“Is that why ye were visiting Ide?”
“Aye that, and well, sometimes it is easier to talk to her than to my mother.”
“Hmm. I see.” Mairead considered this for a minute. “Would ye like to work in the kitchens and learn more? Perhaps it can be arranged?”
“Oh, my lady, I would love to learn from Ide, but my mother thinks…well, it’s not important.”
“Aye, it is important. What does your mother think?”
Caitlin looked even more embarrassed. She looked away, not meeting Mairead’s eyes. “She thinks kitchen work is beneath me, what with her being a fine weaver and Da being the steward and all.”
“Oh, I understand.” Mairead remembered what Cael had said about her mother being a problem. “But ye would want to work in the kitchens if ye had the opportunity?”
“Aye, I would, but I don’t want to upset my parents.”
“I’m sure ye don’t and I wouldn’t want to, either. But perhaps there is a way this can be arranged. I can’t make any promises, but leave it with me for a bit.”
“Oh, my lady, do ye really think it is possible?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. But it absolutely isn’t possible if we don’t at least try.”
~ * ~
The next morning, when Mairead met with Ide, she brought up the subject of Caitlin’s desire to learn to cook.
“Caitlin is a fine lass, my lady. Aye, I would love to have her working here.”
Meriel was in one corner scrubbing burnt porridge from the bottom of a large pot, and she gave a derisive snort. “Clearly, my lady, ye can see Meriel doesn’t understand why anyone would want to work here, but I suspect Caitlin wouldn’t have let the porridge burn in the first place. As I was saying, I would love to have her here, but I doubt her parents would allow it.”
“But she is so unhappy working with the weavers and by her own admission, she isn’t very good at it. Surely her parents can see that?” Another snort came from Meriel.
“Meriel, is there something ye would like to say?” asked Mairead.
Meriel shrugged and huffed. “Ye don’t want to hear what I have to say.”
“Keep a civil tongue in your head, lass, or ye will lose this job too,” warned Ide.
Mairead gently touched Ide’s arm, shook her head slightly. “Meriel, I do want to hear what ye have to say.”
“Do ye? Well, then, it is beyond me why anyone would want to work in the kitchens.” She wrinkled her nose in disgust. “I hate it, but my father makes me stay here. Why should Caitlin be different?”
“And ye loved being a chambermaid, lass?” asked Ide sarcastically.
“Nay, but it was better than this. Why would someone who has the opportunity to learn a skill like weaving throw it away to work in the kitchens?”
Mairead considered Meriel’s words for a moment. “Would ye like to learn to weave?”
“Why do ye care? Ye are the reason I am here anyway.” Meriel’s eyes filled with tears.
“Meriel, ye are here because of your own actions,” scolded Ide.
Mairead quietly but firmly repeated her question. “I asked if ye would like to learn to be a weaver.”
“Aye. I would, but I will never get the chance. My mother was a weaver and apparently a very good one, too. I remember watching her and thinking it was magic the way she turned thread into beautiful fabric. But she died when I was a little girl, and there is no one to teach me the skill. Caitlin should count her blessings, but instead she wants this.” Meriel motioned to the pots to be washed.
“If there was someone who was willing to train ye, would ye put your heart into it?”
Meriel’s chin quivered; the tears spilled down her cheek, and she dashed them away with the back of one hand. “Aye. But that isn’t likely, is it?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. But I’m willing to consider it. If it is what ye truly want to do and ye are willing to put in the effort to learn, maybe we can find a way.”
“Ye would do that for me? After what I did?”
“What did ye do, Meriel?”
Meriel had the good grace to look embarrassed. Still wiping tears from her cheeks, Meriel confessed. “I entered the laird’s chamber without knocking. I did it on purpose.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know. I wanted to embarrass ye, I guess. Until ye came, I thought—I thought—I guess it doesn’t matter what I thought.”
“It does matter. Please tell me.”
“I thought maybe I had a chance to wed the laird. I guess I was jealous, but in truth, I’m not the only one who was disappointed.”
