Highland Spitfire Read Online Free PDF Page B

threat.
    “Ye will nae be the first man to discover his authority fading with his death,” Bhaic
     responded. “Once ye’re dead, they will look for the next leader who is still among
     the living. That’s the way with ye men who worship position and power.”
    “And ye’ll go back to fighting over something yer grandfather did.” The earl straightened,
     abandoning his fighting pose. “Tell me something, Highlander, is it better to fight
     for yourself or for a man who is long dead? You will be Laird of the MacPherson soon.
     Are you going to happily condemn hundreds of your own kin to death because you want
     to continue a feud that is three generations old? And one that started with a jilted
     groom and a fat dowry? Where’s the honor in sending your clansmen to their deaths
     over something so very done with?”
    There was a long silence in the chamber.
    “I’ll be remembering who I am,” Bhaic answered, but his forehead furrowed, and he
     straightened up.
    “Thinking about it, aren’t you?” the earl questioned smoothly. “Do that, son of the
     MacPhersons. Think long and hard about the fact that right now, you can choose a brighter
     future for your clan. You claim to put them above all else. Consider doing it instead
     of just talking about it.”
    “I married the Robertson wench to protect them, did I nae?”
    The earl nodded. “Words mean little without action. Unconsummated, your vows mean
     nothing. I am not a fool. I will know if you send her back to her father. I also know
     it will not be an easy union. Your clan will accept her as their mistress only if
     you make it clear she is your choice.” He turned to look at Ailis. “You wanted peace
     enough to wed, but it will take far more than words spoken in front of a priest.”
    The earl walked to the door and pounded on it. His guards pulled the small view hatch
     open and looked at him before opening the door.
    “I may not be a Highlander, but I assure you, I am devoted to Scotland as deeply as
     you are. I’ll see this country united, even if I have to snuff out the life of those
     who cannot move into the future. Marriage or destruction. Make your choice, future
     Laird and Lady of the MacPhersons.”
    The earl left the room, and his men closed the door. The sound echoed inside the chamber
     like a gunshot. Ailis tightened her hands around the foot post of the bed, holding
     her breath as she waited to see what Bhaic would do.
    Well, what are ye planning to do, Ailis?
    She really had no idea. Matters had seemed so clear while she bathed. Now, the earl’s
     words were echoing inside her head. It was as if her mind was unable to focus on anything
     else.
    “I suppose the man has a valid point,” Bhaic said, his tone clearly displeased but
     nonetheless accepting. “A very good one.”

Two
    Ailis jumped off the bed.
    The stone floor was cold beneath her bare feet, but she preferred to shiver rather
     than wait in the bed.
    “He’s spouting nonsense.” She moved away from the bed, looking for wood to start a
     fire, but there was none.
    Bhaic chuckled, sitting down in the chair the earl had been in. He ran his hand through
     his hair before stretching out his legs.
    “He may be, but the man is no fool.” Bhaic leaned down and started loosening the ties
     on his boots. “This chamber has been prepared very carefully to ensure that the only
     comfortable place to spend the night is in that bed.”
    “Together?” Her voice cracked again. She hugged herself and backed up, but a gust
     of wind blew in the window, chilling her to the bone. She stared at the openings in
     the stone, completely perplexed by the inability to cover them.
    “The shutters are missing,” he confirmed from behind her.
    Ailis was looking through an iron screen that would have been used to darken the chamber
     for a lying-in or while someone was ill. On the other side, there was no glass and
     no shutters to seal out the night.
    “No wood either,” she