Hero of a Highland Wolf
Page 17

She hadn’t expected Archibald to jump quite so quickly at the chance to get to know her better. She should have realized it. He probably was afraid Grant or his brothers might try to sweep her off her feet first. As if that would ever happen. But Archibald was interested in moving this along a little bit faster than she wanted. For one thing, she hadn’t intended to stay in Scotland.
“We could go boating,” Archibald finally said.
“I’d love to. Later,” she said. She really was tired after the long flight here and then all that had gone on during the night that kept her from sleeping much of it. She’d prefer to take him up on his offer once she’d rested up a bit more and could really enjoy seeing the sights. She sighed. She had never expected that Grant and his people would know Archibald and dislike him so much. Why did people hold such grudges? She didn’t. As far as she was concerned, she didn’t know him and she would treat him like a friend, just like he treated her. She definitely had no plans to mate the wolf.
“I understand. Jet lag. You’re probably tired still.”
“Yeah. Give me a week and I’ll be ready to see some sights.” Really, a couple of days would have been enough, but she hated to leave things so unsettled here, almost afraid if she left the castle, she would lose what little control she felt she’d gained.
She glanced back at the castle and swore she saw Grant and his brothers watching her through one of the windows. Then she noticed movement on top of the wall walk. Two men were observing her. Was it a case of curiosity? Or concern for her or that she might fall for the wolf and put them all out of business?
It was misty and damp out. She could barely see to the end of the herb garden and only glimpses of the gardens beyond through arbor-covered gateways.
She wished she could tell Grant that she had no intention of changing the management. His pack had been managing the estate for eons, and she expected it to stay the same for eons more. But she thought this might keep him on his toes. As for Archibald, she’d be as friendly as he was, but if he thought she wanted more, she’d let him know in a heartbeat that she wasn’t interested. Then again, maybe she would be. Only time would tell. But she wasn’t jumping into anything right away. She had a whole year to live here first.
She understood Grant’s concern that she’d come to make a lot of changes he couldn’t live with. A last-ditch effort would be to have her cousins come stay with her and be her backup if this didn’t work out. They were both ready to join her anytime.
“So tell me all about your life in America,” Archibald said.
She smiled at him, liking how he would ask, unlike Grant who only wished she’d return there. She started talking about her home in Maryland, about the Inner Harbor in Baltimore and trips to Annapolis. She loved the water.
“I love the water, too. My manor house has a nice-sized lake for a view.”
“I bet it’s lovely.” She loved the ruggedness of being on the ocean, though. The tumultuous sea, the ever-changing view, the force and power of it. She loved lakes, but they usually just—sat there.
“Did your friend ever arrive at the airport?” she asked.
“Uh, yeah. But his flight was delayed by four hours. You and I could have had something to eat.” He smiled.
He had such a charming smile compared to Grant’s scowls. “Oh, I couldn’t have. Grant and his people were eager to show off their fighting skills and celebrated my arrival with a grand feast right afterward. It was the experience of a lifetime.”
“Grant did?” Archibald said, frowning.
Yeah, but not in exactly the way she had made it sound—as if he’d done so to welcome her. But she didn’t want to let anyone outside the pack know that Grant was trying his darnedest to change her mind about staying here. She smiled. It was like a secret pact between them. Grant would act all growly and stubborn, and she’d smile back and have her own way.
“Oh, yes. They were delighted to have me here and couldn’t have done anything further to make me feel more welcome.” Could Archibald tell what a phony she was? She could understand Grant’s concerns and figured this was the only way he knew how to deal with his frustrations.
They continued to stroll through the herb garden, while Archibald remained quiet.
She didn’t know enough about the area to ask any questions, and walking in the damp cold without a coat was chilling her to the bone. She was certain she’d acclimate to the varying temperatures and weather conditions eventually, but she was having a difficult time enjoying this. She sighed.
Well, if he couldn’t come up with another topic, she might as well ask him about Grant. “I take it that you and Grant know each other fairly well?” She couldn’t imagine that Grant only saw Archibald as an alpha male wolf who was trespassing on his pack’s territory. It had to be something that went deeper.
Archibald smiled this time, but the look was not pleasant.
“Not what you would call friends?” Certainly not from Grant’s perspective.
Archibald shrugged. “I don’t really feel comfortable here, speaking with you. The gardens have ears.”
She raised her brows, then glanced around and noticed a gardener studying the roses. A teen who had been watching them from another garden turned red-faced and quickly looked away. Were Grant’s people spying on her and Archibald? She wasn’t sure whether to be annoyed or amused.
“I would love to take you to a village and offer you breakfast, and we could really visit,” Archibald said, sounding hopeful.