Tempted

by Virginia Henley

  Since Stirling was the strongest fortress in Scotland, the king used it to call together all his chiefs who had mustered their clans to swear the oath of fealty. A total of fifteen earls, five bishops, and a score of lords and chiefs gathered to give James Stewart the oath. Each noble placed his hands between the king’s and swore into his service their lives, their goods, and the lives and goods of their clans and liegemen.

  Beautiful spring weather returned to Scotland, and with it came a reprieve. Henry Tudor sailed his army across the Channel preparatory to making war on France. In Scotland, a joyous relief pervaded every county. City and country dwellers alike wanted to push thoughts of war from the forefront of their minds and celebrate the lovely short summer.

  A few shrewd and astute nobles knew war with England had only been postponed. King James Stewart, the Earl of Angus, and Ramsay Douglas in particular knew of Henry Tudor’s naked ambition. He would use any method—conquest, assassination, intrigue, or bribery—to gain control of Scotland. The English nobility, like their king, were power-hungry, waiting like jackals to swallow the kingdom.

  Ram left Edinburgh Castle with his usual complement of forty moss-troopers. They made it to Douglas in just over two hours. The guard on the walls had alerted Tina of the Black Ram’s return, and she ran up to their chamber and out upon the parapet walk, waving a silken Douglas banner so that he would see her from a great distance. By the time he reached the bailey, she was running down the outside pentice staircase.

  Ram vaulted from Ruffian’s back and caught her in his arms, anxious for the clinging to begin. He kissed her over and over. “My honeypot, how I’ve missed ye.”

  She was vividly radiant. The setting sun turned her flaming curls to molten red-gold. In his arms her golden eyes turned to smoky amber, and he knew himself the luckiest man alive. Tina was weak with the nearness of him. She did not see the sweat and dust of the hard ride—all she saw was the dark Scot, towering above her with his magnificent weatherbeaten face. His body was as hard as rough-hewn granite.

  “I love you, Ram,” she said breathlessly.

  He swung her about, then set her feet to the ground and bent her backward, kissing her as she’d never been kissed before. “Ye’ll marry me, vixen—I’m yer destiny!”

  Tina’s eyes sparkled with love and pride. She would never tame him. It was so typical that he told her she’d wed him, rather than ask, but she was so far gone in love, she could deny him no longer.

  Ram held her in one strong arm, and before his dark, hardened men-at-arms he called to Jock, “Fetch the priest from St. Bride’s church—and hurry.” The deafening Douglas war cry echoed off the castle walls, and the Boozer, loping over the drawbridge from his daily hunt in the woods, launched himself at the embracing couple who meant more to him than any other humans on earth.

  Ram and his men stabled their mounts. They all preferred to care for their own animals rather than leave them to the grooms. Tina stayed at Ram’s side while he unsaddled Ruffian and gave him a rubdown. Before they left the stable, they went along to look at Indigo.

  Tina gasped when she saw her beautiful mare was lying in her straw. Ram spoke to the head stableman to learn if aught was amiss with the prized mare, but he reported no problems before today Ram went on his knees in the straw and ran his hands over Indigo’s sleek, satin belly. “I think she’s near her time. It feels like she’ll foal soon.”

  When Tina stroked her neck and spoke soft words to her, the mare responded and managed to get on her feet. A frown marred Ram’s brow. She was such a finely bred Barbary, she might easily have trouble birthing a colt sired by Ruffian He kept his fears to himself, but told the groom to watch her closely and call him if she showed signs of going into labor.

  They emerged from the stables into the courtyard when Jock returned with the Douglas priest.

  “Marry us where we stand before the vixen changes her mind,” directed Hotspur. His energy was barely contained, and she saw the muscle flex in his jaw and wondered if he’d be able to stand still long enough for the priest to say the words over them.

  Every man and woman in the castle came out into the bailey to witness the joining of Lord Douglas and his woman. Valentina pretended outrage. “Aren’t you even going to bathe first, you barbarian?”

  He leered down at her, feeling the surge of his own pulse. “We’ll do that together. It will be your first duty as Lady Douglas.” He clamped her to his side as the priest raised his voice.

