“Only after the words were spoken did she realize what she had said. "My sins are all your fault, Brodick, and if I have to go to purgatory, then by God, you're going with me. Ramsey, if you do not stop laughing,I swear I shall toss you over this cliff.""Do you love him, lass?" Father asked."I do not," she answered emphatically."It isn't a requirement," Laggan pointed out."I should hope not," she cried."But it would make your life easier," he countered."Gillian, you will tell the truth," Brodick demanded.He grabbed hold of her hand. She tried to pull back, but he wouldn't let go."I have told the truth. I don't love Ramsey, and if he doesn't stop laughing at me, the Sinclairs will soon be looking for a new laird.""Not Ramsey," Laggan shouted so he could be heard over Ramsey's laughter. "I'm asking you if you love Brodick.""Did you tell Father I love you? Who else did you tell?”

“Are you going to keep her?""Yes.""Does she know it?""Not yet."Ramsey overheard the conversation and laughed heartily. "I assume you've considered all the problems, Brodick.""I have.""It won't be an easy life for her living with—" Ramsey began. Brodick finished his sentence for him."Living with the Buchanan clan. I know, and I worry about her adjustment."Ramsey grinned. "That's not what I was going to say. It won't be easy for her living with you. Rumor has it, you're a difficult man to be around."Brodick didn't take offense. "Gillian's aware of my flaws.""And she'll still have you?" Winslow asked."As a matter of fact, she has refused to marry me."Knowing Brodick as well as they did, both Ramsey and Winslow began to laugh again."So when's the wedding?" Ramsey asked.”

“Then it stands to reason that love doesn't make a man less than what he already is.""It makes him vulnerable.""Perhaps it does," Ramsey agreed."And if his mind is constantly consumed with thoughts of her, then he becomes weak. Is that not so?"Ramsey smiled. "I'll tell you what is so. You love her, Brodick, and that scares the hell out of you.""I should have broken your nose.”

“The baron reminds me of someone, but I can't quite put my finger on who it is," Ramsey remarked."I swear my own father never talked to me the way Gillian's uncle just did.""Your father died before you were old enough to know him.""It was humiliating, damn it. He sure as certain wasn't what I expected. The way Gillian talked about him, I pictured a mild-mannered gentleman. She thinks he's… gentle. Is the woman blind? How in God's name can she love such a crotchety old…"Ramsey's head snapped up, and he suddenly burst into laughter, breaking Brodick's train of thought. "It's you.""What?""Morgan… he reminds me of you. My God, Gillian married a man just like her uncle. Look at the baron and you'll see yourself in twenty years.""Are you suggesting I'm going to become a belligerent, foul-tempered old man?""Hell, you're already belligerent and foul-tempered. No wonder she fell in love with you," he drawled”

“A few minutes later, she was once again riding her own horse. Deciding to take the lead, she nudged the mare into a trot, and as she passed Brodick and Ramsey, she called out, "You used trickery.""Yes, I did," he admitted. "Are you angry with me?"She laughed again. "I don't get angry. I get even."Unbeknownst to her, she had just recited the Buchanan creed.”

“Iain's gaze went back and forth between Gillian and Brodick. "Father Laggan's back," he remarked."And there's another, younger priest named Stevens with him.""Why are you telling me this?" Brodick asked."I just wanted you to know there are two priests available," Iain explained with a meaningful glance atGillian.”