Page 9 of Falling for Her Highland Steward
“Thank you,” Caillen murmured, smiling as their eyes met once more, and Erin felt herself blushing again.
She saw his pupils expand, making his eyes look almost black, and for a second, he seemed unable to look away from her, then abruptly, he dropped his gaze and began to sip his wine.
“Of course,” he went on. “The people who will be most affected by any changing forces on the estates are the tenants, so it might be a good idea for me to go around the estate and meet them.”
“It is a good idea, but it is a big place,” Erin warned. “And I must tell you that quite a few of them are hostile. They can see that many things are falling into disrepair and not being replaced or repaired. It is frustrating for them and makes them feel as if they are not valued, and it is difficult to fix these relationships once they are broken.”
She sighed, and for the moment, she paid no attention to the big, attractive man sitting opposite her. In fact, she was completely unaware of him for a little while, although the same could not be said for him.
As soon as Caillen laid eyes on Erin McCaskill, he was smitten. He had never seen a woman wearing breeches before or riding a horse astride, and he found it extremely arousing. Her eyes bewitched him at once. He had always loved green eyes, but these were the color of spring apples, a shade that was so bright and so enchanting he could barely stop staring at her.
As she turned and walked in front of them to lead them to the study, he noticed how tiny her waist was, how it flared out to her rounded hips, and the way they swayed as she walked. He could see the curve of her feminine backside perfectly since it was outlined by the fitting breeches she wore, and he felt himself stiffen with desire. God, she was so lovely.
“Will you come with me?” he asked her. “To see the tenants? They know you already, and I can be a bit”—he looked down at himself and spread his hands, laughing—“intimidating.”
“I think Michael should go,” Erin replied. “They were not friendly to me the last time I saw them. Oh, a few were fine, but most of them blamed me for every ill that had ever befallen mankind! But I cannot blame them since so much has been neglected.” She laughed a little bitterly.
Michael shook his head. “You are indeed a bit frightening, Cal,” he laughed. “But I am afraid I cannot help you, Erin. I have matters of business to take care of in Dundee for the next few weeks.” He shook his head sadly. “Believe me, I would help if I could.”
“What about Gordon and Alastair?” Erin asked desperately. “I cannot go by myself.”
“They have responsibilities of their own,” Michael reminded her. “If you are afraid, then take a couple of guards with you, Erin.”
“That will not be necessary,” Caillen announced. He had been wearing a sword belted around his waist, which he had taken off and placed on the floor while they talked, but now he picked it up and laid it across his lap. It was a huge claymore, five feet in length and weighing seven pounds. It was the weapon of a warrior, one who had seen battle and spilled blood.
Erin stared at it, transfixed. She had never been close to a deadly weapon like this before, and it made her shudder in fear. Instinctively, she drew back.
“I can protect you.” Caillen’s deep voice stated firmly. “I also carry this.” He brought out a gleaming, lethal-looking dagger from a scabbard on his hip.
Erin swallowed nervously. “We would like to help them,” she pointed out. “Not make war on them. These are ordinary people, not criminals.”
“Calm down, Cal,” Michael laughed. “You are not on a battlefield now.”
“Were you a warrior?” Erin asked curiously.
Caillen grinned, looking sheepish. “I have done many things,” he replied, “a warrior being only one of them. But we are not here to talk about me. Before I make myself familiar with your accounts, I need to know if you will employ me or not because we are dealing with very sensitive information. You will be trusting me with the knowledge of the wealth of the whole estate—and the lack of it—and you will have to be sure that I will tell no one. I know it is difficult to trust someone you just met, but Michael knows me well.”
Michael nodded. “I can vouch for him, Erin. He is a good, honest man. You will find none better.”
Erin weighed her options for a moment, then nodded. “I will give you a trial for a month,” she said firmly. “But I reserve the right to end your employment at any time before that if I find that your work does not come up to the standard I expect.”
Caillen stared at Erin for a moment, and a brief spasm of anger crossed his face. Who was this woman to be treating him like a schoolboy? For a moment, he glared at her, then, with a mighty effort, he put his anger away and nodded. “I understand,” he agreed. “However, for my part, I reserve the right to speak up if I feel you are wrong or being unfair. I also wish to be free to leave at any time should the position not suit me.”
Erin had seen the brief surge of anger on his face and resisted the urge to soothe him. After all, he was not a child. Obviously, she was going to have to toughen up a lot before she took charge, especially since she was a woman. She could not afford to look weak. Clearly, he was not happy to be told what to do by a woman, but that was not her concern, as long as he did as he was ordered to. She knew that she would have to keep him at a distance since he was far too much of a distraction, anyway. Part of her rebelled against that idea, however. She very much wanted to see more of him...in every way.
“I agree.” She gave an inward sigh of relief that they had hammered out a solution that was acceptable to both of them, then changed the subject. “Now, to your accommodation. I have assigned you a chamber in the west wing of the castle. If you prove suitable, you will have your own suite of rooms.”
“Thank you, milady.” He summoned up a smile. “May I begin by looking at the repairs?”
Erin nodded her assent and watched as he and Michael left. She poured a glass of wine to steady her nerves, reflecting that she was going to have trouble with her new steward in more ways than one.
Caillen was glad to be alone for a while. Michael had told him that Erin was a lovely woman, but their tastes were vastly different in that way. Michael judged men and women primarily by their looks, whereas Caillen preferred to look inside too. He had to admit that Erin was beautiful and extremely intelligent, but her attitude toward him had been prickly, to say the least.
However, she had not stinted on his comfort. The chamber she had allotted to him was comfortable and well-appointed, and as well as being beautifully decorated, it had a distinctively masculine flavor. The walls were partially paneled with dark polished wood, with furniture of the same material. The four-poster bed was dressed with plain cream bedding and drapes, without a frill anywhere, and paintings of local landscapes hung on the walls. Caillen knew that he would enjoy being in his quarters, even if he were only employed for a short while.
He washed and dressed for dinner, then left his chamber to go to the dining room, hoping that he could find his way through the maze of passages that led to it. He had just reached the top of the main staircase when he heard the patter of rapid footsteps behind him, accompanied by the gleeful high-pitched yelling of a child.
He turned to see the owner of the voice barrelling down the passage so fast that he collided with Caillen’s legs, bounced off, and landed on his backside on the hard wooden floor, then promptly burst into tears. At that moment, a plump young woman with curly red hair came running up to him and pulled the little boy onto her lap.
