Callum had sat silently as he listened to Siùsan’s story. He ran his hands up and down her arms, and when she finished, he pulled her against his chest. He tucked her head under his chin. She listened to the steady beat of his heart and began to relax. She felt safe and protected. She realized in that moment that she only ever felt truly safe and protected when she was with Callum. She closed her eyes and breathed out slowly. As she inhaled, she caught the scent that she had come to recognize as uniquely Callum. It was a blend of his pine soap and natural musk with a touch of the outdoors. As she slowly began to relax, she felt her body loosen. Callum must have felt it too because one of his hands stroked her head as the other ran up and down her back.
“Dinna fash. I believe ye. I ken ye are telling me the truth. We will solve this together. Hopefully, we can feed him a meal or two and then send him on his way.” Callum was not convinced that it would be that simple. He, too, had seen that Robert had taken notice of Elizabeth. With what Siùsan just told him about Robert and what he knew about Elizabeth, Callum was truly worried that Siùsan was at risk.
Chapter Thirteen
Robert stayed through the nooning and evening meal. Callum addressed him directly after Siùsan retired that night. He and his brothers made their trademark semicircle around him and backed him up to the giant fireplace in the Great Hall. They stood with their feet planted apart and their arms crossed.
“I ken what happened between ye and Siùsan. Siùsan. I also ken that ye didna have any real desire to marry her, but ye do desire the lairdship.” Callum watched Robert’s reaction to his revelation. Robert barely reacted but his eyes widened just a sliver, and Callum saw it. He knew that Robert had not suspected that Siùsan knew his real motivation. He might have known that she was aware that he would be unfaithful, but he clearly had not known she was aware of his plans. “Unlike ye, we have a betrothal contract that is signed and have pledged our troth before a priest. She is mine.” He leaned forward slightly. He was half a head taller than Robert but almost twice as broad. Even so, it was clear to anyone that Robert was a warrior. Beyond the broadsword he carried, his entire bearing spoke to his training and experience. Callum knew that Robert would put up a worthy fight, but his commitment to protecting and keeping Siùsan was far stronger. There was that and the fact that he had three equally massive brothers to support him.
“I think ye had best leave by sunrise on the morrow. Dinna ye have a message to convey to Laird Mackenzie? I am sure that he is eager to hear about his only daughter. Ye should hurry.”
Robert studied each of the Sinclair brothers in turn. He watched as their jaws clenched, their necks strained, and their muscles flexed. He decided this was not the time to make enemies.
“I think ye are right. I will be gone before Siùsan comes down to break her fast. Goodnight, gentlemen.” He walked out of the Great Hall and towards the guardsmen’s barracks. There was no way that Callum was going to offer him a chamber on the same floor as Siùsan.
The Sinclairbrothers watched as he walked away. They looked at one another and each shook his head.
“I dinna trust him at all.” Magnus whispered.
“Me neither. I am going to sleep outside Siùsan’s door. I would ask that one of ye keep watch over him in the barracks and another of ye stand watch near Elizabeth’s croft. They are two peas in a pod. I would bet ma last dram of whisky that they are already well acquainted.”
~~~
As her guest, of sorts, Siùsan had been forced to entertain him for much of the the day. He had gone out to the lists with Callum and the other men during the morning. He joined her and tried to convince her to sit at a lower table during the noon meal, but she had at first politely declined then firmly refused. She compromised by offering him a seat at the dais. Fortunately, there were enough people present that they were not seated near one another. Callum kept his arm loosely hanging over the back of her chair for much of the meal when they were not eating. When they were, he was even more solicitous than usual. Siùsan worried that he was overdoing it when he fed her the best pieces of meat. He always offered her the best pieces and served her before himself, but he had never actually fed her. As she watched him and looked into his eyes, she quickly forgot about Robert. In fact, she forgot about everyone else. It was as though the rest of the diners fell away, and it was just she and Callum. She grew brave enough to feed him in turn. He licked her fingers as they brushed against his lips. The braver she grew, the more brazen she felt. At one point, she managed to suck on the tip of Callum’s fingers. His eyes widened, and his nose flared. She could not help but laugh. The tinkle of her laughter drew attention, so they drew apart, but only moments later, Callum leaned in and whispered, “I can give as good as I get.”
