Ian (16 page)

The door to the room opened and she turned around expecting to see Odara returning, but instea
d Ian stood there with an anxious expression on his face. He closed the door quickly and hurried across the room.

“Kyla, I need te talk te ye.”

She couldn’t deny that she was happy to see him, but she still hated him for keeping the secrets from her that he’d once been married and actually belonged to the MacTavish clan.

“I dinna have any
thin’ te say te ye.” She turned back toward the window, but Ian’s hands were on her shoulders and he slowly turned her around to face him.

“Kyla, I’m sorry I did
na tell ye aboot me wife.”

“Aye, so am I,” she said, taking his hands from her shoulders.

“It was a dark time in me life and I was confused. I was ashamed o’ it, and thet’s why I didna tell anyone.”

“Ye’re ashamed ye had a wife? Well, now I almost feel pity fer the
poor lass.”

“Ye dinna understand. I did
na love her. She was a witch like Tearlach said, and tricked me inte drinkin’ a love potion, te make me think I loved her. If I hadna had the potion, I ne’er would have married her, I swear. And if I hadna believed I was in love when I truly wasna, I ne’er would have stayed with the MacTavishes. I’d been plannin’ on leavin’ right before thet happened.”

Kyla suddenly thought of th
e gypsy herbal love potion she’d considered using more than once on Ian herself. She couldn’t blame this Daghda, whoever she was. After all, Ian may be a charmer with the lassies, but it was only for coupling purposes. When it came to making commitments he ran the other way.

“Ye dinna need te explain yerself te me,” she said. “After all, ye kept yer secret fer the last three years and are only tellin’ me becooz it was revealed. I wonder how long ye woulda kept it te yerself if this ne’er had happened.
Tell, me, Ian, why did ye turn yer back on the MacKeefes and come here te begin with?”

“I needed te ken who I was and where I came from, Kyla. When I started out, I jest meant te go back te the ruins and think, but somethin’ seemed te pull me te MacTavish territory. Then, afore I ken what was happenin’ I was one o’ them and goin’ on raids. I realized it was wrong and jest wanted te come home, but thet
’s when Daghda gave me the love potion and we got married. Then when I found out she was pregnant with me bairn, I jest couldna leave. Do ye understand me?”

“I am tryin’ to, Ian, believe me I am.”

“Kyla, there’s more thet I havena told ye.”

“
No more,” she said, raising her hands to her ears. “This is too much and I canna bear te listen te any more o’ how ye deceived e’eryone.” She turned to walk away, but he grabbed her hand and swung her around.

“Listen te me. Ye are in grave danger here. Ye’ve got te get away and back te the MacKeefe camp
right away.”

“I canna do thet. Ye told me yerself thet they will attack and kill the MacKeefes if we break this alliance.”

“It’s no’ an alliance. It’s a farce. Tearlach disna really want te marry ye.”

“Well, mayhap he does
.” She looked up into his eyes, ready to claw them out for what he’d just said. “Let me tell ye, thet even if ye think I’m undesirable and jest a wee girl, there are some men who would be happy te have me as their wife.”

“Thet’s no’ what I meant.”

“Ye said it, so ye had it on yer mind.”

“
I meant thet he disna want te marry ye te make an alliance. These people are no’ te be trusted.”

“And ye are?” That shut him up for a moment, and she was g
lad that it did. He angered her with all he’d done, and no she didn’t want to marry a man who killed innocent women and unborn bairns, but at least Tearlach seemed interested in having her as a wife. Something she knew Ian wasn’t interested in at all.

“Kyla, I killed thet bastard three years ago fer what he did te Daghda.”

“Ye are lyin’ again, Ian, now stop it. Ye heard Dunmor say he killed Tearlach’s attacker.”

“I ran me sword through him and buried him in the ground with me own two hands. I was so filled with anger for wha
t he’d done te Daghda thet I didna even wait fer him te turn around, but stabbed him in the back.”

