“Och, the Cause,” Fiona said. “I will be glad when the prince finally puts King George in his place and we can go back to having fun again.”
“That is my wish as well,” Alcho replied. “I miss the ceilidhs and sharing a dance with ye.”
“Hopefully, soon. Soon.” Fergus said. “Mayhap this will all be over.”
Charlotte wished it would as well, but not for the reasons they’d just given. Right now, she didn’t care about parties and dances. Culloden wouldn’t take place if the English were defeated at Falkirk.
“So what brings ye to my office?” Fergus asked his daughter after Alcho left. “Ye doona come verra often.”
“Keir mentioned your new clerk was the one I met earlier. The one who was visiting the Frasers.” She glanced at Charlotte. “I didna expect ye’d be staying long enough to seek employment.”
Although Fiona’s tone was pleasant enough, Charlotte knew the words were code forWhy are you still here?Or more likely, if the steely glint in the other girl’s eyes was any clue,When are you leaving?She thought quickly. “I won’t be able to return home for a bit, so I thought I’d make myself useful.”
That was true since she had no idea of how—or if—she’d return to her own century. Strangely, that thought no longer produced the panic it originally had, but that was because of her emerging feelings toward Niall. Feelings she should be repressing, from what Greer had told her. She would have to be careful not to display those thoughts, not with anyone—but especially not with Fiona.
Fergus nodded. “Miss MacGregor has been quite helpful these past days.”
“So Keir has said.” Fiona smiled brightly although the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “I decided I need to get to know this talented lady better. I thought we might go to lunch.”
“Excellent idea!” Her father all but beamed at her. “That is very kind of ye, daughter.”
“’Tis the least I can do,” she answered, “since it seems she is quite alone in these parts.”
Charlotte wanted to say that she was sitting right there, but she really wouldn’t have minded if the floor had opened up and let her disappear. The last thing she wanted to do was go to lunch with Fiona. It would be an inquisition, and she didn’t have answers for lots of questions. She would also have to tread carefully on being quizzed about Niall, which she was sure was Fiona’s real purpose.
Then again, maybe she could find out some answers of her own.
****
“So where is home?” Fiona asked, once they were seated in the dining area of an inn a few blocks away.
Remembering that she was using the name MacGregor and not Campbell, Charlotte thought quickly. Since the MacGregors were proscribed they had lost many of their holdings and, given the bounty the English were offering, they were known as Children of the Mist since they would quickly disappear into it. Where was it misty a lot of the time? She wished Thea were here, because her friend was spot-on with geography. Then she remembered an area she had visited once before. The Trossachs.
With the combinations of several lochs and high monros, low-lying fog and mist covered much of the area. Still, better not to be too specific, especially since she was making this up. “Near Loch Lomond.” She sighed slightly. “But I’m afraid we no longer have an actual home, thanks to the English.”
Fiona gave her a steady look. “In that case, I would think ye’d be happy to be betrothed to the man ye are running away from.”
Charlotte started. “Where did you hear that?”
“I overheard Niall telling my brother.”
What else had Niall shared? Or when? Not that it probably mattered. People were bound to inquire about a “guest” who seemed to be a permanent resident at the Frasers. She might have to do some more thinking about her alibi, though. One of the reasons she always outlined the plots for her novels was because it was too easy to trip up on the details if she didn’t. This time, she wasn’t writing a novel. She was plotting the imaginary history about her life. If she were caught in a lie, she’d be booted out of Castle Dounie by either Niall’s father or Simon and maybe even by Niall himself. She suspected he wouldn’t forgive being deceived.
Fiona widened her eyes. “Is it nae true?”
She must have been quiet for too long. “Yes… it’s true.” She shrugged. “I just do not like talking about it.”
“What was wrong with him?”
Most people would have let the matter drop, but obviously Fiona wasn’t one of them. “He… We just did not suit.”
“Why nae?”
Charlotte suppressed her favorite cuss word. The girl wasn’t going to give up. She thought about her cousin Colin Grant, currently living innocently in Texas. Maybe she could describe him. “The man is older than me and has been married before.” Not a lie. Colonwastwo years older andhadbeen married briefly to a woman he’d met online. It hadn’t worked out.
Fiona’s eyes narrowed speculatively. “Ye are looking for a younger man who’s single?”
Oh-oh. Charlotte knew wherethatquestion was going. No way was she going to admit being attracted to Niall. “I am not looking for anyone.”
