Falling for the Chieftain: A Time Travel Romance (Enchanted Falls Trilogy, Book 3)

by Keira Montclair

  “Down to yer left, ye can warm up near the hearth. Sit there and I’ll bring ye some ale.”

  “No, thank you. No ale. Do you have any wine?”

  “Nay.” he said, unable to hide his shock. Wealthy women knew of wine, but he wouldn’t have guessed her to be wealthy. “Mead?”

  “Could I have a cup of both ale and mead to see which one I like better?” She folded her hands in front of her, a timid position compared to how she’d acted before. His bollocks still ached from the kick she’d given him.

  “Ye dinnae know?”

  “No. We drank wine, water, and…milk at home.”

  “We have milk to break our fast with,” he said slowly. “Pour it in our porridge sometimes. I’ll find ye something. I’ll be right back.”

  He left his great hall out the back door and headed to the kitchens. What the hell kind of clan drank wine, water, and milk? The strangeness of her request, and all the words she spoke, only made him more suspicious that she was the one.

  He found Angus just inside the kitchens, talking with Cook and Jinty. Jinty’s daughter and the other serving lass listened, but they scuttled away upon seeing him. The remaining three stopped talking as soon as he entered. He already knew exactly what they wanted to know.

  “I know no’ what to tell ye all. She wandered onto the corner fields, confused and scared. Was I to leave her there for the entertainment of those men full of ale? Had I turned my back on her for a moment, they’d have been fondling her with plans of mounting her soon. I wouldnae allow that. Lachie took a shine to her, so I brought her here. She doesnae remember what happened. I thought to give her a good night’s rest, and we’ll find out more on the morrow. Do ye have a problem with my decision? Any of ye?”

  All three shook their heads in unison before Cook spun around to finish her work. “Here’s a meat pie for the lass. I have a berry tart or two left. Lassies like sweet things.” She made a tray and handed it to Jinty.

  “I need two goblets, one with a touch of mead and the other with a touch of ale.”

  Cook quirked her brow at him but said nothing.

  “The lass cannae remember which she likes. Is that a bother?”

  “Nay, of course no’, my lord.” Cook hurried to do as she was bid, putting three goblets on the tray. “One for ye, my lord. Ye look like ye need one.”

  “Jinty, will ye see that the chamber is made up for her?”

  “Aye, my lord.” He explained how he wanted it prepared, and Jinty hurried out to see to her duties.

  No truer statement had ever been made. What was he to do with the lass on the morrow?

  And how the hell was he to protect her from a clan full of men with barely enough women around and loins ready to burst?

  He was in for a long night.

  Chapter Four

  Allie smiled and stood up from the trestle table. She’d only managed a couple of bites of the meat pie, the stringy meat inside doing a number on her belly, but the fruit tart had been quite tasty. It would do her for the night. “Thank you for your hospitality. I think I’ll rest now, if you don’t mind. Where shall I sleep?”

  Brann said, “Jinty will be right along to show ye to yer chamber. She’s making the bed up for ye.”

  “I can help. Where’s the room?” She was about to head up the staircase at the end of the large hall when she caught sight of a tiny gray puppy with curly fur stumbling near the back doorway. Lachie sat on the floor near it, next to a large crate. The sound of soft cries told her it was full of more puppies. “Oh, how sweet!”

  She’d always loved dogs, but her sisters were both cat lovers. Since their two votes had counted more than her one, her parents had gotten them a cat when they were young. Since she’d wanted a dog and hadn’t gotten her way, she’d been given the chore of naming the cat.

  She’d named it Kitty just to annoy them. Oh, how her sisters had teased her.

  As she stooped to pick up the little one, Lachie jumped up from the crate he sat next to in the corner. “Dinnae touch her. Leave her be. Her mother dinnae want her.”

  Allie couldn’t heed that, so she scooped the pup up and held her against her chest. “Your mama does not want you? But you’re so cute.”

  Brann appeared next to her, explaining, “She’s the runt. Her mother will take her outside, where she’ll die quickly.”

