Page 8 of Highlander’s Wild Lass (Wild McLeans #1)

7

“D id ye tell her that ye’re comin’ today?” Sebastian asked as he placed two large baskets of arrows into the small horse-drawn cart.

Anthony smirked as he gathered a few muskets in his hands. “I didnae.”

“Ye’re pushin’ it with her, ye ken. At this rate, I’ll be married before ye,” Sebastian said, plunking both his and Anthony’s ornately carved bows beside the arrows. “Do we really need the muskets? They are worthless on a hunt.”

Anthony laughed. “I never had any doubt that ye would be married before me. Yer much more… amenable.” Sebastian only scoffed. “And we do need the muskets, those two boys barely ken the barrel from the handle.”

Sebastian looked like he was about to argue with being called amenable but decided against it. “Ye have grown fond of the boys, then?”

He nodded. “I think so, they remind me a lot of us when we were young. Always causin’ trouble.”

Sebastian snorted, muttering, “Just like us.”

“Aye, if they move in, they may truly surpass us in our days of troublemakin’.”

“That might just finally do my auntie in.”

Anthony laughed as he lifted a small case of gunpowder into the cart. “I think today will go without issue. I daenae plan on goin’ toe-to-toe with Celestia today. My focus is those two boys.”

The hunt would be in a few days, just after the start of the Beltane festival. His aunts and uncles, sister and her husband, along with much of the village and clan would make their way to Castle Ferguson for the hunt, the feast, and the fires.

“I think we have everythin’,” Anthony said, making sure his bonnet was secure before taking a seat at reigns. Only a single horse was needed for today.

The cart jostled when Sebastian hopped in and took a seat near the front. Anthony gave a short tug of the reins, and they made their way out of the courtyard, underneath the portcullis.

They turned onto the heavily wooded road that led to the McLean’s homestead, and soon Anthony brought the large horse to a halt and jumped from the cart. Sebastian followed suit, pulling the baskets of arrows onto his back.

Anthony grabbed their bows and together they walked to the front door. He didn’t know what to expect or who would answer the door; the last time he was here, he and Celestia had a rather awkward parting. And he regretted that he hadn’t just kissed her once more before he left.

Maybe this time? But no, no, he was not here for her. He was here solely to teach the twins.

Before he could even knock, the door was being pulled open. Thankfully, it was Hugo with his shirt untucked and his dark ash blonde hair askew. Hugo’s eyes nearly bulged out of his skull when he saw the bows and arrows. “Are ye here to teach us?”

Anthony nodded. Sebastian chuckled next to him and said, “We are!”

“Fantastic!” Hugo said, opening the door wider and beckoning them in. “I’ll go and get Chester; he’s just getting dressed now.” He nearly ran down the hallway, then halted and turned back. “Ye can wait out back for us. I’ll let—” And he lowered his voice a whisper, “—Celestia ken yer here if I can find her.”

Anthony and Sebastian exchanged a look.

“Aye, go and do that, lad. We’ll hurry out back now,” Anthony said jovially.

They cut through the house and into the back, seeing the horses grazing in the expansive paddock. Just beyond, Anthony could see a footpath leading into the woods beyond the property. That would be a great place to start.

He nudged Sebastian and they made their way closer to the edge of the woods, cutting between the paddock and the corral that kept the singular goat and a few pigs.

Sebastian nudged him and nodded his head forward. “Look.”

Coming from the woods were Celestia and her younger sister Auralia, carrying baskets full of white and yellow flowers. He could see the recognition in Celestia’s face from this distance.

“Good mornin’!” Sebastian called to them, raising his hand in a big waving salute.

Celestia and Auralia stopped just before them and both echoed Sebastian’s greeting. Celestia eyed the baskets of arrows peeking out from behind Sebastian and then latched her eyes onto Anthony.

She trailed her green eyes slowly down him, from his eyes to his mouth and finally to his hands, where he held onto the two large bows. “Makin’ good on yer promise finally.”

He tipped his head in acknowledgment. “I always keep my promises.”

She arched a brow. “And where are my brothers?”

