A Spinster at the Highland Court: The Highland Ladies Book One

by Barclay, Celeste

  Edward pulled Elizabeth back against him for one more kiss before he and the other men mounted. He looked back thrice before losing sight of Elizabeth on the other side of the gate. Elizabeth followed Deirdre’s lead as they approached Isabella. The young woman sucked in a breath of surprise to see the three former ladies-in-waiting approach her. She was even more surprised when they embraced her, reassuring her that they were in the same boat. Isabella stuttered a “thank you” and an apology for her past behavior. Elizabeth was unsure how Deirdre would react since she’d been the recipient of Isabella’s actions, but she should have trusted her cousin to have the grace to accept it. Deirdre, Ceit, and Elizabeth understood how powerful the group of ladies-in-waiting were, how they isolated and alienated anyone who didn’t conform. They didn’t blame Isabella for trying to endure her service to the queen.

  The next month seemed interminable to the four ladies. Deirdre and Elizabeth resumed their habit of reading and translating ancient texts, both loving the puzzle of deciphering bygone era relics. Isabella joined them in the castle’s scriptorium as she pursued her passion for Pictish history and its influence on Clan Dunbar. Ceit was the only one who hadn’t been an academic while at court. She’d been too busy ferreting out information to relay to both her king and her uncle. Now that she no longer had to fear the tangled web of espionage, she enjoyed reading for pleasure. Ceit often took her place in the window seat and read the Greek philosophers’ works translated into Latin. She didn’t care for the books of flowery poetry since they all had to endure hours of it in the queen’s solar.

  At night, Elizabeth retired to a chamber she shared with Deirdre and Ceit. It was the one she and Edward shared after they wed and the one where they spent a brief night before Edward rode out. It was the most spacious of the three chambers the couples occupied. They invited Isabella, offering a trundle bed, but most nights she refused to intrude that much on the family.

  Elizabeth appreciated the company as they all tried to while away the days, but the constant presence of other people wore her down. Everywhere she looked, the posted guards watched her. She felt exposed, and it was a constant reminder that Edward wasn’t there. She tried to convince herself not to keep track of how many days he’d been gone, but there was no helping it. Robert and the queen encouraged all four ladies to dine on the dais, enjoying the best of what they served and knowing it also made it impossible for any man to ask them to dance or to even approach without the king’s notice. They all declined to dance regardless of where they sat.

  “I don’t recall how I used to survive these evening meals,” Ceit mused. “The men are insufferable as they strut about like peacocks, and the women’s vanity makes me question whether I was ever so petty.”

  “You weren’t,” Deirdre reassured. “You weren’t around enough to fall into the trappings of court life.”

  Ceit grinned as she remembered that the longest stretch of time she spent at court was while Tavish attempted to court her. Already betrothed to him, unbeknownst to her, he’d set out on a mission to woo her and convince her that his feelings were in earnest. His reputation as a rake had proceeded him.

  “You smiled and bore your time here,” Elizabeth murmured to Deirdre. Deirdre had arrived unexpectedly at court and become gravely ill for several days. No one was told why she became a lady-in-waiting nor did they understand why she refused to gossip about the men at court, only dancing when forced. Only Elizabeth was privy to Deirdre’s secret: she and Magnus were handfasted, and Deirdre refused to accept it was only for a year and a day. In her heart and mind, they were still wed despite not having heard from Magnus in years. Elizabeth and Deirdre suspected Deirdre’s parents were responsible for that.

  “I did, but I am glad that it is over. I’d much rather be at home at Castle Dunbeath than here. Besides, there will be no more bairns if Magnus isn’t here to practice.” She rubbed her rounded belly, smiling while thinking about how she and Magnus came to be expecting their first child.

  Elizabeth tried to keep the sly smile from her face, but her cousin was far too perceptive.

  “Beth, do you have something to share?” Deirdre giggled.

  “I don’t know for sure, but I suspect I might be with child. We’ve been married more than a moon, and my courses haven’t started.” Elizabeth kept her voice down. She didn’t want her news to become the latest gossip, nor did she want anyone who might wish her dead to learn she might carry the king’s niece or nephew. She feared that would make her an even greater target. “Don’t say anything to anyone. Eddie doesn’t even know.”

  Ceit, Deirdre, and Isabella nodded solemnly. All three married women trusted one another enough to share the pet names they had for their husbands. Only Isabella lacked a special name for her knight.

  “I swear if it rains one more day, I will think God intends us to build an ark,” Edward grumbled as he pushed his sopping hair out of his face. He and the other men had been sleeping under the stars and wet sky for a month, and he was ready to return home to a hearty meal and the warmth of sharing a bed with Elizabeth.

  “Ye ken we can have all four seasons in a day. ‘Tis the way of things in Scotland,” Tavish chuckled despite looking half-drowned himself.

  “That’s supposed to be in the Highlands, not down here by the border,” Edward continued to grumble.

  “Then be glad it’s only rain and nae sleet nor snow as it would be in the Highlands,” Magnus reasoned.

