Love Me Forever by Johanna Lindsey
“Well, I did my duty last night, distasteful as it was. I’m staying the hell out of this one.”
“Don’t blame you a’tall,” Megan replied. “Lord Richards is the most singularly unpleasant man I’ve met in a very long while. Amazing that Kimberly turned out so decent, with a father like that. And I’m so glad she’s going to marry the Highlander. As outrageous as he is, and charming, he’ll bring laughter to her life, and long overdue if you ask me.”
Devlin lifted a brow at her. “Ah, did I miss something, m’dear? I could have sworn I told you last night that the earl refused, unequivocally, to allow it.”
Megan waved a dismissing hand. “Yes, yes, I know, but mark my words, those two will get married anyway.”
“You think so, do you?”
“Absolutely.”
Kimberly had expected to see Lachlan standing there when she opened the door to her room, and to hear what he had decided. He had been so exasperated by his talk with the widow earlier that he had simply escorted Winnifred to her room without saying another word to her, sent a footman for his kinsmen, and waited there until they arrived to set a watch on her. Then he’d gone off to “think about it” and Kimberly had returned to her room to do some thinking of her own, in preparation for her talk with her father.
She had intended to be very straightforward about her decision. There was nothing to discuss, after all, nothing to argue about, and no reason to broach the subject carefully. The earl might rant and rave a bit—she expected no less. But she was used to listening to his loud tirades with only half her attention. Otherwise, she never would have been able to survive them all these years.
But this thing with Lachlan’s stepmother, Kimberly’s almost stepmother, well, that was a different subject altogether. She had no desire to hurt her father. Cutting herself out of his life wouldn’t hurt him at all, she had no doubt. But this…
Did he love the widow?
It was possible, but not very likely. In fact, Kimberly doubted he was even capable of that emotion. He might have claimed it was love, what he’d felt for that other woman all those years ago, but her guess was that it was more an obsession.
No, it was much more likely that he was remarrying simply because he needed a hostess, and he couldn’t depend on Kimberly, with her indifference to his needs, to fill that position for very long. That he had picked the Widow Marston could have been for no other reason than she was socially acceptable, and in their small community, quite popular.
So would he be upset if Winnifred was arrested and charged with her crime? Or would he see it only as a setback and a bother, while he looked for someone else to take her place? Kimberly really couldn’t say.
However, there was also the fact that he’d invested a lot of time in courting the widow. He had, in fact, frequently gone to her home for dinner or one of her entertainments. She had been invited to their house as well.
And another thing, everyone knew they were engaged. If they didn’t marry now, the earl would have to explain why, and knowing him, he’d find that quite an embarrassment. Instead, he’d probably come up with a good excuse that wouldn’t come close to the truth—if the scandal could be contained and go no further.
If…if…and Kimberly was supposed to address this issue? Actually, as his daughter, it did fall to her to do so. Lachlan certainly wouldn’t bother. And Winnifred, well, there was no telling what she would have to say about it.
And Kimberly had the opportunity to do it now, because it was the earl standing in her doorway scowling at her, not Lachlan. And apparently, he’d already worked himself into another rage.
“This is the fourth time I’ve come by here to see you,” he complained right off. “Should have restricted you to your bloody room—”
“Did you want something, Father?”
“Yes, I came to tell you to pack your belongings. We’re leaving here today.”
“I don’t think so.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“You can leave, of course, but I’ll be staying on, at least until I’m married.”
“You found someone else to marry you this quickly? I don’t believe it. Who?”
“No one else. I’m going to marry the Highlander as I had already agreed to do.”
“I forbid it!”
“Yes, I know, but I’m going to marry him anyway,” she replied calmly.
“That is complete defiance of my wishes! No daughter of mine—”
“I’m your only daughter—”
“Not anymore, by God! You are disowned. Disowned, d’you hear!”
“Yes, I know that too. And now that we have that out of the way—”
Kimberly paused because he’d turned away, red-faced in his fury. She was already dead to him, apparently. She no longer existed, so she didn’t even warrant a farewell. He was going to simply leave…
She lost her calm completely. “Stop right there! I don’t know why I should bother with this. It’s nothing to me whether you marry Winnifred or—”
That snapped him back around to say, “You’re damned right it’s nothing to you—now.”
“It never was, or haven’t you realized that I have no interest in your life? But that’s neither here nor there. What I was going to share with you was that the widow is in serious trouble, is likely to end up in—”
“What the bloody hell are you talking about?”
“If you’ll stop interrupting me, I might manage to explain. You see, a few years ago she stole a lot of money from her stepson, more than a hundred thousand pounds, as well as a fortune in jewels. She had no right to either. This was his inheritance. Yet she walked off with both. Your bringing her here has allowed him to finally find her. He may wish to thank you for that, though I doubt it, since it’s Lachlan MacGregor that I’m talking about.”
His eyes showed that she had surprised him, but only for the briefest second, before he covered his surprise and demanded, “What kind of trick are you pulling here, gel? D’you really expect me to believe such nonsense?”
