“Shall we talk about—”
Aidan rushed at her so quickly, Allie did not have time to think. When it registered that this was not part of their training session, she peered around him to see what he protected her from.
A figure came into view. It was a man. Nay, not just a man.
Him.
The one who refused to leave her thoughts, even as she slept, despite her sister’s warnings and her own assessment of him. Allie had awoken that morning from a dream in which his face was in front of hers, his taunting smirk in place, and his lips . . .
“Reid.” Aidan put down his sword and moved away from her. “What are you doing here?”
Though Aidan spoke to him, Reid Kerr was looking directly at her.
He was here because of her. She knew it as well as she knew her own name.
“It seems I’m not the only one who has already had enough of the daily bickering,” Reid replied.
“Allow me to introduce you to—”
“We’ve met,” she interrupted.
Reid looked down at her sword. Now she would actually have to speak civilly to him, convince him to keep her training sessions between them.
“A longsword.” He moved toward her, and Allie fought the instinct to back away. He was dangerous, of that there was no doubt. “May I?”
She looked at Aidan, who nodded. When he and his men arrived, Aidan had recognized him. But how well did the two men know each other? Did Aidan share Gillian’s opinion of the man?
Allie handed the blunted weapon to him.
“What does a lady need with such a weapon?”
Allie made a sound that brought a smile to Aidan’s face. She supposed it was not very ladylike, but nothing about her was ladylike just now, from her leggings and oversized linen shirt to the old leather belts keeping it from hanging too low.
“You would not understand.”
Reid appeared to be impressed by the weapon. “You may be surprised.”
Since he was getting no answers from her, Reid looked at Aidan, who was much more forthcoming. No doubt he’d been dying to tell someone.
“I am training her,” he said. “Though the lady would prefer to keep the fact quiet.”
“Hmm,” he responded noncommittally.
Aidan turned toward her. “Reid has somewhat of a reputation—”
“I’m sure he does,” she blurted.
The man in question laughed. Allie had not heard him laugh before, and she wasn’t sure she liked it. His self-satisfied smirk was much more fitting. When he laughed, Reid Kerr looked almost . . . human.
Aidan looked back and forth between them and continued. “A reputation as a swordsman. And as a man to avoid in battle, though luckily, we have fought only for the same side. Though I’m not sure of his skill with this particular weapon.”
Reid held her sword up in front of him.
“May I?” he asked her.
It took Allie a moment to realize what he meant to do. But when Aidan lifted his own sword, she backed away.
“Of course,” she said, crossing her arms in satisfaction. He would have proceeded without her permission, no doubt, but she was anxious to see Aidan best their unwelcome guest. Her brother-in-law was known for his skill with the dagger, but he was equally as skilled with the longsword.
The loud clash of metal hitting metal echoed all around them. If they were nearer the castle, people would gather to watch the two men spar with each other. A match between two such braw men would have been entertaining were it not so terrifying.
Even though both weapons were blunted, Allie had seen more than one knight being carried off the training yard with injuries ranging from minor scratches to life-threatening gashes.
In fact, she was about to yell for the men to stop when Reid’s sword clashed so forcefully with Aidan’s that her brother-in-law’s weapon went flying into the air. He retrieved it quickly enough, but the match was over.
Aidan whistled. “It appears the rumors are true.”
Some men would be bitter at having been bested, but Aidan appeared to take it in stride. Would Reid? Somehow, she did not think so.
When he looked at her, Allie’s breath caught. He was certainly bolder than any man she’d ever met. More arrogant and definitely more—
“Let me train her.”
She froze.
Aidan looked back and forth between them. “Reid, I don’t believe—”
“There is no one better.”
He was not jesting!
“You are needed up there”—Reid nodded toward the castle—“more than I. Until I leave, let me train—”
“Pardon,” she said, interrupting his very pretty speech. “The woman in question is standing here, listening to your conversation.”
She may have been quite sheltered for most of her life, but she was not completely addled. And she certainly would not let Reid make decisions for her as if she were not present.
“He is quite good—” Aidan started. One glance at her, and he quickly backtracked. “But Allie is right. It is up to her, not me.”
She did not need to consider it for long. “Then the choice is an easy one—”
“Although if Reid trained you, I could more easily assist Graeme.”
Allie looked at Aidan as if he’d gone mad. What was he doing? Why would he agree with such a brute?
“Then it is settled.”
“’Tis not settled.” Allie put her hands on her hips and glared at both men. Her brother-in-law had gone daft and Reid . . . he was simply the most infuriating man she’d ever met in her life.
“Give me one reason I should agree to such a thing,” she taunted him.
Reid took a step toward her, and then another. Her heart thudded in her chest as he moved ever closer, and she had to remind herself to breathe.
He handed the sword back to her and said, loud enough that only she could hear, “Because you want me to.”
