Chapter 5
The crisp summer breeze tousled his light brown hair as he lifted the bottle to his lips, taking a giant swig before gulping. The amber liquid burnt his throat as he stared at the words carved into the stone.
Here lies Malcolm Forrester, beloved father, husband, and friend.
“Beloved…” Daniel whispered into the wind with a derisive shake of his head. The only thing that had ever been beloved by his father was his own wealth and social standing.
Taking another swig from his bottle, he used the back of his hand to wipe his mouth.
His hair was a mess, and his shirt was hanging halfway over the top of his breeches.
Looking around the neat little graveyard of the town chapel, he tried to clear his mind, going over the events of the previous night.
In the space of an hour, he’d gone from being annoyed by the woman who grated on his nerves more than any other to becoming her betrothed.
All because I couldnae stand to see her cry?
He glared at his father’s headstone in the fading light of the afternoon sun. The day had been spent remising over all the mistakes he’d made in the past, one of them being the marriage he was about to enter.
He’d felt like a complete wretch on the ride back to his own castle after the ball, thinking of the vow he’d already broken.
He’d sworn to his father that he’d never take a wife or sire an heir, yet here he was on the brink of marriage, all because he’d felt a little heroic in a single moment of weakness.
“I may have taken a wife,” he said bitterly as if his father were standing in front of him.
“But I willnae sire an heir, ye can be assured of that.” His fingers tightened over the neck of the bottle, nearly cracking the glass, as he recalled the first time his father had ever called him a disappointment and sent him away.
He’d been a late bloomer, only learning to walk once he had reached the age of two.
On top of that, his speech had been delayed, resulting in a stutter that had only disappeared when he had been well into his teens.
Even then, it was only after attending a school in London that he’d eventually become able to control his tongue.
“Yer nae son of mine,” Malcolm said coolly as Daniel played with his wooden sword, missing the dummy every time he was told to lunge.
“I… I’m trying… m-me best, Faither.” Daniel slunk back at the disappointed look in his father’s eyes. Ever since he could remember, his only desire had been to make his father proud, something that he’d failed at miserably by simply existing as he was.
“I should have sent ye away to an orphanage the minute yer maither spewed ye from her womb. The healer told me that ye were too small to survive. I should have listened an’ sent ye away back then.
” Malcolm shook his head and turned to leave, walking in the direction of the castle, and leaving Daniel in the middle of a snowy yard.
“Wait…, Fai…fai…faither!” Daniel called out in desperation, attempting to follow his father, falling in the snow as his tiny foot hooked on a branch hidden beneath the thick blanket of ice. “I’ll… do better!”
He wailed as he watched his father leave. Turning his head down, he cried softly to himself, his hot tears creating tiny holes in the white canvas beneath his hands.
It was then that Daniel had begun to realize that toughening up was his only hope of surviving in life.
“I’ll do better than ye…” he said out loud as he shook off the memory of the way his father had treated him as a child. “I’ll do better than ye did in every aspect,” he vowed again and turned away, leaving the graveyard with its neat little rows of stones behind.
There was plenty to be done before he fetched his bride in five days and brought her back to his castle. His vow to never sire an heir wouldn’t be too hard to achieve, Melissa Young was the last woman on earth he would ever want to lie with.
He’d prepare a place for her in the castle to call her own while he kept to his wing.
How hard could it be to just ignore the woman for the rest of their lives?
Shrugging off the fact that he’d been attracted to her when she’d come down the stairs in her beaded blue dress, he picked up the pace and headed straight back to his castle.
Darragh was awaiting his letter to set things in motion for the upcoming feast.
“Do you think you like these flowers?” Avery cocked her head to the side as she examined the selection of flowers that one of the maids had brought up and laid out.
Melissa sighed as she lay on her bed with her feet dangling off the edge. “Whichever you think is best,” she replied dismissively as she turned the page in her novel, wishing that her life was as romantic as the heroine in the story she was reading.
Stories always seemed to revolve around love, yet here she was, betrothed to the man that she could barely stand.
