Page 44 of The Anguish of the Scottish Lairds
“Ingelram, I’m going to see Lennox, then I’m heading to Clan Grantham. Aye, there’s a party this eve and you’re probably right. Let Rinaldo get his fill, but I have to stop Da before he embarrasses me so much that I’ll never go outside these walls again.”
Miles said, “Everyone knows where your father’s words come from. Not from you, but from an old chieftain who is missing his wife.”
He patted Miles’s shoulder and said, “I hope so. I won’t be back for a while unless I have to escort my sire home. In fact, Ingelram, I’ll take you with me so you can escort him. He’s known you for a long time.”
Ingelram smiled. “Longer than he’s known you, Chief.”
The lads brought out a saddled mount for Ingelram, so the two departed without another word, his mind on what possible situation he was about to find. His life had surely turned into a mess of late. Rinaldo was up to something, but no one had been able to uncover where he was spending his time. His father reminded him daily that he was doing a terrible job with the clan and that he needed to do things differently. Nay, not some things. Everything. Every blasted thing he did of late was wrong. The clan continued to grow and prosper in his eyes, but not in his sire’s view.
Then there was Eva. He’d finally had the courage to ask for her hand in marriage, only to be rejected by the lass. He’d loved her for so long that the stake she’d driven into his heart by her rejection was not going to be pulled out easily. And Rinaldo offering to MacKinnis for him nearly put him over the edge. What else could go wrong?
He had an inkling he was about to find out. His father was on the run.
Then he reminded himself that everything on the isle had improved in so many ways that he’d had hope for a fresh start soon. Thane and Lennox were both newly married, both with thriving clans, and Clan Grantham had so many friends from the outside that nothing would ever happen to hurt them.
He loved his land, he loved his clan, he even loved his sire and his brother, adored his sisters, but there was only so much a man could take.
Ingelram asked, “The clan is doing well. Don’t let your father convince you otherwise.”
“You do a fine job reading my mind, Ingelram, and I thank you for your kind thoughts.”
Nothing more was shared between the two men along the path until they approached Clan MacVey. Ingelram asked, “Who do you think he is after—Lennox or Eva?”
“Hellfire, if the man has the gall to go after Eva, I will be blistering his ears with all my thoughts. Mayhap I’ll box them too. It’s none of his business, though he thinks it is.”
“I’m thinking he’ll go after Lennox.” Ingelram nodded as if to convince Sloan he was right.
Sloan sighed. “I hope it’s Lennox he’s after. Lennox can handle him. Eva can’t.”
On their approach, the gates opened quickly, Sloan looking up at Jasper on the wall. “You were expecting us?”
Lennox approached the gates, a wide smile on his face. “Oh, we knew you’d be here.”
“Then why didn’t you stop the daft man, Lennox? You didn’t leave him with Eva, did you?”
“Hell nay. He’s arguing with my mother.” He chuckled and said, “I noticed you coming, so I thought to stop and forewarn you, but please don’t stop them. I’m loving every minute of watching those two go at it. You have to enter quietly so you can listen before you pull him away.”
Sloan could only think of one thing to say. “Hellfire.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Eva
Eva stood back listening to the two elders argue, and she had no idea what to do. She’d come down the stairs when Dermot Rankin had come storming in, yelling for her mother. And her mother hadn’t backed down one bit.
In fact, her mother helped her to stand a wee bit straighter, so much so that she didn’t wish to interrupt.
“How dare you insult me and my son, Rut MacVey. Your husband is rolling in his grave over this slight, and you know it,” Dermot said, striding across the hall until he stood toe to toe with her mother.
“How dareyouwalk intomyhome and talk to me like that, you old coot. Take yourself back out and enter with a bit of decorum. You’ll not yell at me like that.”
“The hell I won’t. You let your daughter refuse to marry my son? Did you approve of her decision too?”
Eva glanced over as the door opened, and Sloan stepped inside. She’d never been so glad to see anyone. Hurrying around the outside of the hall, she was nearly in tears when she reached him, so she did the only thing she could think of. She launched herself into his arms. “Sloan, I don’t know what to do. Help me.” He set something down in a chair, then wrapped his arms around her.
Lennox came in behind Sloan, his eyes widening when he saw his friend and sister locked in a warm embrace. Sloan set Eva down but kept his hand at her back as if to protect her.
“Don’t worry, I’ll end this now.”
