Nathaniel leaned to Cat’s ear. “It is time to go home.”
She turned to him, with a radiant smile, making her feel like she could ride that very moment. “I could not agree more.” She leaned in for another kiss.
Epilogue
“The Highland Roses School is just up ahead,” Cat called back to Mouse and Michaela as they rode Stella together. After two weeks of daily lessons while journeying back home, she’d allowed them to ride the feisty mare without Nathaniel.
“Are you ready for this?” Nathaniel asked, his lips just touching her ear as he held her before him on Gaspar.
She turned to look into his smiling face, her brow rising. “Are ye?”
He laughed, glancing up at the brilliant winter sky. “To tell my sisters that the king has gifted them with my inheritance, and that we are having a wedding and rebuilding your family home in Killin? Most certainly.”
She laughed too and leaned into him to press her lips against his. His thumb brushed her cheek, the touch brief but full of promise. They would finally have a bedroom alone tonight at Finlarig.
When she pulled back, he glanced to the side and chuckled. “I think you nearly set the smithy on fire.”
Cat turned in her seat to see the blacksmith, Craig, staring at them, his mouth dropped open, while his assistant poured water onto a small fire at Craig’s feet where he had dropped a sword he must have been hammering.
Cat waved to him, giving him a broad smile. “Perhaps he is just not used to seeing me ride a horse…” she said, “in trousers.”
“Kissing an Englishman,” Nathaniel finished.
“What a quaint little town,” Lucy Kellington called from the first of the two carriages that rolled after them. “But I do think we should encourage a change to the name. Killin is just so…dark.”
Francis Wickley rolled her eyes from the window. “It has likely been named Killin since the days of the barbarians.”
“’Tis unseemly for ladies to yell out of carriage windows,” Jane Pitney called from the second carriage where she rode with Benedict and two other Hollings Estate maids who had asked to join the grand adventure north. Jane held the little kitten, Jasmine, so she could peek out without jumping from the window.
Hollings Estate would remain vacant, with a small staff, until the Worthington sisters were informed of their new property and decided its fate. With all of Nathaniel’s inheritance being taken by the crown, his father’s legal will was considered void. Queen Mary and Duchess Catherine were ensuring that the Worthington estate and moneys be given to Lady Evelyn and Lady Scarlet for their service to the monarchy.
“I think Jane will enjoy teaching etiquette for the Highland Roses School,” Nathaniel said.
Cat snorted softly. “As long as she is not pricking me with that little pin of hers.”
“Ho there!” Hamish yelled down from the Finlarig guard tower and motioned to the two men to wind the chain to raise the massive portcullis.
Cat glanced at the carriage where both Francis and Lucy watched the bars rise with wide eyes. “’Tis to keep the barbarians out,” Cat yelled back to them and turned forward again on Gaspar, stifling her laugh.
As they pulled to a stop in the bailey, chaos broke out. Hamish jumped down from the ladder just as Alana opened the front doors, letting the now-giant wolfhound puppies out to gallop down the steps. Scarlet and the students followed with a babble of voices, Izzy running down and up to Gaspar. Cat’s sister’s eyes grew wide as she looked where Cat intertwined her fingers with Nathaniel’s.
He jumped down and reached up to lower her. “’Tis good to be back where the air is sweet,” he said.
Izzy walked into Cat’s open arms, and Cat leaned into her ear. “I would like ye to be my bridesmaid.” Izzy pushed away from the hug to stare up into her sister’s eyes, and Cat nodded. “We are getting married.”
Izzy’s mouth opened as if she were screaming in happiness and bounced silently on her toes.
“Married?” Scarlet said, having come down the steps. She looked between Nathaniel and Cat, her arched brows almost to her hairline.
Nathaniel walked over to kiss his sister’s cheek. “As soon as the weather allows us to hold the ceremony in a glen between two mountains just outside Killin,” he said, speaking of the place Cat had told him was the most beautiful she’d ever seen. “And here is a gift to you and Evelyn. From Queen Mary and the Duchess Catherine.” He handed her the missive about the Worthington assets, sealed with the royal crest of James II and Mary’s own personal rose crest.
“Married,” Scarlet said again, her gaze bouncing between the two of them as a smile grew on her face. She reached back to grasp the hand of her husband, Aiden, who had just run over from the gatehouse.
Aiden shook his head, but a mischievous grin lit his face. “Cat Campbell, wedding an Englishman. Never in all my life would I have imagined it.”
“We need to tell Evie,” Scarlet said, giving Cat a full hug. Pulling back, she looked past her as Benedict helped Mouse and Michaela off Stella, and ladies and maids climbed down from the carriages. “Good Lord.”
