“Very well. I’ll take ye at yer word and accompany ye.”
Jane followed Darach as he walked from the courtyard and took a path that led up the hillside. Soon enough, they reached a spot that overlooked a small lake. At the top, the laird stopped and stared out over the water.
“My sister has had naething but praise for ye. She’s saying I might have misjudged ye at first.”
Jane folded her hands in front of her, gathering a bit of the material of her gown in her fingers. Being so close to him made her nervous. “She’s a wonderful woman. She flatters me much.”
Darach nodded. “So I believed. Yet she spent the night convincing me that this could be much better for the both of us if we are civil about things.”
Jane said nothing for she didn’t know how to respond, and for some reason, she didn’t want to lose the good grace she seemed to have fostered within him.
“We both ken why I have ye here and what I want, but I have tae ask ye first. Is there anything we can provide ye?”
Jane frowned. “My freedom, my laird. I want to depart today. If ye cannae spare a horse, I understand. I’ll leave on foot, though I would appreciate an escort tae yer border.”
He raised an eyebrow and gazed keenly at her. “On foot? Ye wouldn’t make it far, my lady. Ye’d be tossed over someone’s saddle and spirited away the moment ye left my lands.”
“Nae if I’m careful. And I can be very careful.”
“As careful as ye were when I abducted ye from yer home?”
Jane felt heat rise in her cheeks. “That’s different. I wasnae expecting—”
Faint amusement glittered in his eyes. “Does anyone ever expect tae be abducted?”
“Nay,” she whispered.
“Tell me something, my lady. Ye ken the ways of the lairds and their powers. Why would yer faither give me back my men if I let ye go tae him?”
“He would dae it in good faith,” Jane said fervently.
“And ye think a wise leader should wager his men’s lives on yer faither’s good faith? Would yer faither do the same for me?”
Jane looked away. She knew he was right and her father would never do that. Somehow, he had just wiggled her into a trap because they both knew the answer.
“I cannae let ye go, lass. The most I can do is give ye my protection.”
Jane scowled, unhappy with the direction this conversation was headed. She felt anger boil to the surface, frustrated. “Pardon me if I dinnaebelieve the man who kidnapped me when he promises to protect me!”
CHAPTERNINE
He knew Jane expected to see him annoyed, but instead he shook his head, a smile lifting the corners of his mouth. He could see the shock on her face as she stared at him in wonder.
There was no denying she was stunning, truly breathtaking. Even a simple dress like the one she was wearing couldn't conceal her beauty. Darach's eyes roamed her body. Her golden hazel eyes stared back at him. Her face was fair, with perfect angles and curves, anda pert nose. A long, graceful neck led his gaze down to an ample bosom, a sight to behold even from behind the dress. The mere thought of her breasts caused his manhood to twitch.
Jane MacThomas is quite the perfect lassie indeed.
He couldn’t imagine why she wasn’t married off yet, but he could guess that it was her own doing. She must have had proposals flooding the gates of the keep every day. Perhaps she scared all suitors off with her bravado.
Most lairds would rather a meek and quiet lady, who'll serve their needs in bed and birth them heirs, he mused.
Jane MacThomas was far from that.
“Have ye lost yer tongue, my laird?”
Darach chuckled as she illustrated all of his thoughts.
“Does something amuse ye?”