A Rake at the Highland Court: The Highland Ladies Book Four

by Barclay, Celeste

  “Before you even think aboot apologizing for being too rough, I enjoyed every single moment of that. I loved how things were earlier, but I loved that too. I will have to insist that you make love to me in a variety of ways. Every day.”

  “With pleasure,” Eoin grinned.

  “I am a little surprised though. I thought we were aboot to go belowstairs. We’re going to be conspicuously late for the evening meal.”

  “I’m certain no later than Ewan and Allyson, nor any of the Sinclairs. I suspect Ric and Isabella will have taken after the Sinclairs, and I’m certain Kieran and Maude MacLeod will be just as late.” Eoin named two other newlywed couples beside his brother and sister-by-marriage, and the Sinclairs were notoriously devoted couples with a new babe arriving every few months. Eoin’s eyes locked with Cairstine’s. “You’ve told me you love me, but that was the first time you called me your love.”

  Cairstine grinned. “Is that what spurred this on?” Eoin nodded. “In that case, mo ghaol, mo ghràidh, mo aon agus a-mhàin, mo chridhe gaolach. Shall I go on?” My love, my dearest, my one and only love, my dear heart. Cairstine rattled off the terms of endearment, kissing him on each cheek in between.

  “Are you racking up a tally, so I might never leave our bed?” Eoin teased.

  “Yes.” Cairstine’s answer made Eoin howl with laughter as she pretended to sulk. She relented and leaned against him. “I like your laugh, Eo. And the way it makes your chest rumble makes me think I’m hugging a massive bear. Oh, I like that! My bear. Mhathan.”

  “I might be more like a wolf tonight with the way I plan to gobble you up.” Eoin offered her a wolfish grin that launched them into another series of kisses until a pounding on the door forced them apart. Once their clothes were back in place, Eoin opened the door to find Andrew standing across the threshold, his arms crossed and a knowing frown on his face.

  “I’ve already pounded on your brother’s door. I can hear Hamish and Liam pounding on their weans’ doors.”

  “Weans?” Eoin offered his father a playful frown.

  “Aye, weans. You all seem to enjoy games of hide and seek. I can tell you, we three fathers are not enjoying the seeking part,” Andrew grumbled as Ewan and Allyson joined them.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  The Gordons made their way belowstairs as Eoin and Ewan teased their father relentlessly. Servants had expanded the dais to accommodate the added seats for the visiting lairds and ladies. Eoin and Cairstine took their seats next to Ewan and Allyson. Cairstine swept her eyes across the crowd, looking for familiar faces. She saw a few Highlanders she knew from court, but most of the other ladies-in-waiting were Lowlanders, who were neither interested nor invited to attend the Highland Gathering. She looked around the table, smiling shyly at Maude MacLeod. She was Laird Sutherland’s older daughter, and Cairstine had been particularly cruel to while both women were at court.

  It was obvious to anyone with at least one good eye that Maude’s husband, Kieran, was besotted with her, and she reciprocated the feelings. But the match made several ladies-in-waiting angry because they had always considered Maude as the plainest and plumpest of the group, and Kieran had been one of the most eligible bachelors in Scotland. He’d arrived at court months earlier and fallen head over heels with the reserved young lady. Now she sat quietly between the MacLeods of Lewis and the Sutherlands, her hand resting on the gentle swell of her belly. Cairstine resisted the temptation to touch her own belly, wondering if it was possible that Eoin’s seed might have already taken root. She nodded to Maude’s sister, Blair, who was still a lady-in-waiting, and to their brother, Lachlan.

  At a table almost entirely for themselves, the Sinclairs laughed with one another. They bantered with the Sutherlands, who were family-by-marriage because Hamish’s younger sister, Kyla, was married to Liam and was mother to the five Sinclair siblings before she passed away. Cairstine recognized most of them from their various visits to court, but she received lukewarm smiles from Deirdre and Ceit. Deirdre Fraser had handfasted with the fourth son, Magnus, several years ago while they were both young. Her family refused to acknowledge it and tore them apart. They kept her hidden from him for seven years, and it was only when Magnus represented the Sinclairs at court that they rediscovered one another. Cairstine had to admit that it was one of the most romantic stories she knew. They’d been faithful to one another despite never knowing if they would meet again.

