Lavinia and the Laird by Samantha Holt

Author:Samantha Holt
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: 0
Published: 2018-08-28T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

“Once I’ve returned to Scotland, you are welcome to stay at Glenrigg Castle,” Niall offered as he guided his horse over the uneven terrain of the woodland.

Bentley smiled his appreciation. “I’d be grateful indeed. It’s hard to get a true flavor of the country from Edinburgh.”

Niall nodded. Edinburgh was little different from London, despite what many English people thought. The society was easily as sophisticated and not, in his estimation, a good reflection of his country of birth. “Will your wife accompany you?”

Bentley shook his head. “Mary does not travel as well as I do. She laments the time apart but I am lucky to have an understanding wife with a busy social life.” His lips curled. “I think she likes me out of the way so she can fully enjoy her time with her friends anyway, even if she will not admit as much.”

They continued to follow the path that cut its way through the woods. The gentle rush of the river nearby mingled with the occasional snap of branches and rustle of leaves as an industrious squirrel hopped through the canopy or a bird returned to its nest.

He could see why Bentley had chosen this part of the country to set a book but it made him hunger for the wild, open spaces of Scotland. Wild spaces that not many English women could adjust to. While the scenery was pleasant to admire briefly, in his experience few women could tolerate the lack of society or the hard living. His mother was English and had retreated to a town near Edinburgh after the death of his father—and she had enjoyed living in Niall’s ancestral home. But still, even she had admitted that it had taken some adjusting to and had not made their early years of marriage easy.

Which inevitably led him to the thought...could Lavinia?

He snorted to himself. That was making the outrageous assumption she was even interested in being a Scottish wife.

Bentley lifted his gaze to the skies. “It looks as though the weather may turn again.”

Peering up through the canopy of trees, Niall gave a grunt. “Takes a little bit more than rain to scare a Scot away.”

Bentley chuckled. “We English are used to the rain, however, the path may become dangerous for the horses. It’s already slippery from yesterday’s rain.”

“We’ll turn back then,” suggested Niall. “We can continue our discussion another time.”

“Or you could join me for an ale?”

“I’ll join you for a drink but no ale for me.”

Bentley brows lifted. “A whiskey then?”

“I’m a rare breed of Scot who doesn’t touch alcohol. I hope that doesn’t disappoint,” he said with a wry grin. He was well aware his fellow countrymen had the reputation for drinking in vast quantities. He’d seen it take a hold of too many people and sworn off it long ago, however.

“You cannot object to a coffee, surely?” Bentley chuckled.

“Not at all.”

“Come then.”

Niall held up a hand. “Wait.” He narrowed his gaze at the hint of color working its way through the trees.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.