  “Die quickly? Have you no heart?” Allie’s gaze moved from one expectant face to the other. Both of them had clearly planned to leave the puppy to die. “Really? You’d just let her die?”

  Brann quirked his brow at her. “‘Tis the way of animals. They leave the runt to die. Every litter.”

  “I don’t care if it’s the way,” she snapped. “I’ll keep her. Just give me some milk, and I’ll feed her myself.” Turning to Lachie, certain she’d find an ally in him, she said, “You agree with him?”

  He slowly nodded, his eyes wide. “Brann says ‘tis the way.”

  Incredulous, she stared at him in shock, then shifted her gaze back to his brother, certain he was to blame.

  “But that’s so archaic…” Her words fell off as she stared back and forth between the two of them. She brushed a strand of hair back from her face with exasperation, the only way she could properly display her mood without upsetting anyone.

  Brann reached for the pup, but Allie wouldn’t have it. “Don’t touch her. She’s mine.”

  “Ye are only prolonging the inevitable.” He’d moved close enough to unnerve her a bit, just because…

  Well, dammit. No use lying to herself. The Highlander had her hormones raging.

  When was the last time she’d felt this drawn to a man? She’d liked her last boyfriend in the beginning, but there hadn’t been any passion between them. Nothing like this, anyway. This man made her think of those steamy romance books she loved…and want to act them out.

  “I’m a nurse. I’ll take care of her.” She dared them to challenge her. When her nursing persona took over, she didn’t budge.

  Lachie’s eyes widened and he turned to Brann, who was doing his best to hide a smile.

  “Ye mean ye’re nursing, lass?” His smirk couldn’t be contained as his gaze dropped to her breasts.

  This language barrier was getting annoying. “I’m not nursing, and I’ve never been pregnant. I don’t have any kids either.”

  Lachie gave her the most serious expression she’d ever seen before. “What do goats have to do with the puppy?”

  She closed her eyes in frustration before an idea struck. “I need goat’s milk for the pup. I’ll feed her. That’s all I’ll need. Then I’ll go to my room.”

  “Yer chamber?” He tipped his head toward her in confusion.

  “Yes, my chamber.” Dammit.

  “May I find her some goat’s milk, Brann? I hate it when the runts die.” The expression of love and respect in the boy’s eyes caught her. The man was good with his brother, so she’d have to excuse his treatment of the pup.

  Brann gave him a slight nod and waved him off toward the kitchens—or so she guessed. If she recalled her history lessons at all, there would be a large, hot, stifling set of kitchens attached to the back of the keep. They had to have multiple hearths in order to prepare food for so many.

  She cuddled the pup under her chin. “I’ll take care of her. As soon as I get the milk, I’ll go to my chamber and I’ll not bother you again. Which one is it?”

  “The top of the stairs, second door on the right. The chamber next to mine.”

  He’d said as much before, but it hadn’t stood out to her. Now she couldn’t help but wonder what it meant.

  Suddenly, she felt exhausted and all thoughts of sex with the warrior in front of her vanished. Tired of trying to fight her way out of an impossible situation, and of verbally sparring with this Highland warrior in front of her, she just wanted to go to sleep and find her sisters. In fact, she couldn’t fight the tears welling in her eyes.

  Brann noticed.

  She closed her eyes and
tucked the pup closer, wishing and praying her situation would revert to normal.

  But it didn’t.

  “Lass, I did no’ mean any impropriety.” His thumb reached up to brush a tear away from her cheek. “I want only to help ye, whatever be yer situation.”

  She froze at his touch, but then decided to allow it. Despite the fact that she’d literally greeted him with a blow to the balls, he’d assisted her from the beginning. True, he teased her at times, but somehow she knew he would always help her—all she had to do was ask.

  If only she knew how to explain the truth to him. She nodded and turned away as soon as Lachie arrived with a bowl of goat’s milk. The housekeeper came down the stairs, slow enough to indicate some possible arthritis, but she guessed her to be a hard worker nonetheless.

  “This is Jinty,” the boy said. “She’ll lead ye to yer chamber abovestairs.”