“They were just gettin’ dressed when we got here,” he told her, keeping his face as neutral as hers.

There was an awkward moment of silence with just the slight wind rustling the leaves, and then Sebastian said, “A few days too early to be pickin’ Beltane flowers, is it nae?” He motioned to their baskets.

“Oh, nay,” Auralia told them. “We’ve always started this early for as long as I can remember. And they stay well enough in our cellar until we need them.”

Celestia smiled at her sister. “We’re makin’ flower wreaths for the festival. Our mother taught us when we were young, and we’ve kept up the tradition ever since.”

“Flower wreaths, really?” Sebastian wondered.

Auralia nodded enthusiastically. “People love buyin’ them for their cattle and goats. The young lasses love them too.”

“Some of the young lads too,” Celestia added with a grin.

It was the first time in a while that Celestia looked happy in his presence, and it warmed him to his bones.

“It’s good to see ye in good spirits,” Anthony said, hoping it came off more as a general compliment, but he was unable to take his eyes off her.

“Speakin’ of spirits,” Sebastian said, tilting his head toward Anthony. “Anthony’s told me how ye’ve become somethin’ of a whisky merchant, takin’ over yer faither’s business.”

Celestia’s joyful expression faltered, the smile gone from her eyes. “Aye, my faither’s been teachin’ me.”

“How’s it—”

“We’re here!”

“Daenae start without us!”

Celestia and Auralia looked beyond Anthony and Sebastian. The men turned to see Chester and Hugo running towards them, bonnets on their heads and bows in their hands.

“Ah, good, they’ve come,” Auralia said.

“We would have been sooner, but we were lookin’ for Celesita,” Hugo said.

Celestia exhaled. “I told ye both, I came right into yer room and said Auralia and I were goin’ to pick flowers.”

“Oh,” was all Hugo said.

“Ye daenae like to listen, do ye?” Auralia scolded mildly.

Hugo stuck his tongue out at her while Chester said, “Cellie, yer alright with us goin’ with them?”

Celestia nodded. “Of course.” She then gave Anthony a serious look. “As long as they make sure to take care of ye.”

Anthony hooked an arm around Hugo’s shoulders and pulled him close. “I’ll take care of them as if they were my own.”

Auralia looked exuberant next to Celestia, while Celestia only gave a patently false grin and said, “Good luck with them.” She turned her gaze to Chester and Hugo. “Be careful and thank them when they’re done with ye.”

The men moved from the path to allow Celestia and Auralia to pass, and once they were gone Chester and Hugo’s lesson began.

Not too far off the path, they found a small clearing with some rocks sprinkled about, but mostly green grass and large trees with wide trunks.

“This is a good spot,” Anthony said, surveying the land.

“Aye,” Sebastian agreed, dropping the basket of arrows against one of the larger boulders. He fumbled in his sporran for a moment and pulled out a piece of coal.

“What is he doin’ with that?” Chester asked Anthony.

Anthony peered down at him. “He’s goin’ to be markin’ targets on a few of the tree trunks. Some low, to help ye with pickin’ off small animals like hares and pheasants. Then a mark high enough to be a deer, and then even higher—if he can reach it—to get an eye for pickin’ off squirrels and other birds.”

Once the targets were drawn, Anthony let the boys have at the arrows. “See if ye can land an arrow in any of the nearby trees.” He wanted to see what their natural instincts were.

Hugo took to the bow easier than Chester; he was the stronger of the two, burying an arrow into a nearby tree. Chester eventually got the hang of it, and it became clear that Chester had the better eye. He landed two arrows very near each other at the base of another tree.

Next was arm placements and adjusting fingers and arrows to ensure a steady flight path. Then came targeting. Once again Chester showed that he was a natural marksman. Anthony saw the rivalry sparking between the twins with Hugo getting a bit flustered that he was not as precise as his brother.

Anthony knelt on one knee beside Hugo. “Daenae allow yerself to compare yer skills to yer brother’s.” Hugo peered at him from the side of his eye, trying not to look like he had been found out. “Ye have much force behind yer releases. Just brace yer middle and focus just a bit longer on the target.”

