I had to get my wayward thoughts under control before the meal, as I usually sat at the family table, although I did not know who I would be sitting next to this evening. As I approached, I saw that Liam was already there, and the space next to him was empty. He gestured to me, and as I approached, he spoke.
“Mary, I wanted to thank ye for yer help this day. I have been injured in a similar fashion before, and I thought I would hurt much worse than I do, so I have ye to thank for keeping the swelling as low as it is”.
“So you’ve been brawling before, have you? Why does that not surprise me?” I said acidly as I took my seat. If I thought to shame Liam, it did not work, for he smiled.
“That I have. Too many times to count, although probably not as bad as this. Yer man D’arcy is the quickest I have ever seen and he got in far more hits than he should have”.
At the mention of D’arcy’s name, I turned my head to look for him. It took a while to locate him at his usual table, until a group of people cleared and I saw him in the middle of them. It appeared that brawling with Liam and living to tell the tale had increased his social standing, as several of the men clapped him on the back jovially, and the serving women were making sure that his cup was never empty. As I watched, one of them leaned over far more than was necessary to fill his cup, flashing her cleavage in his face as she performed her task. D’arcy gave the woman’s chest a lingering look and I smothered a small gasp at the sight. A movement from my side drew my attention and I saw Liam watching me.
“It seems that yer man is making his mark here. Does that bother ye?”
“Why would it bother me? D’arcy is a fine man and I can understand a woman wanting him to notice her, but what if he leaves? I would rather he did not leave a trail of broken hearts behind him, but it is not my choice”.
Liam watched me closely out of his good eye, and the evening wore on. As time passed, I noticed Liam squirming in his seat, and finally could ignore it no longer.
“Is there something wrong, Liam?”
“It is nothing to trouble you with”, Liam started, but I could see that he was pale and clearly in pain.
“You are a terrible liar, Liam. What is troubling you?”
Liam turned to look at me, and I could see the pain etched in his face.
“I fear I am at the limit of my endurance. The bruises on my ribs and stomach are aching, and sitting still is not helping them”.
At once I was contrite. I hadn’t checked either man for injuries that might have been concealed by their clothing. Bridget and I had left them with a small amount of Lavender oil to dab on themselves, but had not thought that the injuries might have been more than some sore muscles.
“Are you injured somewhere else? Do you want me to look you over?”
Liam looked at me lengthily.
“And how would ye do that Mary? I would have to take off my tunic and undershirt, and ye would need a chaperone. Besides, have ye considered that D’arcy may need help too?”
I looked at D’arcy, who still seemed to be having a good time, and now the woman was sitting on his lap, laughing and joking with him.
“I don’t think that D’arcy needs any help right now”, I said, turning back to Liam.
“Well, it may be the alcohol that is dulling his senses. I think tomorrow will be a different story. I do not need a chaperone to tend the injured, by the way. It will be my calling, so it is not inappropriate for me to tend the sick or injured”.
At this, Liam fairly bristled.
“Injured I may be, but I am still capable of overpowering someone of your size. Ye will not put yerself in danger by being alone with any injured man, do ye hear me?”
I looked at Liam for a while before answering. He did have a fair point.
“Well, as you wish. I will go and get Bridget and bring her to your room. Does that meet your approval?”
Liam nodded tersely, and I left to find Bridget. It took a long time to get her to Liam’s room. First, I had to aid her up the stairs, I had asked for directions to Liam’s room and had been dismayed to find that it was higher up in the stone tower than my room was. I had been given a room on the same floor as his parents, it appeared that Liam and Donald occupied chambers on the floor above, and the younger children occupied the upper most rooms. Once I had helped a puffing Bridget up the stairs and along the passage, I had to determine which of the rooms was Liam’s. I knocked at several doors and listened for someone to bid us entry, before finding the door that belonged to Liam. After knocking, I heard his voice admitting us, so opened the door and peered around the solid wood to the bed beyond. Liam was not on it, and I stepped into the room in confusion, only to see him standing by the fire.
“Oh, there you are. I have Bridget with me”, and I turned to admit Bridget, who walked into the room puffing loudly and headed straight for the chair before the fire.
“Ye know what to do, Mary. I must rest here after that climb. Well, young Liam, Mary cannot tend ye like that. Take off the tunic and undershirt and lie on the bed so she can see what ails you”.
Liam looked at me and this time it was I who could not meet his eyes. I busied myself preparing supplies while I heard him rustling out of his clothes and moving toward the bed.
“I am ready, Mary”, came Liam’s voice from the direction of the bed, and I turned towards him.
I was momentarily stilled by the sight that met me. Liam was stretched out on the bed, and was only clad in his hose. I deliberately made sure my eyes stayed above his waist, but even then I was sure that he could see me blushing. He was magnificent. His chest was every bit as powerful and seductive as I had thought it would be. I could see the mottled bruising discolouring his skin, and I ached to touch him, then remembered that I would be doing that shortly. I gathered my jars and cloths and approached the bed, looking at his chest.