Ide snorted, “Every one of ye was daft to think there was any chance of that happening. Besides, ye surely must know Laird Matheson and Laird MacKenzie struck this deal. Lady Mairead likely had no say in the matter at all. Why would ye take your disappointment out on her?”
“I don’t know. What I did was thoughtless and stupid. I am sorry, my lady. Truly I am.”
“Well then, I accept your apology and we will put it behind us. As I said, I am not certain of anything, but I will see if there is a way for ye to train as a weaver.”
“Thank ye, my lady.”
“Ye are welcome. Well, if I am going to visit Eilis, I should be going.”
“I’ll walk to the keep with ye. Meriel, keep working on those pots.”
Mairead suspected Ide had something she wanted to say out of Meriel’s hearing. When they were out of the kitchen, as Mairead expected, Ide stopped for a moment.
“That was a real kindness, my lady, and not one I’m sure she deserves. Nevertheless, I will be glad to see the back of her. She hates the kitchen more than a cat hates water.”
“I would much rather have both of ye happy, but do ye know of anyone I could ask about training her as a weaver?” After all Mairead had learned, clearly it was too much to hope Oren’s wife would.
“Aye, my lady, Pol’s wife, Mae, is a weaver. She and Meriel’s mother were friends, and she might consider taking her on. Your bigger problem will be convincing Oren to let Caitlin work in the kitchens.”
Mairead smiled. “Ide, my mother always said the best way to get a man to do what ye want him to do is let him think it was his idea in the first place. I plan to discuss this with the laird, but as long as he sees the merit in the plan, I will just have to find a way to make Oren think of it himself.”
Ide chuckled. “And my mother always said men were simple. A woman only needs to know two things to keep a man happy. The first is how to fill his belly with a good meal. Clearly ye’ve learned this one yourself because ye make sure the laird’s favorites are served regularly. Perhaps if we fill Oren’s scrawny frame with his favorite dinner before ye speak with him, he’ll find it easier to think of this plan himself.”
Mairead gave her a sly grin. “Ye are probably right in that. We will plan Oren’s favorites for dinner tomorrow to soften him up a bit.” Before entering the keep, Mairead asked coyly, “Ide, what was the other thing your mother said a woman needs to know to keep a man happy?”
“My lady, ye are far too bold a lass to have ever been called a mouse, and by the satisfied look the laird wears now, I would say ye have already learned the other one, too.”
~ * ~
As they lay in each other’s arms that evening, savoring the afterglow of their lovemaking, Mairead rose on one elbow to look at her husband. The sated expression on his face caused her to chuckle.
“What do ye find so amusing, love?”
“I was just thinking of something Ide told me she learned from her mother.”
“And what was that?”
“The two skills required to keep a man happy.”
Tadhg laughed and rolled her onto her back, capturing her lips in a kiss before saying, “Ye manage quite well to keep me happy, sweetling.”
“I only plan the meals, Ide cooks them.”
“That’s not the skill I meant, and ye know it.”
Mairead laughed. “Well, Ide
did say cooking was only one of them, but she was a bit vague when it came to the other one.”
“I should hope so.” He laughed. “I’m not sure I want to know the answer to this, but how did the subject of pleasing men come up with Ide?”
“Well, it is a bit of a long story.”
“I always like a good bedtime story.”
“Hmm. Well, once upon a time there was a wee lass whose mother was a talented weaver. The lass loved to watch her mother at the loom, making beautiful cloth. She thought there was something magical about it, and she longed to learn how herself someday.”
“That sounds like Oren’s Caitlin.”
“Ah, ye would think so, but alas, it isn’t.”
“Who is it, then?”
“Don’t interrupt, or ye will never find out.” She laughed at his mock pout and continued her story. “So the lass is grown now and wants to learn how to weave.”
“I can’t see how learning to weave would be a problem for her. Ye said her mother is a weaver.”
“Are ye going to let me tell this story or not?”
“My apologies, please continue.”