“Actually, I don’t really care if you do or don’t,” she admitted. “I just felt that since you had intended to marry the widow, you had a right to know that she could be sent to prison for this crime.”
“There is no crime! And I refuse to listen—”
“She fully admitted it, Father. She also admitted that the money is gone, squandered away. She has most of the jewels still, and those will be returned to Lachlan, along with her house, but I doubt he’ll be satisfied with just that. We’re talking about too much money here for him to just shrug off the loss. It was all the tangible wealth he had. But he’s undecided at the moment, so you might want to talk to him about it. You’ll want to talk to her as well, since I certainly don’t expect you to take my word for any of this.”
He stood there bemused now, staring at the floor. She understood the feeling perfectly.
After nearly a minute passed, he said, still in bewilderment, “How could she do such a stupid thing?”
It was one of the most singularly ordinary things she’d ever heard him say. It actually touched her, certainly made her feel sorry for him. So she wasn’t about to answer, “Because you got yourself engaged to a bloody twit,” which would have been her reply otherwise.
Instead she said diplomatically, “She had her reasons, though they don’t excuse what she did. I’m sure she’ll tell you all about it. Actually, she probably needs a good shoulder to cry on about now.”
He snapped to himself then, his usual sour visage back in place. But he blushed, because Kimberly had still witnessed his moment of vulnerability.
And he cleared his throat before asking in a grumbling tone, “Just how determined is that Scotsman to have Winnie arrested?”
Kimberly blinked. She almost laughed. Never would she have imagined herself in a bargaining position with her father, but damned if that wasn’t what she was now in. So he did still want to marry the widow? Imagine that.
41
He must not have stayed there long. The chill wind coming off the water, which was kept free of ice by the grounds keepers, had probably chased him away, because he hadn’t dressed warmly enough for an extended outdoor jaunt. His hands were stuffed in his pockets now, his cheeks were wind-reddened, and his teeth were chattering. But he still had a warm smile for her when he noticed her heading toward him.
“Ah, darlin’, would you be taking pity on me?” he asked without preamble.
“How’s that?” she said as she reached him.
“I’m in need of a little warming.”
Even as he said it, he slipped his hands inside her coat and around her to press her close to his chest. She shivered as those cold hands spread on her back. She heard him chuckle when he felt it.
“Bad as all that, is it?”
“No,” she allowed, blushing slightly. “Just for a second it was. But this isn’t going to warm you adequately. You need a fire and—”
“You’d be surprised,” he murmured by her ear, “how quickly you can warm me.”
She shivered again. They both knew it wasn’t because of the cold this time. But then his icy nose touched her cheek and she was startled. She shrieked and jumped back from him. He laughed. She did too, because the sound he was making was contagious.
When he wound down, he sighed dramatically and said, “Verra well, I guess I mun settle for a fire tae do the warming—for now.”
“You should have dressed warmer,” she admonished as he took her arm to start them toward the mansion.
“Nay, this is mild weather they have here, compared tae the Highlands.”
“I agree, it’s much colder in Northumberland too, but how long have you been out in it?”
“Since I left you.”
She shook her head at him. “You’ll be lucky if you don’t have the sniffles by this evening.”
“Och, well, I’m owing you a cold as I recall.”
His grin was too wicked by half, and had her blushing again. She, too, could remember that he’d caught her previous cold by kissing her. To get her mind off of that, she recalled the reason she’d sought him out.
“I’ve spoken with my father,” she said abruptly.
He stopped to draw her back into his arms, surprising her with his sympathy. “I’m sorry, darlin’. Was it painful, his cutting you from his life?”
“No, but—”
He interrupted her, his tone gentle, “You dinna have tae pretend for my sake.”
“Lachlan, really, we never had that kind of relationship.” She leaned back to assure him. “If I never saw him again, it wouldn’t bother me a’tall, and I’m sure he would say the same. But he didn’t quite disown me. Well, he did, but then he sort of changed his mind.”
“He realized the scandal of it would reflect worse on himself, did he? Aye, I was hoping he’d be figuring that out—for your sake.”
She smiled wryly. “He might have, but most likely after the damage was already done and so too late to correct it. One thing I’ve noticed over the years is when he’s angry, which is a great deal of the time, he tends to not think things through. So consequences are the least of his concern.”
He let go of her, his confusion apparent. “Then you were able tae actually talk him out of it?”
“Bargain might better describe it.”
“And what did you have tae bargain with?”
“You.”
Lachlan blinked at that answer. She laughed at his startled expression and decided to tease him a bit. She hooked her arm through his again and made the effort to pull them up the path. That worked for only about three steps, before his feet dug in and she couldn’t budge him another inch.
“You dinna think you can get away wi’out explaining that tae me, d’you, Kimber?”
“Actually…possibly…well, now that you mention it…”
He waited expectantly, but when she said no more, just stared at him wide-eyed, he was surprised again. It was her grin, however, that gave her away, and after a moment, he slowly shook his head at her, and his own grin was entirely too—retaliatory. So when he reached for her, she knew she was in trouble, and with a shriek, she hiked up her skirt and took off up the path.