“Aye,” Hugo muttered, docking another arrow.

* * *

The round kitchen table was covered with the flowers that Celestia and Auralia had picked that morning. The chairs had been pushed against the far wall, so they were out of the way as they assembled the wreaths. The only one seated was their father, who had been eager to help them this year.

“Ye seem excited for this year’s Beltane festival,” Celestia commented, reaching for the small yellow buds of a gorse tree cutting.

“It should be a good one, I always love watchin’ the men jumpin’ over the smaller fires or runnin’ across the ones that have been smolderin’ for hours,” Auralia answered.

Brannan gave a throaty laugh. “I never did that back in my day. I always thought the men who did to be quite… harebrained.”

“Da!” Auralia exclaimed with wide eyes and a big smile. “I daenae think they are—they’re brave.”

“Brave fools,” Celestia muttered. “Like all men.”

“Celestia, Da is nae a fool.”

Celestia carefully grabbed a bushel of white primrose and remained silent.

“What is on yer mind, lass?” Brannan asked, busying himself with braiding together two pieces of flower and some string. “Ye have been short with me ever since ye came back from the distillery.”

She eyed Auralia cautiously and slipped a look at her father. “Jacob showed us the other customer list.”

“Oh,” Brannan said firmly. “I was goin’ to tell ye about that sooner or later.”

“Sooner would have been better, then I could have understood why Mr. Koll was so keen.”

“Ryder Koll doesnae ken of that list, trust me,” Brannan told her. “If he did, he wouldnae be after our customers, he would have me in gaol.”

“Prison? Yer willin’ to risk yer freedom to avoid a silly little excise tax?”

Auralia was doing her best to keep her head down and focus on the wreath she was constructing, but her eyes kept wandering from Celestia to their father.

“Aye, Celestia. I would.”

“Why, ye had children to think about and Ma when she was alive!”

Brannan brought his fist down onto the table, quieting Celestia. “Yer maither ken about the underground list. In fact, she acquired most of those customers herself.”

“What?” Celestia murmured. “Maither helped ye?”

His grave look broke and a small sad smile tugged at his lips. “When King James was usurped by that outlander William…well, yer maither and I felt that only God could judge and remove a monarch.”

“The divine right of kings?” Auralia questioned.

Brannan nodded. “Aye, William may have been king, but he was nae my king nor Scotland’s.”

“So,” Celestia said, “Ye and Ma were Jacobites?”

“Yer maither was a proud one too. We both aided in the uprising in 1689.”

Celestia couldn’t believe her ears. Her mother, the sweetest, kindest god-fearing woman she knew had been a Jacobite. Had been political and had helped the uprisings that exploded across the nation when James II was ousted.

“What did ye’s do to help?” Auralia asked cautiously.

“Smuggled mostly, supplies and weapons and such,” Brannan said with a shrug and continued fastening flowers together as if the topic of conversation was ordinary. “People, sometimes, who needed to escape the English.”

“Oh.” It was all Celestia could get herself to say.

“I’m sorry for not tellin’ ye earlier. But most of our customers are above brow—we’ve been playin’ both sides for a long time. As much as I want to see a Catholic king on the throne, we must be prepared for both.”

Celestia nodded, still unsure how to feel.

“And we must keep a very keen eye out now, with Queen Anne dead set on unifyin’ our countries.”

Celestia let out a long breath. “I’ve heard talks about Scotland and England becomin’ one in the village.”

“Aye,” Auralia said, “me too, and they daenae seem so happy about it either.”

Brannan ran a finger over his brow. “Why would they be? England wants to take away our sovereignty to run Scotland ourselves.” He sighed. “But on the other hand, unifyin’ with England promises new trade routes with English colonies, which will open up more business for us. Which is why—”

“We play both sides,” Celestia said, nodding, finally understanding why the other list existed. Though she felt uncomfortable at the prospect of breaking the law.

“Exactly.”

“Oh, but it sounds so devious,” Auralia muttered as she continued to fasten together more flowers.

