Unraveled By The Rebel by Michelle Willingham Page A

afraid of this side of him. There was a ruthlessness here that she’d only glimpsed a few years ago. It reminded her of how deeply he hated Lord Strathland and of his vow of vengeance.
    “I’ll be in Edinburgh. The people can blame it on me, if they want, but they willna let Strathland know where I am. He still believes I’m here, in the north.”
    She met his gaze squarely, demanding, “And is this your plan for vengeance? To steal?”
    Paul’s mouth tightened. “I’m no’ a thief, if that’s what you’re thinking.” He drew her to stand before the doorway. “I plan to revisit upon him every hardship he’s given to the clansmen and women. He should suffer in this way, knowing hunger as they do.”
    She didn’t like the edge in his voice and turned around to face him. “And do you plan to spend the rest of your life stealing from him, taking away everything he owns that has value?” It chilled her to think that his need for revenge went this deep.
    “No’ my entire life,” he said, drawing her back behind one of the houses, out of view. “I plan to spend most of my life with you.”
    With that, he took her mouth in a kiss that pushed back the edges of her childhood, reminding her that she still belonged to him. Despite all her misgivings, she melted beneath his heated mouth, knowing that there would never be anyone for her like Paul Fraser. She was numb with fear, and yet, she couldn’t stop herself from kissing him back.
    This man, her desperate secret that she would keep from her family.
    When there were shouts from the crofters, Paul broke free of the kiss. “Stay here,” he warned. “If it’s Strathland or his factor, I want you nowhere close.”
    He pressed her back against the wall while he ventured out among the others. Juliette remained in hiding, watching as the men hurried to hide the remainder of the food. Within moments, several men arrived on horseback, and she suspected their leader was Lord Strathland’s factor.
    She barely heard what was going on, but the Highlanders had formed a line against the Englishmen. Juliette swallowed hard, her heart pounding within her chest. Someone was going to be hurt, and God help her, she couldn’t let it be Paul.
    From the side, she saw another man approaching on horseback. He wore a wool topcoat, and the horse he rode was the finest she’d ever seen. It was Lord Strathland himself. Upon his face, she saw fury, and a man who would voice orders to harm the crofters.
    Without knowing why she was emerging from her hiding place, she walked away from the men, directly toward the earl. She kepther steps slow and held tightly to her pelisse, placing a false smile upon her face as she neared Lord Strathland.
    Her mother’s instructions came back to her, the rules of polite introduction that she was casting aside by approaching this man. But if she could spare these people from violence, it hardly mattered that there was no chaperone to introduce them.
    “My lord,” she greeted him, offering a slight curtsy. Explanations tangled with lies in her brain of why the crofters had sacks of food among them. “I am Juliette Andrews. I believe you know my father, Lieutenant Colonel Andrews.”
    Her words did have an effect on him, but not the one she’d expected. The earl’s earlier anger dissipated, and his gaze fixed upon hers. Cool brown eyes studied her face, before his attention shifted down over her body.
    “Miss Andrews.” He nodded to her, dismounting from his horse. “Your mother would be displeased to find you so far from home this morning.”
    “She believes in charity to those less fortunate, as I am sure you do,” she said, still clinging to the smile she didn’t feel. “I brought food as gifts from my family to these people. It’s part of a Christmas offering.”
    The earl’s expression hardened, but he sent a look toward his men, nodding for them to retreat. “Have you? I am surprised that Mrs. Andrews did not arrange it herself instead