“Nay, I cannae talk of that. I daresay if ye were to dig into the keep gossip…”
“I won’t do that.”
He shot her a quick, approving look.
“Thank ye, Melody. Ye are a wonderful woman, and a kind one, ye ken that? That is why this betrothal can never be real. I’ll nae be the reason why somethin’ terrible befalls ye.”
“Callum…”
“Nay, I’ll nae be argued out of it. I fear that I will disappoint ye, lassie, very strongly and very soon. Ye daenae deserve it, but there it is. Disappointment is better than death.”
He threw her an apologetic smile, wan and a little pitying. To her own surprise, Melody felt a flare of anger tighten in her chest. She rose shakily to her feet and jabbed a finger in his direction.
“You… you are no better than my father. No better than that awful bald Englishman that Papa wanted me to marry!”
Callum stared at her, flabbergasted at her fury. “I… What?”
“You are all the same. You say you are acting in my best interests, but you never stop to consider whatIwould want. You certainly don’t let me choose.”
“That’s enough, Melody.”
“Or what? What will you do? Callum, do you not see how horrifically unfair all of this is? You show me the most wonderful things. I am not just talking aboutmistakes. I am talking about horse riding, festivals, and being invited to council meetings. You let me enjoy these things; you encourage me to be brave; you tell me that I am… that I am awonderfulwoman. Then you quite casually tell me that you have decided my future for me and will not be argued with. Can you truly not see how unfair this is?”
A flush crept across his cheeks. It occurred vaguely to her that this was perhaps the first time she had seen a blush of any kind on Callum’s face. She had assumed that the man was notcapableof blushing.
“Ye daenae understand the full story,” Callum murmured, after a half-moment of silence.
She threw up her hands. “Of course, I do not understand the full story, because you have nottoldme the full story. If you told me everything, I could decide for myself whether to stay or not. But you are determined to take my choice away from me!”
He took a step toward her, waving a finger warningly. “Have a care, lassie. I’m still the Laird here. Daenae think to order me around like yer English gentlemen.”
“Well, why should I not, when you treat me the same way they do?”
“Oh, aye, and how’s that, then?”
He closed the distance between them, coming almost nose to nose with her. He was breathing heavily, eyes narrowed. He was angry, Melody realized. That should have been her cue to back away, to think carefully about her next words.
Naturally, she did nothing of the sort.
“They treat me as though I am fragile,” she shot back. “A pretty but delicate piece of glass, made to be admired but never touched. You see me exactly the same, don’t you? You admire me, but you do notwantme, and those things are very different. If you do not want me, Callum, I wish you would simply comeout and say it. I am not as fragile as you think, and I can handle it all. Ican.”
He stared down at her for a long moment, his breath catching in his throat.
“Ye think that I daenae want ye?” he said at last. “Ye truly think that?”
The heat in his voice hadn’t been there before. Melody blinked, swallowing.
“Well, I…”
He lunged forward, seizing her chin and tilting her face up.
“Ye have nay idea what ye are speakin’ of, lass,” he breathed. “Ye think I daenae want ye? Ye have nay clue how I have burned, Melody. Perhaps I should show ye.”
Melody opened her mouth to say something. She was not sure what she had meant to say, but in any case, only an undignified gasp came out.
A slow, wolfish smile spread across Callum’s face. He kissed her, quickly and roughly, one arm winding around her waist and pulling her against him. A stab of desire crackled through her stomach, making her shiver. He chuckled, low in his throat, and it occurred to her that he must have felt her shiver.
Without warning, the world shifted around her, and Melody found herself deposited firmly but carefully on her back in the grass. Callum loomed over her, supporting his weight on his hands and knees. He grinned once more, his canines seeming just alittlesharper than they should be.