“As it happens, in the same village we have a lass who wants to learn how to make delicious food, the kind which keeps a man happy.” She flashed him a saucy grin.
“A very noble aim.”
“I’m glad ye think so, because here is the problem. Sadly, the lass who wants to learn how to weave lost her mother when she was very young so she has no one to teach her, and she must work in the kitchens. As fate would have it, the lass who wants to learn to cook has no one to teach her, either.”
“She is motherless as well?”
“Nay, her mother is a terrible cook, but an excellent weaver, who thinks cooking is beneath her daughter.”
“Ah, that sounds like Oren’s wife, Shea.”
“It is. Caitlin is dreadfully unhappy. She has no skill at weaving and wants to learn to cook from Ide, who is more than willing to teach her, but Shea insists Caitlin learn to weave. I was hoping Oren might be persuaded to intervene, and Ide suggested the idea might go down better with him after a good meal.”
“I doubt he can change Shea’s mind, but aye, ye will have your best chance after Oren’s belly is full of his favorite foods. Who is the other lass, the one who wants to be a weaver?”
“Meriel.”
“Meriel?” Tadhg sounded aghast. “I sent Meriel to the kitchens as punishment.”
“I know ye did, but Tadhg, she knows what she did was wrong. She admitted it to me and apologized. She won’t do anything like it again. She hates working in the kitchens and frankly, I think it is an even greater punishment for Ide than it is for Meriel.”
“My love, even if ye can convince Oren to let Caitlin work in the kitchens, there is no way ye will convince Shea to teach Meriel anything.”
Mairead laughed. “I wasn’t even going to try. Ide says Meriel’s mother and Mae were good friends. Mae and Pol only have Gallia, and I understand she isn’t thrilled about learning to weave either so Mae has no one to teach her skills to. I thought perhaps she might be willing to train Meriel.”
“I suppose she might.”
“Then ye approve?”
“Aye, Caitlin can learn to cook and Meriel to weave, as long as ye can convince Oren and Mae. When do ye plan to do this?”
“Tomorrow. I see no reason to wait.”
“My love, I’m leaving in the morning. I have some business to attend to, and I won’t return until the next day. If ye think ye might need me, ye should wait until I return.”
“As long as ye approve, I’m sure I can do this myself.”
~ * ~
As planned, the next day all of Oren’s favorites were served at the noon meal, including an apple and dried current tart to finish. He was in an exceptionally good mood, and Mairead began her campaign.
“Oh, my, Ide certainly does make a delicious apple tart.”
“Aye, she does at that.”
“I think the secret to a good tart is the crust. I understand it is very hard to make a good crust.”
“Well, some people do seem to have the knack of it better than others. My mother could make excellent tarts, too.”
“And does your wife have the knack?”
“No, not really, Shea has never been much for cooking. Mind ye, she is an excellent spinner and weaver. Most of the laird’s clothes are made from her cloth.”
“She certainly is skilled, then. I have never seen any finer cloth. Still, it is a good thing we have Ide around too, fine cloth doesn’t make for much of a feast.”
“Aye, Ide is a treasure.”
“Ye know, I don’t think I have met your wife yet.”
“I’d say ye might not have. She was here for the wedding feasts but rarely comes up to the keep otherwise. She prefers to work the loom when the daylight is at its best. She says there is precious little enough light in the winter for her to waste it eating.”
“I suppose she is right in that. But I guess it means she doesn’t do much cooking or baking then, especially not in the winter.”
Oren laughed. “No, her mind is always on her wool. In case ye hadn’t observed it yourself, my lady, I take most of my meals here.”
“Ye have a daughter, I believe, does she not help with the cooking and such?”
“Admittedly, my wife is not terribly skilled in the kitchen herself, but our Caitlin does try her hand at cooking some. Still, most of her time is spent learning how to weave.”
“Oh, well, with someone as skilled as your wife to teach her, I’m sure she will be a fine weaver someday, too.”
Oren’s brow furrowed at her comment. Mairead had clearly struck a nerve but she feigned innocence. “Is something wrong?”
