Love Beyond Compare (Book 5 of Morna’s Legacy Series)

by Claire, Bethany

  Adwen thought of Isobel. He wished to give his new friend a magical respite, not to invite her into a dreary castle filled with restless spirits.

  “I doona care for it, whether the ghosts be beauties or no.”

  Griffith laughed at him, jerking his head so that Adwen would follow him outdoors. “I doubt there is little to be done about their presence, but ye have yer lifetime to find a way to rid yerself of them. Perhaps ye will find a way.”

  Adwen ignored Griffith’s slight mention of the wager he lost. Griffith reminded him of it every day.

  “Do ye and Da need help packing the horses?’

  “’Tis already finished. We leave as soon as ye and Callum come bid us farewell.”

  They stepped outside, each pulling their coats a little tighter as they walked. The morning held a bittersweet edge. Adwen hated to say goodbye to his father and youngest brother. Most likely, it would be years before they would be together again—their travels would be long and their destinations far away from Scotland.

  But in spite of his sadness at their departure, he found himself relieved that they would be gone when his guests arrived. At least with his father away, he would be able to fulfill his duties without the worry that every decision was met with disapproval. He would be free to do as he pleased, and his first order would be to prepare the castle for his guests.

  He couldn’t heal Isobel’s sickness, but perhaps he could bring a little joy to her heart. Willing men and women stood at the ready, prepared to start work as soon as his father and brother departed.

  At the stables, his father and Callum stood close together in conversation. Adwen stood back, allowing them their goodbyes. It would be the first time they’d not all journeyed together, and Adwen knew the separation would take its toll on all of them.

  Adwen faced Griffith and threw his arms around his youngest brother. “Ye will be a man the next time I see ye. Be sure to grow into a fine one, better than me. Become a man like Callum.”

  Griffith stepped away, his features giving nothing away. “Ye are a better man than ye know, Adwen. I know well enough that if ye’d truly wished it, ye could have found a way to win the wager. Thank ye for no doing so.”

  Their father approached, giving Adwen no time to respond to his brother’s naivety. Griffith thought too highly of him; he’d truly tried everything to win the wager. The ache he felt at its loss still drummed deep inside him.

  “I know that this is no the life ye saw for yerself, but ye will be a far better laird than I. ’Tis for that reason that I leave ye. Callum will do well by yer side.”

  With that, his father turned and left him, Griffith following shortly behind.

  Callum came to stand by his side. “He is no one for lengthy farewells.”

  Adwen nodded in agreement. “Aye, Da doesna like to speak, farewell or no. If no for our mother, I doona think we would have spoken before the age of five.”

  Callum laughed, pointing in the direction of the castle. “When do yer guests arrive?”

  “In three days time. Orick has gone to accompany them on their journey.”

  “’Twill be nice to have lassies around. Too long has passed since we had a home to host guests.”

  “Aye.” The next three days would pass at an immeasurably slow pace for Adwen. He couldn’t sleep, the anticipation building for their arrival with each passing second. He hoped Isobel would fare the journey well and that she’d been successful in convincing Jane to join them.

  “Ye must be mad for the lass to go to such great lengths to get her here.”

  Adwen was, but not for the lass Callum assumed. “The lass for whom I go to such lengths is married, but there is none so deserving as she for the gift I’ve given her.”

  “Ah, then ’tis another lass. For I know one occupies yer mind. There has no been a lass in or out of the castle since ye arrived home. Either ye are sick or ye have taken a liking to someone verra special indeed. Ye doona look ill.”

  Frustration built as it always did when he thought of Jane. Feelings didn’t suit him. And every time he thought of Jane, he felt a million things at once.

  “I am no ill, and nothing occupies my mind. Nothing ever does.” He paused and shook his head, hearing how his words sounded as Callum laughed.

  “Look at ye. She occupies yer mind so much that ye canna speak without calling yerself a silly fool. Tell me, who is she and will she be accompanying the others?”

