Page 15 of Highlander’s Captive Bride (Troubles of Highland Lasses #4)

15

“’T is quite busy for a small village,” Daisy observed as they walked down the main street, which was bustling with farm traffic and people.

“Aye, ’tis a market day,” Bellamy explained over the cacophony of sheep baaing, dogs barking, chickens clucking and squawking, people talking, children yelling, and loaded farm carts creaking by. “And the last market day before Beltane, so everyone’s keen to get their goods sold today so they can spend the whole day tomorrow celebrating.”

He laughed good-naturedly, returning the many curious looks and greetings of his subjects with slightly reserved nods and smiles. Daisy suspected that, for some reason, he did not want to encourage interruptions.

“Aye, of course. ’Tis the same everywhere,” she said, wondering a little forlornly how the Beltane festivities were shaping up at Castle McGunn and feeling rather homesick.

But she soon forgot it as they drew nearer the village center, over which a large stone cross towered, and they entered the market proper.

Daisy observed all the stalls selling early spring harvested vegetables and barrows full of fresh meat and fish, alongside those offering dry goods such as flour and oats.

She noticed a stall loaded with pots of heather honey containing large combs which she thought looked delicious. She adored honeycomb and looked at them longingly, wondering if she should treat herself. But it was difficult to decide what to choose, for there were jars of fruit preserves, too, and what she guessed must be flasks of locally made wine.

Interestingly, as she was deliberating, she noticed that the stall appeared to be run by a pair of monks.

“Is there a monastery nearby?” she asked Bellamy as he looked over the goods on display.

“Aye, St. Tristan’s, about five miles up the road,” Bellamy explained before greeting the two monks, who inclined their heads politely under the hoods of their robes.

Daisy waited while Bellamy bought a whole case of wine and had it put aside to be collected by a servant before the end of the day. Then, to her surprise, he bought one of the honeycomb pots, too—the largest on display—and presented it to her.

“I saw ye looking at them with big eyes,” he told her with a wry smile.

“Am I really so easy to read?” Daisy asked ruefully after thanking him and putting the pot in her bag.

“Aye, I’m afraid ye are,” he told her, making her laugh.

After that, they wandered on, pausing now and then to inspect the huge variety of goods on offer, from woven cloth to candles, from beef to buttons to boots. It was a feast for Daisy’s eyes and ears after spending so much time in Elodie’s sickroom. Her senses felt quite refreshed.

They were passing a kiosk bedecked with fancy ribbons, beads, and hair accessories for ladies when they saw Nadia standing there, rifling through some colorful scarves that were hanging from a crossbar. Over her arm was a wicker basket with a few items in it. When she saw them, she gave them a bright smile.

They greeted her.

“Good day to ye, M’laird, Daisy,” Nadia said, bobbing a curtsey. “Ye’re out doing a wee bit of shopping, too, are ye nae?”

“Aye. I’m showing Daisy around a bit,” Bellamy replied.

“Ach, that’s nice.” Nadia turned to Daisy. “What d’ye think of our little market, Daisy? Have ye found anything ye wish to buy yet?” she asked.

“I like it very well, Nadia,” Daisy told the girl. “I’ve seen far too many pretty things to buy already. I dinnae ken what to choose. Have ye bought anything nice yerself?” She eyed Nadia’s basket.

The girl shook her head. “Nay, but I’m tempted by one of these scarves. Are they nae pretty?”

Daisy admired them. “Aye, very. That blue one would look very good on ye at the celebration tomorrow,” she suggested, gesturing to a lovely scarf in varying shades of blue.

Nadia beamed at her. “That’s just what I was thinking. Now, ye’ve helped me make me mind up.” She turned to the stallholder. “I’ll take that one,” she said, picking out the blue scarf. She paid for it and placed it in her basket. “Now, can I join ye?” she asked Bellamy. “I’ve finished me shopping now, and I’m in no rush to go anywhere.”

“Nay. We dinnae want company just now, Nadia,” Bellamy responded—rather curtly, Daisy thought. “Ye can go off about yer business and leave us be.”

Nadia looked a bit disappointed, but she nodded. “Very well. I’ll leave ye to it, then, and see ye back at the castle.”

“Aye, goodbye for now, Nadia,” Daisy said, feeling a little bit sorry for the girl, while at the same time inwardly glad that Bellamy had dismissed her. She had to admit, it was very enjoyable just having him to herself.

She watched Nadia make her way through the throng before turning back to Bellamy. “That was a wee bit harsh, was it nae?” she asked in a teasing tone.

Bellamy looked down at her, his eyes flashing a challenge in the sunlight. “Two’s company, three’s a crowd,” he said. “Do ye want me to call her back, then?”

Daisy laughed and shook her head. “Nay, I just felt a wee bit sorry for her, that’s all,” she explained.

