Page 44

“No,” she finally said.

She could feel the energy that had been sucked out of her by the Laird’s presence slowly returning to her body.

“Nay?” he asked, cocking his head.

“No, I won’t let you take her.”

“Is this a joke?”

“I am afraid not, Sir.”

She could feel her energy slowly begin to grow. The same one she used to speak to and challenge the men in her life at one point or another. The energy filled her so much that it was her turn to take a step closer to him. One she was certain was not going to hurt her or Margaret.

She did.

Brodrick furrowed his brow, confused. But underneath the confusion and the frustration was a bit of fascination.

Who was this woman? This big lady before him, challenging his every statement and calling him to order before he could even say a word?

“Huh,” he murmured.

“So far, all I’ve heard is that she’s your daughter, you’ve come to take her, and you’re the Laird of Clan MacDunn. For all we know, this isn’t your daughter.”

“Dinnae mock me intelligence and assume I would be foolish as to nae recognize me own bairn, miss.”

“Maybe she just looks similar to your daughter. Maybe your daughter is elsewhere, waiting for you to find her.”

Ava didn’t miss a beat. She had found full courage once again. It’d take more than a tall, practically shirtless man with muscles she couldn’t take her eyes off to flounder her stride.

Brodrick scoffed. “Is this how this is going to be?”

He took a step towards her, his eyes holding hers the entire time.

Ava swallowed.

He took another step. They were only inches apart now. She could feel the heat radiating from his body, smell the sweat that trickled down his skin, feel his eyes burning holes into her.

“Look into me eyes and then hers, miss. Are ye goin’ to tell me that we dinnae share the same?”

“Unrelated people share the same eye color all the time. This is not a fascinating discovery. If I’m going to hand Margaret to you, I need to make sure you are truly her father—that you will care for her. And protect her.”

“I have always protected her.”

“And yet here we are.”

Brodrick stared down at the floor, still in disbelief at this woman standing in front of him, basically ensuring he didn’t get off easily. He rubbed his eyes, before looking back up at her.

“If me eyes arenae proof enough that the girl is mine, then the birthmark will prove it.”

Ava frowned. “The birthmark?”

Brodrick lifted his right arm and pulled back his sleeve. Ava could see even more of his muscles glisten in the overhead sunlight, and the sight almost made her collapse to the ground. He brought his arm closer to her and pointed at it.

Ava stared for a second at the red dot on the bottom of his arm, right above the front of his elbows, at how it shifted when his muscles flexed, at the determined expression on his face.

“Does she have the same mark?”

She swallowed. “I will have to check.”

She reached for Margaret, her eyes wide and her heart beating with anticipation. “Child, if I could just check your arm for a minute?—”

She raised Margaret’s right arm, and sure enough, right in the same place Brodrick’s mark was located above her elbow she could see a faint red dot. It almost stuck to the bone, due to how frail the child was.

Brodrick saw the mark as well and did not wait for Ava to give him a response before he crouched down once again.

“It’s me, lassie. It’s me. Yer faither.”

Silence fell between them, and Ava could tell that he was waiting for Margaret to say something—anything.

“We are goin’ back home today, ye hear me? We are leavin’ today,” he said again.

But he was only met by more uncomfortable silence.

He shifted his gaze to Ava. “She doesnae speak,” he noted, his voice low. “Why isnae she replyin’? What the devil have ye done to me daughter?”

Ava straightened to her full height. “What have I done?”

“Ye have been the one in charge of her, have ye nae?”

Ava let a moment pass, deciding on the best way to respond to the accusation. She decided to let Margaret leave the room before she could entertain it.

“Why don’t you go and wait for me outside, child? Go play with the other girls,” she said, reaching for Margaret’s hands and squeezing them gently.

Margaret stared long and hard at Ava, her fear of the stranger still stark on her face. And then, almost like a miracle, she spoke, “Nae without ye.”

Ava froze. For the briefest of seconds, her eyes widened.

Did Margaret just speak?

Her eyes darted to Brodrick, who stood behind her, just as surprised.

She almost immediately regained her composure. The last thing she wanted was to make a big deal out of this. It might make Margaret retreat into her shell.

Brodrick didn’t share the same sentiment.

“Child. Can ye speak now?” he asked.

Margaret looked up at him and said nothing. It felt almost like the last minute did not happen, and if Brodrick hadn’t been with her, Ava would’ve thought she was hallucinating.

“Just go find Elizabeth. Can you do that, dear?”

Margaret nodded, and Ava watched her make her way out of the kitchen. Brodrick’s eyes never left her the entire time, and the instant she exited the kitchen, they snapped back to Ava.

“She has refused to speak for the past two weeks.”

“The past two weeks?—”

“That was when we found her.”

Brodrick felt a sting in his chest. Two weeks.

“Look, you may be Margaret’s father—I am no longer arguing with you about that. But as you can see, she doesn’t speak. This is the first time she has spoken since she walked into this building. I am certain you can understand why I am a bit reluctant to hand her over to you.”

Brodrick studied her for a minute, almost like he was taking her in for the first time. She looked graceful and elegant, and her presence and personality seemed to fill the room. The skirt of her gown fanned around her, and he could almost see her curves. Her flushed cheeks were full and plump, and her arms rested against her stomach.

“Ye say this is her first time speakin’?” he asked again.

The anger and frustration in his voice had vanished. In their place was resignation and a calm Ava wasn’t sure he was capable of having in the first place.

“Yes.”

Brodrick stepped away from her, sweeping his gaze around the kitchen. It did not look in any way below standard or terrible. And from what he had seen of the cottage so far, it did not exactly look like they were suffering or lacking anything.

“Do ye own this place?”

Ava nodded. “It was built with girls like Margaret in mind. Lost girls who had been thrown out or ousted with nowhere to go.”

He wanted to argue, to tell her that his daughter wasn’t thrown out. But he decided against it at the last minute.

“So what made her finally decide to speak to ye?”

Ava shrugged. “I sincerely wish I could tell you, but it is hard to know for sure. I would assume it is because she trusts me more.”

“More than her own faither,” Brodrick said.

It wasn’t a question. Rather, it was a forlorn statement.

“I have looked after her for the past two weeks—it only makes sense. There may be other reasons as well, but I am afraid I do not fully understand them for now.”

Brodrick nodded. “Then ye’ll have a month to figure it out.”

Ava’s confused frown deepened. “A month?”

“Aye.”

“Are you saying that you’ll be back to take her in a month?”

Brodrick chuckled. He wasn’t planning on leaving his daughter’s side for one more second.

“Och nay, lassie. She’s comin’ with me. And ye’re comin’ with her.”

Ava’s eyes narrowed. “I do not follow.”

“Since Margaret trusts ye, and ye’re the only one who can make her speak, ye will be comin’ to live with me for a month.”

Ava swallowed again, staring at the warrior before her and wondering if this was a joke or if he actually meant it.

She quickly realized the latter when she saw the expression on his face.

He was not jesting.

She was going to leave with him.