Page 53 of Highlander’s Dangerous Gambler

"But—" Aileen could feel her temper racing.

"But nothing," said Scott, shutting her down in an instant. "My family come first. Everything I do is for them. I will always put them above anything else!"

Now, she was annoyed. Just what had she done so wrong? All she had done was ask the simplest of questions. Steaming up, she let loose.

"Above makin' wagers?" she asked slyly.

Scott stopped cold. He fixed her with such a look that she instantly froze. But then, irritation overwhelmed her. She was sick of him and his strange clamming up.

"Ye ken, Scott, if ye really wanted to help yer sister an' her wee bairn, maybe ye should stop throwing yer money away on wagers!"

And with that, Aileen turned and flounced from the stables, running as fast as she could before Scott had a chance to get there.

"Aileen! I'm glad I found ye!"

Aileen was barely out of the stables when he approached on horseback. It took Aileen a moment or two to compose herself.

“Brodie?" said Aileen, setting herself straight.

Quickly, her heart was coming in waves. She had hoped it had been Scott, but when she looked, he was nowhere to be seen.

Brodie smiled at her, his lips snaking with a grin.

"Are ye alright, lass?" he asked, going to squeeze her shoulder. A cold jolt ran through Aileen. She tried to pretend it had not, but there was no denying the shiver inside.

All the same, Aileen forced herself to smile.

"Braw," she lied. But all the while, her heart was thump-thumping. She could not get thoughts of Scott out of her mind. Why was he so touchy about his sister?

"That's guid, bonny lass," said Brodie, beaming closely. "Because I thought for a moment I might ha' startled ye. Ye look as if ye saw a ghost!"

Aileen grinned some more as a wild autumnal wind whipped up around the castle. "Nay," she said before reaching out to Brodie some more.

"Nay, lad. I am braw," she reiterated. "In fact, I came looking for ye."

Her eyes perked inquisitively at Brodie, who proved hopeless to look away.

"An' I had something to say," said Aileen gravely.

Instantly, Brodie's expression changed. "Aye," he said genially. But either way, Brodie looked worried. "What is it? Is it the marriage?"

"Aye," agreed Aileen, nodding her head. "The thing is, I cannae marry ye, Brodie."

Brodie blanched. There was a pause as he took in these facts.

Grinning, Aileen carried on. "I cannae marry ye until ye have proved yersel’. So first around the training ground an' back. Not ’til ye've done that well can I possibly deign to wed ye!"

Seeing the glint in her eye, Brodie smirked.

"Ye’re on...if ye dinnae mind being skelped!"

Aileen laughed. In truth, she did not think Brodie could skelp the skin off his porridge, but she laughed politely.

"Och, we'll see!" she said, grinning and mounting her horse.

But it was with a sigh she led White Star from his slumber in the stalls out to the training ground.

And as she did, she couldn't help wondering if she had been wrong to let loose with Scott as much as she did. Hesitating, she worried that he had been right. Maybe she had crossed a line; after all, she had no right to ask about his family.