“I dinnae ken why,” he replied. “The lassie has everything she needs and wants. She can see us any day of the week if she wishes, so why should I let her play gooseberry, when this is a day out for ye?”

Daisy’s heart skipped a beat at the implication of his choice of words.

“Gooseberry, is it?” she teased.

“Ye ken very well what I mean,” Bellamy returned, squeezing her arm lightly, his glance sending tingles down her spine. He turned back to the stall and fingered the scarves. “So, ye like these, do ye?”

“Aye, they’re very pretty.”

“Well, I’d like to buy ye something, a thank ye gift, so go ahead and choose the one ye like best.” He gestured with his eyes for her to go ahead.

“That’s very kind of ye,” Daisy replied, feeling her cheeks heating up a little, for she was touched by his offer.

She sorted through the scarves and eventually chose one in the Murdoch tartan.

It’ll be something to remember him by when I’m gone.

“Ach, ye’ve chosen that one to please me, have ye nae?” Bellamy asked jokingly, paying for the scarf. The stallholder handed it to Daisy with a warm smile.

Daisy immediately tied the scarf around her neck. “Aye, that’s it,” she replied laughingly.

“Well, ’tis fitting, for ye’re an honorary Murdoch now, ye ken?” Bellamy told her.

Daisy noticed a definite glint of pleasure in his eyes as he adjusted the scarf for her, noticing that they were once more drawing curious glances from passersby.

“Now, are ye hungry? ’Tis already past noon. I say we get something to eat.”

Daisy had not thought she could be hungry after having a hearty breakfast, but now that she thought about it, she realized she was.

“I find I have quite an appetite,” she confessed. “It must be all this fresh air and excitement. Aye, I’d like to eat something.”

“Good. That’s an excuse to show ye me favorite tavern. They do a grand mince and tatties, or haggis with neeps and tatties, or just neeps and tatties,” Bellamy said with relish.

“It sounds very tempting, and I could do with some ale,” Daisy replied, her mouth watering at the thought of well-cooked potatoes and mashed turnips in thick onion gravy, with beef so tender that it fell apart on the spoon.

Bellamy took her to a large, sprawling tavern, where tables and benches had been set outside. Several people were already eating at other tables, or merely enjoying the spring sunshine over a tankard of ale. There was no evidence of rowdiness or drunkenness at all, which was very pleasing.

Almost as soon as they had sat down opposite each other at a table, a servant appeared to greet the Laird with a respectful bow.

“The usual, Hamish. Twice,” Bellamy told the lad, who went off at once to fulfill the order.

“The usual? I never had ye down as a frequenter of taverns,” Daisy said jestingly.

“Och, ye dinnae ken the half of it,” Bellamy replied with a wink. “I’ve been coming here for me vittles since I was wee lad, with me faither. Apart from serving the best mince and tatties in the area, it always reminds me of him.” He smiled. “Thank ye, Hamish,” he said, breaking off from addressing Daisy to thank the serving lad for the two large tankards of ale he had just delivered.

Daisy lifted her tankard with two hands and tasted the foaming brew. It was wonderfully cool and refreshing, with a clean, yeasty aftertaste.

“Och, that’s grand.” She sighed in pleasure, taking a long draught.

Bellamy did the same, looking at her with smiling eyes over the rim of his tankard. She found herself happily absorbed in the playful mood that had grown between them. At that moment, she could not think of anywhere else she would rather be than sitting opposite Bellamy Kane outside the Murdoch Arms.

The food arrived shortly, and they tucked in with alacrity.

“Ye werenae lying,” Daisy told him, swallowing a morsel of beef which melted in her mouth. “This is delicious.”

“I told ye,” Bellamy murmured between forkfuls of food.

“D’ye ken, I’ve never actually been to a tavern before? I was always given to understand they were places of ill repute, but this seems quite nice and civilized,” Daisy observed between mouthfuls.

“Aye, it generally is during the day, but I wouldnae bring ye here after dark,” he replied with a grin.

“I see. ’Tis like that, is it nae?”

“Well, after a hard day of working in the fields or however they make a living, the poorer folks appreciate an ale and a bit o’ fun just as the better off do.”

“Of course, and they deserve it, too,” Daisy agreed. “I didnae realize until I left home to travel and learn more about healing how ignorant I was about people’s lives. I’m grateful to have been able to go into common folks’ homes and see how they really live. It’s been a great education.”

“Aye.” Bellamy nodded. “Me faither always made a point of telling me to ken me people, to try to understand their problems and troubles, and help them where I could. That’s how he lived. He’d take me all over with him, meeting the poor and rich alike. That was me education, and it’s stood me in good stead. I might not always get it right, but I try me best to be a good laird.”

Daisy felt a warm glow in her heart to hear the sincerity in his voice. “I can see yer faither taught ye well,” she told him. “’Tis clear yer folks respect ye rather than fear ye.”

