Highland Intrigue (Duncurra Book Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page B

will wait until ye are ready—until ye ask me to.”
    “Share yer bed without...without...”
    “Aye, until ye are ready.”
    She arched an eyebrow at him. “What if I’m never ready? Ye said ye wouldn’t live like a monk within marriage.”
    “And I won’t, at least not forever. But I am willing to give ye—”
    “A year?”
    A year? Is she daft? “Nay, Gillian, I don’t think so.”
    “Why not?” Her brown eyes stared in challenge.
    Why not, indeed. What would he do if the year passed and she still refused him? Would he force her then? He knew he wouldn’t, but once they were married, there was no going back. Perhaps he could seek an annulment, but not if they appeared to live as husband and wife. Surely he could win her consent within the year. For the love of all that’s holy they would be sharing a bed. “Gillian, I don’t think it is reasonable to set a limit. I am willing to give ye whatever time ye need. Truthfully, I could never force an unwilling lass. But by the same token, ye can’t enter this marriage expecting that ye will never truly be my wife. If ye think ye will always hate me, do us both a kindness and enter the religious life.”
    ~ * ~
    Did she really hate him? Would she ever be able to get past everything that had happened? He asked her not to agree to the marriage if she thought she would always hate him. What does it matter? What better revenge could there be than to marry a man who agreed never to force himself on her and then always refuse him? Once we’re married, what can he do? He would never hurt her, Gillian thought confidently. Damnation, it was true. Aside from everything else, she firmly believed he would never hurt her. She couldn’t deny that he had always seemed to be a good man.
    How then could she marry him? She firmly believed she would never get past who he was and what his family had done. If ye think ye will always hate me, do us both a kindness and enter the religious life . She could not ignore the truth of his words. Living the rest of her life married to someone she hated would be torturous for both of them. Do us both a kindness . Painfully, her choice became clear.
    Just as she opened her mouth to tell him, a knock sounded at the door. Before either of them could answer, the door opened and her little sister Ailsa poked her head in. Like Gillian, Ailsa had lovely brown eyes and chestnut colored hair, but where Gillian’s hair was sleek and straight, Ailsa’s was a sleep-tousled riot of curls.
    “I heard ye talking, Gillie. It woke me up. Ye sounded upset. What are ye...oh.” Ailsa’s eyes landed on Fingal. Putting her hands on her hips she demanded, “what are ye doing here?”
    “Ailsa, pet, this isn’t a good time.” Gillian gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and attempted to usher Ailsa from the room. “Go back to bed, sweetling, and I will tell ye everything in the morning.”
    Ailsa pulled away from her. “I will not go back to bed.” She turned on Fingal. She didn’t appear remotely intimidated by the huge warrior sitting by the hearth. “Ye don’t belong here and clearly Gillie doesn’t want ye here. Ye can leave now.” She pointed at the door.
    Gillian cast a worried glance at Fingal but was surprised to see a grin spreading across his face. “Ailsa, I’m very sorry we woke ye, lass. The king has asked us to consider something very important. We were discussing it.”
    Ailsa stared at him for a moment. “Well I think ye should discuss it in the morning. Gillie has a lot of responsibilities and needs her rest.”
    Fingal’s grin only broadened and it was hard for Gillian not to laugh at her imperious little protector. “It is all right, pet. Go back to bed.”
    “Not until ye tell me what is going on. I am not leaving ye alone with him.”
    Gillian glanced at Fingal, who gave her an almost imperceptible nod. “Ailsa, do ye know who this is?”
    “Aye. Fingal MacIan. The one people say is really Laird Malcolm’s