“You have to give at least some input,” Avery said tiredly as she turned to look at her sister. “I know I said that I’d do as much as I could, but you have to at least do something from your side. You’ve spent the past two days moping around the castle. There are only three days left.”
“Oh, all right,” Melissa answered irritably, shutting her book, and pushing herself up from the bed. “What do I need to do?” she asked with her hands on her hips as she stopped at her sister’s side.
“I would like you to take a look at some of these flowers, we can use them in your bouquet and place some more on the tables,” Avery said hopefully.
“I tried to find roses, but they aren’t as abundant here in Scotland as they are back home.
I’m afraid we’ll have to make do with what we have here. ” She swept her arm over the table.
The table was flooded with bunches of heather, mountain avens, purple and red thistles flowers, and a pretty little white flower that Melissa had never seen before.
“Does it really matter what flowers we use?” Melissa turned toward her sister in irritation. “It’s not like I’m looking forward to anything in the marriage.”
Avery bit on her lower lip, looking at her sister with a look of sympathy in her eyes. “Has Mama spoken to you about what will happen once you are married?” she asked in a cautious tone, dancing around the subject as best as she could.
“Yes,” Melissa replied confidently. “I will live in the castle with Daniel until I’m old and grey, having nothing to look forward to besides my eventual death.”
“No…” Avery shook her head. “Never mind, Mama never really told me what to expect either. Come.” Gently gripping her sister’s arm, she led her over to the bed, taking a seat beside her.
“There are certain things that are expected of a husband and a wife on the night they are wed,” she began, her hands fidgeting in her lap.
Melissa wondered where Avery was going with the conversation.
She’d always been curious about certain aspects of the passion described in her novels, the interactions between a husband and a wife seemed vastly different from what she had glimpsed in her limited knowledge.
Her mother had always restricted reading those books, stating that some things were better learned in time rather than read.
“You know that you will have to kiss Daniel when you get married?” Avery coughed, shifting a little away from her sister.
“Yes, that I do know.” A light blush spread over Melissa’s cheeks. She’d spent so much time moping around and wishing that her circumstances would change that she’d completely forgotten about the finer details of her pending nuptials.
“Well, there will be more kissing after the ceremony, when the two of you are eventually alone,” Avery explained.
“Certainly not,” Melissa said with a horrified look on her face as if her sister had suddenly grown an extra head. “We shall kiss in front of everyone to give the impression that our marriage isn’t a farce, but I hardly think that anything will happen after that.”
“Melissa…” Avery sighed and tried again. “I’m sure that Daniel will be tender with you, but there are certain things that will be expected of you after you are married. Like siring an heir, for instance.” She found a little more footing as she spoke. “Let’s talk about that.”
“I’m not sure that we can have a baby,” Melissa answered truthfully with a frown. “I’ve been given to understand that a certain amount of romance is needed between a husband and a wife for that to occur.”
Avery lifted her hand, rubbing the back of her neck as she struggled for words. “It is good if there are feelings and romance, but it isn’t exactly a requirement in some cases,” she said cautiously. “Sometimes, passion, even with an intense dislike, can be more than enough.”
“I highly doubt that Daniel and I are harboring any kind of secret passions toward each other.” Melissa rolled her eyes.
“You’d be surprised,” Avery said earnestly. “Passion can sometimes masquerade as other things.”
“Such as?” Melissa raised an eyebrow, waiting for her sister’s reply.
“Perhaps an intense dislike.” Avery pursed her lips.
“Now you’re just talking nonsense.” Melissa shook her head dismissively.
“Hear me out,” Avery began, repositioning herself to face Melissa. “Do you find Daniel attractive at all?”
“Of course not,” Melissa answered a little too quickly while trying her best to suppress the heat that was rising in her cheeks.
Saying nothing, Avery continued to stare at her with a knowing look.
“I guess he is kind of handsome,” Melissa admitted reluctantly. “If you like that kind of roguish handsome exterior.”
