Excerpt of Highland Angel by Hannah Howell

Chapter One

"Are ye Sir Payton Murray?"

The fact that the voice coming from behind him was female stilled Payton's initial fear that he had been caught by the husband he was planning to cuckold. Then it occurred to him that anyone catching him lurking beneath Lady Fraser's bedchamber window could cause him trouble. Well, he mused as he tamped down the desire he had begun to feel at the thought of spending a few hours in the fulsome Lady Fraser's arms, he had developed a skill for talking himself out of trouble. It was time to use it.

As he turned to face this possible nemesis, he opened his mouth to begin his explanations, only to leave it open, gaping at the vision before him. The woman was very small and very wet. Her hair hung in long, dripping ropes over her equally wet gown. He suspected it was not just tile moonlight which made her delicate, heart shaped face look so pale. The dark gown clung to an almost too-slender body, but the hint of womanly curves was there. He wondered if she knew that she had more mud than slipper on her small feet. And, if he was not mistaken, that was marsh grass sticking out of one sleeve.

"Weel? Are ye Sir Payton Murray? The bonny Sir Payton?"

"Aye," he replied, then wondered if that had been wise.

"The gallant, brave Sir Payton?"

"Aye, I--" he began, wishing she would leave off the accolades, as they always made him uncomfortable.

"The bane-of-all-husbands Sir Payton? The lightning-quick and lethal-with-a-sword Sir Payton? The Sir Payton the ladies sigh o'er and the minstrels warble about?"

There was the distinct bite of mockery behind her words. "What do ye want?"

"So, ye are Sir Payton?"

"Aye, the bonny Sir Payton."

"Actually, I dinnae care if ye are as ugly as a toad's arse. I want the honorable, gallant, lethal-with-a-sword, and willing-to-leap-to-the-aid-of-those-in-need Sir Payton."

"The minstrels exaggerate," he snapped, then felt guilty as he saw her slender shoulders slump a little.

"I see. Ye did notice I was a wee bit damp, didnae ye?" she asked as she wrung out a handful of her skirts.

"Aye, I did notice that." He bit back the urge to smile.

"Didnae ye wonder why? 'Tis nay raining."

"I concede that I am a wee bit curious. Why are ye wet?"

"My husband tried to drown me. The idiot forgot that I can swim."

Although Payton was shocked, he forced himself to be wary. He had suffered from far too many women trying all sorts of tricks to get close to him, to entrap him in situations that could force him to the altar. Yet, Payton thought as he looked her over again, no one had ever tried dipping themselves in a murky river before. Nor, he mused as he recalled her words, had such a bucket of sarcasm been poured over him before. If she was trying to lure him into a trap, she was using some very peculiar bait.

"Why did your husband try to drown you?" Payton asked.

"Payton, my sweet courtier, is that you?" called Lady Fraser softly as she peered out her window.

Inwardly cursing, Payton looked up to see Lady Fraser's sweet face looking down at him, her long, fair hair spilling over the edge of the window. He glanced toward the other woman, only to find her gone. She had left as quietly as she had arrived.

"Aye, 'tis me, my dove," he replied, wondering why he felt so disappointed that the girl had left.

"Come to me, my bonny knight. The warmth of my chamber eagerly awaits ye."

"And a sweet temptation that is, my beauty."

Even as Pay-ton stepped toward a cleverly arranged set of kegs, he heard a soft, gagging sound. He looked around, expecting to see that sadly bedraggled girl, but saw nothing. Uneasy, he turned back to the kegs, musing that Lady Fraser was clearly no novice to the intrigues of cuckoldry. There was before him a cleverly disguised stairway consisting of the kegs and several thick boards artfully nailed to the wall of the house.

"Are ye planning to just leave me here?"

That husky whisper startled him so much he stumbled a little as he again looked around for the girl. "I have an appointment," he whispered, hoping her reply would help him locate her.

A heavy sigh escaped the ivy on the wall to his left. Looking closely, he was finally able to make out her shape tucked neatly, and very still, within the shadows and foliage by the wall of the house. It was unsettling how well she used the shadows and how quickly and silently she had done so. Payton did not really want to contemplate the reasons a woman would learn such a trick.

"Go, then," she said in that same soft whisper. "I will wait here. Enjoy your conquest. I hope I dinnae catch the ague."

"I doubt ye will."

"Of course," she continued as if he had not spoken, "my deep, wracking coughs will no doubt disguise your cries of illicit passion and thus keep ye safe from discovery. I am ever ready to be helpful. If her husband should return, shall I just hurl my weak, shuddering serf upon him to allow ye time to escape?"

"I am beginning to see why your husband should wish to drown ye," Payton muttered.

"Oh, nay, ye could ne'er guess that."

"Payton, my beau chevalier, are ye coming?" called Lady Fraser.

"I worked hard for this." Payton looked up at the window and knew he would not be climbing through it tonight.

"Oh, I doubt that, although she does like to play coy," said the girl. "Go on. I will just huddle here, though I doubt ye will be much help to me when ye crawl out of there later. 'Tis said she is insatiable, fair wrings a mon dry."

Payton had not heard that. Although he had not thought he was the first to coax Lady Fraser into breaking her vows, he had not realized she had become so well known for doing so. Insatiable sounded intriguing, he mused, then sighed. Payton hoped Lady Fraser would not be too offended when he forced himself to leave without partaking of her favors.