“It is…a bit,” Brannan told them with a sly smirk pulling at one side of his face. Celestia noticed that telling them the story of his and their mother’s past had brought a light into his eyes. “Yer maither and I had fun with it, pretendin’ to be pirates.”

Celestia tried to stifle her laugh. “Pretendin’ isnae the word for it.”

“No,” Brannan said, also laughing. “I guess it’s nae.” He reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Daenae worry—I’ll teach ye how to handle both sides of it.”

* * *

The sun was just beginning to set, and the leaves were aglow with the deep yellow light. There were piles of arrows littering the base of several trees, a few dozen were stuck in them, and nearly a dozen were buried in the targets Sebastian had drawn on the trees.

“This was a fine first day,” Sebastian said, squatting down to gather the arrows.

“Really?” Chester asked, reaching for an arrow that Anthony had shot into the tree, the tip of the arrow far beneath the surface.

Anthony watched him struggle a bit before striding over and plucking it out with a single firm pull. He handed it to Chester with a smile and started reaching for the ones higher in the tree.

“Ye both did well handlin’ bows for the first time. I think ye will do well on the hunt, but I want ye to practice until then. We will leave these arrows with ye.”

Hugo called from a few feet away. “Ye’re goin’ to just leave us them?”

Anthony yanked another arrow from the tree. “Of course, ye need to train more.”

“We will have to make sure it’s alright with Celestia,” Chester said.

“I’ll handle yer sister,” Anthony told them, grabbing up more of the arrows and handing them to the young boy. “She willnae be able to say nay to me.”

“She has though…said nae to ye,” Hugo said with brisk honesty.

“More than once too,” Sebastian chimed in, failing to stifle his boisterous laugh.

Anthony looked from Chester to Hugo to Sebastian all laughing or trying not to. “I’ll prove ye all wrong,” he told them. “Finish cleanin’ up and daenae leave a single one behind.”

He gathered his bow and threw it over his back, holding the string against his chest as he maneuvered through rocks and moss until he was back on the path toward the McLean house. Toward Celestia.

He hoped she was still in good spirits, he desperately wanted to kiss her again. To press her up against him and feel her against his body. He saw little bits of the McLean house and stables come into view through the trees when he also saw Celestia coming up the path, her brow furrowed, a lit oil lamp swayed in her hand.

“Oh, good,” she said when she saw him, shoulders relaxing. His brow quirked upwards when he heard her words. “I didnae ken where ye were, the lads hadnae come back for any meal—”

“Daenae worry, lass,” he said, stopping before her, adjusting the bow on his back slightly. “They’ll be headin’ this way shortly with Sebastian. And we brought food with us for lunch, they ate well.”

An awkward silence passed between them, the only noises were the nightly cricket song and a far-off laugh of one of the twins.

“Can I walk back with ye?” Anthony asked.

“Sure,” she said, turning and walking beside him down the narrow path.

Anthony felt her arm graze as they walked, it was taking everything in him to remain decent. She fumbled over a rock but easily regained her balance.

“It’s gettin’ a bit dark,” she commented, looking up at him quickly and returning her gaze to the ground. A faint blush had spread across her cheeks.

“Here,” he said, offering her his arm. “Hold on to me.”

Anthony expected her to push him away, but Celestia said nothing and looped her arm through his, bringing them closer together.

“Thank ye,” she mumbled, sounding miles away.

“Are ye well, Celestia?”

“Aye, I’m fine.”

One of his brows lifted. “Ye’re rather quiet than ye normally are with me.”

Celestia huffed out a laugh. “I have been givin’ ye a hard time. I am sorry for that.”

Anthony stopped abruptly, causing Celestia to stop. He turned her toward him and brought the back of his hand to her forehead, all while their arms remained linked.

“I’m not feverish, Anthony,” she told him, taking his hand and lowering it from her head. She pulled them forward once more. “I’ve just a lot on my mind at the moment.”

“Do ye want to talk about it?” he asked, feeling his stomach drop at the thought that it might have to do with his proposal.

“I’m not sure I even should talk about it.”

