The Highlander's Kilted Bride, page 1
HIGHLAND ROMANCE
“What if Richard already found the brooch, or Sir Leslie? Papa will be an absolute terror. He’ll insist that I marry them. Him. Whomever.” She covered her face, feeling ill. “This is a disaster.”
A moment later, Kade gently pulled her hands away and gathered them to his chest. His gaze was tender and more than slightly amused.
“If you dare to laugh, Kade Kendrick, I swear I will throw you out the window.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it, sweetheart. But you know as well as I do that your father cannot make you marry anyone.”
“No, but he and Mamma would pester me endlessly. And everyone will be talking about it, and everyone will be pressuring me to uphold the family honor. Either way, my life will be ruined.”
He shook his head. “I won’t allow that to happen.”
“Kade, you don’t understand. This is going to be—”
He let go of her hands and tipped up her chin. Then he lowered his head and . . .
Kissed her.
Every thought scattered to the four winds, and she felt like she was falling—falling up and into him . . .
Books by Vanessa Kelly
MASTERING THE MARQUESS
SEX AND THE SINGLE EARL
MY FAVORITE COUNTESS
HIS MISTLETOE BRIDE
The Renegade Royals
SECRETS FOR SEDUCING A ROYAL BODYGUARD
CONFESSIONS OF A ROYAL BRIDEGROOM
HOW TO PLAN A WEDDING FOR A ROYAL SPY
HOW TO MARRY A ROYAL HIGHLANDER
The Improper Princesses
MY FAIR PRINCESS
THREE WEEKS WITH A PRINCESS
THE HIGHLANDER’S PRINCESS BRIDE
Clan Kendrick
THE HIGHLANDER WHO PROTECTED ME
THE HIGHLANDER’S CHRISTMAS BRIDE
THE HIGHLANDER’S ENGLISH BRIDE
THE HIGHLANDER’S IRISH BRIDE
THE HIGHLANDER’S HOLIDAY WIFE
THE HIGHLANDER’S KILTED BRIDE
Anthologies
AN INVITATION TO SIN
(with Jo Beverley, Sally MacKenzie, and Kaitlin O’Riley)
Published by Kensington Publishing Corp.
The Highlander’s Kilted Bride
CLAN KENDRICK
VANESSA KELLY
ZEBRA BOOKS
Kensington Publishing Corp.
www.kensingtonbooks.com
Table of Contents
HIGHLAND ROMANCE
Also by
Title Page
Copyright Page
PROLOGUE
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
EPILOGUE
ZEBRA BOOKS are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40th Street
New York, NY 10018
Copyright © 2023 by Vanessa Kelly
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
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ISBN: 978-1-4201-5455-9
ISBN-13: 978-1-4201-5455-9
ISBN-13: 978-1-4201-5456-6 (eBook)
PROLOGUE
Inveraray Castle
Summer, 1814
When an eagle cried overhead, Kade Kendrick glanced up from his book. The magnificent bird drifted, held aloft by the invisible eddies of the summer breeze off Loch Fyne. The scent of roses and lilacs filled the air, along with the crispness of recently mown grass. The gardens behind the castle shimmered with color in the bright summer sunlight. The lovely afternoon had beckoned Kade to slip away to read, and he’d found the perfect place in a secluded nook under a stand of oak trees.
After the incessant fog and drizzle of the last three days that had confined most of the guests to the castle, the sunshine was a welcoming gift. In Kade’s experience, clan gatherings were loud and rambunctious affairs, best held outdoors. At this one, Campbells had been cooped up with MacDonalds, Kendricks, and other bits and bobs of clan families invited to the Duke of Argyll’s gathering.
Not everyone got along, as last night’s argument between Kade’s grandfather and Lord Kinloch had demonstrated. Grandda was a MacDonald, as was the wife of Lord Kinloch. But that kinship tie hadn’t stopped them from brangling at earsplitting volumes. The argument had been about some fusty old battle and the role of Clan MacDonald. Grandda had taken offense over some minor detail and had ended up challenging Lord Kinloch to a duel. The Duke of Argyll, along with Kade’s oldest brother, Nick, had been forced to intervene. The combatants had been separated and had then received a stern lecture from the duke, resulting in an uneasy peace.
The peace hadn’t lasted. Two hours later, the twins—Kade’s older brothers—had accidentally set a small outbuilding on fire when they’d tried to produce homemade fireworks. Poor Nick had rather blown his top over that one, especially after Grandda had defended the twins. Even the duke’s patience had run out, and the twins and Grandda had been banished to their bedrooms for the rest of the evening.
Kade loved his family, and they usually made him laugh with their antics. But this time it was all rather embarrassing.
