Page 67 of The Burden of a Scottish Chieftain
“I will. My thanks for all your gifts.”
He gave her that lopsided grin she loved so.
“Lennox, I think I have more to give, so I’ll save it all for you.”
Lennox said, “I will escort you to MacQuarie land. Please do not try to deny me this. I’ll keep my distance, but I’ll not sleep unless I know you’ve arrived safely. After all that has takenplace, I must know you are safe. Once I rest my horse, I promise to return. And I would love to meet your sister and your niece.”
“You mean our niece?” She made her way up to the back of the castle. “I will accept that. Stay for a brief repast and then return. I need to be alone, be with my sister.”
She didn’t understand the quandary in her heart—she needed to step away from him for a bit, yet she loved him.
What the hell was wrong with her?
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Lennox
Lennox had never felt so powerless in his life. Here she was, the woman he’d waited for, a woman he admired and enjoyed more than any other, and he was allowing her to walk away from him.
A woman he loved, a woman he’d handfasted with, the one he wished to marry and bring their bairns into the world, raise them—and she was leaving him.
About an hour after they’d returned from their journey, Meg crossed under the gates, four other guards in front of her while he followed. Just under the portcullis, he heard a voice from above. He turned to see his mother hurrying down the stairs.
“Mother? What is it?”
She approached his mount, patting his calf, speaking in such a tone so no one else would hear. “Lennox, she’ll be worth the wait. She loves you. She will return.”
He hoped she was correct.
They said little along the way to Clan MacQuarie, Lennox’s ears alert for any attack, though he hoped they’d caught all the criminals guilty of kidnapping. He didn’t need to run into any fool who’d attempt bride-stealing.
When they had traveled an hour, Meg fell back to ride abreast of him. “Lennox, could we talk, please?”
“Aye. What is it you’d like to discuss?”
She cleared her throat, her anxiousness obvious to him, so he gave her the time she needed to organize her thoughts. “What would my duties be as your wife?”
He thought for a moment, then answered with the explanation he thought she was looking for. “Working with our cook to make sure we have enough food in our cellar stores and planning the menu. Usually, we feed the entire village once asennight, and we feed our guards two meals a day. They go home for the evening meal.
“Overseeing the maids, taking care of the bedchambers for guests. Most of it is handling the help, answering questions. You’re fortunate in that the current mistress of the castle, my mother, is still living with us and would be happy to teach you. My mother likes to teach some to read and write, but that would be entirely up to you. I don’t know if I am able to tell you everything she does. She could answer best. You also would have Eva to assist you.”
“Not you?”
“Of course, I would help wherever I can, but I don’t keep track of stores and menus. That is all my mother and my sister’s concern. A head housekeeper oversees all the maids, just as Cook oversees the serving lasses. I handle the coin, and I would love to have you participate in running that part of the castle. Keeping the clan with enough food for winter and being able to buy what we don’t have. That takes much planning and adjusting.”
He watched her take in this information and sort through it in her mind. Absolutely confident that she would excel at the job, he didn’t wish to be overly enthusiastic as she worked through everything. She blushed and turned to him.
“What is it? You are my wife, Meg. Ask me anything you wish.”
“Could I ask you if you have been in love before? I don’t wish to pry, but I wonder if you have, if she lives in the clan?”
Lennox nearly smiled because her question spoke of sheer jealousy, something he told himself didn’t really matter. But it did to her.
“I’ll be as honest as I can. I thought myself to be in love twice. Once was the first lass who ever lay in my bed, and I will tell you that my sire came to me and told me the strumpet was toleave and never come back.” He had to chuckle at the memory. “He gave me a warning about bringing such women into our home. That it was an insult to my mother.”
“Such women?”
Lennox was suddenly caught by the truth of his wife’s innocence and wondered exactly how to explain this to her. “Women who are paid for their services.”
