Sleepless in Scotland (15 page)

Dougal lifted his brows. “Knowing you as I do, I could believe you returned dead quicker than wed.”

“It’s true.” Hugh took a chair across from Dougal, planted his heels on the settee, and crossed his ankles.

Dougal looked at his brother’s boots with disdain. “Heathen.”

“Fop.”

“But a well-mannered fop, at least.” Dougal eyed Hugh with interest. “Liam seems to think you were forced to marry after getting caught in a compromising position with a vicar’s daughter, no less. How close is he to the truth?”

Hugh took a deep drink of the port. “That’s a crude version of events, but accurate.”

Dougal lifted his brows. “You seem quite calm.”

“I’m resigned. That’s a different thing altogether.”

“Hmm. What’s her name?”

“Caitriona Hurst.” Hugh paused. “MacLean.”

“Hurst? Isn’t that the chit Alexander was flirting with when I was in London last month?”

“No, that’s her sister Caitlyn. My wife goes by Triona, but it doesn’t suit her.”

Dougal looked at Hugh curiously. “What name does?”

“I don’t know, but Triona is too…plain.”

“Ah, so she’s a beauty.”

“She’s…” Hugh stared into his glass. “She’s unique.”

Dougal waited, but Hugh offered no more. Shifting in his chair, Dougal said cheerfully, “Hurst, eh? Good Scottish stock, then.”

“She must be, though you won’t detect an accent. Her family resides at the vicarage at Wythburn, north of London.”

Dougal leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “So, how did this happen?” he asked quietly.

Hugh rubbed a hand over his face. “I warned Alexander about flirting with the sister, but he just laughed. He left town for a week and I used your bribing-the-footman trick to watch the chit. I discovered that Caitlyn was setting a trap for Alexander to garner an offer of marriage, and I meant to thwart the scheme. Meanwhile, Caitriona was attempting to stop the plan as well—but somehow we both got caught instead.”

“You could find no other way out?”

“I couldn’t leave Caitriona to deal with the scandal on her own.”

“There was a scandal?”

Hugh’s expression grew grim. “It was all over town in a trice. Our names were even entered into the wager books at White’s.”

Dougal whistled silently. “And of course, being who you are, you could do no less than marry the chit.”

“It was more my fault than you realize. If I hadn’t been so intent on punishing the sister, I never would have compromised Caitriona. My temper got the best of me.”

“Does Alexander know?”

Hugh shook his head.

“He will be furious that you interfered in his affairs.”

“I have larger concerns at the moment.”

“I suppose you do—such as what your daughters will think, finding themselves with a new mother.”

Hugh’s brows snapped together. “Those girls are
my
children. They are
my
responsibility and no one else’s. Caitriona will stay here for a few months only, and then she will return to her family home.”

“What?” Dougal’s brows rose. “Does she agree with that?”

“I gave her no other option.”

Dougal sighed. “Hugh, you cannot judge all women by Clarissa—”

Hugh was instantly on his feet, and outside a wall of wind slammed into the house, rattling the windows. “Don’t speak that woman’s name in this house ever again! I won’t have it.”

Dougal threw up his hands. “Very well! I’m sorry!”

The wind subsided as Hugh dropped back into his chair, his face grim. “Caitriona is nothing like her. If she had been, I wouldn’t have married her, no matter the circumstances.”

“I’m surprised you brought her here.”

He shot a hard look at Dougal. “I had no choice. You know I dare not be gone for long.”

“True.” Dougal leaned back in his chair. “You are caught between hell and high water, aren’t you?”

“Yes, I am. So…what do I do now?”

“Oh, no, you don’t! The last time I gave you advice, it had to do with purchasing a certain mare that drew up lame. After abusing me for
months,
you told me you’d never ask for my opinion again.”

“You know next to nothing about horses, but you have excellent taste in women. Sophie is a wonder.”

Pride flared through Dougal and he couldn’t help puffing out his chest. “I did well, didn’t I?” Though to be honest, he wasn’t so sure he’d picked Sophie as much as she’d picked him. “I’m not quite sure what sort of advice you want. If this woman is nothing like She Whose Name Shall Not Be Spoken, then what has you worried?”

