Fiona Macpherson took the hand of the young woman and started up the stairway leading to the Great Hall.
Colin was beside her in a moment. “Would it be all right if I were to accompany you two?”
“Nay. You cannot.” Lady Fiona said emphatically, waving him off and winking at Tess.
When Tess looked back, Colin was standing on the top step, looking amused. Behind him, though, the two older brothers were approaching. The laird appeared perfectly happy just looking on. As the two women entered the building, Tess heard a shout and then a cheer went up in the courtyard.
“Is Colin in trouble?”
“Always. I believe his brothers plan to use him as a battering ram.”
“They won’t hurt him?” Tess asked, concerned.
Lady Fiona gently patted Tess’s hand and smiled. “Don’t worry about him, my dear. He might be the youngest, but he has never had a problem holding his own. And whatever trouble Alexander and James cause him, ‘tis only a fraction of what Colin usually serves them.”
“But he’s been away…at the university. What kind of trouble could he have caused from there?”
Lady Fiona lowered her voice to a confidential tone. “I have learned to not ask. Since these boys have become men, they fight about horses, tides, religion, politics, and harvests. And I am very sorry to say that every other argument seems to be about some young woman. I imagine, though, Alexander and James see your visit as a great opportunity to even the score with Colin for years of torment he’s inflicted on them.”
Tess didn’t totally understand the meaning of what her hostess was implying. But she had a strong feeling that she might not want to know.
As the two women made their way through the throng of people inside the wide open doors of the Great Hall, Lady Fiona introduced Tess to an aging steward named Robert. The man’s thin face creased in a smile as soon as he realized that there were no bags or trunks waiting to be moved upstairs.
“So much like you, m’lady.”
“So much, indeed.” Fiona Macpherson nodded good-naturedly, remembering her own arrival at the castle. “And forget about the arrangements we made before, Robert, I’d like Tess to stay in the Roundtower Room.”
After the steward had hurried off away, Lady Fiona whispered confidentially in Tess’s ear. “That is my favorite room. ‘Tis the same one I stayed in the first time I set foot in Benmore Castle. I know you’ll like it.”
The rush of emotions came quick. Tess somehow managed to murmur her thanks. But no words were enough to describe how welcome Lady Macpherson had already made her feel.
“Never mind the builders milling about.” The older woman waved to some men that were on their way out of the Hall, obviously finished for the day. “I believe ‘tis Benmore Castle’s destiny to be always undergoing of some kind of construction. My mother-in-law was determined to change and improve the place. And now, with our sons grown and starting their own lives, I am finding myself doing the same thing with my time.”
“The Great Hall is truly magnificent.” Tess let her eyes travel the length of the large chamber. Each of the plastered walls was covered with colorful tapestries and hangings of embroidered felt, velvet, silk, and damask. The floors were covered, as well, with ornate rugs, which shocked her. She’d never seen rugs on the floor before. These were fine enough for hanging. From behind them, the chatter of castle workers and warriors starting to file into the hall filled the air with laughter and good cheer.
Instead of going directly upstairs, Lady Fiona led Tess to the left, toward an arch, and into the quiet of a long corridor.
As the two made their way along, Tess asked her hostess about the history of the castle and the obvious improvements that had been made.
Fiona Macpherson was genuinely delighted at the interest and made a point of taking her through every room they passed. Tess was shown the latest improvements and those that had been gradually implemented throughout the castle over the past thirty years.
Lady Fiona’s pride in the place she called home had no bounds. Tess saw the leaded glass windows, the new fireplaces in living quarters. She was led through the new kitchens and the brew house, and then up a level into some smaller guestrooms directly above. By the time they had worked their way around to the other end of the castle, she was amazed at the effort and obvious expense that had gone into the castle’s renovation.
Casting a quick glance at the red-haired women, though, Tess couldn’t help but speculate if her own mother was anything like Lady Fiona. She wondered, too, if the same kind of happiness would have filled Ravenie Castle if her father were still alive and Tess had never been taken away.
She had no answers.
Moments later, her hostess led Tess up a winding stairwell. The young woman held her breath as she entered the Roundtower Room that she was to inhabit during her stay at Benmore Castle.
“’Tis absolutely exquisite.”
“I remember thinking the same thing,” Fiona whispered, standing beside Tess in the doorway.
The room was large and airy, with leaded glass windows that kept out the cold, but still provided a sweeping view of the hills outside. The base of each window was corbelled with a bow-shaped oak sill wide enough to sit on. A fireplace had been prepared for an evening fire, and a large canopy bed with richly embroidered curtains sat against an inner wall. The floors were made of oak as well, and an ornate handmade rug covered only part of the burnished wood.
“I have kept everything the same.” Fiona took hold of Tess’s hand and drew her to the middle of the room. “’Tis delightful how much you and I have in common.”
“Do we?” she replied, surprised.
Lady Fiona nodded, helping Tess out of the cloak and drawing her down beside her onto the bench near a small table.
