Page 52 of Highlander’s Forbidden Fruit

Wanting to avoid another confrontation with Isla himself, he followed Evanna to the main hall where she went to the high table, and he went to see to Ted’s cup. Pouring a generous measure, he sat down and nursed his cup, but Ted had sobered up in the time he was away and wouldn’t touch his ale. Aleck was at a loss as to what to do short of prying the man’s mouth open and pouring the drink down his throat.

“To the Laird!” announced Lockard, raising his cup. The congregation cheered and downed their ale. Ted was left with little choice but to do the same or incur the wrath of his father-in-law and the rest of the Laird’s men.

Aleck never thought he’d feel the desire to kiss another man, but if Lockard hadn’t been such an acrimonious bastard, he would have kissed him for his brilliant timing. Ted watched with wary eye as Aleck plied him with more drink.

“Yer nae subtle, ye ken,” Ted said. “Why do ye want me drunk? Cannae just ask me what ye want when I’m sober?”

“Because ye’ll nae give me an honest answer.”

They exchanged a charged moment.

“It’s about Isla, is it?” Ted asked, resigned.

“Aye.”

“And ye’ll nae change yer mind about me lass after I tell ye the truth?”

“Nae.” Aleck didn’t mention that he had already made up his mind not to marry Isla.

“I suppose ye have a right to ken the truth now that yer going to be family.” Ted wiped his lips. “Our Isla is a good girl. A bit intense, but she’s got her heart in the right place, ye ken?”

Aleck nodded, more to encourage Ted to continue, not because he agreed.

“Got into a spot of trouble. A troop of English soldiers were stationed near the town for a few months. Spring came, and the troops left for greener pastures, leaving my Isla in the family way. She wrote to that English bastard, but he never replied. We moved here, hoping to hide her and pass the bairn off as Anne’s. But God was merciful, and she lost the bairn a few weeks after we moved here.”

Ted drank deep of his cup. “Yer a good man to my Isla. Ye’ll face no refusal from me if ye ask for the honor of her hand.”

Aleck couldn’t believe the audacity. Ted had confessed to Isla’s ruined reputation and lack of morals, and in the same breath assumed Aleck would marry her, nonetheless. What had he taken Aleck for? Aleck might be Laird MacLeod’s sworn man, but he was also a Bryce of noble lineage. He couldn’t foist someone like Isla on to his family. It would be dishonorable and a betrayal of the trust his father had shown in him.

“I havenae proposed.”

“Aye, but ye will.” Ted didn’t smile. His face was deadly serious. “If ye ken what’s good for ye.”

“Is that a threat?”

“I suppose it is. My lass has been misused by one man, I willnae let that happen again.”

“I have nae touched yer daughter.”

“Be that as it may, she has set her eyes on ye and that’s enough for me. I’ll bring in Lockard and the Laird himself if I have to.”

“Ye cannae force me into marriage with yer daughter,” Aleck said and got up from the table. He didn’t trust himself not to hit Ted squarely in the mouth. “Especially nae after what ye’ve just told me.”

“Ye’ll keep that information to yerself, or I’ll slice yer throat.”

“I have nae need to spread gossip. She can keep what’s left of her reputation, but she cannae have me. But if ye threaten me again, Ted Graham, ye’ll have me fists to answer to.”

Ted looked unfazed. He lifted his cup of ale to Aleck instead, as if toasting him, and drank. Aleck stalked out of the hall, past John and his dancing partner. Evanna was sitting at the high table talking to Laird MacLeod. Aleck glanced back at John who looked happy enough dancing and smiling away. For someone who was courting Evanna, John was spending more time away from her than with her.

Aleck went out into the cool of the night, relishing the fresh air after the almost suffocating air inside. He had been right about Isla—his gut had been right on the mark. But it still begged the question - why had Isla set her eyes on him? There were plenty of other fools more than willing to bed her and wed her. Then why him?

Aleck was afraid to find the answer.

Chapter Twenty

It was a miraculous day. The sun was bright, leeching away the chill of the night. The snow that had gathered over the past week had melted to slush by the time the hunting party had finished breakfast and moved out into the woods.

Evanna stood among the men in her warmest dress, testing the weight of the musketoon. Shorter than the musket, it was perfect for her size. She aimed at a nearby tree and liked the feel of it against her shoulder.