Chapter 15

15

“ I t’s rude that we’re delaying dinner for this,” Thalia said, her voice insistent as she struggled to match his long strides.

Finn slowed his pace, casting a glance at her. “They’ll eat in their own time.”

“Their own time?”

“Aye,” Finn interrupted, his tone firm. “Plus, they’re afraid of me.”

“They are not!” Thalia shot back, her eyes flashing with defiance.

Finn sighed, already feeling the weariness settle over him. He led her into the small dining room, the dim candlelight casting flickering shadows on the stone walls. “Thalia, please,” he said, his voice low but firm as he pulled out a chair for her. “Sit.”

Thalia hesitated for a moment. Her brow furrowed as she searched his face. He could feel the heat radiate off of her and resisted the urge to lean into her. She sat down furiously in the offered chair, and Finn took his place across from her — close enough to smell her but just out of reach because this conversation was important, and he needed to focus.

The anger radiated from her in waves he couldn’t place.

Is she mad because of her sisters not being here or because I kissed her?

It wasn’t the fiery kind that led to shouting matches; it was a quiet, simmering resentment that had been building since their last encounter on the road. And yet, here she was, seated before him expectantly.

“Well, how was yer afternoon?” he started safely.

“My afternoon was lovely!” she said after a too quick pause and then plastered a wide smile across her face as the staff arrived with the first course.

Finn scowled, and Thalia took a deep breath, clearly trying to collect her thoughts. “I spent the time preparing for the wedding. There are preparations to be made.”

He nodded, feeling a pang of guilt as he realized he’d done little to ease her transition into this new life. The thought of marrying her had been a means to an end at first — a way to fulfill his father’s dying wish and protect her sisters. But now, as he looked at her, he realized how much more complicated things had become.

“We’ll have the ceremony at the castle,” he said, his voice gruff. “Saoirse and Rowan will help ye with whatever ye need.”

Thalia nodded. “I’ve spoken with them already.”

“Oh, aye?”

“Yes. Everything seems to be in order, and I have the help I need for it. Was there anything specifically you wanted in the ceremony?”

“Nay, it isnae important to me…” he started to say but stopped himself when he watched her face fall.

“I only meant, there’s nothing important to me for the ceremony. I have no kin. Saoirse and Rowan know the Crawford traditions that the clan will be expecting. This day is yours.”

Thalia rolled her shoulders back, as if she didn’t hear what he had told her. “Fine then. There’s something else you and I need to discuss.”

Finn raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue. She hesitated, biting her lip as if weighing her words carefully. There was a silence between them, thick with unspoken words. Thalia felt the weight of it pressing down on her, the unresolved tension between them growing more unbearable by the minute.

“I’m still angry with you,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

Finn’s eyes softened slightly, the anger fading as he looked at her. “I ken,” he said quietly. “But I daenae understand why.”

Thalia shook her head, feeling a tear slip down her cheek before she could stop it. “I know this is just a transaction to you, but —” she whispered, her voice breaking. “But I can’t shake it. It’s like… it’s like you’re keeping something from me, and I don’t know what it is.”

Finn clenched his fist and then spread his hand flat on the table. “I’m nae keeping anything from ye. I’m doing what I think is best, for ye and for yer sisters. That’s all.”

“And the kiss?”

His eyes locked onto hers.

“In the woods?” she continued needlessly. He had not forgotten in the slightest.

She looked into his eyes, searching for the truth until finally he spoke, “I’m nay keeping anything from ye. I kissed ye in the woods because I wanted to. I’m sorry for taking it too far, it was quite disrespectful to ye, and I should have stopped it before it happened.”

The lines on her face softened, and the smile on her face hinted that he had said the right thing.

“I believe you,” she said finally, her voice barely audible. Finn leaned into the table, closing the distance as much as he could. The lure of her whisper reminded him of her breath on his neck and her hands clutching his arms as he kissed her in the woods.

Thank Christ.

Finn squeezed her hand gently before releasing it. “Good,” he said softly. “I’d hate for me bride to still be cross with me days before we were to wed.”

Thalia laughed, and the sound sent a warmth through his veins. He joined her in cracking a chuckle and the remaining smile tugged at his mouth without any effort.

“It wasn’t disrespectful either, Finn.”

“Nay?”

“Well, I mean —” she started to say but cut herself off, and the way she did so made Finn’s groin twitch ever so slightly.

Did she enjoy it as much as I did? If only I could just t ? —

Before he could stand and close the distance even more, the door to the dining room creaked open, and a servant entered, carrying a small, folded letter on a silver tray. The man bowed respectfully as he handed the note to Finn, who took it with a nod of thanks.

As soon as the servant had left, Finn unfolded the letter, his eyes scanning the words quickly. Almost immediately, he felt a cold rage settle in his chest, tightening his grip on the parchment. His face hardened, his jaw clenching as he read the lines of threatening words scrawled across the page.

He felt Thalia’s eyes on him as he finished the letter. “What is it?” she asked, her voice cautious though laced with concern.

Finn hesitated; his eyes still fixed on the letter. Part of him didn’t want to tell her, didn’t want to burden her with the knowledge of what Maximilian had done. But he knew he couldn’t keep it from her, not when it concerned her sisters.

“It’s from your uncle,” he finally said, his voice low and controlled though barely concealing the fury that simmered beneath the surface. “He’s demanding that I return your sisters to him or else.”

Thalia’s breath hitched, her eyes widening in shock. “What… what does he plan to do?”

