Page 7 of One Forbidden Kiss with the Laird (The Cinderella Shepherd Sisters #2)

A fter thirty minutes of pacing in her room Selina felt as though she were going mad.

She needed fresh air and the wind on her face.

What she really wanted was a bracing sea breeze and a walk along the cliffs arm in arm with her sister in their home town, but St Leonards-on-Sea was over five hundred miles away.

It might as well be on the other side of the world.

She glanced out the window, noting the gardens were deserted, and decided to risk her stepmother and half-sister’s wrath by slipping out.

It was unlikely they would catch her again, not while they were occupied with Lord Leven in the drawing room or wherever they had disappeared to once she had been banished upstairs.

Selina felt a swell of frustration at the thought of Catherine sitting there, pretending to be a young woman of good character.

It wasn’t her place to warn Lord Leven what a horrible family he was marrying into.

He was a grown man, capable of making his own assessments and decisions, and she was aware there were many reasons for the match.

It was not as if he had been conned into a false love match.

No doubt his reasons for wanting to marry Catherine were as mercenary as Sir William’s.

Her cloak was still a little damp around the hem from the night before, but she had no other outer layer to keep her warm, and she was fast learning how quickly the weather could change here in the Highlands.

It would be warm and sunny one minute and the next the clouds and mist would roll in and drop the temperature by ten degrees.

Thankfully the hall was deserted and she made it outside without anyone spotting her.

Hamish, Lord Leven’s dog, was gone from his position keeping guard by the front door and Selina wondered if that meant Lord Leven had left already, or if the dog had been taken elsewhere.

There was a sizeable stable yard here at Loch View Lodge and she would not put it past her stepmother to have instructed one of the grooms to move the animal somewhere she deemed more suitable.

Selina walked quickly, not wanting anyone from the house to see her. After the storm the night before the sky was clear and the sun shining. There was a warmth in the air that Selina had not felt since crossing the border, although when the breeze blew there was a little chill.

As soon as she could she left the main drive, cutting across the grass and looping around the edge of the property towards the loch.

It was difficult to tell where the edge of the estate that belonged to Loch View Lodge was for there was no fence, no marker of boundary, just a continuation of the rolling countryside.

In the daylight it was much easier to stick to a path of sorts and as she came out into sunshine from a dense patch of trees in the distance she could even see the village of Ballachulish.

As she walked she felt some of the tension in her body begin to melt away.

There was nothing like fresh air and gentle exercise to clear the mind.

* * *

It had taken her fifteen minutes to reach the water’s edge and by the time she arrived she felt much better about everything.

She had resolved to forget about Lord Leven and Catherine, to wish them well in their union and focus on planning her escape back to England, back home. That was what was important.

A tall alder tree sat at the water’s edge, angled back away from the water like an old man leaning on his stick. It had a few branches at shoulder height and Selina could not resist the urge to see if there was a way to pull herself up.

It was an easy enough climb and within a minute she was sitting with her back against the trunk of the tree, her legs stretched out along the thick branch. It was a comfortable seat and a beautiful spot, with a view along the vast length of the loch in front of her.

Despite her desire to flee Scotland and return home, Selina had to admit she was grateful she had had the opportunity to travel somewhere so beautiful. Not many people ever got the chance to leave their home town, let alone spend weeks on the road to end up somewhere so far away.

As thoughts of Scotland and thoughts of home mingled she felt her eyes drooping. The sun on her face and the disturbed night she’d spent tossing and turning in bed meant she felt drowsy and, after ensuring she was secure in her seat, she closed her eyes and allowed the fatigue to overtake her.

* * *

She awoke to the horrible sensation of falling. In her dream she had been teetering on the edge of a cliff, looking at the crashing waves below, and the cliff had started to crumble under her feet.

Selina’s eyes shot open and for a moment she did not understand what was happening or where she was.

‘Damn it, woman, grab on.’ Lord Leven’s gruff voice came from somewhere below her. In her drowsy state she became aware of the pressure on her hip and after a moment of confusion she realised where she was.

