A Highlander's Home (27 page)

Chapter 23

             
The day of the feast Raine felt more happiness than she knew what to do with.
  Her moods were
flip-flopping
.  One minute she found herself shouting at the top of her lungs at
Leith
, and the next she was throwing herself at him crying her eyes out at the loveliness of the view outside her bedroom window.

             
Even though Lady MacGregor had figured out that Raine’s change in behavior must be due to being with child, she said not a word to anyone.  If Raine was going to go through with this absurd plan of leaving Hell’s Gate and the man she loved, then no good could come from making things more complicated.  If they believed themselves not to be in love, then she would not spoil their disillusionment.   The pang in her heart of gaining and then losing her first grandchild would be her cross to bear and hers alone.

             
The day of celebration, Raine’s ladies dressed her with utmost care.  Her dress was
deep
velvet green with a silk underskirt of pale white. 
Lace of a lighter green trimmed the edges and was
highlighted with little silk pink roses.  The bodice was low and tight showing her even fuller cleavage to
its
utmost advantage.  The laces had to be let out just a little bit so she could breath better.  Her ladies had commented on how the dressmaker should be given a what-for for doing such a poor job of measuring Raine for her dresses
.

             
The food was laid upon a long wooden table, enticing everyone with its aroma to dig in.  Raine thought it was more food than she had ever seen; however, when Leith viewed the contents, he was sorely disappointed.  This would feed only a fraction of the castles people. 
His uncle had begun to rebuild the dams and the water supply was slowing down again. 

             
He looked up and saw Raine talking to one of his men and smiled.  She always had her nose in his business.  She was probably trying to give him advice in his battle tactics.  Leith smiled as he watched.  She would have made a good wife.

             
Feeling his gaze on her, she looked in his direction.  Her face cracked into a wide grin and she left his man and made her way over to him.  Her gowns swished from side to side as she walked and he quite enjoyed watching as she made her path to him.  Her breasts were rounded globes that glistened and seemed to appear larger in this particular dress. 

             
“My lord,” she said huskily, curtseying.  She remained low before him for a moment longer than necessary affording him an excellent view d
own the front of her gown.

             
Clearing his throat he replied, “My lady.” 

             
She rose and stood before him regally.  Her golden hair had been brushed until it gleamed and piled loosely on top of her head with soft single ringlets framing her face.  Around her neck was the most recent gift he had given her, a small green amulet that rested just above
her cleavage.  She was a vision.

             
“Ye look most beautiful this day,” he told her.

             
She smiled.  “Well, I thank ye,” she replied in her best imitation of a Scottish accent.

             
He laughed.  She sounded horrible.

             
“Shall we dine, lass?” he offered.

             
They made their way to the dais and ate, laughed, and enjoyed themselves until the wee hours of the morning.
  The household members commented on how happy their laird and mistress were, and how they eagerly awaited the time when the new heir would be conceived.

             
Leith took Raine by the hand and smiled at her.
  She smiled back in anticipation because she had come to know that when that particular look came upon his face, she was in for a decadent time of love making.

             
“What wicked things do you plan on doing to me tonight?” she asked, her eyes gleaming.

             
He chuckled.  “Ye will have to wait and see, my love,” he answered conspiratorially.

             
He led her up the stairs, noticing again how lovely she looked in her gown, her face glowing from the evening’s revelry.  Her bodice seemed to be threatening that it would
burst open at the seams soon.  He would be more than obliged to remove it from her lovely body.

             
They entered the master bedroom and Leith kicked the door close.  He lifted Raine up in his arms and crushed his mouth to hers, forcing his tongue in as deep as it could go.  She took all of him and fought back by jamming her own tongue back into his mouth.

             
Their lovemaking was frenzied, frustrated, needy.  Hands were everywhere all at once, clothing removed and discarded as quickly as possible.  Moans and groans
emanated
from them both in their tortured state of arousal.  Their first joining was hard and hurried, each reaching their climax within a few minutes.

             
As they lay naked, side by side, arms and legs askew, they rested only long enough to catch their breath.  Raine rose up on her elbow and drew a circle around his nipple with her forefinger.  It continued down to his belly button and was wont to discover what was further down, but his hand stopped her.  Groaning, he rolled her on her back and pinned her hands above her head.

             
“My lord, whatever are you doing?” she feigned innocently.

             
He replied gruffly, with a faint smile, “Everything ye want me to, wench!”

             
And with that, he kept her awake and moaning until long after the sun rose.

             
The castle was once again in a flurry of activity, but this time it brought no joy to Raine.  She confined herself to her rooms and tried to avoid the bustling of the lower floors.  Christmas was coming.  And she wouldn’t be here.

