A Wallflower at the Highland Court: A Slow Burn Highlander Romance Read online

  “He didn’t do aught other than offer me a moment of sympathy.”

  “Sympathy for what? Why was he embracing you? And you still haven’t told me why you’re crying.”

  “I overheard something I wasn’t intended to, and it saddened me. He heard, too, and comforted me when he found me upset. Naught more.”

  Kieran listened to the two women, and his heart slowed when he was confident Maude wouldn’t accuse him of any untoward behavior. However, he couldn’t agree with her summation that there was nothing more. There had been plenty more for him, and his semi-aroused rod agreed. He’d never enjoyed holding a woman more than he did Maude. He regretted that his sister and her friends upset her, but his arms ached to encircle her again. She felt perfect.

  “Maude, what did you overhear?” Arabella’s voice softened, and Maude wanted to cry yet again. She hated the pity that colored Arabella’s voice.

  “I don’t want to talk aboot it. At least not right now and not here.” The other women humiliated Maude enough without having to repeat everything so her unknown protector could hear her shame again.

  Arabella pulled Maude into her arms, and while her friend’s embrace comforted her, it wasn’t the same as the one she had received in the dark.

  “You haven’t introduced yourself,” Arabella squinted at the hulking figure. She hadn’t realized the man was so large until he stepped into the light. His face seemed familiar. Maude turned to face her mystery protector and couldn’t believe she could be so unlucky in one night.

  “Oh dear God, no.” Maude shook her head as she tried to back away. Her humiliation was a fait accompli. While she wasn’t acquainted with the man, he was easy to recognize.

  “What? Do you know him?” Arabella looked between the man and Maude several times.

  “No, but how can you not tell he’s Madeline’s brother? They look too much alike to be otherwise.” Maude glanced around, looking for a way out of this untenable conversation, and considered running into the gardens. She was sure Arabella and this still unnamed man would follow her.

  “Laird Kieran MacLeod.” He bowed as he took Maude’s hand and bussed a kiss onto the back of it. She was unaccustomed to such courtly manners directed toward her. She assumed it was perfunctory before his attention would settle on Arabella, as it inevitably always did. He stunned her when Arabella only received a nod and a glance from him. “I must apologize for my sister’s cruelty. I’m ashamed on her behalf, and I wish I could take it back. I will have words with her.”

  “No!” Maude practically shouted. She shook her head with vehemence. “Don’t either of you say a word aboot this. Please. It’s embarrassing enough without them discovering I overheard them. It’ll only make them believe they were successful.”

  “Maude,” Kieran liked how her name sounded as he spoke it for the first time, and from the flair of her nose and the rise of her chest, she seemed to like it too. “Madeline doesn’t need to ken you were here too. I’ll tell her I was returning from the gardens and couldn’t help overhearing them.”

  Kieran watched color flood Maude’s face as she glanced at the garden and then him. He watched her eyes dart to his waist and then away. He realized she understood why he had been in the garden, and for some reason, shame filled him even more. Arabella’s hardened expression told him she understood, too. But it was before he even knew Maude existed, he reasoned with himself.

  “Please, no. Just leave be. The less said the better,” Maude sighed.

  “I wish that I could, buttercup.” Kieran wanted to bite his tongue as the endearment slipped out. It was one thing to use it when he and Maude were alone, and he attempted to comfort her. It was a different matter to do it in front of her friend. “I won’t mention that I met you or that you were anywhere near here, but I can’t let Madeline’s behavior stand. It’s a disgrace to our name. If she speaks this way aboot you, I can only imagine what she is saying aboot other people. Her loose tongue could do more damage than she realizes. Hurt feelings destroy alliances all the time. Besides that, I abhor her willing cruelty. It’s disgusting, and hardly ladylike.” Kieran forced himself to stop speaking before he became guilty of his sister’s sin and spoke too ill of her in front of others.

  “Do as you must,” Maude sighed again.

  The resignation in her tone once more made Kieran wish to protect her. Disregarding her friend, Kieran lifted Maude’s chin and leaned next to her ear to whisper.