Below her Lord Leven was standing, his arms raised and his hands pushing against her hip and her thigh. The force he was applying was the only thing stopping her from falling the five feet from the tree to the ground.

Selina’s arms shot out and she gripped hold of the branch, steadying herself and managing to reposition herself so she was no longer off balance. Lord Leven waited for a few seconds longer until he let go, no doubt not trusting her not to fall on top of him.

Once her heart had slowed in her chest she looked down to find Lord Leven glaring up at her.

‘What sort of fool decides to sleep in a tree?’ He shook his head in disbelief. ‘The comfortable beds at Taigh Blath not good enough for you?’

Selina bristled even though she knew he had a point. Allowing herself to drift off to sleep on a tree branch, however safe and sturdy it had felt, had been a foolish move.

‘It is not that far to the ground,’ Selina said, glancing down and trying to disguise a grimace. ‘You could have let me fall if it irked you so much to assist me.’

‘A broken leg is no minor inconvenience, Miss Shepherd. That sort of injury can ruin a person’s life.’ He spoke with an authority that convinced Selina he had seen an injury such as that before.

She hesitated for a second and then gave a little nod. ‘Thank you for your assistance.’

‘What are you doing up there?’

‘It is a comfortable perch with an excellent view and with the sun on my face I closed my eyes for a moment and drifted off to sleep.’ She cocked her head to the side. ‘Should you not be in Sir William’s drawing room, rather than out here saving me from self-inflicted injuries?’

‘Ah. Aye. Most likely.’

‘It did not go well?’

He did not answer the question, but instead gave her a searching look.

‘What is your connection to the family, Miss Shepherd?’

‘You want to check I am not Miss Kingsley’s treasured childhood friend before you vent your frustrations?’

‘Are you? She did not treat you as such.’

‘No. I am…’ Selina hesitated, having to resist the urge to tell Lord Leven the truth. ‘A very distant, very poor relative of Sir William. Sir William and Lady Kingsley were kind enough to bring me along on this trip to act as companion to Miss Kingsley.’

‘The same Miss Kingsley who hates you?’

Selina spluttered. ‘She said she hated me?’

‘No, she did her very best to pretend you dinnae exist, but she wasn’t exactly pleasant to you when we met outside Taigh Blath.’

‘We do not share many interests,’ Selina said carefully.

That was a lie. Initially Selina had wondered if she and Catherine might one day become friends, for they both enjoyed socialising and fashion, but Catherine had refused to ever speak to Selina about anything at all.

The only time they interacted was for Catherine to bark an order or voice her disdain in some way.

To her surprise Lord Leven motioned for her to shuffle up and then pulled himself on to the branch beside her. She moved along a little, but when he joined her his legs brushed against hers.

‘It is quite a view up here,’ he said, nodding out at the loch.

‘It is. And this is a comfortable branch.’

‘You’ll not convince me it is a sensible place to take a nap, Miss Shepherd.

’ He glanced at her and smiled. There was something charming underneath the gruff exterior, as if Lord Leven was a man of two halves, perhaps even bridging two worlds.

There was the gentleman, refined and polite, and then the rougher, more direct man who looked uncomfortable in the cravat he had been forced to wear.

‘Did you accomplish everything that you needed to with Sir William and Miss Kingsley?’ Selina wasn’t sure why she was quite so bothered about this marriage.

She barely knew Lord Leven. One brief interaction and a night of fantasising did not mean she had any claim on him, yet she felt inordinately upset that he was the one who would be marrying Catherine.

‘No.’ He didn’t look at her, instead locked his eyes on the horizon, a pensive expression on his face. ‘It seems the negotiations are to be more complicated than I first anticipated.’

‘Sir William is being difficult?’

‘Aye, I should have expected as much. He has a reputation as a canny man in business, I dinnae ken why I thought this would be any different.’

‘It is just a business deal, then?’

‘What else is a marriage?’

‘That is a cynical view of the world.’

‘Not all of us have the luxury of romance.’

They fell silent and Selina realised Lord Leven was troubled by his impending engagement.

