Highland Promise: The Daughters of Clan Drummond

by Marks, Stephanie

  “Well then at least this marriage will be of some use to ye.”

  “If it comes to war, her father’s men are about the only use I have for her,” Liam said bitterly, trying to erase the image of her that floated across his mind.

  “She’s quite bonny.” Iain offered him the bottle of whiskey but Liam knew better than to drink any more that night. Riding with a splitting headache and a weak stomach after a night of too much spirits was something he wanted to avoid.

  “Bonny or no, I've no use for a wife,” Liam told him.

  Iain chuckled and shook his head. “I'm sure I could think of a few uses for her.”

  “Ye’re welcome to her then.” Liam put his cup down on the low stone wall and turned to head back into the keep. “Be packed and ready to go by first light,” he called over his shoulder. “Be sure the men know we will be leaving after breakfast. I am not going to spend another night under Laird Drummond’s roof.”

  Chapter 6

  Three days. Catriona shifted in the saddle, rocking gently from left to right and tried to release some of the tension in her lower back. Three days on horseback, but it was beginning to feel like three years.

  Every muscle in her body ached. With each step her horse took, she was educated in new parts of her body of which she was previously unaware. Who knew those parts were even able to be sore? Spending the last two nights sleeping on the cold, hard ground had certainly not helped matters. And the tender bruise above her hip when she arose that morning was evidence that she must have rolled over and passed the better part of the night on top of a very hard rock.

  Catriona scowled and bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself from screaming.

  She and her sisters rarely traveled, but on the few occasions that they had, it had been much more comfortable, and had happened with considerably more planning. Never in her life would she have imagined herself sleeping out under the stars surrounded by the grunts and snores of men she hardly knew, with little more than her earasaid between her and the ground. The large woolen wrap, though favorable for warding off the cool night air, had done very little to soften the feel of the stony earth beneath her.

  Laird MacDonell had not been exaggerating when he told her that they would be leaving on the morning after the wedding. She had only been allowed a few scant hours to pack her things, and had barely a moment to take in a few mouthfuls of breakfast before it had been time for her to say her tearful farewells.

  The rest of her possessions were to be packed up and sent to her at the earliest opportunity, but for now she was expected to make do with little more than a few gowns and combs for dressing her hair. He had not even had the grace to allow her time to have a handmaid to accompany her. She prayed that there would be someone suitable for the position among his servants for her to choose from, otherwise she would have to beg her father to let her former maid make the journey to Invergarry Castle along with the rest of her possessions.

  Catriona had hoped that once the two of them were away from her father, she and Laird MacDonell might get a chance to come to some type of peace, but she had obviously been a fool to hope for such a thing.

  After spending this time with him on the road, it was clear to her now that her new husband was a man of ill humor, and his clansmen were no better. Laird MacDonell had spent the last three days barking orders at his men, and they in turn had leveled at her such looks of contempt that she had begun to both long for and dread the journey’s end.

  Never in her life had she felt more despised. The only one of The MacDonell clansmen to show her even a hint of kindness was, inexplicably, the Laird’s own younger brother, Iain.

  It was he, instead of her new husband, who brought her food, helped her with her bed roll, and assisted her with dismounting her horse. While the other men actively ignored her, Iain was quick with a smile and a joke to help lift her spirits. Catriona was certain that if it had not been for him, the journey to her new home would have been completely unbearable.

  Catriona glanced over to where Iain rode next to her; a welcome buffer that stood between her and the unyielding man she had been forced to wed. The two brothers were similar in height, though Liam was more broad in stature. But where Liam’s eyes were hard and cold when he looked at her, Iain’s always seemed to sparkle with humor and mischief.

  She couldn't help but wish that it had been Iain’s bedchamber her father had caught her in. He seemed like the kind of man who would have allowed her to say her piece and would have forgiven her for her part in the unfortunate situation.

  But Iain was not the man to which she had been wed, and no amount of wishing would make it so. She knew that dwelling on the impossible was not going to make her situation any easier.

  Catriona watched as Laird MacDonell pulled ahead, and she scowled at his back. If the past three days had taught her anything, it was that the man was either determined to make her life miserable, or thought so little about her that she could ride her horse off the nearest cliff and he would never notice. Never before had she met a man so inconsiderate and unyielding.

  “We are almost home, my lady,” said Iain, pulling her from her thoughts. “See the castle, there?”

  The thought of being able to climb down from her horse made the castle a welcome sight, and judging by the distance, it was only about an hour’s ride away. But in no way did it feel like she was arriving home.

  “Your home, perhaps,” she told him, “but not mine.”

  “Aye, yours as well. It may not seem like it now, but ye’ll come to love it in time.”

  “How can anyplace possibly feel like home when you are hated and shunned there?”

  Iain followed her gaze to where Liam was riding ahead, and his smiled slipped a notch.

  “Our people will not shun nor despise ye,” he said gently.

  “Why not, when it is so plain to see that their Laird does? Why should they respect me when he does not? None of the men riding with us do. Look around us, and ye’ll see the truth of it.”

