A Lass to Love (Brides of Scotland #1) - Tammy Andresen Page 0,8

breath. Something protective unfurled in his chest, causing him to ache. “You can’t be serious.”

Colin shook his head. “Callum’s always been wild. And he’s taken as much care with Fiona as he does with everything else. She’s going down there to force his hand—”

“In marriage?” Tom asked, clenching his fists in anger.

Colin shrugged, but his jaw was tight, giving away his own anger. “I think so. Both she and my aunt live on the Exmouth property, though they could move in with me. I’ve told Fiona that. Still, she feels obligated to care for Aunt Edna in her twilight years.” He shook his head. “But that man won’t make her a good husband and I don’t ken if I can even watch her marry him. Might have to break his damn nose first.”

“She should break the engagement off and—”

Colin’s gaze swung to Tom’s anger radiating off his friend in waves. “And be ruined. Everyone knows of the engagement. She’ll spend her life as a spinster.”

The air rushed out of Tom’s chest.

“He’s made a fool of her. To then ruin her too…” Colin slammed his fist into the nearby mast. “I hate everything about this situation.”

“I can see why.” He didn’t feel particularly pleased with it either. “How long has she been engaged for?”

Colin made a low sound deep in his throat. “To Gavin for three years but they were about to marry when he died. Now Callum for another three.”

“Christ,” he murmured. A woman like that should be actively worshipped, not shoved onto a shelf. And this Exmouth didn’t know what the hell he was missing. Which almost made Tom laugh. He wasn’t going to be the man to tell him.

Fiona’s image rose in his mind. He thought of her gentle touch to his own skin and the way she’d cradled the bird. While beautiful and so desirable, she was also kind and gentle in a way that demanded protection. She’d be no match for a man like Exile.

Unless, of course, she gained some more experience. Perhaps with a man who understood rakes very well because…well, because he was himself a complete rogue.

Chapter Five

Fiona let out a long sigh. She’d been lying in her hammock for what felt like hours. She wasn’t used to lying on a surface that wasn’t flat, nor had she adjusted to the fact that her bed swayed with the ship.

She thought about climbing in bed with Edna but the woman’s snores filled the room as it was, Fiona couldn’t imagine being right next to her. She twisted again, attempting to get comfortable. She knew part of her sleeplessness was her reaction to a certain man aboard the ship.

His words, scent, and touch filled her with an energy she’d never known. The feeling was rising in her like a tide. Which was an apt description because tides went out again. Yes, Tom Mayweather was here now but for how long? He’d been nothing but honest. He wasn’t the man to make her his wife.

With another sigh, she twisted about again. Were all men like that? Some of them married. But even her cousin, Colin, had never settled down. He almost had once but he’d been hurt and…

She snapped her mouth closed, her lips drawing into a straight line. Tom had mentioned being hurt too. It was a shame that perfectly good men were being ruined for marriage. Was there a way to fix them?

She grasped the thick rope that framed her hammock. Fixing rogues was not her business. Well, technically, fixing one rogue, the one to whom she was engaged, should be her only plan. That, or setting him free. Which she still hadn’t decided.

Technically, she’d hardly thought about Callum Exmouth for hours. Which was odd. What to do about the man who had consumed the last two years of her life?

Was this progress or a giant step in the wrong direction? She wasn’t certain. After what seemed like hours, she finally fell into a restless sleep and woke more tired than when she’d gone to bed.

So much for beauty sleep. Judging from what she could tell in the smoky mirror above the washstand, she looked haggard with dark circles under her eyes.

She and Edna ate breakfast in relative silence. Not unusual considering Edna wasn’t much for mornings these days and then settled in to read.

Colin had been clear that she wasn’t to walk about the deck unchaperoned. Sailors were a rough lot, even loyal as they were to her cousin.

A knock sounded at the door