  “We are gathered together in the sight o’ God and in the face o’ this congregation to join together this mon an’ this woman in holy matrimony, which holy estate Christ adorned and beautified wi’ his presence, an’ therefore is no’ by any tae be enterprised, nor taken in hand, unadvisedly, lightly or wantonly; but reverently, discreetly, advisedly, soberly, and in the fear o’ God. I require an’ charge ye both, as ye will answer at the dreadful day o’ judgment, when the secrets of all hearts shall be disclosed, that if either o’ ye know any impediment why ye may no’ be lawfully joined together in matrimony, ye do now confess it. Wilt thou have this woman tae thy wedded wife? Wilt thou love her, comfort her, honor, and keep her, in sickness an’ in health; and forsaking all other, keep thee only untae her, so long as ye both shall live?”

  “I will,” Ram Douglas pledged solemnly.

  “Wilt thou have this mon tae thy wedded husband? Wilt thou obey him and serve him, love, honor, and keep him, in sickness and in health; and forsaking all other, keep thee only untae him, so long as ye both shall live?”

  “I will,” Tina Kennedy said clearly.

  “Who giveth this woman tae be married tae this mon?”

  A long silence followed the question and none stepped forward. Finally Mr. Burque decided to take the honors upon himself, to the accompaniment of a great cheer.

  “I, Ramsay Neal Douglas, take thee Valentina tae my wedded wife, tae have and tae hold from this day forward, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, tae love and tae cherish till death us do part, and thereto I plight thee my troth.”

  Tina’s eyes widened as he produced a wedding ring from the recesses of his leather jack. “With this ring I thee wed, with my body I thee honor, and with all my worldly goods I thee endow.”

  Tina repeated the vows. The priest declared them wed. “It is my pleasure to gi’ ye the new Lady Douglas,” he said

  The rough borderers had been waiting for this moment. They picked up both bride and groom and carried them laughing into the castle hall with cries of “A bedding! A bedding!”

  Ram managed to extract himself from his moss-troopers. He stood on the dais and held up his arms. “No way! I’m the one who’ll do the bedding. Break out the casks, and enjoy yerselves!” The men protested when the couple tried to leave, but Ram told them firmly, “I have tae fulfill my vow. Did I no’ promise tae honor her wi’ my body?”

  When Valentina heard his outrageous promise, she picked up her skirts and ran. He gave her no quarter, pursuing her ruthlessly until she lay imprisoned beneath his powerful body in the center of their huge bed.

  Damaris and Alexander had watched Ramsay’s homecoming reception with delight. They both agreed that these two vital people had been made for each other. They were almost dizzy at the speed with which the marriage ceremony had been performed, but they also had a feeling that this was right, this was meant to be. The clans of Kennedy and Douglas were at last joined in a blood-bond that would produce magnificent sons and daughters.

  Damaris’s hand lay in Alexander’s. “This is a perfect ending to the story of Tina and Ram, yet it isn’t the end, it’s just the beginning.”

  Alex squeezed her hand. “It’s the end of our story, my love. We should be moving on.”

  “Oh, Alex, we cannot leave them alone. War is threatening, and what about when Tina tries to carry another child?”

  “Sweetheart, we can’t live their lives for them. I too want tae stay until I know the outcome o’ the war, but our ti
me here is over. This is their time, no’ ours.”

  “Alex, I’m afraid,” Damaris said.

  “I’ll be wi’ ye, lass. We’ll go together.”

  His eyes glittered with wicked amusement. “Ye trust me, dinna ye?”

  Damaris flushed. She hadn’t trusted him for sixteen years, then she had learned that her love had not been misplaced after all. Trust was what love was all about. She reached up on tiptoe to brush her lips against his. “I trust you, husband. I cannot trust you with my life, but I can trust you with my soul.”

  “Come up tae the parapets wi’ me,” Alex urged.

  Damaris searched his face. Neither of them had ever ventured out upon the parapet walk since that fateful night so long ago.

  “There’s nothing tae fear, beloved. Trust me.”

