Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
It wasn't just the fall that had Ada's heart racing a mile a minute and her lungs filling up with hard, fast breaths. It was Blair and how close they’d just been.
He hadn't let go after they'd first fallen, and she'd savored the feel of his hard chest against her for a few seconds.
It had been bliss to hear his rapid heartbeat and the sound of his breath.
Until he spoke and ruined the moment, that is.
Now, he was looking at her with jaw-clenching fury, and she stood a little taller, annoyed that even when he was frustrating her, he aroused a desire within her that was never quenched.
“Kill ye?” She scoffed and put her hands on her hips. “If I meant tae kill ye, I would have done it a long time ago. Ye can believe that,” she said, stepping a bit closer.
It was the first time in a long time that she saw him show some emotion.
He was like a brick wall, in more ways than one.
Blair MacDougall was essentially a tall wall of muscle.
From his jawline to his calf, he was muscled all over.
She did not have to see underneath his clothes to know what she would find there.
His uniform stretched tightly over his body, and whenever he’d held her close during one of the many times he’d saved her, she could feel just how hard and unyielding his body was.
With his close-cut blond hair and brown eyes, Blair was handsome too, and even though he was often serious, there was a softness to his gaze at times. He was kind, even though he might not wish anyone to know it.
Blair rolled his eyes. “For God’s sake, Ada, I ken now why yer father continues tae keep ye locked up inside this bloody place even though Laird Grant is now dead at Cameron’s hand. Ye are irresponsible and reckless and for nae reason.”
Anger flooded her along with the other heat that filled her whenever he was near. “I was helpin’ that little girl and savin’ the poor creature!” She pointed at the door to the courtyard. “Dae ye think that is irresponsible or reckless?”
“When it is goin’ tae endanger yer life, then aye,” he said back to her in a low tone, his eyes sparkling with fire.
“Ye dinnae seem tae consider others. There is yer father who worries about ye constantly, and then there is me, set tae watch ye, and ye continue tae dae these dangerous things that could hurt us both. This is now the third time in our acquaintance that I have had tae catch ye, lass. How many more times must there be before ye realize that what ye are doin’ is dangerous? ”
They were standing close, and she wanted to be angry, to feel completely enraged.
She wanted her fury to take control of everything, but her body still reacted to him.
Why couldn't Blair see she was a prisoner there?
She wanted nothing more than to be free, and her reckless actions were her way of gaining some freedom while also trying to avoid the boredom that came with her confinement.
There was also the fact that she was a little clumsy, but that was unimportant.
“I dinnae see why I need tae have a guard any longer, now that Laird Grant is dead. There is nae danger now, and yet I am forced tae be constantly watched like a child with a nanny.” Blair bristled at that.
“And if ye had nae scared me, I would nae have fallen this time. Ye had tae go and yell at me, and then I fell. I nearly had the kitten in me hands!”
She noticed then a red line across his cheek, and she blushed, realizing that the kitten had done it. But she would never apologize for that. Never in a thousand years would she apologize to this ridiculous man.
The cat appeared in the courtyard again, and pushing away from Blair, Ada went to it, brushing by him as she did.
She tingled with the realization that his hand had touched her skirts.
As she cooed and knelt to pick up the kitten, she thought about how much she’d wanted Blair to touch her ever since they’d first known each other.
She thought she’d encouraged him with her light flirtations, but Blair was having none of it.
Every night the man guards me inside me bedroom, and nothin’! It is as if I repulse him, or he thinks of me only as a child.
“All ye can think about is that kitten at a time like this? Dae ye nae even wish tae apologize?” he asked from behind her.
Angrily, Ada spun around with the kitten in her hands. “What should I apologize for? Ye did nae have tae come and find me. Ye are nae required tae dae anythin’!”
“It is me job, Lady Ada, tae protect ye!”
She noticed how he used her title again, even though he had forgotten it before. The little girl returned to the courtyard, and smiling, Ada dropped the kitten into her arms.
“Keep him safe now, lass,” she chirped while Blair stood angrily at her back.
When the little girl darted off, Ada straightened and turned to give him a piece of her mind but her father’s angry voice boomed outside the courtyard.
“Ada! Come here, now! Me study.”
She could hear his angry footsteps as he walked away, and she followed him without looking at Blair, who was looking smug, no doubt.
What day is complete without another scolding from Father?
Inside the study, her father was pacing, but when she opened the door, he paused and stared at her with his sharp blue eyes.
