Page 36 of A Highland Bride Disciplined

His gaze dropped again to the lips that had just spat fury, to the column of her throat, to the way her robe had shifted once more, exposing a pale sliver of collarbone.

She noticed. Of course she did.

Scarlett arched a brow, as if daring him to cross the line they both stood toeing.

He didn’t.

Instead, he straightened.

Barely.

“Ye said ye wouldnae raise the bairn alone,” he said. “So let’s be clear.”

Scarlett waited.

“I’ll provide what she needs,” he went on. “Food. Care. A nursemaid. And if any harm comes to her, I’ll take the head off whoever’s responsible. That includesye.”

Her jaw tightened. “Duly noted.”

He crossed his arms. “And she’ll have a proper education. None of this folklore shite Effie’s been fillin’ her head with.”

“At six months old?”

“It starts early.”

Scarlett smirked. “Next ye’ll be sayin’ ye want her readin’ the clan records by age two.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Three. I’ll be reasonable.”

“Ye? Reasonable?” She let out a soft, disbelieving laugh. “Nowthat’sthe jest of the night.”

They stared at each other again.

Only this time, the air didn’t feel sharp. It felt thick. Tangled. Like threads of something they couldn’t name looping tighter around them with every breath.

Kian swallowed. “For her.”

“Aye,” Scarlett said, voice quiet now. “For her.”

They didn’t smile. There was no softening. But something in the roomsettled, like a ceasefire declared under duress.

Then, without meaning to, his eyes dropped again.

Her lips. Always her damned lips.

Scarlett noticed.

And suddenly, they weren’t just standing too close. They were both leaning in, closing the space between them.

He didn’t even realize it until he could see the flecks of green in her irises. Until he could feel the warmth of her skin through the space between them. Until she tilted her chin just enough that the distance between them became dangerous.

Her gaze flicked to his mouth.

He whispered her name under his breath like a curse.

The caress of her lips was less than a breath away, but she stepped back. Not abruptly. Not rudely. Just deliberately.

Her eyes were unreadable now. Guarded.