Page 22 of Highlander’s Wild Lass (Wild McLeans #1)

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A va cocked her head from side to side, fixated on the drawing in front of her. She swiftly moved her paint brush over one last detail. A sliver of a smile stretched across her lips.

“Perfect,” she murmured as she proceeded to gently brush off the excess paint.

An abrupt sound made her freeze.She readied herself and listened, but there were no footsteps approaching. She sighed in relief and began again to brush off the paint steadily. It was a risky affair, but she couldn’t resist her one passion. Her parents would have a fit if they found out that she had replaced her easel after her father had ordered her to give it away.

She put in one last swipe of her brush and the painting was finally ready. Without any warning, her doors flung open. Her eyes popped as she tucked the brush swiftly behind her back. With her heart quickening, she focused on the tall, dark-haired man entering her room. The moment her eyes met his, she exhaled.

“Zander, ye scared me, ye rascal,” Ava said, taking a breath of relief as he closed the door behind him, trapping them in the room.

“Ready for yer classes?” Zander asked as he held her gaze and stood poised at the door. Ava dipped her paint brush into the water to clean it and stole one last look at her painting. There was something honorable about creating art. Yet, she knew if her father ever found out, she’d be in more trouble than she’d care to admit.

“I was born ready,” Ava said with a smirk as she stared at her Latin tutor. There was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes that matched her own.

The Latin tutor she had her parents employ was nothing more than a ploy so that she could finally learn how to wield a sword. After years of begging her father, she decided to take her fate into her own hands, though it might turn to be her worst mistake as of yet.

“Born ready,” she repeated, since he didn’t answer, but Zander ignored her. His eyes were on her drawing.

“A wee bonnie bird ye have there,” he said. Ava rolled her eyes; she couldn’t tell if he was truly impressed or just teasing her like he always did. She ignored him and continued to admire the painting before her.

“Ye might be flying too close to the sun, Icarus. Yer parents are bound to find out ye are keeping so many secrets. Ye should have seen yer face as I walked in, ye looked like ye saw a ghost,” he said.

His eyes twinkled with amusement that both annoyed and consoled Ava. Zander moved closer to her and moved the easel away from her.

“Are ye off yer head?” she snapped at him.

“Ye do realize that anyone could come in, right?”

“Move,” she ordered, glaring at him. The corner of his lips curled as his eyes remained locked on her. He leaned in towards her, the heat of his body rolling off him, but she didn’t move. His huge frame towered above her as she looked up at him, still glaring with defiance. While their relationship was strictly a business transaction, Ava could not help the small patter of her heart, having him so close to her.

“Nothin’ is hidden forever, sooner or later someone is goin’ to figure it out.” His voice went down an octave, trying to caution her.

The look in Ava’s eyes turned to that of determination. She wiped her brush and set it down on the table beside her. Slowly she rose from her seat, her eyes fixed on him still.

“Time shall tell,” she said with a smile. With one swift movement, she unsheathed his sword from the scabbard attached to his garment and pointed it at him.

“Get yer nose out of my business, I believe I have a lesson to complete,” she said, staring at him in triumph.

Sword fighting was an art Ava had fallen in love with as a child. She had memories of her and her mother watching in pure adoration as her father taught her childhood friend, Payton, some techniques. She ached to join them, but her mother’s looks of disapproval let her know she had no chance.

It didn’t deter her. When she got a little bit older, she would convince Payton to sneak out of his room at night to go out to the grounds with her and teach her the techniques he learned in his fencing lessons.

As she blossomed into womanhood, sneaking out became harder. Her father and mother watched over her with eagle eyes and instructed the guard and maidservants to do the same. Her parents chose Anya, a strict and dull woman. Anya taught her numbers, complex words, a bit of Scottish history, and even gave her a few lessons on the harp.

When she turned eighteen and the suitors started coming, her lessons drastically changed. She no longer did sum or history. On her father’s instructions, Anya’s lessons became solely about etiquette. She was taught how to stand straight and look elegant, how to style her hair and groom herself for her husband, how to receive and serve hosts, how to smile broadly during conversations.

Ava threw his sword to him and she brought hers out from the back of her easel. His face looked slightly amused.

“Ye are learning quickly,” he said, lifting his sword.

For the next five minutes, there was no sound besides the clanging of the swords and the sounds of heavy breathing from the two of them. Although she tried not to look, she noticed the beads pack on his broad chest, making it glisten.

His face was focused and serious, but it was chiseled to perfection, his dark hair was glowing with sweat, his lips were pursed but occasionally he would huff and reveal a set of perfectly shaped teeth, his great form changed positions in excellent symmetry she couldn’t help but look up occasionally.

