Chapter Nine

Breakfast the next morn was a disaster. Not only were Nicholas and Gwen there, along with Alexander, but so were the rest of their friends.

Clarissa sipped at her tea and pushed around the egg and toast that was on her plate, a fine piece of china with a delicate rose pattern around the outer edge, she noted.

She had no appetite. She could feel Alexander's stare and refused to meet his eyes. She still couldn't believe he'd played her for such a fool. That she allowed him to.

Gwen had tried to pry the information from her last night, but she refused to say anything about it. To admit she played right into his hand was even more embarrassing than him abandoning her on the dance floor in front of everyone.

And she was the only one that knew about it.

"Nicholas," Gwen called, her voice laced with an edge of sweetness to it. "Clarissa and I were thinking about doing some shopping today. Mayhap a trip to the modiste."

Clarissa's eyes met Gwen's stare. They'd discussed no such thing.

Nicholas studied both of them before nodding his head. "A splendid idea, love. We will be here for some time. Ye will want to ensure ye both have enough gowns to get ye through the rest of our stay."

Clarissa rolled her eyes. She didn't want to go shopping. She didn't even want to be here at the table pretending to eat breakfast.

Instead, she would much rather be hiding in her room. Or, even better, in the library where she could lose herself in other people's problems and forget about her own.

If she could somehow manage it, she would be quite happy returning to Huntly this very minute.

She made the mistake of stealing a glance at Alexander.

He remained silent, watching her, his dark eyes hooded, his overall mood brooding.

She wanted to tell him that it served him right. But if she did that, then he would ken that she was eavesdropping on what was supposed to be a private conversation.

And she would then have to tell everyone else what was going on. She didn't need or want all of that out in the open.

Nay, she'd keep his conversation to herself. But that didn't mean she forgave him. Absolutely not.

She pushed away from the table. "If ye'll excuse me, I shall go get ready for our outing, Gwen."

The men hurriedly stood as a sign of respect, but she ignored them. She'd thought coming to Argyll would be a fun adventure. Different scenery from Huntly. No responsibilities or cares. A chance to explore.

A chance to see Alexander.

To see if he felt the same way she did.

But all she wanted now was to go home.

The halls were quiet as Clarissa made her way to her room. Millwool really was a beautiful castle. The wood-paneled walls of the corridor gave it a warm feeling. The high ceilings were lit with chandeliers holding dozens of candles. Above each chandelier, the plaster was molded into a wreath of flowers, allowing the light to play off the uneven surface.

The floors were dark wood that matched the walls, and a red carpet runner kept the noise of footsteps to a minimum. Which probably was why she didn't hear Alexander until he called to her from a short distance away.

"Clarissa," he called again. "Can we talk?"

"I really dinna have anything to say to ye, Alexander."

Confusion marred his handsome features. "Please, allow me to apologize."

She laughed, the sound echoing in the space.

He ignored her laugh and continued. "I shouldna have left so abruptly after the dance. I put ye in an awkward position and that was never my intent."

She tilted her head to the side as she listened to him. That. That was what he was apologizing for?

"I didna think about how that would look to others. 'Twas verra selfish of me."

She spun on him. "Is this really what ye are apologizing for?"

His brows furrowed. "Is that no' what ye are upset about? Rightfully so, might I add," he said quickly.

She threw her hands up in the air and started walking. "Ye are insufferable. Almost as bad as my brother."

"That is no' how ye were acting yesterday."

She stopped and turned back to him. He was close on her heels, and she did the only thing that came to mind. She put her hands on his broad chest and gave him a shove, knowing she was stepping out of line. "That was afore I found out I was just a pawn in some stupid game ye were playing."

"What are ye talking about?" he asked, eyes dark.

She laughed. "I heard ye. The conversation ye had in the gardens." She watched as what she said sunk in.

"I am sorry ye had to hear that. He had no right to propose such a thing. I can see why that would upset ye. But what I dinna understand is why ye are taking your anger out on me?"

She shook her head in disbelief. "Ye canna be serious. Why wouldna I be upset? To be used in that way. I'm supposed to be happy about that?"

Alexander pushed his hands through his dark hair, stress evident on his face.

"I think there has been a misunderstanding." He looked around, for what, she didn't know. "Let's talk in my study."

"I've no interest in such a discussion. "It was quite clear that ye are willing to barter me to regain possession of your flock."

He smirked. Which only caused her temper to rise. She could feel her face heating up.

"I find naught comical about this."

"Well, ye would if ye actually kenned what was actually going on instead of jumping to conclusions."

This time it was her turn to be confused. "I ken just fine. I heard him make the offer. One night and ye will get your sheep back. No money needed."

