They had received word not long before they sat to sup, that nothing much had changed from the last update. Effie was still in labor, but no one should worry. These things took time.
Dougall barely ate at all, for he was far too worried over his wife. Alec and the other men did their best to keep his spirits high. “Effie will be well,” Gylys told him as he poured Dougall another cup of ale. “She be a strong, fine woman.”
Dougall offered his friend a wan smile. Of course, none of the men at the table could understand the worry and torment one felt when his wife was trying to birth his child. He imagined Alec would learn what this torment felt like at some point within the next year, if not sooner.
’Twas difficult to take advice from men who had not walked in his boots.
When he could take no more of the waiting, he scooted away from table and shot to his feet. “I am going to go see for myself how she fares,” he declared solemnly.
“Are ye sure that is wise?” Alec asked as he cut off a bite of baked fish.
Dougall pinned him in place with a glare reserved only for murderers. “Aye. I am sure ’tis wise.” He looked then to Leona. “Mistress, would ye mind keepin’ an eye on me boys?”
Leona gave a nod of her head. She thought it awfully sweet that he was so worried about Effie. I wonder, if I do get with child, if Alec will worry over me like Dougall worries over Effie. “Of course,” she told him. “Go now, be with yer wife.”
The rest of the men shrugged their shoulders with disinterest. The boys all began to clamor around their father. “Can we come with ye?”
’Twas Gylys who shot down the idea. “Do ye no’ remember? Ye promised to help Leona,” he reminded them.
Dougall looked relieved. “Then they should keep their promise. I shall return soon.” And with that, he quit the gathering room without a glance backward.
Because Wills and Aric had not complained about their punishment, and because Leona had a soft spot in her heart the size of Edinburgh, she gave each of them a sweet cake after their work was complete.
They licked their lips as they looked at the cakes. “Thank ye, kindly mistress. We shall go give these to James and Tomas,” Wills said, a bit dejectedly.
“Nay,” Leona stopped him. “Those are for the two of ye. James and Tomas have had theirs.”
Confused, they looked to her for clarification. “But ye said,” Aric began.
Leona gave them each a warm smile, then tousled the locks on Aric’s head. “Aye, I ken what I said. Think of this as yer reward fer no’ complainin’ or grousin’ about washin’ the dishes. And fer doin’ such a fine job of it!”
The lads smiled and thanked her. They had the sweet cakes half eaten before they were out of the kitchen.
Leona swept up the last of the dust from the kitchen floor, smiling all the while. Oh, how she hoped she would have sons as sweet and as energetic as the boys who just left her kitchen.
After making certain everything was in its place, she blew out all but one of the candles and locked up for the night. As she headed toward the keep, she thought she heard a great commotion coming from within.
Worried that the boys might be getting into more mischief, she hurried inside.
Leona’s jaw all but hit the floor. There, in the middle of her gathering room, was her husband, along with Gylys, Kyth and Aric. They were standing on top of her table, with swords drawn.
Surrounding them, with little wooden swords, were James and Tomas. “Down with ye, ye bloody bastards!” James yelled as he jabbed at the men.
“Never!” Kyth yelled, the tip of his sword meeting the end of James’.
It took a long moment and several rapid heartbeats before she realized they were simply playing.
“I’ll hang ye from yer bullocks!” wee Tomas yelled up at the men. “Give us yer coin purses!”
“Ye’ll have to pry it from me cold, dead hands, ye mangy, filthy, son of a whore!” It had been her own husband who yelled that last bit.
Oh, no, no, no! She exclaimed inwardly. A vision of her husband and his men teaching her children how to fight, curse, and - oh lord! Aric just spit on her clean floor! She would have none of it.
“What in the name of God are ye all doin’?” She hadn’t realized she was shouting until all the men and boys turned to face her.
“I will no’ have ye teachin’ these innocent boys how to curse!” She called out to the men on the table. “And Aric, I swear if ye spit on me clean floor one more time, I shall skelp the hide right off ye!”
