Draco A Medieval Scottish Roma - Jayne Castel Page 0,14
three of them had weathered long years together in this northern land, and although there had been lengthy spells at times between when they’d seen each other, the tether that bound them had never been broken.
Suddenly, he wanted to break the curse—not for himself and the oblivion he sought, but so that Maximus and Cassian might fully enjoy the happiness they’d found.
The realization caused surprise to jolt through Draco then, and he looked away.
Perhaps, I’ve a heart after all.
The warmth of the sun on Gavina’s face warned her that they were nearing their destination. It was mid-afternoon, and the sun was dipping toward the western horizon. Despite the nervousness that had stolen upon her as the day progressed, Gavina had enjoyed the journey. It felt good to be away from the encircling stone walls of the fortress. They protected her from the outside world, but sometimes felt like a prison.
Slowing their horses to a brisk trot, the company entered the Strath of Muirskie—a long, wide vale covered in clumps of gorse and broom, interspersed with tightly-packed hazelwood.
“Did your brother say where exactly he’d meet us, My Lady?” Maximus asked, reining his courser in next to Gavina. “This strath is a wide space.”
She shook her head, her gaze traveling over the broad vale stretching out before her. Up ahead, two deer broke free of the trees and raced away. “If we ride to a central spot, he’s sure to find us.”
“When did you last see your brother?” Draco asked, addressing her for the first time since leaving Dunnottar.
Gavina cast him a sharp look. “Not since I wedded David … why?”
Draco too had reined up his horse close, flanking her left side while Maximus protected her right. Gavina met his gaze squarely, and for a moment, he merely stared back. The pause drew out, and then he answered, “I’m just wondering how well you actually know him.”
“He’s my brother,” Gavina replied, her tone clipped now. “We grew up together … I know him better than most folk, I’d say.”
“And how would you describe his temperament then?” Draco asked, seemingly oblivious of the fact that she found his questioning impertinent.
Gavina’s lips pursed. The urge to lie, to say that Shaw had a good heart under a blustering, bombastic exterior, rose within her. However, Draco Vulcan held her with such a direct look that the words wouldn’t come. The truth was far less pretty, yet her protectors needed to hear it before they met with the Irvine laird.
“Shaw is a pompous bully,” she said finally. “He’s proud of his lineage … and is suspicious of all neighbors … not just the De Keiths. Wound his pride, and he gets nasty.”
“How did he react to your union with David De Keith?” Draco asked.
Gavina drew in a deep breath. Her gaze flicked to where Maximus rode silently beside her. He too was watching her, his brow furrowed. Gavina had confided much in Heather about her past, and she wondered just how much her companion had told her husband.
“He was furious that our father became a peacemaker in his later years,” she replied, glancing back at where Draco still had her pinned under a fierce stare. This was the first time the pair of them had exchanged more than a handful of words, and the intensity of his gaze unnerved her. “As a younger man, our father fought all his neighbors, but as he aged, he lost the taste for feuding. When he announced my betrothal to David De Keith, Shaw stormed out of Drum Castle and didn’t return for months.” Gavina tensed then, remembering the fraught period. Her father had been angered by his son’s belligerence, and when he finally returned to the stronghold, relations between them remained frosty. “Shaw spoke little to me afterward … and didn’t attend the wedding,” she concluded.
“So, all that said … you believe the man wants to treat with you?” Draco cocked an eyebrow.
His incredulous tone rankled, and Gavina’s jaw tightened. “He may … the situation with the English worsens with each passing year,” she replied, her tone clipped, “and now that David is dead, he may see the De Keiths as less of a threat.”
Draco snorted at this, and Gavina scowled, her temper rising. “Ye disagree with me, Vulcan?”
He favored her with a rakish smile. “You want to believe your brother has changed, My Lady. But in my experience, people rarely do.”
Gavina glared back at him. The man’s arrogance was goading. He didn’t know her, and he’d never met