“Ian, I’ve ne’er kent ye te kill like a coward. Ye
are lyin’ and I dinna ken why.”

“I tol’ ye it was a dark part o’ me life thet I am no’ proud o’. But ye have te believe me thet somethin’ is no’ right here.”

“Nay, I dinna have to believe ye. Matter o’ fact, I no longer believe a word ye say.”

She turned to walk away, but he pulled her to him, holding on to her tightly.

“Then if ye dinna believe thet, believe this. I care fer ye deeply Kyla and dinna want ye marryin’ thet bastard. It’ll kill me te ken thet he is takin’ ye te his bed and thet ye are his wife.”

“Yer words mean nothin’ te me anymore.”

“Then mayhap me actions will show ye how I’m feelin’.” He kissed her then. And in his kiss she felt his pain as well as his sorrow for the things he’d done. And then his kiss turned hungry, yet passionate, and in it she felt his desperation. His need to be heard and to be believed as well. And also to be forgiven.

Kyla forgot all about being angry with him
for a minute and put her hands on his chest, raising up her mouth for a second kiss. And this kiss was gentle, loving and caring. This was the kiss of a lover – not a just a friend or a man looking for a fun time. It was filled with emotion.

T
he warmth from the kiss traveled all the way down to her toes, and she felt safe and happy in Ian’s embrace. This was the way it should be. This is what she wanted all along. She wanted to trust him again, God she really did, and she wanted to believe that he had feelings for her the same as she did for him. And when he kissed her like this, it made it hard to believe anything different.

The door to the room swung open and Kyla
jumped backward in surprise. Then when she saw Odara standing there with her mouth open, she knew that this was not going to fare well for either her nor Ian. So she did the only thing she could to try to make things better. She reached out and slapped Ian across the face.

His hand went to his cheek and his expression was one of disbelief. She felt bad about this, but knew it had to be done.

“Dinna touch me again, ye cur. I am betrothed and willna have ye tryin’ te woo me.”

“Kyla, what are ye doin’?” he asked softly.

“The laird calls fer ye – both o’ ye in the great hall,” said Odara, still just staring at Ian.

“O’
course,” said Kyla, picking up her skirts and hurrying across the room. When she got to the door she realized Ian was still standing at the window just staring at her. She looked back at him and then at Odara. “If I hear either o’ ye say a word aboot this te me husband-te-be, I’ll make sure te have yer heids, do ye understand?”

“I do, mi
lady,” said Odara with a curtsey. Kyla was going to correct her and tell her that she wasn’t a titled woman, but then realized as soon as she married the laird, she would be lady of the castle, so she didn’t correct her after all. She rather liked the sound of the title. So instead, she looked over to Ian.

“Are ye comin’?” she asked.

“Kyla, we really need te talk.”

“There’s nothin’ more te say.
” Then just for show in front of Odara she added, “and from now on, I’d like ye te address me as Lady Kyla, please.”

She noticed the
scowl on Ian’s face. It was the same one he always had every time he’d complained that she was annoying him. She just smiled at him and headed on down to the great hall.

Chapter 18

Ian’s wolfhound met him on the stairs, and he ran a hand over the dog’s head as he watched Kyla and Odara hurrying ahead of him into the great hall. He sat down on the stairs for a second and the hound reached up and licked his face happily. Ian wanted nothing more than to be back at the MacKeefe camp with his dog chasing Onyx’s wildcat and the wildcat chasing Aidan’s squirrel. And with Kyla running after them, trying to prove that she could handle them better than any of the men. And she probably could too.

But this was something that he knew neither of them could handle. Kyla
was so upset with him, and rightly so, that he wasn’t sure she wouldn’t do something like marry Tearlach for nothing more than getting back at him. And she was starting to let things go to her head, like being in a castle and having people call her a lady. He had to make her realize that marrying the bastard was not a good thing. With both of them working together, mayhap they could stop this from happening and figure out a way to help the MacKeefes as well. But if he couldn’t convince her to push aside her anger for him and work together soon, then it was going to be too late, and even he wouldn’t be able to help her.

