Page 24 of Caught by the Highland Beast (A Highlander’s Oath #5)

24

“ T his will be Laird and Lady O’Duncan,” Finn said before the carriage came to a stop at the front of the castle. They were the first of Finn’s friends to arrive. The McAllisters, McLarens, and Campbells were all to arrive shortly as well.

A well-timed brood of warriors, Thalia thought to herself, a smile playing at her lips that was not lost on Finn as she noticed him watching her from the corners of his eyes.

“Conor!” Finn said, grasping his friend in an embrace as he exited the carriage.

“Ye remember Nylah, Finn,” Conor said, and Finn took the woman’s hand to rest a kiss on her knuckles politely.

“Of course I do. Lady O’Duncan, good to see ye again. This is me bride to be, Thalia Sinclair.”

Conor stepped around his friend and repeated the gesture, kissing her knuckles. “Miss Sinclair,” he said as Nylah simply bowed her head and wrapped her arms around her belly protectively.

“So good to meet you. I’ve heard so much,” she said, and it was not lost on her that Nylah’s smile faltered upon hearing Thalia’s English accent, but Conor did not miss a beat.

“Ach! Entirely too much then,” he said with a wink before Finn wrapped his arm around her waist and turned to lead them all back into the castle. His hand on Thalia’s back, he leaned into her hair to plant a kiss and whispered, “Daenae fash about Nylah.”

He led them to the stocked dinner tables and gestured for them to sit. “Arran should be in soon. Kaiden and Rhys have a little further to travel, so I expect they’ll get in after we are through eating. Please, eat.”

“Oh, the journey wasnae far for us, friend. Thank ye!” Conor said, helping Nylah into her chair before taking the empty chair next to Finn.

“I’m sorry for my reaction earlier, Miss Sinclair” Nylah said quickly as Thalia found her seat next to her. “Only, I just dinnae expect ye to be English. Naethin’ against ye ’course, just surprise.”

Thalia smiled sweetly, unsure of where to place her trust. “Thank you, Lady?—”

“Ach! Call me Nylah; come on. We are basically kin now!” she said cheerfully, her entire demeanor shifting, and Thalia instantly relaxed.

As she took a drink of her wine, Nylah said loud enough to cut off the men’s conversation, “So, Finn, tell me about how ye two met.”

His eyes met Thalia’s quickly, and his ears reddened.

Surely, he thought about this before they were to arrive. We should have talked about this. Oh no!

“Well, she sort of stumbled into me life, dinnae she? Cillian and I were hunting, and she was in the Crawford wood, just over there,” he pointed with his dinner knife in the general direction of the woods. Nylah’s eyes followed it in rapture.

“So, Cillian approves; that’s well enough, aye?” Conor interjected and patted his friend on the back. “I daenae ken I’ve seen Finn so happy, lass.”

Thalia’s cheeks flushed, and she saw a spark in Finn’s eyes that reminded her of their tryst on the water’s edge the night before.

“We are both quite happy,” she said finally.

“Aye, that’s plain,” Nylah said. “And ye have brought your kin here too, correct?”

“Yes, my sisters are here though they are up in their rooms asleep already.”

“I love children; I cannae wait to meet our bairn. He’ll be a brawn lad, I’m sure of it,” she declared, resting a hand on her belly and looking lovingly at Conor.

“To be sure, me love — Ye were saying…” Conor said, looking back at Finn who had clearly thought they had been distracted from the original question of how they had met.

“Sure, I ken that is how the Lord works, at least for me,” Finn shrugged, his eyes finding Thalia’s again.

“And when did ye fall in love, Finn. Give us the details!” Nylah said loudly, almost chastising him for withholding the important details.

Finn nodded his head, contemplating. “Ye ken that we havenae spent much time together, but…” His eyes never leaving hers as he continued, “… I reckon I fell in love with her first.”

What?

“When, man! When!” Conor said, slapping his palm on the table, the unexpectedly loud sound making both Nylah and Thalia jump.

Finn shook his head with a soft chuckle.

What is he going to say?

The silence pressed against Thalia’s chest like a brick until finally his eyes met hers again. “When I watched her uncle put his hands on her. The first time I saw her get hurt. I ken it then that I would kill anyone who threatened her.”

“Ach! Ye sap!” Conor said, clapping his friend on the back with violent amusement. Nylah swooned animatedly, and the two of them uproariously congratulated both of them.

A heavy weight rested in Thalia’s stomach though as she tried to capture Finn’s gaze.

Was he telling the truth, or did he make that up?

“Okay, your turn, lass. When did ye fall in love with Finn?” Nylah asked as she piled another potato on her utensil and inhaled it.

One of the staff came into the hall then to Thalia’s relief. “Laird and Lady McLaren have arrived —” the man managed to announce right as a large, man burst through the dining hall door with outstretched arms.

“Finn, me man! Ye are to be wed tomorrow! What a joyful occasion!”

Thalia knew that Laird McLaren was Arran Williams, and his wife was Scarlett. They had just recently been married, and Finn had told her all about their engagement. She looked both of them over, and it was almost ridiculous to think that they could fake anything. They were in orbit of each other, always aware of what the other was doing.

Silly, she thought with a smile as she stood to greet their guests with Finn.

