The Rogue: A Highland Guard Novella (The Highland Guard) Read Online Free PDF

low rumble from her stomach belied that claim. Still, recognizing when a retreat was in order, she would have turned right around if her cousin Jamie and his wife, Joanna, hadn’t come up behind her.
    “All alone, Izzie?” Jamie asked. “Where’s my sister?”
    It was sometimes hard to believe that her cousin Jamie had become one of the most feared men in England. But the dark frown on his face reminded her why the English called him “the Black” Douglas.
    It was clear he was suspicious of something. Probably exactly what Izzie was suspicious of—that something was going on between his sister and Thom MacGowan. From what Izzie could tell, Thom and Jamie didn’t like one another, though supposedly they had once been the best of friends.
    Izzie caught Joanna’s gaze, but the gentle pleading there wasn’t necessary. She wasn’t going to get between the two siblings on this one—she’d learned her lesson a long time ago not to try to mediate Jamie and Elizabeth’s many battles.
    “She wasn’t hungry and said she was going to read a book and try to get to bed early,” Izzie said.
    Jamie’s frown only deepened, and Izzie realized her mistake. She’d thought the same thing when Elizabeth had made the excuse.
    “Ella, stay in her room to read and avoid a meal and entertainment? That sounds more like you, Izzie. We always had to pull your nose out of a book to do anything.” He tweaked that nose fondly. “Maybe I should have Helen MacKay check in on her.” Helen was a gifted healer. “Ella has a big week ahead of her, I do not want her to be fighting sickness.”
    Izzie felt a strange twist in her stomach, realizing to what he referred: the betrothal that seemed all but preordained. Though Randolph and Jamie were known for their fierce rivalry, Izzie knew that Jamie was just as eager for this engagement as Elizabeth—perhaps more so. Allying himself with the king’s nephew would be a gold spur on her ambitious cousin’s boot.
    “She’s fine, Jamie,” Izzie assured him. “Just tired, that’s all.”
    Suddenly, he seemed to remember something and smiled. “Ah, that’s right. She was to go riding with Randolph today, wasn’t she?” He chuckled. “I’ll have to have a word with him about tiring her out.”
    Izzie tried to hide her alarm, but Joanna wasn’t quite as successful. Her eyes widened. Clearly she didn’t want her husband to learn about his sister’s change of plans. Joanna had made no secret of her hope that Elizabeth would choose Thom MacGowan over Randolph.
    “You promised you’d stay out of it, James,” Joanna admonished. “If this betrothal is meant to be, it will happen without your forcing it.” Before he could argue, which he looked about to, Joanna shifted his attention back to the room. “Come, I’m hungry, and the king is calling for you.”
    Realizing that there was no turning back now, Izzie squared her shoulders and marched forward behind them. She would have to face Randolph at some point; she might as well get it over with.
    Really, she was making too much of this. They’d shared a kiss—so what? She certainly wasn’t going to start writing his name in the margins of her portfolios or on the pages of her precious parchment. The thought made her smile. Lady Isabel Randolph, Countess of Moray… that would be about as likely as snow falling in hell or Randolph declaring his love for her—and her believing him.
    Now she was laughing. Which turned out to be the perfect or perfectly wrong thing, depending on how you looked at it, as it was at that moment that their eyes met.
    She’d done it again. Once again he’d assumed he was the reason for her amusement—which in this case he admittedly was—and his expression grew as dark as a thundercloud.
    She quickly sobered and looked around for a seat on the far side of the dais—preferably as far away from Randolph as she could get. Unfortunately, the benches were all full. The king motioned Jamie and Joanna to sit by