6
If there was a bigger fool in Scotland, Reid didn’t know him. There was no good reason for what he’d just done. He was impulsive, thoughtless. Wasn’t that exactly why the elders had expressed concern about appointing him as Toren’s second? If he were another, better, man . . .
It seemed she was as much a fool as he because, unbelievably, she was going to agree.
Reid had gone off looking for Allie after the meeting, and when he saw her and Aidan rushing through the courtyard, he’d been curious enough to follow. The sight of them walking into the nearby woods had turned Reid’s curiosity into something more. Something, if he were being honest, that had led him to make an offer that was anything but wise and would surely lead to trouble.
Jealousy was not an emotion to which he was accustomed.
Allie raised her chin, the fire in her eyes another reason Reid wanted to take over her training. Why was she doing this? What compelled a noblewoman to wish to fight?
“Very well.” And then she whispered for his ears only. “But only because it will be easier for him. Not because I believe it to be a good idea.”
She referred to her brother-in-law, and once again Reid wondered about the nature of their relationship. What exactly was Aidan de Sowlis to her? A brother-in-law only? Something more? Did it matter?
He should not ask. “Are you sure?” The words left his lips despite himself.
“Aye,” she answered, her voice strong.
He reached out his hand toward Aidan. “May I?”
The younger de Sowlis brother handed Reid his training sword, then stepped back and crossed his arms, leaning against a nearby tree. Why was he smiling? Apparently the two brothers had not spoken yet, and Reid wondered if, when they did, these training sessions would come to quick halt.
When Reid turned to face his new student, she was already in position. He took the opportunity to assess how much she’d learned so far.
“Show me how you move forward, or backward, with a series of cuts.”
She did as instructed, and Rei
d watched to see if the side of each cut corresponded with her forward foot. It did, and he couldn’t help but be impressed. He looked over at Aidan, who was clearly pleased by her skill.
“Well done,” he said. After a series of moves, Aidan finally stopped them, and the lady’s face fell.
“Already?” she asked, clearly disappointed.
“I should find Graeme—”
“Go,” Reid said. “We will be along.”
With a distinctly “Graeme” expression, Aidan tried to assess the lady’s safety. He’d known the man his whole life . . . Hellfire, they’d almost become family.
“She will be safe with me.”
Aidan frowned. “I know she will—”
“Then there is nothing to fear. Ask your brother.”
At Aidan’s confused expression, he said, “We had a discussion earlier today.”
He looked at Lady Allie then, knowing he’d be forced to explain. So be it. But he saw her give a slight nod to her brother-in-law.
Though Aidan was clearly not prepared to listen to him, he did defer to his sister-in-law. “I am trusting you, Reid,” he said, his meaning clear.
Then he left, not waiting for a response.
“What did Graeme say to you?” She’d turned the longsword upside down, its tip in the ground and her grip comfortable on its handle. And it was in that moment that Reid knew, unequivocally, he’d made a mistake. It would not be his last, but it was one he would have to live with until this council was over.
“Why did you agree to let me train you?” he shot back.
“What did he say to you?” she repeated.
Reid smiled, enjoying himself.
“Why do you laugh at me?”
“Laugh? I merely smiled. If that is a grave offense against your person, I do apologize.”
She ignored that. “What do you find so amusing? And what did Graeme say to you?”
“Give me a boon, and I will answer both questions.”
Had she known how to best him with the weapon in her hands, she’d have lifted it against him. He very much looked forward to their training sessions.
“Has anyone ever told you that you are a complete arse?”
He raised his brows. “Many times.”
“You enjoy being told so. Why? Why would anyone revel in a reputation such as yours?”
“That, my lady, is a question not so easily answered. But if you permit me to use your given name, the answers to your first two questions are yours.”
“You are—”
“I know it well,” he finished for her. “May I call you Allie?”
It was forward of him, though no more so than taking over her training or being here, and she knew it well.
“Very well, Reid.” Though she tried to make his name sound like poison on her lips, it was the sweetest sound he’d heard all day.
Reid took a step toward her, willing her not to move. When she did not, he halted his advance. “Graeme advised me to avoid you, though I believe he was simply following your sister’s orders. Or perhaps not, since he knows me well. As to your second question, I smiled because you reminded me of my sister. She wears something similar”—he indicated her leggings—“courtesy of my sister-in-law, Lady Sara, who defies convention nearly as often as Catrina. When you gaze at me like that—as if you’d like to boil my bollocks for supper—you remind me of her.”
He thought she might be shocked by his language, but she was not. Instead, she threw back her head and laughed so hard Reid could not help but smile alongside her.
“You forget my sister is Sara’s oldest and dearest friend. I’ve heard of Catrina from her. Thank you for the compliment. As for Gillian . . .” Allie took a deep breath. “She can be . . . protective.”