  “My brother can be difficult at times, I'll not be denying that. But I ask that ye be patient with him. He had never planned to wed again, so all of this comes as a shock to him. Give him time to come around to the idea of being married.”

  Catriona eyed her husband’s back curiously. “He was wed before?”

  Iain frowned and nodded, and Catriona noticed the usual openness and cheer had left his eyes. “Aye, he was.”

  When Iain did not say anymore, Catriona became even more curious.

  “What was she like? Did he love her?” she asked. It was hard to picture Laird MacDonell as a loving husband, young and in love. What had happened to his first wife? Did he love her still? She stared at Liam, as countless questions tumbled through her mind. But one stood out among them all, what kind of woman must she have been to be able to capture his heart?

  “If you want to know anything about my brother’s first wife, ye’re going to have to ask him. I’m sorry, lass, but that’s for him alone to tell.”

  Catriona wanted to press him for more details but knew that it would be of no use. Iain would not betray his brother’s confidence simply to satisfy her curiosity.

  “I dinna want him to hate me,” she whispered.

  Catriona could feel the tears beginning to well up in her eyes, and she quickly looked away from Iain so that he would not see. She did not want him to think her foolish or weak. And she did not trust that he would not tell his brother about it. She had her pride. She would not let her husband know just how deeply his ill treatment had affected her. If he would not even speak to her, and all he wanted was a cold and empty marriage, then that was exactly what he would get.

  Invergarry Castle was smaller than her father’s home, but still large and solidly built. A tight ball formed in Catriona’s stomach as their party rode up to the keep and dismounted. The clansmen in the courtyard waved and cheered at their Laird’s return, and Catriona suddenly felt as though she were surrounded. There was not a si
ngle familiar face in the crowd, and it struck her. She was alone.

  Catriona watched the men dismount and waited patiently for Iain to come help her down, but when she looked around at the crowd, she could no longer see him.

  “Give me yer hand, my lady.”

  Catriona turned, surprised to find Laird MacDonell standing next to her horse with his hand out waiting to assist her.

  “I… Thank you, Laird MacDonell.” She reached out hesitantly toward him, not entirely certain that he would not simply drop her on the ground when she least expected it. But he grasped her firmly by the waist and lifted her down off the horse in large, sure hands. He held her close, and her body slid along his until her feet were firmly on the ground. Every inch of her was going up in flames in the places where their bodies connected. They had not touched since their wedding night when he had carried her up to her bedchamber, and feeling the hard planes of his body brush against her now sent a bolt of excitement through her.

  He did not release her immediately, and Catriona kept her hands pressed to his chest while she struggled to get her jagged breathing under control, without him noticing the effect that his touch had on her. But her mind struggled to comply, as focused as it was on the sensation of his strong hands gripping her waist.

  She looked up into his face, and her heart sped up as he looked down at her. For the first time since the first night they had met, his eyes were not filled with anger at the sight of her, but instead, curiosity.

  “Laird MacDonell,” she said at last, her throat tight, “you may release me now.”

  She watched as his face clouded over, and he stepped back from her as if burned. Catriona wanted to kick herself. It was the first pleasant moment the two of them had shared, and she had somehow ruined it.

  “Follow me, and I’ll show ye to yer chamber,” he said gruffly, and led her inside the keep.

  Catriona tried to ignore the curious looks of the castle inhabitants as her husband led her through the hallways of the main keep and up to the bedchambers.

  “Ye can have the chamber next to mine, for now. ’Tis the lady’s chamber and has a connecting door to my own. Ye may keep it bolted or not, as ye like,” he told her. He kept his voice light, and his face told her nothing of what he was feeling.

  “Am I not to sleep in the same chamber as ye?” she asked, confused.

  “Do ye really want to, lass?” he scoffed softly.

  Catriona winced at the harshness in his voice, and admitted to herself that, no, she did not want to have to share a bed with this man. She cursed her earlier foolishness. How could her body react in such a way to someone she barely knew and who had nothing but contempt for her? Well, if he was not going to force himself on her, then she would gladly accept the blessing that she had been given.

  “Thank ye, Laird MacDonell. This room will be fine.”

  She knew the moment the words were out of her mouth that she had somehow misspoken. His back straightened, and he was once again the cold indifferent man from before.

  “I will send up what ye brought with ye today and make sure yer things are delivered to ye as soon as they arrive from yer father’s home. No doubt yer tired from the long trip, so if ye’ll excuse me, I have affairs to see to. Welcome to Invergarry Castle, Lady MacDonell.”

  He gave her a sharp bow and left her to fend for herself.

  Chapter 7

  Liam looked down at the pages of clan ledgers spread out before him and tried to focus on the thin columns. The numbers blurred on the page, and he sighed, slamming the ledger book shut and shoving the loose pages on his desk away from him in disgust. He could not focus with his mind constantly wandering to his new wife.

  There was a sharp rapping on his study door and he looked up, but before Liam could answer, his youngest brother Alex stormed in, followed slowly by Iain.

  “I doubt he is wanting to be disturbed,” said Iain with a sigh.

  “If what ye told me is true, then he is already disturbed,” Alex snapped over his shoulder.

  Liam sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. “So, Iain told ye, then.”

