Stunned, Kenneth stared at the man behind the desk. He thought Kenneth was taking Leanna off his hands? As if Leanna wasn’t a treasure worth everything? Did Laird Oliphant know how special this daughter of his was?
“I… Thank ye, milord.”
“Milord, aye. But ‘tis my daughter ye’ll need to convince. I’ll only give her to ye if she wants ye, ye ken. And she may no’ want ye when she kens ye’re a laird, Smith-Bruce-Campbell-Stewart-McClure.” He shrugged. “She’s a strange lass. As strange as a tree growing with roots in the soil.”
The man was mad.
But no’ wrong.
Aye, the Oliphant was correct. Kenneth had lied to Leanna all along about his identity. He wasn’t certain if ‘twould matter, but he needed to tell her his real name, at least.
Andget out of his soon-to-be father-in-law’s presence as quickly as possible. So he stepped away from the desk and gave a curt bow. “Milord.”
Before the Oliphant could respond with another mind-numbing analogy, Kenneth turned on one booted heel and stalked out of the solar. ‘Twas time to find Leanna.
* * *
Leanna’s arrowwasn’t anywhere near the center of the target, but that didn’t stop her from doing a happy little dance when she saw the feathered shaft emerging from the straw bale.
“What’s that for?”
Kenneth!
Excitement made her smile bloom, and she whirled around, “Did ye see that? Did ye see me hit the bale?”
As she reached for another arrow, he made a sound which might’ve been a suppressed chuckle, but she didn't care.
“Am I to assume ye’re celebrating because ye hit the bale? Despite no’ being anywhere close to the target?”
Scoffing, she turned back and nocked the new arrow. “I was close to the target. See?” The red circle, which had been painted onto the straw, was two hands’ width from her previous arrow. “Now shush. I’m going to do it again.”
She settled into her stance, exhaled…and loosed the arrow.
This time, she was certain Kenneth had swallowed his chuckle.
“Damnation,” she muttered, reaching for another arrow. “That happens all the time.”
“What, yer arrow bounces off the straw? ‘Tis because yer draw is weak. Ye need more strength—or a lighter bow—to push the arrow further.”
“Sometimes I dinnae even come close to the bale.” She shrugged, waving the arrow toward the range. “Most of them land in the grass between here and there.”
It was frustrating, but she was determined to learn to use the bow. ‘Twas no’ considered womanly, but then, no weapons were. Why was that? There were woman’s wiles and feminine charm, but never lass’s battleax or ladylike pike.
Leanna thought she would’ve very much liked to learn to use a pike. It looked like verra much fun!
Of course, Kenneth was likely correct. She’d been practicing with the smallest bow she could filch from the armory, but ‘twas still very hard to pull the string. She nocked the arrow and lifted the bow to peer down the shaft the way she’d seen warriors do. Perhaps she could find a smaller bow somewhere.
“When we’re married, I’ll have a bow made for yer size, and I’ll help ye practice until ye can shoot the center of the target.”
Gasping, Leanna whirled around, her arrow still nocked, and barely registered the fact Kenneth dodged sideways. Normally, she would’ve been thrilled at the thought of him teaching her to shoot—My own bow!—but that adventure was overshadowed by the first part of that sentence.
“When we’re married?” she repeated incredulously. “What?”
Nodding, he reached over and pushed the tip of her arrow down. “First lesson. Dinnae nock an arrow and point it at anything ye dinnae intend to shoot.”
“Oh, I’m considering shooting ye.” She was flabbergasted. “What do ye mean, when we’re married?”
The smile he sent her was a bit crooked and entirely too charming. “When we’re married. I already have yer father’s permission.”