  “True enough, true enough,” Edward conceded as their horses plodded through the mud. They had been scouting the border with little success, except for one short battle with the English. Besides that, there had been little of note to report. He found that if he had to be away from Elizabeth and suffering in the wilds, then he was happy to do it with Tavish and Magnus. Even the English knight proved himself trustworthy as he led the defense against the attack, preparing them by explaining the English strategy he predicted they would face. The man seemed to become more Scottish than English by the day.

  “We’ll be back with our wives in three days. We can survive that. As ma new sister Siúsan says, if a woman can survive carrying a bairn for nine moons, a man should be able to survive the ague and a wee bit of bad weather. Rather difficult to argue that when she’s standing there with her hand on her belly and yer wife is beside her,” Tavish laughed.

  While none of the men enjoyed being away from the women they loved, Tavish kept his sense of humor most of the time. He’d come to blows with the newcomer, but once they had it out, they all became friends.

  “I will bear that in mind as I ring out my leggings and dump the water from my boots,” Edward laughed as the thought that they would be home in a few days took root.

  They had already turned away from the borderlands, headed toward the gateway to the Highlands. Stirling straddled the divide between the Highlands and Lowlands, but after the king united the Highland clans and fought with the ferocity of a Highlander, the court appeared more like it belonged to the wilds of the north despite the pomp and circumstance. Even though the Bruces were a Lowland clan, since his young days as a warrior, Edward sensed the pull of the rugged landscape. Elizabeth was from a Highland clan, and he saw the resilience in her that was needed to survive the locale. He also heard the twinges of a burr when she said particular words. He found it endearing as well as arousing. Edward shifted in his saddle; it was hardly the time for his cock to harden just thinking about his wife. He was saddle sore enough without adding to it. He commiserated with the other men who missed their women just as much as he did, the silent understanding when they slipped away from camp for longer than was needed to relieve themselves.

  “I am looking forward to ma Ceit’s tender ministrations when we return,” Tavish waggled his eyebrows.

  “Tender?” Magnus snorted. “I dinna ken how she hasnae killed ye yet. The two of ye bicker like fishwives.”

  “Aye, and we enjoy making up afterward.” Tavish shifted in his saddle too, becoming uncomfortabl
e while thinking of his wife.

  The jesting carried on, moving to the endurance and bravery of their horses and who would last the longest if they were to challenge one another in the lists. The weather lightened up just before Stirling came into sight on the third day. The four warriors and their men spurred their horses into a gallop as they raced to be welcomed home.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Edward watched as Elizabeth dashed outside with Deirdre, Ceit, and Isabella at her side. He catapulted himself from his horse before it had even come to a stop. He assumed a stable boy would gather the reins and lead his horse to the stables. Under normal circumstances, he would’ve cared for his steed himself, but nothing would keep him from enjoying Elizabeth being in his arms. He took the steps two at a time until he met her in the middle. She launched herself into his arms, and he squeezed her so tightly, he was certain he’d crush her, but he was unable to bring himself to let go. Her arms held him as close as she could around his much broader frame. Their kiss was hungry and frenzied. No one existed in that moment besides each other.

  A clearing of a throat did little to keep the four couples from continuing their reunion. Robert only laughed as he observed the four warriors with their petite women, knowing that no one should underestimate the women’s ferocity just because of their smaller stature. When the group was ready to enter the keep, Robert opened his mouth to command them to meet with him and the Privy Council to debrief their findings, but eight scowling faces and four feminine growls left him suggesting that he meet with the returning warriors in the morning. Even Robert knew not to push his luck.

  “I ordered a bath as soon as Ceit brought word that you were spotted,” Elizabeth explained as she stepped past the guard and into their chamber. Her halt was so abrupt Edward ran into her back, pushing her a few steps forward. He encircled her waist and pulled her back against him as he drew his dirk. It took little more than a moment for him to spot what she had. There was a dead blackbird, its wings spread apart in rigor mortis, laying on their bed, feathers strewn about the floor. Edward moved Elizabeth behind him as he inched further into the room. The brief notion of pushing Elizabeth out of the chamber came to mind, but the guards hadn’t done a good enough job once; he didn’t trust them now. As they neared the tub, they both gasped to see the water was red.

  “Blood?” Elizabeth asked. She stopped beside Edward as they both leaned over the water. Before he could stop her, Elizabeth scooped a handful and dipped her tongue into it. She spluttered, and Edward panicked. “Beets. Ugh. I detest beets. I would rather it’d been blood. Disgusting.”

  “Beets?” Edward bleated. He was ready to throttle his wife. “What were you thinking? What if it was more dangerous than that? You could have poisoned yourself.”

  “That’s why I only used the tip of my tongue. And besides, I was sure I recognized the smell. Someone did this to scare us into assuming it was blood.”

  “Guards!” Edward bellowed. When the door opened, both men peered inside. “Who else, besides the maids who brought the bath, has been inside this chamber?”

  “No one, my lord. Only the two maids and three men who brought in the tub and buckets of water. We oversaw them ourselves to be sure there was no cheeky business.” The guard nodded but caught sight of the bird on the bed. “Ay up! What’s this?”

  “Someone else has been in here,” Edward growled the obvious.

