Alasdair was Tristan’s oldest friend. They learned to toddle together and received their first wooden swords together. They were distant cousins, but Alasdair had always felt more like a brother than Alan ever did. It is because of their close bond that he dare speak to Tristan so bluntly. It was early morning with the sun just rising. They were alone outside the armory preparing for the day’s training.
“I ken ye speak the truth, but the auld mon willna give an answer. I dinna want to press the issue too much fer fear that he’ll prove as stubborn as Mair warned. I dinna want to give him any reason to say nay. Mair’s been trying to get an answer out of him, but she says it tis worse than trying to get milk from a bull.”
Alasdair snorted. “Aye, a bull. She’s right on that one.”
“Ma lass is a wise one. I will ask Mairghread to see if he will meet with us in ma solar after we break our fast. If he is agreeable, then this training session should go easy on everyone. If it doesnae, well, then I will challenge each of his sons. I will make sure they canna raise their arms over their waists either.”
Tristan and Alasdair spent over an hour going through drills until it was time for Mass. He met Mairghread on the steps of the keep.
“Mo calman, I’d like to speak with ye and yer da after we break our fast. I cannae wait much longer to ken his answer. If I dinna ken aye or nae by noon today, I will kidnap ye and find the closest priest to conduct the ceremony.”
“Ye think me to be yer dove? I dinna ken aboot that. I think I’m more like a hawk.”
“Arenae ye listening to the important part of what I said?”
“I ken what ye said. I also ken that there is a perfectly good priest here within the walls. We are walking to Mass now.”
“Aye, and Father Peter is a wonderful mon and priest but I dinna think that he will break with tradition and marry us without posting the banns.”
“Canna ye make him? Ye’re the laird after all.”
“That I am, but I wouldnae want to put him in that position. I have never wanted to push ma authority on to him. I couldnae ask him to choose between me and his faith. Besides, I ken I would come out the loser each time.”
“Fair enough. I couldnae see maself pressing ye to do that anyway. I wouldnae respect a priest who could be so easily swayed. I will speak to ma da during the meal.”
~~
The morning meal came and went. Tristan waited in his solar for what seemed like half his lifetime. He had seen Mairghread whispering to her father at the table. He could not hear what she said, but he saw them both nod. She smiled at him and he took that to be a good sign. Now he was not so sure anymore. He looked at the bottle of whisky and considered having a hefty tot or two to fortify him, but he did not want to smell of the drink when his future father by marriage walked in. He kept telling himself that they would soon be related. Thinking anything different would surely put him in a foul mood.
Just as he was about to give up and go looking for Mairghread, a knock came from the door. Tristan took a deep breath, looked one last time at the whisky, and answered.
“Come.”
Laird Sinclair opened the door and ushered Mairghread through. Then came her four brawny brothers. Tristan swallowed. He did not want to have this conversation with four angry Highlanders staring him down. They seemed perpetually angry even when they were laughing and dancing. He wondered if that was how he came across to others outside of his clan. Probably. I amnae usually looking to make friends.
“I have come as ye asked. I canna imagine what ye would want to talk to me aboot that ye had to send ma daughter to do the asking.” Tristan knew that the Sinclair was testing him.
“I asked yer daughter to speak to ye because I believe she should be as involved in this matter as ye and me.” There, ye cantankerous auld coot.
“So ye would say.”
“I value ye daughter and her opinions. Tis her life too. I dinna want our life together to start out with her feeling overlooked or slighted. I willna do that to her. I dinna think that is how ye show love and respect to yer partner.” What do ye think aboot that? How do ye talk that down without sounding like an arse to yer daughter?
“Backing me into a corner willna serve ye well.”
Shite!
“That isnae ma intention, Laird Sinclair. I just want to be sure that ye clearly ken how I feel aboot Mairghread and how I want our life together to begin.”
“Ye dinna feel the need to include her when we were negotiating the contract with Alan.”
“Tis the right of it, I admit. I dinna ken Mairghread at the time, and I confess it was more of a business agreement than anything else. But I do ken Mairghread now and I care fer her. I dinna want to leave her out of this. She deserves to be here.”