She thundered toward the lot of them. “I will no’ have this kind of rough-housin’ in me home!” Her voice was firm, unyielding. “And to teach these little boys how to curse? ’Tis, ’tis downright disgustin’.”
Wee James smiled up at her. “They did no’ teach us how to curse, mistress. Our da’ did!”
Her head began to throb. Taking a deep, cleansing breath, she said, “I do no’ care who taught ye. Ye will no’ use that kind of language in my home, do you understand? And there will be no spittin’ either. And if ye want to behave like a bunch of savages and ruffians, you can take it out of doors!”
She did not give one wit if her husband was upset. Not one wit! And if he even as much as thought of yelling at her for the way she spoke to him in front of his men, why, she’d clobber him over the head with his own sword!
Each and every one of them simply shrugged their shoulders. Alec and his men jumped down from the table. Kyth and Gylys began to usher the boys outside. Once they were gone, Alec turned to face his wife.
She hadn’t expected him to be smiling at her. But he was. Uncertain if that should terrify her more than outrage or fury, she took a tentative step away.
Alec grabbed her about the waist and kissed her. Deeply, passionately. Once he was done, he set her back, still bearing the same devious smile. “I believe ye will one day make a fine mum,” he told her.
Stunned, nay, completely astonished, she could only stand there as he turned around and left.
Her heart soared, for Alec was never one to give out compliments at the drop of a feather.
He believes I will make a fine mum!
Did that also mean he thought her a fine wife?
Chapter 20
’Twas long after the midnight hour before they received word on Effie. Alec and Dougall had been sitting near the fire in the gathering room, sipping on fine whisky as they talked of old times as well as the future of their clan.
Leona had settled the four lads into a room across the hall from hers. After numerous stories — far less terrifying than the ghost story of earlier that day — the boys finally succumbed to exhaustion and fell asleep. Afterward, she went to her own room and collapsed into her own bed.
After the long day she had had, with chasing after four rambunctious young boys, she had made up her mind to have only daughters.
Alec woke her with a tender kiss on the forehead. “We have a babe,” he said as he caressed her cheek with the backs of his fingers. “A fine, healthy, and verra big boy.”
Relieved to hear the babe was well, she sat up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “I should go to Effie,” she said, her voice husky from sleep.
“Nay,” Alec said as he began stripping out of his clothes. “Effie is doing well. Dougall has gone to be with her now. I told him we would keep the boys and bring them back in the morn.”
That was good news, she supposed as she fell back into the bed and drew the covers up to her ears. In the morn, she would take the boys back to their mother and father, where they would be introduced to their new brother and future partner in crime.
Effie insisted on naming the boy Archibald. Dougall did not like it. He wasn’t adamantly opposed to it, he simply did not like the name.
And Alec sure as hell did not like it. ’Twas his father’s name.
He stood with Dougall in the late night hour, near the hearth in Dougall’s cottage. Effie was in bed, the curtains drawn around her. Alec stood quietly as
Dougall held his seventh son.
When word had come ’twas a big lad Effie had birthed, they had not been exaggerating. Alec wondered silently, how on earth something that large could come out of a woman as small as Effie. He left it up to the miracle of birth and all that.
Wrapped in a cocoon of linen, the boy slept contentedly in his father’s arms. Thick dark hair encircled his head and covered his wee ears. A round little nose and rosebud mouth, he did look rather cherubic. But that name!
“Did ye say why she chose the name?” Alec asked as he peeked at the handsome boy child.
“Nay, she did no’,” Dougall whispered.
“And she is set on it?”
Dougall nodded his head. “Aye, she is. And after all she’s been through, and seein’ the size of this boy, I will no’ go against it.”
The babe yawned and sighed sweetly. “He is a fine lookin’ boy, aye?”
That, Alec could not argue.
“He be the biggest one yet, ye ken. All our others were wee in comparison,” Dougall said as he rocked back and forth on his feet. “I do no’ think is too soon to say he will be a fine warrior someday, aye? Look at the size of the boy’s hands!”