“Did D’arcy really do all of that? I suppose that he will be sore and sorry tomorrow”. Liam did not answer and I kept up an inane chatter as I worked, not sure if I was trying to distract myself or him from the fact that my hands were smoothing oil on his chest. I gently dabbed at the bruises, chiding him for not speaking up sooner, as the treatment would have been more effective had he been given it straight away. I kept my back to Bridget, so that she could not see if my fingers lingered too long over Liam’s skin. I dealt with the bruises on his ribs first, as gently as I could as they were clearly paining him, then once I was done I contemplated the bruises on his stomach while chewing my lip. They were very low down, very close to his hose, and although I wanted to touch him there, I was also a little afraid of his reaction.
I remembered that this was to be my chosen profession however and dabbed a little more oil on the cloth before bending forward a little, and after cautioning Liam that he might feel a little pain, I dabbed at the bruises, working closer and closer to his hose. As my hand brushed the hem of his hose while I was dabbing at the lowest of the bruises, a movement caught my eye. I looked down Liam’s body, and my eyes widened and I let out a little gasp as I saw that the impressive bulge in his hose was now growing much larger in size. I watched in fascination, sure that it was growing before my very eyes, when Liam suddenly pushed my hand aside and sat up suddenly, raising one leg to conceal himself from my eyes and telling me that we were done.
Flustered, I packed up my supplies, and turned to see that Liam had pulled on his tunic only, not bothering with his undershirt, and I turned to Bridget, telling her that we could go. She slowly stood up, grumbling about the inconvenience to her old bones, and I helped her from the room. I did not hear much of what Bridget said as I escorted her back downstairs, as my mind was racing around and around, thinking about what I had seen. I knew what had happened to Liam, but did not know if it was me that had caused that, or was it just because a woman was touching him, would he have reacted to any woman in that way?
When we reached the main hall, Bridget told me she would get one of the men to escort her home, as she did not want
me wandering around the grounds unescorted of a night, and truth be told, I was grateful for the chance to escape to the quiet of my room.
As I stripped off my clothing for bed, and climbed between the sheets, I wondered if Liam was now lying between his sheets in the room above mine. I envisioned him naked, he would have taken off his tunic and hose by now, and wondered if he was still aroused. Even if he was not, I knew that I was, and I squeezed my legs together, trying to deny the ache that I felt deep inside, the need that I had not felt for a long time, but that had now returned with a vengeance. I knew it was wrong, but I could not help myself, I touched myself as I thought of Liam, and wondered if he knew to touch a woman in this way to give her pleasure.
Liam.
I woke the next morning, the first thing that met my eyes was the tenting in the blanket above my groin. I groaned as I moved gently, assessing how my body felt after yesterday. I still hurt all over, but probably less than I would have if not for Mary and her gentle hands. I groaned afresh as I remembered that Mary had seen the evidence of my desire for her last night. I was so grateful that I had insisted she have a chaperone, even if poor Bridget had walked up all those stairs just to sit in a chair. If she had not been there, I might have taken Mary’s hand and placed it on my shaft, before reaching up and pulling her down onto the bed. As I thought of Mary’s hand on my shaft, I knew that I would have no peace today if I did not deal with the problem of my rock hard shaft and aching balls, I could not walk around the keep all day like this. Even if I managed to get myself under control now, I knew that if I saw Mary again, I would react like an immature boy if I could not relieve some of the pressure now. I closed my eyes and imagined that instead of my own hands, it was Mary’s hands on my shaft, and I stroked myself to my release.
That morning when I attended at the lists, Donald turned when he saw me approach and laughed at my appearance.
“Ye look like Death himself today Liam. Go stand next to D’arcy, neither of ye are fit today. Besides, if the two of ye aren’t fighting today, the rest of us might have a chance to impress the lassies”.
I looked around as he spoke, and noticed that there did seem to be an unusually large number of people standing around watching. I took a seat on a haybale next to D’arcy, after nodding to him. After a while he spoke.
“You have a thundering hit Liam. I feel as if I have been trampled by a horse”.
I laughed at him and clapped him on the shoulder, feeling him flinch and noticing heads turn our way.
“It must have been the same horse as trampled me, D’arcy. But then I probably don’t feel as bad as ye, I got some doctoring last eve. Perhaps ye should have thought of that instead of burying yer head in Jenna’s chest”.
D’arcy closed his eyes and hung his head a little.
“Did I really do that in the main hall? People kept filling up my cup and I kept drinking it”.
But then he raised his head and turned a dazzling smile on me. I could see why the lassies were so taken with his face.
“But it was a really impressive chest, it was worth a little pain this morning. Friends?”
He reached a hand over to me, and without hesitation, I took it.
“D’arcy, I wish to apologise to ye. I misjudged yer situation, obviously. I would apologise to Mary also, but she does not know what I thought, so perhaps it is best if I said nothing”.
D’arcy watched me for a while. Then he gingerly leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands before turning his head to look at me.
“I think perhaps you were quick to think that I was enjoying Mary’s favours because you want to enjoy them yourself. I don’t know whether you realise that probably only you and Mary don’t know that you can’t keep your eyes off her, everyone else around you has seen it. But Mary isn’t someone you can trifle with and throw away you know. I really like you Liam, but if you hurt her, I will come for you, don’t think that I won’t”.