  “They arenae men. They havenae a bluidy clue what they’re talking aboot. You can take those words to the grave, lass.” He placed a kiss on the corner of her jaw before pulling away.

  Maude stared up at Kieran as she processed what he said. A smile made the corner of her mouth twinge as she nodded.

  “Thank you.”

  “I bid you good eve, ladies. I have a little sister to find.” Kieran once more bowed to Maude but didn’t even look at Arabella. Maude wondered if she’d be insulted by the slight. They watched him walk back to the doorway where he discovered Maude and disappeared into the Great Hall.

  Chapter Three

  Maude and Arabella didn’t speak until they reached their chamber. Once inside, Maude yanked at the laces to her gown, but Arabella swatted her hands away before they became knotted.

  “What was that aboot?” Arabella checked her tone as she pulled Maude’s laces through the eyelets. She didn’t want to sound accusatory, but it had stunned her to see her friend in a man’s embrace. Not because she thought Maude didn’t deserve a man’s attention, but because she was terrified for her friend’s reputation. If anyone else found them, Maude would be betrothed as they spoke.

  “I stepped outside to get some fresh air.” Maude began as she pulled the kirtle from her shoulders. The freedom eased her aching ribs. “I was aboot to come back inside when I heard my name. I stopped and listened. And now I wish I hadn’t. Madeline, Laurel, and Cairstine were discussing my many and singular flaws. They described all the ways in which I’m unappealing to a man and how my da will have to bribe a man to want me.”

  Arabella snorted, then giggled before covering her mouth as her friend’s distressed expression reminded her that her reaction was inappropriate.

  “They didn’t see the way Kieran MacLeod was looking at you. He was salivating as though you were the first meal he’d had in a sennight.”

  “Stop, Bella. You don’t have to make me feel better.” Maude walked to the jug of lemon verbena-scented water and basin. She scrubbed her face and neck before changing out of her chemise and into her nightgown. She had given up trying to hide from Arabella while she changed, but she still turned her back.

  “Gracious! Your maid did tie the gown far too snug. You have lines all across your back.” Arabella winced when she realized how much pain Maude must have endured that evening.

  “She was only trying to help.”

  “Everyone is always just ‘trying to help.’ I wish they’d leave you alone.” Arabella walked to her own jug of rosewater and washed her face.

  “Anyway.” Maude didn’t want to discuss how her maid swore she’d make Maude appear thinner if she pulled just a little harder before tying the laces. “He came from the gardens and heard the women’s voices. He stopped and listened but noticed me. I guess I moved at some point. He sneaked up behind me and teased me aboot being too curious. When I turned around, he realized who I was. There could be little doubt since I was crying. Before I understood what was happening, he pulled me into his arms and comforted me. Then you came looking for me.”

  Arabella assessed her before raising an eyebrow. “Just how long was he holding you in his arms before I came out?”

  “He wasn’t holding me,” Maude denied. “He embraced me and told me not to worry aboot what they said.”

  “He was holding you. I saw him. I also saw how he looked at you when you were looking at me. I can’t explain it, but it was a glare, a warning to me and concern for you. Along with a strong dose of lust.”

  “Bella, don
’t. I told you, you don’t need to make me feel better. I’d rather you stop trying to make me think men are interested when I know they’re not. He caught sight of my bust like most men do, but that’s it. I’m sure he could feel I’m--” Maude shook her head, unsure how to finish. “It embarrassed him when he discovered his sister’s behavior, and he tried to make me feel better. I’m sure he felt guilty.”

  “He felt a few things, and guilt might have been one of them, but that’s not what I saw. He tried to protect you and pushed you behind him when I approached.”

  “So he had good manners? He must have known what would happen if anyone else caught us.”

  “And yet he persisted in holding you against him. I’m telling you, the look he shot me was protective. It was almost as if he dared me to speak against you. Once he realized we are friends, the expression was like he wanted to comfort you and devour you all at the same time.”

  Maude climbed into bed and waited for Arabella to do the same before snuffing out her candle.

