But no, it was just Seamus’s bad luck that it was Margaret of all people who had discovered it.
And now she was gone—with Brodie, to whom she had no doubt told her colorful tale.
It was not difficult to guess where they might go next.
He went to the door of his study and called several of his guards in, closing the door behind them. “Young Brodie MacKenzie has left us suddenly,” he addressed them, “after abusing our hospitality most rudely. I believe that Margaret, the maid, is with him. I want ye to track them down and bring them back here.”
“Do you have any idea where we might find them?” the chief of the guard asked.
“Before departing, Margaret had spoken of once knowing Morna the healer quite well,” Seamus answered. “I believe that she will have gone there for shelter and that Brodie may well have followed her. When ye have them, it is important that ye take them to the dungeons at once along with any who might have been harboring them, then report to me directly. Tellno onewhat has transpired before discussing the matter with me. Is that understood?”
They nodded and left at once.
Seamus flopped down into his chair with a heavy groan, thinking of all the things that could go amiss. Margaret had the bottle on her. That was the main piece of evidence to corroborate her story, and so it was crucial to get it back at once before she could show it to many more people.
And what if she and Brodie reached Morna’s house before the guards found them? Seamus could not exactly order her put to the sword…or at least, not publicly, else Malcolm would protest given their previous relationship in his youth.
Ach, all I wanted was for my beloved daughter to be wed to a laird and thus sire an heir to this clan someday, Seamus lamented inwardly.I thought I had arranged everything so carefully, considered and eliminated every potential obstacle. Why in blazes did everything have to go so wrong?!
As Seamus wondered this to himself, Brodie and Margaret were carefully making their way toward Morna’s house through thick bushes and dense trees. The clear and open emerald hillside was tantalizing, and there was no doubt that their speed would be doubled if they simply walked that way—but then they would surely be spotted and overtaken.
“We should stop to rest,” Brodie suggested, noting the perspiration and high color in Margaret’s face. He was concerned that if they continued at such a pace, she might faint.
“But we must make haste!” Margaret gasped, tearing the hem of her dress from a stubborn patch of brambles. “They will be on horseback! How can we hope to outrun them if we stop?”
“We do not know whether they have even predicted our destination,” he reassured her, desperately hoping that this was the truth. “They might be heading in the other direction, searching other areas of the MacLeod lands. We must take heart that all is not lost, Margaret.”
They sat next to each other on a large, smooth stone. Margaret used her sleeve to dab the sweat from her brow. “Do you truly believe that we might be able to make our case, Brodie? Can we convince them that you did not do anything untoward with Isla?”
“I believe that we can, yes. We have to try, at any rate.”
“But even if we are successful, what then?” Margaret challenged.
“Then I will no longer be forced to wed this woman,” he replied. “This marriage contract shall be nullified due to Seamus’s malfeasance, and I will return to my ancestral home in search for another woman.”
“That is well enough for you,” Margaret reminded him, “but what is to become of me? I will still be in the service of a villain, one who will no doubt exact dire punishments on me if I should return. And if I do not, where else can I go? This clan is all I have, all I’ve ever known.”
Brodie took her hand gently. “You will return with me and live as one of the MacKenzies.”
Margaret seemed torn. “That is a lovely prospect, and of course, I find it tempting. However…”
“What? What is the matter?”
“I would only find myself in the same unfortunate position, would I not?” she pointed out. “You will eventually fall in love with a noblewoman who is worthy of your station, and you will be married. And I shall be a servant in your household, condemned to watch such a thing play out no matter how it might wound me to do so.”
“How do ye know that I would fall in love with a noblewoman?” he asked softly.
“Because this is what happens. You are the son of a laird, who is due to become the laird of yer clan. I am a maid. A maid who doesn’t even know who her real parents are,” Margaret said.
Brodie looked into her somber blue eyes, her face mere inches from his own, before she lowered her eyes. He lifted her chin up with his finger.
There was a dizzying loss of control between them, and it was impossible to know which of them moved forward to close the distance—only that an instant later, their lips were pressed against each other, their tongues dancing and caressing tenderly. Their bodies came together, and each could feel the other’s heartbeat, warm and urgent.
Margaret pulled away. “We cannot do this,” she said breathlessly. “It would not be right. We are facing too much uncertainty. We must remain focused on our goal rather than allow ourselves to be…distracted.”
Brodie nodded reluctantly. “At any rate, we must be on our way before we are overtaken or discovered.”
Still, neither of them were pleased that they had barely had time to savor their first kiss...even though it could well have been their last.