“When I was a child, I was torn from my family, as well. Drummond Castle, where my mother and I lived, came under the attack the same night I was to meet my father for the first time. I left there, that night, knowing that I might never see…my parents again.” Her voice wavered slightly, but Fiona’s fingers was warm and steady as she held Tess’s cold hand. “And like you I was raised simply, without the comforts and finery that life in a good family offers.”
“But you were a king’s daughter. I…”
“To those wonderful nuns who raised me, I was a castoff, no different than you were to the couple who raised you.” She patted Tess’s hand affectionately. “But I don’t want to talk about myself right now. The only reason I brought up my own youth was for you to know that I understand what you are going through right now. I was the same way. And trust me when I tell you that it will pass.”
Tess stared at their joined hands. “I…I am so nervous. There is so much that I don’t remember or know. So much that I am lacking in my education, and manners, and in whatever ‘tis that makes a young woman behave properly. I was delighted to hear that my mother is alive. But now I am terrified to think I should be a disappointment to her.” Tess knew she was babbling, but she couldn’t stop herself. “And we sent a message to her as soon as we came ashore. For all I know, she could arrive here any day, and I just know she will see right through me.”
“Believe me when I say that I understand your concerns about seeing Lady Evelyn. But you should know right now that she will not be displeased with you as much as she is with us.” Fiona touched Tess gently on the knee before she could voice an objection. “One thing no one has told you yet is that your mother has a deeply held prejudice against the people of the Highlands.”
“But she married my father,” Tess blurted out.
“Aye, an arranged marriage. But before that she was Evelyn Fleming, and she was brought up amongst her kin in the Borders area to the south of the Lowlands, almost to England, itself. They say her heart never left there. Many believe, for all the years that she lived at Ravenie Castle, she never really accepted her life with your father. To her, all Highlanders were barbarians, and she hated her time there.”
“I’ve never met your mother, but your father was a good friend to my husband. The few times that I had the pleasure of meeting with Sir Stephen, I was quite taken with his pride in you.” Lady Fiona squeezed Tess’s hand gently. “And this is what you should remember, Tess. You look like him. You have his spirit. You should be proud of the strong person you are and your ability to survive as you have. ‘Endure with strength’ is your family motto, and you have lived up to those words. ‘Tis quite obvious to me—if only from my three sons’ response to you—that you are a pearl of great worth, Tess. Don’t allow anyone to tell you otherwise.”
CHAPTER 10
“Have I ever asked you two for anything before?”
Alexander and James glanced at each other first before turning suspicious faces toward their youngest brother. The crowd of men around them laughed.
“Aye, you have,” the eldest answered. He was sitting on Colin’s legs. “You’re forever asking.”
“Every time you start losing, you beg like a bloody friar,” James added. He was keeping Colin’s arms and hands pinned to the dirt floor of the stable with great difficulty.
The two had carried him off to the stables as soon as their mother and their guest had disappeared into the Great Hall. A homecoming tradition since the boys’ childhood, their wrestling matches had always been cheered on by the castle’s inhabitants. They’d been the source of more than a few wagers over the years, as well.
With the older brothers firmly in control, the men started dispersing.
“Have I ever asked you two for a favor before?” Colin repeated.
The two Highlanders again glanced at each other before nodding in unison.
“’Twill not work, fox.” James shook his head at the youngest brother. “After all the trouble you caused me when the Macgregor lassie was here at Michaelmas.”
“And remember the story you told that bonny French creature I had my eye on at Falkland Palace last summer?” Alexander growled. “Something about my wife and two sickly bairns being due to arrive at the castle at any moment, if I recall.”
“If you think we will show you any mercy…”
“…You can just put it out of your mind,” the older brother finished. “You’ve been able to escape unscathed before. But ‘tis time that you reap what you’ve sown, now that this Tess has caught your eye.”
Alexander didn’t even see the kick coming until he found himself hurtling toward the stable wall. The other brother, being bigger, put up a tougher fight, but Colin managed to slip his grasp and press James’s face into the dirt as Alexander fought to regain the breath knocked out of him.
“Now listen to me, you buggering peacocks,” Colin warned, knowing his advantage was momentary at best. “’Tis true I’ve taken a few opportunities to torment you two in the past, but if you search inside your thick skulls, you might remember that you were never serious about any of those lassies. At best, you were thinking of a night or two of…well, whatever you were thinking of.”
“Ha! Looking out for us, were you?” James laughed mockingly. “Our guardian angel speaks! Let me up, Lucifer.”
Alexander lowered his voice. “Are you telling us that there is a reason why we shouldn’t ruin your chances with this Lindsay lass while she is here?”
“Aye!” Colin spat out passionately. “If all I wanted was a roll in the hay, I would have wooed her on the island and let it end there. I’m thinking…well, she trusts me, and I can’t let some senseless teasing by you two make her doubt her judgment.”
“The devil, you say,” James challenged, looking at him incredulously. “If you think you can win us over with such drivel—”
“Aye, if she trusts you, the lassie’s judgment is a wee b—”
“I mean it.” Colin pushed himself impatiently to his feet. “You didn’t see her on that island. I did. I saw her frustration and confusion over who she was and what her future might be. I’m telling you it took great courage…and trust…for her to leave the May and come back here with us. Tess cannot afford to be doubting herself now. She is too vulnerable, as ’tis. Until she’s at peace with her past, I feel…well, responsible for her. And that means with everyone out there, including you two flap-jawed, boneheaded apes.”
