Page 7 of Sinbound to the Highlander
Her head inclined in a gracious, queenly dip, “I understand, Laird Ruthven. Times are troublin’, aye, but I do hope we can still have a lovely courtship, nevertheless.”
Evan briefly met his mother’s eyes, and she looked pleased. He turned back to the Laird, “Laird, would ye mind if I took a walk with Miss Milleson?”
A look passed between the Laird and his wife, and when she gave him a slight nod, he gave his consent, “Ye may use the garden.”
Standing, Evan extended his arm to Miss Milleson and when she took it, he nodded to the three and walked her out the room, “I’ll need to lean on yer expertise, Miss Milleson, please direct me to this garden yer Faither spoke about.”
Her laugh was soft and refined, “It’s just down this hallway and out the door. Nay worry, I’ll show ye where it is.”
Following her, they emerged from the house onto a walkway that led to a walled garden. The bushes were just starting to feel the coming winter and were growing thin at the increasingly cold air and frosty mornings.
“Before I say anythin’ more, I must say, ye are bonnie,” Evan said. “I am astonished ye have nay been asked for before.”
“Well, I havenae,” she replied, looping her arm tighter with his. “I ken that me destiny would be different from other women. So, I made sure I’d have all the wisdom and discretion I’d need to help me husband, when it came to makin’ the hardest decisions.”
Her Faither said the same.
“And I do applaud ye for it,” he said sincerely. “What did ye like to do as a child? What was ye favorite food?”
“I loved and still love to read,” she replied. “Faither dinnae have access to many books or scrolls as most of them came from England, but the ones he did have, he gave to me,” she replied. “And me favorite food was honey cakes. Sadly, I overate and grew plump. Maither adjusted me diet, and now I eat a specific set of foods that come from all parts of Scotland. I eat a silverfish from Loch Lamond and Lock Eck and beef from Aberdeen.”
Evan blinked; he had never expected that. But he could deal with her dietary requirements. She wrinkled her nose, “Pork is vile, and I never touch that meat, in fact, Faither banned pigs from the castle when I was seven years old. One of the servant’s hogs had rushed me and frightened me.”
That startled him. A lot of Scots did not eat pigs, but the lowest who hardly could afford beef or goats reared pigs. Banning them from the castle meant banning food from a lot of people. He hoped, though, that the Laird has subsided the loss in some other way.
“A lot of my servants raise pigs,” he mentioned. “Me family daenae eat pork, though.”
“Ye should get rid of it overall,” she pronounced. “It’s vile.”
He bit back his reply, “Anythin’ else…do ye ride?”
“I tried once,” she said, “Faither bought a pony for me to ride. Gorgeous thing, golden-haired with brown eyes as big as the moon, but gettin’ into the saddle was hard, and riding felt unnatural, so I stopped it. I daenae ride at all, but Faither sourced an English-style carriage from Edinburgh for me to use when I have to go somewhere.”
Again, a lot of Ladies did not ride in the saddle, so he let that pass by.
Steering them around a corner, he asked, “Where do ye like to go when ye travel?”
“I went to France once,” she replied. “For one summer with my maids and Maither. It was magical. When I do travel here, it’s to the city to shop for new clothes and cosmetics. Once, Faither was invited to a Royal Ball, and I went with him. I was ten-and-six, too early to court, but I still learned a lot. City life is fantastic. Even now, Faither sends me to Edina every summer from then.”
His lips pressed a little tight at the particularities Miss Milleson had. But still, he could deal with them. He needed this arrangement to work for the safety of his people.
“I havenae traveled much,” he admitted. “The farthest I’ve gone was Cumberland. I had yearned to go to Glasgae for higher education, but I couldnae, as I had taken on the brunt of the Lairdship at twenty, fourteen years after me Faither died. So I called for masters from the capitals to teach me along the way. I’m told ye made sure to be educated as well.”
“Aye,” she nodded. “I daenae ken much about trade or business, but I do learn quickly. I ken a lot about art, philosophy, history, and some medicine.”
Fair enough. Evan nodded; he had not expected a Lady to learn what tradition deemed as male subjects, and it was even better; with her knowledge, their children—if born—would have a well of education to draw from.
“That’s lovely,” he mused. “There are Ladies in court that are very engrossed in those subjects. I ken ye would be able to have discourse with them when they do come about. I—”
“Pardon me, Laird Ruthven,” a female servant hurried toward them. “Lady Ruthven has—”
And then Miss Milleson transformed. Her face darkened, and her eyes flashed with anger, “Who do ye ken ye are? Daenae ye see we are havin’ an important conversation. Leave us ye—now,glaikit.”
Evan’s jaw dropped at the insult. Calling the woman stupid was not something he would ever have expected from such a sophisticated Lady—but looking at the woman’s impassive face, he realized that probably it was something she was used to.
“I would Miss, but the Laird’s mother is asking for him. She received a message from the castle, and she says they are needed back there,” the servant woman said carefully.
Miss Milleson’s face did not soften, but he intervened. “Me Maither wouldnae have called me back if it wasnae important, Miss Milleson. I do apologize for this interruption, but I do need to leave. I pledge to be back as soon as I am able.”
