Page 38 of One Forbidden Kiss with the Laird (The Cinderella Shepherd Sisters #2)
A s they stood hand in hand outside Taigh Blath, Selina felt a knot forming in her stomach.
She had insisted on coming along, wanting to face her father one final time before hopefully never seeing him again.
She also had a little plan of her own that she had not told Callum about, some leverage that she hoped to use if the negotiations were not going their way.
Yesterday evening, on returning to Ballachulish, Callum had recruited a group of young men to go and knock on everyone’s doors and call them to a meeting in the big barn where they’d held their illicit dance.
Callum had spoken with passion and authority, his demeanour humble, but also that of a man who wanted to take charge.
The villagers had been overwhelming in their support and a few of the wealthier residents who owned their own homes had come forward to pledge some small amounts of money to help the cause.
The people who really mattered, in a practical rather than emotional sense, were the local landowners, though.
Selina had watched, hands clasped together nervously, as they had listened to Callum’s proposal with expressionless faces.
She had not been able to gauge their reaction until Callum had finished talking.
There was silence and then after ten seconds a farmer who owned a few acres and ran a relatively successful dairy farm stood up and clapped.
He had declared it was about time they acted and he was all too happy to help secure the future of the people of Ballachulish, the people he’d grown up with and considered his friends.
Bruce had put forward a large amount of money, second only to Callum’s own pot.
It was almost everything he had earned while in Canada, minus a few pounds he had kept back to ensure he had enough funds for the wedding.
Between Callum and Bruce and the other smaller landowners, Callum calculated there was enough to buy a large portion of the estate back from Sir William.
Now all they needed to do was convince him to sell.
‘Good morning,’ a footman said, peering out into the fog before taking a step back in surprise as he saw Callum and Selina standing there. ‘I am not sure…’
‘If we are welcome here? No, I expect we are not, but it is vital we speak to Sir William.’
‘I will go and enquire as to whether he will receive you.’
‘He won’t receive us,’ Selina murmured, her hand slipping a little further up Callum’s arm.
She wanted to be brave and bold, but every moment they stood outside, waiting to be dismissed, she felt more and more like the girl who had been scorned and belittled by her father for a year before realising she was worth more.
Deciding to make things different, she tugged at Callum’s arm.
‘Come on. He can’t refuse to see us if we’re already in his study. ’
She marched inside, aware she might be tackled to the ground at any moment by an irate Catherine or a furious Lady Kingsley.
Selina did not slow or stop until she reached the door of her father’s study.
She could hear the murmur of voices inside, no doubt as the footman assured Sir William he was not lying, that Callum and Selina were both outside.
‘Father,’ she said as she strode into the room, ‘You look tired. I hope you are well.’
‘Get out,’ he said, rising from his desk. He took two steps towards her before he saw Callum, tall and broad in the doorway. Sir William was prideful man, but he was also clever. He knew there was no way he would ever win in a physical fight against Callum, so he did not even try.
‘Lord Leven,’ he said, looking Callum up and down, a little smile now playing on his lips ‘I understand from my daughter you have been a busy man.’
‘We ask for a few minutes of your time. I have a proposition that I think you will appreciate.’
‘What makes you think I would ever consider doing business with you? You have shown yourself to be untrustworthy and unreliable. I should have known there was a reason you lost your entire estate, your entire birthright.’
Selina glanced at Callum, aware of how sensitive a topic this was for him, even now, but she was pleased to see he looked in control of himself.
From behind them there was a squeal of frustration and then Catherine barrelled into the room, looking more like a child than the demure young woman she was meant to be.
‘What is she doing here?’
Lady Kingsley followed, her eyes blazing. ‘You gave me your word you were leaving and never coming back. I should have known not to trust the word of a bastard child like you.’
Callum held up a hand, his voice low but clear, cutting through the frenzied mood in the room.
‘Please refrain from attacking Miss Shepherd. I had hoped to come here today to settle some of the bad feeling between my family and yours, Sir William, but I will not tolerate Miss Shepherd being treated poorly.’
‘You stand by her, then?’ Sir William asked, his eyes fixed on Selina. ‘You do know she has nothing to offer you, no dowry, no family connections?’
