Chapter 26
Killian tried not to think of the possibility of Lily leaving once all of this was over. When she had mentioned it the previous night, it had left him with a sense of loss.
She’s not yours, to begin with.
Fletcher would arrive with Richard Easton soon, and once Killian spoke with the Englishman, he would finally satisfy his doubts.
What will happen next? Would Lily side with me and my people if Laird McLennan really killed my brother?
Killian didn’t know what to assume, but he knew he would not blame her if she chose to fight for her family.
I can’t blame her.
Lily was fiercely loyal. He liked that about her, and faulting her for those same principles he admired would be unfair.
He was still lost in his thoughts and completely uninterested in the village reports before him when a soft knock sounded at his door.
“Brother,” Niamh called as she poked her head through the door. Her radiant smile made him sigh and look up from his report. “Are ye interested in all of those reports?” she asked as she came into his study.
Killian realized she was wearing breeches and was holding a sword to her left side.
“What are ye doin’?” he questioned with an amused smile, rising from his seat just before his door opened wider and Lily came in.
She was dressed the same way, but she still stole his breath away. His eyes drifted over the full length of her body, then landed on her bosom.
“Lily is trainin’ me on the fields, and I thought ye could come join us. Ye have many more skills to learn.”
Killian felt heat rush through him as he tore his gaze away from Lily’s figure and met her eyes. Her cheeks were tinted red.
Like she knows what I was staring at.
He could not help himself, though. After seeing her in an earasaid yesterday, all he had thought of was her feminine form.
Her petite body had fit right into those silk fabrics, and even though Killian knew she preferred her breeches and riding habit, he wished he could see her dress in an earasaid again.
Just so I can admire her better.
“Will you join us?” Lily asked, her round eyes blinking rapidly as the color in her cheeks deepened.
“Aye, please,” Niamh added.
Killian shoved his fingers through his hair, knowing he couldn’t say no to both women. “All right,” he agreed before walking towards them. “Let us all go to the fields.”
Niamh led the way, and Killian hastened his pace to catch up to Lily so he could whisper in her ear while they hurried down the stairway.
“Ye teachin’ my sister sword fightin’ at her request? I dinnae want her to get hurt, Lily… She is my family.”
Lily’s smile drove him mad when she glanced over her shoulder at him and shrugged. “She should learn to defend herself. That way, she can protect herself and have you worry less about her.”
“I can protect her,” he insisted when they exited the keep.
Niamh bounced on her feet happily as she continued walking ahead of them, oblivious to the conversation they were having.
When Lily didn’t respond, Killian took her arm and spun her around to face him. She gasped as her steps halted. “Do ye hear me? I willnae let her fight in battle, so dinnae put any ideas in her head.”
“You are too stubborn,” Lily huffed as she met his gaze.
“Your sister wants to learn to fight so she can help you. She loves you, Killian, and she never wants to be the reason why you feel the pain of losing someone else you love… She wants to be strong enough to help you, so why don’t you let her? ”
Lily’s words echoed right through him just before he shook his head. “Because I am to protect her.”
The tension edged on with each hushed whisper, and Killian could feel his muscles tighten in response to it.
“Just listen to me for once!”
He fought his hunger with his fierce words. Truth was, he tempted himself far too often these days.
If I taste her again, I’ll make her mine.
The scorching thought was enough to have him reeling with desire.
“I hear you,” Lily whispered back, fire burning in her eyes.
“Let me go,” she said next. Her breath fell on his face, making him realize he inched closer to her.
Her next words were a tantalizing whisper against his face.
“You cannot protect everyone, Killian, and you cannot win every battle alone.”
Her scent wrapped around him once again, and he leaned closer, wanting more of it.
“People will see,” Lily murmured. Her throat bobbed twice as she swallowed hard, and her full lashes fluttered closed to cover the desire in her eyes.
Killian’s grip on her arm was light, but when he dropped his gaze there, he slowly released her. His heart pounded hard enough to make him gasp for air.
Lily staggered away from him, stiffened her chin, and then spun around and hurried after Niamh while calling for her.
“Ye need a moment?” Fletcher asked behind Killian, making him gasp from shock as he turned to the man.
“Fletcher,” Killian said, clearing his throat to get rid of the hoarseness there. “Ye’re supposed to be bringing Richard Easton to me.”
“Aye, m’laird,” Fletcher answered with a soft bow of his head. “I have a dozen of my trusted men on the mission at the moment. They shall return here before the wee hours.”
Killian nodded. “All right.” He turned to walk away but paused and looked at Fletcher again. “Do ye think I am stubborn?”
“M’laird?” Fletcher’s brows furrowed together, and his lips formed a thin line. “What do ye mean?”
“It’s just… I am nae stubborn, am I? I do let others help me… I let you help me, do I nae?”
Killian combed his fingers through his hair, then looked at Lily and his sister as they edged on farther towards the fields.
Why do I let her words bother me?
Fletcher cleared his throat.
“Never mind, Fletcher,” Killian said as he looked back at his man-at-arms. “It’s naethin’. I do what I must to protect my people, and if that means I am stubborn, then so be it.”
“Ye’re a laird,” Fletcher answered as Killian met his gaze. “The people need someone fierce and strong-willed to guide them. If ye’re stubborn, then it is a good trait. Yer brother was the most stubborn man I knew, but he was a good laird.”
Killian smiled as a memory of his brother flashed in his mind. He remembered training in these fields with Peter when they had been younger. Each time, Killian would win in a sword fight, and their father would give him the chance to skin his own deer as a prize.
The first time Peter had won against Killian in a fight, Killian had been the proudest of him.
His brother had gotten to hunt and skin his first deer for everyone in the keep.
Seeing the pride in his brother’s expression as he had brought his kill back home on his shoulders to show to everyone in the keep had made him realize Peter had one thing he could never have—the desire to lead.
“Thank ye, Fletcher,” Killian said with a sigh as he brought his mind back to reality.
Fletcher only nodded, then walked away, and Killian continued towards the fields to join Lily and his sister. They were already training when he arrived there.
Killian drew out his sword, then joined right in, lunging at Lily first because he knew she was skilled enough to ward him off.
“Watch me,” Lily said to Niamh before thrusting her sword out to clash against his. “The first thing you need to know is this…”
She backed away from Killian and lowered her sword to her side while maintaining a charged posture. Her eyes never left his, and Killian began suspecting he would never stop feeling the spike in his pulse that sizzled through him each time she leveled him with those lovely blue eyes.
“Never let yer guard down,” Killian finished for her, then rushed towards her at the same time that she came at him.