He returned his attention to his book. At least he wouldn’t cause Nick any trouble. Still, his brother worried about him all the time. Everybody worried about him, mainly because he was sick so much, which sent everyone into a tizzy. Fortunately, he was so much better these last few months, which was the only reason Nick had let him come to the clan gathering.
Now Kade wished he’d stayed home at Castle Kinglas, where he could have studied in quiet and practiced his music. But Grandda had thought it would be a grand treat for him to spend time with the clans instead of holing himself up in the castle’s quiet schoolroom with a bunch of moldy old books, as his grandfather called them.
“Ye might learn somethin’ aboot being a proper Highlander, laddie,” Grandda had said. “Instead of pokin’ about on that piano and playing ditties by all those bloody Sassenachs and foreigners.”
When Kade had pointed out that he was studying the great Mozart, Grandda had scoffed that Germans were as bad as Sassenachs. He’d also waved off Kade’s attempt to explain that Mozart had been born in Salzburg, not Germany.
“Clan gatherings are stupid,” Kade muttered as he refocused on his book.
He started to slip once more into the history of music as the peace of the garden settled around him. But then quick footsteps scrunched on the gravel path. Someone was coming his way—probably a maid sent to tell him to come inside and get ready for dinner. Or maybe it was just another guest out for a stroll in the gardens.
He hoped if he kept his head stuck firmly in his book, the guest would leave him alone.
“There you are,” said a girlish voice. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
Resigned, he looked up to see little Charlotte Stewart standing a few feet away, fists propped on her kilted hips. The daughter of Lord and Lady Kinloch actually wasn’t that little, since at eleven she was only two years younger than Kade.
Charlotte, something of a scrapper, was not like any girl he’d ever met. She wore kilts, for one thing, and never seemed to care about her appearance. Today, she had on a short jacket over her kilt and a pair of scuffed riding boots on her feet. Her shiny gold hair was pulled back in a messy knot, and there was a smudge of dirt on her jacket. She’d probably been out riding—or maybe mucking about in the stables. Charlotte loved horses and had even gone riding with the twins. Kade’s brothers had said she was a regular corker, taking every hedge without a smidge of doubt or fear.
She also drove her mother mad with her boyish ways, and Lady Kinloch seemed to deliver scolds to Charlotte on a regular basis.
“Why were you looking for me?” he asked.
Charlotte plopped down beside him on the wrought iron bench. “Because I wanted to talk to you. Why are you hiding out here? What if you fell down and hurt yourself? No one would be able to find you. Except for me, of course. I always find what I’m looking for.”
That was another thing about Charlotte. She liked to talk. He didn’t really
“I’m hardly likely to fall while just sitting on a bench,” he replied. “I’m not that clumsy.”
“Of course you’re not clumsy. It’s just that . . .” She trailed off.
Kade stifled a sigh. “It’s just that I’m rather sickly? I know everyone worries about me, but I’m quite well. Really.”
“Of course you are,” she stoutly said. “It’s just, well, you know. People worry over the stupidest things.”
In his case, worrying wasn’t so stupid. He’d almost died from fever when he was younger and had been sickly ever since. He did think he was getting better, though. At least he hoped so.
“I know my family worries about me,” he admitted. “I hate it.”
She scrunched up her nose in sympathy. “It’s because they love you, of course. So that’s not such a bad thing, is it? I think it’s rather nice, to tell you the truth. No one ever worries about me.”
“That’s because you’re indomitable.”
Charlotte looked puzzled. “I don’t know what that means.”
“It means you’re fearless.”
She seemed to ponder that as she absently plucked a piece of straw off her sleeve. “That’s nice, too, I suppose.”
They both fell silent as a pair of songbirds flitted in the branches of the oak tree above, warbling a cheerful song.
“Why aren’t you out playing or riding with the others?” he finally asked.
“The Campbell boys, you mean? Because they’re boring.”
“You’ve been knocking about with them since you got here, though.”
“It’s better than being cooped up inside that gloomy castle. I’d rather be out in the rain than have to listen to Mamma scold all day.”
Kade grinned. “She does scold a lot, doesn’t she?”
She comically crossed her eyes. “Rather. Which is also boring.”
“I’m quite boring, too, Charlotte. All I do is sit and read books, and you like to . . .” He waved a vague hand. “Do things.”
“Please call me Charlie. Everyone else does. Except for Mamma and Melissa, my little sister.”
He tilted his head to study her. “I heard some of the boys call you Charlie. I thought it was a joke.”
“My father started calling me that long ago, and it just stuck. He wanted a boy but got me instead.”
Kade frowned. “That’s odd. You do have a brother, don’t you?”
