Highland Wolf (Highland Brides, #10)(7)
“Oh, aye,” she murmured, peering down at it with concern, and then much to his amazement, she tugged the top of her gown away from her chest and eased the small creature inside to nestle between her breasts. “That should help to keep him warm.”
Conall gaped at her, so stunned he didn’t even think to help her to rise when she then struggled back to her feet.
“We should probably go, m’laird. The MacNaughton’s men could be on our trail,” she reminded him as she headed away.
Conall stared after her briefly, and then gave his head a shake and hurried to follow.
“Wait. Lass, ye can no’ . . .” His words died out when she paused and turned to smile at him, her head tilted in question. He had been going to insist she leave the stoat behind, but she looked so damned sweet . . . Giving in with a resigned sigh, he asked instead, “Did ye tend yer business ere ye found the wee beast, or do ye need another minute?”
“Oh.” She flushed, but shook her head. “Nay. I’m fine, m’laird. I found the stoat after . . .” Rather than finish the statement, she waved vaguely back the way they’d come, but it was enough.
Conall could only be grateful. With the way things were going, had she not already accomplished the deed and yet needed to relieve herself, she’d probably stumble upon the nest with the rest of the orphaned stoats and insist on bringing them along too. The lass seemed to have a soft heart when it came to wee creatures. It was something he’d have to work on with her once he claimed her to bride, he supposed. But for now, Conall merely nodded solemnly, and took her arm to escort her out of the woods and straight to his horse.
He noted the questioning looks Payton, Roderick and Hamish were giving him, but ignored them as he mounted and then leaned down to lift Claray up before him. The moment he had her settled, Hamish moved up next to them to hand Claray her rabbit.
“Oh, thank you.” She gave the man a beaming smile as she accepted the wee bunny and immediately cuddled it to her chest.
Conall considered mentioning the stoat inside her gown and to be careful not to crush it, but caught himself at the last moment and shook his head. Both critters would probably be dead ere they reached MacFarlane anyway, he thought, and urged his horse to move.
Chapter 3
Conall expected Claray to lean back into him again and go to sleep as she had for the first part of the journey, but she didn’t. Instead, she sat up a bit, her head swinging one way and then the other in response to every sound in the woods they traveled through. He didn’t know why she bothered—there was little to see. The sun was fully gone now, and night had blanketed the land, making the woods on either side of them nothing more than dark masses they were passing by. But her tension was making him tense in response and he finally pressed her head to his chest in a silent order to sleep.
She rested there for all of a heartbeat before popping back up to sit upright again.
Conall was about to verbally order her to sleep when she asked, “From whom was the message ye gave me uncle?”
Conall scowled down at the top of her head, but since she couldn’t see it, in the end he just answered, “Yer da.”
“Oh.” She seemed to consider that briefly and then asked, “What did it say?”
“That ye were needed at home,” Payton responded when Conall didn’t.
“So, me da sent ye to save me?” she asked, her head turning to his fair-haired friend rather than Conall.
“Aye,” Payton said, and then commented, “Ye seem surprised.”
“I am,” she admitted. “I thought ye’d come to fetch me in response to Mairin’s message to our cousin Aulay Buchanan.”
“Who’s Mairin, lass?” Roderick asked.
“Lady Mairin Kerr, me cousin,” she explained. “’Tis she I’d gone to Kerr to visit. Her mother, me mother’s sister, passed this last month and Mairin is now the lady o’ the castle. She wrote that she was a bit overwhelmed and would appreciate me advice and assistance for a bit as she settled into her new role. O’ course I could no’ refuse. I ken how hard ’tis to step into such a position at first. Especially while still grieving.”
Conall frowned slightly as he recalled his uncle mentioning some four years ago that Claray’s mother, Lady MacFarlane, had passed. He now supposed Claray had taken over her responsibilities as Lady of MacFarlane at the time just as her cousin was presently doing at Kerr.
“So ye’d gone to visit yer uncle Gilchrist and cousin Lady Mairin, and then the MacNaughton showed up to force yer uncle into allowing a wedding?” Hamish reasoned out. The three men were riding as close as they could to them to hear this conversation.
“Nay. Me uncle was conspiring with MacNaughton,” she told them with some vexation. “’Twas all a grand plan. Me uncle was the one to suggest Mairin invite me down to assist her, and while she was, at first, grateful for the suggestion and rushed to invite me, once she thought about it, she realized how out o’ character it was fer her father to even consider her troubles. Me uncle is a most selfish man as a rule,” she explained, “and this just seemed too thoughtful and considerate to her. That was the first thing to trouble her.”
“What was the second?” Payton asked with interest.
“She began to realize that there had been a lot o’ messages arriving and being sent out of a sudden. Messages her father was most secretive about. That all made her suspicious enough that she decided she should get a look at them and she started searchin’ her father’s room while he was out and about his day.”