The Highlander's Secret(10)

“Aye, sir. I came to speak with ye.”

The man raised an eyebrow at him and said, “What did ye have in mind? As ye can see, I’m very busy.”

“Jain,” Conrad stated simply with an air of confidence.

Eamon stood and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “Aye, that would be my daughter. What business could ye have involving her?”

“Well, seeing as how she is a woman grown, I thought it was time ye ken I intend to marry her.”

Eamon chuckled. He glanced down at his dirty hands while cleaning them off with a rag. His reaction caught Conrad off guard and he wondered to himself if the man was laughing at him.

“Ye would take my Jain to wife?” he quipped.

Conrad smirked and placed his hands on his hips while he took another step forward. “Aye, Eamon. I would.”

Eamon sighed, placing his hands firmly on his hips before responding. “Lad, I’m sure one day ye’ll find a sweet lass that could make yer heart content. However, I am not convinced Jain would be happy in the arrangement.”

Conrad’s jaw fell open at his assessment. Since when did a woman’s happiness matter? They were expected to marry and then do what they were told. “W..who’s to say that’s her decision? If ye agree to the match, then surely Jain would have to go along with it.”

Eamon crossed his arms and arched a brow. “Why would I do that to my own daughter when I ken she’d be unhappy?”

“I’ll protect her. Give her sons,” Conrad insisted. “Isn’t that more important than having her grow into a spinster?”

For some reason that appeared to anger Eamon. He frowned. “My word is final.”

Conrad pursed his lips at Eamon’s refusal, and felt rage boiling up inside him. The conversation was not going how he expected. Eamon should be overwhelmed with gratitude that a warrior was offering to marry his pathetic daughter – even though beautiful she may be.

“What exactly is yer objection to me?” the warrior sneered. “Ye dinnae ken I’d be a good husband?”

“Not to Jain,” Eamon shot back. “I’ll never force her to marry against her will.”

“I dinnae have to prove anything to ye. I’ve contributed more to the village than anyone and have shown my skill in battle.”

“Ye seem to be forgetting that I’m her da. Like it or not, without my permission this union will not take place.”

“Perhaps I should go above yer head and appeal to Keenan directly!”

Eamon chuckled darkly. “Keenan may be our chieftain, but his affection fer his niece rivals my own. And he would never go against my wishes without good reason. If ye plan on marrying my sweet lass, ye’d have to win her heart.”

“I cannae believe ye’re denying me a respectable claim.”

“One day when ye have daughters of yer own, ye will look back on this and understand.”

“What do ye ken?” Conrad argued. “Ye’re a bloody cottar and any daughter of mine will learn to do as she’s told.”

The man’s face went dark at the words. “Dinnae forget yerself, Conrad. I’m the chieftain’s brother. Ye had best watch yer tongue when addressing me.”

Conrad’s mouth turned down into a scowl. His fists clenched open and shut as he tried to rein in his temper. It was all Conrad could do not to flatten Eamon to the ground. The insult of having to ask his permission to marry Jain in the first place galled him.

“This is exactly why my answer to ye was nae. Ye cannae seem to control yer temper. I’d think about that the next time ye come around here asking me fer favors. Now get off my land,” Eamon told him.

Conrad turned on his heel and stormed off toward the village.

How dare Eamon insult him by refusing his request after all the battles he’d won and beasts he’d contributed to feed the Clan. Jain would be lucky to have a husband like him.

Stupid arrogant man. If he wasn’t the chieftain’s brother, Conrad would have had no interest in impressing him to begin with. That’s the only reason Jain caught his eye – by getting close to her, Conrad would be one step closer to achieving his ambition. As much as he disliked Eamon, he would be chieftain one day since Keenan had no sons. If Conrad married Jain that would make him family and there’s no way Eamon could deny him a seat on the village council.

No matter.

One day soon, Jain would be his wife. It was just a matter of time before he could claim what was already his.





Chapter Five


Alan grinned, looking down at the women in the field while they harvested carrots and radishes from the garden, one of them with hair like fire, the other a chestnut brown. They were both lost in the work, yet they made it look so graceful and unencumbered. Jain could make even the most mundane of tasks seem like artwork. He heaved a tired sigh and sat down on the center beam, resting for a moment from their labor.

He continued watching her, his eyes tracing the elegant lines of her body as she stood and dusted the loam off her skirts. Then she pulled a kerchief from her brow, lifting her face and closing her eyes. Alan watched her for a moment and the bundle of thatch began to slip. He snatched then up before they blew away as well. Alan let his gaze drift over to Jain one more time and caught sight of a flame of red curls dancing.

How long had he been watching her like this? It seemed to be more of a regular occurrence these days. She was such a delightful distraction.