“Johnny didn’t come along for several years after me and Melissa. Anyway, the name doesn’t bother me, since I don’t much like girl things. It’s more fun to be with Papa. He even lets me go with him when he visits his tenant farmers and such. And I like spending time in the stables, learning everything I can about horses. They’re fun.”
“The Campbell boys seem like more fun than me,” he carefully said.
She emphatically shook her head. “No, they’re very dull compared to you. You’re smart and you’re nice. I’m not sure that Richard and Andrew are really very nice.”
Kade felt a warm glow in the center of his chest. Not that her praise really mattered, of course. Once the gathering was over, he had no idea when he might see her again. But if only for a few days it was nice to have a friend, someone other than one of his brothers or the Kinglas servants, who watched over him with an eagle eye.
Charlotte wasn’t the sort to make a fuss, and he found that refreshing.
Kade smiled at her. “Thank you. And I agree that Andrew Campbell doesn’t seem very nice.” Andrew was the oldest brother. “Richard seems all right, though.”
She shrugged. “I suppose. But he’s . . .”
“Boring?”
Charlie flashed a smirk and then leaned over and tapped the open pages of his book. “What are you reading?”
“It’s a history about opera. I found it in the duke’s library, and he was kind enough to let me borrow it. It’s a bit dry, I’m afraid. I’m not sure you’d find it very interesting.”
He had found it so interesting that he’d stayed up half the night reading it. But he doubted Charlie would be able to sit quietly to discuss the differences between Handel and Gluck. She was so restless and full of energy that Kade could almost imagine lightning shooting from her fingertips.
She twisted sideways to face him, and her chestnut brown eyes fastened earnestly on his face. The first time he’d met Charlie, he’d been struck by the color of her eyes because they were such an unexpected contrast with her golden hair.
“I think I would, though,” she replied. “I love music, but I really only know the old Highland reels and jigs. Mamma never plays anymore—she says married ladies never do—and Melissa wants to learn the harp.” She rolled her eyes. “I think the harp is stupid. Only girls want to play the harp, because then boys will think they’re like angels or something dumb like that. But it’s not nearly as nice as the piano or the fiddle, if you ask me.”
He smiled at her artless chatter. “I have to agree with you, because I play both the piano and the violin.”
“I know. I heard you playing the fiddle in the east drawing room the other day. You’re so good. I wish I could play something that well.” She screwed up her mouth for a moment, as if pondering. “Yes, the fiddle. I’d quite like to play that.”
“If you want to play the violin, er, fiddle, why don’t you?” he asked.
“Girls don’t usually play the fiddle, do they?” she replied in a dubious tone.
He smiled. “You don’t seem like someone who would be put off by such a thing. Is there anyone in your village who could teach you?”
She sat up straight, her gaze brightening with eagerness. “Yes, actually. Our vicar plays the fiddle, and he’s very good, too.”
“So ask him to give you lessons.”
Charlie seemed to deflate a bit. “Mamma wouldn’t like it. She doesn’t want me doing anything girls aren’t supposed to do.”
Kade grimaced in sympathy. Despite her rough-and-tumble exterior, Charlie was terribly sweet. And he’d bet a bob that she actually was lonely, stuck between two worlds.
“Then why don’t you ask your father? I bet he’d say yes.”
She waggled a hand. “It depends on how much he wants to avoid annoying Mamma.”
“Nick didn’t want me to play the piano, at least not at first. He thought it would wear me out. But I knew it would make me better, so I just kept asking until he finally gave in. So maybe you should keep asking your father until he finally says yes.”
She studied him, her head cocking in that funny little tilt he was beginning to recognize. For some reason, it made him want to smile.
“And did it make you better?”
He nodded. “When I play, I forget about being sick, and I always feel better afterward.”
Charlie flashed him a cheeky grin. “Then I will ask Papa, although I won’t tell him it was you who suggested it. He’s still mad at your grandfather, so—”
Loud, scuffling footsteps interrupted her. They both looked up to see the Campbell brothers pelting toward them, kicking up gravel from the path in their wake.
Kade mentally groaned. While he didn’t mind Richard, Andrew was a different story. Although only a year older than Kade, he was half a head taller and very athletic. He excelled at sports and seemed to dominate most of the games the boys played.
And he was a bully.
“Oh, thunderbolts,” Charlie muttered.
“There you are,” breathlessly exclaimed Richard as the brothers skidded to a halt in front of them. “We’ve been looking for you. Don’t you want to go riding with us? It’s a sunny day, so for once we won’t get all muddy.”
His big brother shoved him. “Charlie doesn’t mind mud. She’s a regular goer.” He fixed his gaze on her. “You don’t mind, do you?”
“No,” she replied. “Although I don’t know why you had to shove Richard to make that point.”
Andrew shrugged. “Because he was whining.”