“Hello, English,” Arran said, wrapping his large hands around hers. “Miss Sinclair, of course — nice to finally meet the woman who has stolen my dear friend’s heart.”

“A lucky woman indeed,” Scarlett said, finishing Arran’s thought.

“Indeed,” Arran agreed, stepping aside to introduce the two women to each other.

“Of course, I know Lady McLaren,” Thalia said politely, and Scarlett quickly waved a hand between them.

“Enough formalities. I’m Scarlett, you’re Thalia. That’s Arran — don’t let him tell ye otherwise.”

She beamed up at him, and he returned her smile softly before realizing they weren’t alone and connecting gazes with Thalia. “Shall we eat?” Thalia said without missing a beat.

“Aye,” Arran answered, guiding Scarlett over to the table. Finn’s hand found Thalia’s for the briefest second to reassure her, and then they parted to their sides of the table.

“Ye have arrived just in time,” Conor started. “Thalia here was about to tell us when she fell in love with our Finn.”

“Are ye really going to make them tell ye this?” Scarlett said, feigning disinterest. Thalia tossed over a thankful look.

“Come on now, can we tell ye about how much in love we are instead?” Arran said boastfully, looking boyishly over at his bride.

“Out with it, right now! No delays!” Nylah demanded, her focus resting on Scarlett.

Her silence, followed by a knowing smile, was enough for all of them to know that Scarlett was also with child. “Oh Lord above, what a blessing! Congratulations!” Nylah squeaked.

“Two healthy, brawn lads to be born this spring it seems!” Conor said, clapping Arran on his back as well.

Arran’s eyes lingered on Thalia’s before turning to Conor. “Indeed, me friend. Indeed.”

Nylah and Scarlett got busy discussing baby-related topics while Arran and Conor discussed young boy activities like hunting, wrestling, shooting, and fighting. Finn’s gaze rested on Thalia, who nodded reassuringly.

She had always wanted children of her own, but this situation she found herself in now seemed so convoluted that she wasn’t sure how to feel about their pending nuptials and their deal.

To be a happy mother carrying her first child and being so in love with her husband, both ready to welcome their new family member. The thought tugged on an invisible string inside her throat. She yearned for that.

I wonder if they know everything… If they do, surely, they wouldn’t have asked. I needed to get Finn alone; we should have talked about this before his friends arrived.

“I’m going to go check on my sisters; I’ll be back shortly,” Thalia said, excusing herself from the table politely. Finn, Arran, and Conor all stood at her departure, and Nylah begged for her to return soon.

In the silence of the dark corridors, Thalia walked slowly and let the tears fall down her cheeks. Sniffling every other step, she didn’t hear the footsteps behind her.

“What’s wrong?” Finn said lowly, the roar of his friends in the dining hall carried through the castle.

“I — I feel lost at that table, Finn.”

“Lost?”

“I don’t know what I can say or what I can’t say. What do they know?”

“They know everything.”

His admission gave her pause. “Everything?”

“Of course,” he shrugged and she had to trust that he was telling her the truth even though she had a nagging feeling that he wasn’t.

“Did you —”

“Are ye really going to check on your sisters, who have been asleep for the last three hours?”

“No, I was just going to wander until I stopped feeling this way.”

He nodded silently, his breath laced with wine and his body radiating heat. “Feeling, what way?” he asked, taking a step closer.

“L— lost.” Thalia’s voice hitched in her throat as his lips neared.

“How can I help?” Finn asked. Clearly emboldened by the presence of his friends, he dipped his head lower to hers.

“Tell me the truth,” Thalia managed to say.

“Truth?” Finn asked, straightening up slightly and then look at her with confusion.

“Tell me, did you mean what you said down there?”

“What did I say that ye are asking about?”

“You know very well what I’m asking about.”

“If ye have a question, Thalia Sinclair, ye best ask it.” She felt him tense.

“When Nylah and Conor were asking about when you knew you loved me. Did you mean what you said?”

Finn loosed the breath he was holding. “I’ve already told ye that I would kill anyone who threatened ye. Ye are safe with me.”

“Is that when you knew that you loved me? You love me? Why haven’t you ever told me? How? What about the deal? What do we do?” Thalia asked, her questions toppling out one after the other as her patience wore out.

Finn’s face darkened as he clarified, “What about the deal?”

“That’s not —”

“Daenae fash, Thalia. The deal is still intact. Just keep putting on the act ye have been tonight, and we’ll get through tomorrow and everything else as soon as possible.”

“No. Wait!” she said, gripping his forearm tightly. His eyes burning a hole in her hand before meeting her gaze.

“You don’t get to pick and choose questions to answers. You either answer all of them, or you answer none of them.”

“Come on, love birds! Come back and eat!” they heard Conor holler out from down the stairs.

“Plenty of time for that after tomorrow!” Nylah called out after him, and the room broke out into laughter.

“— or even just after tomorrow morning!” Conor bellowed, and the room roared again.

Thalia and Finn’s eyes connected, and he exhaled deeply before softening his gaze toward her. “Look, I have made meself clear. Either ye choose to believe it’s part of the deal or that it’s the truth, but ken well that it could be both… or neither option.”

His lips connected with her forehead before he twisted her around in front of him and marched her back down into the dining hall.

What is that supposed to mean?