“Ye believe me when I say I killed and buried thet bastard, dinna ye?” he said in a low voice to his hound.

The hound looked up at him and panted.

“Ye need te keep an eye on Kyla fer me while I try te find out what’s goin’ on,” he said. Then he got to his feet and headed for the g
reat hall with his hound right on his heels.

He walked into the great hall and was surprised by the amount of men inside.
When he’d lived with the MacTavishes, there were only half the amount of people that were here now. And just like out in the courtyard earlier, he didn’t see many people he recognized. Groups of men stood near the fire conversing, and the trestle tables were lined with more doing the same. There were some women in the hall, but not nearly as many as there were men.

They all were wearing more weapons than one normal
ly would inside the castle, and he felt relieved that Tearlach hadn’t decided to take his weapons away. The man really seemed to want him back as his warrior, and was going to risk things to do it. But then again, with all these warriors surrounding him, he was sure Tearlach felt he was well protected.

He followed Kyla to the dais where Tearlach was waiting for her with an outstretched arm. Eigg was stand
ing next to him, and Ian only recognized two of the other men surrounding him. Had he taken on that many new warriors in the past three years? Or did most of the MacTavishes leave on their own?

He settled himself next to Kyla at the dais, and tried to ignore the fact Tearlach was fawning all over her and she seemed to enjoy it. She probably only acted that way to spite him, and he had to admit it was working.

“I’m so happy to have ye here me dear, and canna wait until we’re married.” Tearlach sat down next to Kyla and reached over and pinched her on the bottom. Kyla jerked upright and her eyes opened wide and Ian had to stop himself from jumping up and attacking the man right there surrounded by all his warriors. Ian’s hound let out a low growl from his side.

“MacKeefe, I dinna like yer hound at the table,” said Tearlach. “Put it outside right away.”

“Me hound stays with me.”

“If it growls at me again, I’ll slit its throat,” warned Tearlach.

“Kyle, come here, boy,” Ian said, getting the dog to lie down under the table. “Me hound is guid at readin’ people, thet’s all.”

“And I’m guid at realizin’
when someone disna like me. I thought ye’d be smart enough te ferget aboot the past already and come join me again as part o’ me army.”

“Och, this food looks guid,” said Kyla, interrupting, and for that Ian was glad. He stayed quiet for the rest of the meal, amazed at how elaborate the food was for such a supposedly humble clan.

They had stuffed swan with the feathers reattached, something only seen on the tables of barons or earls. And they were served the white bread of the wealthy instead of the flat bannock bread served at the MacKeefe camp. Next came courses of quail eggs wrapped in steamed kale, and sweet meats, as well as boar’s head surrounded by quince and spiced apples and dates. And there was even his favorite meal in all the world, haggis, and more of it then he’d ever seen in his life. Although, it couldn’t compare to the haggis Kyla always made him. She had a wonderful talent for cooking.

The
beverages consisted of heather flavored ale and apple spiced mulled wine. The only thing that he didn’t care for, was their piss poor excuse for a good whisky.

The wine bearer came by
just then to fill the cups, but handed Kyla a cup already filled.

“What’s this?” Ian heard her ask Tearlach.

“Let’s jest say thet is a special wine fer me bride-te-be.”

He wasn’t really paying attention until he heard Kyla saying something that surprised him.

“Ye are so handsome, me laird.”

He almost choked on his food, thinking she was
just trying to make him jealous again. Well, it wasn’t going to work this time. He didn’t even look over to her.

“Have s
ome more wine,” he heard Tearlach saying. And from the corner of his eye he saw her take a big swig. Then she said something else Ian didn’t like.

“Can I sit on yer lap?” she asked Tearlach.