“Do ye promise?”
Callum almost choked on the ale he had begun to sip.
“Cheeky. And, aye, I do. The sun has come out, and the fog has blown off the loch. What do ye say to a dip?”
“Sounds good to me.”
However, their plans were cut short when the heavens opened, and it began to pour. Not only did it mean that they could not go outdoors, it meant that everyone was confined to the keep. It rained for most of the afternoon. Callum and Laird Sinclair retreated to the laird’s study to go over clan business. Siùsan gathered the castle ledgers and met with the steward in his study. The other Sinclair brothers pulled out knucklebones and cards to play in front of the fire. They allowed Robert to join them only so that they did not have to go anywhere wet to keep an eye on him.
By the evening meal, everyone was feeling confined by Robert’s presence. Alexander, Tavish, and Magnus met their father and brother as they emerged from the laird’s study.
“Ye owe us, brother. Ye owe all of us.” Magnus punched Callum in the shoulder jovially. “That arse is pompous and boring. Ye are doing Siùsan a favor by marrying her. She would have needed rescuing from him not some doddering auld coot.” Callum had shared the details of Siùsan’s story before they all retired the night before.
“Agreed. I will call in yer debt whenever I need to.” Tavish laughed.
Alexander simply nodded. Callum knew that it was Alexander who was most likely to call in the debt the soonest.
The sounds of footsteps on the stairs cut their conversation short. They all turned to look. Laird Sinclair stepped forward to meet Siùsan at the bottom of the stairs.
Callum could not hear what his father was saying to Siùsan, and he found he was slightly worried and rather put out to not be involved in anything to do with Siùsan. He crossed his arms over his chest and watched her. She must have sensed his gaze because she looked over the Sinclair’s shoulder. She paused midsentence, clearly forgetting whatever she was in the midst of saying. She looked at each of the men and then back to Laird Sinclair. She whispered something and then pointed at them. The Sinclair turned around and looked at his four sons then turned back to Siùsan and nodded. She stepped around the Sinclair and looked at the four towering men. She walked over and looked at them. She exaggerated and tilted her head all the way back as though she had to look up a great distance to make eye contact. She spread her feet and crossed her arms. While the four men looked like a rock wall when they stood shoulder to shoulder with their arms crossed, Siùsan looked like a member of the fae when she attempted to stand like them.
“Are ye solving to problems of the world?” She asked none of them in particular.
“Are ye making fun of us?” Magnus asked with a raised eyebrow, but his gruffness wore off when his lips twitched.
“That I am,” Siùsan said with an exaggerated nod. Neither Tavish nor Magnus could keep a straight face. She marched over to Alexander and stood before him in a matching stance. “Ye ken I ken that ye’re all bark and vera little bite? Though I dinna plan to cross ye.” Alexander looked down at her and lost all sense of seriousness when she winked at him.
Next, she turned to Callum. She walked up to him and tried to pull his arms apart. He would not b
udge. She tugged again, and he smirked. She pretended to pout and then stuck out her tongue as she turned in a swish of skirts. She had not taken more than two steps when large hands grasped her waist and lifted her off the ground. He tossed her into the air with a twist. She shrieked with laughter as she landed into his hands. He held her up, so their eyes were level. She grasped his cheeks and gave him a quick peck. He returned the kiss and gently set her down. He looked at her clothes and was about to complain about her choice since she was wearing one of her old gowns. When he had seen it that morning, he thought that she chose it because of some task or chore that she planned to do outside. With the uncooperative weather that kept them all indoors, he had assumed that she would change into one of her better kirtles. He opened his mouth to suggest she change when she shook her head and silently tilted it towards the Great Hall. He looked over her and immediately saw Robert was watching them. He looked back at Siùsan and understood her rationale. She did not want to do anything to draw more of Robert’s attention to her or do anything that could be construed as provocation to the man who had stood before the entire Sinclair clan and hinted that he knew Siùsan intimately.