Alec bit back a laugh. “Aye, I agree. When would ye like to start his trainin’? Is next week too soon?”
Dougall smiled down at his son. “I think he could handle it.”
A tickling sensation began to form deep in Alec’s stomach. He wondered if Leona would be able to give him a son? Mayhap more than one. It could be him standing here months from now, holding his firstborn for the first time.
I wonder if me da was proud on the day I was born? Where that thought came from, he was uncertain. He tried to think back to his youth, to his younger years. For the life of him, he could not recollect ever seeing his father smile. At least not at him or Rutger.
“I fear me wife will object if we start too soon,” Dougall told Alec. “Mayhap we will no’ tell her just yet.”
Alec chuckled softly and gave his friend a pat on the back. “Well done, Dougall, well done.”
Dougall finally tore his gaze away from his son long enough to look at Alec. He bore the most peculiar expression. “’Twas me wife who did all the hard work. ’Tis she who deserves the praise.”
Since he’d never witnessed a birth before, he could not argue that point. “Aye, and praise her I will, in a few days. After she has rested.”
Dougall turned his attention back to the babe sleeping in his arms. Alec bid them both good night, eager to return to his own wife.
A son, he mused as he walked along the moonlit path. I should verra much like to have many sons.
As soon as she had served Alec his morning meal, Leona set off to visit Effie and the new babe. She had the four boys in tow, along with a basket of food to help get the family through the next day.
The boys chatted excitedly and skipped along as they headed out of the keep, across the drawbridge, and down the path. They were quite eager to meet their new brother.
As they approached Dougall and Effie’s cottage, Leona felt compelled to stop and speak to the boys first. “I ken ye be verra excited to see yer new brother. But please, remember, yer mum is goin’ to be quite tired for the next sennight or so. Ye must be quiet, so ye do no’ wake the babe or upset yer mum.”
Each boy nodded his head earnestly, as if they understood and would obey. Oh, they might for the first hour or so. But after that? She really didn’t know how Effie was going to survive this lot of heathens she had borne.
Wills was the first to arrive at the door. Slowly, he opened it and stepped inside. He paused briefly to look at his brothers and reminded them to be quiet. More nods of agreement before they all filed in.
Effie was sitting up in the bed, holding her babe in her arms. He was swaddled in a soft yellow blanket. Dougall was sitting on the bed beside her, with his back to the door. Effie looked up when she heard her sons enter. She smiled warmly at them. Dougall turned to see what had drawn her attention.
“Me heathen sons have returned,” Effie said playfully.
The boys swarmed their parents. The younger two climbed on the bed in order to get a better look. Wills and Aric stood next to their father, as they all looked in awe and wonder at the new arrival.
“Och! He is huge!” James declared, to which his brother Tomas agreed.
Leona’s heart swelled with happiness for the family. She stayed near the door, so as not to disturb the reunion. Dougall smiled as he approached her. “Thank ye fer takin’ care of me sons, mistress.”
“’Twas no’ problem, Dougall,” she replied. They hadn’t necessarily been a problem. More like an unexpected invasion.
Effie was busy introducing Archibald to his brothers. Leona’s arms ached with longing. She wished for all the world it was she who was abed, introducing her own babe to his father.
“I should leave ye be,” Leona said. “Please, let me ken if there is anything I can do.” She handed Dougall the basket and began to leave.
“Mistress,” Dougall said as he placed a hand on her arm. “’Tis glad I am that ye are here. Ye’ve been a good friend to Effie, as well as me and me boys. Bowies are no’ known fer showin’ gratitude. But I just wanted ye to ken.”
Her eyes grew damp as her heart swelled with gratitude and appreciation. “Thank ye, Dougall. Thanks to ye, and to Effie fer being so kind to me. Now, go and be with yer family.”