  “Good night, Bella. And good night to your overactive imagination.”

  “Humph. Night, love.”

  Maude lay on her side, staring into the dark. This time there was no mystery man in the shadows. There was just nothingness. It fit how she felt. She replayed his final words in her head, but they made little sense. Or rather, they didn’t make sense when said to her. She couldn’t fathom how they had anything to do with her, so she assumed he’d merely attempted to make her feel better. But once again, the meaningless words made her heart feel hollow. She wished she could fall asleep at court and wake up in her chamber at home.

  * * *

  Maude rubbed her eyes as she came awake to the sound of Arabella and her maid moving about. She looked over to see Arabella fully dressed and her hair nearly done. Maude glanced toward her dresser and spotted her own maid brushing out her kirtle. She pushed back the covers and slipped from the bed.

  “We should’ve been quieter,” Arabella frowned. “I’m sorry we woke you.”

  “Sorry? Thank goodness you did. I’ll be late as it is. Why’d you let me oversleep?”

  “Because you must be exhausted not to wake up before me. Are you poorly?” Arabella stepped away from her maid with her hair falling out of the unfinished braid. She approached Maude and looked over her face as though she searched for an invisible malady.

  “Naught is wrong with me. I had a headache last night, but I’m well this morning. I suppose I just needed a little extra sleep.” Maude encouraged her maid to hurry to assist her with her gown. “Not so tight, if you please.”

  While the maid assisted Maude into her stockings and chemise, Maude awkwardly balanced as she twisted her hair into a bun she secured with copious pins. She was certain that was part of what gave her headaches. It wasn’t just the weight of her hair, but all the pins that dug into her scalp. If she were at home, she could have gotten away with wearing her hair in a long braid down her back, but she learned soon after her arrival that the other ladies called her a country bumpkin for looking like a milkmaid. She resorted to wrapping her hair into a tight circle instead. It was only for feasts that she would sit while her maid braided her hair into more intricate styles.

  Once Maude and Arabella were ready, they made their way to the queen’s dining hall, where the other ladies-in-waiting were gathering to break their fast. Arabella led Maude to a spot where several of Arabella’s friends sat. Maude believed she had a vicarious friendship with most of the women only because Arabella befriended her, and that was why they welcomed Maude at the table. She spotted Madeline and Laurel sitting a few spots down and across the table from her. The glare Madeline sent her told her Kieran must have spoken to her already. Maude lowered her head in prayer before beginning her porridge. Arabella was busy speaking with Cairren Kennedy and Blair. Maude and Blair had argued with the Mistress of the Bedchamber when she assigned them separate rooms upon their arrival. The woman had refused to entertain their complaints and insisted she separate them. It had been fine for Blair, who was far more sociable than Maude and who made friends with ease. Maude had been fortunate to move into Arabella’s chamber after her former roommate returned home. The separation allowed Blair and Maude to become more independent, but it was times like the night before when she missed Blair climbing into bed next to her. She smiled at her sister and gave her a speaking glance, to which Blair nodded. They would find each other after the meal to talk.

  “Should we ask a stable hand to find you a shovel? You’d be able to inhale that porridge faster.” Madeline taunted. When Maude refused to answer, remaining focused on her meal, Madeline slid closer on the bench. Arabella, Cairstine, and Blair stopped talking, and Maude saw her sister lean forward. She placed a fist on the table, and her sister saw their sign to stop. “Thanks to you, the queen overheard my brother harping on aboot me being unkind to you. Now I have an afternoon of prayer to look forward to.”

  “Thanks to Maude?” Cairren asked in confusion.

  “Aye. My brother overheard part of a conversation last night that wasn’t intended for him, and he took pity on the poor wretch and chewed my ear off this morning. Of course, he doesn’t know how to whisper, so the queen overheard since he waylaid me outside the hall just as she was entering.”

  “If she weren’t so pathetic,” Laurel chimed in. “He wouldn’t have pitied her enough to say aught. He doesn’t even know you and he thinks you’re pathetic.”

