“Aye.” Katie stood, her long, delicate fingers working the fur on the kitten, bringing his thoughts back to where he didn’t want them to be. He continued to stare at her hands, imagining them running over his naked skin, until her words broke into his wandering. “I will bring Midnight to Cook and see if she can fix up a blanket or basket for the kitten to sleep in. I will also see if she can find a few girls from the village to clean Mrs. MacDuff’s house. ’Twould be a pity to send her back there newly recovered from an illness.”
His attention returned to her face, and he realized that once again he was in an awkward position with her, so he gave her a curt nod and remained in his seat. Blasted hell! This could not continue. He must get everything here in order and then leave for Argyll, where sanity would prevail.
He had gained control of himself by the time she returned. He stood and they headed toward the door. She turned to say something to him when the front door burst open, and she stepped back, crashing into his chest. Two men stood there, breathing heavily. The likeness in their features and difference in their ages marked them as da and son.
“Aye, great to see ye, Mistress Stirling. We finally made it, but I’m afraid Archie’s wagon broke down a few miles back, and he needs help in getting his family here.”
“Oh, goodness. Yes, we must help him.” She turned to Evan. “I cannot leave them on the road, Evan. We must help them. Archie and his wife, Glenda, have several children, and the wee ones will be needing a warm place since ’tis quite cold today.”
Evan ground his teeth. Another delay. “I thought ye said ye told yer people to wait a sennight before starting out.”
“I did. But it looks like they didn’t listen.” Her back stiffened and she glared at him.
He sighed. “Perhaps we can find Alasdair. I dinnae ken what the mon is doing that he’s never around, but if he can help yer people, we can continue with our tenant visits.”
“Oh, nay.” She shook her head furiously as she wrapped her shawl around her body and followed the two men down the pathway, with Evan trailing behind her again, like a besotted puppy. “That wouldn’t work. The little ones will be scared unless I arrive to help them. There are so many of them, ’twould probably be better to ease their wee minds. ’Tis a strange place for them, remember.”
So many of them? That had him breaking into a sweat. “Exactly how many bairns do Archie and his wife have?”
“Eleven.”
Chapter Nine
Were Evan not a braw man, Katie was certain he would have fainted at her words. He did turn quite pale, and his eyes grew so wide, she thought they would pop from his head.
“Eleven, did ye say, lass? Eleven bairns?”
“Aye. But they’re not all wee ones. A few of them are older.” She held her breath, waiting for the inevitable command to march herself and everyone else back to Stirlingshire. That would not happen.
Instead, Evan ran his hand down his face. “Do what ye need to do, lass; I will be in the library waiting for ye so we can resume our visits.”
She didn’t have the heart—or nerve—to tell him the visits would probably not resume this day. Getting the large family settled, checking on wee Agnes and poor Mrs. MacDuff… She would have her hands full. Better to let him wait for her in the library before he realized she would not be joining him anytime soon.
“What’s this I found along the road?” A grinning Alasdair arrived at the front door with two little lads under his arms. They were laughing and joking and as lively as four-year-old twin boys could be. Katie couldn’t help but smile at the two Stirling sons.
“One of my families has arrived and are needing assistance getting to the castle. Where did ye find these two?”
Alasdair looked down at the wiggling boys. “They were chasing after me when I left the stable. There’s a stream of them following, bairns of all ages.”
“Aye. ’Tis one of the Stirling families. Archie and his wife, Glenda. The poor family is stuck a few miles away in a broken wagon.”
“Are there no means of transport for yer clan that would last the entire journey, then?” Alasdair smirked and set Lester and David down, the boys immediately whooping and hollering as they chased each other in a circle around Katie and Alasdair.
“Nay. I’m afraid not. Too many of our wagons and carts were in poor shape. But now I must assist Glenda and Archie in getting them settled here in the castle.”
“’Tis getting pretty crowded. Perhaps one of the cottages would be better?”