“Fear is something I wish to instill in me enemies, nae me people,” Bellamy told her. He finished his dinner and pushed his plate aside, taking a long drink of ale. He waited patiently while she finished hers. Then, he asked, “Are ye ready for some shopping? There are still a few things I want to buy.”

“Aye, I’d like that,” Daisy replied.

Feeling relaxed and replete with the delicious meal, she took his arm once more, and they set off to do a bit more exploring of all the market had to offer.

Eventually, they came to a stall selling all sorts of pretty nicknacks, jewelry, little carved wooden animals and toys, and beautiful glassware so intricate that Daisy could not begin to fathom how they had been made. It was all so colorful, it caught her eye.

“Can we stop here, please?” she asked Bellamy, who willingly obliged, leading her over to look at the array of beguiling wares. “I think I’d like to buy a wee something to amuse Elodie,” she told him, picking up some of the little animals and examining them with interest.

“Och, look at this, Bellamy, is it nae sweet?” she asked excitedly, spotting a little carved wooden Noah’s ark containing a miniature Noah and his wife and a small army of animals that fitted inside perfectly and poked their heads out of the windows.

He laughed as he, too, looked at it. “Aye, she’d love that,” he agreed. “But let me get it.” He reached for his purse at his belt.

“Nay, I wish to get it for her, as a present from me,” Daisy insisted, hardly wishing to acknowledge in her happy mood that it would be a goodbye present.

“All right, as ye wish. I’ll choose something different for her.”

Daisy waited for the stallholder to wrap the ark in oilcloth and paid for it. She pulled out her cloth bag, put the ark carefully inside, and hung the bag over her arm before stopping to watch while Bellamy’s gaze wandered over the stall. His eye landed on a silver pendant of a horse. Daisy admired it at once.

“I’ll take that,” he told the stallholder, who immediately wrapped it up for him and handed it over.

Bellamy paid the man, then he turned to Daisy, his smile one of obvious satisfaction.

“Ye ken, she made me promise to get her a pony for agreeing to me plan?” he asked quietly.

“She’s a canny lass, all right. She drives a hard bargain.” Daisy laughed. Thinking their business was done, she began to turn away from the stall, but Bellamy stopped her.

“We’re nae finished,” he said. “I want ye to pick out something ye like, so I can buy it for ye as a gift.”

“But I already have me scarf,” she pointed out, frowning, fingering the article around her neck.

“Ach, that was pennies,” Bellamy scoffed. “When I said I want to buy ye a thank ye present, I meant something a bit more substantial than that. Go on, choose something ye like,” he urged.

Touched by his generosity, Daisy looked again at the array of wonderful objects in front of her, this time hunting for something she was drawn to. Eventually, she came across a delicate silver bracelet with several tiny charms dangling from it.

When she looked more closely, she was delighted to see that one was a tiny boat, complete with a miniature sailor with oars in hand, and another was a pair of swans whose necks were entwined in a heart shape. There was also a salmon, a hawk, a sprig of heather, and a tiny castle.

“Och, I love this,” she said, taking the bracelet in her hand and showing it to him.

Bellamy examined the diminutive charms with a surprisingly delicate touch, then looked deep into her eyes. She felt something warm and fleeting pass between them, and when he gave a small smile and nodded his head, she knew he had understood exactly why she had chosen it.

It was the perfect memento of their time together that day, their journey by boat across the loch from the castle and everything they had seen and shared along the way. It encapsulated their entire relationship.

“Aye, ’tis perfect,” he murmured, handing it to the stallholder, who once again wrapped the item up and took payment.

Finished at last, Daisy and Bellamy tarried a little longer among the stalls before he suggested they make their way back to the castle.

“I want us to go and see how things are with Elodie,” he told her. “But we dinnae have to hurry, so I thought we could walk home and go back along the causeway.”

“I have everything I want, so aye, let’s do that,” Daisy agreed.

She imagined they would leave the village the way they had come, so she was quite surprised when Bellamy continued in the opposite direction, taking a path at the other end of the village that veered off to the left.

They strolled at a leisurely pace further up the street, past the market, and took a left turn out of the village and onto the moor. A grassy path eventually took them into a copse of pine trees, where they came alongside a babbling mountain burn, whose waters fell musically over a rocky bed. By its banks, Bellamy drew them to a halt.

“’Tis so peaceful here,” Daisy breathed, entranced by the tranquility of the place as they stood side by side. “The more I see of yer lands, the more I see their beauty,” she said, turning and looking up at him with a smile.

Bellamy took a deep breath and nodded. “Thank ye, Daisy, but ye see, I brought ye here so we could talk in private, away from everybody else.”

“Oh?” Daisy murmured, feeling a stab of worry at his words.

“I want to tell ye something very important. But first, I need ye to swear that ye’ll never tell another soul.”