Never Seduce a Scot (The Montgomerys and Armstrongs #1)(63)

“Have you seen your mistress this morning?”

Anton swallowed nervously. “Aye, Laird. She was …” He winced and then continued on in a rush. “She was bringing in logs for the fires in the hall. I stopped her, of course, and told her it was my duty to attend the fires. She seemed relieved, but then she hurried out and I haven’t seen her since.”

“She was doing what?” Graeme roared.

Anton flinched. “I could not believe it either. The lass had no business trying to lug in the wood, but she had five logs lined up for the first fire before I came into the hall.”

Graeme closed his eyes and shook his head. This was nonsense. Complete and utter nonsense and no matter what Rorie said or how valid her argument was, there was no way he was allowing this to continue.

He was prevented from demanding an accounting from every single woman in the keep when Eveline hurried in, her cheeks pale from the cold. Several tendrils of her hair had come loose from her braid and they framed her face. Despite her harried expression, she still managed to take Graeme’s breath away.

“Oh, good morn, Graeme,” she said breathlessly. She dipped a curtsy and then hurried on past him toward the table where food was already being served.

He blinked and swiveled so he could follow her progress across the room. She sat next to his chair and smiled at his brothers, who’d already taken their seats. Only Rorie was missing, but then the lass didn’t always come to break her fast with the others.

Before he left to go sit with her and his brothers, he turned back to Anton with a quick frown. “Do not allow this to happen again. You make certain she doesn’t try to carry wood inside this keep even if you have to stack it inside. She isn’t to light these fires.”

Anton nodded his agreement and Graeme left to go sit next to his wife.

She smiled brilliantly at him as he took his seat by her side. Despite her seeming cheer, he could see the dark smudges underneath her eyes and it made him angry all over again that she was working so hard to find acceptance and his clan was being ridiculously thickheaded in their resistance.

Who could possibly resist a smile such as hers? Furthermore, how could anyone spend even a moment in Eveline’s presence and think she was anything like her kin? The Armstrongs were a bloodthirsty, savage lot who thought nothing of killing others to suit their purposes. Eveline was a tenderhearted lass who didn’t have a mean bone in her body.

Except that she had taken a sword to the women of his clan and had run them all out of the keep.

He frowned over that matter. The lass had been under duress and she could hardly be blamed for taking a stand in the face of such mean-spirited insults.

He fully intended to take up the matter of all this work she was performing over the morning meal, but she kept up a lively conversation with his brothers, though he had no idea of what the discussion was about, exactly. He wasn’t sure his brothers had any more idea than he did, but they indulged her and responded in kind with a ready smile.

He appreciated their acceptance and their support, and he knew that in time it would bleed over into the rest of the clan. Perhaps Rorie was right and Eveline just needed some time to adjust and time to win over the women.

It seemed to him that she already had the support of his men. They didn’t seem inclined to want her to suffer and thus far he’d heard of no man offering insult to her. The women, however, were another matter, but even then he couldn’t exactly fault them for their loyalty to him and the Montgomery name.

He sighed. ’Twas a difficult matter to be certain. The women had always been steadfast in support of the men of the clan. It was a matter that had always brought Graeme much pride. His own mother had been an important factor in bringing that kind of fierce, unbending loyalty to the women.

Before she’d died giving birth to Rorie, she’d often rallied the women around the men, preached the importance of having strong clan ties that extended to every single man, woman, and child. Graeme’s father had oft chuckled and said it was a foolish man who tread in the path of his wife because she was fiercer than any warrior Robert Montgomery had ever trained.

His mother would have liked Eveline. Graeme didn’t deceive himself by thinking that his mother’s acceptance of Eveline would have been automatic. She would have greeted the marriage with every bit as much disdain as all the other members of the clan had. But given time, she would have been drawn to Eveline’s charm and her resilience. She would have also heartily approved of Eveline being resourceful enough to have avoided marriage with a man who intended to sorely abuse her.

Graeme frowned when Eveline rose after having finished her meal. He’d fully intended to address the matter of her duties.

“A moment please, Eveline,” he said when he was sure he had her attention.

“Oh, I’m sorry, Graeme. I don’t have time right now. There are duties to attend and I’m sure you must be busy with the men. We’ll discuss what it is you have on your mind at the evening meal.”

With that she smiled and kissed him full on the lips in front of the entire hall. Then she patted his cheek and cheerfully went on by. She walked out of the hall at a fast clip, leaving Graeme completely befuddled.

It wasn’t until a moment later that he realized he was still frozen to his chair, the imprint of her mouth still tingling on his lips.

There were snickers and guffaws all around, but he paid them no heed. His gaze was riveted to the soft swing of his wife’s bottom as she exited the hall.