She fell to the ground with a big thud, Zander pinning her to the floor with the edge of his sword.

“Dae ye yield?” he asked. Ava swallowed. His chest was bare and she felt a shiver through her spine.

“I ask again, dae ye yield?” he said, coming closer. Ava’s breaths were coming in short huffs, and she could see nothing else but Zander’s handsome face. A little smirk started playing on her lips, and she was ready to tease him when, suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door.

* * *

Ava stumbled up to her feet and hurriedly pushed her easel and painting towards the window, covering them with the curtains. The knock came again, it sounded less patient than the other. Zander gathered their swords and pushed them under the mattress.

“Ava, open this door at once,” she heard her father growl.

“Coming, Faither!” Ava called out. She hurriedly straightened her garment and walked towards the door. Zander pulled her back.

“Ye have paint on yer face,” he whispered, pulling out a cloth and viciously wiping down her cheek. She could not lose her concentration with him so close to her once again.

“Let me go.”

“Almost there.”

“Zander, move,” Ava said, pulling away from him and grabbing the cloth away from him hurriedly. She could hear his chuckle as she walked angrily towards the door to unlock it.

“Why did ye take so long?” her mother, Emilia asked as soon as she opened the door.

“I am sorry, Maither,” Ava said, avoiding eye contact.

“Greetings,” Zander gave a slight bow as her parents entered the room.

In his hands was a huge Latin textbook. The look on her parents’ faces turned to that of apology.

“We dinnae ken ye were having lessons,” Cameron said.

Zander gave a polite smile.

“We were rounding up for the day, yer timing is nae so wrong, Me Laird,” he said, giving a charming smile.

Ava rolled her eyes. He could make a king yield his crown when he wanted to. Her mother smiled brightly at Zander. Why people always seemed to like him was beyond her. What was there to like about a conceited airhead like him?

“Young lass, ye have a visitor this morning,” her father said, turning his attention back to her.

“Faither…” Ava started. The thought of conversing with another snobbish young gentleman made her sweat.

“Nae a word young lady,” her mother cut in. “I will send Anya in to do yer hair and help ye get dressed. He is already waiting in the Great Hall.”

Emilia turned to Zander, completely ignoring her sulking daughter.

“Could ye be as kind as to chaperone our Ava’s meeting? My husband and I would be there ourselves, but we have a bit of an issue,” she said.

In the corner of her eye, Ava noticed Zander’s eyes shift to her as he gave a small nod. Her heart sank to her stomach as she bit her tongue. She didn’t want another potential suitor to call, she wanted to be free from the constraints of her birth. She was born to a reputable Laird and the responsibilities of such an upbringing caused her heart to ache.

“It would be my pleasure,” he said with a smile and swift nod of obedience.

“What issue?” Ava asked, her voice laced with concern. Her father gave a tired sigh.

“Jackson and Max got their hands stuck in a barrel,” he said.

That explained the loud thud she heard earlier.

“I can help with it,” Ava said, making a desperate attempt to get out of the meeting. All the men that came for her hand in marriage were at best pompous heirs that prided themselves in their wealth or at worst insufferable, spoiled children.

Worse still, she was required to sit through the visits with utmost grace and with a smile on her face. Her family couldn’t lose alliance with the other families. At the end of the meeting, she would have to feign how much she enjoyed the conversation and how she didn’t want to leave. The next day she would politely let them know that she could only be but an acquaintance.

Some took it gracefully, others did not. One time the son of the Laird of Ashlie made sure to tell her how pale she looked in her “ill-fitting clothes” before he threw a huge tantrum and had to be escorted out. He was never allowed to return.

“Nay, ye will go out there and meet her suitor,” Cameron said firmly.

“I will call Anya in now, don’t worry, Payton and yer father will handle getting the boys out,” his mother said to her softly.

Cameron’s eyebrow arched as he studied Zander a moment. Ava couldn’t help but wonder if her father could sense what they were doing. After all, there were beads of sweat on Zander’s forehead that clearly would give them away.

“Ensure my daughter is kept safe,” Cameron said as his eyes shifted to Ava suspiciously. “Or it’ll be yer head.”

“Of course, M’Laird,” Zander said as Ava watched Zander’s head drop. Rolling her eyes, she waited for her parents to exit.

“Best get ye ready then,” Zander said the moment Cameron and Emilia slipped out of the room.

“Do ye think they suspect anythin’?” she asked as she glanced to the easel hidden behind the currents.

Zander shrugged as a glimmer of light bounced off the swords tucked away under the bed. “We can only pray they never discover what we are really doin’.”