“Nay, my lady. It’s just that Caitlin—that is, her mother—well, Caitlin doesn’t seem to be able to quite get the knack of working the loom, and she doesn’t spin very well either. Shea thinks she doesn’t try hard enough.”
“I’m sure a mother knows if her daughter is putting in the required effort.”
“Nay, Caitlin is a sweet, hardworking lass.” Oren sounded slightly indignant. “I think she tries her best, but perhaps it is like making crust for tarts? Some people have the knack and others don’t, and it is hard to enjoy doing something when ye find it so frustrating.”
“That is true. I suppose she has no other skill?”
“What gave ye such an idea? Didn’t I just say Caitlin tries to cook?”
“Now a good cook, such as Ide, is like a rare jewel, but ye said your wife doesn’t cook much. Caitlin couldn’t really be expected to be very skilled in the kitchen with no one to teach her. It’s a shame, really. She might have a knack for cooking.”
“Aye, it is a shame.” Oren rubbed his chin and seemed to be lost in thought for a moment. “Her mother wants her to learn to weave, but ye are right about a good cook being indispensable.”
“But I don’t suppose Ide has time to teach her.”
“Of course Ide would teach her if I asked her to. Ide knows what a good lass Caitlin is, and she would be lucky to have her.”
“Well, it seems to me ye have found the solution yourself.”
“Nay, I don’t think Shea would like the idea.”
“Oh, I see. Well, I certainly wouldn’t try to force my will on a man, but I suppose ye know what’s best in your own home.” Mairead smiled sweetly.
“That I do, and I think it would be best for Caitlin to learn cooking skills from Ide,” he said with firm resolve. “Excuse me, my lady, I am going to discuss this with Ide now.”
“I think ye might have a very good idea there.” Mairead had to escape the great hall before she exploded with laughter.
Twelve
Flush with her victory, Mairead smiled as she wrapped her plaid around her head and made her way to the village to discuss the possibility of Meriel learning to weave from Pol’s wife, Mae. As she walked she took stock of “the rest of her life,” which
began a little over a month ago. The first few days had been a challenge but so much had changed since then. She believed the clan was finally beginning to accept her. Now Christmas was just over a week away, and the preparations were well started. She was pleased with what she had accomplished. When she arrived at the cottage where Pol’s family lived, Mae welcomed her warmly.
“My lady, please come in and sit by the fire. It is a bitter cold day.”
“Aye, it is, the air smells like snow. I hope I am not interrupting ye. If I am, I would be happy to come back another time.”
“Ye are always welcome here. I love to have an excuse for a wee break in the afternoon.”
“Well, I don’t want to take up too much of your time but I have a question for ye. Would ye consider training Meriel as a weaver?”
Mae couldn’t have looked more shocked if she had been asked to teach the sheep to weave their own wool. “Meriel? David’s daughter, Meriel? Are ye sure?”
Mairead went on undaunted, “I understand her mother was a weaver and ye were friends?”
“Aye, my lady, we were good friends. I still miss her.”
“Meriel remembers being fascinated watching her mother work. She would like to learn.”
“Aye, her mother was an excellent weaver. But, my lady, ye know full well the laird sent Meriel to work in the kitchens.”
“She hates it there.”
“She brought it on herself.”
“I know, but she made a mistake, and she is sorry for it. I’ve discussed this with the laird and he will allow her to work with ye if ye are willing.” Mae looked unconvinced, and Mairead continued to present her case. “Sometimes young women do stupid things. I know I have made my share of mistakes.”
“Oh, I can tell ye were quite the trouble maker,” Mae teased.
Mairead laughed. “None of us is perfect, but some of us have been blessed with loving women to teach us.”
“Ye may be right, but, honestly, Meriel has always managed to create problems. Ye only witnessed the most recent one.”
“Maybe she just needs a strong woman to help guide her a bit. Ye said her mother was your dear friend. Would ye consider doing it for her?”
Highland Courage Page 12