  Cathryn Comyn was also a former lady-in-waiting, but her time at court was short. There were rumors that she’d been a spy for King Robert, but there were just as many rumors she was a spy for her exiled uncle, the Earl of Bucchan. Cairstine remembered the sparks that flew between Ceit and the third Sinclair brother. Tavish was the most coveted man at court when he visited, and Ceit turned her nose up at him before she learned they were to be betrothed. Tavish fell head over heels for the woman and finally convinced her that he’d retired from his womanizing ways. The memory made Cairstine turn toward Eoin, thinking of how he no longer acted like the rake most people knew him to be.

  Further down the table sat Alexander, the second son, and his wife, Brighde. She’d fled her home and her clan, the Kerrs, when her father arranged a marriage that was meant to end in her death. She’d traveled the length of Scotland by herself to seek refuge with the Sinclairs. Man and weather had battered and beaten her by the time she arrived at Castle Dunbeath. Alexander was the most reserved of the four brothers, but he’d nursed her back to health and wooed her until she agreed to marry him.

  Cairstine glanced at the crowd again, spying the Mackenzies and Gunns who sat at lower tables near the dais. The two clans studiously ignored the Sinclairs. The burgeoning feud had been officially put to rest, but the resentment between the two sides bubbled just below the surface. Cairstine watched the oldest Sinclair son and heir, Callum, as he shared his trencher with his wife, Siùsan. While his attention appeared singularly on his wife, Cairstine didn’t miss how his ever-watchful gaze darted to his family-by-marriage. Laird Mackenzie spent half of Siùsan’s life denying she was his daughter despite having been married to her mother, his first wife. He’d blamed Siùsan for her mother’s death, which was the result of a riding accident that put the woman into premature labor and eventually killed her. Members of her own clan and that of her stepmother’s, the Gunns, terrorized Siùsan when they kidnapped her while she and Callum traveled to meet her mother’s people, the MacLeods of Assynt.

  All four Sinclair women were in varying stages of pregnancy, while the youngest Sinclair sibling, Mairghread, had a babe in her arms. She sat beside her husband, Tristan, who cooed at their son. To end a feud, Liam and Tristan intended Mairghread to marry Tristan’s stepbrother, Alan. But the betrothal fell through when Alan insulted Mairghread and caused an outrageous scene one evening. Tristan convinced the Sinclairs to remain, and he courted Mairghread. They were a love match, and their many children proved it.

  There were five Sinclair siblings, and each appeared to be in a race to see who could outnumber their parents with the number of children they bore. Seated with the Sinclairs was another former lady-in-waiting, Isabella Dunbar. She’d fallen in love with a man who was half-Scottish and half-English. When both of his parents were killed while living along the border, he’d been stolen away and take to King Edward’s English court. He was trained as a knight, but before he could retire, the “Hammer of the Scots” sent Ric on one more mission. He was to infiltrate and spy at Robert the Bruce’s court. Instead, he fell in love with the quiet and bookish Isabella. A few months of living along the border convinced the couple they didn’t see a long future there. Ric now served as a head guardsman for the Sinclairs. Both of noble birth, they’d been welcomed more like an addition to the laird’s family since Isabella was friends with Deirdre and Ceit.

  Cairstine resolved to apologize and make amends in the morning as best she could. Without divulging too much, she would explain her reasons for her behavior. Most of the women understood what it meant to
be pushed into marriage. Fortunately, they all now had loving unions, but they would hopefully sympathize with her fear and wish for some control over her life. The most urgent apology was to Maude, who’d borne the brunt of Cairstine’s scheme to create a reputation that would label Cairstine an undesirable bride.

  “Cairrie, you can’t step twice in the same river,” Eoin reassured her. “You can give your best effort to make amends, and hopefully, while they’re here, they’ll see who you really are, not who you made them think you are.”

  Cairstine nodded as she returned her attention to the trencher she shared with Eoin. Since their first meal together at the Grants’ table, Eoin had been solicitous and placed the best pieces of food on Cairstine’s side before serving himself. In the beginning, she assumed he was displaying his courtly manners to impress her family, but it hadn’t taken long for Cairstine to realize he made his selections as one of his ways to take care of her, to show her his growing feelings.

