Chapter 15
Their ride back to the Castle had been more awkward than any other.
The minute they had stepped in, Callum had raced to his study without a word.
Margot stood staring blankly at the door for a long time before turning away to walk back to her bedchamber.
It was a freezing but bright day without any clouds or rain.
This was almost a pity because miserable weather would have matched her mood of fury, frustration, and sadness.
Catriona greeted her eagerly as she entered her room. Her expression was one of utter relief as she placed a hand on her chest and gave a heartfelt sigh.
“Mistress!” she cried. “Where have ye been? After last night I was so worried about ye!”
“I am so sorry to have made you anxious, Catriona,” Margot said soothingly. “I had some business to take care of with the Laird, but everything is settled now.”
Catriona was standing twisting her hands in front of her; Margot realised how genuinely worried her maid had been on her behalf and went over to give her a brief, tight hug.
It was a great breach of protocol, something that was not done between two women of different classes, but Margot had never been one to care about propriety.
She felt Catriona return the embrace, then Margot put her away a little and smiled at her. “Thank you for everything you do for me, Catriona,” she said warmly. “No one has ever had such a good and kind maid as I have.”
Catriona looked astonished and blushed furiously. “Naebody has ever thanked me for daein’ my work before,” she remarked, beaming with delight. “So thank ye for bein’ such a kind mistress. I-I feel so lucky that I work for ye.”
They smiled at each other, then Catriona became businesslike. “Bath, mistress?”
“I can think of nothing I would like better,” Margot replied with a grateful sigh, looking at her filthy dress.
The interaction she had initiated with Catriona had distracted her for a moment, as she had intended, but as Margot lay in the warm scented water of the bath she could not find the same pleasure in it that she usually did.
Her mind kept returning to the events of the previous night and morning, her heart raced, and she felt herself beginning to tremble as her overwrought nerves sought relief.
As she emerged from the water, Catriona chattered about the happenings in the castle and other casual topics that would usually have amused Margot, but now she felt like asking her maid to be quiet.
She restrained herself from doing so, however, since she could never be so unkind to someone who had always treated her with such respect.
Catriona helped her dress, then gave her some arnica salve for her bruised cheekbone, and finally Margot was left alone with nothing to distract her from her worries.
She had kissed Callum—again. She had crossed that invisible line once more, and she felt wretched. At any other time, she might have gone to see Eileen to spend the day talking and strolling around the castle and its grounds, but now she felt too guilty.
Margot began to pace the room, back and forth, back and forth, and when her breakfast came she was unable to eat it. She picked at her eggs for a few moments then pushed her plate aside and began to walk again.
She went to fetch a book from the library, but found herself reading whole pages without taking anything in at all.
She walked the castle from end to end, up to the turrets, where she spoke to some very surprised guards, asking about their duties, how they liked their Laird—anything to distract herself. Nothing worked, however.
Margot saw not a single sign of Callum, and wondered if he was deliberately avoiding her.
Usually, she would have met him at some point during the day, mostly at their midday meal.
However, he was absent when she went into the dining room, and the maid who was attending her told her that Lady Eileen had not been there either.
She passed an equally fretful afternoon, during which every minute seemed like a week, but at last it was time to go to the dining room for the evening meal. Callum had an extremely hearty appetite, and Margot doubted that he would miss two meals in a row.
So she waited and waited, but when a full half hour had passed, and it was clear that Callum was not going to make an appearance, Margot’s patience suddenly snapped.
She jumped to her feet and marched along the corridor to Callum’s study, her blood boiling with fury.
She gave a perfunctory knock and pushed the door open, then stepped inside and found that it was completely empty.
In fact, it looked as though no one had been there all day.
Margot was puzzled, but her blazing anger had not cooled down, and without any more hesitation she turned on her heel and almost ran to Callum’s chamber.
Again she rapped on the door but did not stop to wait for Callum to answer, merely shoved it open and took one long, bold step inside.
Callum was seated in front of a roaring fire, the flames painting his glossy dark hair with stripes of golden light and making his dark eyes glow.
