Chapter 19
“Wait!”
Paisley’s voice rang out across the courtyard just as Elijah turned away. He froze, his jaw tightening, then slowly turned back to face her.
“What now?” His voice was cold enough to freeze water.
But Paisley’s expression had changed. The anger, the defiance—it was gone, replaced by something that looked almost… calculating. A glint had appeared in her gray eyes, and suddenly her face crumpled.
“Oh!” she wailed, pressing a hand to her chest. “Oh, how could ye? How could ye do this to us? To our poor, innocent daughter!”
Elijah’s eyebrows rose. “What are ye talkin’ about?”
“Our daughter!” Paisley continued, her voice rising to a dramatic wail. “Our sweet, pure daughter! And ye’ve… ye’ve ruined her! Destroyed her reputation! How is she supposed to ever marry now? What man will want her after… after this?”
Piper stared at her mother in disbelief. “What are ye talkin’ about?”
“Daenae play innocent with us!” Paisley pointed an accusing finger at Elijah. “Everyone kens what it means when a lass lives under a man’s roof! When she’s in his household, alone with him, day and night! Ye’ve compromised her virtue!”
Findlay, who’d been watching his wife in confusion, suddenly caught on. His eyes widened with understanding, and then he, too, began putting on a show.
“Aye!” he said, straightening up and speaking loudly despite his bruised throat. “Aye, that’s right! Our daughter’s honor has been sullied! Livin’ here, in yer castle, with nay proper chaperone.”
“His maither lives here,” Piper interrupted, her voice shaking with fury. “And there are dozens of servants! I have me own chambers with a lock on the door!”
“But who’s to say ye use that lock?” Paisley’s eyes gleamed with malicious triumph. “Who’s to say the Laird hasnae been visitin’ yer chambers at night? Everyone saw how ye looked at each other just now! Everyone heard him say ye belong to him!”
A murmur rippled through the watching servants. Piper felt her face burning with humiliation.
“That’s nae… I would never do that,” she started.
“It doesnae matter what ye would or wouldnae do,” Findlay said, his voice gaining confidence. “What matters is what people will think. What they’ll say. Our daughter’s reputation is ruined, and ye—” he pointed at Elijah, “—are responsible.”
“Is that so?” Elijah’s voice was dangerously quiet.
“Aye!” Paisley nodded vigorously, tears that Piper knew were fake streaming down her face. “And now she’s damaged goods! Nay man will want to marry her! We’ll never be able to find her a proper husband! We’ll be the laughingstock of the village!”
“Good thing I’m nae interested in findin’ a husband, then,” Piper snapped.
“But ye should have had the choice!” Paisley wailed. “Instead, this man has stolen that from ye! He’s compromised ye, and now… now he must pay for what he’s done!”
“Pay?” Elijah repeated, his tone making it clear he knew exactly where this was going.
“Aye, pay!” Findlay stepped forward, emboldened. “Ye’ve violated our daughter’s purity. Ye’ve destroyed her prospects. The least ye can do is provide compensation for the damage ye’ve done to our family’s honor!”
“Yer family’s honor,” Elijah said slowly. “Which apparently includes sellin’ yer daughter to be hunted like an animal.”
“That was different.”
“Nay, it wasnae.” Elijah’s voice cut through Findlay’s protest. “And I’m nae interested in whatever game ye’re playin’ here.”
“It’s nae a game!” Paisley insisted. “Our daughter’s reputation—”
“Is perfectly intact,” Elijah interrupted. “She works as a governess in a respectable household. She’s under the protection of me maither, who’s the most respected woman in this territory. And if anyone dares to suggest otherwise—” his voice dropped to something deadly, “—they’ll answer to me.”
“But ye said she belongs to ye!” Findlay argued. “In front of everyone! What else are people supposed to think?”
“They’re supposed to think that she’s part of me household. Under me protection. Which she is.” Elijah crossed his arms. “If anyone chooses to interpret that differently, that’s their failin’, nae mine.”
“But the damage is done!” Paisley wrung her hands dramatically. “People will talk! They’ll say terrible things about our poor girl! And it’s all yer fault! The least ye can do is pay us for it.”
“For what, exactly?” Elijah’s voice was hard as stone. “For the daughter ye sold? For the years of abuse ye inflicted? Or are ye simply tryin’ to extort money from me by threatenin’ Piper’s reputation?”
