by Alisa Adams
Bettina looked up into Nevin's face to see if he was agreeable, but she need not have worried. He smiled in invitation and gave a slight but definite nod. Gwenda, intercepting the little exchange, gave an inward, gleeful crow of delight. This was excellent progress!
Bettina ran inside to change into her riding habit then penned a note to her cousin, Georgina, to ask her not to visit that day since she was very busy with several new projects and would see her soon. She dispatched a groom to take it to her then changed and went to get her horse. As she mounted, she smiled to herself. It is only a little lie, she thought, and it is in a good cause. Then she went out to greet Gwenda and Nevin, but in truth, she only had eyes for one of them.
14
Kendrick Goes Home
Having been out trading for two months, Kendrick had decided to go home for a while, more out of duty than anything else. He could not call a house a home unless he was actually in it sometimes and he had duties to discharge there. He lived on the island of Mull, just off the town of Oban on the West Coast. He liked the climate there especially in the summer months when there were only seven hours of darkness and the skies were often clear blue for days at a time.
He loved the solitude for he was a man of equal and opposite halves: one sociable and outgoing and the other introverted and secretive. He was a complicated character and his biggest aim in life, although perhaps even he did not realize it, was to suck the good out of everything, even though it might leave whatever he had ruined a shell of itself. The one person who could keep himself out of this trap was Gavin, simply because of his intelligence and maturity, and he was the nearest thing Kendrick had to a friend. They had at first been business associates, but even Kendrick had found it impossible to keep most of his life hidden from Gavin who was far too perceptive and too good a judge of human nature.
His house was made of granite and instead of a thatched roof, it boasted a genuine slate one. It had real glass windows and its walls were three feet thick. It was not huge, having only five bedrooms, but it had a deep undercroft and a massive barn which sheltered his small flock of sheep in bad weather. The house had withstood the ravages of time and weather exceptionally well. It had been built by his great-great-grandfather and handed down from generation to generation. He hoped that one day he would have sons so that the tradition could continue.
Kendrick also had three servants: a general handyman, a housekeeper, and a maid-of-all-work who took care of the more menial household chores. They were all members of the same family and were content since Kendrick was not there most of the time and when he was, he was not a demanding master. They lived in a small cottage behind the barn so that he could enjoy his valued privacy.
He had made the journey by sea from Oban. It was a trip he had done many times and he was on good terms with the crew. He knew all about every one of them right down to the names of the newest baby and the welfare of their wives, children, and grandchildren. He spent so much time finding out about them that he forgot to tell them much about himself and only shared the most general details of his life.
He arrived on Mull in the evening, then retrieved his horse and began the half-hour journey home. It was still light and there was a fresh wind blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. Sunset was hours away and, apart from the nagging problem of Allana, he was happy.
Kendrick arrived at the house as the sky was showing its first flush of pink to be greeted by the sturdy middle-aged retainer, Morrie. Morrie had a good-natured smile, but one of his front teeth had gone missing due to a wayward caress from the back hoof of one of Kendrick's horses. He was the softest, most giving of all people and one of the rarest because he was absolutely content with his lot in life and wanted nothing more. His first name was James, but no one ever called him that.
Now, he came forward and greeted Kendrick with a gap-toothed grin. "Evenin', Master Ken! Good tae see ye at last!"
Kendrick dismounted from his horse and gripped Morrie by his upper arms, smiling down into his creased, wind-burned face. "It is so good to be back, Morrie!" he said warmly. "Now, all I want is a mug of ale and a bite to eat."
Just then, a stout, merry woman came out of the front door. This was Lizzie Morrison, Morrie's wife. She was dressed in a plain working dress with a coarse sackcloth apron over it which was covered in barley flour. She was a deeply religious woman and was one of the few people for whom Kendrick had much respect because she oozed love and thought the best of everyone she met. Now, she curtsied to Kendrick, smiling from ear to ear.
"Master! If I had knawn ye were comin', I wid hae made a nice supper an' noo a' ye will get is pottage an' brawn. "
Kendrick laughed. "No need for anything special, Lizzie. Just as much food as I can get and as quickly as possible! My stomach is rumbling so loudly my teeth are chattering!"
They were all still laughing when the front door flew open and a woman with light red hair stood there, a delighted smile on her face. She stood still for a moment as if in disbelief and then flew into Kendrick's arms. "Ken, you wicked man!" she reprimanded him. "I thought you were never coming home."
"I told you it would be a long trip," he answered, smiling. "But I am so glad to see you."
She looked at him sternly from under lowered brows. "I ought to sulk for a few days since you are such a neglectful husband, but I will forgive you as long as there are presents."
"There are many presents," he answered in a soothing tone, “but first I must eat or I will surely die of starvation!"
Leann Muir laughed. "My husband, always thinking of his stomach. Come in and we will feed you."
Leann was not ugly, but she had nothing particularly striking about her. Her long, fine hair was a dull shade of red, her eyes an unremarkable gray, and her figure slim without those shapely curves that make a woman so alluring to men. Her skin was freckled and her mouth rather thin, but she was pretty when she smiled. Two deep dimples appeared on her pale cheeks and made her lovely for a few moments.