‘I know everything,’ Callum said. Sir William fell silent, no doubt assessing how much damage Callum could do to him with the knowledge that Selina was Sir William’s illegitimate daughter.
‘Sit down. I will listen to what you have to stay.’
‘Father…’ wailed Catherine.
‘Either conduct yourself with an appropriate level of decorum or leave,’ Sir William snapped at his younger daughter.
Lady Kingsley and Catherine both fell silent, perching on the window seat just in Selina’s eyeline.
Selina and Callum took the two seats in front of the large desk while Sir William returned to his chair behind it.
‘I want to start with an apology,’ Callum said, speaking clearly and calmly.
‘I am sorry our negotiations stalled and ultimately failed. When you made the journey up here to Scotland I was hopeful of a union between our families.’ He turned to Catherine, his voice soft.
‘I apologise to you as well, Miss Kingsley. You are a very eligible young lady and I know one day you will find the right man to be your husband.’
‘You cannot mean to marry her,’ Lady Kingsley said, the words spilling from her despite Sir William’s look of admonishment. ‘You would choose Selina over my Catherine?’
‘Miss Shepherd and I are very much in love and you cannot argue with love.’
‘You are a fool,’ Sir William snapped. ‘No one of consequence marries for love.’
‘There we will have to disagree,’ Callum said, taking hold of Selina’s hand and lifting it into his lap.
‘You met my mother. I expect you know her lineage. She is second cousin to the Prince Regent. She has a connection to almost every member of the London ton despite not having been back to England for years. She is an advocate for love matches—I understand they are gaining popularity among the upper echelons of Society.’
Sir William did not have an answer for this so Callum pushed on.
‘I love your daughter Miss Shepherd,’ he clarified quickly. ‘We will be wed as soon as the proper arrangements have been made.’
‘What about me?’ Catherine asked, her voice barely more than a whisper. ‘I was meant to marry the Earl. I was meant to be mistress of a Scottish estate. Not her.’
Selina looked down at her lap. Despite everything Catherine had put her through over the last year she had never set out to hurt her half-sister.
Although she had only ever been cruel to Selina, perhaps once she was out in the world, hopefully married to a decent man, she might well lose some of the spitefulness and become someone Selina could get along with.
‘You said you had a proposition for me,’ Sir William said, unwilling to congratulate the couple on their upcoming nuptials. ‘I am not inclined to be generous, given the havoc you have wrought in our lives, but I will listen if you are quick.’
‘I expect you are keen to get back to England. You will have missed most of the Season, but there are summer parties, no doubt, and next Season to prepare for.’
Sir William narrowed his eyes and regarded Callum.
Selina knew her father and his family were not invited to all the big events of the Season.
It was what had driven them here to Scotland, this quest to be accepted by the highest in Society.
Sir William looked as though he could not decide if there was a barbed insult in the comment or merely ignorance.
‘We shall be returning to England soon,’ Sir William confirmed.
‘I would like to buy some of the land and estate from you before you go. It will leave you with less to manage. It is a long way from England to Scotland and I cannot imagine it is easy having property so far away.’
‘You cannot afford to buy back the entirety of the estate,’ Sir William said. ‘And I am disinclined to give you favourable rates. You have cost me enough with this wasted trip.’
‘I do not wish for the whole estate—you are right, I cannot afford it. You can keep Loch View Lodge and the grounds. I want to buy the rest.’
Sir William frowned, clearly not expecting this.
Callum continued. ‘It would allow you to still tell people you had an extensive estate in the Scottish Highlands, bought off the impoverished Thomson family, but not have to worry about managing the locals.’
‘You don’t want the house?’
Callum shrugged and Selina felt the tension in his body beside her despite his best efforts to disguise it.
‘As you say, I can’t afford everything. Loch View Lodge has been in my family for generations, for hundreds of years, but it is not my priority right now.’
‘You want the farmland and the houses in the village? Why? They hardly generate a huge income.’ Sir William’s eyes narrowed. ‘Unless you plan to turn the land over to sheep.’
‘No,’ Callum said, trying not to let on how much the idea disgusted him. ‘I wish to manage the farmland and rent out the properties, that is all.’
Sir William tapped his fingers on the edge of his chair, contemplating Callum’s proposal.