Much Ado About Marriage

  She turned and made her way down a faint path that led toward the black forest, saying over her shoulder, “We should hurry, for Duncan returns this morn.”

  Thomas accepted the unspoken invitation and fell into step beside her. “Who is this Duncan?”

  “Why, Duncan MacLean, the Earl of Duart and laird of his clan.” She quirked a disbelieving brow his way. “Surely you knew whose castle you were stealing into?”

  “Of course I knew. I just didn’t think of him as ‘Duncan.’” This woman knew MacLean well enough to use his given name. Who was she, then? She’d said she was “the laird’s”—and then hadn’t finished the sentence. She must be the laird’s mistress, then.

  Refusing to examine the irritation that swelled at the thought of such beauty being sullied by a possible traitor, Thomas tried to focus on the return of his good fortune. Since Fia was within MacLean’s inner circle, she would be privy to valuable information.

  He stepped into the shadows of the forest, pulling her into his arms.

  “Stop!”

  Though she struggled, he held her easily. “I’ve a wish to know more about you . . . and this Duncan.”

  “Why should I tell you anything?” She twisted, attempting to stomp his feet with her muddied boots, her bag clanging noisily.

  Thomas pushed aside the wild abandon of her hair, his fingers encircling her neck. “Hold still, comfit,” he whispered. “I want to know everything about Duncan MacLean. If you tell me, I’ll release you.”

  She stopped struggling. “You wish to know of Duncan? Why?”

  “That’s none of your concern.”

  Her mouth thinned into a stubborn line. “Everything about Duncan is my concern.”

  “I can’t imagine that you care too much, to steal from him the minute he’s out of sight.” His mouth was but a whisper from hers, his thumbs resting suggestively at the delicate hollow of her throat. “Just tell me what you know; I ask for nothing more harmful than information.”

  She dropped her bag with a noisy clank and, to his surprise, melted into his arms, her lithe body flush against his. “You’re quite strong for a Sassenach.”

  He tried to ignore the sensations her warm body ignited in his own. Sweet Jesu, she is a snug armful.

  “Och, I think . . .” Her breath was ragged, her gaze fixed on his mouth. “I think you mean to kiss me.” Her lips parted, and the edge of her tongue moved slowly across the fullness of the lower one.

  It was almost more than he could stand; the stirring of excitement grew stronger yet. She should be terrified, damn it.

  Instead, she tilted her face to his as if to accept a kiss he’d not thought to offer. He knew he should try to scare her more, to frighten her into submission, for there was far more at stake here than the desires of a Scottish wench.

  He should have.

  But he didn’t.

  All he could think about was the promise of Fia’s lips, the warmth of her in his arms, and the delicate fragrance of heather that drifted from her hair.

  Thomas kissed her with every bit of passion that welled inside him, possessing her mouth as he cupped her rounded bottom through her skirts and molded her to him.

  She clutched at his loose shirt, her soft, yielding lips drinking hungrily from his.

  His body flamed in response and all thought fled. He slipped an arm about her waist and pulled her firmly to him, brushing aside her entangling hair to taste the sweetness of her delicate neck. He traced the contours of her back and hips, stopping to pull her bodice from the waistband of her skirt. Sweet Jesu, her skin was so deliciously warm and inviting. He pulled impatiently at the ties at her waist, his mouth now ruthlessly possessing hers.

  Through a haze of raw passion, something hard and cold intruded harshly into his awareness. Suddenly he realized that a razor-sharp point, cold and deadly, was pressed against his side.

  Thomas opened his eyes.

  Fia regarded him with a cool smile. “’Tis time you were on your way, Sassenach.” She moved away and he saw that she held a knife that shone wickedly in the moonlight. And in her other hand, she held his purse.

  Damn the wench! He had played right into her hands. “Why, you little thief!” He ached with frustrated passion and harsh disappointment.

  She brightened. “I am a good thief, aren’t I?”

  Cold fury raced through him. Should he lunge for the knife? No; a bloodcurdling scream would awaken the servants.