  Adwen held back the growl that seemed to form in the back of his throat. Callum was right—she’d filled his mind far too much over the past days. Only one thing would rid her from it. He took off at a fast stride toward the stables.

  “Where are ye going, Adwen?”

  He yelled back in his brother’s direction. “To the village—there are many lassies there I have yet to bed.”

  CHAPTER 14

  The Last Day on the Road

  February 1649

  A fortnight passed between the day Isobel shared her intentions to travel to Cagair Castle and the morning we departed. At first, I refused her request to join them, but Isobel, sweet as she may appear, knew how to play dirty.

  Once Cooper knew where I spent my days away from the castle, there was no keeping him away. He would show up every afternoon for a snack and a visit. Within three days, Isobel was mad for the kid and at first opportunity asked him if he’d like to join them on their trip to Cagair Castle. She knew full well no one in the family would ever let him travel there alone without one of us to accompany him.

  Once he was aware of the trip, Cooper made it his sole mission to gain permission. The last thing he wanted was to miss out on an adventure as he had the last time we visited Cagair Castle. He’d been forced to remain at home, and he wasn’t about to let anybody forget it anytime soon.

  Still, despite his endless begging, his mother remained firm that she wouldn’t spend a month without him, and I remained hopeful that we would make it past Isobel and Gregor’s departure date without Grace caving. Then, the day before Orick was meant to arrive to escort everyone, Eoghanan saw fit to offer his two cents on the matter—damn the man straight to hell.

  The next thing I knew, Grace showed up at the inn to ask me a huge favor—to say that she’d thought it over and decided the trip might do Cooper some good since he’d felt so neglected lately with the new baby and another on the way. That maybe, it would be a good idea to just let him have this one, if he wanted it so badly. And please, oh please, would I travel with them so that she wouldn’t worry.

  And so, the journey to Cagair Castle began with me, Cooper, Isobel, and Gregor all following Orick’s sound and cautious lead. We moved slowly, taking care to make sure Isobel stayed warm and comfortable. I had to admit that the travel seemed to be doing her some good. If anything, it improved her mood greatly, and that had the positive effect of helping her feel better than she’d seemed to in a long time. Even her coughing, despite the cold wind, slowed down a little.

  It was our last day, and we only had a handful of miles to go before we arrived at the castle. We stopped by a small stream that led to the village near Cagair Castle for a quick bite of Isobel-baked-bread and dried herring.

  I anticipated my next interaction with Adwen about as much as I’d anticipate a wart growing right on the bottom of my big toe, but I knew the meeting was inevitable. I could already see just how it would go down.

  He would say something infuriating, and I would spar right back with something inappropriate. Then we would leave each other’s side with him amused by my craziness and me feeling all breathless and needy, which would only piss me off further.

  I only hoped that he wouldn’t be able to see how often I thought of him. That he wouldn’t be able to tell how my breathing grew shorter and my muscles tighter whenever he was near.

  It was my ridiculously long sex drought that caused such a reaction to him, a purely physical reaction to being annoyed by an undeniably attractive member of the opposite sex. Despite Isobel’s high pr
aises of him, I’d seen nothing to prove him to be more than a buffoon, and I doubted anything would change my mind.

  So what if I’d dreamt about how wonderful I knew he’d look shirtless and how that smooth skin would turn red as my fingernails dragged against him while he drove into me? It was a natural phenomena born out of my biological need to have my brains ‘tupped’ right out of me from time to time.

  The chunk of bread had softened into mush inside my mouth as the thought of Adwen doing dirty things to me filled my mind and stopped my jaw from chewing. Cooper’s fingers pulling on my own yanked me abruptly from my daydream.

  “Aunt Jane, why is it that Gregor won’t let you ride up beside Orick and me? I’ve been trying to get him to slow his horse so you could catch up the whole trip but every time he starts to, Gregor grouches at him and tells him to get on up there where he belongs.”