"Aye, the louse did make that offer."

"See?"

"See what? I didna accept it. I told him to go to hell." Alexander looked flustered. "Jesus, Clarissa. What kind of man do ye think I am that I would agree to such a thing?"

Was it true? She hadn't stayed long enough to hear what Alexander had said afterward. He'd agreed after the proposal was put forth. There was no denying that.

"Ye agreed after he stated what he wanted. Ye said, ‘aye, right'."

"Aye, I did." He tugged at the cravat around his neck, loosening the knot. "Because I couldna believe what I had heard. Once it sunk in, and I told him I would ne'er agree to such a disgusting deal, I came in to find ye and was told ye'd left upset."

Oh dear, had she really gotten everything so misconstrued?

"Wouldna ye be upset if ye'd just overheard such a proposal?

"Aye, but why were ye out there in the first place? Were ye alone?"

It was her turn to be flustered. "Dinna put this back on me. I did naught wrong. I was tired of everyone looking at me like I'd grown two heads after ye left like ye couldna get away from me fast enough. I needed some fresh air."

"I," Alexander paused. "I am sorry ye had to hear such a vile offer. I hope ye ken I would ne'er, I repeat, ne'er treat ye like property to be bartered."

He reached for her hand, and after a moment's pause, she slipped her hand in his.

Tugging her closer, she was flush to his chest, his warmth enveloping her. "Ye are much too precious to me. I would ne'er do anything to harm ye in any way. To dishonor ye."

With each declaration he dropped his head a little bit, until their mouths were just a breadth apart.

Her breath hitched. Was he going to kiss her? She wanted him to.

Eyes closed, she waited for what seemed like an eternity, before warm lips touched hers. The most erotic sensation swept over her, and she leaned into the kiss. His tongue sought entry into her mouth, and she parted her lips, allowing it.

She reached up, circling her arms around his neck, her fingers teasing the curls at his nape.

He pulled her closer and she arched her body into his. The feeling foreign but welcoming. She didn't want it to end. When their tongues entwined and danced wickedly together, a soft moan escaped from her lips.

She needed to take a breath, but she didn't want to break the contact. Didn't want the sensation to stop. Her belly was on fire. Her core heating. She wanted more. Even though it was wrong, she didn't care.

Pushing her against the wall, he leaned his body against hers, breaking the kiss, but trailing his lips down her neck. She gasped for air. Goose pimples broke out on her skin. It was so hot in the hallway.

And then she remembered where they were. In the hallway. For all to see. What if Nicholas came up? He would kill them both.

It took all her strength to push Alexander away. As soon as his lips left her skin. As soon as his body no longer covered hers, she was cold. She wanted the warmth he provided. Craved it. But it wasn't proper. They couldn't be found in such a compromising position. Especially after Nicholas had forbidden them from doing so.

"We must stop," she whispered. Her lips felt swollen from Alexander's kisses, and she touched her fingers to them.

Alexander looked like he'd been burned. His gaze snapped to the end of the corridor where the stairs were. "I find the need to apologize to ye again, lass." He gave her a wicked grin. "But I would be a liar if I said I dinna want to kiss ye again."

She blushed. Hard. She wanted to kiss him again, but she didn't say that.

"Ye should go back to your guests."

"Ye are my guest," he said quietly.

"Aye, but I had already left the group. What excuse did ye give for leaving? Dinna ye think my brother will get suspicious for ye being gone so long?"

Alexander sighed. "Ye make an excellent point." He grasped her hand and brought it to his mouth, his lips lingering on her soft skin. "But I would much rather stay here."

"Ye canna. Besides, apparently, Gwen made plans for me and her today that I must get ready for."

He nodded. "For that, I will let ye be to do whatever it is ye need to do."

She turned and started walking away, her legs so unsteady that she was certain she wasn't walking in a straight line.

"Clarissa," Alexander called from behind her.

She paused and looked over her shoulder at him.

"Dinna forget. I would ne'er agree to such an arrangement. E'en if I didna have feelings for ye, I still wouldna agree. Ye deserve the world, no' to be treated as property."

With that said, Alexander turned on his heel and headed back down the hall toward the stairs that would lead him to where everyone else was.

Finally in her room, she closed the door and collapsed onto the bed, sinking into the soft blankets. She couldn't stop touching her lips. Couldn't forget the feel of Alexander's lips on hers.

It was such a wicked sensation. She wanted to feel it again.

Alexander's confession of what really happened was like a weight being lifted from her shoulders. She'd thought everything he had done up to that point had been a game. A part of a bigger plan that he had schemed. She was happy to find out that wasn't the case, but also embarrassed with herself for believing that he would do such a thing.