Reaching for her hand, Avery gave her a gentle squeeze. “It’s sometimes the handsome rogues that take us by surprise when we are least expecting it.”
Melissa thought of her sister’s marriage to Darragh and everything they’d gone through before eventually falling in love.
She’d been so consumed by moping over her situation the past few days that she hadn’t considered the fact that a romance could actually bloom between her and the man she was about to marry.
She had once thought him handsome when they’d first met, but their intense dislike for each other had gotten in the way of any kind of attraction that may have been there.
“All I’m saying,” Avery added, drawing her sister’s thoughts back to the present. “Is that Daniel is a hot-blooded man.” She blushed despite her years of marriage. “Not unlike Darragh. There is a chance that something more may happen between the two of you.”
“I just don’t think it will,” Melissa said quickly and stood, hoping to divert her sister’s attention back to matters that had nothing to do with Daniel and what may or may not occur between them in the future.
“Let’s get on with choosing these flowers so that I may be done with these insipid plans. ”
Avery watched her go before standing and walking back to the table. “Very well then, which of these flowers do you like?”
Feeling a pang of guilt at the hurt look on her sister’s face, Melissa picked up the small white flowers that she didn’t recognize. “What are these?” She held them out to her sister.
“Burnet Roses. They are quite beautiful.” Avery busied herself with gathering them all in a bunch. “You’re in luck if you choose those, they grow abundantly in Scotland, so we won’t have any problems getting more.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to offend you,” Melissa apologized when she realized her dismissal had come off the wrong way.
Avery stopped what she was doing and looked at her sister. “I just want you to be happy. It’s not that I think I know more than you, it’s just that I’ve been married for two years to a man that I didn’t expect to love as much as I do today.”
“I’m glad you’re happy,” Melissa responded genuinely.
“You and Darragh are a good fit, you don’t drive each other up the wall like Daniel and I do.
” She replaced the flowers on the table, picking up a bright purple and yellow mountain aven.
“But I promise I will keep an open mind with him.” She rolled her eyes as the corner of her lips tilted into a smile. “Sometimes.”
Avery’s laughter drifted through the air like a whisper on a soft summer breeze. It did Melissa’s heart good to see her elder sister laughing like that. Avery had been through a lot with the man that she was now happily married to. In fact, the entire family had been through a lot.
The scandal with their father had left Melissa more than just a little skeptical of men and their motives.
Their father had become increasingly greedy for money and had married his eldest daughter off to gain more wealth.
It had initially seemed as if he was doing what was best for the family, but it soon became apparent that his motives were selfish, driven by greed and ambition.
She let out a sigh as Avery gently caressed her cheek.
“Don’t be too downcast, you may just find yourself being happier than you ever thought possible in time.”
“If I can keep myself from pouring ale over my future husband,” Melissa quipped with a smirk.
“Honestly, Melissa!” Avery laughed again. “You truly are the worst.”
“I know, I know.” Melissa reached for the flowers on the table, choosing the Brunet roses along with an assortment of mountain avens. “I think I’d like to have a bouquet with a bit of color in it, to bring some magic into my special day,” she said and handed her choice to her sister.
“That’s the spirit. I’ll go and tell the maids what they need to gather.” Avery gave her a final smile before collecting the flowers and leaving the room.
Lingering at the table for a second, Melissa picked up a single white flower that had fallen from the rest. Walking over to the window, she delicately sniffed the petals while looking out over the moor. She’d panicked when her sister had asked if she thought Daniel was attractive.
In truth, she found him very attractive.
His presence had annoyed her whenever he had been around, yet she had found herself looking for him in a crowded room.
She couldn’t say what exactly she was feeling, but part of her heart had skipped a beat when he’d said that he’d marry her in an attempt to save her reputation.
Sighing heavily, she shook the thoughts from her mind and walked to her bed, falling on the soft mattress, and staring at the ceiling. Perhaps her sister was right, and Daniel was the one who would finally awaken the hidden passions that she’d never experienced before.