Chapter 18
Willow had arrived with the others at Castle Brahanne, but she was quite aware of the fact that she should not be returning with Keegan and the rest of his clan anywhere.
She knew that her brother might not be keen on the exchange for his own part.
But the MacMillans were promised a bride, and Magnus couldn’t deliver any longer.
Tension gripped her shoulders tightly, and Willow followed behind the laird and his family as they took the familiar hallway to his study.
It didn’t make sense to return there when Keegan had been so concerned about Melissa’s state of health, but it was far down the list of matters that Willow wished to bring up to him.
As they stepped inside, Keegan took up his usual spot behind the large table where his papers were strewn across the surface. Damon and Melissa stood at his right—the pair engaged in a quiet battle, it seemed—and Willow stood just in front of Keegan’s desk.
“Can ye now be telling me the truth of why we left the exchange so suddenly? Why ye felt the need to raise yer sword against me brother?”
Willow knew that her tone was clipped, but her patience was running thinner with each passing moment. Keegan looked up at her from busying himself with the collection of documents on his desk, and the siblings near her stopped in their feuding.
“I have changed me mind. I nay longer wish to return ye to yer brother. The exchange terms were lackin'.”
Glaring, Willow shook her head as her eyes rolled up to the ceiling. After a moment, she met Keegan’s stare again, folding her arms over her chest.
“And what is that supposed to mean? Ye were the one to set up the terms, and ye gave yer word that ye wouldnae harm the men.”
Damon’s stare flicked to his brother, and his lips parted slightly from the shock of Willow’s words. But she couldn’t be bothered to care about what the passionate young man thought. Keegan’s jaw muscles worked as he clamped down on his molars, and Willow could see the frustration gnawing at him.
“This is the way of it, Lady Willow. I daenae wish to discuss it further.”
Willow scoffed, tossing her arms down and taking another step toward the desk. “I do. This is me life ye’re so effortlessly throwin' around.”
Anger and disappointment blended into a potent concoction in her blood, and Willow could feel the heat rise in her cheeks. Her brother was a disagreeable man at best, but it was Keegan who struck first.
“It has been an unkind day to many of us, Lady Willow. I have much I need to attend to, and me sister here needs to be looked after. I daenae have the time to be having this conversation.”
“That is untrue, and ye ken that well enough. Ye are the laird of this castle. Ye can choose precisely how much time ye wish to have.”
The room was thick with awkward discomfort. Keegan eyed her hard and, without breaking that stare, spoke to his family and the guards who’d followed us in at the door.
“Would ye all kindly give Lady Willow and me a moment alone?”
Willow turned over her shoulders to see the guards nod and step outside the room. Damon was far less quick to heed his brother’s words, but Melissa pulled on his arm and began to lead him from the space.
“Come now, Brother. We need to be lettin' the laird settle his business with our guest.”
Willow held herself rigid, her spine as straight as a hairpin. She had listened to Melissa and Damon bicker throughout the entirety of the carriage ride, and were she not in the situation she was in, Willow would have laughed at the way the lady joked at her brother’s expense.
She was a sarcastic, witty lass, but Willow was too enraged by her eldest brother to be able to appreciate those traits fully.
When the room emptied of everyone, save the laird and herself, Willow turned back toward him, glaring across the surface of his desk.
“Ye arenae being honest with me, and I ken it as surely as I do me own thoughts.” Willow lowered her chin, staring at Keegan from beneath her brows. “What do ye mean by changed yer mind?”
“Willow—”
“I deserve an answer, Keegan. I have given ye the details of Magnus’s archers, and it saved a heap of yer men from being caught unawares. Ye can at least do me the service of tellin' me the truth of what happened on the field.”
Keegan sighed. Willow could see the exhaustion claiming him, and there were a number of minor cuts and bruises forming over his arms from the skirmish today.
“Ugh, ye are quite the persistent one, lass. Of that, I’m certain.”
Narrowing her eyes, Willow folded her arms once more. “Only as much as yerself, Laird Brahanne.”
Willow emphasized his title, looking to ruffle the man’s feathers as a bit of vengeance for how he broke his word. He’d promised not to harm the men, after all, and it was only because he attacked Magnus that her clansmen had begun to fight.