Finn shook his head, crumpling the letter in his fist. “He writes that his men will tear through Scotland until he finds them. It is clear he’s not giving up easily. He’ll try something, that much is certain.” He folded up the letter and tucked a corner under his plate.

“Did he just mention my sisters,” she stated, confirming that he had only mentioned them and not also her.

“Aye, he cannae have ye now, Thalia — I already told him we are to be wed.”

The pain on her face was clear, but her next words weren’t what he expected them to be, “What if they stayed somewhere else?” she suggested, her voice trembling slightly. “Maybe one of your friends — someone you trust — could keep them safe until this is all over.”

Finn’s mind raced, and his expression darkened further. “Come again?”

“You know… just to keep them safe? Where could they go that they would be hidden from him and safe? Surely some of my father’s friends are here that we could send them, just so we don’t impose on your friends – I just can’t remember…” Thalia said, trailing off.

Finn’s eyes narrowed. “Ye think I cannae protect them here?”

Thalia shook her head quickly. “No, that’s not what I meant,” she said though her tone was not very apologetic as she continued, “I just… I’m worried. My uncle is ruthless, and I don’t want to take any chances, and he knows who you are because you told him. He knows where you live,” she pointed at where the letter lay, burning a hole through the table.

“If my sisters are somewhere else when or if he comes to get them – somewhere he doesn’t know about — they might be safer. And… Well, they are scared of you, Finn.” She said, finally conceding what Finn had stated before they sat down, and gestured lamely around at the empty chairs.

Finn bristled at his name on her lips — a sound he had thought about several hundred times since she had started ignoring him, and now, it was tainted. His pride was already wounded. The idea that she didn’t trust him to protect her sisters stung more than he cared to admit.

“They’re staying here,” he said firmly, his voice brooking no argument. “I’ll nae have them thinking I cannae keep them safe.”

Thalia furrowed her brow. “Why do you have to be so stubborn? It’s not about you, Finn,” she insisted, her voice rising slightly. “It’s about them. I don’t care about pride or honor right now. I care about keeping them alive!”

His eyes flashed with anger and a hint of the fire that he had kissed her with in the woods. “And ye think I daenae?” he growled, his voice low and dangerous. “Ye think I’d let anything happen to them?”

“I know you care,” she said softly. “But my uncle is not someone to be underestimated. I just want to make sure we’re doing everything we can to keep them safe.”

Finn stared at her for a long moment, his jaw clenched tightly. He understood her fear, even shared it to some extent, but the thought of sending the girls away, of admitting that he couldn’t protect them within his own walls, was something he couldn’t accept.

“They’re staying here,” he repeated, his voice cold and final. “I’ll nae risk them being caught out there, where I cannae reach them.”

Thalia opened her mouth to argue, but the look in his eyes silenced her. He was not going to budge on this. The decision has been made. With a heavy sigh, she nodded, yet the worry on her face remained. “Fine,” she conceded though her voice was tight with frustration, “but if anything happens to them, Finn…”

“It won’t,” he interrupted, his tone leaving no room for doubt. “I’ll make sure of it.”

After the meal, Thalia stood, the tension between them still palpable. “I’ll speak again with Rowan and Saoirse tomorrow about the wedding preparations,” she said. “We’ll need to send out invitations soon.”

Finn nodded, and his expression remained unreadable. “Aye, we will. I’ve already sent out letters to me comrades, but formal invitations should follow.”

There was a pause, as if she was waiting for him to say something more, but he remained silent. Thalia stood moments later, finished with her courses, and Finn stood with her. He watched her skirts billow behind her as she headed back to her rooms. He had wanted to reach out to her, to find a way to bridge the gap between them, but he didn’t know how.

As he stood in the empty dining room, the fire crackling softly in the hearth, Finn knew one thing for certain: he couldn’t afford to lose Thalia, not to her uncle and certainly not to his own pride. But how to keep her safe and protect her sisters without pushing her further away ?

Finn stared into the dying embers of the fire, his thoughts racing. He pulled the letter from under his plate and unfolded it to reread what he didn’t share with Thalia over dinner –

“I will be relentless in my pursuit of my nieces. You

will quickly understand the wrath of the English for

kidnapping three innocent young girls, Finn Morrison,

Laird of Crawford Clan. Be warned. I have enlisted

your countrymen. I will enlist the Crown if I must.

I will get them back.”

The letter from Viscount Pemberton was a clear warning; he had located them easily enough. It wasn’t hard to do, sure, but it was also a challenge, one that Finn couldn’t ignore. Her uncle wanted control — he wanted to reclaim what he saw as his — but Finn wasn’t about to let that happen.

“Sir?” One of the servers called out in surprise as they came upon the dining room, ready to clear it.

“Ach, I’ll be in me study.” He carried the crumpled letter clutched in his hand. There were plans to be made, alliances to be secured, and defenses to be strengthened. The Viscount was playing a dangerous game, but Finn was determined to outmaneuver him, to protect what was his at any cost.

First, I’ll need to write to me brothers in arms. They’ll surely help. Then the clan leaders.

He sat at his desk, penning letters to his most trusted allies until the early hours of the morning. His finished his letters were sealed with his family crest. Tomorrow, he would send them out, setting the wheels in motion for the battle that was sure to come. But tonight, as he sat alone in the flickering light of his study, Finn allowed himself a moment of quiet resolve.

I will protect them, no matter the cost.