             
She should be happy,
ecstatic
even, that she was going home.  She would have her own clothes again.  Jeans and T-shirts any time she wanted.  She wouldn’t have to wait hours for Cook to prepare a meal.  She could just pop something in the microwave.  She wasn’t sure if she would return to the very minute that she was first sucked into the time vortex that landed her here, but she assumed that she would land somewhere close to it.  So, she would be returning to work shortly studying all of the history at the forgotten rooms of the museum.  She would look at those artifacts and read the history books with a fresh set of eyes and a new found appreciation for the people who were responsible for creating it.

Then why was she sitting in her room saying Bahumbug?  Why were her
spirits
so low?  She was going home!  She should feel elated, relived,
and at
least slightly happy perhaps? 
             

Sighing, she rose from her chair at the window and walked over to the roaring fire that had been built for her to ward off the winter chill.  The days had grown very cold and the nights colder.  Staring into the fire, she smiled.  The nights were anything but cold when she was wrapped around Leith’s lar
ge, body.  He was her human electric blanket. 

Her hands circled her belly.  How Leith had not guessed her secret yet, she had no idea.  Her breasts were so tender and full and her nipples had become slightly larger.  She had managed to hide her morning sickness from him by staying in bed until he left the room and then making a mad dash to the chamber pot. 

             
What would she do when she returned to her own time?  She was pregnant with
an
ancient Scotsman twins
who was
the Laird and leader of his people.  How would
she explain the paternity to them
?  A thought struck her and she grabbed the mantle to steady herself.  Would the time travel affect her condition?  Would it hurt the bab
ies
?  Would she still even be pregnant when she returned to Colorado?

             
Leith found her there, gripping the mantle, her knuckles white and her face ashen.

             
He rushed to her side.  “Lass, are ye unwell?”

             
She leaned into him, letting him support her for fear of her legs giv
ing out.  She had accepted these babies
and could already feel the love for it growing in her bosom.  She would die if anything happened to
them
. 

             
“I feel, um, I feel slightly….not very well,” she stammered.

             
He led her to the chair she had just vacated and lowered her onto it.  “What ails ye?”  He felt her forehead for a fever.

             
She smiled and took his hand.  “I have no fever.”

             
“Then what is wrong?  Ye look like ye’ve seen a ghost.”

             
Her gaze went to the window and she watched the snow slowly falling onto the large white blanket it had already created.  “I was thinking about the stones.”

             
His grip ti
ghtened slightly on her wrist, and his voice took on a harder edge. 
“Are ye that anxious then?  To leave?”

             
She frowned, continuing to watch the snow fall but not seeing it anymore.  “I
don’t know.  I’m afraid.”

             
“Afraid of what, lass?”

             
She lowered her gaze lest he read her thoughts.  “I’m afraid of the future.”

             
He smoothed her hair away from her face.  This was something he did when he was nervous she had discovered.

             
“The future is a scary thought, indeed.  That is why we cannot fear it.  We do the best we can in the present and hope that the future is kind to us.”  He smiled like a little boy.  “My mother taught me that.”

             
“She is a wise woman,” Raine said with a small laugh.

             
“Aye, if not an overbearing irritating one as well.”

             
“I’m going to tell her you said that,” Raine threatened, trying to hide her smile.

             
He covered his he
art in mock panic.  “Please, m’l
a
d
y, anything but that!”

             
They laughed together and enjoyed a moment of silence
together;
the only sound the crackling of the fire.

             
“Ye’re cheeks have their color back in them.  Come dine with me, lass,” he offered.

             
“I suppose I could do that, since you asked so nicely,” she returned, taking his hand.
             

             
As they entered the great hall, Leith gave a few orders to his men regarding their upcoming trip.  Raine listened,
and then
asked, “Is that for our trip to the stones?”

             
She swore that his face was sadder than she could remember seeing it before. 

             
“Yes.  We must start making the preparations now.  The food stores are running low and we must ration everything as best we can to ensure that there is enough to carry us through until spring.”

             
“When do we leave?” she asked.

             
“In three days time,” he said, somewhat curtly.

             
So soon?  She found it very easy to lose track of time here since her days were filled with so much activity, but surely the solstice couldn’t be that close? 

             
“How long will we travel before we get to the stones?”

             
“About
seven days
, more or less,” he told her.

             
So that left her a little more than a week before she said goodbye to this place and the people with it.  Including Leith.

             
He seated her at the
dais
and poured her some wine. 

             
“Could I just have some hot tea instead?” she inquired.

             
He signaled to the serving girl who brought over a steaming kettle and some tea leaves.

             
“Here ye go, lass.  These leaves are a bit minty so perhaps they will help with yer headache.”

             
“I don’t have a headache,” she answered.