Page 12 of Married to her Kilted Enemy

“Sorry,” Lillie apologized, clearly stifling her amusement. “Go on, please.”

“What I want tae ken is, d’ye think I went too far by doin’ that? I didnae wait tae find out his reaction, and now I’m worried,” she admitted.

Surprising her once again, a still-smiling Lillie shook her head. “If me limited experience of men is anything tae go by, ’tis more likely tae have intrigued him even more.”

“D’ye really think so?” Maddison asked, appalled. “That’s the last thing I want. Och, I kent I should have kept me temper, but I just despise him so much, and he had me pinned against the wall in an alcove and wouldnae let me go,” she explained. “I didnae ken what else tae dae,” she added abjectly, abandoning her toast with a heavy sigh.

“I’m sorry tae tell ye ye’ve probably just made things worse fer yersel’. Some men, and I reckon Odhrán might be one of them, like a feisty lass. They see it as a challenge,” Lillie told her. She reached over and put a comforting hand over Maddison’s, smiling at her kindly. “I told ye last night, Maddy, remember, he saved yer life. Why nae give the man a chance, eh?”

“I’ll never give him a chance. I’ll never forgive him for what he did,” she stubbornly declared, sitting back in her chair and folding her arms.

“Look, Maddy, be sensible. He did take care of ye all the time ye were locked up. And what man would kill his faither tae save a lassie? He cannae be the monster ye make him out tae be, can he? I mean, maybe he killed his faither because he could nae stomach seein’ a lass murdered in cold blood. Or it could be that he truly cares about ye.”

Maddison would not even entertain the thought. “I dinnae ken why he did it, but I dinnae think it had anythin’ tae dae with me. He must have had some argument with his faither and decided tae kill him fer his own ends. Only a monster would kill his own faither,” she insisted.

Lillie sighed. “If ye say so, dear. But since ye asked fer me opinion, I must tell ye that I think ye’re goin’ about this all the wrong way. Odhrán’s right, and ye’ve nae chance of happiness if ye carry on this way. Diarmaid thinks the same. We both want ye tae settle down and try and make the best of things as there’s nae getting out of the situation.”

Maddison said nothing to that, for it was no more than she already knew. “I cannae help the way I feel,” she defended herself. “He won me trust under false pretenses, lyin’ tae me all that time. He betrayed me.” She thought back to the confrontation in Murphy Lennox’s study, when she had realized for the first time who Odhrán was. What she could not explain to herself, let alone to anyone else, was the crushing disappointment she had felt at the time. The sense of betrayal still cut painfully deep. “He was the one person in the castle I trusted.”

“Aye, well, he must have had his reasons for actin’ as he did, but ye’ll nae find out what they were actin’ like this.”

“I dinnae care,” Maddison declared, determined not to give in. “I told ye before, I’m gonnae dae everythin’ I can tae make him rue the day he made me marry him. I’ll make his life a misery.”

Odhrán was sitting in the guardhouse with Liam and Tadgh. The brothers had finished their morning rounds and were taking a break with a pint of ale in their usual bolt hole. The door was firmly closed, and the guards on the gate were well out of earshot, so they were discussing Odhrán’s difficulties with his bride-to-be.

“So, she got ye right in the bollocks, did she?” Tadgh was asking as he and Liam guffawed. “That’s a feisty lass, all right,” he added with admiration.

“Go on, laugh, enjoy yerselves at me expense,” Odhrán said, resigned to their mockery.

“Och, we will, dinnae doubt it,” Liam choked out amid his laughter.

Odhrán sighed and sipped his ale before saying, “The point is, what dae I dae now? I could nae even get her tae listen tae sense.”

“Well, ’tis a tricky one, but what ye cannae dae is give up,” Liam said, making a visible effort to pull himself together. “I reckon ye should ask her tae spend some time with ye doin’ somethin’ nice, somethin’ she’ll like.”

“Like what?”

“Get her a nice horse and take her fer a ride over yer lands maybe,” Liam suggested. “Or take her intae town and buy her a nice present. The lassies are mad fer a new hat or a bit of jewelry, are they nae?”

“D’ye think that’ll work?” Odhrán asked, his hopes rising.

“’Tis worth a try,” Liam said with a nod. He looked at his brother, who had been quiet all this time. “What d’ye say, Tadgh? Any suggestion tae help Odhrán here out?”

But Tadgh shook his head. “What ye just said, Braither. Ye’ve naethin’ tae lose, Odhrán, so give it a whirl,” he said, suddenly sounding so serious, Odhrán looked at him to see if anything was wrong. But Tadgh just smiled back, albeit rather tightly. Odhrán was too caught up in his own problems to press his friend and left it.

When he left the brothers, he found out that Maddison was breakfasting in her chambers. He sent up a servant to ask if she would like to join him on a trip into the nearest town for some shopping. The answer came back immediately. No, she would not.

At a temporary loss, he shuffled some papers around his desk for a few hours, unable to focus on anything except her. Later that afternoon, he glimpsed her and Lady Lillie walking on the castle green. Seeing his chance, he grabbed his coat and left, hoping to intercept them and get Maddison alone for a few moments. But as he came out of the keep doors and began striding towards them, she spotted him, and he saw her grab Lady Lillie’s arm and steer her through a nearby side door before disappearing inside. When he followed, they had vanished.

Frustrated and miserable, he went back to his study to brood. The minister arrived shortly thereafter, and they discussed the order of the wedding ceremony. Somehow, he managed to play the excited groom, loath to admit he might have bitten off more than he could chew. After the minister left, full of hearty congratulations for the happy couple, he poured himself a dram and sat by the fire, brooding.

A few people came in and out, checking the final arrangements for the wedding the following day. Knowing he could not rely on Maddison to behave properly, he began to dread it.

Have I made a terrible mistake? Can I ever hope tae make this work between us?

As dinner time drew close, when he was hoping she would deign to appear, he resolved to speak to her then and invite her out for a walk with him. All he needed was a chance to convince her she need not hate him and that they could make a go of things. If only she would cooperate.

He was sitting at the laird’s table, distractedly listening to Liam and Tadgh talking, when she floated in with Diarmaid and Lady Lillie. His breath stopped, for she looked more luminously beautiful than ever. He tried to compose himself, ready to greet her. He was determined to get his way. but once again she snubbed him, which hurt him deeply. And though she sat next to him all evening, pushed some food around her plate, and chattered with the others, she still refused to speak to him or even look at him.