Ellie reached her free hand up, but before she could connect her palm with the Laird’s cheek, he grabbed her arm with his free hand. “Dae nae, lass. Yer already on verra thin ice. Yer lucky I only intend to claim what’s mine from me agreement with yer mam, and not more. I dae nae care that ye dae nae want to marry me, lass.” He trailed a finger down her cheek. “There must be something mighty sweet about yer juices for me own nephew to betray me in order to taste them, but I’ll nay be made a fool of by a MacAskill lass again.”
Even in the dark of the wood, Ellie could feel the embarrassed heat of a blush creep up her cheeks while tears welled behind her eyes. She fought them back. She knew the truth. She loved Aidam. She was no common whore. She would not give Sinclair the pleasure of seeing her cry. Instead, she dropped her arm and did her best to give up the appearance of a fight.
“Now that’s a good lass,” Sinclair said. “Get some sleep. It will be a long night. And we will nay stop until we reach yer homeland.”
Ellie lowered her head and closed her eyes. Her thoughts ran wild. Surely, not all hope was lost. Perhaps she could somehow get a message through to Van or even her mother. Someone in the Sinclair clan had to be on her side. Who could she trust to deliver a message on her behalf? Damon had not been given leave to ride with them. She hoped he made it back to his family safely and without detection. The rest of the Sinclair men were all behind them, and she had not made an effort to know any of them. Why would she have? She had not planned on ever being their lady.
No,she thought.Using Sinclair men will nay work. It is up to me to stop this on me own.
She thought about what Sinclair had said earlier. He’d not be made a fool of by a MacAskill lass, again. He’d saidagain. What a strange word to choose, Ellie thought. She wracked her memory to try and think of a moment where she could have wounded his pride so severely that it would cause this level of reaction. Nothing came.
If anything, it was Sinclair who had repeatedly made a fool of her over the last few weeks. He all but ignored her in front of his clan. He left their engagement ball early with not so much as a fare thee well. Could he have been speaking of Jemina and Ellie allowing the lass to have dinner in the village? That didn’t make sense, as Sinclair obviously had the upper hand in that interaction. He humiliated her in front of his men and the clan. No, he had meant something else, and she was missing it. The answer felt as if it were hanging on the edge of her mind, just within reach. Why would he be so wounded?
Ellie’s eyes shot open in the dark, and she looked up at Sinclair. His jaw was set tight, and his eyes kept forward on the road. There was something different in his demeanor from that even at the cottage. In fact, it seemed the closer they got to her family keep, the more stoic he became.
She studied his face. His nose was long but not overly so. His forehead low. His eyes, what color were his eyes? Lightning flashed at that exact moment, snapping Ellie out of her musings. Sinclair looked down at her as the incoming storm lit the coming dawn sky around them.
“We’ll be at yer keep within the hour lass, but ye better cover yer head if ye dae nae want to get wet,” Sinclair growled. Ellie hardly heard a word. Instead, she was riveted.It couldnae be,she thought as she stared into the Laird’s eyes for the first time and realized they were slate gray. The same slate gray as her brother Evander’s.
Every suspicion Ellie had about her family, her mother, her father’s death, the Laird’s treatment of her, and their betrothal came crashing together in one violent realization.
Laird Sinclair wasn’t doing any of this because of her. She had been right. He cared not a fig for her. No, this midnight ride was borne out of revenge and anger. Revenge and anger toward her mother.
“Oh no,” Ellie whispered into the coming rain. “It cannae be true.”