She had become Kendrick's wife by default since her older sister, Seonid, had eloped with another lover. Kendrick's father and Leann's were old friends and they had arranged the match between them, but unbeknownst to them, her sister Seonid had been having a secret relationship with another man. When they left, John Grant, Leann's father, had offered her hand to Kendrick instead. Perhaps if he had been a man of stronger character, Kendrick might have refused, but he had his eyes on his own father's business interests and the family house and to refuse might have antagonized him.
So, the match had been made. He loved Leann insofar as he was capable since he was more in love with himself than anyone else. However, he desired her body as he desired every woman's body with greed and lust. Leann was passionately in love with him and missed him keenly when he was away. She was not a stupid woman and she was aware that she was the second prize by quite a big margin. She also knew that Kendrick was easily led astray, especially since he was such an attractive man. In fact, given the nature of his business, she would have been astonished if he had not been since there were limitless temptations. But she was philosophical; as long as he always came home to her, and her security was not threatened, that was all that mattered. And while he was at home, he was attentive, loving and passionate.
There was only one ache in her heart. She had hoped for a child and it was not for want of trying for Kendrick was a vigorous man. Kendrick was home for only four months every year and much of that time they spent in bed. The one pregnancy she had managed to achieve had ended in miscarriage a month before he came home and she had not had the chance to tell him. But now was not the time to think of that.
Leann had been thinking and planning, and had hatched a plan that she was sure would surprise and please Kendrick. She was itching to tell him, but now he was home and she wanted nothing more than to cosset and delight him. After that, she would shamelessly drag him into bed. He would pretend to be unwilling, as he always did, and she would pretend to bully him, as she always
did. However, in the end, they would both get what they wanted: a night of passionate lovemaking.
Lizzie had put out a mug of ale with a few thick slices of bread and a hunk of farm cheese to satisfy the worst of his hunger and Leann sat down at his side in the dining room to watch him eat it. It took Kendrick only moments to finish off the food while she devoured him with her eyes. When he had finished, he took her hand and they went through to the parlor where he sat down and put his arm around her shoulder.
They sat in a comfortable silence for a while until Leann put her hand on his thigh and kissed him. It was enough. He laughed softly and swept her into his arms, dropping her onto their bed none too gently. It was always like this when he returned home after an absence. He was like a wild animal and he turned her into one too. He tore off her clothes, then his own, then pinned her to the bed.
"Submit to me, wife," he growled, kneading and pinching her flesh into bruises.
"Make me," she hissed and he needed no second bidding.
His eyes glinted darkly as he began to nibble her all over and she writhed in pleasure. This was the savage, wanton pleasure that she loved and she gave herself up to it by biting his lip, scratching his back with her nails and running her hands roughly through his thick, springy hair. When she felt him inside her, it was only a matter of moments before she reached a titanic peak of pleasure that was so intense that she screamed.
They lay together in the afterglow, sated and breathless. Now, when he was relaxed and satisfied, was the time to tell him.
"Kendrick?" she whispered.
"Mm…?" he replied sleepily.
"Next time you go away, I want to go with you."
He laughed softly. "Do not be foolish, Leann. What would you do with yourself?"
"See Scotland," she replied, leaning on her elbow to look down at him. "In my whole life, I have never left Mull and every time I say goodbye to you, I miss you with all my heart. I am not asking you, Ken, I am telling you. I am coming with you and you will not dissuade me for I have made up my mind."
Suddenly, Kendrick's face darkened with anger. He sat up in bed and pushed her head back down onto the pillow. "I said 'no' and I meant it!" he roared. "I have business to do! I am working and I cannot spend my time entertaining you! You are going nowhere!"
Leann had been unprepared for the sheer ferocity of his anger and it scared her. His face was almost purple, and the expression on it was a grimace of sheer fury. She had seen him angry before, but not like this. Eventually, he calmed down, then got up and left the room. Leann lay thinking for a while. Her momentary fear was gone replaced by cold, hard anger. There was only one reason why Kendrick would not want her to follow him, she thought: he had something to hide or perhaps someone.
15
Leann
The worst thing Kendrick could have done was to forbid Leann to do anything she had set her heart on because she had a core of steely determination about which Kendrick knew nothing. She had wanted to be with him and she would, with or without his permission and, because he had forced her to, without his knowledge.
Leann had prepared for her trip carefully.
“As you are going away,” she had told Kendrick matter-of-factly, “I will go and visit my cousins. It has been quite a while now and I believe that Annie may be thinking of marriage soon. A pity you will not be there for the betrothal!”
A visit to her cousins was not an unusual occurrence; Leann visited Alex and Annie on a regular basis. They were older than she by about ten years and treated her like a darling younger sister. She often spent a couple of weeks there while Kendrick was away, so he thought nothing of it when he saw her packing.
“Yes, it is, my sweet,” he replied in a tone of deep regret. “But how are we going to eat if I do not work?”
She shrugged and smiled at him with a wicked gleam in her eye. “Let me give you something to remember me by,” she said huskily.
