SNIPPET ONE - SCOTTISH HISTORIAL ROMANCE
“Who are ye?” the woman asked. “Say somethin’ or I’ll call the guards.”
Her voice quivered with fear as her eyes stretched wide. Arran’s eyes adjusted to the ligh that now glowed in the room and he held out his hands to show that he intended to be no threat to her.
“There’s no need for that,” he said quickly. “I mean you no harm at all.”
“Then why are ye here?” she asked. “Why have ye climbed through my window?”
He had no real answer for her that wasn’t the truth. And he knew that the truth would not help his situation one bit. His mind was tired and so was his body. Climbing through the window and running was an option, but he would not be quick.
He would have to charm his way into stopping her from alerting the guards.
“I thought this room was empty,” he said. “The window was nailed shut. That’s usually a sign of an empty room. I’ve had a wee bit much tae drink and I’m lookin’ fer a place tae rest my head.”
“Not empty,” she said.
“Well, I can see that now,” he answered sarcastically. “Just give me a minute and I’ll leave ye in peace.”
There was nothing else he could say to her. He turned to move back toward the window with the idea of getting out of there and back to his horse as quickly as possible.
“Ye’re a bandit,” she said.
When he turned back to face her, she was eyeing him closely. The blanket had been thrown off of her and she was climbing out of bed. Clearly, she knew more of the world than he originally thought. She was clever enough to realize that he was a bandit.
Leaving would no longer work. She would certainly alert someone of his presence then.
“Well, you don’t move as if ye’d had tae much tae drink,” she commented. “You managed tae get the nails out and climb through the window. Most drunkards I know couldn’t do that. They’d just sleep oot in the garden.”
Arran knew then that he needed to adjust his narrative. His only hope then was to charm her into letting him leave quietly, or letting him stay. For that, he needed to very quickly figure out the right approach.
He turned back to face her and gave her his best smile, although he was sure his face was covered in dirt from his dangerous retreat.
“Aye,” he said. “I am a bandit, but I am not here tae steal from you.”
SNIPPET TWO - SCOTTISH HISTORICAL ROMANCE
The days that followed had felt so easy to Briony. She woke up each morning feeling energized and excited for what was to come. It was less about the training, and more about her attempts to get a smile out of Alan again.
She had managed to convince him to give her added training some evenings, and on a few of those evenings she had even managed to make him laugh. Those had been her favourite moments, and without noticing it, she had become somewhat addicted to the feeling.
Alan had been an excellent Captain to her, too. Her stance had improved, and she was winning almost every sparring session that she entered. She had also been able to hit every target with her bow, while Alan worked on slowly convincing her to go hunting with him.
Briony had found a new breath of life, in which she found herself paying more attention to her appearance in the day. Suddenly, she woke up feeling as though she wanted to look her best at all times.
While it was more work than she was used to, she enjoyed doing it. And she enjoyed seeing herself in the reflections. Briony saw herself in a different way with every passing day, and there was a small sense of pride that sparked within her.
As she was leaving her chambers that morning, she was stopped by a maid.
“Yer mother calls fer yer presence,” the maid said.
“Right now?” Briony asked, glancing at the route to the training fields.
“Aye, my lady,” the maid said. “She said ‘tis urgent. She’s in the sunroom.”
“Thank you,” Briony said kindly.
The maid looked at her as if she had said something shocking. It occurred to Briony then that it had been years since she had thanked, and smiled at one of the castle staff. Something about it felt good and right.
“I’ll head tae her now,” Briony said.
She knew there was no chance of talking her way out of it. All she needed to do was keep her family happy, and they caused her less grief. If, in their brief and infrequent conversations, she could tell them what they wanted to hear, then they bothered her less about her training and her daily activities.
But in order for it to keep working, she needed to keep doing it.
“You wanted tae see me?” Briony asked, walking into the room.
Her mother motioned for her to take a seat across from her. Briony did as she was asked, and made sure to sit up straight and ladylike. Briony then poured herself a cup of tea and smiled at her mother.
