“Oh, dear,” I said. “I did feel awfully uneasy when he came creeping in a few minutes ago. I’m glad you turned up when you did.”

He patted my leg under the blankets. “Don’t you worry now. I’ll be outside the door and it would take a strapping man to get past me.”

“Thank you, Lachan,” I said.

He went to go, then turned back. “Georgie, about my wee jokes—you know about the rock that landed on the Prince of Wales and Mrs. Simpson?”

“That was you?”

“Not me. Murdoch. And it was an accident, I can assure you. He decided he might as well get in some practice for the Braemar Games. It’s a good spot here, away from the competition. He was up to throwing the hammer and he didn’t have a hammer on the spot, so to speak, so he had improvised by tying some rope around a large rock. Well, somehow it came loose as he was twirling it around his head and it went flying off in the wrong direction. We heard the awful clunk and the yells, and when we saw it was the Simpson woman, we made ourselves scarce.”

“Well, that’s good news,” I said, trying not to smile. “At least it wasn’t deliberate. And you didn’t accidentally put out the trap for Binky to step on, did you?”

“Good God, no. I’d never hurt a kinsman. I might be tempted to do it for a Campbell, maybe, but who’d want to hurt Binky? He can’t have an enemy in the world. A bit soft, maybe, and not overly endowed with brains, but there’s not a mean bone in him.”

“That’s true,” I said.

He leaned over and gave me a kiss on the forehead, then patted my shoulder. “Sweet dreams, young lady,” he said. “I thought you did a fine job today. No silly hysterics. Just what one would expect from a Rannoch.”

He left me then, with several thoughts to consider. Was he seriously considering marrying me? He and Murdoch had described themselves as penniless, but Binky had referred to their farm as prosperous. But Lachan was the younger brother. He wouldn’t inherit anything.

“This is ridiculous,” I said out loud. Of course I wasn’t considering marrying him. I could have had a prince, a possible heir to a throne. I could always have someone like Gussie if I wanted, but I didn’t want. I knew who I wanted and he had nothing to offer me in the material sense. Ah, well, two men who were interested in me in one day. That wasn’t bad. Things were looking up in some ways.