Page 44 of A Gypsy in Scotland


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Chapter 11

Honoria should not have been so thrilled by the authoritative command in Lash’s voice, but she secretly delighted. It reminded her of their kiss, how he commandeered all of her senses with his taste, his touch, his scent. It made her wonder what other commands he might serve up . . . say . . . somewhere more private. More intimate.

“Because you will not allow it?” she asked sweetly.

His eyes snapped with fury. “I will absolutely not allow it.”

Honoria hid a smile, unfazed by his temper. Had he been one of her brothers, she’d have puffs of smoke flaring from her nostrils at his tone. Instead, she felt the thrill down to her toes.

Besides, growing up in a castle full of brothers had given her a strong backbone and an insurmountable amount of patience. She managed male broodiness with aplomb. Not that they hadn’t tested the limit of her patience time and again. They still managed to draw out the harpy in her on occasion, like when they refused to acknowledge the fact that she was a grown woman and not a bairn. But for the most part, she had learned the skill of equanimity, even though most of that stemmed from sheer resignation at times.

Inching away from Lash, who hunched with his gaze pinned on the men who were riding through the castle gate, Honoria took a deep breath. If those were indeed the men who hurt him, this was the perfect opportunity to help Lash, and perhaps learn more about him, as well.

Her gaze flicked to the uninvited party. At this point, she could make out enough of their features to note they all sported the same dark hair, the same brutish build, and for one of them in particular, a similar sculpted face as Lash.

A feeling of premonition passed down her spine as Honoria stepped out onto the gravel path, waving, comfortable that Lash wouldn’t follow—not if these were the men looking for him.

She did, however, hear an extremely foul curse hissed from behind her and the rush of air as he attempted to snatch her back.

“Gentlemen,” Honoria greeted as they drew to a halt three feet away from her. “We weren’t expecting any visitors at MacCallan Castle today.”

The man in the lead, who also bore a striking resemblance to Lash, trotted forward, regarding her with such a cold gaze Honoria’s blood turned to ice in her veins.

She held her ground.

“My lady,” he greeted, inspecting the grounds beyond her. “We are looking for a man.”

She raised a practiced brow. “Och, well, there are many of those around these parts.”

His gaze raked over the gardens before scowling down at her. “This one would be injured.”

“This is Scotland, sir, wild boars roam our rugged terrain. I imagine there are many a man injured, but none on our land.”

He nudged his horse until Honoria felt the breath of the beast’s nostrils on her skin.

Did he mean to intimidate her?

She inwardly snorted.

“Are you certain about that, little girl?”

Och, she had been wrong. Staring into the eyes of this man, he looked nothing at all like Lash. Where Lash’s eyes were at times hard, they were never cold. Nothing but frosty chill emanated from this man.

Butlittle girl? Her temper sparked.

“I’m not a little girl,” she snapped. “And since whoever you are searching for is not here, you and your friends best be on your way.”

A horrible peel of laughter burst from his lips. It was the kind of sound that would send waves of unease through the heart of even the bravest man.

“You are a spirited,little girl, not one capable of subterfuge, I think.”

Subterfuge? Hah! Obviously the man had no idea of the inner workings of the female mind.

But before another scathing retort could leave her lips, he carried on, “If you do come across a man wounded, inform him that his kin is searching for him.”

The breath left her lungs, but praise the Lord her spine remained stiff.

This was Lash’s family. But the way the man spoke of him was as though the mere connection was a curse on his soul. Honoria suspected a horrible fate lay in store for Lash should these men, his kin, ever find him weakened. She sent up a silent prayer that Lash remained out of sight.