Hugh stared into his empty glass, his expression dark. Finally, he said, “When I first met the girls’ mother, I was besotted, wild for her. I couldn’t eat, sleep, or think of anything else.” His smile twisted with disdain. “I don’t know how any of you put up with me.”

“You were a youth, so of course you were annoying.” Dougal shrugged. “We knew you’d come out of it, and eventually you did.”

“Still, it disrupted the entire household, and for months none of us spoke.” Hugh shook his head. “Now that my daughters are here and I am providing a home for them, I can’t allow anything—or anyone—to disrupt our lives. They’ve had enough difficulties already; I can’t be responsible for adding more.”

Dougal poured more port into his glass. Damn it, he wished Sophia were here. She was a fount of wisdom about the human heart and its complexities, something Dougal didn’t even pretend to understand.

Yet now Hugh—who rarely asked for help of any sort, except in keeping an eye on the girls when he had to attend to business in London—was asking for Dougal’s opinion on that very subject.

Stalling for time, Dougal said, “Do you have reason to think ill of your new wife? What is she like?”

Hugh shrugged. “She’s quite attractive and about this high”—Hugh held out a hand to his shoulder—“with dark blond hair and hazel eyes. And she wears spectacles.”

“So far, I hear nothing to cause alarm.”

Hugh smiled faintly. “She gives as good as she gets, and she’s as stubborn as the day is long.”

Was that grudging admiration Dougal heard in his brother’s voice?

Hugh raked a hand through his hair. “Dougal, I need to ensure that when Caitriona leaves in a few months, we can all return to our normal lives without pain.”

Without pain? “You expect to miss her?”

“Not me,” Hugh said sharply. “The girls! I don’t want them to grow fond of Caitriona.”

“Ah! I thought—” Dougal frowned. “Hugh, are
you
attracted to this woman?”

To his surprise, Hugh turned red.

Dougal blinked. Hugh?
Blushing?
“I suppose that’s a yes.”

“She’s a dashed pretty woman, so of course I find her attractive! To be honest, I’m looking forward to having her in my bed. But that does not blind me to the fact that, because of their mother’s shortcomings, my daughters might be susceptible to Caitriona. They want a real mother, and I don’t want them to grow fond of her over the coming weeks.”

“And thus miss her when she leaves.” Dougal shrugged. “Then don’t let them grow close.”

“How? If I tell the girls to stay away from her, they will become wildly curious about her, and if I tell Caitriona not to speak with them, she’ll do it just to show me she can.”

“That
is
a difficult situation.” Dougal mulled this over. “Perhaps…perhaps you could just keep Caitriona busy.”

“Busy?”

“Yes, too busy to entertain the girls and develop a relationship.” Hugh immediately looked hopeful, and Dougal gave himself a mental pat on the back.

“That’s a good thought. I could ask Caitriona to make certain that various chores are done—the big ones we usually do in the spring—and take the girls to work with me at the stables whenever possible.”

Dougal leaned back and silently toasted himself. Sophia would be so proud he was helping Hugh; she was forever telling him how important it was that they talk to one another.

Hugh nodded thoughtfully. “I can do that.”

“You train horses; women are not so different.”

“That’s a very good point,” Hugh said, looking much struck. “Horses are skittish in nature, too.”

“Emotional.”

Hugh nodded. “There are parallels.”

“Just don’t tell your woman that, unless you fancy sleeping alone the rest of your life.”

Hugh grinned. “Afraid I’ll tell Sophia you suggested it?”

“Of course not,” Dougal said in a lofty tone. “Besides, we were not speaking of me and Sophia. So, what are you going to tell this wife of yours?”

“I will give her a list of chores to oversee that should keep her, and the entire household, in a tizzy for weeks. The girls thirst for a real mother. Given even the smallest encouragement, they would latch on to Caitriona.”

“Maybe she doesn’t have to leave in three months,” Dougal suggested.

Hugh frowned. “I have no room in my life for a woman, much less a wife. Furthermore, I vowed to protect my daughters from harm, and they would be deeply hurt if they grew to care for whoever I married and the relationship failed.”