“More students,” Cat said, her smile dimming as she searched behind her. “Where are Evelyn and Grey?” When they had left over a month ago, Evelyn had been large with child but not due yet. “Is everyone well?” she asked, but then she looked to the top of the stairs.
Evelyn and Grey stood there, each one holding a bundle in their arms.
Scarlet hugged Cat’s arm. “Twins. A boy and a girl born two weeks ago. The babes were born early and so small that they still share the one cradle Grey made. But they are growing, and Evie has healed and is doing well. Not so certain about Grey.”
Cat laughed as she took in Grey’s mussed hair and the dark circles under his eyes. And there seemed to be a spit-up stain on his shoulder when he and Evelyn carefully made it down the steps into the bailey.
“A wedding?” Evelyn said as Izzy signed to her, and she looked between Cat and Nathaniel, open excitement lighting her face.
Nathaniel kissed her and took his niece as Evelyn pressed her into his arms. She hurried to Cat. “Welcome to the family,” she said, laughing gayly.
Cat blinked to clear the happy tears from her eyes and looked around at the huge gathering in the bailey of the Highland Roses School. She pressed into Nathaniel’s side, looking up as he leaned down to kiss her over the sweet face of his niece.
“I love ye, English,” she said, smiling up at him.
“I love you, too, my wild Highland Rose.”
Evelyn retrieved her bairn, and Nathaniel wrapped Cat in a hug as they answered questions and made introductions.
A warmth filled Cat as she watched the chaos around her. Aye. This was her family now, and she would never be lonely again.
…
Be sure to look for Book #4 of The Campbells series!
Follow Alana Campbell, and her loyal wolfhound, as she is abducted from a Samhain festival by the chief of a rival clan. Shaw Sinclair is on a mission to save his castle, clan, and honor, and only the clever and courageous Campbell lass can help him succeed.
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Acknowledgments
This book took me far from my comfort zone, along with Cat Campbell, as we journeyed down to and survived 17th century London. The turbulent political atmosphere at court was full of drama and churning conflict as the people began to demand a parliamentary rule instead of a king’s absolute power. Along with Cat, this Scotland lover had difficulty dealing with English aristocracy and etiquette. I’m looking forward to returning to the Highlands in book #4.
On a historical note, Queen Mary of Modena, King James II’s wife, did birth a living baby boy who would become known as The Old Pretender (James III). His son would be called Bonnie Prince Charlie and continue the Jacobite uprising through England and Scotland. Since the baby was born a boy, King James and Queen Mary were forced to flee with the
child as James’s daughter, another Mary, claimed the throne of England, Scotland, and Ireland with her husband William of Orange during the Glorious Revolution. You may know them as William and Mary.
Thank you to my family for giving me the time to delve into all this political intrigue and create these wonderful characters. And a special thank you to Victoria Vane, who created an authentic 1690’s court costume for me, giving me firsthand knowledge of how difficult it was to move around in stays, crinolines, a mantua, and the towering lace fontage. I too would have worn training trousers as often as possible.
Also…
At the end of each of my books, I ask that you, my awesome readers, please remind yourselves of the whispered symptoms of ovarian cancer. I am now an eight-year survivor, one of the lucky ones. Please don’t rely on luck. If you experience any of these symptoms consistently for three weeks or more, go see your GYN.
· Bloating
· Eating less and feeling full faster
· Abdominal pain
· Trouble with your bladder
Other symptoms may include: indigestion, back pain, pain with intercourse, constipation, fatigue, and menstrual irregularities.
About the Author
Heather McCollum is an award-winning historical romance writer. She is a member of Romance Writers of America and the Ruby Slippered Sisterhood of 2009 Golden Heart finalists. She has over eighteen romance novels published and is a 2015 Readers’ Crown Winner and Amazon Best Seller.
The ancient magic and lush beauty of Great Britain entrances Ms. McCollum’s heart and imagination every time she visits. The country’s history and landscape have been a backdrop for her writing ever since her first journey across the pond.
When she is not creating vibrant characters and magical adventures on the page, she is roaring her own battle cry in the war against ovarian cancer. Ms. McCollum slew the cancer beast and resides with her very own Highland hero, a rescued golden retriever, and three kids in the wilds of suburbia on the mid-Atlantic coast. For more information about Ms. McCollum, please visit www.HeatherMcCollum.com.
URL and Social Media links:
Facebook: facebook.com/HeatherMcCollumAuthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HMcCollumAuthor
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Don’t miss The Campbells series…
The Scottish Rogue
The Savage Highlander
Also by Heather McCollum…
Highland Heart
Captured Heart
Tangled Hearts
Untamed Hearts
Crimson Heart
The Beast of Aros Castle
The Rogue of Islay Isle
The Wolf of Kisimul Castle
The Devil of Dunakin Castle
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