  Thomas swore. “You common, thieving—”

  “Och, spare me your wild words. ’Tis your own fault, laddie.”

  “Do you know who I am?”

  “Nay, and it matters not.”

  “I am Thomas Wentworth.” He waited. Even here, in the wilds of Scotland, the Wentworth name had meaning. His family was the wealthiest and most powerful in all of England.

  But apparently someone had forgotten to mention that fact to this particular maid. Fia tucked his bag of coins into her bodice. “Well, Master Thomas, ’tis nice to meet you, but ’tis your own fault ’tis come to this.”

  “It’s my fault that you robbed me?”

  “I had no notion to take aught from you ’til you tried to seduce me.”

  He laughed bitterly. “One does not seduce a trollop. One pays.”

  Her hand tightened on the knife; her delicate brows lowered. “Have a care, Sassenach. You may have a tongue as sharp as a knife, but I hold a real one.”

  “You wouldn’t use it.”

  To his astonishment, she quirked a brow, cool and proud. “Why should I fear a poor Sassenach who can’t even climb into a window without falling on his head?”

  He stepped forward and the knife flashed wickedly in the moonlight.

  She eyed him warily. “Now, I shall go my way and you will go yours. If you’re as smart as you’d like to think you are, you’ll leave before Duncan arrives.”

  “I will find you, wench,” he warned.

  “That’s not likely.” Still holding the wicked-looking knife before her, she grabbed her bag of loot and slowly backed toward the shelter of the forest, her eyes fixed warily on his.

  He smiled with cold menace. “Tell me why his lordship returns in such haste, and perhaps—just perhaps—I’ll allow you to leave in peace.”

  “As though you had the choice of it,” she mocked, but her gaze darted toward the castle, the roof faintly agleam as dawn crept stealthily into the sky.

  “Come,” he urged, forcing his voice to a calmer level. “A little information for the gold you’ve stolen. ’Tis a fair exchange.”

  Fia regarded him soberly. “You won’t chase me into the woods?”

  “Not if you tell me what I seek.”

  After a moment, she nodded. “Fine, then. ’Tis only fair. MacLean is returning to marry.”

  Damn it, his sources hadn’t mentioned a marriage. “Who is he marrying?”

  She smiled, and he knew her answer before she even spoke.

  “Me, Sassenach.” Her lilting voice taunted. “He comes to marry me.”

  And with a rattle of stolen candelabras and a mischievous smile, she turned and fled, disappearing into the woods.

  Chapter Two

  Fia hurried through the brush, glancing over her shoulder. The Sassenach would surely follow; he’d been too angry not to, but she had a goodly lead on him, so she was safe.

  She crested a low slope and paused behind a thicket for a final glimpse of Duart Castle. The morning sun tossed pale streamers of light across the grassy slope around it. If she were there now, she would be rising to the familiarity of her own comfortable chamber with its red velvet hangings, heavy oak bed and bench, and thick carpets. She would be snug, warm, and safe—not hiding in the damp, cold woods from an irritated Englishman.

  But Fia had had her fill of comfort and safety. She wanted excitement, the thrill of the uncertain, and the chance to prove herself without her cousin’s overbearing “assistance.”

  She almost laughed out loud. She couldn’t imagin
e a more fortuitous beginning for her adventure. And what an adventure it was, too! At this very moment, tucked into a leather pouch and tied to the back of her horse deep in the woods, were her treasures—the plays she had painstakingly written over the past six years.

  Fia patted her sack of silver, a bubble of excitement humming through her. Already she’d met with such good fortune. Soon she’d be in London and, if fortune continued to smile, she’d be a playwright. All she had to do was escape before Duncan returned.

  Her smile faded and she turned into the woods ahead. The sad truth was that Duncan had indeed decided to marry her. “Aye,” she muttered with distaste, “he’s decided to marry you to the first qualified man as stumbles through the castle gates.”

  Her cousin had spent the last two years searching for a man he deemed worthy of her hand. Fortunately, Duncan’s idea of a deserving husband was a man of proud birth, possessing great wealth and capable of wielding both sword and pen.

