“You weren’t too hard on her last night I hope, son,” Laird Fraser said.
“I don’t think so, Da,” he replied. “She’s had some problems accepting this marriage and all the changes in her life. Hopefully, last night helped her understand a few things.”
“What things?” Owen asked speaking up, somewhat worried about his sister. “She’s been so unlike herself since the wedding, I’ve been worried about her.”
“Don’t worry, Owen,” he said. “She’s fine. We also discussed her treatment of her brothers. The only person she’s been herself with since arriving is you, Da. I don’t understand why though.”
“That’s easy to explain,” Owen said. “Your Da has been so accepting and kind to her. Our Da loves her, but he’s never known what to do with her. He usually just makes sure she has what she needs and avoids her.”
“How could any father treat his daughter that way?” Caiden Fraser asked. “Especially such a lovely young girl like Jacqueline.”
“Truthfully, I think she reminds him too much of our mither. I don’t really remember her either, but my oldest brothers have told me how much our Da loved her,” Owen explained.
“Then having her should have been a blessing and comforted him,” Caiden said.
“He was never cruel to her,” Owen said in defense of his Da. “My brothers and I would have never allowed that, he just didn’t really have anything to do with her growing up. I’m not saying it’s right, it’s just how things were done.”
“So who took care of her and raised her?” Fiona asked.
“There was always a nurse and maids around to teach her woman things. But Eadan made sure she could shoot a bow, the rest of us made sure she could defend herself with a dirk and ride a horse. I hate to admit it, but we’ve probably spoiled her rotten being the only girl in the bunch,” Owen told Fiona.
“It was just Connor and me growing up,” Fiona said, “but I also had Da.”
“Jacqueline always had one of us around,” Owen said, once again defending his family. “We all love her very much.”
“That’s good to know,” Caiden told him, “but I for one am going to make sure she knows how much we want her to be here, and part of our family.”
“Thank you, Laird Fraser,” Owen said. “You have no idea how good that makes me feel knowing you care for my sister already. I’m off to train.”
“Remember what I told you, Owen McCabe,” the Laird yelled after him. “You’re family now, so you belong at the head table for meals.”
Owen grinned and nodded, continuing on his way to the training fields. Plus, he had plans to make and needed to find ways to sneak away every hour or so.
Jacqueline spent the first hour of the morning talking with some of the women Fiona thought would be appropriate for her personal maid. The first three were not overly friendly, although they answered her questions, they never smiled or made any friendly conversation. It wasn’t until the fourth, and final girl named Edith came in, that Jacqueline knew she had found the right girl for the job.
“Why are you being so nice to me, Edith?” Jacqueline asked, a little suspicious.
“Can I be honest with you, Lady Jacqueline?” Edith asked, and Jacqueline nodded. “We have something in common,” Edith said grinning, “Catherine hates us both.”
Jacqueline laughed at her answer and asked, “why does she hate you?”
“Fiona, Catherine and I all grew up together. When we were girls, Catherine tried so hard to get Fiona to like her best and to hate me. Fiona saw right through her schemes though, and the two of us were very close growing up.”
“You were allowed to play with the laird’s daughter?” Jacqueline asked. Her Da had never allowed such a thing.
“My mother was a maid here in the castle. Laird Fraser
used to ask her to bring me so that Fiona would have someone to play with,” Edith told her. “We were very close growing up, and still are.”
“Would you like to be my maid, Edith?” Jacqueline asked her. “And my friend? I could use one here in Tarmon.”
“I would love to, Lady Jacqueline,” Edith said smiling back at her.
“You know I am confined to my quarters today, but you can start first thing tomorrow morning,” Jacqueline told her.
“I’ll be starting this afternoon by bringing you a tray for lunch, My Lady,” Edith said.
“Thank you, Edith, I’ll see you this evening then,” Jacqueline told her as she got up to leave. As Edith left, Jacqueline couldn’t help but smile although it didn’t last long.
As the morning wore on Jacqueline thought more and more about the way she’d treated her brothers. She realized she had been so unfair to them all. Although every one of them, with the exception of James, at one time or other put her across their knee, had always shown her how much they loved her. She couldn’t believe how horrible she’d been to them all.
She missed them all so much, especially at a time like this. Jacqueline had been confined to her quarters many times in her life, but one thing had always been able to get her through her punishment. Every hour on the hour a rock would always come sailing through her bedroom window with a note from one of them. They never missed an hour. She would miss that. She was sitting at the desk in the bedroom when the first rock came through the window. She went over and picked it up. Sure enough, there was a tiny piece of paper tied around it. She undid the string and unraveled the paper.
Did you think I’d forget little sister? O
She read and couldn’t help but smile. Owen hadn’t forgotten her. She was so happy even though she knew he would never be able to get a note to her every hour as the brothers had at Gleann. She was surprised an hour later when the next rock came through the window. Once again she untied the string and read.
Behave yourself today; I miss seeing your smile! O
Jacqueline laughed as she read it and ran to the window to see if Owen was still in sight. Of course, he wasn’t. She once again thought about the way she’d treated her brothers and knew she had to forgive them all. How could she have even thought they would let anything bad happen to her. Right on schedule, the next note came.