Dougal poured more port into his and Hugh’s glasses. “What did Caitriona say when you told her about the children?”

Hugh was silent.

Dougal lowered his glass. “You
have
told her, haven’t you?”

“No.”

“Good God, why not?”

“At first because we were mere strangers, and I’m not one to discuss the children anyway. Then I was busy arranging things for the damned marriage, and…well, I forgot.”

“What about on the way here?”

“It seemed such an awkward thing to blurt out.” Hugh sighed. “Damn it, I never wanted to marry! If I could have found a better way to deal with the scandal, I’d have done it, but I had no choice. Then I spent the entire trip here trying not to—” He glowered. “I will tell her first thing in the morning.”

“Good. See that you do.”

Hugh finished his drink and stood. “I know what I need to do,” he growled. “It’s just damnably inconvenient.”

“Consciences work like that.”

Hugh made his way to the door. “Yes, well, I’d be better off without mine.”

“Nonsense. The girls need your stellar example. Besides, it takes a lot of pressure off of me.”

“Pompous ass.”

Dougal just grinned.

Hugh reached the door and hesitated. “Dougal, thank you for the advice. You’ve given me something to think about.”

“If Sophia had been here, I’m sure she would have told you the same thing.” Dougal thought for a moment. “Except the part about training women and horses.” He put down his glass. “Meanwhile, I suggest you find a gentle way to tell your new bride the rules of the house, including that you have three lovely daughters and she’s to leave them alone. Be firm, but fair—you know how it’s done. Your horses are the best trained in the entire country. Shall I return the girls in the morning?”

“After breakfast, if you don’t mind. I’ll need a little time to inform my new bride of everything.”

“I shall be off, then.” With a flourishing bow, Dougal sauntered out of the sitting room.

In the hall, he took his coat and hat from the footman, slipping the lad a shiny coin.

Liam beamed. “Thankee, m’lord!”

“You’re quite welcome. Now that his lordship has a new bride, I may need your services even more.”

Liam placed a finger beside his nose and gave Dougal an exaggerated wink.

Dougal chuckled. “Good lad! I shall expect to hear from you.” He knew it wouldn’t be all smooth sailing for Hugh. As Dougal well knew, any woman worth her salt would take a list of rules as a challenge. That was how he and Sophia had started their own courtship, after all—with a challenge.

His lovely wife had been a crack gambler and had brazenly challenged Dougal to a series of card games in an effort to win back the house her father had lost. Naturally, Dougal hadn’t been able to turn from such a tempting offer, especially one with golden hair and the lushest mouth he’d ever seen.

Now he realized his hot pursuit had come from more than mere pride, but at the time he’d have sworn the whole thing had to do with Sophia’s defiant attitude.

It would be good for Hugh and his Caitriona to face challenges; that was the true stuff of life.

Dougal walked out into the crisp night air where his horse awaited. At least there would be something interesting to do while Sophie was in Edinburgh. When he brought the girls home, perhaps he’d stay here for a few days, too.

The fireworks should be very entertaining.

Chapter 10

“Not all surprises are welcome, ye know. Some are hard, cold facts that run ye down and leave ye in shock.”

O
LD
W
OMAN
N
ORA TO HER THREE WEE GRANDDAUGHTERS ON A COLD WINTER’S NIGHT

T
riona awoke slowly, wonderfully warm and cocooned in fresh sheets. She smiled at the delicious warmth, moving her legs to untangle herself from the bedding. Then she realized that she wasn’t just tangled, but trapped, almost as if—

Her eyes flew open and she realized she was securely tucked against Hugh MacLean, her back against his chest, his arm holding her against him, their legs entwined.

She’d thought they might have separate bedchambers; many married couples did. Still, she savored the coziness of feeling so protected. His arm was a comforting weight on her shoulders, his hand loosely curled over one breast, which caused her breath to quicken. But it was the feel of his legs, tangled with hers where her night rail had slipped up around her knees, that made her want to snuggle deeper in his arms.

His skin was so warm. She could feel the powerful muscles of his calves and thighs, and the rough hair on his chest—

Was he
naked
?

She sat straight up, scrambled from between the sheets, and jumped out of bed, her feet sinking into the plush rug.