  With such a lengthy list of qualifications, Fia had felt sure that she would never be shackled.

  But lately the political situation had changed, and Duncan had grown dark and quiet. The Scottish throne was at risk as Queen Mary made error after error, aligning herself with men believed to have murdered her husband.

  No one liked the thought of such men holding the strings to the throne, which they would, once they held the capricious Mary under their complete power. The whispers had grown, and some of the clans were openly aligning themselves against their own queen. The rumblings of war had grown to a near-deafening level and some of the more powerful clans were only waiting to see where Clan MacLean stood before they declared. No one had more resources or trained men than Duncan, and few lairds were as well regarded.

  But Duncan remained stubbornly mute on his position.

  Lately more and more men arrived under cover of night, demanding and pleading that he take a stand.

  Fia didn’t know where Duncan’s thoughts rested, since he refused to discuss it even with her, which hurt her feelings mightily. But her cousin was a wily leader of their clan, and whatever was holding his tongue, ’twas for the good of them all.

  Still, lately she’d caught him eying her with a considering gaze, and twice he’d said plainly that she would be safer elsewhere than Duart Castle.

  Fia feared she knew the reason why; Duncan wished her away from Duart should there be war. And if that were the case, he might become far less exacting in selecting her a husband.

  She grimaced. Who needs a husband? Unless the man can sponsor my plays, I would be no better off than I am now. She hurried deeper into the woods, the woody scent of the forest tickling her nose. She knew the path well and didn’t hesitate, pausing only once to pluck ripe berries from a nearby bush and pop the sweet morsels into her mouth.

  Her plan was to go down the path to the shore, where maid Mary and her husband would be waiting with the skiff. Then to the mainland, and on to London.

  Ah, London! She shivered with excitement, her resolve firming even more. To take control of her own fortune, that was where she must go. Queen Elizabeth was a strong patron of the arts, especially the theater. Any playwright worth her salt would head to the queen’s court, where opportunity awaited.

  It was a pity she hadn’t thought to question the Sassenach about the English court. As pompous and arrogant as he seemed, ’twas possible he’d visited it. She grimaced at her lost opportunity—though she knew from the Sassenach’s kiss, she knew that there’d be a cost to such questioning.

  She touched a finger to her lips, marveling at how they still tingled. Perhaps she wouldn’t mind paying such a cost. She’d shared kisses before, but none had sent her heart racing like the Sassenach’s.

  Sadly, ’twas a waste of time to think of the Sassenach, for she’d never see him again. She hurried along the path, the damp leaves muffling her booted steps. Yet still, the memory of that kiss slipped into her thoughts.

  ’Twould be good fortune indeed if the Sassenach were a real lord, and knew Queen Elizabeth, and could ask her directly to—

  But no. ’Twouldn’t help her one jot even if he were a real English lord. ’Twas easy to see he was too self-involved to bother with a mere playwright like herself. And even if he were not so clutch-hearted, ’twas highly unlikely the man would forgive her for knocking him out of a window and stealing his purse. One or the other, perhaps, but not both, and especially not both on the same day.

  She sighed wistfully. The handsome thief was probably a very pleasant companion when his head didn’t ache and his coins were still safely tucked in his belt.

  “Och, Fia, you’ve gone daft,” she said sternly. “For all you know, there could be a soul as black as the bottom of a kettle beneath that handsome exterior.”

  Something flickered at the corner of her vision and she paused and looked about, but nothing moved in the thick woods. A faint twinge of disappointment went through her. The Sassenach hadn’t even attempted to follow; she’d thought he had more spirit than that.

  She settled the heavy bag on her other shoulder and glanced at the sky, where a growing brightness crept through the trees. The tide would be rising by now. She continued on, stepping lightly over thick ferns, fallen leaves, and broken tree limbs. Her leather boots made very little noise on the moss-covered path, each step stirring sweet pine scent into the air. A swirl of morning mist crept along the ground and the grove looked as if it had been touched with an ancient magic.