As soon as they got to the bedroom, she kissed him passionately and felt his instant response. He arched his head back so that she could scrape her teeth against his Adam's apple with a mock bite and he laughed hoarsely with satisfaction. Then she peeled off his clothes, pushed him onto the bed, and dived on top of him, impaling herself on his manhood the moment their bodies touched. He rolled her over on her back and took her almost to the edge and back again several times, before letting them both reach the crest of their pleasure together. He lay back, panting with exhaustion, but she kissed him again.
"I will allow you a few moments respite, husband," she warned. "Then I will make love to you with such ferocity that you will never forget a single moment. Be warned, for you are going to get no rest tonight!"
Kendrick laughed. This was the side of his wife that he liked, even desired, and if he was the kind of man who could be satisfied with only one woman, he could have been faithful to her. But Kendrick was not made that way. He needed a variety of all kinds of different ones and was ever restless for more. As he had told Gavin, women were different from men, made to be subservient to them, and that was the way he liked it.
But Leann was a darker horse than he knew.
Later, when he saw Leann undressing for bed, he went up behind her and kissed her neck then turned her around, looking into her eyes. She gazed up at him steadily.
“Forgive me,” he whispered. “I would never hurt you for the world. You are so precious to me.”
“Then why can I not come with you?” she asked, frowning.
He sighed. “Because often I have to stay in places that are not comfortable or clean. I am very, very busy. The roads are hard and sometimes I must ride for days. You would be miserable, sweetheart.”
She nodded as if in acceptance, but the damage had been done. The cold, hard fury had not gone but was hiding, buried deep and out of sight. What had Kendrick been doing that he did not want her to discover? Leann was going to find out.
After Kendrick's spell at home was over, he kissed Leann goodbye and boarded the ferry to Oban not noticing the shabbily-dressed, red-headed teenage boy who was stowed aboard.
His name was James; no-one would ever have thought of calling him Leann.
She left the house just after dawn and as soon as she was a decent distance from the house, she made camp in a cave on the side of a huge weathered boulder, covering the entrance with tree branches. She spent the day reading her Bible hoping for some guidance through the turmoil in which she found herself.
Leann had enough cold food for a couple of days and the weather was warm so there was no need for a fire, so she wrapped herself in blankets and lay down to sleep. She thanked God for the camping expeditions she had shared with her cousins so that weathering the elements was not strange to her. In fact, once in a while, it was fun, but now it was not. She could not sleep despite having made herself as comfortable as possible.
She had bought a stable boy's clothing from one of the lads at the neighboring farm, telling him it was for a costume party in honor of one of her friends' birthdays. It fitted her tolerably well, although the legs of the hose were too long. Tomorrow, she would board the ferry in disguise to follow her husband... Where? And why? She was terrified of the answer.
She was ready to board the ferry at first light so that she could be one of the first to climb on board. That way she could hide in a dark corner of the deck before he could see her. But she saw him, striding confidently off the gangplank, greeting every one of the crew by name and bestowing his biggest smile on each of them. At that moment, she hated him.
On the way to the Scottish mainland, Kendrick fell into conversation with a couple of middle-class travelers, the McPhersons. He liked to amuse himself this way, finding out information while giving none away.
“Are you going to visit relatives?” he asked the man, a short, tubby individual.
“Yes,” he replied, “Mary’s mother.” He indicated his wife, a delicate looking creature who looked as if the wind might blow her over at any moment. She smiled and cur
tsied to Kendrick who bowed to her.
“And you, sir?” she asked.
“Work,” he replied. “My goodness! Look at those black clouds over there. Do you think we are in for a storm?”
“It will blow over,” the man replied confidently. “Are you married, sir?”
“No, too busy!” Kendrick replied, laughing, then he drew the conversation around to the fish that could be caught in that part of the sea, the town where Mary’s mother lived, and a myriad of other subjects until he had a complete picture of the couple. They did not even know his name.
He was heading for the Central Lowlands near Glasgow and then would be turning north to the Highlands again. He began to think about his possible marriage to Allana. He had no fears; she and Leann were too far away from each other to ever meet and the itinerant nature of his trade would make it easy to keep both of them happy.
He congratulated himself on a very neat solution. He had never taken chances and had always kept his guard up which had stood him in good stead on many occasions. It was going to be very useful now because the only person who knew he was married was Gavin and they rarely met each other.
“Just imagine, Kendrick,” he said aloud, thinking that no-one was listening, “You need never, ever again be without a woman in your bed.” Even the thought of it aroused him.
However, the deck was not quite empty. Leann was crouching behind a fresh water barrel and she had plans of her own.
Following her husband was a much easier matter than Leann had anticipated. She had never been to mainland Scotland before, but she had found that the roads were good between the major towns. Kendrick traveled mostly on the main thoroughfares, so all she had to do was keep a good distance behind him. She guessed that he would always seek out the best inns in town, which he did, so when he stopped, so did she. She slept mainly in stables or in the meanest rooms in the establishment, often having to share her floor space with other servants.