Callum realized that Siùsan was far shrewder than he might be. He considered himself more than a fair to middling strategist when it came to planning raids or battles, but Siùsan was able to read people in a way than Callum could not. He took her hand and led her into the Great Hall and to her seat on the dais. All the Sinclairs did their best to ignore their two currently unwanted guests and enjoy their meal.
Chapter Fourteen
The next morning broke with a light rain falling. Siùsan awoke to the sound of it tapping against the glass pane in her window. She stood and stretched. She crossed over and moved the window covering away. She opened the window slightly and felt the damp air rush in. She peeked out and saw a low layer of mist hanging over the bailey. The loch was covered by a dense fog. The day was dreary, and it matched her mood. She did not want to go below stairs and encounter Robert. She waited as long as she could before she knew she would be late and everyone would first notice her absence and then would notice her arrival. She made her way below stairs and looked around as she entered the Great Hall. She spotted Callum on the dais. When he saw her enter, he stood and came to meet her. He placed her hand on his arm as they walked towards the dais. She looked up at him and tried to understand what had caused him to suddenly become more formal with her. She had become very accustomed to his arm around her or holding her hand. She suddenly felt nervous, but he grinned down at her. His smile was infectious.
“The toad has hopped away, ma fair lady” he practically crowed. He paused at the steps up to the dais and bowed before her. His smile made her giggle. She curtseyed in returned.
“Thank ye, kind sir. Ye are ma valiant knight for chasing away the warty toad.” She understood now why he was being more formal. He laughed as she joined in is jest.
As they ate their porridge together, Siùsan realized that they were coming to get to know each other as only a couple would. Callum scooped honey into her bowl as she reached to pass him the cream. It had taken over a week before Siùsan had been able to stomach the idea of trying the porridge again. Even smelling it had been enough to send a wave of fear through her. She had gone back to eating bannocks even though she had promised herself on her journey that she would only touch the little baked oatcakes if she was traveling again. It had taken Callum adding copious amounts of honey and sampling her bowl each morning for another week before she believed she was safe. She noticed that he preferred cream in his even though he sweetened and tasted hers with honey. She began to think about other preferences that she had noticed. She had seen that he loved neeps and tatties, or turnips and potatoes, but would not touch the haggis that they were served some evenings. He would eat fish that was baked and flaky but only tasted it out of courtesy if it was cooked any other way. She knew that he preferred roasted lamb to roasted boar even though he had hunted and brought in many boars over the years. She knew that he absolutely refused to eat stewed leeks but liked just about every other vegetable.
She must have been lost in thought because she jumped when he tickled her ribs.
“Ye seem vera far away.” He murmured to her.
“Why dinna ye like stewed leeks?”
She managed to catch him off guard. He could not seem to find his tongue as she turned her eyes to him. That morning she was wearing the deep emerald gown that had belonged to his mother. The deep color made her eyes appear even more of a verdant green. They seemed to twinkle in the light cast from the fireplaces and the large candles overhead. It was warm in the Great Hall with so many of the clan present for the morning meal, and her cheeks were a mite pink. He leaned slightly towards her and caught a whiff of her lilac scent. He reached out to twirl a lock of her hair around his finger and could see the various shades of red and gold that ran through her hair.
“Leeks, lass?”
“Aye. Why dinna ye like stewed leeks?”
“Do ye ken that’s a rather odd question to ask? I dinna like them because I was sick as a child once, and the healer insisted that ma mama feed them to me to regain ma strength. I couldnae stand the taste of them back then, and I canna even stomach the smell of them now. It reminds me of being stuck in bed while ma brothers were outside. Ma sister, Mairghread, was the only company that I had. She would come sit with me once ma fever broke and Mama was no longer worried that she would catch the sickness.”
