Highlander's Fallen Angel : A Steamy Scottish Historical Romance Novel
Page 30
“It could work,” he murmured, marveling at his own ingenuity. “Why couldn’ae it? It’s as simple as anythin’.”
“What is?” asked the young lady.
He set down his wine glass and rubbed his large, calloused hands together eagerly. Looking his companion square in the eye, he laid it out before them. “As I see it, lass, each of us has somethin’ the other wants,” he reasoned. “I need to find a way into English society to make new opportunities for me clan. Which I cannae do without kenning how to act like a proper gentleman, which I dinnae know how to do by meself.”
“Correct.”
James let this comment pass, continuing his proposition. “And ye need to ken how to break the ice with yer beloved Nerwood, which means ye need to ken how to talk to a Scotsman. Somethin’ ye dinnae know anythin’ about, but a subject on which I happen to be an expert.”
“But how does that help either of us?” she asked, looking at her hands lying open in her lap. “It sounds as though we are nothing but perfect failures at our respective pursuits, as I said. Perfectly ironic, perhaps, but that hardly helps our respective plights.”
A gleam came into James’ smile. “Have ye forgotten yerself already, Madam Schoolteacher?”
When this only elicited further confusion in the girl, he elaborated. “Why nae simply continue our lessons? Bein’ a perfect English lady, ye can surely teach me the ways of a proper rich English blockhead, and I can teach ye how to woo a Scotsman. Ye’ve already schooled me in many of yer people’s manners in just a short few hours, after all, and who better to teach ye what a Scotsman wants in a woman than a Scottish Laird?”
“Oh!” she blurted, nearly dropping her wine glass. “You and I, teach one another?”
“Exactly!”
“But… how? Where would we be able to meet? When could we—”
James interrupted her with a dismissive wave of his hand. “Hang the particulars, lass. If the pair of us have our minds set on somethin’, do ye think there’s anythin’ in the land that could stop us? All we need to ken now is if we’re willin’.”
He leaned forward, only just stopping himself from taking her tiny hands in his own. “I’m willin’ to teach and to learn, lass. Are ye?”
It was a fascinating thing, the contortions that came over the girl’s face as she carefully chewed the idea over. Each squint of her eyes, furrow of her brow, pinch of her mouth was as surprising to James as the last. Confusion turned to glee, then to dejection, finally resting somewhere in the middle of all three.
“I…I still am not sure…” she said hesitantly. “Even if it could work, my Father may not approve of my spending time with a stranger.”
“Och, that again, eh?” James stood from his chair by the wall and straightened, clasping his hands behind his back in his best impression of a proper English lord. “’Twould be me most honorable pleasure to introduce meself, Me Lady. Yer humble servant, James Maclean, head of Clan Armstrong and Laird of Armstrong Castle.” He bowed as low as he dared, giving his hands a bit of a twirl on the way down.
Staying bent for a few moments and trying his best to ignore the sounds of tittering, James eventually straightened to see his companion rise and give a simple curtsy. “Lady Iris Stephenson, daughter of the Earl of Hearthing.” She raised her hand before her mouth and giggled once more. “Perhaps we can start our lessons with proper introductions.”
“See, ye’re thinkin’ like a proper teacher already!” James said with a wink.
Iris chewed on her lip in thought, reddening it in a way James found disturbingly distracting. “Do you really think you can teach me how to attract Mister Nerwood?”
“Lass,” James replied with a twinkle in his eye, “after a few lessons, I’ve full confidence there willnae be a Scotsman alive who can resist yer charms.”
One final transformation overtook the young lady’s face as her skepticism was utterly erased. The light that came into those shining brown eyes was a remarkable thing, and in a heartbeat Iris was a whirlwind of energetic movement.
“Oh, how wonderful!” she trilled, spinning in place as though the ball were continuing just for her. “What a wonderful escapade this will be! Mark my words, My Laird, I will make a true gentleman of you, you will see. And I will grow into the very picture of a true Scottish lady, ready to claim sweet Balthazar for my own and win his heart, as I swore I would! To think, just this evening I was ready to ship myself off to a nunnery…”
James smiled as he stood before her with his weight on one leg, content to be an audience to this marvelous solo dance and recital.
The lass is bonnie when she’s flappin’ and even bonnier when she’s pleased. Unless I end up ripped to shreds by this wee lioness, this plan should bring us both naught but profit.
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Thank you!
Also by Lydia Kendall
Thank you for reading Highlander's Fallen Angel!
I hope you enjoyed it! If you did, may I ask you to please write a review HERE? It would mean the world to me. Reviews are very important and allow me to keep writing the books that you love to read!
Some other best sellers of mine:
Highlander's Indecent Wager
To Tame the Dragon Highlander
Highlander’s Trials of Fire
Conquered by a Beastly Highlander
A Hellion for the Highlander
Passionate Tales of Forbidden Highlanders
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Lydia Kendall
About the Author
Lydia Kendall has always been passionate about medieval romance. Having traveled to the Scottish Highlands several times as a young girl, she has always been drawn to their unparalleled beauty and history. A history that inspired stories of love and passion, mixed with tradition in the most appealing way for every hopeless romantic - much like herself.
Born in Denver, Colorado, Lydia Kendall has a degree in English Literature and Creative Writing, and over the last decade she has been writing non-stop for several clients - that is until she decided to start publishing her own work. When she isn’t writing, Lydia loves spending her time on the beautiful outdoors with her loving husband and baby daughter.
Follow Lydia on this sensational journey of hot highlanders, bonny lassies and fierce passion...and find sheer pleasure in the magnificent world of the Scottish countryside - one that will sweep you off your feet and keep you begging for more!
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