“Aye, but Evan and I just started checking with the tenants to see if any cottages were vacant when I had to tend to one of the MacDuff women who is suffering from an ague.”
“I’ll be happy to help ye, Mistress Stirling. I saw a fairly sturdy cart at the back of the stable. I can drive it to the unfortunate folks and get them settled.”
Katie loved everything about Alasdair: his thoughtfulness, kindness, and willingness to help. But he didn’t give her the shivers the way his brother did. A mere look from Evan’s deep-green eyes caused strange feelings to erupt in her middle and her breath to begin to catch. ’Twas not something she was happy about, but for whatever reason, there it was.
“Who are these two devils?” Evan stood in front of Katie, the Stirling twins dangling from his large hands. He had them both by the collar of their shirts. “I found them chasing the blasted kitten around the library.”
“They are Lester and David Stirling, my laird. Two of Archie and Glenda’s bairns.” Katie did not care for the look on Evan’s face and was concerned he was about to bang the lads’ heads together. The boys were treating the laird’s handling of them as a fine joke and no more than a bit of play.
“Boys!” Katie shouted. Instead of quieting, they managed to wiggle from Evan’s hands and dropped to the ground. They rolled around for a while giggling, then took off after the kitten, who had jumped on David’s chest, obviously ready for more fun.
“Mistress Stirling.” Evan leaned close to her ear, which was necessary, since more of the Stirling brood had started to enter the castle and the noise had become overwhelming. “I will give you one half hour to settle whatever it is you need to settle, then I will toss ye over my shoulder and deposit ye on the back of yer horse for us to continue our visits.”
Just the thought of him doing that made her heart pound and sweat break out on her forehead. Is that what the men in the Highlands did when they wanted a woman to do something? Merely sling them over their shoulder and walk away?
Oh my.
She raised her chin, hoping the flush on her face was not noticeable. “I shall do my best to be ready in one half hour, my laird. There will be no need for you to resort to violence.”
His grin was as evil as the look in his eyes as he bent once more, his warm breath brushing over her ear, bringing gooseflesh to her skin. “’Twas not violence I was thinking about, lass.” With those words, he touched her lightly on her cheek, turned on his heel, and, shaking his head at the twins who were rolling around on the floor punching each other, walked to the library and slammed the door.
Alasdair studied his brother as he made his exit. “Dinnae think I ever heard my brother promise to toss a lass over his shoulder.” He shook his head and glanced at Katie. “Ye do something to the man, ye ken?”
Aye, whatever it was she did to the man, he did to her as well. His whispered words kept repeating in her ears as she tried to make some semblance of order out of the chaos that had erupted in the hall with the rest of Archie’s little ones stumbling through the door—hungry and weary from their travels.
She quickly made arrangements for them to share two of the bedchambers and sent the bairns to the kitchen to be fed. Glenda kept hugging her, telling her how grateful she was for the chance to have a better life for her little ones. Katie was just grateful to shoo them upstairs before Evan made good on his threat to drag her of
f in a most undignified manner to do his bidding.
’Twas exactly one half hour after his announcement that Evan emerged from the library, the look in his eye leaving no doubt in her mind that if she wasn’t prepared to leave, he certainly was.
“I am ready, my laird.” The words burst forth from her lips. She didn’t want to race him from the castle to avoid being slung over his shoulder.
“Good. Let’s be on our way, then.” He took her elbow and hustled her out of the house. She couldn’t help the wee bit of disappointment she felt as they made their way to the stables. Would he truly have tossed her over his shoulder, her bottom in the air? She shivered as he wrapped his large, warm hands around her waist and hoisted her onto the horse.
Within minutes, he was also mounted, and they were again on their way toward the village.
…
Evan was almost sorry Katie had been ready to leave. His hands had itched to lift her up and feel the softness of her stomach on his shoulder, her fine breasts pressed up against his back. But ’twas not a dignified way to treat his employee, especially in front of her clansmen.
“If ye have other families on their way that are the size of the one just arrived, we better find some empty cottages for them. Although the castle has many bedchambers—forty, I believe—’tis better if each family has a place of their own.”