“Aye, well I do tend to agree with ye on this. I canna say that I agree with ye on everything else.”
“Da! Enough of the blathering” Mairghread could not take it any longer. “There isnae any reasons to go all around the houses. Please just give us yer answer.” She looked at each of her brothers and added, “And the lot of ye can keep yer nebs out of it. Ye in particular, Tavish. I ken ye make the loudest wheest aboot everything.”
Chapter Sixteen
“I ken I’ve kept ye two waiting fer ma answer. Ye ken I dinna take this decision lightly. When I agreed to betroth Mairghread to Sir Alan, I did so thinking just aboot the clan. I regret that now. Back then, I believed that peace between our clans would be enough to keep her safe. We’ve all learned that isnae the case. I willna risk ma daughter. If something happens to her because of the Mackay clan, the truce willna last. I willna stand fer it, and neither will our clan.
“Tis why I havenae given ma answer yet. I ken ye’re impatient, but there was much to consider. I needed to see with ma own two eyes that this would be a good fit fer Mairghread as well as both clans. I dinna want any more raids. Neither clan can afford it, and a feud willna serve any of us well. Kenning all of this, I feel that I can sign a betrothal agreement.”
Mairghread squealed and rushed to her father. The Sinclair held up a hand.
“But, I still want to wait three moons before ye wed.”
Tristan wanted to argue that. He had no intention of waiting that long, but he was going to pick his battles. Mairghread, however, decided this was the time to take a stand.
“Nay, Da. I willna wait that long. I have already stepped into most of the duties of the lady of the keep. Now I am just waiting fer the title and the official authority. I will wait one moon. Tis enough time to post the banns for three sennights.”
“I willna agree to that. If ye love Tristan as I ken ye do and ye already fit here, waiting two moons will do ye nay harm. That’s what I am willing to agree to.”
“One and a half moons, Da. Ye dinna want a seven moon grandson, do ye? Make us wait any longer, and that’s what ye may just get.”
“Mairghread!” Tristan almost chocked on his tongue. He could not breathe. He looked at the five Sinclair men and knew this was the day he would die.
“I cannae believe ye just said that. Laird Sinclair, Callum, Tavish, Alexander, Magnus, I havenae compromised Mairghread. I willna. I promised her, and I promise to ye now, she will remain an innocent and intact until the day we wed.”
“Ye speak as though I amnae even here anymore. I am a woman grown and I ken ma own mind. Ma maidenhead is mine and mine alone to give. I dinna need anyone to make that choice fer me. I have made ma choice, Da. I’m prepared to live with the outcomes. Are ye, Da?”
Mairghread finished with her fists on her hips. She glared at each man in turn. Her brothers kept shifting their weight from one foot to another. Nothing about a conversation on their sister’s virginity made them feel comfortable.
Liam Sinclair looked at Tristan. Tristan looked in part like was he proud of Mairghread but he also looked horrified.
Poor mon looks like he’s aboot to expire. The lass becomes her màthair more and more each day. I ken she will do this just to
force ma hand. Better to marry her off now as a maiden than later in disgrace.
“Vera well. Ye can wed in six sennights.”
With that he welcomed her with open arms. He could not believe how tightly his little girl could squeeze.
“Thank ye, Da,” she whispered. “I love ye. I always have and I always will. I ken ye’re trying to do what’s best fer me. Tristan is what’s best.” Mairghread rested her cheek on her father’s chest, closed her eyes, and sighed.
Chapter Seventeen
The next three weeks flew by as Tristan and Mairghread kept themselves so busy that they fell into bed exhausted each night. It helped them to make it to each Sunday when the banns were read at Mass. Once the third Sunday passed, both felt like time slowed almost to a stop. Both became impatient again. They could rightfully be wed now but had three more weeks before the day they would formally become man and wife.
Now that they were formally betrothed, they became more open about their fondness for each other. When they began holding hands while walking the bailey, no one was particularly surprised. They were happy to see their laird with a woman who seemed to suit him so well. They liked Mairghread and looked forward to once again having a lady who cared about the clan.
