Chapter 4
Arock in one’s shoe was not nearly as irritating as spending even just five minutes with Keegan. Willow would have been thrilled to see the man be robbed by highwaymen when next they set off or perhaps booted from their shared room and left locked out for the entire evening.
The latter she might attempt to arrange.
Cocky bastard. He can jump in a creek and freeze for all I’m concerned.
Willow’s heart beat furiously against her ribcage. She was so vexed by every last word that spilled from Keegan’s mouth, and she tracked him as he stood next to her, waiting for the innkeeper to return. He’d yet to let go of her arm, and the burn of his touch etched its way through her veins.
It surely must be the rage funneling through her that made her heart quicken as it did when he touched her. It certainly did not have anything to do with the shudder that worked its way through her when he’d whispered in her ear or the clear blue of his eyes like the ocean on a sunny day.
“Right this way, if ye please.”
The man returned to them with a grin, holding a large key in his hand. As he stepped free of the bar top where he’d stood dusting glasses, the older gentleman led the two of them to the rear of the building and up a set of stairs.
But the innkeeper continued on, passing by them and heading towards another room at the other side of the inn. When Willow looked inside, she could see a public dining room where several of the other guests were eating.
“We will require a private room for after our meal.”
Keegan’s voice was level, but the air of ice that never left it was unmistakable to Willow now.
“Of course, sir. This will carry a larger fee.”
Nodding, Keegan’s hand went to a pouch on his waist. “I am prepared to pay it. Thank ye.”
The innkeeper’s brows rose but quickly fell again as he led the two of them inside the dining room to eat. He was polite enough, and the man showed them upstairs to a private chamber where their meal would be brought to them.
A small table near the back of the room was set beside a window, and Willow proceeded after her captor to sit down so they might dine alone in the chamber.
Silence stretched between them until one of the ladies Willow had seen in the public dining area carrying out mugs and supper plates came to tend to them.
“Good evening to ye. I shall be happy to get ye something to eat. We’ve a fresh bit of venison that was caught today, as well as bannocks and bread.”
Willow’s mouth watered at the thought of food finally in her belly.
“Get whatever ye wish, lass.”
She turned her attention to Keegan, her brows pinched together as she silently asked for confirmation. The bastard just nodded.
“Verra well. I shall have the venison, please. As well as whatever vegetable and bread ye have. Och, and a glass of yer finest wine, please.”
Willow hardly paid attention to Keegan as he requested food, and as the woman left them, she was in no rush to pull her eyes up from the table. But then the man had the gall to laugh.
“Is there something quite funny?” Her tone bit out, and when Keegan eyed her, Willow nearly regretted it.
Good behavior, aye. Still, it may yet be worth a “punishment” to see that smirk whipped from his face.
“Nae much, lass.” Keegan’s tone was especially level compared to hers, and he wore an almost amused expression on his face. “I do hope she returns with that drink. I have an inkling that I shall need it.”
Fortunately for her captor, the woman did return with a bottle of wine and an ale for Keegan. Willow had also noticed the bottle of whiskey placed beside his mug, and she cocked a brow. It had not been ordered, but she wasn’t one to make a fuss about it.
These were his lands. Perhaps the man-at-arms had quite the reputation that preceded him. As the food was delivered, Willow and Keegan ate in silence, exchanging glances as they cleared their plates and sipped heartily at the drinks provided.
When she was more in her cups than she’d care to admit, Willow finally broke the silence.
“Does the laird intend on exchangin' me for Melissa, then?”
Keegan’s brows rose, an air of delighted surprise painted over his stern face. He nodded, finishing his gulp of ale, and set the mug down with a heavy thud.
“Aye. A sister for a sister.”
She swallowed, her throat feeling dry and sticky at once. Willow’s fingers trailed over the edge of her glass, and she shook her head. Before she could think better of it, the words were out of her mouth.
“And if he doesnae honor the exchange? What then will yer laird do?”
“Pardon?” Keegan replied, and when Willow looked back up at him, his expression was soured with disgust—as if he’d bitten down on a crab apple when expecting something sweet.
“If Magnus isnae in the mind to accept the exchange, does yer laird have another plan?”
“How would a brother nae take care to ensure his sister’s safety?”
Willow scoffed on instinct, regretting the move when Keegan’s brows rose, and he regarded her ever closer. Seeking to smooth out the tension within her, she shook her head, putting forth that cheery smile she’d used for so long.
“Och, just testin' ye.” She lifted her glass to her lips, trying to escape within the taste of her wine. “Do ye think yer laird will be so forgivin' as yerself with me safety? If this doesnae play out as he hopes, do I have iron bars and torture to look forward to?”
Keegan’s jaw muscles flex, his expression going dour. There was a beat of silence where those intense eyes of his raked over her face, still making her blood hum as they analyzed her.
“I can assure ye, lass. Ye will remain safe in Castle Brahanne.”
The assurance was put forth with such voracity that Willow was forced to lean back in her chair. She narrowed her stare on Keegan, cocking her head as the thoughts continued to swirl like a storm in her mind.
“And ye can be so certain? Ye must have quite the relationship with the laird for ye to make such claims in his name. Either that or ye promise things that arenae in yer power to deliver.”
The corner of Keegan’s mouth lifted up, but he did everything he could to deny the smirk that threatened at the edges.
Instead, he paid attention to the last bit of bread left on the table, tearing off a solid chunk and popping it in his mouth.
When he at last finished, the man irritatingly took a long drink from his cup before finally speaking.
