Page 39 of Highland Fire

John Serle was in his mid-thirties, of medium complexion, and he carried his spare frame with a military air.

He lived in a cottage on the estate, and rarely showed his face in Ballater or its environs.

He was a true lowlander, in Caitlin’s estimation, dour-faced, with his nose always to the grindstone, the sort who chafed because the Sabbath was ordained by the laws of both God and man as a day of rest. Though she had never done more than exchange the odd word with Rand’s factor, she knew that she disliked him intensely.

Mr. Serle was only slightly less stiff than Caitlin.

As the introductions were made, his lean face thinned to a razor sharpness, and Caitlin’s gray eyes lightened to a chilling transparency.

Hostility seemed to vibrate between them.

The encounter lasted no more than a moment or two, for Rand’s firm clasp on his wife’s elbow nudged her along to the next person in line.

Later, over breakfast, Rand did not mince matters, though he was careful to keep his tone light and pleasantly modulated.

“Serle is my agent,” he told her, “and a very able one at that. I was lucky to get him. He’s had extensive experience in East Lothian as well as Norfolk.

I know you hold him in dislike because of the changes that have been made here, on Strathcairn.

I hardly need tell you that Serle was only acting on my instructions, so if you have anything to say—anything new to say, that is—I suggest you say it to me.

One thing more, it would be highly undesirable if the man’s authority were called into question by my other employees, and that’s what would happen if my wife were to openly display her contempt for him.

A factor’s position is not an easy one, Kate. ”

There was a long interval of silence as Caitlin’s sharp teeth ground a small piece of dry toast into minuscule fragments.

The Randal did not rave and rant in the manner of her grandfather, but she recognized a lecture when she heard it.

Such blandishments had never been known to moderate Caitlin’s thinking or conduct.

“Kate?”

“Point taken.” Her little smile was as wooden as her voice.

Rand’s own smile became more of a grin. “It would be more fitting if you would confine your interests to household matters. There’s plenty to occupy you here.

” When she made no comment on this, he continued in the same conversational tone, “Nothing has been done to the house for years. I used it more as a hunting box. If you wanted to, you could fix it up, refurbish the place.” A spark of interest kindled in her eyes, and Rand was encouraged to say, “You won’t find me a tightfisted husband.

Feel free to spend as much as you like.”

She acknowledged his generous offer with a slight inclination of her head.

His words had softened her a little. Testing the water, she said diffidently, “In the next little while, I thought I might ride around the estate, get to know your gamekeepers and gillies, familiarize myself with how things are run.”

“And stop off at every cottage to acquaint yourself with the problems of my tenants and cotters? Kate, it won’t do.”

“Only a courtesy call, you understand.”

“I understand perfectly. My factor, on the other hand, might consider it meddling.”

“Mr. Serle is an employee, and as you once pointed out to me, an employee’s services are not indispensable.”

“I won’t have you meddling in what does not concern you.”

She flashed him a cold, brittle smile. “I see. Your domain and my domain are to be mutually exclusive?”

He pressed his napkin to his lips and regarded her thoughtfully before attempting to answer.

Drawing a cautious breath, he said, “Not exactly. Though I have no wish to be a tyrannical husband—far from it—I expect to be kept informed of what goes forward on the domestic front.” He shook his head at her lowered brows.

“No, Kate, don’t glower at me. I’m thinking of you.

You know that you have had no experience in managing an establishment on this scale.

This will be good practice for you. When we remove to my estates in Sussex, the responsibilities will be far more onerous.

There is no question in my mind that, with a little guidance, you will prove equal to the task.

You are an intelligent, capable woman with proven abilities.

” Injecting a little humor into his voice, he went on, “Anyone who can successfully operate a smuggling ring under the noses of a garrison of redcoats is capable of anything, if she puts her mind to it.”

She leaned slightly toward him. “But don’t you see, Rand, that is my point precisely?

I am not averse to taking guidance on the domestic front, as you put it, because I do lack experience.

However, there is not much I don’t know about the land and its people.

Together, we could turn Strathcairn into a model estate.

Others could learn from us. Your influence could be far reaching, not only here, on Deeside, but all over the Highlands. ”

There was a moment when it seemed as if her words might persuade him; then he laughed and shook his head. “I already have a factor, Kate. I don’t require another one. What I want is a wife.”

She held his quizzical stare for a long moment, then dropped her eyes to her plate.

Rand was at the sideboard, helping himself to a succulent fillet of finnan haddie when Caitlin rose from the table. “Kate?”

Her mouth curved in a humorless smile. “With your permission, I shall ask Mrs. Fleming to show me my new domain. Before refurbishing the place, I thought we might make a beginning by taking inventory, you know, counting chamber pots and such like.” Her hand reached for the doorknob.

“Oh, do you have any words of wisdom to offer, my lord, should it be necessary to replace any that are cracked or showing signs of wear, any preference as to style and decoration? You’d best tell me now.

I would not want to incur your displeasure at my first major undertaking. ”

Rand’s smile conveyed only amused tolerance. “In this enterprise, I trust your judgment implicitly, my dear.”

The door did not slam, but it did vibrate as she shut it smartly behind her.

Grinning, Rand seated himself at the table.

All in all, he considered he and Caitlin had made a fair beginning.

It was not the marriage he had envisioned, but it was a start.

She had his ring on her finger. She was living under his roof.

That she’d had no choice in the matter was regrettable, from her point of view, but hardly of paramount significance.

The women who moved in his circles were rarely allowed to marry where they wanted.

The thing was done, and it was up to them to make the best of it.

He did not wander at her chagrin. She had ordered her life to suit herself for so long that any restrictions were bound to prove irksome.

His Kate would not take kindly to confining her energies to the typical woman’s sphere.

That would soon change. What she needed was a brood of children hanging on her skirts, and—he smiled a slow smile—it was his dearest wish to give them to her.

That thought put him in mind of the obstacle that kept him from his wife’s bed.

His brow furrowed in concentration. The more he thought about it, the more the conviction grew that she really did believe they were brother and sister.

She could not be toying with him. What would be the point?

She had everything to gain and nothing to lose by ensuring that their marriage was consummated.

He wasn’t thinking only of the legal implications but of something he recognized as primitive and deeply ingrained in his nature.

Once Caitlin had surrendered herself to him, the bonds that held them together would be strengthened a hundredfold.

She and her children could look to him as their shield and protector.

It was nature’s way, he supposed, of ensuring the survival of the species.

Digressing, he imagined himself explaining to his bride the law of nature that made it imperative for her to grant him unlimited access to her body, and he laughed softly to himself.

Caitlin would soon stand that argument on its head.

He’d had many women in his time, and his wife knew it.

It was only with Caitlin that he felt driven to forge a connection that was indissoluble.

If it were only that, he thought wryly, he would not be consumed with impatience to get at her.

He wanted her in every way it was possible for a man to want a woman.

His whole body was aching from frustrated desire, and if the question of her paternity was not settled soon, he very much feared that he would take her, her scruples be damned.

She might not want it, she might fight against it, but she would accept him.

He was no novice where women were concerned.

She was susceptible to him, more than susceptible.

If he had played his cards differently, he could have had her any time these last few months.

His scruples, not hers, had held him off.

Sex was a powerful weapon, and he had not wanted to use it against her unless it became absolutely necessary.

That weapon had been very adroitly taken away from him. He gazed blindly at the congealing food on his plate. A moment later, uttering an imprecation, he threw down his napkin and strode from the room.