“I feel much the same about cabbage. Nae because I ate it when I was ill, but because I have just eaten too much of it.”
“’Twas a bit of an odd conversation starter, ye ken.”
Siùsan blushed slightly and looked away before looking up at him again.
“I had been thinking that we are starting to get to ken each other and each other’s preferences. I ken that ye prefer cream to honey in yer porridge. I ken that ye only like fish prepared a certain way. That sort of thing.”
“True. I ken that ye like sweetmeats but limit yerself to one. I ken that ye like raspberry tarts more than apple. I ken that ye dinna like too much sauce on yer food.” He smiled at her mischievously and leaned over to whisper for her ears only, “And I ken ye taste sweeter than any honey I put in yer porridge.”
Siùsan whipped her head around and gasped. That only made Callum laugh as he saw the shocked expression on her face. He gave her a quick peck on her lips and turned back to his porridge.
Two can play at that game.
Suisan reached under the table and ran her fingers up his thigh as high as she could reach. She felt his muscles tense and she smiled. She leaned into him and whispered, “I may like sweetmeats, but I also like salty ones too.”
Callum nearly choked on his porridge. He coughed and spluttered as Alexander pounded him on the back, and Siùsan laughed until tears came down her cheeks.
She pushed back her chairs and bid the men a good day. Callum marveled as he watched her walk towards the kitchens. He could have sworn there was an added sway to her hips. He could not believe that his wee innocent bride to be had just referred to how his release tasted to her. He thought he could shock her with his randy comment, but she had given back as good as she had gotten. In spades.
~~~
The morning drizzle gave way to a bright and sunny afternoon. It was true that if a person waited long enough, they could experience every season in a day when in the Highlands. Callum came to the noon meal hot and sweaty from working in the lists. He went straight to the kitchens and asked Elspeth to put together a picnic basket. He told her that he wanted to surprise Siùsan with a noon meal by the loch. Once a basket was filled, he carried it out to the Great Hall.
He had made a concerted effort to avoid Elizabeth over the last few weeks and generally managed it. He made sure that he would only see her when he was in the company of others. If he was alone and saw her, he turned around or ducked into the nearest room. He detested slinking around his own home,
but he did not trust her as far as he could throw her.
However, it seemed his luck had just run out.
“A picnic basket for yer little bride. Ah but she isnae yer bride yet. Ye still havenae set the date. I wonder why that could be. Dinna ye want to marry her as much as ye would have us all think?” Elizabeth’s sultry voice had once upon a time aroused him and made him eager for bed sport. Now it made his skin crawl.
“Elizabeth, leave off. I dinna have aught to say to ye.” He attempted to step around her, but she sidled over and blocked his way.
“Ye used to have plenty to say when we were together.”
“We arenae together now.” Callum’s patience was nonexistent with Elizabeth. He did not forget that she was the most likely one who put Sean up to attacking Siùsan the first night or that she was the most likely one to have tried to poison Siùsan. He had received a missive only the previous day stating that she was not welcomed back at court. It had not surprised Callum to read the vehemence with which his request had been declined. However, it seriously complicated matters as Callum still needed to find somewhere to send her. He had not wanted to marry Siùsan with his former lover in attendance. He wanted to ensure that day was about Siùsan with no detractors present. He looked now at the woman that he once chased and could not understand what had possessed him not to see her true character. “I may have tossed yer skirts for a few months, but that doesnae mean I ever meant to keep ye.”
The flash of anger in her eyes made him regret his words as soon as they left his mouth. He knew that it was Siùsan who would suffer his foolishness. He stepped around Elizabeth and spotted Siùsan watching them. He walked directly to her and presented the basket to her.
His Bonnie Highland Temptation (The Clan Sinclair Book 2) Page 11
