Ultimately, he would reign victorious. Of that he had no doubt.
“By the way…” Ewan fell in by Braden’s side. “What were you saying earlier about charming the wench? I don’t think yelling at her in front of the others was particularly charming.”
“I dinna yell at her.”
“Aye, you did,” Sin interjected. “You damn near took her head with your words.”
Realizing there was no use in fighting both of them, Braden sighed. “Very well, I shall endeavor to treat her more kindly when next we meet.”
“Yea,” Sin said with a pointed look. “You do that.”
At the moment, Braden felt like a man trapped in a bramble bush with thorns prickling him all about. “I shall,” he said between gritted teeth.
Aye, he’d treat her more kindly all right. And when he had her feasting from his hand, they would all owe him much.
“Did you see the way Braden was looking at you?” Pegeen asked a short time later as she and Maggie left the dormitory room where they had deposited Bridget.
“Aye. Like a cat eyeing a mouse it wants to torture.”
Pegeen gave an undignified snort. “Hardly. The man is enamored of you.”
“The man is enamored of anything female.”
Anything, that is, except me.
“Maggie,” Pegeen chided. “What has gotten into you? ‘Tis not like you to be so uncharitable toward anyone.”
Maggie paused in the narrow corridor. Her friend was right. All her life, Maggie had been kind to anyone she met. Even her brothers had been impressed with her ability to settle squabbles and maintain a level head.
But Braden had always flustered her. Every time he came near, her heart pounded, her hands shook, and her senses reeled. He, alone, knocked her off keel and sent her careening out of control.
And all the while, he treated her kindly, but kept her at a respectful distance. Never once had he looked at her and actually seen her as a woman.
All these years she had yearned for some acknowledgment from him. Some sign that she wasn’t invisible.
But no sign had ever come. Ever.
Sighing, Maggie spoke. “Pegeen, have you ever wanted something so badly that you ached to the core of your very soul for it?”
Pegeen furrowed her brow in thought. “I’m not sure I know what you mean.”
Maggie leaned against the wall, her thoughts churning. I’m such a gooseling fool. Long ago, she had given her heart to a man who didn’t know she existed. She’d watched him grow from a callow youth into a rogue to be reckoned with. Every time she had heard tales of Braden’s exploits, her heart had broken a bit more. For with every conquest he made, she knew it took him farther away from her.
After a time, she’d come to realize that nothing she did would draw Braden’s attention. Not the tarts or pastries she had made especially for him on the days she knew he would be coming to her home. Not even the rich perfume Anghus had brought her years ago from his only journey to Ireland. Sweet, wonderful perfume she had worn for Braden’s notice.
Well, he had noticed that all right. He’d sneezed until his eyes watered.
But in the end, she’d been forced to admit her love was completely and utterly unrequited.
To her, Braden was everything. He was the moon, the sun, the very air she breathed. And now he was back, spouting kind words and touching her with those wondrous hands of his. Kissing her fingers in a way no unmarried woman of virtue should allow, and yet she’d been powerless to stop him.
For her, it was a dream come true.
But for him it was a means to an end.
No matter how much she might want to pretend otherwise, she knew the truth of it. To him, she was merely another conquest to be added to the others. Or worse, an obstacle for him to remove so that his brother could continue the feud.
He only saw her today because his brother had made him see her. She held no delusions of that one basic fact.
