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“I saw that you both looked afraid, so I disarmed myself,” he replied, as he took out his dagger and threw it over to rest beside his sword. “I am not in the business of terrifying ladies.”
The two women looked at each other for a second, both thinking the same thing.
“You are quite frightening just as you are,” Keira remarked drily.
“You have seen me many times before,” he said, shrugging. “It is not my job to harm you but to defend you from harm. In case you do not know my name, it is—”
“Murdoch Holmes,” Adaira finished for him. “Captain of the Guard.”
Murdoch nodded. “Aye, milady.” He smiled, showing a row of even white teeth.
Keira gulped. Could this man be any more handsome? When their gazes locked again, she found it hard to look away from him. His eyes were a bright apple green and utterly mesmerizing, and he was looking at her in a way that made her body tremble and shiver in a way it never had before.
Eventually she asked him: “What do you need to say to me, Mr. Holmes?”
“I need your help,” he replied. “Your father has asked me to root out the source of the rebels or bandits or whatever they are who are wreaking havoc in the area and need to be stopped. I have tried, together with my second-in-command, to do this, but no one will give us any answers. Perhaps if both of you…” He looked at Adaira. “…could come and meet with the ordinary people, we could make them give us the information we need. We could call a meeting in the church just after the Sunday Service.”
“I am afraid I cannot help you,” Adaira replied. “I have only been married to the laird for a short while, and they do not know me. Besides, the laird would forbid me from doing any such thing. I am sorry.”
She turned her back on them and began to walk away slowly.
Keira’s heart almost broke when she saw her stepmother walk away. She had so much weight to carry on her slight soldiers that Keira did not want to add any more. A meeting in the church with the locals? Her father would never stand for it. He considered it beneath him to meet with the common folk and usually left it to his steward.
Murdoch looked back at Keira and saw the steely determination in her dark blue eyes. Nobody would ever mistake her for being a weak woman despite her willowy figure. She was strong as a young tree, able to stand up for herself, yet also able to bend in a strong wind. There must be a way to get through to her.Perhaps if I kiss her…He swiftly banished the thought from his mind.
“Will you help us, milady?” he asked, trying to keep the pleading note out of his voice. “These rebels must be stopped.”
Keira desperately wanted to say yes. She also wanted to know what it would feel like to be wrapped in his strong, safe arms, and she knew that if she threw herself into them, they would wrap around her and keep her safe from anything. However, she had a duty to the fellow members of her band of rebels, so she pushed down her attraction to him and shook her head.
“I don’t wish to be involved in clan matters,” she said firmly. “I am here to marry and make an alliance for my father, and I am no more than a broodmare, just as my stepmother is. I have no power, and he does not listen to me. He despises women. If I were a son, I would be of some use, but I am not. I am merely a girl. My function in life is to breed for the clan. Therefore I cannot become involved in clan affairs, and they do not interest me in the slightest. If you want help, ask your men. It is their work, after all.”
Murdoch felt a surge of anger inside him. This cosseted, privileged young woman, who had likely never had to worry about where her next meal was coming from, was turning her nose up at the ordinary people who toiled in the fields to keep her in the style to which she was accustomed.
He had been admiring her a moment ago, but he certainly had no such feelings for her now. He bowed politely, picked up his weapons, mounted his horse, and rode in front of them along the path, then urged his mount into a trot and disappeared. Keira stood looking after him, still furious. Yes, he might be the most handsome man she had ever seen, but he worked for her father, and whoever worked for her father was usually not her friend.
Presently, she caught up with Adaira, who noticed her expression straight away.
“What happened?” she asked. “You look absolutely furious.”
“That is likely because I am,” Keira replied through gritted teeth. “I cannot believe the nerve of the man. He is asking us to do his job for him! I have a fairly good name with our people, but I am not going to work for him.” Her tone was scathing. “He is in my father’s employ, and that means that he does his bidding. We will tackle this problem our own way, and the best way is by unseating him.”
Adaira nodded. “I just hope you know what you are doing, though, Keira.” Her tone was apprehensive. “I have heard that Murdoch is not a man to be trifled with. His men never disobey him, and he is very loyal to your father.”
“Exactly!” Keira growled. “I am not dealing with a man like that, and anyone who is a friend of my father is not a friend of mine!”
“Or mine,” Adaira added.