Katie couldn’t help the laugh that escaped. “Better for who? Ye or them?”
“Aye.” His grin made a reappearance. The lass certainly had a way of making his world lopsided. One minute he wanted to throttle the woman, and the next minute he was thinking of getting to know her in other, more pleasant, ways.
He reached into his sporran and pulled out the paper with the list of tenants. “Our next visit is with a Mr. Bernard MacDuff. He and his daughter, Maureen, live there.”
“No Mrs. MacDuff?”
“Nay. None listed.”
They rode past the MacDuff house where they’d rescued the poor sick woman. “I asked Cook to see about getting someone to clean the cottage.” Katie pointed to the humble house. “We cannot send the woman back there until we see to it.”
Evan nodded his approval and directed his horse into a right turn, then up a small hill to the next cottage. “Let us hope we dinnae leave this place with an animal or an ill tenant.”
Bernard MacDuff was a tall, well-rounded man with whiskers on his face and large mitts for hands. He looked as though he could pick a man up by his neck and with one swift move, send him to his creator.
Maureen was tall, like her da, but slender with a bit of the fairy in her demeanor. She reminded him of the stories about ethereal creatures. Mystical, ready to pull a prank on an unsuspecting lad—or something more devious, if angered.
After Evan introduced himself, Bernard slapped him on the back, almost sending him to the ground. “’Tis about time ye came around to see to the castle and what’s left of the clan.”
“Aye. It took me some time to finish up what I needed to do at home before I could make the journey.”
“Come inside, and we’ll have a bit of ale.” Bernard glanced at his daughter. “Set out some of those scones ye made this morning, lass.”
They all trooped inside. Evan was pleased to see a well-tended house, with no illness or stray animals wandering about. Perhaps they could escape this visit empty-handed.
“Ye say this here lass is to be the land steward, and ye are returning to Argyll?” Bernard took a large swallow of ale, wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt, and burped.
“Aye. I have my own clan to run. We have been fortunate to keep most of our land and our clansmen. ’Twas not easy. My da and his da before him worked hard.”
“So ye dinnae lose yer land after Culloden? I thought the MacNeils were Jacobites.”
“Aye, in that we were, but we dinnae come under the notice of the English once the rebellion was crushed.” Seeing the look on the man’s face, Evan hurried on, “We were all for independence, but my grandda made the wise choice to work with the Sassanach. ’Twas not a popular position, in truth, but once it was over, it hadn’t seemed too smart to make things worse. We lost a lot of men in Culloden, and my grandda was determined to keep the clan together as best he could.”
“Aye, old MacDuff—the last MacDuff’s grandda—did much the same. Lost a lot of men, and then a bulk of land, but managed to hang on. ’Twas the Sassenach’s idea to crush the Scottish, mostly the Highlanders, but a few managed to endure.” Bernard held his mug up. “Here’s to the survivors.”
Both men drank the rest of their ale while Katie and Maureen watched them. Katie seemed amused at their conversation, but Maureen studied her da carefully, almost as if wishing the visit to be over and the two of them on their way.
Bernard slammed his mug down. “Now I have a problem for ye to deal with.”
Young Maureen groaned. “Nay, Da. Dinnae bring it up now.”
“I will be bringing it up, lass. I told ye if ye continued with yer behavior, I would have the laird deal with ye.”
Evan didn’t care for the sound of that statement. As laird in his own clan, he had the responsibility to settle many matters. Issues between parent and child were oftentimes the hardest. He glanced over at Katie, who shrugged. No doubt she had handled such matters herself after her da had passed on.
He sighed and finished his drink. “What is it, MacDuff?” Evan leaned back in his chair.
“The lass here has been sneaking out, seeing Fenton’s boy, Kevin. I told the lad to stay away from her, but I caught them and gave the lad a thrashing.”