  It would have been easy to believe she walked through an enchanted forest. The entire scene would have made a wonderful setting for a play, perhaps one about a fairy queen who’d fallen in love with—

  A band of steel clamped about her arm. Fia gasped as she was yanked against a newly familiar broad chest.

  A deep voice murmured into her ear, “Where are you off to now, my little thief? Looking for another fool to fleece?”

  “Nay, I’ve reached my limit of reiving for the day.”

  “I’m surprised a wench like you has any limits.” His warm breath brushed her cheek. “What? No sharp retort? No hidden knife?” The lazy voice was cutting her to shreds.

  Desperation whipped her into action. With a lithe twist, Fia shoved her bag into Thomas’s broad chest and whirled to make her escape as she fumbled at her waist for her knife.

  She took only three steps before his body crashed into hers, tumbling both of them to the ground. Her knife, knocked from its sheath, came to rest under a bush.

  He lay atop her, his breath warm on her cheek, his huge body pressing her into the soft earth.

  Fia gasped, struggling for air.

  “I daresay you wish for your trusty knife, but alas, I can’t allow you to have it. Not until we’ve reached an understanding.”

  “I . . .” She struggled mightily with each word. “I . . . cannot . . . breathe—”

  Immediately, he raised himself on his elbows.

  She gulped in the cool morning air, the spots before her eyes disappearing. Ah, much better. The only trouble was that now she was freed from his weight, she was far too aware of his warm body over hers, his thigh pressing between her legs in the most intimate way.

  She drew a shuddering breath. “You nearly killed me.”

  “Don’t tempt me.” Thomas’s hands slid over her throat, pushing aside her hair in what seemed more a caress than a threat.

  Her panting increased at the feel of his warm skin on hers. “’Twould be a grievous error to murder me. The women of my family have a tendency to go a-ghosting if they are done away with in a foul manner.”

  His gaze locked with hers. “A-ghosting?”

  “Aye. I’d be dressed in flowing white and keening at the top of my lungs. ’Tis not a sight you would enjoy.” She couldn’t help but give a wee grin at his expression.

  To her surprise, he smiled warmly. “I can do without the keening, comfit, though the thought of you dressed in a flowing white gown is quite another matter.” His gaze boldly lingered on the ful
lness of her breasts, which pulled the thin fabric of her dress taut. “Especially if your ghostly gown showed off your impressive attributes in a more seductive manner.”

  Fia flushed. She had bought this dress from the village laundress, a gown someone had forgotten and left behind by the river. Plain and homespun, it was the perfect disguise. She hadn’t expected the garment to fit so snugly.

  The heavy purse nestled between her breasts did little to ease the strain on its lacings. The thought of the Sassenach’s gold brought her grin back in full measure. “I’m sure I’d be a pleasing ghostie, dressed in a fashionable sort of way just to tempt your fancy.” She snorted inelegantly and wished he would rise. It was difficult to converse at such a close distance, especially with a man who had such warm brown eyes flecked with amber. “I might wear ghosting white, but ’twill be a thick fabric, and ragged—so you can stop your wishful thinking.”

  “Well, then, rags it is. On a wench like you, though, rags might not be so unattractive.” His breath was warm and sweet near her ear, and she shivered.

  “Attractive?” She regretted the wistful tone of her voice instantly. “Just what do you mean by ‘a wench like you’?”

  A smug smile settled on the Sassenach’s face. “What do you think? And don’t tell me the laird is coming to marry you, for I’ll not believe it. While ’tis possible the MacLean is on the verge of finding himself wed, he would never marry a common maid.”

  “Och, you—!”

  “I’m just speaking the truth. I think you are angered to be losing your protector, so you stole away with a small fortune in your sack.”

  “How wise you are, my Lord Lackwit.” If sarcasm were gold, she would have just made her fortune. “Though I took some silver from MacLean, ’tis more in the line of a loan.”

  He chuckled. “And I suppose you were sneaking out at dawn merely for the fun of it.”

  “And to keep the servants from knowing which direction I took. I have my own silver, but cannot access it.” She’d have taken silver candlesticks from her own household goods, but they were stored in trunks deep in the castle hold, awaiting her eventual marriage.