'You sound like a man in love with his wife.'
'Lovesick men are weak men.'
'Only if they were weak before they fell in love,' Ramsey said. 'Iain loves his wife. Would you consider him weak?'
'No, of course not.'
'Then it stands to reason that love doesn't make a man less than what he already is.'
'It makes him vulnerable.'
'Perhaps it does,' Ramsey agreed.
'And if his mind is constantly consumed with thoughts of her, then he becomes weak. Is that not so?'
Ramsey smiled. 'I'll tell you what is so. You love her, Brodick, and that scares the hell out of you.'
'I should have broken your nose.'
'Get the names first; then you can try. Are you certain that she'll tell you who they are?'
'Of course she will. She's my wife, and she'll do whatever I tell her to do.'
'I wouldn't use those exact words when you talk to her. Wives don't like being told what to do by their husbands.'
'I know Gillian,' he said. 'She won't refuse me. I'll have the names of all the Englishmen by sundown.'
Chapter Twenty-Six
No one was more surprised than Brodick when his sweet, she'll-do-whatever-I-tell-her-to-do wife refused to give him the names of the Englishmen.
Astounded that she would deny him, he was at a loss as to what to do next. Gillian sat at the table with her hands folded in her lap, as calm as could be in the eye of his storm.
'What do you mean, no?' he demanded.
'You forgot to kiss me when you came inside. I think you should.'
'What?'
'You forgot to kiss me.'
'For the love of…'
He hauled her to her feet, planted a hard kiss on her mouth, and then sat her back down again. 'You're going to tell me who those bastards in England are.'
'Yes,' she agreed, and then qualified her answer. 'Eventually.'
'What does that mean?'
She refused to answer. She picked up her brush and ran it through her hair. Damn, she looked pretty tonight, he thought. She wore a flowing blue sleeping gown that delicately clung to her soft curves. Her cheeks were pink, her eyes were bright, and she smelled like roses. The woman was nearly irresistible. He glanced at the bed, then back at her before he realized where his thoughts were leading.
It was already way past sunset, and he still hadn't gotten the names from her, though in truth, he hadn't seen her since he'd left at dawn, and he'd been too busy until this minute to think about it. Now, however, he was determined to get what he wanted before they went to bed, and with that thought in mind, he said, 'A wife must do whatever her husband orders her to do.'
The command didn't sit well with her. 'This wife doesn't.'
'Damn it, Gillian, don't turn stubborn on me.'
'A husband doesn't curse in his wife's presence.'
'This husband does,' he snapped.
She didn't like hearing that either. Tossing her brush on the table, she got up and took the long way around him to get to the bed. Then she kicked her slippers off and sat down.
Ramsey had been right after all. Some wives really didn't like taking orders from their husbands, and Gillian obviously fit into that category. He noticed the tears brimming in her eyes and knew he'd injured her feelings. Marriage was far more difficult than he'd anticipated.
'Don't do that.'
'Do what?'
'Cry.'
'I wouldn't think of it,' she haughtily replied. She stood up, pulled the covers back, and got into bed.
He blew out the candles and was going to bank the fire in the hearth when she asked him to please add another log. 'It's hot in here.'
'I'm cold.'
'I'll keep you warm.'
When he sat on the bed to take his boots off, she rolled to her side to face the wall. In a whisper, she asked, 'Are you sorry you married me?'
The question caught him off guard. Gillian was obviously feeling a bit insecure, and he knew he was responsible because he'd been acting like a bear from the moment he'd joined her.
'It's too soon to tell,' he told her with a straight face.
She didn't appreciate the humor. 'Are you sorry?'
He put his hand on her hip and forced her to turn toward him. 'I'm sorry you're so stubborn, but I'm happy I married you.'
'You aren't acting happy.'
'You defied me.'
'And you aren't accustomed to anyone refusing you, are you?'
He shrugged. ' 'Tis the truth I'm not.'
'Brodick, when we are with others, I will never argue with you, but when we are alone, I will tell you exactly what's on my mind.'
He thought about that for a moment and then nodded. 'Did something happen tonight that's upset you? When I left you this morning, you were happy.'
'When you left, I was sleeping.'
'Aye, but you had a smile on your face,' he teased. 'You were no doubt dreaming about me.'
'As a matter of fact, I've had an aggravating day.'
'Tell me about it,' he suggested.
'You really want to hear my complaints?' she asked, amazed.
His nod was all the encouragement she needed, and she sat up and proceeded to tell him everything. 'First, Ramsey made me sit in the hall all morning long and look at face after face as more of his followers came inside. Then when I still hadn't found the man who betrayed him, he dragged me all over kingdom come to look at more faces. He was too busy to speak to Christen on my behalf,' she added. 'And Brisbane had already come back to report that my sister still hasn't changed her mind. I'm not going to continue to be patient, Brodick. I'm giving Ramsey until noon tomorrow to order Christen to come forward, and if he doesn't, then I'm going to take matters into my own hands.'
She took a deep breath and then continued. 'I finally met Bridgid at the lake, but it was already close to suppertime by then, and when she joined me, she had disappointing news.'
'What was her news?' he asked.
'She asked a friend to follow Brisbane to find out where Christen lives, but the friend didn't return to the holding. Bridgid thinks he forgot.'
Brodick stood up and stretched. Gillian watched the muscles across his shoulders flex and was taken aback by the sheer might of his body. Then he removed his belt and stripped out of his clothes, and she promptly lost her train of thought altogether. Her husband was so incredibly beautiful.
'So you thought that if you knew where Christen lived, you would simply go to her?'
He waited a long minute for her to answer, then repeated the question.
'Yes,' she stammered, flustered. 'That's what I thought.'
'Christen's a MacPherson and now part of the Sinclair clan.'
'I realize that.'
'Ramsey's her laird and you shouldn't interfere. Let him handle this. He promised you he'd force her to see you.'
He dropped to the bed on his stomach, his weight all but knocking her to the floor.