  Silently the wraiths ascended to the castle ramparts. “It doesn’t seem very inviting, this other world,” Damaris said with trepidation. “Will it be Heaven or Hell?”

  “Perhaps neither, but it is the final test of our faith and our love for each other,” Alex assured her.

  “You are so valiant, so brave. What must I do?” He could hear the faint tremor in her voice.

  “Simply step off the edge into the void of infinity, or remain behind without me forever.”

  “Oh no!” she cried, and ran from him back into Castle Dangerous.

  Alexander’s heart contracted. He had fully believed she loved him enough to join him in the long journey. Why had he not been able to convince her? He knew without a shadow of a doubt that the sixteen-year delay could not be prolonged. Alex was filled with a sadness greater than he had ever experienced. How many more years would Damaris be condemned before she realized she had no choice but to move forward? It was the final truth each one of us must acknowledge—we must go forward. It was so unbelievably cold up on the ramparts all alone, but Alex knew he must go without her.

  Suddenly he saw her floating toward him with her beloved cat in her arms. She laughed up into his dark face. “I couldn’t go without Folly!”

  Alexander’s heart soared. He took her hand and hoped they would be together throughout eternity.

  Ram was naked, Tina wore a silken nightgown. They knelt upon the wide bed, molded together from lips to hips. “Tell me again that ye love me,” he demanded. “It took ye far too long tae admit it.”

  “I love and adore you, you devil-eyed Douglas!” Tina hugged to herself the knowledge that she was again carrying his child. She would keep the secret awhile longer. She was dizzy with relief that he had insisted upon marrying her before she’d told him of the child. This way she was secure in the knowledge that he loved her and wanted her for his own and not just for the heir she would give him.

  A low knock came upon the chamber door, and with an oath he flung it wide, indifferent to his naked state. A stableboy stood with Ada, his face beet red. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

  Ada said, “Indigo has gone into labor.”

  “I’ll be right down,” Ram said to the stableboy.

  “You mean we will be right down,” Tina asserted, slipping a fur cloak over her nightdress.

  Ram threw on chausses, but didn’t bother with a shirt. They hurried out to the huge stables, the Boozer close upon their heels. The mare was extremely restless and voiced her apprehension with a plaintive whicker. Ram again ran his hands over the animal.

  “Barbarys are very highly strung and nervous. The colt hasn’t shifted down much yet. I think we’re in for a long night, wife.”

  Tina soothed the mare by talking to her quietly. Their presence seemed to have an immediate effect as the horse quieted. Ram made them a bed in the next stall with fragrant hay, and they lay close together with her fur over them to wait out the vigil. The Boozer lay at their feet with his nose upon his great silver paws.

  “I never expected tae spend my wedding night playing midwife,” he said, enfolding one strong arm about her

  “You are doing this for me because you know how much I care for her. I think that is very gallant and also very romantic.” Her fingers threaded through the thick curls on his chest, loving the feel of him and the smell of him. In the fragrant hay he was intoxicating! Ram’s lips brushed her temple “The truth is I’m no’ gallant at all tae wed ye just before I go tae war. I’m selfish!”

  “But surely the threat of war is diminished now England is fighting France?”

  He was silent for a few minutes, then murmured, “I know better. Jamie Stewart will fight.”

  “I hear a note of regret in your voice,” she said softly.

  “I think it’s ill advised. I’ve always believed in force. I believe in swift and terrible retaliation for any assault by an enemy, but I believe this time we should remain in Scotland and concentrate upon making our borders invincible. James has done right tae muster the clans and gather this great army, but I believe the show of power is all that’s necessary.”

  “You think he’ll take the army into England?” she asked with disbelief.

  He didn’t answer her question. Instead he said, “I could kick myself for wasting so much time wi’ you. There are so many places I want tae take ye, so many things I want tae show ye.”

  She snuggled close. “Tell me, tell me about every one of them.”

  “I’d like tae take ye north wi’ me when I go for the wild horses. It’s primeval in the forests of the Highlands, as if time began there. It has an otherworldly quality about it— silent, majestic, shrouded in mist. The animals are so wild and free, it breaks your heart tae separate them.

