Page 9 of I’ve Grown Accustomed to My Scot

Some men would insist it be given to them no matter how small. She held her breath as she waited.

“I have no need of your dowry,” he said stiffly, as if she had insulted him.

“Thank you.” She almost smiled and dipped her head so he couldn’t see. That action was automatic now, hiding her true feelings from those around her, in case it brought down more punishment upon her.

“Do you have anything else you wish to say?” he asked her.

She shook her head, but he was watching her closely now, and when his gaze dropped to her waist she knew he had another question for her, and she knew what it was.

Rory cleared his throat. “Are you breeding? Not that it matters to me, but I would like not to be caught out when the congratulations start.”

Grace met his eyes. “I am not,” she said firmly.

He looked puzzled, but then he shrugged and nodded. “Aye, very well then. I will take your word for it, and I will see you on our wedding day.” He grimaced. “And now I must go and inform my aunt that she is hosting my marriage. I am sure she will have much to say to me on the subject.”

With that, he bowed and left her. She heard the door opening and closing, and then he was gone. Grace supposed she should worry he was going to flee for the border, but she found she did not believe that. It was ridiculous, but for someone she had only just met and barely knew, she trusted him to honor his word.

And after what she had suffered with her father, and the lying Bolton, that was very strange indeed.

Chapter Five

As Rory had expected, Aunt Jennie was beside herself. She ranted and raved and strode about the room waving her arms. Bothwell took shelter beneath the furniture, peering out with wide eyes. Rory allowed her words to wash over him, nodding when necessary, apologizing when it seemed expedient, and even assuming a repentant pose when she threatened to evict him.

It took a while but eventually she began to calm down until finally she slumped into one of her brocade-covered chairs, looking exhausted. That was when he knelt at her feet and, taking her hands in his, spoke to her in his most appealing tone.

“Aunt Jennie. I promise you, if there had been any other way to save the lass, I would have taken it. Ormsby is a monster, and his daughter is terrified of him. I couldna leave her to suffer under his tyranny any longer. And truly, it makes no difference to me. Unlike Callum, I had no plans to marry, but a wife might come in useful.” He thought a moment and added, “One day.”

“Oh Rory!”

“I have informed her that we will live separate lives, so no feelings will be hurt when I don’t return home every night. Besides, she plans to use her dowry to live on. Probably somewhere in the country.” He waved a hand vaguely. “After the wedding we will no’ see each other again. Ever.”

Now that he had finished, his aunt seemed to be trying to gather her thoughts, and he could see there were a great many of them. “Rory, you may think that marrying Lady Grace will be a simple matter, but you can be sure complications will arise. Is she with child? There was talk about some rake who abandoned her.”

“Buckingham,” Rory said with a grimace. “And Grace assures me she is not breeding.”

“And you believe her?” his aunt asked in amazement. “Why would she tell you if she were? It would be in her interest to keep it secret until the last possible moment.”

Rory was surprisingly irritated by this. “I do believe her. Why would she lie when I am marrying her either way?”

His aunt looked at him as if she thought him a naïve fool and then gave a deep sigh. “I can see you have made up your mind to play the hero. You are making a grand gesture. But Rory, she will be your wife! You won’t be able to pretend she doesn’t exist. Dear lord, what will your father say?”

Rory leaned toward her and fixed his gaze urgently on hers. “That is why my father will no’ find out about any o’ this until the deed is done. I would like to have a chance to explain matters to him before he comes riding south to give me a tongue lashing.”

Jennie eyed him uneasily. “Be it on your own head, lad. But I think Maxwell will struggle, as I am, to understand why on earth you would put yourself in such a sticky situation.”

Rory groaned in frustration. “I’m no’ doing it on a whim, Auntie! I am doing it because I am an honorable man. Despite what some people may think of me, I was brought up to do the right thing. If you’d seen the terror in Grace’s eyes when Ormsby threatened to marry her to his footman, a great brute with a face like a plate! No, I couldna leave her to that fate.”

His aunt’s worried expression softened. “You are a good boy,” she said. “That poor lass, living in Ormsby’s house and having to listen to his insults every day. I used to feel sorry for his wife, but at least she stood between him and her daughter. Now that she is gone, there is nothing to stop the man’s cruelty. It wouldn’t surprise me if Grace had thrown herself at Buckingham in the hope he would marry her and take her away from all of that.”

Rory wondered if that was true. He said thoughtfully, “She is not Ormsby’s daughter, she told me that. But I believe there are other children who are?”

His aunt looked pensive. “Yes, two younger daughters. They are not out yet, but the eldest must be almost sixteen? Ormsby will be looking for a husband for her.” She gave a laugh that sounded more distracted than amused. “You might find yourself saddled with the lot of them, Rory! Grace and her sisters are close, and she will try to protect them as much as she can.”

Rory imagined a household with himself, a wife and her two sisters. And then he told himself that wasn’t going to happen. He had made it very clear to Grace that they would live separate lives. He had come to London to enjoy himself with no plans to be anyone’s husband or protector. He valued his freedom, and marrying Grace would change nothing.

Jennie stood up with the air of someone with a great deal to do. “If you will excuse me, Rory, I believe I have a wedding to plan! If that is still what you want?” she added, with a curious look.

He smiled. He had always been very fond of his mother’s sister, and she seemed to care for him too. “It is what I want, Aunt Jennie. Thank you.”