  “Aye, he told me. He told me that ye went and got yerself a wife that ye cannot even stand to look at, much less speak to.”

  Liam looked at Iain, surprised. “Ye told him that?”

  Iain shrugged and dropped into one of the chairs across from Liam and rested his boots up on the corner of the large desk with one ankle crossed over the other.

  “He was bound to find out sooner or later. Ye dinna make much of an effort to hide yer dislike of the lass.”

  “Why would he like her? By the sounds of it she and her father tricked him into this. She sounds no better than Fiona.”

  “Alex…” Iain warned.

  “Well is she?” Alex challenged him.

  Iain nodded thoughtfully, “I think she is. And our brother would learn that for himself if he only gave the lass the chance to prove it.”

  “I gave her a chance, and she proved she wants naught to do with me,” Liam said, flatly.

  “Ye did?” said Iain, surprised. “When?”

  “When I showed her to her chambers. I gave her a choice of sleeping in her own chamber or in mine and she chose to sleep in her own. The lass wants nothing to do with me.”

  Iain burst out laughing and shook his head.

  “What?” Liam glared at him.

  “Ye gave the lass a choice to be free from yer obvious dislike of her, and ye’re surprised that she leapt at yer offer? Tell me, how quickly would you want to share a bed with someone that obviously hates ye? Yer distrust of the lass is making ye stupid Liam. The two of ye are in for a hard road if ye keep at it like this.”

  Iain stood and wiped the tears of laughter from his eyes.

  “Yer a great leader and chief, brathaire, but ye’ve no idea how to romance a woman. The lass is all alone here. Unless ye really do want to spend the rest of your life suspicious of yer wife, I suggest ye at least try to get to know her. Who knows? Ye may actually find ye like her.”

  “This is madness,” said Alex.

  “Perhaps,” said Iain, “but it is also too late to do anything about it.”

  Liam pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to suppresses the pain which was beginning to blossom in his forehead. “Do neither one of ye have anything better to do with yer time than harass me about the grim prospects of my marriage?”

  “We do, in fact, have more pressing matters to discuss.” Alex placed a pile of letters down in from of Liam and tapped the top page. “I received more reports of reaving along the border. They seem to me moving inward. Someone is attacking us, Liam, and something must be done.”

  Liam picked up the pile of reports and read through the top three before he sat back in his chair and threw the letters down in disgust. The thefts were happening more frequently. His brother was right, something was going to have to be done. If the farmers did not believe Liam could protect them, he would lose their respect and the respect of the rest of the clan.

  “And still not a single witness,” Liam growled in frustration.

  Alex shook his head.

  “All right. Alex I trust you to organize the patrols. I want these men caught and brought to me for questioning. I want to put a swift end to this. After three weeks it has gone on far too long. Ride out tomorrow. I am trusting ye to hunt these thieves down and bring them back to me so that they may meet justice.”

  “I will take care of it,” said Alex. “Consider it done.”

  Liam stood and walked around the desk then placed a hand on Alex's shoulder and squeezed it tightly. I know ye will, brathair beag.” At only twenty years, Liam’s little brother was still filled with the exuberance of youth that Liam felt he himself had lost long ago. He knew that Alex wanted to prove himself a man in the eyes of his elder brothers and his chief. Sometimes it was hard for Liam to be one and the same. While Liam had responsibilities to The MacDonell clan, he also wanted to ensure that his brothers kne
w that he was always proud of them.

  Their parents had died when Liam was only three and twenty. It was not long after his ill-fated marriage to Fiona. Some said that Liam had inherited the leadership of the clan too young, but for the past five years, The MacDonell’s of Glengarry had prospered under his guidance. He was not about to let it all fall to ruin now.

  “Come on. This will all be here waiting for us after supper.” said Iain. “I'm hungry, and I look forward to sleeping in my own bed tonight.” Iain eyed Liam slyly. “Now would be a fine time for ye to try to make peace with yer wife.”

  Liam scowled. “I highly doubt she wants much to do with me, Iain. I dinna doubt that if I were to invite her to dine with us this evening she would decline just to spite me. Perhaps ye could…”

  Iain let out a weary sigh. “Christ almighty, Liam. Ye’d think ye were a green lad still in the schoolroom the way ye’re carrying on. But aye, I'll go fetched yer wife for ye since ye’ve asked so nicely. Otherwise she's likely to starve.”

  “I have no plans to starve the lass,” Liam grumbled.

  “Maybe not, but it's plain to see that if it were left up to ye, the lass would probably still starve all the same.”

  Chapter 8

  Liam sat at the head table with the seat directly to the left of him conspicuously empty. Normally that was the seat Alex would occupy, but his youngest brother had vacated the position for Catriona. It may have been an empty gesture though, as Liam's new bride had still not arrived.

  He glanced around the room and caught sight of Iain entering the great hall. His brother approached the head table slowly, the apprehension clear on his face.

  “Where is she?” Liam asked him.

  Iain hesitated for a moment before admitting, “She refuses to come down.”

  “What do you mean she refused to come down?” Liam’s fingers tapped out an impatient tattoo on the tabletop next to his wine glass.