“Ye will soon see for yerself, lass, that there is little in Brahanne that doesnae go the way I’d have them. I am confident that yer safety—and the outcome of this exchange—willnae be among the rare few.”
There was no boastful bravado in his words.
Keegan did not exaggerate overly, and he didn’t fidget under the weight of a lie.
In all things, Willow was forced to believe him.
However, what surprised her the most was that even without the evidence, his words alone held the power to make Willow believe Keegan to be true.
She remained silent, polishing off the last dregs of her wine. Rumbling in her head would not cease, however, and she was uncertain how much time passed when Keegan became the one to break the silence this time.
“There is plenty of travel to do come daybreak. We should get our rest before the morning.”
Willow’s stomach dropped, and she couldn’t hold Keegan’s stare as he rose from the table and made his way toward the singular bed in the chamber. It was definitely large enough to contain the two of them, but it wasn’t so big as to allow them to sleep without being right near each other.
“Ye cannae truly mean for me to share that bed with ye. It is improper. Ye arenae me husband, and I am set to wed another man.”
But it didn’t seem to matter how much Willow protested. Keegan busied himself with stripping down to his shirt and plaid and climbed into the bed, lying back and closing his eyes.
“Ye can sleep wherever ye wish, lass. I will be choosing the bed.”
Glaring at him, Willow bit her tongue, doing her best not to let the numerous insults and curses in her head spew from her lips.
She wouldn’t be lying on the floor, so it appeared that she was left with little choice.
Willow only hoped that she would quickly fall into unconsciousness so that she wouldn’t have to put up with the insufferable man a moment longer.
She was also not removing a single stitch of clothing or covering from her person. It would undoubtedly be an uncomfortable night’s rest, but that appeared to be in her future for quite some time.
Lying down, Willow turned onto her side, facing away from Keegan, and tried to force herself to sleep. Still, every movement or breath the man released, Willow was intimately aware of because of his proximity.
Minutes dragged on, and she was still wide awake. The fire in the room had died down, and Keegan lay on the only blanket on the bed. She could not retrieve the thing from under such a massive man, and the little bit that she was able to use to cover herself was not sufficient. She was freezing.
This is absurd! I cannae sleep while I am being turned into an icicle.
Willow sighed, her eyes open wide in the darkening room. It was so much blacker than when she’d laid down, the light from the candle on the table having snuffed itself out and the fire now down to a few softly glowing embers.
There must be another blanket.
Every bit of the following day would be worse if she weren’t rested, so Willow looked around the space, deciding that she needed to find something else to cover up with or go without sleep.
She craned around, looking over her shoulder at Keegan.
His chest rose and fell, the sound of his breaths deep and slow.
He was assuredly asleep, so she would be especially quiet as she snuck from the bed to find a cover.
As she sat up, putting her hands on the edge of the bed to slowly push off the mattress, she was immediately slammed back down to the cushions, a set of legs coming over her as hands pinned her hands over her head.
“Ah!” she shrieked. “Get off!”
“Why, lass,” Keegan whispered, Willow’s eyes still not quite able to make out his face in the darkness, “ye have been so brave and strong all day.”
The tone of his deep voice was lilting, and the weight of Keegan’s body atop her sent her pulse skittering into the sky. There was little she could do to overpower or escape from him; still, she could tell that Keegan’s grip around her wrists wasn’t as hard as he could have made it.
He was warm against her chilled skin as well, the intoxicating heat melting into her with each moment.
This is the most ye’ve been touched by a man.
The thought was a betrayal and highly useless.
Though as Willow tried to shake it from her mind by squirming against Keegan, all it did was draw her attention to his thick warrior’s frame once more.
As more of his expression came into focus, Willow found herself unable to look away from those eyes of his.
Until he leaned forward, craning over her and whispering in her ear like he had downstairs.
“Daenae be stupid now by trying to run away.”
Fury roared through Willow’s blood, and she wanted to blame it entirely on the menacing lump who had her pinned down. And while that wasn’t entirely untrue, it would be false to claim that it was solely his actions and not her traitorous reaction to them that annoyed her.
“Ugh! Unhand me.” She yanked against his hold, doing more to brush against him than desired. “I wasnae trying to escape ye lummocks. I was fetching another cover since ye’ve seen fit to lie atop the only once present, and I’m likely to catch me death if I stayed put all night.”
He smirked down at her, an unfortunately attractive brow cocked over his right eye.
“Need I remind ye, Keegan,” she bit out his name, “me guards' safety is at stake. I wouldnae be doing anythin' to cause them harm.”
The moment hung—an odd predicament of wishing to move but knowing that if she did, it would bring about the opposite results.
Her captor stared down at her, seeming to enjoy her rather indelicate position beneath him.
Fear mingled with something she could not name, and Willow swallowed hard as she had little else to do but wait for Keegan to free her.
Ducking his head with a sly smile, which she was only partly sure she saw, Keegan got up. She flew up into a seat as he crossed the room toward a cupboard that stood at the other end near the door. As he reached inside, the Brahanne pulled out another thick wool blanket and returned to the bed.
Tossing it at her with enough force to send the loose strands of her hair flying backward, Keegan took up his spot next to her, climbing beneath the covers this time and rolling onto his side.
He said nothing during the exchange, continuing to remain silent as he appeared to drift right back into slumber.
Shaking her head as she bit her tongue so hard she tasted copper, Willow rolled in the opposite direction.
She used the new blanket to cover her and squeezed her eyes shut, forcing herself to count as high as she could until she fell asleep.