“This is Lady Thalia. Me betrothed,” he announced.
Gasps rose in the air.
“Me Laird!” one of the three young men exclaimed. “Forgive us, we hadnae heard of yer engagement.”
“It doesnae matter if ye had heard of it or nae,” Finlay bellowed. “I ken that I have only been yer Laird for two years, but I expected me people to have decency and honor, which ye are clearly lackin’!”
They fell silent, shame written plainly all over their faces.
Thalia placed a hand on his arm, and he turned towards her. “I am unharmed,” she told him in a soft voice.
He gritted his teeth. “But if I hadnae been here?—”
“But ye were.”
He expelled a long breath, forcing his anger to cool and reason to return. Swallowing, he turned his fierce gaze back on the villagers. “Remember me words next time. Nothin’ like this will ever happen again as long as I am Laird,” he warned.
“Aye, me Laird!”
“Aye!”
The villagers’ agreement echoed across the street.
Finlay nodded, satisfied for now, and then gently pulled Thalia away from the chaos by the elbow. She followed without much fuss, and he pulled her around a corner away from prying eyes.
“Ye are all right? Truly?” he asked.
She gave a weak nod, but he could see that she was still shaken. He did not blame her. He mentally kicked himself as he thoughtabout what could have happened had Daisy not convinced him to come and join her. He could have lost her forever.
That thought made him wish he could kill the would-be kidnapper a second time.
“Did ye buy anything?” He looked her over. She had a small satchel with her, but nothing else on her person.
She shook her head. “Only some breakfast at the bakery. I hadnae bought any fabrics yet. I had only just entered the shop when he…”
At the terrified look on her face, Finlay wrapped his arms around her again. She melted into the embrace, sucking in a deep breath when her nose pressed against his chest.
“I am here now, and the man is dead. He cannae hurt ye again.”
The certainty in his voice seemed to calm her, but when she pulled back, there was still concern in her brilliant blue eyes.
“But his Laird isnae. Suppose he tries to kidnap me again? I was so foolish to come here alone.”
“Nay!” he insisted, cradling her cheek in one hand as his other arm wrapped tighter around her waist. “I should have been here, to begin with. I was meant to join ye, and I will join ye now. ‘Tis me damn fault for nae considering how much danger ye’re in. I swore to protect ye.”
“Ye did. And I am grateful to ye.” She gave him a smile, the first one he had received from her all day, and it made his heart ache.
She was so close, her plump lips within his reach again, and the thought of closing the distance between them began to echo relentlessly in his head. It would be so easy to pull her in, to coax those sweet little sighs she made anytime he slipped his tongue into her mouth?—
“Finlay?”
He blinked, realizing with some embarrassment that she had asked him a question and he had not been listening.
“Aye, sorry, I was…” He took a step back, releasing her with some effort.
This was the exact reason he had not meant to join her today. He did not want to give in to temptation as he almost did now.
Thalia’s face fell slightly as he increased the distance between them, but she recovered in record time. “I was only askin’ about what made ye change yer mind about joinin’ me today.”
