Page 35 of When a Highlander Vows
“I am lookin’ forward to meetin’ her. If she is Seamus’ sister, then I ken she is a good and kind woman, deservin’ of such protection.”
Lucas nodded but said nothing else and turned to ride back to the castle. When he returned, he found Sarah passing by on the way of doing her duties.
Lucas hurried to grab a basket from her arms, but she pulled it back. “Lucas Murdoch, dae nae dare take me job from me. I am nay invalid, and ye may tell that to me husband. I have done this once before, and I will dae it again.”
Smirking, Lucas held up his hands in defeat. “Fine. But if he comes to blame me for nae helpin’ ye, then I will tell him it is all yer fault.”
“Perfect. He will believe ye instantly.” Sarah grinned at him, shifting the basket on her arm. “Yer Nan told me what ye are doin’ for the lass. She will like that, Lucas.”
Lucas put a finger to his lips and looked around the passageway. “Ye must say nothin’. It is to be a surprise.”
“Well, I think it very kind of ye. We will all be there for the ceremony. Since when did ye get so nice, Lad?” she asked, reaching up to pat Lucas on the shoulder.
He grumbled, “Why does everyone keep askin’ me that?”
Laughing, Sarah grinned. “I’m just glad to hear ye doin’ this. I worried that ye would nae ever want to see her again while ye were in the Castle. But she will be very happy.”
Lucas shifted on his feet, and he rubbed at a sore spot on the back of his neck, uncomfortable with what he was about to ask.
“How was it when me and Archie were away? Did she…get on well?”
Lucas wanted to roll his eyes at the sparkle he could see in Sarah’s gaze. A satisfied look it was.
“Aye, so she did. She is kind, and she has helped me with Colin time and time again. She has learned the Castle well enough too so that she doesn’t need someone to guide her anymore. I was amazed.”
So was he. It had been very quick for her to learn the castle enough that she could come down the stairs and walk around the castle outside. But he was not entirely surprised. From what he knew of Caitlin, she was determined and intelligent, and she was used to looking after herself, with Seamus away so much.
“Good. I am glad. Thank ye, Sarah.”
“See ye in the mornin’.” She squeezed Lucas’ arm, and he watched her walk away, struggling a little with the basket as she held it under her arm.
He shook his head at her, annoyed that she would not accept help, but he walked away, needing a bit of physical exercise to get him through the nervousness of the afternoon. Now that things were underway, he was worried about how Caitlin would take the plans.
Walking through the castle to find the practice area, he wondered how she would feel about what he’d done. Would she be upset that he had not consulted her? Would she wish that she could have been involved? Would she have preferred the minister from her own village to come?
When he arrived in the stone room, filled with weapons, it was empty, and he let out a breath of relief. He removed his shirt until he was bare chested, only wearing his kilt, belt, and boots. His swung his sword in a circle in his hand, weaving it in front and around him, stretching and warming his muscles.
He poised himself in front of one of the hay figures built for practice, and he stepped forward, swinging the sword against the dummy. Over and over, he hit and swung, until a light sheen of sweat covered his skin, and his breath came fast and hard.
“Why did ye nae ask me?”
Lucas turned to see Archie at the door, smiling, and pulling off his shirt, tossing it to the floor.
“I dinnae wish to trouble anyone. Have a bit of thinkin’ to dae.”
“Aye, well, I will help ye as I always dae.” Archie winked and picked up his sword, standing across from Lucas. “Besides, the dummy will never help ye improve in yer skills. Those two men would have killed ye if I wasnae there.”
“Ha!” Lucas said, getting into position, deflecting Archie’s first blow. “I ken ye lie. But ye are right. I dae like to fight against a lesser warrior. Keeps me skills sharp.” He ducked out of the way of another swing from Archie and reached up to hit him in the side with the flat of his sword.
With a humph, Archie swung around and got Lucas on the arm. “So what are ye thinkin’ about? Sarah told me about the funeral.”
“Aye. What dae ye think?”
Chuckling, Archie danced to avoid Lucas’ swings. “I cannae remember the last time ye asked me for me opinion.”
“Another lie,” Lucas said, catching Archie on the hip.
“Fine then. But I dae enjoy teasin’. I think the funeral is a perfect idea. I was surprised ye’d nae thought of it before.”