Keegan’s brows rose, and he smirked. Still, the usual mischievous look in his eyes when he wore that expression was somewhat lacking. Willow wasn’t sure if he was simply tired and worn out from the battle or if it was something else he’d yet to reveal.
“I changed me mind, lass.” Keegan dropped his chin, pushing out of his chair to stand on the other side of the desk. “I daenae wish to return ye to yer brother. Ye belong to me now.”
Shock hit Willow as sure as a slap. Belong to him?
What on earth did Keegan mean by such a declaration?
And still, she could not deny the renewed warmth that rushed through her at the words.
It was a type of madness, no doubt, but Willow felt an odd thrill at the notion of Keegan desiring to keep her.
“I…Ye are toyin' with me.” Willow chewed out the words, shaking her head. “If ye are tryin' to force a reaction out of me, ye shall find that I am used to far worse jests than this.”
Like several times before, the two of them stood at an impasse. They were an evenly matched pair, and Willow’s frustration only burned brighter. After a number of silent moments, Keegan sighed once more and stepped around the desk.
She thought he might approach her, but the laird went directly to the door and pulled it open. “We shall report to the Great Hall. I am sure a hot meal would serve everyone in this castle well.”
With little other choice, Willow followed Keegan out of the room and to the massive chamber where nearly the entirety of the castle’s population was gathered. Damon sat with Melissa at the head table, and when Keegan appeared, he stood up and stomped over.
“And what pray tell will we, in fact, be doin' with the lass, Brother?” Damon glared at Keegan, and Willow felt as if she didn’t even exist because of the way he talked about her like she wasn’t standing right there.
“As ye have seen fit to bring her here. Shall we now be expectin' a war with the MacMillans?”
Willow had wondered as much herself and looked to Keegan as he stood in the center of the aisle that led between the rows of tables to his own.
“The Lady Willow will be residin' in Castle Brahanne from now on. Understood?”
Keegan announced it to the entire room, still leveling his stare at his brother. Still, it was clear that the laird wished for everyone to understand where he stood on the subject.
She was not of a mind to agree, however. While she would be content to never again see Magnus, Lilith needed her.
“I willnae be livin' here. I must return home, Laird Brahanne. I must return to me sister.”
A flicker of something passed over Keegan’s face as Willow brought up her sibling, but it quickly faded, and he shook his head.
“Nay, and I willnae speak of this again.”
Not saying another word, Keegan left Willow and Damon to stand there while he tore off through the room.
She was tempted to chase him down, and she could actually see that desire in Damon as well.
Still, they both knew it wouldn’t do them any good.
Willow exhaled through her nose, rolling her lips between her teeth as she considered her options.
Can I nae do anythin' to make that man understand me? Ugh, why did he drag me back here? What was with all that ‘belong to him’ nonsense?
Willow was full of too many questions and no answers. Her stomach rumbled, and she shook her head. They were apparently the only things she was full of at present, and despite her fury, she needed to eat.
Melissa appeared at her side, standing between Damon and Willow. “Come sit with us to eat. Keegan is…there is likely a more polite word for stubborn, but I wouldnae waste it on the man since he stormed off like a sullen child.”
Willow couldn’t help the laugh that tore free in a single hard burst. “Verra well, Lady Melissa. If only because I fear I shall be reduced to eatin' the cutlery soon.”
Hooking her arm through Willow’s, Melissa guided her to the table at the rear of the room, with Damon following behind silently. Once they were seated, the three of them began to pick at their plates, and as much as Willow was famished, it took a great deal of effort to force herself to eat.
As she stared down at her plate, Willow heard Damon talk to his sister once more.
“Are ye well? Ye havenae touched yer food much? Do ye require something else or a healer to tend to an ache?”
She tried to stop herself, but Willow glanced over at the pair. Damon sat on Melissa’s other side, and the look of utter concern on his face was quite the sight. He had been such a brash, contemptuous blighter for as long as she’d seen him. Now, Willow could hardly recognize the man.
“I have told ye, Damon. I am well. Ye can ease yerself before ye fall into fits.”