath, I keep it.” He met Leah’s gaze then, intent, earnest. “Especially whenMadelineis at stake.”
He said her name like a psalm. A prayer.
Surely only a father could feel such fierce protectiveness.
“Should I be concerned for her safety?” Leah asked. “Have ye purchased this castle with the thought to use it as intended—a fortress to keep out marauders who would take that which is not theirs?”
“Would that keeping Madeline safe were so easy.” Fox smiled at that, a wan, paltry thing. “No one will come for her in the dead of night or attempt to kidnap her from the gardens. There is no need. They could simply decide she is no longer invisible enough in my care. A letter would be all that is required for me to release her.”
A letter?!
And . . .they? Who werethey?
Regardless, there was no ignoring the bitterness in Fox’s voice.
“Andtheywould not care for her as you do?” Leah asked.
“No.” Decisive. Sharp. “They would not.”
She recognized the set of his jaw. Both Malcolm and Ethan donned such looks when they were finished with talking.
Leah had asked her questions.
Fox had answered them to the best of his abilities.
That would be . . . that.
“Well.” She braced her hands on the kitchen table. “I shall formulate a plan for keeping Madeline from the workmen’s gaze. I sent Mr. Wheeler down the glen with instructions and a list of provisions. Hopefully by tomorrow, the staff and I can begin in earnest to set matters in order.”
Fox studied her, as if he would say more.
Care to stay and help?she longed to ask.There’s no need to return tae your library and the whisky there.
But after a brief pause, he simply nodded. “Thank you. I’ll leave you to it then.”
And with two raps on the tabletop, he left.
It was only hours later, as Leah cataloged cracked window panes in need of replacing, that she remembered.
In the confusion of spilling his tea, Fox had never answered her question:
Howhadhe obtained his sudden wealth?
10
Two mornings later, Fox awoke to the sound of voices calling in the courtyard below his window.
Loud, male voices.
He moaned and squinted at the light blazing through the open shutters of his bedchamber. Had he forgotten to close them last night? He remembered stumbling to bed, but as he had downed a bottle of wine beforehand, it was hard to recall anything with exact clarity.
His throbbing head informed him that he had perhaps had more than just the wine to drink.
You need to stop this, a rational part of him muttered.
Had Leah noticed his drinking? He had glimpsed her in the great hall the previous evening, reading to Madeline fromMother Goose’s Favorites. The scene had warmed his heart, Madeline curled into Leah’s lap before the fire, asking questions in her piping voice.
Scarcely two days into this marriage and Leah had already settled in, showering his Madeline with affection and care.