She'd known Alexander all her life. She'd never known him to be anything but upstanding and loyal. A gentleman. After all, her brother would not be friends with any unsavory character.

A knock sounded and she called out.

Gwen peeked her head in. "Are ye all right? I saw Alexander come after ye." She shut the door behind her and joined Clarissa on the bed. Her eyes widened.

"What?"

A knowing smile curved her lips. "Ye kissed him!" She spurted out.

"Shh!" Clarissa shushed. "And I didna."

Gwen pointed at her. "Och, ye canna deny it. I ken that look," she giggled. "Dinna fash. I willna tell your brother."

She relaxed. "Nicholas would be most unhappy."

"Aye, but what he doesna ken willna hurt him." Gwen yanked on her hands and pulled her to a sitting position. "How was it?"

"What?"

"Dinna be so secretive. I want all the details."

Clarissa laughed. "I didna realize ye were so interested in gossip."

"Dinna be silly. 'Tis no' gossip when 'tis my sister-in-law. And since he kissed ye, I imagine whatever was upsetting ye last night and this morn has been cleared."

She nodded with a smile. "Aye. A silly misunderstanding. I thought Alexander had done something that was unbecoming and involved me. I mean, aye, the conversation I heard was about me, but Alexander defended me. I thought he hadn't."

Gwen looked confused but didn't ask for further clarification.

She stood up, sweeping around the room. "I dinna ken what it was, nor do I need to ken. But I have to say, knowing Alexander as I do. I canna imagine him not defending ye. I have a fun day planned for us. Let us get ready and leave these men to do whatever it is they do when they get together."

Clarissa smiled. No longer dreading having to go out.

*

After breakfast, andonce Clarissa and Gwen had left for town, the men decided to leave as well to a gentlemen's club.

Alexander was looking forward to the distraction after what had transpired in the hallway with Clarissa. He could still taste her on his lips. The act was selfish. But he found as she looked at him with her big brown eyes that he couldn't resist her.

The kiss was spur of the moment and shouldn't have happened. He'd completely gotten lost in the feeling of her body pressed up against his. The taste of her mouth, her skin.

He sighed. Clarissa had done the right thing by pushing him away, even if he didn't want to admit it.

At least one of them could keep a straight head in such a stolen moment. If she hadn't, he would have gladly continued on, trailing his kisses down her neck, her collarbone, lower to the swell of her breasts, then lower still.

Shite. He rubbed his face with his palms, trying to scrub her memory away. But nothing could clear the vision of her hooded eyes and swollen lips from his mind.

"What has ye so knotted up, Alexander?" Finlay asked. "'Tis as if ye are walking a tight-rope."

Alexander shook his head. "'Tis naught," he answered stiffly, not wanting to discuss Clarissa.

"Mayhap we can find ye a circus," Finlay added with a chuckle.

Nicholas sent a glare his way as they approached the building.

Pulling open the door of the club he let the others enter and then followed on their heels. The smell of cigar and tobacco smoke ebbed over him as he scanned the room looking for an open table that would keep them out of earshot of everyone else.

He walked through the crowd, dipping his head in greeting at a few men he recognized. Glasses clinked together and an echo of cheers went up from one group, celebrating an occasion.

Picking a table on the far side of the club, he pulled a heavy wooden chair from another table close by so they would each have a seat. As they waited for the barmaid to take their drink orders, they surveyed the room.

The crowd was light at this time of day, and the men that were here were all engrossed in their own conversations and celebrations to pay them any mind.

Most importantly, Alexander didn't see Kitt anywhere in sight. Which was lucky for Kitt. If the louse had dared show his head in here this morn, Alexander couldn't promise that he would be able to control his anger.

Not after what he'd put Clarissa through. He was still baffled that she would think he would actually whore her out that way. Of course, she didn't use those words, but that is exactly what Kitt meant when he made the proposition.

The bastard.

Drinks ordered, Alexander sat back in his chair and waited. Mayhap they should have gone to one of the boxing clubs instead. He could use an outlet to release the aggression that had been building up in him ever since he'd left Kitt in the gardens with a warning to stay far away from Clarissa.

The bastard just sneered. He had a set of bollocks on him, Alexander would give him that. For someone so small in stature, especially compared to Alexander's size, he didn't back down. His ego wouldn't let him.

But when it's only your ego that you have in your corner, it will falter sooner or later.

And Alexander planned to take him down. Soon. That's why he needed his friends' help. To come up with a plan.

"All right," Gunn said. "There is obviously something amiss. Now that we are here, with drinks," he picked up his glass in a cheer, then continued. "Tell us what is going on, Alexander. Ye usually arena so tight-lipped, or serious."