  Maude looked up, the stubbornness that got her in trouble as a child rearing its head. She looked at Madeline and Laurel but said nothing. Her gaze dared them to say more. She was aware her expression could intimidate, so she enjoyed seeing the discomfort her adversaries experienced as she continued to stare. Madeline looked at the pitcher of cream near her right hand, and a cruel gleam entered her eyes. Maude sensed what was coming, but with other women on the bench, she couldn’t push back far enough to escape the liquid splashing down the front of her as the jug rolled across the table.

  “My pardon, Maude. I’m usually not so clumsy,” Madeline purred.

  “Bitch,” Blair growled as she stood and looked ready to reach across the table. “You did that on purpose, and we all ken it.”

  “Blair,” Maude warned. She eased from her seat and notched up her chin. She forced her hands not to reach for her unfinished bowl of porridge. Chucking it in Madeline’s face wouldn’t endear her to the queen, and her parents would be livid if they learned of it. “It’s not her fault that those mitts of hers are so ham-handed.”

  Madeline screeched as the other ladies giggled. Maude stepped away from the table, certain Madeline wouldn’t have her restraint. She didn’t want to wear any more of the morning meal than she already did. She turned on her heel and walked to the exit. Arabella and Blair would have more to say to Madeline, and she had no remorse.

  * * *

  Kieran’s gaze followed the velvet-clad woman as she hurried down the passageway. He recognized Maude at once, even though her back was to him. He didn’t understand how he could be so certain, but he was.

  “Excuse me,” he muttered to the other men he milled about with as they waited to make their way to the lists. His long strides made it easy to catch up with Maude, but he waited until they turned a corner and were out of sight before he reached for her arm. She tugged it away, and a fist came flying toward his jaw. It was close to his shoulder before Maude realized at whom she aimed.

  “Apologies. You startled me. You’re very silent.” Maude felt thick-tongued as she took in Kieran’s appearance in the full light of day. She had suspected he was handsome, but she was unprepared for his rugged good looks. His tawny hair had touches of carrot to it, but rather than looking garish, it gave the tone richness. His eyes were gray with a touch of green. It made for an unusual combination. She remembered how his broad frame encompassed her the night before as his large but gentle hands slid over her hair and back. In the dark, it had been impossible to tell just how large Kieran was. In the daylight
, it was clear that he was a veritable mountain. It was clear he was a Highlander by his size and his bearing. He was similar in build to her father and brother, she realized; that was why his hug seemed familiar. However, the men in her family didn’t draw her like Kieran did. Women ogled her four braw cousins--Callum, Alex, Tavish, and Magnus—but never had the Sinclair brothers made her breath catch in the back of her throat.

  Heat rushed through Kieran as she offered him her half-smile. He perceived she didn’t wear it often. It was genuine; not a courtly smile that he was sure she employed throughout the day. His eyes gorged on the ample bust hidden under her kirtle. The top of her cleavage showed, and he wished for nothing more than the chance to run his tongue along the deep crevice. He appreciated the trim waist that had been firm and curvy in his hands the night before, and he forced himself not to gaze at hips he wanted to thrust against. Randy thoughts were stirring his rod, and his breeks would again display his interest if he didn’t calm himself. Instead, his brow furrowed as he noticed the kirtle had a long stain running from the middle of her chest to where the material would have pooled while she sat. There was a faint scent of dairy as he sniffed. He smelled lemon verbena, but he also caught the odor of milk.

  “A little mishap?” He kept his voice low. As soon as she heard his words, her smile vanished and a stubborn set to her jaw took its place. He understood two things in that moment: she had more mettle than the other women gave her credit for, and his sister was responsible for the mess. “What did she do?”

  “I think it’s rather obvious. Excuse me, but I must hurry.” Maude turned to continue down the passageway, but Kieran matched her stride. When they rounded the corner that led to the ladies’-in-waiting chambers, she halted and turned to him. Before she realized what she was doing, she placed her hand on his chest and nudged him back. “You can’t follow me.”