That accounted for why the girls had been giving him those looks at the whist party. He remembered now that Fiona had mentioned they’d been invited to the art event, which was no surprise, since he suspected Louisa was a member of the group. But that meant Lorelei had been there, too. Alasdair’s gut clenched as if his horse had landed a well-shod hoof there. If she had heard—and believed—what Melissa had said…
Damnation. Things were getting complicated. The growing unrest in the Colonies had shifted both the king’s and prime minister’s attention away from mere land disputes between Scottish clans. That meant the decisions could very well be made by Parliament without intervention. Argyll was a powerful duke. More than ever, Alasdair needed an equally powerful duke for support, if that was what it came to. He needed Oakley on his side once the man actually returned. His clan was depending on him.
Meanwhile, what was he going to do about Melissa? And, more importantly, about Lorelei?
Chapter Fourteen
“Who is it from?” Lorelei looked at the envelope that had just been delivered to Fiona while they were having tea in the parlor.
She broke the plain wax seal and took out a single sheet of paper. “’Tis from Erik…Captain Taylor.”
Lorelei furrowed her brow while Louisa looked at her quizzically. “What does he want?”
Fiona scanned the short message. “He is inviting all three of us to lunch on his ship tomorrow.”
“All three of us?” Louisa asked.
“Aye.” She handed over the missive. “Mayhap ’tis his way of apologizing for leaving the whist party the other night.”
“Umm. That was rude of him,” Lorelei said. “He did put Louisa on the spot.”
Fiona nodded. “Alasdair gave me quite a talking to. He said Captain Taylor was a poor loser and I should have nothing to do with him.”
“That seems a little harsh,” Louisa said. “He might well have had crew arriving like he said he did. In any event, I hold no grudge.”
“Then you want to go?” Lorelei asked.
“If Fiona does, yes.”
“I do. Ships have always fascinated me.” Fiona turned to Lorelei. “Ye remember when ye first arrived at Strae Castle and I explained how ye’d put my brothers ‘in irons’ and ye all thought I meant manacles?”
Lorelei laughed. “I do remember that. You had to explain it was a sailing term that meant taking the wind out of their sails.”
“Aye. We do a lot of sailing on Loch Awe. But our vessels are small compared to something that can cross an ocean, which is why I want to see the captain’s ship.” Fiona smiled wickedly. “Besides, when do I ever do what Alasdair tells me to do?”
“You do have a point.” From what Fiona had said, Alasdair had practicallyorderedher to not see the captain when he’d stopped by the following day. Unfortunately, she and Louisa had walked over to the Marble Arch in Hyde Park to listen to a new poet that Louisa had heard of and had not been home.
“I am sure Alasdair only means well,” Louisa said. “My brothers can be annoying, too.”
“He may mean well, but he canna order me around. I am nae a bairn!” Fiona exclaimed. “Does he expect me to see nae a soul? He doesna like Gavin, he doesna like Erik…” She glanced at Lorelei. “I doona think he likes Lord Westwood, either. Besides,” she went on before anyone could say anything. “We doona tell him he shouldna be seeing Lady Melissa who we ken is a harpy.”
“I doubt he would listen,” Lorelei said. “Althoughharpyis as accurate a description as my term Medusa. Both were monstrous females who destroyed men.”
Louisa smiled at both of them. “As far as I know, Lady Melissa has never sprouted wings.”
Lorelei grimaced. “You know what we mean.”
“Yes, I am afraid I do.” Louisa sobered. “When I suggested she would be a good distraction for Mr. MacGregor, I didn’t realize how much she was going to use him.”
“You mentioned that before. You honestly believe she is only using Alasdair and does not really care about him?” Lorelei tried not to sound too hopeful.
“Lady Melissa has been an…acquaintance…for several years.” Louisa took a sip of tea. “She likes—maybeneeds—to be the center of attention. Especially male attention. Her first Season she achieved that, partially because she is a duke’s daughter, but she did not want to commit to anyone.”
Lorelei exchanged a glance with Fiona. “Somewhat like us?”
“Perhaps. In any case, her admirers were mostly rakes and rogues. I doubt her father would have approved of any of them.” She set her teacup down. “Lord Westwood was the best thing to happen to her last Season.”
“And you said you were not sure which one really rejected the other?”