I nodded. This, I understood.
For the next few days, life settled down a lot. Mary and Bridget checked the injuries to my face, and I assume to D’arcy’s face as well, but I would not let Mary near the rest of me, as I was trying to keep my body under control while I worked out what to do. My mother’s idea was becoming more and more appealing, particularly now that I knew that Mary and D’arcy were not involved, and I would not be coming in between two lovers if I declared my intentions. I had plenty of intentions for Mary, but only one fit to publicly declare.
I had decided that if we did not have a messenger from England by the end of the week, then I would speak to her about marriage. I was quite sure that we would have no problem in the bedroom, and the only problem I could forsee was that Mary might not want to marry me. I knew she was attracted to me, but would she want to live with me for the rest of our lives?
On Friday, almost two weeks after our arrival, and almost three weeks after we had taken Mary and D’arcy, a messenger arrived. The news spread soon, and I watched as the messenger was shown into my father’s solar. His livery was different to the livery that D’arcy had worn, so I did not know what was happening. After the messenger was shown out, and taken to the kitchens for something to eat and drink, my father appeared, and bidding me to sit, sent someone to fetch D’arcy. He then returned.
“Father, should we send for Mary as well?” I asked in some confusion.
My father looked uncomfortable.
“No, I think that we will speak to D’arcy first. The message is not exactly what any of us expected”.
As we waited, my father seemed lost in thought, but I saw his fingers tapping a fat purse on his desk. My eyes widened. It appeared that a substantial ransom had been paid. There was a tap at the door, and at my father’s bidding, D’arcy entered and took a seat where my father gestured.
“D’arcy, or should I call you Lord Lescelles? Yer father has paid yer ransom”.
My head spun as I turned to look at D’arcy, who looked at me, a message in his eyes that I could not grasp. He was Lord Lescelles? But was that not the name of the man that wanted to marry Mary, the man that D’arcy referred to as a monster? D’arcy addressed my father.
“What did the message from my father say, sir?”
My father passed a sealed missive over to D’arcy, who glanced at it, then secreted it in his tunic without opening it. My father continued.
“As you can see, I have not opened it. It was included within the letter addressed to me. Yer father is unwell apparently, and wishes ye to come home and take possession of his estate. He has paid for yer ransom, but says that we can keep Lady Le Bruin. Ye are free to leave us, but I don’t know what to do about Mary. If ye wish to take her with ye, then ye may, but if she does not want to go, then I will not make her. I understand there is some…. difficulty between her and yer father?”
D’arcy looked confused. My father took pity on him and suggested that he speak to Mary, perhaps after he had read the letter from his father. D’arcy nodded and took his leave. I remained and looked at Father.
“Did ye know who he was Liam?” Father asked me.
“No, I didn’t. I guessed that he was of noble birth, he had to be of equal station to Mary’s husband if he had been fostered to the family. But he never told me, and neither did Mary. Maybe they didn’t see the reason to say anything, I don’t think either of them expected this”.
“What will ye do if she decides to leave, then?” Father said, leaning forward.
“I will let her go, of course. I would not make her stay. She has had enough of people making decisions about her life without letting her make any choices, and I would not be one of them”.
After the meeting I wandered about aimlessly until the evening, wanting to see Mary, but being afraid to see Mary in case she had made a decision I wouldn’t like. I cursed the messenger for not waiting a few more days until he made his appearance, and cursed myself for not acting sooner.
Mary.
I was working in t
he storage room that I used to dry herbs when D’arcy entered without knocking and perched on the edge of a table. He took a letter from his tunic and showed me the seal, my eyes widened as I recognised his family seal.
“What has happened, D’arcy?” I asked, approaching him and stopping just before him.
“My father has paid my ransom. He is unwell and wants me to return”, he said quietly, turning the letter over and over in his hands without opening it.
I frowned. D’arcy had not said that my ransom had been paid, so his meaning was clear, even if he hadn’t said it in so many words.
“Open the letter, D’arcy. You will never rest until you know what it says”. I watched him as he broke the seal and read the letter. It was longer than I expected and I watched the emotions play across D’arcy’s face. The man who had fathered him was a monster, but he was still D’arcy’s father, and if there was any chance that D’arcy’s father was feeling his mortality and trying to make amends, then I hoped for D’arcy’s sake that it was so. D’arcy finished reading the letter and looked at me, and I realised he was trying to choose his words carefully.
“Just say it, D’arcy, you will not upset me, they are not your words”.
“He has not changed. He says that he wants to reconcile, but he is still a monster. I think he is more unwell than his letter to the McGarrow says, and he is afraid for his mortal soul. He wants to see me, but he says – he says – that he would not lower himself to lay with someone who has been soiled by the barbarians and that any marriage that might have been discussed between the Le Bruin and Lescelles houses will not happen now. I am so sorry, Mary, he should not say such things”.
Taken by a Highland Raider Page 7