  “I swear we let no one else in here,” the other guard spoke up. “And we watched them the entire time.”

  Elizabeth tugged on Edward’s sleeve and tilted her head to the wall behind the bed. Edward remembered the secret passage and trap door behind the tapestry by their bed. It was the same tunnel Elizabeth led him through when he followed her after a visit to her siblings.

  “Very well. That’ll be all,” Edward dismissed the guards, but one lingered.

  “Should we summon someone to see to this mess, my lord?”

  “No. We shall deal with it.”

  Once the door was closed, Elizabeth raced forward and turned the key in the lock before dropping the bar.

  “Someone else knows that a passage leads here.” She pushed the tapestry aside and ran her hand over the stone wall. She sensed nothing out of the ordinary; the latch felt just as it should. She pressed it and the door sprang open. She wondered if the torch she dropped when she ran before was still there. She made to take a step inside, but Edward’s arm wrapped around her and lifted her off her feet.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Edward bellowed, but looked over his shoulder at the door.

  “I was just going to go far enough to figure out if the torch I left behind was still there.”

  “I’ll check.” Edward stooped and passed through the doorway. With his hands out in front of him, he shuffled his feet until he kicked something. He bent down to retrieve whatever it was and discovered it was the torch. It had been resting against the wall and out of the way of the path. Whoever came to their chamber hadn’t discovered it. He stepped back into the chamber and went to the roaring fire. He lit the torch before turning to Elizabeth. “I want to tell you to stay behind, but I’m sure you won’t, and I need your knowledge of the tunnels to guide me. Just promise you will stay behind me, holding onto my tunic the entire time.”

  Elizabeth nodded but said nothing. Edward tucked the torch into a wall sconce and pulled Elizabeth into his embrace.

  “I know you’re scared, little one. I am too, truth be told, but we both know we must, to discover what we can find.”

  “I just wish for a quiet evening together rather than dealing with this. Everything seemed fine while you were away, and the moment you return--” Elizabeth broke off as she leaned back to look at Edward. “This isn’t about me. This is about you,” she gasped as everything began to fall into place. “When Isabella recalled what she heard the men say, it was that they hoped nothing tied them back to the accident. They hoped that whoever you and Robert sent wouldn’t find anything beyond the axle I guess your men brought back. They said nothing that implied the attack was intended for me. What if it wasn’t? What if the attackers discovered I was leaving in a hurry in a carriage and assumed we were running away? What if the ambush was about using me to lure you out? Oh God, Eddie. What if someone is trying to kill you?”

  The notion had crossed his mind after the ambush, but he’d been certain everyone at court was aware Fraser sent his daughter away to keep her from Edward. Now he questioned whether anyone learned that before Elizabeth left. If this was the case, he had more than one enemy who might desire him dead. It could be anyone from Sinead in a jealous fit to a noble who sided against Robert. It didn’t narrow the possibilities.

  “You may be right, but as long as we are together, you are in danger.”

  “As long as we’re together? What is that supposed to mean? We’re supposed to always be together.” Elizabeth felt nauseous as bile rose in the back of her throat.

  “It means I’m bluidy well fucked,” Edward muttered before glancing over at Elizabeth’s stunned expression. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be so crass. I don’t want to leave you alone as I trust no one to protect you like I can, and we’ve seen how well that goes, nor do I want you harmed because you remain at my side. This makes me wonder if Mitchell intended to goad me back at Culcreuch, perhaps even draw me out into a fight.”

  “Eddie, I don’t know that I want to lead you through the tunnels now. If Mitchell was our only trouble at Culcreuch, then maybe we should ask Robert if we can return.”

  “I already plan to.” Edward brushed back hair from her temple before kissing the smooth skin. “We’ll leave off on the tunnel, but you must promise me you won’t go investigating without me.”

  Elizabeth swallowed, not sure if this was the right time to share her news. She took Edward’s hand and looked around for somewhere to sit not near the bed nor the tub. She settled for arranging a few cushions on the floor before the fire.

  “You haven’t promised me, Beth.”<
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  “I know. That’s what I want to talk to you about, or at least I do promise that I won’t go exploring. I also won’t gallop on Reubadair or go into Stirling without you. I won’t take any chances slipping on ice by going for walks without you to brace me. I won’t do any of those things that might hurt my body... or the bairn I’m carrying.”

  “Bairn?” Edward whispered.

  Elizabeth nodded as Edward drew her into his lap. He caressed her hair before smattering kisses across her face and resting a hand over her still-flat belly.

  “I realized while you were away that I hadn’t had my courses since before we wed. We were at Culcreuch for a moon, and you were away for a moon. I visited the queen’s midwife yesterday, and she confirmed it. She estimates me close to three moons along.”

  “That would mean when we were at the inn or the cottage.”

  “Aye. Right when we first pledged ourselves. Our handfast bairn.”

  Edward’s kiss was slow and gentle as he marveled knowing his wife was growing another person within her womb, a person they created together.

  “I love you, little one.”

  “And I love you, Eddie. Are you happy that it happened so soon?” Elizabeth bit her lower lip until Edward tugged it free.