  “Thank you for always taking such wonderful care of me, Eo. Since that day you thought Bram was accosting me until this very moment, you’ve always put me first. I know how lucky I am to have you, and I promise I won’t take you for granted,” Cairstine whispered.

  “I know, mo leannan. And I am a lucky mon to call you my wife.” Eoin wrapped his arm around Cairstine’s waist as she leaned against him. She fed him a piece of duck, smiling when sauce dribbled along his chin. Without thinking, she swiped it away, wiping it on the tablecloth. As Eoin refilled their chalice, she tore off a chunk of bread and passed it to Eoin. It wasn’t until she sensed they were being watched that she looked around the table. Every former lady-in-waiting sat staring at her. She shifted nervously, but Allyson laid her hand on Cairstine’s leg.

  “You and Eoin act as though you’ve been married a lifetime already with how you share and serve one another,” Allyson whispered. “You’ve stunned the other women. They weren’t prepared to see this side of you.”

  Cairstine nodded before glancing down the table again. She smiled shyly before ducking her head and turning back to Eoin, who offered her a bite of tatties and neeps. As Eoin continued to pass her food and wine, she soon forgot about the other people seated at their table. Her focus was once more solely upon Eoin. As the music began, Eoin offered to accompany Cairstine down to dance. Eoin watched Cairstine scan the crowd before nodding. He understood her wariness. At Stirling Castle, most of the men she danced with were courtiers, men who spent most of their lives as part of the royal entourage. They rarely saw Highlanders at court despite Robert the Bruce’s reliance on them during the Wars of Scottish Independence. But here, the entire keep was filled with Highlanders Cairstine had never met, never seen before. While she knew many of them, she didn’t know all of them, and it made her anxious.

  “We’ll dance only the ones where we will remain partners. Any of the reels or line dances we’ll sit out,” Eoin offered as he led her to where servants had cleared away the tables and benches. As the music began, Cairstine moved gracefully in Eoin’s arms. During their courtship, dancing and sparring were the rare times their bodies came into contact. It had been sweet agony for them both, but now that they’d committed to one another, Eoin held Cairstine much closer than was deemed appropriate. Neither of them cared, content to dance in a world made up of only them two.

  As the night wore on, Cairstine’s feet and head ached. The Great Hall was overcrowded, and too many couples attempted to squeeze their way into the dancing. Cairstine was jostled too many times to count, and she’d had her feet trod on enough times that she feared she would have a limp. She was grateful when Eoin said they’d made their appearance for long enough and could escape to their chamber. When she could do little more than hobble up the stairs, Eoin swept her into his arms and didn’t let go until several hours later when they were both spent and breathless. She fell into a dreamless sleep, just as she had since Eoin started sharing her bed.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  The next week was a buzz of activity that began with Fenella’s and Kennon’s wedding. Cairstine held Eoin’s hand as they stood outside the kirk and watched the couple exchange their vows before the two families entered the chapel for the private Mass. She wondered if she would celebrate with a wedding like Fenella’s or if it would be a simple vow exchange, since she and Eoin already handfasted. As if reading her mind, Eoin brushed back Cairstine’s hair and leaned toward her even though they were kneeling during the Mass. “Before we leave for Huntly, that will be us. I promise, mo chridhe,” Eoin whispered. Cairstine nodded before bowing her head in prayer.

  Competitions and games filled most of the days. Ewan and Eoin tied for the footrace, Allyson and Cairstine cheering them on. Some grumbled that they rigged the race, so the inseparable twins didn’t have to name a winner. There were taunts that they’d done it to spare their sensitive feelings. Others laughed at the preposterous idea. While the twins were not competitive with one another about most things, feats of strength brought out a rivalry that developed during adolescence. It was well known to most in the Highlands.

  Magnus Sinclair won every round of the caber toss, which came as a surprise to no one. He was renowned for his size and strength. Murmurs abounded that despite being in his twenties, the man kept growing each year. He was reported to be a giant among men, but he looked like little more than a lamb when he doted on his pregnant wife. There’d been uproarious laughter when Deirdre heard the rumors, and Magnus had to hold back his hissing, irate wife. Among the many things the Sinclair brothers were known for was their fiercely loyal wives, who never hesitated to come to their husbands’ defense, be it with a biting word or sharpened knife.