Just want you to know, I love you, little sister! O
Again she ran to the window and tried to spot Owen. She wanted to yell down to him that she loved him too, but he was nowhere in sight. She went back to the desk where the three small notes sat and just held them in her hand smiling at them.
Owen was in trouble, he once again made an excuse to the officer on the training field and had snuck off to throw the third note through the window. This was so much easier when it could be spread out among his brothers, but he couldn’t let his sister down. He’d tossed the rock through the window and took off running around the side of the keep when he ran right into Connor. “What are you up to?” Connor asked him.
“It’s tradition, Connor,” Owen said, trying to explain. “It’s nothing bad, I promise.”
“Explain,” Connor said.
“Whenever Jacqueline got into trouble growing up our Da would confine her to her quarters. Sometimes for a day or two. It used to make her very sad, and we would see her sit in her window watching us and crying. Eadan came up with the idea years ago. Whenever she was confined to her room, one of us would throw a rock with a note through her window every hour. We never missed one. It makes her happy. She’s been so sad since she left Gleann, I just wanted her to know I hadn’t forgotten.”
“What do these notes say?” Connor asked.
“Do you really want to know? They’re kind of personal,” Owen told him.
“I’d really like to know,” Connor said. “Do you intend to sneak out of your training every hour to get one to her?”
“That was my plan,” Owen said. “Although it hasn’t been easy to come up with excuses to leave the training field.”
“I’d like to help you,” Connor said. “Tell me what to write, and I’ll take over.”
“Nothing really, Jus
t something short. So far the first one just said ‘I bet you thought I forgot’ the second one said ‘I miss seeing your beautiful smile’ and the last one said ‘I love you, little sister’. I’m sorry if I went against your wishes but she’s been so angry with all of us, and I wanted her to know we still love her,” Owen explained.
“I’m not angry, Owen. I’m glad you did it. How about I do the next note and then you do the one after that. I’d love to be part of it,” Connor told him.
“That would be wonderful,” Owen told him thankfully. “I could use some help. There used to be anywhere from three to six of us doing it, so it was much easier to get away from our duties for a couple of minutes.”
“Get back to the training fields,” Connor said. Owen went to walk away, but Connor called out to him. “Owen, thank you for caring so much for your sister.”
“She’ll always be my little sister, Connor. Married or not, that doesn’t change,” Owen replied and walked away.
Jacqueline was ready when the next note came through the window. She was excited to see what Owen had written this time. Being confined to her room had always been difficult for her, but this tradition her brothers had started so many years before, had always made her feel special. Right on time, a rock flew through the window. Jacqueline picked it up and quickly untied the string. The first thing she noticed was that it wasn’t Owens writing, then she read it and blushed.
I enjoyed our kissing last night wife, looking forward to ‘more’ tonight. C
Her heart skipped, and she couldn’t help but smile knowing the note had been from Connor. She wondered what his more could be. She also enjoyed their kissing last night, and this morning. She was lost in her thoughts when a knock came upon her solar door.
“Da,” she said, surprised to open the door and find Connor’s father standing there.
“I came to check on you,” the Laird said. “Can I come in?”
“Connor said I’m not to have any visitors today. I’m sure he told you why,” Jacqueline told him, embarrassed to have to explain.
“I outrank Connor, so if I want to visit my new daughter I can,” he told her as he smiled at her.
“Come in, Da,” she said laughing. “Please have a seat and make yourself comfortable.”
“I just want to make sure you have everything you need, daughter,” Caiden said to her.
“I think I do,” she told him. “Edith is going to be my new maid. I liked her a lot.”
“Good. Edith is a nice girl; her mother worked here in the castle for a long time before she became ill and passed. Edith is a good choice,” he told her.
“She told me that,” Jacqueline said.
“Now let’s get down to this Catherine problem,” he said to her. “I won’t have her turning the village against my new daughter.”
“I can handle Catherine,” Jacqueline told him. “I just have to not let my temper get the best of me, like I did yesterday.”
“I did hear about that,” he said to her, although his smile gave away his humor at the situation.
“I’ll win the villagers over eventually. This is going to be my home for a long time hopefully, they’re just going to have to get to know me and learn to like me,” she said smiling back. Then jokingly told him, “if they don’t, then I guess I’ll have to challenge the men to an archery contest and earn their respect that way.”
“You’re that good?” he asked.
“Aye,” she quickly answered.
“Then I’ll leave you to figure it out,” he said and stood up. “But if you need any help, you can always come to me.”
Jacqueline felt her eyes fill with tears, she had never been treated so kindly by her own father. “Thank you,” she said and flung her arms around him.
“You and I are going to get along just fine, Jacqueline,” he said as he hugged her back. “You are very welcome here. I just want you to be happy.”
Jacqueline nodded and stepped back from him. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to do that,” she apologized.
“Sorry for what? It’s not every day I get hugged by a beautiful woman,” he laughed and told her. “I’ll let you get back to your punishment.”