“A thrashing indeed, my laird. He gave Kevin a broken nose, and I think his arm is broken too.” Maureen’s wide hazel eyes were rimmed with tears. Katie immediately moved to the lass and put her arm around her shoulders.
Evan eyed MacDuff. “What are yer objections to the lad?”
“Fenton’s a drinker. Beats his wife. Overworks his bairns. A mean son of a bitch—”
“Da!” Maureen rose, her face red.
“Well, he is. And there’s nothing else to be said about it.”
Katie cleared her throat and stole a glance at Evan. He was more than happy to have her take this issue. He never did like family petitions for help. “Yes, Mistress Stirling?”
“May I speak, my laird?”
He dipped his head. “Indeed.” Let her make an enemy of either the da or the lass. Whatever he said, someone would be unhappy.
“How old are ye, Maureen?”
“I’ve seen sixteen summers.”
Katie nodded. “Aye. Old enough to know yer mind, that’s for sure.” She turned to MacDuff. “Is yer only objection about the lad his da?”
MacDuff crossed his massive arms over his chest. “Aye. Like breeds like. I’ll not have my daughter treated the way poor Mrs. MacDuff is.”
Evan was quite impressed with the man’s attitude. Too many men didn’t care what sort of man their lasses married, as long as they were out of his house and eating someone else’s food. He opened his mouth to say something like that, and Katie waved at him to be quiet.
Verra daring the lass was. She believed it was permissible to wave her laird away like some pestering insect? Before he could open his mouth, she continued, “I agree that oftentimes a mon will behave toward his family like the mon who raised him. But that is not always true.”
The stubborn man didn’t answer her but kept glaring in her direction. Hopefully, Evan would not have to save the lass from a thrashing.
“Mr. MacDuff, here is what I propose. Spend some time with the lad. Watch how he treats his horse, how he handles problems that vex him. Most of all, see how he treats Maureen. Since they’ve been hiding from ye, ye have no way of knowing what his feelings truly are. Ye can certainly judge a mon by how he acts, aye?”
Grudgingly, Bernard nodded. “Aye. ’Tis true. I
’ve been so worried that she would run off with the lad that I’ve only been watching her.”
“Too closely,” Maureen said.
“What do ye say, Mr. MacDuff? Are ye willing to allow the young lad to attend to yer daughter? In yer presence, of course,” Katie quickly added when Bernard began to scowl again.
“Aye. I guess it’s a good idea.” He smiled at his daughter, all the love of a da in his face. “I just want her to be happy.”
“Oh, Da.” The girl jumped up and threw herself in her da’s arms. “I do love ye.”
Evan slapped his thighs and stood, anxious to get as far away from family issues as possible. “It appears we have solved that problem.”
Katie smirked at him as she also rose and smoothed out her gown. “Aye, my laird. We have certainly resolved that difficulty.”
Chapter Ten
Amazingly enough, by the time Katie and Evan returned to the castle, all was quiet. ’Twas hard to believe the chaos had settled and no one was racing to the door to greet them with another crisis.
They had managed to visit four tenants, and along the way they had discovered an empty cottage that was perhaps not big enough to comfortably house Archie’s family but at least had three bedrooms. In these times, that was a luxury, to be sure.
They were sitting in the library after having shared a cold dinner of bread, cheese, and a leftover joint. Alasdair had joined them for the meal, returning from his visit to the village to speak with the shopkeepers, but excused himself afterward to visit with MacDuff down at the stables. He loved equine talk and was a true horse lover.
“I’m considering employing two of Archie’s older children, which will remove them from the cottage.” Katie took a sip of her sherry and eyed Evan over the rim of her glass.
Evan sat across from her, his long legs stretched out, his boots crossed at the ankles. His unruly hair hung almost to his shoulders, and she had the urge to brush it back. His linen shirt was open at the neck, a sliver of tan skin and rust-colored curly hair peeked out from the opening. He looked tired, and it occurred to her that his was a difficult job. Being laird to one clan while having been handed the responsibility of another must be daunting.
A Scot to Wed (Scottish Hearts) Page 6