  The other Sinclair brothers took first place in archery, swimming, and knife throwing. Between the Sinclairs and Gordons, there were few competitions for others to win. Cairstine suspected that the Sinclairs threw the other games, so clans besides them had a chance to win. Too many victories by one clan would have soured the already tenuous balance.

  Alliances and feuds in the Highlands were more complicated than a spider’s web. One clan could be in accord with another, while that ally was bound to their enemy. At events where so many septs and branches of the same clan were present, old rivalries and slights came to the surface. Everyone was supposedly there to have fun and enjoy a reprieve from political squabbles, but invariably a new feud emerged each year. Very few were laid to rest.

  These entangled relationships were best demonstrated by the Sinclairs, Mackays, Gunns, and Mackenzies. The Sinclairs, Mackays, and Gunns were all neighbors. While the Sinclairs risked a feud with the Mackays, both the Sinclairs and Mackays had once shared a tenuous peace with the Gunns. Tristan Mackay’s marriage to Mairghread Sinclair bound the two clans into an unbreakable alliance. When Callum Sinclair married Siùsan Mackenzie, the Mackenzies and Sinclairs formed an alliance that was flimsy because of the Mackenzies’ alliance with the Gunns. The Sinclairs barely tolerated either clan after they learned how neglectful Siùsan’s upbringing had been.

  A battle between the Sinclairs and Gunns over Alexander’s wife, Brighde, made the rift with the Gunns irreparable despite the king’s intervention. While the Sinclairs and Sutherlands were at odds two generations ago, Liam Sinclair’s marriage to Kyla Sutherland became that of legends. Their love was so great that not only had Liam sworn off all women when he became a widower, the alliance between the two clans became the strongest in the Highlands.

  Cairstine considered the alliance that now existed between the Grants and Gordons. She prayed that her marriage to Eoin would forge the same connection the Sinclairs had with the Mackays and Sutherlands. It was made from love and loyalty rather than wealth and position.

  Cairstine watched as Eoin and Kieran MacLeod wrestled. They were among the finalists, and while Cairstine cheered on Eoin, she admitted to herself that she was uncertain who would come out the victor. The two men were evenly matched in size and skill, and both men were fiercely competitive. As other matches end
ed, the two men continued to grapple. In the end, it was called a tie to allow the event to move on. Cairstine stood beside Maude, who she’d pulled aside and apologized to. She’d confessed most of her story to Maude, and the woman was surprisingly understanding. Maude shared that she’d had a similar experience with a lad who was too aggressive in his pursuit. Her cousins had come to her rescue just as they did for Cairstine.

  “Are you hungry?” Cairstine asked Eoin as he joined her where she’d stood watching his match.

  “Always,” Eoin’s seductive grin made Cairstine’s stomach flutter. “Mayhap even for food this time. I don’t have another event this afternoon and neither do you. What say you we disappear for a few hours?”

  Cairstine returned Eoin’s grin and nodded. She’d competed in several of the women’s games, taking first place in archery. Mairghread trounced every other competitor in the knife throwing. Tristan argued that they should allow her to compete with the men, so she might have a proper challenge. It was her brother, Callum, who most vociferously argued against it. He was the reigning champion and eventually became that year’s winner, but he refused to agree to Mairghread’s entry, openly admitting that he didn’t want to lose to his wee sister. After he won the men’s game, his sister publicly challenged him, and Cairstine thought Callum might cry for a moment. He’d taken the teasing good-naturedly when Mairghread threw a perfect score, beating Callum by one point. She watched as a dagger exchanged hands between Mairghread and Magnus while the other brothers gloated that Magnus had lost some bet to his sister.

  “Where do you two think you’re going?” Andrew asked as Eoin and Cairstine emerged from the crowd. Andrew scowled and shook his head. “Oh no. You can take a dunk in the loch, but I won’t believe for a moment that you’re going into the keep only to refresh yourself, Eoin. I already had to chase your brother back out here.”