Keegan let out a rough laugh, utterly mirthless and sarcastic. “It isnae so simple, lass.”
Willow could tell that this was a sensitive topic and that Keegan wished to keep it locked away. But doing so would do neither of them any good. She wanted to understand, to hear the truth so that she was not kept out in the dark with no notion as to why Keegan was so pained by the idea of a McCallum being within his walls.
Especially considering he was planning on marrying her—a McCallum.
“Please, Keegan. I wish to understand ye. What…what happened?”
His jaw muscles tensed, and Keegan squeezed his hands into fists. Willow could tell that he held back his rage only just, and she did her best to remain calm and steady.
“What happened?” Keegan rolled his eyes, a bitter sneer crossing his face. “What happened was that me faither had given me a decision to make for the clan as the man who would someday lead it, and I let him down. I…I requested that he show patience and allow the enemy to meet us for peace talks. It was a mistake.”
“Peace talks?” Willow raised her brows, leaning closer to Keegan as he ducked his head again. “How could that be a mistake?”
The laird remained silent, and Willow reached out, taking his chin and getting him to lift up. As his eyes met hers, they burned with an intensity that forced Willow to swallow hard. He pulled his head away, stepping back as he closed his eyes and sucked in clearly needed fresh air.
“It was a mistake because yer damned brother showed his true motives in a ceilidh. The castle was attacked, and even though the battle resolved with Clan Brahanne as the victors, me parents were dead. I was young and foolish, listenin' to theuseless call of me heart to show mercy, and all it did was leave us vulnerable to Magnus’s connivin' plots.”
Willow froze in place, imagining the dreadful scene of this beautiful castle splattered in red and littered with fallen warriors, including those of Keegan’s mother and father. Her brother had always been a cruel man, and it didn’t surprise her that he would use the situation to betray the Brahannes’ trust.
What affected her was the evident grief plastered on Keegan’s expression. He was truly heartbroken, and those old wounds were being ripped open by Magnus’s actions now. He’d stolen Melissa, and were he to get a body into the castle during the wedding, he would certainly look to attack during a moment of vulnerability. Keegan only wished to protect his family.
If nothing else, Willow could understand that—intimately.
Approaching him cautiously, Willow took Keegan’s face one more and met his eyes. “I apologize greatly for everythin' me brother has done to yer family. He is…he is a villain, and he has taken so much from ye.”
Keegan held her stare, searching her eyes for something she couldn’t guess. After a moment, his expression softened ever so slightly. “Thank ye, lass. But ye can see now why I am nae fond of the notion of lettin' in more of the McCallums into me home.”
She nodded. “Aye. Lilith isnae a friend of Magnus’s, however. Neither of us has been treated anythin' but poorly by the man.I ken with me entire soul that she wouldnae aid him with an attack on the castle.”
Keegan’s hand went to her face, and Willow couldn’t stop herself from leaning into it. His palm was warm and rough against her cheek, and she looked up into his eyes as the heat spread through her, lodging itself in her core.
“I shouldnae believe ye, Willow. I should keep ye well away and keep meself as far from ye as possible.” The thought needled through Willow’s ribs. “But I simply cannae do it.”
After a moment, Keegan stepped closer, his body now only a breath away from hers. “I will honor ye request, lass, but ye must ensure me that it is to be only Lilith who travels to the castle. Magnus isnae welcome here.”
She nodded again, this time with more vigor. “I assure ye. I will write in nay unclear terms that Lilith is to come alone and with nay intense guard or inklin' to sneak more into the castle.”
Keegan held Willow’s stare, his hand still on her face. The two of them just stood there, the laird’s hand slowly wrapping around her waist as well. The tension and fire slipped through Willow’s veins; she could track every curve and twist it took within her.
“Verra well, lass. Ye may send yer invitation.” Keegan’s voice was a deep rasp as he spoke softly to her, seeming to map her face with eyes.
Excitement swelled regardless. Lilith would be here, and she was filled to bursting with gratitude toward her husband-to-be. Lifting up onto her tiptoes, Willow kissed Keegan’s cheek with a massive grin spread across her lips.
“Thank ye, Keegan,” she said, returning to the floor. “Thank ye truly. I shall write to her immediately.”
Keegan smiled, but it was pinched as if the laird had bitten into a lemon when she hadn’t looked. Still, Willow was too eager to wait a moment longer, so she thought nothing of it and bounded away to draft up her letter to her sister.
As she looked back over her shoulder one final time to smile at Keegan, he gripped the front of his plaid, rolling his lips between his teeth as he narrowed his stare at her.
“Go on, lass. I’ve…me own preparation to return to.”
A slow grin touched his mouth, and Keegan gestured toward the door with his head. Willow could see a nearly hidden darkness in Keegan’s gaze, and she wondered where his mind was indeed placed.
Another time, perhaps. She had a letter to write.
“Thank ye again, Keegan. I shall nae forget it.”
“Keep that to the front of yer mind when next I ask ye to do something, lass.”