He smiled. His friends knew him too well. And if he was going to recruit their help, they needed to be aware of all the details. No matter how humiliating they may be.

With a deep breath, he started. "Nicholas kens some of this already, so it willna be a surprise to him, and ye ken some of the situation, but no' all of it." He took a sip of whisky and let the burn warm his chest before he aired out the mess he found himself in.

"My dear brother," he said sarcastically, "as ye ken, has a problem with the gambling hells."

His friends nodded in unison. They were well aware of his brother's addiction.

"When I got back home, the estate's books were in an awful state. Christopher had made some verra poor decisions and things werena looking great for us." He waved his hand in the air. "But ye ken that. What ye dinna ken is that when I next traveled to Huntly, for Nicholas's wedding, my brother decided to visit the gambling hells again—with the na?ve thought that he would be able to win back any monies that had been previously lost."

"What a shite," Gunn murmured. "Let me guess, he only made matters worse?"

Alexander chortled. "Aye, ye could say that. A good card player he ne'er was, so his plan was doomed to fail from the start."

"He's still young," Finlay offered.

Alexander flicked his gaze to his friend. "But old enough to ken better." He finished his whisky and lifted his glass to gain the attention of the maid for a refill.

"I came home to find the Argyll sheep gone."

Malcolm's eyes rounded. "What do ye mean gone?"

"Just as I said. Gone. The whole fucking flock."

"Nay."

"Och, aye. He'd lost them in a final all or naught game of cards."

"I canna believe he did such a thing. 'Tis your livelihood." Finlay shook his head as he sipped his whisky.

"Aye. And now, that livelihood is at stake. Some shite American has my flock and willna let me purchase them back."

"Why no'?" Malcolm inquired.

Gunn's hands clenched into fists on the table. "Who is it? Why dinna we pay him a visit?"

Alexander laughed. "Och, I did that already. Dragged Christopher along with me. Well, no' to the American, but to Ross who originally took the sheep for payment, who then sold them to the American. Kitt is his name. He was at the ball last night."

"I dinna recall seeing an American there."

With a scowl, Alexander thought about how the man had danced with Clarissa and made her feel uncomfortable. "He was there. But stayed out of the way for most of the night." He kept the dance to himself.

Gunn leaned forward, resting his muscled forearms on the polished wood of the table. "So, he has your sheep. Will he no' let you buy them back?"

"At first, I thought it was monetary. I offered him higher than what I had been told he paid for them, and he wouldna e'en let me get the numbers out of my mouth.

"That doesna make sense," Finlay quipped.

Alexander wet his lips with his tongue. As much as he didn't want to say what had actually gone on with Kitt, in order for his friends to help him, they needed to hear the truth.

"I didna think so either. So, I approached him again later in the night. In an attempt to offer him more coin."

"No' to be intrusive, but do ye have the coin ye offered?" Finlay asked.

He shook his head. "Nay, but I was going to cross that hurdle when the time came. But it didna matter. Kitt is no' interested in money."

"What then?" Gunn asked.

"Status, for one. But what he really wanted was," he paused, eyeing Nicholas warily, kenning that he was going to be very upset at the next words to come out of his mouth. "Clarissa."

"What?" Nicholas pushed back from his chair and stood with such force the chair toppled over with a crash, drawing the attention of everyone in the club. He ignored them and glared at Alexander. "Explain," he gritted out.

Alexander looked around the room. People still stared, waiting to see what was going to happen next. "I will," he said curtly. "Control yourself, brother. We will need to keep our heads about us if we want to take care of Kitt."

Blowing out an exasperated breath, Nicholas righted the chair and dropped back into it. "Go on."

"He wanted to strike a deal with me. I could have my sheep back if I agreed to let him have Clarissa for one night."

Nicholas slammed his fist on the table, causing the glasses to clatter and once again, everyone to look at the group. The club owner glared at them, and Alexander shot him a look back, warning him not to intervene.

"I will fucking kill him," Nicholas spat. "With my bare fucking hands. I will throttle the life's breath out of the bastard."

"That is also the reason Clarissa was so upset last eve. She overheard Kitt's proposition."

"Where is he? I am going to make him sorry for ever leaving American soil."

Malcolm, being the voice of reason, spoke up. "Calm yourself, brother. We will make him pay for trying to strike such a deal, but we must be smart about it."

Nicholas's chest heaved, his fists clenching and unclenching, but finally, he nodded, grabbing his glass and draining it before slamming it onto the table.

Alexander was shocked the glass didn't shatter under the force.

"Let us assess what we ken and what we dinna." This is where Malcolm's skills in detective work would come in handy.