  “Yes, I met her before we ate. Thank you for all your help, both of you.” She glanced back at Brann to include him in the remark. “I’ll try to explain everything after I’ve rested some.”

  She followed Jinty up the staircase and down the candlelit passageway to her room. When she stepped inside, she marveled at how much the stone-walled room looked like something out of a movie set. A real fire crackled in the hearth, a chest stood at the foot of the simple bed, and a colorful tapestry hung on the wall above the furniture. She was surprised at the sweet aroma.

  “What is that scent?” she asked.

  Jinty said, “I gave ye the heather-stuffed mattress, my lady. ‘Tis acceptable to ye?”

  “Jinty, I’m not a …you don’t have to call me…” What the hell did she know about this time period? Maybe she did need to call her that.

  The maid bustled around the room. “My lord brought a chair in for ye to sit near the fire to stay warm. There are plenty of plaids and a few furs to keep ye warm during the night. There’s an ewer of water on the table, and yer pot is—” she glanced one direction and then the other before she finished, “—behind the wee screen there.”

  Allie couldn’t help but sigh over another convenience she’d have to do without. “That’s right, you don’t have any bathrooms, do you? No showers?” She found the chamber pot as promised. The pup whined and squirmed a bit in her arms. “Wait. What do you use if there’s no toilet paper?”

  Jinty plucked at the hairs escaping her plait, her slight smile dimming with confusion. She wore a plain gray gown, well-worn over her ample hips, and looked to be about forty years old. “I’m sorry, my lady. What is it ye want? I dinnae understand yer words.”

  She pointed to the chamber pot, hoping the older woman would understand.

  What was she to wipe with?

  “Och, here. Follow me. I’ll show ye where the garderobe is.”

  “Garderobe?” She was in trouble, but then she reminded herself that as a nurse, she could handle anything. She’d dealt with everything as a floor nurse in the hospital. Puke, pee…you name it. She took a deep breath, giving the pup a little comforting squeeze, and followed Jinty down to the end of the passageway. The maid stopped and pointed to an alcove with a hole in a seat.

  “That’s it? No door?”

  “Och,” Jinty said, tugging on the curtain and pulling it shut to demonstrate how she could shield herself. “The lads never use it, but ye may. Here are some linen squares for yer tender sensibilities.” She showed her the spot where they kept the linens and another spot where she could toss the used ones.

  Oh, but she desperately needed to go back to her time. Her pulse sped up, but she forced herself to ignore it. In fact, she didn’t have to think like a nurse here. They didn’t even know what a nurse was, they only had healers. The word nurse conjured up breastfeeding mothers for them.

  “Thank you, Jinty. I’ll take the puppy back to my chamber now. We’re a bit tired.”

  “I brought a small crate for the pup, threw in some old blankets for her. She’ll pee all over the bed if ye dinnae put her inside.”

  Allie nodded and smiled. “I expect you are correct. Thank you. That was thoughtful of you.”

  “Och, I almost forgot. My daughter Elspeth is nearly yer size. I left a night rail and a couple of gowns in the chest for ye to wear. It seems ye dinnae come with much. If ye’ve need of anything else, please let me or my daughter know.”

  She watched, feeling more than a little out of sorts, as Jinty hurried down the passageway and headed down the stairs.

  As soon as she was back in the room, with the door firmly shut behind her, Allie held the pup out as if it were human. “I think I’ll call you Smoky,” she said. “Hannah wanted to call our kitten Smoky, but I wouldn’t let her. For her sake, I hope she’s still in the twenty-first century. She’ll be very upset if she has to use a garderobe.” She cuddled the pup up close to her chest. “Oh, Smoky, what will I do? I hope Hannah and Caroline are back in Scotland, going back to our inn.”

  She sat down in the chair with a huff. She located the bowl of goat’s milk, found a linen square, and twisted the corner of it until it looked like it would fit into the puppy’s mouth. She dipped it into the milk and then held it in the pup’s mouth. “Come on, wee Smoky. I know my sister Hannah doesn’t like milk, but you must.” Just as she’d hoped, the pup tasted a couple of drops of milk, which prompted her to start suckling on the linen as though it were her mother’s teat.

