Page 20 of Secrets of a Kilted Seduction

CHAPTER SEVEN

Tadhg was a humble man, but even so, he knew that when it came to fighting, he always attracted attention. Other men liked to watch him fight. He was, after all, a warrior of some renown, six-foot-two of solid muscle, his massive, tattooed body conditioned to wield heavy weaponry since childhood. On the battlefield he was a killing machine. Plus, he knew he looked intimidating, with scars on his face and hands and his wild, long dark hair hanging over his shoulders.

So, when he and Laird Knox Stewart, an imposing looking man himself, finally strolled out of the armory in fighting gear, it drew a crowd. When the two men walked onto the training ground and faced each other, the soldiers who had been training ceased what they were doing and came over to watch the two formidable fighters spar.

“I think we ought tae put on a bit of a show, seein’ as we seem tae have some spectators,” Stewart said laughingly.

“Ach, watchin’ us will be enough of a treat fer them, I reckon. We dinnae want tae spoil them,” Tadhg replied, looking forward to sparring with his new friend and feeling much lighter of heart than when Alana had sent him packing.

They ran through some basic warming up exercises before getting fully into sparring with each other, dancing around each other, striking at each other with their swords, blades locking, then shoving each other back with their round shields to parry the blows, metal screaming against metal. It was music to Tadhg’s ears.

Stewart was a worthy opponent and, almost as tall as Tadhg, he proved himself a tough and experienced warrior who tested Tadhg’s capabilities. The men surrounding them clapped and cheered as they watched the entertaining spectacle, clearly fascinated by the expert display the two warriors were putting on for them.

Eventually though, Tadhg triumphed, turning away Stewart’s blade with his own and sending it spinning through the air. It fell a few feet away.

“Ach, damn, ye have me!” Knox admitted good-naturedly as they clasped hands, sweat pouring from their brows and each panting from the exertion.

“’Twas a close thing though, tae be sure,” Tadhg told him sportingly. “I think I only won by the skin of me teeth. Ye definitely had me on the run there a few times.”

“Well, I expect a rematch, of course,” Knox said cheerfully, as they turned to head back the armory. But they found themselves caught up in the spectators, many of whom wished to offer congratulations or comment on the quality of the fighting.

“It seems they liked it,” Knox observed drily when they finally managed to disentangle themselves and walked slowly back to the armory to divest themselves of their gear. “Mind ye, I’ll pay fer this on the morrow. I havenae sparred like that fer a while. I’ll be achin’ all over.”

“Aye, me too,” Tadhg admitted. “D’ye think we’re getting’ too old fer this lark?”

“Well, speak fer yersel’ man,” Knox joked, and Tadhg laughed. “But I’ll tell ye what, I think we both deserve a nice pint or three of good ale after that. What d’ye say?”

“I couldnae agree more,” Tadgh said with a vigorous nod.

“Would yer wife like tae join us?”

That brought Tadhg up short. He considered it briefly, unable to help picturing Alana naked in the tub. But what use was it tormenting himself that way when she would not even let him near the door?

“Nay,” he said. “She was plannin’ tae bathe and have a nap when I left her. I’d better nae disturb her. She might get upset.”

“A wise decision, man. We cannae go upsettin’ the ladies, or where would we be, eh?” his new friend asked jovially, his blue eyes twinkling.

Tadhg sighed under his breath. “Aye, where would we be?”

Alana spent as long as she could in the tub, but eventually the water got too cold. She had dismissed the maid’s offer to help her bathe and dress. She preferred her own company. There was a lot to think about, a new reality to adjust to, and her emotions were running wild.

As she got out of the tub and began to dry herself off, she thought about Blaine’s attempt at the meeting to defend his father’s neglect of her. She frowned, her deep-seated resentment towards the kidnapped laird simmering inside her. I’ve gotten this far without him. Dae I even care if he comes back at all?

Deciding to go out and take a walk in the castle gardens to clear her head, she slowly got dressed in a simple blue wool gown with front lacing, brushed out her hair, and slipped on a pair of shoes. While she was getting ready, her thoughts drifted to the situation with Tadhg. Being forced to spend the nights in the same chamber as him was going to be almost unbearable, and she did not quite know how she would get through it.

Yes, she trusted him to keep her safe, but to have to pretend to be man and wife, it was like a bad joke after what had happened between them. He had almost destroyed her, putting her off romance forever. She was wedded to her work. But at certain moments, the way he looked at her, or the particular way he did or said something or moved, an ache would start up in the region were her heart should be. At those times, it was very hard not to remember how happy they had once been.

And the ache never quite went away when he was around her.

Dressed and seeking distraction from her seething thoughts and jumbled feelings, she went down the staircase to the vestibule and then outside the keep. She followed the meandering pathways to the rear of the castle, looking for the gardens and a slice of tranquility.

Dinner had been postponed until later that evening, while the meetings about what action to take over the matter of the kidnapped laird dragged on with seemingly no resolution. Dusk had already fallen, and the moon was out.

Soon, she found herself standing in a topiary avenue lined with neatly trimmed hedges fashioned into fanciful shapes that ingeniously echoed the towers looming above them. The grass beneath her feet was soft, and she slowly made her way along the avenue in the moonlight, idly brushing her fingers against the bushes now and then, as she tried to make sense of her thoughts.

Something she was finding it hard to deal with, was discovering she was someone’s illegitimate daughter at the age of twenty-five. Her mother had brought her up to believe her father had died young of an illness. She had never questioned her mother’s word. She had been born in Lennox Castle, grown up there. Now, she hardly knew who she was any longer.

Suddenly, she was startled by a noise coming from behind her. Stopping, she looked around to locate its source. Initially alarmed, when she noticed the hulking shadow lurking behind a nearby bush, she sighed and said, “Ye might as well come out all the way now. There’s nae need to act like a criminal.”