Page 15 of The Mad Highlander
“What is that, dear?” Margot turned to her with a frown.
Snapping out of her daze, Iris quickly attempted to save face. “It’s smaller than what I was expecting, nae that that’s a bad thing,” she added quickly.
Robyn gave her a funny look of amusement but let go of her arm and skipped after her mother.
The great hall was a long room that looked as if it would have been able to accommodate a large number of guests. The table that ran down the center seemed far too large for a small family. The large hearth crackled with an inviting fire that filled the air with warmth.
The floor is clean.
Iris found herself trying to check under the table for any kind of stain that may have been hidden by the table or even the chairs.
“Did ye lose something?” Robyn asked as she pulled back a chair and took a seat at the end of the table where a small feast had been assembled.
“Nay, I’m just a little overwhelmed.” Iris took a deep breath as she chose a seat beside Robyn, feeling at home at the girl’s side.
The table had been set with various kinds of fruit, freshly baked bannocks, cheese, and several kinds of meat. They instantly tucked into the delicious delights as Margot and Robyn chattered away about something that had happened with one of the farmhands.
Iris found herself wondering just how much of the rumors had been true when she couldn’t find a shred of evidence to support any of them at all.
“Why did the Laird nae wish to show me the castle himself?”
Iris suddenly blurted out before she could stop herself. They hadn’t seemed to speak of Cayden at all since they left the carriage.
Margot and Robyn exchanged glances that Iris couldn’t quite place.
“Cayden is a complex man, Iris. He has faced many hardships in his life, an’ it has shaped him into the Laird he is today. He can seem distant at times, but deep down, he has a kind heart.” Margot spoke up first and offered an explanation with a reassuring smile.
Robyn chimed in; her eyes filled with affection for her brother. “Cayden cannae show it easily, but he cares deeply for those he loves. He has a sense of duty and responsibility which makes him appear cold at times, but once ye break through his walls, ye’ll find a man who is fiercely loyal and protective.” She spoke so passionately that Iris began to wonder if they were talking about the same person. “He is often misunderstood.” Robyn bit her bottom lip as she added the last part.
“Many men are,” Iris agreed. “In fact, almost everyone is misunderstood until ye get to ken them. I am sure the same is true of Laird O’Brien.” She hoped it was true of the Laird, for shecould tell that his sister was not telling her the complete truth. Not every rumor told was the truth, but there were so many rumors about him that there must be truth to some of them.
“Ye will come to ken me son in time.” Margot seemed to tease her with an encouraging smile.
“Ye give me hope for the future, Margot, I will say that.” Iris felt a little more at ease knowing that the man she was going to marry wasn’t entirely bad. It spoke well of his character that his mother and sister seemed to love him so much. “Have ye ever loved someone before, Iris?” Margot tilted her head to the side and searched her face.
“I loved me parents very much an’ me brother an’ cousin are very dear to me.” She smiled at the older woman, feeling a tinge of sadness at the thought of her family.
Margot shook her head and straightened the fork beside her plate. “Nay, nae like that. I’m talking about the kind of love that a woman has for a man. The kind of love that ignites a fire deep within yer soul.”
Iris felt herself blushing at the passionate way the older woman spoke. “Nay, I have never been in love with a man.” She answered a little reluctantly, feeling Robyn’s gaze boring into her.
“Neither has Cayden,” Margot remarked with a broad smile, pushing herself up as she stood to leave the table. She suddenlylaughed. “I mean he hasnae been in love with a lass before, nae a lad.”
The laughter broke the tension a little, but Iris could not laugh along with her. She was in an unfamiliar castle with a new family, and her brother was missing.
Margot’s smile slowly left her face, and she left Iris and Robyn alone at the table. What was she trying to imply? That she and Cayden could fall in love with one another? The idea seemed utterly absurd.
Robyn leaned a little closer as her eye began to sparkle mischievously. “I ken that it may feel as if ye an’ Cayden dinnae have anything in common, but perhaps this can be the one thing that ye do. Use it, Iris, an’ ye might be the one who saves him.”
Her heart fluttered a little as she drank in the hope that Robyn exuded. What could a man like Cayden possibly need saving from?
7
Cayden's mind was consumed by the look of disappointment in Iris’ eyes when he left her with his mother and sister. The weight of his responsibilities as the Laird and the impending council meeting weighed heavily on him.
“Ye look as if ye have the world’s problems on yer shoulders.” Hunter Clarke came ambling toward Cayden where he sat in the gardens. Being the Laird of the neighboring clan, Laird McLaren had been his friend for as long as Cayden could recall. His tall, formidable build and long blonde hair that he kept in a braid down his back gave him a jolly kind of look that always puzzled Cayden.
“I went to Castle McCabe to fetch me a new bride.” Cayden sighed heavily and shook his head. It still didn’t seem real to him that a woman like Iris would become his wife. It was more surprising that she had not been scared of him—there had been moments of fear on their journey, but she had mostly challengedhim even when she could not look him in the eye. She was another puzzle he could not solve.