One sunny morning, the couple was making their way to the storerooms to check how the stores of gran looked. The autumn harvests would begin in a few weeks. The old grain needed to be checked for weevils and stored separately from the new crops. Ainsley, the five-year-old daughter of the miller, greeted them just in front of her father’s workshop.
“Laird Tristy, are ye gonna marry Lady Margged?” Her five-year-old vocabulary could not quite get either of their names right. “Ye’re holding hands. Does tha mean ye love her? Will ye be having bairns soon?” The little girl’s rapid-fire questions made them both laugh, and Mairghread’s cheeks pinkened.
Tristan looked at Mairghread and her pretty blush made his heart speed up.
If only it were as simple as holding hands made bairns. I would have had her with child within a week. We would have married over a moon ago.
“Aye, Ainsley. I do love Lady Mairghread vera much. We are getting married in a few sennights.”
“Ma mama says Laird Sinclair better make sure ye marry sharpish before Lady Margged has a bairn on the wrong side of the blanket. I dinna ken how a bairn can come out on the wrong side of the blanket. I dinna think bairns have blankets.”
Mairghread’s cheeks were flaming red. She felt as though she was radiating heat. She thought that she could scorch anything she came too close to. She knelt down so she was eye level with Ainsley.
“That’s just a saying, poppet. I willna be having any bairns so soon. Ye can remind yer mama that I have to marry Laird Tristan before I can start trying to have a bairn. It doesnae happen the other way around in ma kin. Can ye remember that?”
“Aye, Lady Margged.” With that she turned and ran to her mother who was hanging out the wash near their croft that was attached to the workshop.
“Mama, Mama! Lady Margged says she has to marry Laird Tristy before she can start getting bairns. Nay one has to worry aboot a bairn’s blanket being on the wrong side.”
Mairghread did not know if she wanted to laugh or cry. Everyone within the bailey most likely heard Ainsley’s proclamation. Tristan wrapped his arm around her and kissed her temple.
“Ye handled that well. If holding hands makes bairns, then I wonder what kissing can do.”
Mairghread swatted at Tristan’s chest. She could not help but giggle a little. She tried for a serious face.
“Ye arenae funny. I dinna want yer clan to think ye’re marrying a woman with loose morals. I dinna want anyone thinking or saying that it’s chicken’s blood on the sheet. Perhaps we shouldnae be seen spending so much time together.”
“Is that what ye really want, little flame? I only want to spend more time with ye.”
“Ye’re the brawest mon I’ve ever seen, and I love ye. Of course I dinna want to spend less time with ye. But mayhap discretion would be best. I donna want to harm yer position by having people think I’m unchaste. I dinna want anyone wondering if ye’re the only mon I’ve been with.”
“Lass, ma clan has gotten to ken ye. They ken the kind of woman ye are. Dinna worry over this. If people really thought ye were a light skirt, they wouldnae be so welcoming to ye. Ye ken people like to have a wee bit of gossip. This is just something fer them to speculate on. Ye’ll see, mo ghràidh. There is naught to fash aboot.”
Mairghread was not so sure, but she let the matter rest as she did not want this to the cause of their first argument. Instead, she inched ahead of him and looked over her shoulder.
“I’ll race ye back to the keep. The loser must fetch the winner a pint of ale and pilfer one of Cook’s sweet tarts.”
With that, she took off. She ran around people and hopped over anything that was in her way. She could hear Tristan catching up with her. She weaved through the crowd, her tinkling laughter filling the air.
Tristan followed behind, amazed at how fast his intended truly was. He could not draw his eyes away from her swaying hips as she jumped over one obstacle after another. He had almost gained on her when out of the corner of his eye, he saw a larger boulder tumbling over the side of the wall. He charged forward in an attempt to push out of the way.
“Mairg--!” His scream died on his lips as he watched in horror as the boulder fell through the air towards her head.