He was naked to the waist, and every inch of his broad shoulders, chest and finely muscled torso was open to her gaze, stunning in its intense masculine beauty.
He was utterly perfect, and Margot could not drag her gaze away from him.
He looked up, startled, as he saw her, then tensed visibly.
He put down the half-empty glass of wine he had been drinking from and turned to face her fully.
Margot was at once so lost in him that she felt as though she wanted to throw herself into his arms and tell him to do whatever he liked with her.
She took one step towards Callum, then stopped and looked at him helplessly, searching for words.
“I-I don’t know what to do,” she said at last. “I have always been such a well-organised person. I understood myself, my place in the world, and what I was going to do next, but lately…” She tailed off, struggling to speak, then went on, “Since I met you, I forgot every rule that I ever lived by. I kissed you, and that is a very dishonourable thing to do to a man who is betrothed to another. Eileen is my friend, and I feel I have betrayed her.”
Callum sighed, and his brow creased in a deep frown. “Eileen is nothing more than a political alliance to me.”
“And yet, she is still your betrothed,” Margot said exasperated.
“And yet, she loves someone else,” he said irritably.
Margot’s eyes widened in amazement. “How did you know?” she asked.
“Do you think I’m blind?” Callum replied with a cynical laugh. “Anyone with eyes can see it. Marrying a guard is out of the question for Eileen, and marrying anyone else but Eileen is out of the question for me. It would ruin her reputation if I refused to marry her.”
He covered his face with his hands and let out a deep sigh.
Margot watched Callum carefully for a moment as he sat in the chair, his soul bared to her.
Her heart ached for this strong, yet incredibly vulnerable man whose heart had been broken so badly he had never been able to fully recover.
He deserved to be happy, but was obliged to marry a woman he did not love, and who did not love him.
Yet, he would do his duty, even though it meant throwing away any chance of love.
Callum was strong, in body, in character, and he was infinitely good; in fact, Margot had never met anyone to equal him, and she realised now that she loved him in an all-consuming way she had never thought possible before she met him.
Callum raised his face to look at Margot, and she read an expression of anguish in his dark eyes that gave her the courage to do what she had longed to do for ages. She moved across the room to him and sat gently on his lap, then cupped his face in her trembling hands and kissed him softly.
Callum stiffened suddenly and shook his head. “Don’t do this to me, Margot. I can’t stand you blowing hot and cold—kissing me then pushing me away again. Don’t play with me.”
“Is that what you think?” Margot felt deeply ashamed that she had hurt him so badly. “I always wanted you, Callum, almost from the first moment I saw you.”
Callum breathed out a deep sigh as he gazed at her for a long moment, then murmured, “Not as much as I wanted you. More than any other woman I have ever met. But Margot, are you sure?”
“I have never been more sure of anything in my life,” she answered with a tender smile.
That was all Callum needed. He pulled her into a fierce, hungry kiss that set her senses on fire. Margot could feel his primal male reaction to her at the place where their bodies touched. She felt intensely triumphant that she could make this powerful man respond to her in this way.
Presently, Callum pulled away from their kiss, but his eyes were blazing with desire as he stood up, lifting Margot with him. One moment more he gazed down at her, then he strode towards his bed and set her down beside it before treating her to another smouldering kiss. He looked at her again.
“Undress me,” he ordered in a gravelly voice that sent shivers all over her.
It was not a request but a command, and Margot had no hesitation in complying. It took seconds, since she had only to untie the belt that was holding up Callum’s kilt, then Margot saw a naked man for the first time in her life. She stared at him, stunned.
What a man he was! She had seen his broad muscular torso with its dusting of fine dark hair, but now she had a view of what she had been missing for years.
Callum had a narrow waist and hips, powerfully muscled thighs and calves, but it was what was between his thighs that intrigued and startled her most.
She had never imagined that the most masculine part of his body would be quite so intimidating—a long, hard shaft of flesh that pointed at her almost like a gun. Margot swallowed nervously, and her eyes widened in shock.