She was so small, so delicate-looking. But Murdock had seen the steel in her spine, the courage it took to free a prisoner and flee her own home with nothing but a brother and a cat.
Beautiful and brave and completely off-limits.
Before she could take more than a few steps toward the stables, Skye spotted her. His daughter broke away from him, running full tilt across the garden with Nyx clutched in her arms.
“There ye are!” Skye cried, launching herself at Leona’s legs and wrapping her arms around them in an enthusiastic hug that nearly knocked the woman over.
Leona staggered slightly, surprise evident on her face. Her pack slipped from her shoulder, landing in the grass. But then she was smiling down at Skye, and Murdock’s breath caught in his chest.
That smile. Soft and genuine and full of warmth. One hand came up to gently ruffle Skye’s dark hair, and the gesture was so natural, so tender, that something in Murdock’s chest clenched painfully.
He’d seen his sisters with Skye, seen the way they loved her. But there was something different about watching Leona with her. Something that made his throat tighten and his hands curl into fists at his sides. She looked at Skye the way someone looked at something precious, something worth protecting.
“Hey there, little one!” Leona greeted, her voice carrying across the garden. “Did the kitty let ye play with her, after all?”
“Just a little bit,” Skye said, beaming up at her. “But she’ll like me more now that ye’re stayin' here forever!”
Leona’s smile froze. Her eyes went wide, the color draining from her face. “I’m… what?”
She looked up, her gaze finding Murdock’s across the garden.
Even from a distance, he could see the confusion and hope and fear warring in her expression. Those green eyes, so expressive, searching his face for answers he didn’t know how to give.
The councilmen were already converging on her, reappearing out of nowhere like carrion birds. Offering their congratulations on her upcoming wedding, welcoming her to Clan Ainsley, and asking about her preferences for the ceremony.
Murdock watched as her face cycled through shock, disbelief, and then something close to panic.
But she recovered quickly. He had to give her credit for that. She thanked them with admirable composure, her breeding showing through despite the chaos swirling around her. But her eyes never left his. The question in them was clear, desperate:What is happening?
When the councilmen finally dispersed, still muttering excitedly among themselves about wedding preparations and feasts and all manner of things that made Murdock want to throttle his daughter, Leona approached him with careful steps. As if afraid he’d bolt. Or perhaps afraid he’d send her away again, in front of everyone, humiliating her further.
Skye trailed behind her, Nyx cradled in her arms, completely oblivious to the tension crackling between the adults like lightning before a storm.
“I need a word with ye,” Leona said quietly, her voice steady despite the tremor he could see in her hands. Then, with a glance at Skye, she added, “Let’s go… bring the cat, me Laird.”
7
“Idaenae understand anythin',” Leona said the moment they were out of earshot, her voice trembling despite her best efforts to control it. Her hands were shaking, so she clasped them together in front of her, squeezing until her knuckles turned white. “What just happened? Why did those men think we’re… Why did they…”
“It seems me daughter found a creative solution to her problem,” Murdock said, his tone carefully neutral.
He glanced back at Skye, who had wandered a few paces away to let Nyx explore a flowerbed. The cat was batting at a butterfly with lazy interest, and the little girl watched with rapt attention, giving them privacy. At least the child had that much sense.
“What problem?” Leona demanded, trying to make sense of the chaos that had just unfolded.
One moment, she’d been preparing to leave, steeling herself for the long journey ahead; the next, she’d been surrounded by grinning councilmen congratulating her on a wedding she knew nothing about.
“The one where she’s lonely and I’m too blind to do anythin' about it.”
The admission seemed to cost him something.
His jaw tightened, and he looked away, staring at some point beyond the garden wall. “She told me councilmen we’re to be wed. That ye’re stayin' here with yer brother. And the cat.”
Leona stared at him, her mouth opening and closing like a fish gasping for air. Of all the things she’d expected him to say, that hadn’t even made the list.
Finally, she found her voice. “And ye didnae say it wasnae true?”
“Nay.”