  I laughed and bent to pull Cooper up into my arms while the whole group stood around in amused silence, waiting anxiously for my answer. I could tell they all expected me to lie to him, but with Cooper, I always had trouble doing that. I knew it was one of the reasons we were so close. Coop knew that adults often told him versions of the truth because they thought him too young to hear the real thing. He learned over the years that he could come to me if he wanted a straight answer. I prided myself on being that person for him.

  “He’s afraid if he lets Orick near me, then I’ll kiss him again.”

  Cooper’s eyes widened to comical proportions as he laughed and squirmed out of my arms. “What? You already kissed him once? I didn’t know you liked Orick.”

  Orick spoke up, humor in his tone. “She doesna fancy me, lad. She only kissed me in jest. ’Twould do Gregor good to remember that and put it to rest.”

  Cooper frowned, placing his hands on both hips as he turned to address Gregor. He had just as hard a time as I did understanding why women in the seventeenth century were treated like children in need of supervision their entire lives. He didn’t hesitate to speak up on my behalf.

  “I don’t understand why Aunt Jane would have kissed Orick either, Gregor, but Orick is right. You just leave them alone. I don’t think she’s going to jump from her horse over to his just to kiss him. They’re just as grown as you. Quit bossing them around.” He hesitated, and I could tell the words had slipped out of his mouth rather unwillingly as they always did when he got really worked up—it was a trait we shared. As his cheeks turned rosy and his eyes a bit sheepish, he offered Gregor one last word as he bowed his head in a last-ditch effort to show some respect. “Sir.”

  I had to bite down on my lower lip to keep from bursting into laughter at Gregor’s face, and I stood wound tight as a string as I waited for Gregor’s reaction. Cooper might have overspoken, but I knew my own temperament well enough to know that if he jumped down Coop’s throat, I would go ape-shit crazy on my normally-kind employer.

  Instead, Isobel started laughing hysterically, whopping Gregor on the arm as she did so. “Ach, ’tis just what I’ve tried to tell ye since the eve it happened, but I can see it has taken a child to show ye that ’tis none of yer concern what Jane or Orick do with one another. If the lass wants to kiss every lad from here to McMillan Castle, ’tis her right to do so.” She nodded in Cooper’s direction, breaking the tension and restoring the color to Cooper’s cheeks. “Well said, lad. Now what do ye say, we continue on our way?”

  Gregor said nothing as we mounted. I moved my horse to ride next to Cooper and Orick.

  * * *

  The closer we got to Cagair Castle, the more nervous I became. Isobel could tell from the way I fidgeted on my horse.

  “Ye’ll make his back tender, Jane. Sit still and doona worry. Ye’ve no reason to do so. Adwen wants ye there.”

  I shook my head, thinking on how surprised he would be to see me. I was quite certain he wouldn’t be pleased to have the reminder of his bruised ego show up on his doorstep.

  “No, Isobel, he doesn’t. If he wanted me to be there, he would have invited me. The invitation was for you and Gregor. Cooper and I are tag-alongs.”

  We now rode together in a close row, Gregor and Isobel on one horse to the left, me on my own in the middle, and Orick and Cooper on another to the right. Isobel reached her arm out, leaning so that she could squeeze my hand as I met her halfway.

  “Jane, I dinna tell ye before, but ’twas Adwen that wanted me to invite ye. He knows he behaved poorly the last time he saw ye. He wishes to show ye that he’s a better man than ye think him to be.”

  I turned toward Orick, needing confirmation from someone other than the woman who had used a child to gain my company.

  “Is it true, Orick? Or is he going to turn me away at his doorstep?”

  Orick smiled the kind, trustworthy grin that had warmed me to him the first moment I met him. “I wouldna allow him to turn ye away, lass, but aye, he wishes to see ye again.”

  The knowledge excited me and for some unknown reason, my excitement over Adwen’s desire pissed me off.

  “Even if he does, I know it’s only for one reason, and that is never going to happen. I’m un-tupped business to him.”

  Orick’s eyes widened at my use of the phrase, and he quickly covered Cooper’s ears.

