Page 18 of Secrets of a Kilted Seduction

“I suppose, but if I’m right about the clan’s intentions, I’m sure he’s sorry tae see ye have a husband. As far as he’s concerned, his plans tae marry ye off are ruined.”

“He kent I was married already, from the delegation,” she pointed out, replacing her cup in its saucer and picking up the half-finished bannock. “Anyway, ye cannae be sure that was their plan.”

“Och, come on, Alana, ye ken as well as I dae how these things work. Succession, continuin’ the bloodline, that’s all these powerful clans care about most of the time.”

“Look,” she said, holding the bannock in midair, “I didnae come here tae get married tae anyone. I came here tae find out if John MacIver really is me faither, and if he is, tae make him explain why he’s only just bothered tae come and find me now.”

“So, that’s why ye’re here? Because ye’re angry with yer faither?” he asked, realizing she really was angry about what she clearly saw as being abandoned.

“’Tis nae certain that he is me faither. But yes. I’d like tae give him a piece of

me mind.”

“But are ye nae forgettin’ that John MacIver has been abducted, so ye’ll nae

get the chance tae tell him what ye think of him? They want ye tae help them get him back.”

“But I already told Roger Huston I cannae be any help with that, as I already have a husband.” She glared at him and bit into the bannock.

“Aye, and we’d best keep up the pretense so they dinnae suspect ’tis a lie.

God only kens what might happen if they catch us.”

Alana chewed and swallowed. “Well, I suppose we’ll find out more once we hear what Blaine and his council have tae say about the situation.”

“Aye,” he replied with a sinking feeling in his belly. Putting his half-eaten food aside, having suddenly lost his appetite, he added drily, “I’m really lookin’ forward tae that.”

An hour or so later, washed and refreshed, they found themselves sitting side by side at the council table, the subject of great interest from the absent laird’s advisors, who were gathered around them. Blaine MacIver sat to the right, at the table’s head. Tadhg’s eyes ranged across the various faces, wishing he could read the thoughts behind them. Alas, such a feat was impossible, so he contented himself with paying close attention to all that was said. As he had expected, the focus was on Alana.

“So, as Roger here explained tae ye when the delegation spoke tae ye at Lennox Castle, Laird John MacIver has been abducted, and so far, we’ve nae been able tae locate him,” Blaine explained, nodding in Huston’s direction as he addressed Alana directly. “Our problem is, that although we suspect we ken who might have snatched him, we have nae proof. And even if we did, we dinnae have enough allies tae start a war tae retrieve him.”

“But none of this has anythin’ tae dae with me. I’ve never even met the man, so why did ye summon me here in the first place?” Alana replied.

“’Tis just a coincidence,” Blaine went on. “We’ve been lookin’ fer ye fer a long time, and we happened tae find ye when me faither was kidnapped.”

“Who’s been lookin’ fer me?” she asked.

“Me faither. Yer faither. Ye see, Alana, recently, we came across some old documents that seem tae prove that ye’re his illegitimate daughter by his former mistress, yer maither Ella. The documents show that when Ella was pregnant with ye, she went missing and disappeared off the face of the earth. But the documents dinnae say why or what happened back then tae make her vanish.”

Tadhg swallowed hard, for he knew exactly what had happened. Apparently, though, he was the only one who did, and he was certainly not about to blab. He fervently wished for the thousandth time that he did not know. Then, he would not have had to lie to Alana all this time or to leave her in the first place.

But it suddenly occurred to him how differently things could be playing out here, in the council room, if his past spying mission had been less successful. If he had not been forewarned about Alana’s true origins, then he would not have foreseen the likelihood of her being forced into an arranged dynastic marriage by the MacIvers now. He would not have seen the necessity to pretend to be her husband, to protect her from that possibility. Jaysus, why daes it have tae be so bloody complicated?!

“So, ye’re sayin’ nae one kens why me maither left here?” Alana asked. Blaine shook his head. “Aye, that’s right. The only reason we could think of is that me our faither sent her away when he found out she was expectin’ a bairn because he feared fer his marriage tae Lady Skye.”

“I see,” Alana answered quietly, nodding. Tadhg could see by the set of her jaw the anger she was feeling at that moment over what she clearly interpreted as John MacIver’s cruel dismissal of his pregnant mistress. “He used me maither, and then, when she became an embarrassment tae him, he banished her.”

Blaine frowned. “We dinnae ken that fer sure,” he said.

“That would explain why he didnae bother tae come and find me fer such a long time,” Alana murmured as if she had not heard Blaine’s words.

“Och, that’s what’s so strange about it all. He did,” Blaine assured her. “He

searched and searched, but like I say, yer maither had vanished. And after a while, when he had nae luck trackin’ her down, and because he and Lady Skye had nae bairns, he started tae worry about who would take over from him when he died, since he had nae clue if ye were alive at all.

“That was when he adopted me, gave me his name, and raised me from a lad as his son. Now, I’m his trusted advisor,” he added with an expression of pride. It soon turned into a pleading look aimed at Alana. “Can ye see now why it means so much tae me tae get him back safely?”

After the council meeting was finished, Alana and Tadhg began walking back to their chamber. He wanted to speak to her about what had happened in the meeting, but when they got to their door, she suddenly turned to him.