If her father rejected the proposal, would that mean she and Bryan might find some way to be together after all?
No.
She wished it could be otherwise, but she knew it wouldn’t be. Refusal would certainly mean open war, and once that started, Bryan’s first duty would be to his clan, even more than before. His time and attention would be spent planning attacks and counterattacks, and leading his men into battle.
Worse still, it would mean he would need to distance himself from her even more. He hadn’t been able to allow himself to act on his feelings for her because he hadn’t wished to muddy the waters of his duty to the Oliphants. If war broke out, he’d need to demonstrate that sense of duty all the more fiercely. How would it look, if one of the clan’s highest-ranked guardsmen was caught carrying on with a McGregor, even an exiled one?
And amid it all, there would be more raids and flames, more screaming and death. More terrorized women and children, more displaced families. More butchery and misery.
No, she could not bring herself to truly wish for her father to reject the overture. He had to agree. There was too much at stake for him to do otherwise.
When the messenger had disappeared over the farthest hilltop, Katherine lowered herself onto the bed. She thought that sleep would be a long time finding her, with all of the conflicting emotions raging in her heart.
But after everything she’d been through over the previous day, she fell into a deep slumber the moment her eyes closed. She remained asleep until late in the afternoon, when one of the servants brought supper to her. She had hoped that Bryan might come to look in on her, and was disappointed when the evening passed without any sign of him.
Eventually, she realized that there was a perfectly valid reason for this, though it saddened her: She was not a prisoner anymore, to be kept under observation by the most vigilant Oliphant guardsman.
Now she was something quite different. She was the betrothed of the laird’s cousin—or at least, she was presumed to be thus, unless a negative response came from her father regarding the marriage solution. As such, it would be considered improper for another man to be alone with her in her chamber.
So she ate in silence, alone with her stormy thoughts. When she had cleared her plate, she went back to bed and wondered how she might pass the next few days while waiting for an answer to the message.
This time, it was far more difficult for her to rest.
When she rose the next morning, there was a knock at the door. Her heart leaped, for she thought perhaps she might have been mistaken in her assumptions the previous night, and thatBryan had come to look in on her after all. The sight that awaited her when she opened the door proved to be almost as welcome; Lady Isla, smiling radiantly.
“So! Not only do we have the pleasure of yer company for a while longer after all, but it seems ye will be joining the family. It has been very lonely ever since Alex’s adopted sister, Lady Lorna, was married to the love of her life and left the castle. So I welcome this arrangement and ye in the family.”
Katherine laughed timidly. “So it would seem. Depending upon my father’s answer, at any rate. I am still not wholly certain this mad scheme will dissuade him from his rage.”
“Well, either way, we have done all we can,” Isla replied reasonably. “All that is left is tae watch and wait. Which can often be the most difficult thing of all, so I thought ye might appreciate a bit of a distraction.”
“Aye,” Katherine tilted her head curiously. “That was most considerate of ye, thank ye. What did ye have in mind?”
“I thought ye might like tae get out of the castle for the day,” Isla suggested. “We could ride to the nearest village? I understand ye made a friend there during yer previous visit?”
“That I did,” Katherine laughed, fondly remembering Fiona. “I would enjoy seeing her again. But how did ye know about that?”
“Bryan mentioned it tae me,” Isla informed her. “He saw how much ye enjoyed her company, and said ye might welcome a chance tae see her again.”
Katherine’s heart swelled at how considerate Bryan was, but it was yet another bitter reminder of the fact that she could never be with him. She tried to conceal her whirlwind of conflicting emotions from Isla.
“Excellent! Also, I thought we might bring along some bolts of cloth and sewing implements,” Isla added. “I believe there are many young lasses in town who might benefit from learningsome new patterns, and who better tae instruct them? I’m told ye did something similar in yer own lands?”
“Mostly because it was a good excuse tae leave my father’s presence for a few hours at a time,” Katherine chuckled ruefully. “Aye, that does sound like a lovely way tae pass the time.”
“In that case,” Isla informed her, “ye will be pleased tae learn that when I heard ye had come back tae us, I had the dresses ye’d been borrowing moved back in here.” She pointed to a trunk in the corner. “They are in there, and from now on, I’d be honored if ye considered them yer own. While ye get dressed, I will gather some food from the pantry for us to take with us, and I shall meet ye at the stables.”
The moment Isla had left the room, Katherine squealed and jumped up and down with delight, her anxieties momentarily forgotten. She threw open the trunk and pulled the fine dresses out one by one, running her fingers over their lovely material and selecting the best one for an afternoon ride.
When she’d settled on one, she put it on, slipped her shoes on, and ran down the steps eagerly. This attracted several odd looks from the servants and the other denizens of Castle Oliphant, but she paid them no heed, hurrying to the stables, where Isla was waiting for her.
“Och, aye, that outfit is most fetching on ye!” Isla remarked merrily.
“Thank ye again for letting me wear it,” Katherine replied, beaming and approaching Bluebell. The horse seemed to remember her fondly, and she stroked its muzzle tenderly.
“It appears as though Bluebell is happy ye’ll be remaining with us a while yet as well,” Isla giggled. She mounted Heather with the help of one of the stable hands, and Katherine did likewise with Bluebell. “Shall we ride, then? I’m sure Fiona will be even more delighted tae see ye than Bluebell is.”
Moments later, the two of them were racing their horses across the verdant countryside of the Oliphant lands, shouting challenges out to each other and laughing with the wind in their hair.