Reid resisted the urge to toss back a glib comment and said instead, “I know the sentiment well.”
She thought about that for a moment. “Your brothers?”
A topic he did not wish to explore at that moment. “As for your first lesson . . .” He took another step forward, and this time she did move back, if only slightly. “You will need to do better than that.”
“What lesson? You—”
“When I taunted you, you allowed me to discern your emotions.”
“But I didn’t realize—”
“Your opponent must never know you are scared, even if you are terrified. You must never back away unless there is a purpose for the movement.” He indicated her feet. “As you just did from me.”
Though she listed toward him, Allie wasn’t ready for the lesson.
“I am not afraid of you,” she said as confidently as she was able.
He took another step toward her, and this time it had nothing to do with her training.
“You should be.”
* * *
She’d failed.
He could see through her bravado. Allie had lost control the moment she’d agreed to train with him, and she had no idea how to get it back. She certainly couldn’t ask her sister. She would just have to pretend he didn’t affect her. That the idea of him taking one step closer, so close he could reach out and touch her . . .
What have I done?
Gillian would kill her.
Allie wished she could reiterate her claim that she was not afraid of Reid Kerr, but she couldn’t do so with any conviction. It was not true. She’d never been so afraid of a man, or more precisely, of her lack of control with one, in her life.
She hated him. Despised his attitude. Wanted to slap him every time the corner of his lip curled up in a smirk. And yet . . .
“Every emotion is there for me to see,” he said finally. “Fear is weakness. A skilled swordsman—”
“Woman.”
“A skilled swordsman, or woman, would rather fight without a weapon than show such weakness. Now try again.”
She glared at him, which was not difficult, and refused to move her feet. He took another step toward her. If she lifted her arm, they would be touching.
“Better.” He moved closer still. So close she could smell sandalwood, the musky scent entirely too appealing. His gaze did not waver.
She couldn’t do it. He was too . . . intense.
Aye, Allie. You can. He’s right. Fear is weakness.
Another step. He was so close now she had to look up to see his face. Though he did not have a beard, his stubble would feel rough beneath her fingers. His lips, the only soft feature on his face, parted ever so slightly. She swallowed, nearly looking away until she remembered something. A conversation with her sister.
If she’d managed to lie convincingly to Gillian, the person she knew better than anyone, then she had the strength to stand her ground with him. To pretend he did not move her.
When he realized she wasn’t going to back away, he smiled. A real smile, for the first time.
That’s when she lost her composure.
“’Tis not fair,” she whispered, looking away. “I was doing well—”
“Exceedingly well.”
The pricking of the shirt against her breasts was not something she had noticed before, but now it was all she could think of. Well, not the only thing . . .
He stepped back.
Able to breathe once again, Allie chastised herself for the unreasonable disappointment that bubbled up inside of her. He’d done as he should, backing away from her—
“Why did you look away?”
She’d thought back to that moment. “You smiled,” she said simply.
“I’ve smiled at you before.” He took another step back.
“But it was not like the others.” She should have just said, That one was real. But even though he’d been completely horrible to her, with the glaring exception of his offer to train her, she could not bring herself to insult him just now.
“You looked away because you were surprised,” he said as he took another step back. Lifting the sword at his side, Reid moved into position. “Surprise can knock a man off his horse in a joust. It k
ills men in battle. Surprise is always your enemy. Which is precisely why we train so much.”
“Woman,” she said, placing her left foot forward, her legs still wobbly from the interaction.
“You thought of something,” he said. “Something that strengthened your resolve.”
He swung the sword down, and she blocked it with her own.
“My sister,” she said as they moved back into position. Just like Aidan, he would only allow for one movement at a time so each could be honed to perfection. “I remembered the only time I’d ever been forced to lie to my sister.”
Another thrust, another block.
“Why were you forced to lie to her?” he asked between moves.
“’Tis complicated.” This time, she was able to block him even sooner than before.
“As it tends to be between siblings.”
Again and again they practiced the same move.
“How much do you know about my sister and Lord Covington?” Allie asked, keenly aware that it might be another test.
“I know she was betrothed to him, and that she and Graeme married after being caught in a compromising position.”
Allie laughed despite knowing she was at a disadvantage for doing so. “Most people put it more delicately than that.”
He stopped suddenly, and she did the same. “I am not most people.”
Of that, she was aware.
Allie was breathing heavily and, grateful for the break, forged ahead with her story. “When Gill left for Scotland, my father promised I would marry Covington in her stead.”
She’d managed to surprise him.
“I’d not heard that.”
She shrugged, pretending it had not mattered that her father had attempted to pledge both his daughters to an old man whose alliances along the border were questionable, his character even more so.
“Aye,” she continued. “As you are likely aware, he was killed. And so the wedding never took place.”
The Rogue’s Redemption Page 4