  Gregor spoke from beside me. “There is something I’ve missed. I doona understand what any of ye are saying.”

  Isobel silenced him. “Best ye doona know, love. ’Twould only cause ye distress.”

  Orick released Cooper’s ears before speaking. “I know I speak poorly of him, but ’tis only because I know it bothers him so. Doona be so hard on him, lass. He’s a foolish arse to be sure, but there is a better man deep inside him. ’Tis only that he’s no ever been lucky enough to come across a lass who could show him the man he can be.”

  I didn’t know what to say. It was a nice thought, and I knew there was a small part of me, as with many women, that wanted to be the woman who could change a man. But I’d never been one to take the bait on such a challenge. If I thought a man needed changing, I just stayed away. It was a rule that had served me well and had helped steer me away from many doomed relationships.

  Adwen was no different. I did think he needed changing or, at the very least, a great maturation needed to occur within him. I didn’t need to try—I needed to stay the hell away from him.

  Still, as we rode in silence through the sleepy village near Cagair Castle, I couldn’t help but think of the kindness he’d shown Isobel as I watched the villagers going about their daily lives down the small trail of a street. He did have the ability to care for others, to show kindness. I couldn’t help but think these people would be lucky to have him as laird.

  As we reached the edge of town, a flash of movement in a window on the last house to our right caught my eye. I glanced up to see a woman, naked for the briefest of moments before she shrugged into a thin robe. On the story below, the front door opened and a man whose face he covered by pulling up his coat, glanced quickly from side to side before slipping around the side of the house.

  I thought nothing of it for a second. Then a flash of green caught my eye, and I glanced back to see the tartan hanging from the bottom of the man’s coat—Adwen.

  “Better man, my ass. What a horny, rotten bastard.” I muttered it under my breath as I watched his horse take off into the woods.

  CHAPTER 15

  Cagair Castle

  The approach to Cagair Castle brought back memories I’d nearly forgotten; they seemed a lifetime ago, and in some ways, I guess they were. My time as co-owner and resident of the grand structure had been brief but had been filled with hard work, laughter, and the inevitable woes that one would expect when trying to renovate a five-hundred-year-old castle.

  “Holy moly, this place is beautiful.” Cooper’s voice was filled with awe as he gazed up at the magnificent sight.

  I glanced over at Isobel whose eyes were misty as she fought back tears. “Aye, I dinna know such beauty could exist.”

  I’d s
een the castle before both in the twenty-first and seventeenth centuries. While it was even more breathtaking now, the magnificence of it had been able to choke me up even in my own time when the structure was in shambles.

  The castle sat on its own island that was just big enough to hold the castle itself along with about a hundred yards of greenery and a hefty set of stables. It sat high enough off the ocean that even strong winds wouldn’t wet the grass but low enough that you could watch the waves from every window. A long, wide bridge made of stone, wood, and what I could only assume was more than a little bit of magic provided access from the main shore to its doors. The ocean served as Cagair Castle’s powerful and natural moat.

  I couldn’t imagine a more beautiful castle anywhere in the world. Magic seemed to hang almost visibly in the air here. Only an idiot as big as Adwen would be distraught at the thought of having to spend the rest of his life here.

  Only one man stood at the entry of Cagair Castle awaiting our arrival. It wasn’t Adwen, although the resemblance to him was striking.

  Adwen was probably off somewhere washing away the remnants of his lovemaking before making his entrance. I hoped he didn’t offer me his hand in greeting; I wouldn’t go near it if he did—I knew how well men washed.

  “Welcome, I hope that ye fared the journey well. My name is Callum, the laird’s younger brother. I doona know where Adwen has gone, but I expect he will be along shortly. Ye can dismount here, and I’ll have yer horses seen comfortably to the stables.”

  “Thank ye.”

  It was Gregor who spoke, climbing off his horse before giving Isobel assistance. She was exhausted from the travel, but her outlook was positive and it did wonders for her health. Tired as she was, she didn’t look nearly as sick as she’d appeared every day since I’d known her.