  It took a while, but little Smoky took quite a bit of the milk. She blinked sleepily up at Allie, as if declaring she was now ready for bed, and Allie set her down on one of the blankets in the crate. The little puppy curled up and promptly fell asleep.

  A quick search of the chest yielded a nightgown. It appeared to be clean, made of linen, so she removed her clothes and Brann’s plaid to change.

  The lump in one of the pockets of her jeans surprised her—she’d totally forgotten about her homemade survival pack. Brimming with excitement, she pulled out the zipped plastic bag she’d used to protect her things before the jump.

  She set her jeans near the fire to dry, though they’d mostly dried already. Checking the other pockets of her clothes, she was pleased to find a few other items. She lined them all up on her table and smiled at her small treasures, all invaluable to an RN: hand sanitizer; a small container of naproxen pills for headaches, pain or fever; a miniscule container of amoxicillin pills; a few Band-Aids; and three emergency condoms, one for her and each of her sisters. Last but not least was a little vial of penicillin her nurse practitioner friend had insisted she take on the trip. She’d also given her two syringes, but those had remained in her luggage because they’d broken and were now useless.

  As a nurse, she knew very well how fast bacterial infections could kill, and her friend had told her how hard it would be to get a doctor to prescribe anything for them in a foreign country.

  She couldn’t help but chuckle. How her sisters had teased her for carrying her survival pack everywhere, especially since she’d left her phone and wallet locked up in the car. But she’d just waggled her finger at the two of them and said, “Someday…someday you’ll see.”

  If only her sisters were standing next to her so she could have the final say.

  What was the fun in being right if she couldn’t brag about it to the two people she loved most of all?

  She located a small sack in the chest and hid her belongings inside. Whatever she did, she’d have to make sure her things were never discovered by anyone in this century.

  Dammit, she was thinking as if this were truly the fourteenth century, but it couldn’t be, could it?

  It just couldn’t.

  Once she’d hidden her goodies, she undressed and put on the fine linen gown, quite different than the sweatpants and T-shirt she normally wore to bed, but at least it was clean.

  What was she supposed to do tomorrow with no clean undergarments?

  She climbed onto the surprisingly soft mattress and pulled Smoky’s crate over next to her. After piling the stack of furs on top of her, she
fell asleep in seconds, completely exhausted.

  And praying that she would wake up and discover this was all somehow a dream.

  Chapter Five

  Brann woke up in the middle of the night to an odd sound. Someone was crying not far away. He shook his head to clear the fog from his brain and listened intently.

  A lass sobbed, her breath hitching every moment or so. Since there were so few lasses in the keep, and they spent much of their time near the kitchens, it had to be Allison. Hellfire, but he hated it when women cried. He sat up, listening to the sound as it began to drift away.

  She was headed down the stairs.

  He grabbed his plaid and arranged the pleats over his bare body. Though his preference would have been to go with nothing on, he didn’t wish to startle her.

  As soon as he was covered, he made haste down the stairs, climbing over some of his warriors who’d chosen to sleep on the floor in the great hall, the snores and occasional snorts not disturbing him in the least. What had Allison thought when she’d entered the hall? By her own account, she did not hail from a normal clan.

  There was no sign of her in the cavernous space, so he opened the door to the outside. A cool gust of wind greeted him, but he didn’t slow his walk, moving toward the courtyard until he froze at the vision before him.

  She stood in a night rail directly in front of the largest torches they had, her body silhouetted so perfectly from the side that the sight shot straight to his loins. Long legs, pert breasts, and long blonde hair that would haunt him later in his sleep.

  He reminded himself that she was a woman the same as any other, one who would dishonor him without a care. He’d never marry after what Shona had done to him. With that thought in mind, his erection disappeared and he moved forward to see what she was about.

  He followed her over to the grass on the side of the cobblestones, only then seeing the puppy. Ah, he realized, she’d come outside to allow the wee runt to do her sniffing. She’d been so stubborn about the small animal. If it hadn’t been for the hopeful look in Lachie’s eyes, perhaps he would have been more insistent.