Chapter 3 #2
“Me councilmen willnae remain quiet if I daenae give them a name, and I assured them I would have one within a month, but I see no reason to wait until then,” he explained.
“I need a betrothed for one month, nae a real one, just a name to give them so they cease pestering me until me braither’s wedding has passed. ”
He paused and looked at her intently. He didn’t need to say anything else for her to know what he intended to ask.
“I am asking ye to be that name, lass.”
Emily looked at him, unable to say anything, and he took that as a sign to continue.
“I daenae want ye to think me dishonorable because I ask this of ye. If there was any other way I could put off me councilmen for some time, I would take it, but me duties take all me time, and courting someone is the last thing on me mind right now.”
“But how would it even work?” she asked. “How would we convince them?”
“I have thought about this,” he assured her.
“For one month, ye would be presented to the clan and the council as me betrothed. We will take our meals together, go on walks when required, and be seen together, but nothing more. I willnae take any liberties with ye that will compromise ye. And at the end of the month, I will tell the council that we agreed to break off the engagement, and ye will be released from the arrangement.”
The sheer intimacy of what he described had her heart racing in her chest.
She would have to pretend to be this man’s betrothed and be courted in front of his people? If he had such a good idea of how to court a woman, why didn’t he pick someone from his clan? Why her?
“Me Laird—” she started.
“Daenae refuse just yet,” he interrupted. “I ken ye will need something to convince ye, and I assure ye I will do me best to provide ye with all the comfort ye need. Do ye have any family?”
“Only me sister, and she is here in the castle with me,” she answered.
“Good.” He nodded. “I will have them move ye and yer sister out of the servants’ quarters and into proper rooms, and ye will have fresh clothes, food, and the protection of me name for as long as ye remain in the castle and even after the month is over.
If ye choose to leave after, I will make sure to help ye both go somewhere safe with enough means to start anew. ”
It was almost too good to be true.
But why her?
“Why me, me Laird?” she asked. “I have been nothing but a servant all me life. Why would ye choose me for such a great responsibility?”
He looked at her as if it were obvious.
“It is because ye arenae from me clan,” he answered. “Ye have no family making claims and no reason to hold me to them when the month is over.”
That was a practical answer, but it made her feel somewhat disappointed.
Still…
“I daenae think they will believe it so easily,” she argued. “I am a knitter, nae a noblewoman. If they observe me closely enough, they will realize within a day that I am a fraud.”
He frowned darkly. “They will believe what I tell them to believe,” he declared. “Ye will be presented as the daughter of a distant family, taken in under me protection.”
His story made sense, but she still had other things to consider. What will happen afterwards?
“And when the month is over, what happens, me Laird?”
“Ye walk away. So do I.”
Emily looked into his warm hazel eyes, alight with anticipation of her answer, and could not help but feel drawn in. His eyes filled her with the same warmth she had felt all those years ago when she had been saved from the freezing loch.
His gaze had her thinking deeply about what this would mean for Elize. No more cold rooms, good clothes, and food. If she accepted his proposition, they would move from the wretchedness of their past to near affluence.
Still, none of those reasons had her nodding her head. Her only reason sat in front of her, his warm hazel eyes lulling her into a sense of safety she had not felt once in the past twelve years.
Adair watched her stare at her hands for a long moment, his heart thudding in anticipation. He hoped she would agree. It was a risky plan, but none of his councilmen knew her, and she had arrived too conveniently for him to ignore.
“I will do it, me Laird,” she answered suddenly, and he felt elation surge through him.
“Alright,” he said, remembering to keep his voice level despite his excitement at having something to trump his council.
“One month and nae a day longer,” she added, most definitely more to herself than to him.
He nodded in agreement.
Her eyes met his, and for a moment, he frowned, wondering why his heart skipped a beat.
It was the odd sensations she evoked in him that had made him consider asking for her help, but now that she had agreed, the month they had to play a loving couple loomed ahead like a beast he shouldn’t have awoken.
He pushed the thought away, choosing to focus instead on the fact that he could finally proceed with his plan and finish things earlier than he had thought possible, and in such a convenient way, too.
“We shall announce our impending nuptials at dinner tomorrow eve, but I will first introduce ye to me councilmen,” he explained, needing to keep her abreast of his plan. “If we’re successful in convincing those old men, we will be able to do the same with the rest of the clan.”
She nodded.
“Shouldnae we decide on a more convincing story?” she asked. “Ye ken that a few of yer people have seen me already.”
He lifted a brow at her thoroughness. She was much like him in wanting to ensure they covered all bases and leaving no chance for anyone to poke holes in their story.
“Aye, I will think of something before the introduction to me councilmen,” he answered.
“Alright, me Laird,” she said. “I shall leave ye to yer thoughts, then.”
“Alright.”
She rose to leave. When she reached the door, Alec lifted his head to watch her from his spot by the fire. He didn’t lie back until she had shut the door behind her and her footsteps faded down the hallway.
Adair understood the dog’s sentiment very well. The lass was indeed an enigma that had drawn his attention, and now that she was under his roof, he would not rest until he had fully learned her secrets.
For the next month, lass, ye belong to me.