“Why must I hear about yer reckless acts from the servants? Ye fell again from a tree, and Blair had tae catch ye once more? This is the third time ye’ve fallen, lass, and only because ye refuse tae listen tae reason!”
“I did nae realize that climbin’ things was against the rules in the castle,” she said stiffly, shutting the door behind her.
“Nay, I suppose nae, but clearly, ye are nae skilled at it, and Blair has been there every time tae make sure that ye dinnae hurt yerself.”
She swallowed, clutching her hands behind her back.
Dae nae think kindly of the man. He was only doin’ his job. It is nae as if cares whether or nae I really hurt meself.
A tiny voice inside her told her that wasn’t true, but it was far better to think of Blair in a bad light than to think of him in the way she really wanted to.
“Then, ye have nothin’ tae worry about, Father. Yer praised soldier has done his duty yet again. He has saved me, and now we can move on with our lives.”
“Nay, we cannae, Ada,” her father said, rubbing a hand through his red hair before he sat down and picking up a piece of paper. “Sit here,” he said, pointing to the chair across from the desk.
Ada’s belly filled with nerves as she noted his serious tone. Slowly, she took her seat and wondered why he’d always treated Ella with more kindness. Even when her sister had done something he disliked, he hardly ever screamed at her.
It is because he hates me for what I did tae Mother.
Ada's thoughts wandered to the past as her father spoke about responsibility and not acting like a child. She remembered overhearing a conversation between him and his sister, Isla. She would never forget it.
“Maura would never have gotten ill if she hadn’t had Ada, Isla. Ye ken that’s true.”
“How can ye say such a thing about yer own child?” Isla had said in return. “Is she nae precious?”
Ada remembered sinking back against the wall when her father stood.
“She is, of course she is, yet Maura was precious tae me—me only wife, the love of me heart. And now she’s gone. The lasses now have nay mother. We should nae have had another child. It was too much for her.”
Ada had put a hand over her mouth to keep her sobs quiet, and then she’d left, unable to listen to any of it anymore.
She’d only been eight at the time, and ever since then, she’d noticed her father’s behavior towards her.
He was always angry, no matter what she did.
She knew that he was punishing her forever, and now that her sister, his favorite, was gone, it would only get worse.
“Are ye even listenin’ tae me, lass?” her father boomed, his forehead crinkled as he paused to stare at her angrily.
“Aye, Father, I am listenin’,” she lied, standing a little taller.
She could never let him see the way the past had hurt her. For she was the one who’d killed her mother, his wife, and nothing could fix that. And in his mind, she would always be the baby who did that.
“I dinnae see how ye can expect tae live on yer own or run a household on yer own when ye act so irresponsibly! Climbin’ a tree when ye could have nearly broken yer neck! And ye hurt Blair besides.”
Och, precious Blair. Me father cares more for him than he does for me. Blair has never disappointed him.
“When are ye goin’ tae grow up, Ada?” he cried, pounding a fist into the desk.
Ada’s eyes fluttered to the papers he’d been holding, where his fist had hit. What were they for?
“I am grown up, Father. This is what grown women wish tae dae: be free. Men dinnae understand because they wish tae trap us forever and keep us compliant for their benefit.” She crossed her arms and turned her face to the side.
Shockingly, her father sighed instead of coming back with another angry outburst.
“It is enough now, Ada. I have done me best with ye both. I have tried tae keep ye safe and tae love ye as I could, but it is time now that I let ye go. I can dae this nae longer.”
She turned to face him, her heart in her throat. But she didn't see what she hoped to see on his face. His expression did not hold favorable promise.
“What dae ye mean?” she asked, a cold prickle of fear tingling on the back of her neck.
“Ye will marry.” He stood, not meeting her eyes.
“I made this decision weeks ago. Yer betrothed will be here in a few hours. It was goin’ tae be a surprise, but I think it best that ye ken about it in case ye’re plannin’ tae dae anything stupid.
” He shot her with his glare. “Marriage is the best thing for ye, Ada, for I can nae longer look after ye.”
Ada gasped, and as she rose, she felt every muscle in her body tense. She was ready to fight. And yet the shock had robbed her of the vehemence she wanted to instill into her tone.
“It was just the same with Ella,” she said, trying her best to hold the tears back. “Ye could nae let us be as we wished, and so ye forced her tae marry, actin’ as if we are just problems that ye need tae rid yerself of.”
Before she allowed him to respond, she turned to rush out the door, slamming it behind her. Tears were running down her cheeks before she made it back to her room, and she barely heard the usual footsteps racing after her.
I am getting married.