Of course, it was absurd to think she could out-distance him with those long legs of his, nor did she for more than a few moments. But she didn’t expect to end up on the ground, sprawled on top of him in a most undignified manner, his chuckling bouncing her around on his chest.
“You’re mad,” she admonished, trying to get up, but he wasn’t letting her. “We’re not children, you know.”
“When I’m too old tae play, darlin’, I’ll be using a cane and counting the hairs I have left on my head. Och, mayhap no’ even then will I stop playing wi’ you.”
She gave him a stern look, but she couldn’t hold it for more than a few seconds, not when he was looking so boyish, and mussed, and pleased with himself. And besides, what he’d said was rather thrilling if taken in a sensual context, which she was sure he’d meant, since things of a sexual nature seemed to always be on his mind.
So she ended up blushing instead, and when he saw it, he ended up kissing her. One thing led to another, and before she knew it, his hand was halfway up her skirt, his cold hand on her thigh contrasting with the heat of his lips, causing her to shiver in pleasure and with the chill.
And then he was gazing up at her with a thoroughly disgruntled look. “I have tae own, outdoors in the dead o’ winter is no place tae be playing—this game.”
“Not to mention, anyone could have come along,” she pointed out.
“Och, well, that wouldna bother me—”
“It would me—”
“No’ for long, darlin’. I promise you’ll get used tae that real quick once I have you home wi’ me.”
Of course, she blushed again. Hopefully she’d also get used to his sexual innuendoes real quick, so she could stop looking like she was sunburned every time she was around him for more than a few minutes.
“Now, ’afore I’m letting you up,” he said, quite serious of a sudden, “you’ll be telling me what happened wi’ your da, or did you forget what got you down here on the ground in the first place?”
She had forgotten. But then Lachlan had a way of making her forget anything and everything when he had his arms around her and…
“Well?”
“Well, I told him about Winnifred’s little problem,” she said.
“Little problem?”
She sighed. “Very well, big problem. And I suggested that if he still wanted to marry the woman, that he come up with a good portion of what she owes you. And then you might, might, mind you, be persuaded to drop the matter.”
He rolled to sit up, setting her on the ground next to him, and with a snort, asked, “How hard did he laugh?”
“He didn’t. My father is going to give you half of the money. I’ll make up the difference.”
“Oh, he is, is he? And that’s supposed to make up for all the worry and deprivation she—what d’you mean, you will make up the difference? You’ve money o’ your own?”
“Yes.”
He was suddenly smiling. “You do?”
He was so delightfully surprised, she couldn’t help it, she laughed. “Yes, I do.”
“Faith, and when were you going tae be telling me that?”
“Oh, sometime after we were married, I imagine. But as I was saying, he’ll give you half of the money. He still wants to marry her, you see. So as an added incentive, if you agree to drop the matter, he’s also agreed not to disown me—officially at least, if I still marry you. But he wouldn’t budge on the dowry. He still refuses to give that to a Scotsman.” And then she laughed.
“I wasn’t going to mention this to him, but it works out about the same, you know. What he’s going to give you and my dower, it’s about equal. He’ll have another fit, I don’t doubt, once he realizes that. So what do you think? Does that sound acceptable to you?”
Lachlan rubbed his jaw, his look seriously thoughtful. “Och, I dinna know, darlin’. I’m thinking I’ll have tae be giving it a lot of thought.”
Her eyes narrowed. “There’s nothing to—you’re going to make him wait deliberately, aren’t you?”
His eyes widened with feigned innocence. “Now would I be doing that, just because the man hates my guts and doesna want me marrying his only daughter? Just because he’s mean-spirited and hot-tempered and deserves tae stew about it a wee bit?”
She’d heard Megan say it so often that the word came out automatically, “Absolutely.”
Lachlan grinned. “Och, well, I like it that you think you know me so well. But in this case…well, in this case you do.”
42
Kimberly didn’t necessarily think making her father wait for an answer was a good idea, but she did agree that Winnifred should be made to wait. If Lachlan decided in their favor, took the money and the return of the jewels, and let it go at that, which Kimberly had no doubt he would do in the end, then the widow would have gotten away with the theft free and clear.
Making her wait, and doing so confined to her room, was the only punishment she’d receive for what she’d done. That was little enough for all the trouble and difficulties she’d caused the MacGregors, but at least it was better than nothing at all.
Her father, however, wasn’t taking the wait very patiently. His mood was about as sour as it could get, making it very uncomfortable to be around him. But fortunately, he kept to his room mostly, or the widow’s room, so the rest of them didn’t have to suffer his unpleasantness very often.
Kimberly hadn’t asked Lachlan, but she guessed he wasn’t going to announce his decision until after they were married. That was rubbing her father’s nose in it a bit more, and he’d be all for that. She was sure, positive, actually, that Cecil would have preferred to be gone before she committed this public defiance of his wishes.