“I think the lass must have fed you some kind of potion when you were on the May,” Alexander said half-seriously.
“It may just be a fever,” James suggested. “But you didn’t, by any chance, inhale any odd-smelling smoke out there?”
“She didn’t bewitch me, damn it!” Colin growled at the two amused men.
“So you say, brother,” Alexander commented. “But from the moment we fetched you two from the island, you’ve had stars in your eyes.”
“Bloody hell!” Colin barked. “Well, of course I’m…well, she’s a bonny lass! But that’s not…Och, by the devil, this is all confusing as hell!”
“So we see,” James chuckled.
“Listen, you two! The most important thing is for Tess to find her people and get settled.”
“Very well.” Alexander replied, growing serious. “What do you want from us?”
“And what will you give us for it?” James added with a grin.
“I want no bloody mischief. Just your best behavior. And perhaps wee bit of respect.”
“Nay, you go too far now,” Alexander deadpanned.
“I mean it. I need a chance to figure out the best way I can help her. I need to spend time with her, to encourage her as a friend should.” He glowered fiercely at the two men. “That is, without your childish comments and antics.”
The two older brothers again glanced at each other first before James answered.
“Well, lad, this may just be the best way yet of getting rid of you. So, aye, I’d say you can count on us.”
Fiona had assured Tess that she would be more than presentable should Lady Evelyn arrive even without advance warning.
But Tess had no idea what the mistress of Benmore Castle had up her sleeve.
Soon after Fiona had left, a cadre of the household workers arrived with a tub and buckets of steaming water. Never, as far as she could remember, had Tess experienced such luxury. As she soaked in the jasmine-scented bath water, she’d felt the soreness of her hours in the saddle melt out of her tired muscles. And she’d no sooner stepped out of the tub when Lady Fiona’s seamstress and helpers had arrived at the door with strict instructions for measuring and dressing her.
Tess’s old dress had been whisked away. Dressed in a new silk shift, the like of which she’d never before seen or felt, Tess stood dutifully on a stool. For what felt like hours, though it was probably only minutes, the old seamstress and her assistants tried on and pinned several partially made dresses—garments that Tess suspected had originally been intended for Lady Fiona’s own wardrobe.
As they bustled around her, cutting and stitching, Tess had made polite conversation with the women. She’d enjoyed getting lost in their Highland accents when they talked among themselves. But at some point during this ordeal, Tess’s gaze had turned longingly toward the deep billows of the brightly decorated bed. The mattress looked as puffy as a cloud.
“Will ye look at this bonny lass now!”
“I say one look at her by our lads, and she’ll not be strayin’ far from Benmore.”
Tess hadn’t even realized that the women were talking about her until the seamstress moved a looking glass and rested it against the wall.
“Look at yerself, lassie. Ye are sure to put the very moon to shame.”
Tess didn’t recognize the young woman staring back at her through the silvered glass.
Never in her life had she worn such a fine gown. The ivory-colored bodice, laced with threads of gold, clung to her slender frame and then flared to a long, full skirt below the curves of her hips. The tight sleeves hugged her arms while the plush velvet cuffs extended over her fingers. Tess eyed the low neckline and blushed at the revealing sight.
“No worries about that, mistress.” The seamstress must have followed the direction of her gaze. The woman moved to a chest and came back with a length of Macpherson plaid. In a moment, she’d artfully arranged it around Tess’s shoulder.
“This is absolutely beautiful.” Tess whispered in awe, staring at her reflection again. “But, to whom does this dress belong?”
“This one was to be Lady Fiona’s—though she was only having it made up to please the laird. The same with those.” The woman motioned toward a few dresses that were lying on the bed. “She wanted ye to have ‘em…until we can make something to yer own tastes, mistress.”
“But these are so beautiful!” Tess said shyly. “This is too much! I have been so much trouble already…and…”
“Nay, lass. The mistress is truly enjoying this.” The woman sent her a toothless smile. “With no daughters to fret over, and with three braw and handsome sons who should be looking for wives, I’d say yer presence here is more welcome than ye know.”
Tess tried to hide her blush by stepping off the stool. Chatting happily, the women went about their business of hanging the other dresses and cleaning up after themselves.
Looking for wives. Tess pressed her icy hands to her fevered cheeks as the words echoed again and again in her head.
The memory of her time with Colin on the Isle of May was branded forever in her mind. Every moment they had spent together, everything they’d said, the image of his smile, the gleam that crept into his deep blue eyes and set her on fire were all branded there as well.
She ran her fingers over the plaid scarf.
But Colin had plans of his own. He’d said it himself, and Tess had heard it again from Alexander on their way to Benmore. Colin had always wanted to be a sailor. He dreamed of taking command of his own ship and living a free and exciting life at sea.
Tess and the Highlander Page 10