  “We could spend a year traveling about Douglas strongholds. I want ye tae see Tantallon. It’s something special. It’s all pink sandstone spires on a cliff overlooking the sea. Even more spectacular than Tantallon is Dunbar Castle. The fortress is erected atop stacks of naked rock, rising in columns from the sea, all linked together by bridgelike covered corridors of masonry. ‘Tis the most curious thing ye’ve ever seen.”

  “It sounds intimidating,” she ventured.

  “Only tae an enemy,” he assured her. “I’d love tae take ye tae the Isle of May out in the Firth of Forth. ‘Tis fearsome in winter, but on a summer’s day the North Sea slaps against the sheer, serrated cliffs, and ye feel like a god at the top of the world. ‘Tis uninhabited by man, and thousands of puffins and kittiwakes swirl about yer head, totally unafraid. In the spring there’s hundreds of gray seal pups born there. The rock pools in the crevices can be an inch deep or twelve feet. The king often uses it as a retreat. You’d like it. It’s almost a mystical, spiritual experience.”

  They came up from their bed of fragrant hay together as Indigo screamed. Tina went to her head. “Easy, easy, my beautiful girl,” she soothed. Ram felt the position of the foal. “It has moved right down. She’s presenting a leg.”

  Tina could see his brows creased with worry. “Is that bad?”

  “Just one hind leg isn’t good,” he said low, taking it firmly into his hands and pressing it back inside the mare. Indigo’s eyes rolled wildly, then she began to pant and a sheen of sweat covered her purple coat.

  Tina took a warm Douglas plaid to cover her, while Ram filled a leather bucket so she could have a drink. Ram eased the mare’s pain by massaging her belly with long, firm strokes. He kept it up for most of, an hour, then finally Indigo went down in the straw, unable to stand on her quivering legs any longer.

  “Ram, do something,” Tina begged. “If it’s too big to come, put her out of her misery.”

  “Nay, Vixen, we won’t give up that quick.” He laid a length of rope across his knees, then gently eased a hand inside the swollen mare. After what seemed like hours, Ram finally gave a satisfied grunt and Tina saw his hand emerge holding two tiny hooves. With infinite patience he tried over and over to loop the rope about the small back legs and tighten it without doing irreparable damage. Tina marveled how such large, callused hands could perform the delicate maneuvers required to gain a firm hold on the elusive, slippery colt.
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  She talked to the mare ceaselessly, stroking her velvet nose, and craning her neck to watch Ram perform a miracle. He was a naturally strong man, but it took every ounce of that strength to bring forth Indigo’s foal He struggled for another full hour, then finally with a great whoosh the offspring came into the world, encased inside a great membrane. Ram acted quickly to free the foal’s nose and mouth so it could breathe, and Indigo was up on her legs, nuzzling her baby before Ram could remove the rope. He cleaned the little creature with handfuls of straw, and they watched with fascinated delight as it tried to stand up on its long, wobbly legs. “It’s a male!” Ram shouted triumphantly.

  “Oh, he’s beautiful!” cried Tina. “What will we call him?”

  “How about Hazard?” Ram asked with a laugh.

  Tina sat back in the hay to watch the dam and her foal, while Ram washed in the horse trough and dried himself with a Douglas tartan. Valentina’s face was radiant as she lifted it to look up at Ram. “That was a spiritual experience.”

  “Rubbish—it was bloody hard work!” he exclaimed. A wicked light came into his dark face as he eyed her appreciatively in the hay. “I’ll give ye a spiritual experience!” He dived into the hay, sending a million dust motes into the air. Before she had been thoroughly kissed, a stranger appeared to stand looking down at them as they cavorted.

  “Lord Douglas?” he asked almost hesitantly.

  “Aye,” came the impatient reply.

  “I’ve a message from the king, my lord.”

  Ram sighed and slowly got to his feet. His embarrassed bride tried to sink into the shadows. Ram held out his hand for the message and admonished with a stern face, “Don’t let on tae Lady Douglas I was rolling in the hay wi’ a comely wench.”