Paisley’s false tears dried up instantly. “We’re nae threatenin’ anythin’. We’re just pointin’ out the facts.”
“The facts,” Elijah said. “Are that ye’re both desperate, graspin’ parasites who see an opportunity for profit and are willin’ to destroy yer own daughter’s name to get it. And I’m nae interested in playin’ along.”
He turned to the guards who were still standing nearby. “Take them away. Now.”
“Aye, me laird,” the guards said in unison, moving forward.
“Ye cannae do this!” Findlay protested as the guards grabbed his arms. “We’re her parents! We ken what’s good for her!”
“Ye ken nothin’,” Elijah said flatly. “And if ye attempt this farce again, if ye try to spread rumors about Piper’s honor or me intentions, I’ll have ye both charged with slander. And in me territory, slander against a member of me household is punishable by imprisonment. Do I make meself clear?”
Paisley’s face twisted with rage, all pretense of tears gone. “Ye think ye’re so powerful! Ye think ye can just do whatever ye want because ye are the Laird.”
“I daenae think,” Elijah interrupted. “I ken. Now get them out of me sight.”
The guards began dragging Findlay and Paisley toward the gates. Both were shouting now—threats, curses, promises that this wasn’t over.
“We’ll tell everyone!” Paisley shrieked. “Everyone will ken what kind of man ye are! What ye’ve done to our daughter!”
“Tell whoever ye like,” Elijah called back. “But remember, I’m a laird with a reputation for honesty and honor. Ye’re gamblers with a reputation for cheatin’ and lyin’. Who do ye think people will believe?”
That finally silenced them, though Paisley shot Piper a look of such pure hatred that Piper actually took a step back.
Then they were through the gates and gone, their voices fading into the distance.
The courtyard remained silent for a long moment. Then, gradually, the servants began returning to their tasks, though Piper could see them whispering to each other. Glancing at her. Judging.
“I’m sorry,” Piper said quietly, once most of the crowd had dispersed. “I’m so sorry. They… they shouldnae have said those things. Shouldnae have tried to do somethin’ so dreadful.”
“Piper.” Elijah’s voice was gentle. “This isnae yer fault.”
“But they’re me parents. They came here because of me. And now they’ve… they’ve tried to damage yer reputation, and they’ve made it seem like I… like we have an improper relationship.” She couldn’t look at him properly.
“They tried,” Elijah agreed. “But they dinnae succeed. And anyone with half a brain will see through their lies.”
“But what if people believe them?” Piper wrapped her arms around herself. “What if people start talkin’? Start sayin’ that I’m… a whore.”
“Then I’ll deal with it.” Elijah stepped closer, his voice low. “Ye’re nae responsible for their actions, Piper. Ye dinnae ask them to come here. Ye dinnae encourage their behavior. They made their own choices, and those choices reflect on them, nae ye.”
“But I still feel…” Piper stopped, her throat tight. “I feel like I’ve brought trouble to yer household. Like maybe ye would have been better off never meetin’ me.”
“Daenae.” Elijah’s voice was sharp. “Daenae ever say that again.”
Piper looked up at him, startled by the intensity in his voice.
“Ye’ve brought nothin’ but good to this household,” Elijah continued.
“Me children are happier than they’ve been in years.
Me maither smiles more. And I…” he stopped, seeming to catch himself.
“The point is, yer parents’ actions daenae change any of that.
Ye’re valuable, Piper. To this family. To me. ”
Piper’s breath caught. “Elijah.”
“If ye still feel bad,” he interrupted, as if he needed to change the subject quickly. “Then help me with somethin’.”
“With what?”
“Ye told me I need to reconnect with me children. That I need to spend more time with them, actually be present in their lives.” Elijah ran a hand through his hair, looking almost… nervous. “But I daenae ken where to start. I’ve been distant for so long, I’m nae sure they’d even want me around.”
“They do,” Piper said immediately. “They want it desperately. They’re just afraid to hope for it.”
“Then help me.” Elijah’s green eyes met hers. “Help me figure out how to be the faither they need. Please.”
Something warm bloomed in Piper’s chest at the request. At the vulnerability in his voice.
This was the man she’d glimpsed in the portrait gallery, not the cold Laird, but the man beneath. The one who cared, who hurt, who wanted to do better but didn’t know how.
