Page 6 of Falling for His Cousin’s Betrothed

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Sunlight, dappled and unassuming, entered Laila’s room when the parting mist made its exit. She yawned and sat upright. What would she do with the day now that Lyall was sure to be on a mission to control her? Would she simply make a break for it and dash for the hills, perhaps as far east, where the Highland Games had taken place? At least out there, away from the confines of the castle, she might stand a chance at living out her life in peace and with freedom because God only knew that living under the stifled controls of Lyall would result in a despondent existence.

“I believe that the Duke of Buccleuch has expressed interest in courting me after the mourning period ends,” said Lyall as her maid poured her a glass of cream into a ceramic mug. Laila had just entered the kitchen after deciding that she would take a walk along the river after breakfast. Hearing Lyall’s statement made her stomach turn,

“I must ask for you to please keep your personal wishes to yourself. I consider it a true betrayal of my father, these mutterings of new romance.”

“Well, I believe that being honest is the only way to carry on with the future. Besides, what will hiding the truth do for you?” she asked her maid pouring hot water from a kettle into the mug.

Laila’s mouth dropped open. She was astounded with how brazen Lyall was, how outright unapologetic and forward she had become. While married to her father, Lyall had been less outspoken, less brash. Now, it was as if the sky had opened up and declared her the Queen of Scots. Laila didn’t want to associate with her, let alone listen to her plans for the future.

“I must be going now. I’ve plans already, and this conversation doesn’t apply to me at all.” She stared at Lyall, and in doing so, her bottom lip quivered. She knew that for as much as she wanted to be a strong, demanding woman, she was still but a child, innocent in many ways and still unaccustomed to the more perilous and haphazard ways of the world.

“I do believe that it applies to you in more ways than one,” objected Lyall. “In fact, I wish to speak with you about it at greater length when you next return.” Laila shook her head and spun on her heels, convinced this would be the last time she dealt with Lyall. Without another word and before Lyall could add more dialogue, she strode away from the table, out of the kitchen, and into the foyer where the sun’s rays shone through the tiny stained-glass window above the main door.

“Laila!” Lyall ran out after her. “I demand you speak with me about this when you return!”

Laila could feel the heat rising in her face and in her ears as she walked faster through the hedgerows and toward the pointed gables. There was no stopping her now. She would see to it that she was freed from his woman and all of her unconscionable wiles. Her father would be aghast to learn of this, she thought, opening the latch to the gate. He, having been a man of courage and loyalty, would surely find all of this back and forth a sorry waste of time.

Without her father here to protect her, she was truly at the mercy of anyone who dared step in her path in an effort to thwart her good fortune. “Alone!” she cried as she stormed away. “Now, I am truly alone.”

As Laila took off for the wooded acreage, it happened that one of the competitors from the Highland Games, Edward Brown, showed up at the castle gates.

“Well, greetings, my dear one,” Lyall greeted him cheerily. “I hope that we shall have time to speak on this lovely autumn evening.”

“Yes. And a lovely evening it is,” he replied, a smile on his face. “I’d like to know more about Lady Laila Nelson and if she would like to ensue with courtship.”

“She’s stepped out but I’m sure you will find that she does what you ask of her, obedient as she is. However, I must inform you with great sadness that Lady Laila Nelson is due to marry another man” The two chuckled temporarily, then walked into the courtyard. Laila could hear their voices as she carried on away from the castle grounds. What was this conversation about? She wondered. Is she about to marry someone? Surely, she would not court this man who had just showed up, brusquely and without notice. He, of course, had other plans.