Mairghread sensed more that saw that something was wrong. She looked to her left and saw the large rock falling towards her. As she tried to swerve to her right, she became wrapped up in her skirts as something rolled under her feet. She did not have time to look down or to the side as a crushing weight knocked her to the ground. She landed hard, and the air was knocked out of her. As she tried to catch her breath, she realized that whatever had landed on her was also moving. She craned her neck around to look over her shoulder. Tristan lay on top of her with sweat rolling down his pale face.
“Mair! Are ye well? Are ye hurt? Answer me!”
Mairghread tried to push her shoulders up to wedge some space between her and the ground, but Tristan’s weight was too much.
“Squashing me,” she managed to get out.
Tristan quickly rolled off to the side but pulled her along with him. Once she was free of his weight, she sucked in huge heaving breathes. She looked around and spotted the boulder that had landed just inches from them. In fact, a corner of Tristan’s plaid was pinned under the large rock. She looked at Tristan again and burst into sobs.
“Are ye hurt? Will ye not answer me? You’re frightening me, little flame.”
Tembling still, she shook her head. “I am well, but that boulder just barely missed ye. Ye could have been killed. I dinna ken what I would do if ye were harmed saving me.” She buried her head in his chest. “I love ye, I love ye, I love ye,” she whispered over and over.
Tristan’s heart swelled with pride and love. He was moved that she thought of him ahead of her own safety and he felt choked up by the depth of her love that he could feel as she clung to him. He ran his hands over her trembling body to reassure himself that she truly was alright. Once he was sure that she was hale, he shifted their weight and scooped her up. It was only then that he noticed the crowd that they had drawn. She burrowed her face in his neck and peppered it with small kisses as she wrapped her arms around his neck. It was not until the crowd began to applaud that she looked up. She, too, had not noticed the attention they were receiving. Tristan nodded his head and carried her into the keep.
Laird Sinclair was just running down the stairs as they entered the great hall.
“What the bluidy hell happened to ma daughter?” he bellowed.
“Da, I am well. Naught happened to me.”
“Tis nae what I heard. What I heard is that ye were very nearly crushed by a boulder. That Tristan saved ye by pushing ye away just in the nick of time.”
“Laird Sinclair, I
would take Mairghread to her chamber and then speak with you in ma solar.”
“Nay.”
Both men looked at Mairghread after her calm refusal.
“Ye willna dump me in ma chamber and leave me there while ye both discuss what happened. I ken that boulder was pushed, and I ken it was aimed at me. I amnae dim nor daft. I willna be sent to ma chamber like a wean.”
Both men looked at her, then at each other, and then back to her. Tristan changed course and walked to his solar. Once inside, he settled in a chair before the fire. He arranged Mairghread in his lap. He glared at the Sinclair daring him to object. The Sinclair simply nodded. He had already resigned himself to the knowledge that Tristan now had rights to his daughter and that her affections had shifted from him to her soon-to-be husband.
Mairghread leaned her head against Tristan’s broad shoulder and breathed in his scent. It calmed her to feel his arms wrapped protectively around her. She felt grounded enough to sit up and look at two of the men who loved her most.
“Someone doesnae want me here. They donna want me to marry Tristan.”
“Lass, ye cannae ken that fer sure, but I agree that it is mighty suspicious that a boulder should fall from the wall as ye pass. Lad, is there anyone ye can think of that might want to do ma daughter harm?”
Tristan looked at the older man. It had been years since anyone had dared to call him a lad but he saw only concern and affection for him and Mairghread in the older man’s eyes. He felt accepted, but at the same time, the weight of the responsibility of caring for and protecting Mairghread became all the more real.
“I cannae say fer sue, but I think we both ken there are at least two people who would prefer we not wed.”
“Do ye believe that yer brother has returned? There is nae way that Sorcha could have pushed that boulder herself. Either way it had to be a mon, yer brother or a mon Sorcha convinced to do her bidding. It hurts to ken someone hates me so much that they would have me done away with.”
“Lass, I want ye to have at least two guards with ye at all times along with either one of yer brothers or Tristan. Nay, make that three guards. I want all sides of ye protected.”
His Highland Lass (The Clan Sinclair Book 1) Page 10