“Aye,” she said softly. “I’ll help ye.”
“Thank ye.” Elijah’s expression softened. “What do I need to do?”
“Give me a few hours,” Piper said, her mind already racing with possibilities. “Let me plan somethin’. An activity that ye can all do together. Somethin’ that’ll let ye connect with them in a way that feels natural.”
“A few hours,” Elijah repeated. “All right. I can do that.”
He started to turn away, then paused. “Piper?”
“Aye?”
“Yer parents—if they come back, if they try anythin’ else—ye tell me immediately. Promise me.”
“I promise.”
“Good.” He held her gaze for a moment longer, and Piper felt her heart skip. “Thank ye. For, for everythin’.”
Then he was walking away, heading back toward the keep, leaving Piper standing alone in the courtyard with her thoughts whirling. She pressed a hand to her chest, feeling her heart racing beneath her palm.
He values me. He wants me help.
The realization hit her like a physical blow.
She loved him.
Somewhere between the forest and the castle, between their arguments and their stolen moments, between watching him struggle to be better and feeling his hands on her skin, she’d fallen in love with Elijah.
The knowledge should have terrified her. Should have sent her running in the opposite direction. Because loving Elijah was foolish. Dangerous. He was a laird, and she was just a governess. He’d been married to a beautiful woman, and Piper was—
He thinks ye’re beautiful. He showed ye that in the portrait gallery. He made ye feel things ye never thought ye’d feel.
But that didn’t mean he loved her back. Desire wasn’t the same as love. And even if he did care for her—even if there was something more than just attraction between them—it didn’t change the fundamental imbalance in their positions.
She worked for him. He paid her wages. He held all the power.
But he’s also tryin’ to be better. He’s lettin’ ye in. Askin’ for yer help. Trustin’ ye with his children.
Piper took a shaky breath, trying to sort through the tangle of emotions in her chest.
She loved him. That was the truth, whether it was wise or foolish, practical or impossible.
And maybe, probably, nothing would ever come of it.
Maybe he’d never feel the same way. Maybe she’d spend the rest of her time at Castle McMahon watching him from afar, loving him silently, knowing she could never have him.
But she also had this moment. This feeling. This knowledge that, for the first time in her life, she’d opened her heart to someone. That she’d let herself feel something real and deep and transformative.
And that was worth something, wasn’t it? Even if it hurt. Even if it ended badly.
At least she’d finally felt it. Love. Real, genuine, terrifying love.
“Miss Armstrong?”
Piper turned to find Masie and Connor standing at the entrance to the keep, both looking worried.
“Are ye all right?” Connor asked. “We heard noises.”
“Who were those people?” Masie demanded. “Why were they shoutin’ at ye?”
Piper forced a smile, pushing down her confusing tangle of emotions. “I’m fine. They were just some people from me past. But they’re gone now.”
“Are they comin’ back?” Connor’s voice was small.
“Nay,” Piper said firmly, moving toward them. “They’re nae comin’ back. Yer faither made sure of that.”
“Da protected ye,” Masie said slowly, something shifting in her expression. “He… he really stood up for ye.”
“Aye. He did.”
“That was…” Masie stopped, seeming to struggle with something. “That was very brave of him.”
Piper smiled, genuinely this time. “Aye. It was.”
“So, what happens now?” Connor asked.
“Now,” Piper said, an idea beginning to form. “We plan somethin’ special. Somethin’ for ye, me, and yer faither to do together. Would ye like that?”
“With Da?” Connor’s eyes widened. “Really?”
“Really. He wants to spend more time with ye both. He just needs a little help figurin’ out how.”
Masie’s expression was skeptical. “And ye think whatever ye’re plannin’ will actually work?”
“I think that it’s worth tryin’,” Piper said gently. “Do ye nae?”
Masie was quiet for a long moment. Then, so softly Piper almost didn’t hear, she said, “Aye. It’s worth tryin’.”
“Then come on,” Piper said, linking her arms through both of theirs. “Let’s go plan somethin’ that’ll help yer faither remember why he loves ye so much.”
As they walked back into the castle together, Piper felt that warm feeling in her chest grow stronger.
She loved Elijah. And maybe he’d never love her back. But she could still help him. Could still make a difference in his life and his children’s lives.
And for now, that would have to be enough.
Even if her heart wanted so much more.