“Thank you again, Da,” she said. “I do like it here so far. Well, at least in the castle.”
“You’ll win everyone over,” he said. “I know you will.”
The Laird left, and Jacqueline waited for the next note to arrive. Right on schedule, the rock landed on her bedroom floor; she was hoping it was another one from Connor and was somewhat disappointed to find it was from Owen.
Your husband caught me. He wasn’t mad. I think he loves you already. O
Jacqueline was surprised by his words. There was no way Connor loved her. Did she love him? She didn’t think so, although she didn’t hate him like she used to. In fact, she kind of liked him. Even though he had punished her quite thoroughly last night, he hadn’t been unkind. Truthfully, he reminded her of Alastair, who never let her out of a punishment or stopped one early. She sat for a long time thinking about everything Connor had said to her since their forced wedding. Time passed by quickly while she was thinking, it seemed only minutes later when the next note came through the window. She was curious to see who it was from this time.
I am certainly a lucky man to have such a kind, funny and beautiful wife. C
Did he really think she was kind and funny? They had started off well the evening before at dinner and even talked and laughed on their stroll to the village. It wasn’t until they ran into Catherine that everything had gone wrong. Beautiful? Did he really think she was beautiful? She’d always thought he was handsome, even when he used to tease her when she was younger.
Throughout the rest of the day, the notes kept coming, one from Owen and then one from Connor. Jacqueline looked forward to both. Right before it was time for the evening meal the final note fell onto the bedroom floor. Jacqueline quickly untied the string to read it.
Looking forward to having dinner, just the two of us. See you soon. C.
Jacqueline was still holding the note and smiling when Connor walked through the door with a tray filled with their supper. “Hope you’re hungry, cook got a little carried away,” he said. Then he noticed her holding the last note and the smile that seemed to be stuck on her face. “Did you have a good day, wife?”
“Considering I was stuck in my room all day it wasn’t the worst day I’ve ever had,” she answered still smiling at him. “Thank you for not getting mad at Owen.”
“I think today, it was good to carry on with the tradition,” he said. “I haven’t seen you smile like that since you got here.”
“I did a lot of thinking today,” she said.
“And did you make any decisions?” he asked.
“I did,” she said. “I’m going to give you and this marriage a chance. You’re right; I haven’t given you a fair chance.”
“I’m glad to hear that, Jacqueline,” he said. “Come sit down and eat. I have a surprise for you after dinner.”
“I haven’t sat much today,” she told him truthfully. “It’s a bit uncomfortable. What kind of a surprise?”
Connor walked over to the bed and took two of the pillows. He then placed them on her chair, “come,” he said, “see if this helps. It won’t be a surprise if I tell you. I’m starving, so come join me and let’s eat.”
Jacqueline slowly sat down, Connor was right, the pillows did help and make it tolerable to sit. She uncovered the dishes he had brought and was happy to see roasted pork, pheasant, an assortment of different cheeses, roast vegetables, and fresh bread. It all smelled wonderful, and she filled her trencher and began to eat.
“Would you like some wine?” Connor asked her.
“Aye, please.”
“So would you like to tell me what you decided today?” he asked.
“I decided you were right about a lot of things. Especially about my brothers. They would have never let me marry you if they thought you weren’t a good man.
Owen showed me today that no matter what happens, they’re still going to always be there for me,” she said.
“I agree,” he said. “That’s also why I wasn’t angry with Owen today when I caught him throwing that rock up here. I was hoping you would see that you are still special to them.”
“I don’t know what I would’ve done without them growing up,” she said.
“I only had one sister,” he told her smiling. “Eight brothers is actually a lot.”
“But you had your Da,” she said. “My Da was there, but he really never had anything to do with me unless he had to. I’m not saying he was mean to me, he just only talked to me when he had to. The nurses would tell him what I needed, and then he would make sure I got whatever they requested.”
“That’s almost sad,” he told her. “My Da was always there for both Fiona and I. He spent a lot of time with both of us growing up.”
“I know,” she sighed and told him. “I could see how close he and Fiona were as soon as I arrived here. You know what, Connor?”
“What?”
“Your Da came to see me today. I think in the seventeen years I lived in Gleann my Da was probably only in my room a few times. I only saw him at mealtimes or special occasions. He never sought me out to make sure I was alright,” she told him. Then thinking for a minute, she added, “well, I do remember once when I was much younger being very ill. I woke up, and my Da was sitting next to my bed holding my hand. He looked really sad.”
“My Da really likes you,” he told her. Then shook his head and said, “I can’t believe he came up here knowing you were confined to our rooms.”
Jacqueline couldn’t help it and laughed before telling him, “he said he’s still the laird around here, and he can go wherever he wants.”
“That’s true. I’m just glad to see you looking much happier today,” Connor said. They continued to make conversation throughout their meal and as they finished a knock sounded on the door.
“That would be your surprise. Just stay seated right there,” he told her as he went and opened the door. “Come in, set everything up in the bedroom.”
An Honest Mistake Page 6