Leona held her cramping, aching stomach. Her menses had arrived in the middle of the night, deflating her hopes that she was with child.
“These things can take time,” Alec told her as he held her close. “Do no’ worry it.”
She knew she should appreciate his kindness. At the moment, it was not making her feel any better. One would think with all the lovin’ we’ve been doin’ I would be with child by now!
Alec kissed the back of her head. “We’ve only been married a few weeks, Leona. Please, do no’ worry. It will happen.”
“But when?” she whispered.
He hugged her tight. “Wheest now, and sleep.”
Although she was tired, ’twas impossible to sleep. What if I never get with child? Will Alec set me aside? That was a real, deep concern. She was growing quite fond of this man. The last thing she wanted was to disappoint him. She was not comfortable with asking all the burning questions, for she was uncertain she wanted to hear the answers. Will ye keep me? Even if I never give ye a child?
Three weeks had passed since Effie had given birth. Leona would stop by every day, after visiting with Melvin, to check on her friend. Rain or shine, Leona was there to offer whatever assistance she could. Some days, she could only stay for a moment, others, if her chores were complete, she would stay longer and visit.
There were a few times when Effie would ask her to hold Archibald whilst she took a bath, or tended to her other sons. ’Twas those quiet moments of holding the rather large babe, that she looked forward to most. Sometimes, she would pretend it was her own babe she held in her arms.
August turned into September, the days growing shorter, the rains heavier. Alec worried over their crops like a mother over her first born babe. Soon, far sooner than she wanted, he would be leaving for a week or so, to visit neighboring clans. His hope was to forge business relationships that he prayed would turn to mutual alliances.
He shared little else with her. His worries, his concerns, he kept to himself. Leona did not want to push the matter, for she didn’t want to appear to be a nagging, interfering wife. Instead, she let him know in quiet ways, that she was there should he ever need to unburden himself.
She and Alec had fallen into a comfortable routine. Her days were spent within the keep, trying to turn it into a comfortable home. His days were spent in the fields or in training.
’Twas at night, when they would retire to their bedchamber, that she felt closest to him. When they were here, alone and away from the distractions of the outside world, Alec was different. Attentive, kind, and oh, s
o very sweet! Not a night or a morning would pass that he did not make love to her.
Leona was growing more comfortable, and more brazen, and there were times she would instigate their lovemaking. Alec allowed her to be herself, to be free to do or say whatever she wished.
Afterward, they would fall asleep in each other’s arms. She felt content, safe, and cared for there, in those late night hours. Wrapped in his arms, listening to his soft steady breaths, feeling his warmth radiating against her skin. ’Twas the most wonderful of times, the most wonderful of places.
She could only pray that it would last a very long time.
Chapter 21
Where the bloody hell were Alec’s men? They seemed to be disappearing one by one.
They had been working in a field east of the keep since early morning, to prepare it for planting the following spring. They’d been having a rather difficult day, fighting a battle with a very stubborn auld tree trunk. The tree itself had been easy to cut down. But the roots were deep, wide spread, and entrenched. No matter how far down they dug, no matter how hard they pulled, it refused to budge.
Alec had sent Gylys to the keep first, for a team of horses and a message for his wife, asking her to bring his lunch to the fields. When Gylys hadn’t returned in what Alec deemed a reasonable amount of time, he sent Kyth after him. A half an hour later, he sent Willis after the both of them, with the threat of disembowelment if they didn’t hurry the bloody hell along.
Thus far, none of the men had returned. His patience was growing as thin and fine as a rabbit’s hair. He, Derrick and Dougall were left to battle the deeply rooted tree alone.
“Would ye like me to go fetch the lot of them?” Derrick asked as he wiped the sweat from his brow.
“Nay!” Alec ground out as he stabbed his shovel into the earth. “I shall do it meself.”
“Would ye like me to have a platform erected? So ye can hang the lazy lot of them?” Dougall asked.
The Bowie Bride: Book Two of The Mackintoshes and McLarens Page 24