‘I understand there are many reasons for people to get married. I am not so naive to think everyone can be blessed with a marriage built on a foundation of love. Yet surely if you are committing to someone for the rest of your life it is important to at least value what they bring to the partnership other than money or status.’

‘I do not know Miss Kingsley. We have spent but a few minutes in one another’s company and throughout that time it felt as though I was not seeing her true character.’

Selina bit down a remark about Catherine’s true character. She did not want to scare Lord Leven off.

‘But you will get to spend more time with her before you marry?’

‘Aye, a little.’ He shrugged. ‘I do not wish to shatter your romantic expectations, Miss Shepherd, but I would marry Miss Kingsley even if she was responsible for every atrocity ever committed, even if she was the worst person to walk this earth.’

Selina laughed, thinking he was joking, cutting the sound short when she realised he was completely serious.

‘You must really want what Sir William has to offer.’ She wanted to ask him what it was he wanted from Sir William, what was so important that he would consent to marry a stranger, no matter how much he liked or disliked her.

Selina was about to ask more when she heard a faint voice in the distance, calling her name.

‘It seems you are missed,’ Lord Leven said, moving to hop down from the tree.

The voice was getting a little louder, the sound carried on the light breeze.

‘I suppose there is a first time for everything.’ Selina shuffled along the branch, suddenly aware how inappropriate it was to be sitting here with her half-sister’s future husband.

They were alone, unchaperoned, and to a suspicious mind anything could have happened between them. ‘Catherine cannot see us together.’

Lord Leven looked up at her and reached out a hand, giving her a wink that set her pulse racing. ‘I’ve been roaming these hills and glens since I could first walk, I can disappear in an instant.’

Selina braced herself against the branch, getting ready to push off, to launch herself into the air.

As she leaned forward she felt her dress snag against something and she pulled back, but not enough.

She was off balance, desperate not to ruin another dress, her arms flailing as she grabbed for something to steady herself on.

She slipped forward and as she started to fall she wondered if she might end up with a broken leg after all.

Strong hands gripped her hips, holding her suspended for a moment before slowly lowering her to the ground.

It was a show of strength like nothing Selina had seen before and she realised quite how powerful Lord Leven was, to be able to arrest her fall in mid-air and then control her descent to the ground.

As he lowered her, her body slid down his. It was unavoidable, but Selina felt her breath catch in her chest as her lips passed mere inches from his. Even when her feet touched the ground she was unable to move, unable to step away.

Her chin was tilted up, her eyes fixed on his, and in that moment Selina wanted nothing more than for him to kiss her. She thought she could see desire in his eyes, that flare of attraction, but if it was ever there at all it was quickly hidden.

In the space of just a few seconds Selina’s thoughts spiralled. She imagined him kissing her, running his fingers along her cheek. She imagined them standing together hand in hand at the edge of the loch and then in a church and then…

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, she turned and stepped away.

Her runaway imagination and willingness to indulge it had got her into this predicament she found herself in—far from home with people who hated her and no real prospects for the future.

She would not fall down another rabbit hole of self-indulgence, fantasising about this man who had just told her he would stop at nothing to marry her half-sister.

‘Thank you again, Lord Leven,’ she said, surprised to hear her voice calm and steady.

‘Until tonight, Miss Shepherd.’

Behind them Catherine called out again, this time much closer. Selina turned in panic to see her half-sister come into view and readied herself for the anger that would spew from Catherine when she realised Selina had been fraternising with Lord Leven.

‘Where on earth have you been? Mother is beside herself with irritation. She says you are never where you are meant to be and she’s right, it is annoying.’

Selina blinked, surprised at the tone of Catherine’s voice. Her stepsister might only be twenty-one, but she knew better than to talk to Selina in that way in front of others, especially the man she was hoping to marry.

‘Why are you standing there, gawping like an ugly fish?’

Looking over her shoulder, Selina was surprised to find Lord Leven had disappeared. She was standing on her own under the tree with no sign of him or Hamish. He had slipped away silently, as promised, like a hero from ancient myth.