Anthony exhaled, feeling a bit odd that she wasn’t thinking about his marriage proposal. He shrugged knowing she wouldn’t be able to see it, but she would feel it. “My maither always told me it’s better to get things off yer mind before they fester.”

Celestia sucked in a breath. “My mum said that too. They were very good friends, ye ken. I always remember them laughin’ when they were together.”

“Me too,” Anthony said, a warm feeling spread throughout his chest when he pictured his mother. “I remember them laughin’ more than anyone thought proper for women, especially a chief’s wife.”

Celestia fell quiet then. He thought because he mentioned the word wife, but he wasn’t sure. Celestia was a difficult read at times.

“What are yer feelin’s about King James?” she asked.

His eyes widened. “The exiled king?” Of course, he knew who King James was, but he wanted to make sure they were on the same page. Especially since he did not know many women, not even noblewomen, to keep up with politics.

She nodded, tilting her head so she could look up at him. “What did yer faither think when King William usurped him?”

“Well,” he said, bringing his hand to tug at his ear, thinking. “I had just turned ten, so I wasnae privy to a lot of what my faither did back then.” He looked at Celestia, who was watching him closely. “I remember him cursin’ the English quite foul and callin’ his brothers to the castle to talk war.”

Celestia blinked. “War…”

“I ken it now to be that he was a—” Anthony lowered his voice despite fully knowing that he was away from anyone who would care, in the woods behind Celestia’s home. “—Jacobite. As were all my uncles, especially the ones who survived the two uprisin’s since.”

“My parents were as well,” she told him.

“Is that what’s got ye so quiet and tame tonight?”

Celestia snorted, looking as if she was about to argue with him calling her tame but decided against it. “I suppose it just took me by surprise. I didnae expect my faither, let alone…Ma…to be so involved.”

“Does this have to do with the whisky?” he asked when she pulled him to a stop.

They were at the forest’s edge, one step more would put them onto the grassy flat meadow between the horse paddock and the pigs.

“Will ye help me in the stables?” she asked, looking at him once more. It was clear that she wasn’t done talking about this, and Anthony was most eager to hear where this conversation was going and what might happen between them. But he had promised himself on the way back from his visiting his sister that he wouldn’t press the issue of marriage nor force anything from Celestia.

It wasn’t until they were both settled on a firmly-squared bundle of hay with his bow leaning against the wall and the oil lamp dangling from a hook above them when Celestia finally answered his question, “It does have to do with the whisky.”

She leaned back against the stable wall, uncaring that she had knocked her head against it. Her eyes were focused on the slow flame in the lamp. “He has a separate list of customers, the ones that daenae pay tax.”

“That’s nae so unusual, ye ken,” he told her, picking off a thistle that had attached to his stockings. “Most of Scotland, at least the Highlands are nae too fond of the English. It makes sense that yer business has two.”

“Exactly it’s my business, or it’s goin’ to be…and I’ve—” Celestia dramatically pressed her hand against her chest. “—stepped into a criminal operation!”

The hand on her chest would have been distracting if it weren’t for her theatrics. He only found himself laughing, swiveling towards her on the hay. “Yer nae a criminal, nor will ye be found out. People pay good money for underground whisky—both for the whisky and the discretion.”

She pulled the plaid she was wearing closer around her shoulders. “I havenae looked at the entire list yet, but are ye on it? Is the whisky the castle gets—”

“No,” he said quickly. “Well, it’s nae anymore, at least.”

“Anymore?”

“Aye, my faither was one of those clients, but when I took over the chiefship, I told yer faither that I wanted to pay the tax.”

“Ye did?”

Anthony nodded; his brows set in a firm line. “I have nae quite decided if I’m goin’ to outright support the Jacobite cause or nae.”

Celestia looked at him wordlessly, but her eyes expressed something he could not pinpoint.

He ran his hands up his jawline into his hair. “There’s been talks of another uprisin’, to try to put King James back on the throne. Many people are angry about how the unification talks are goin’. But I’m nae too willin’ to throw my men into a needless, senseless war.”

Celestia stood from the haystack and nodded solemnly. “I hope it doesnae come to that.” She didn’t stray far from him, so they could keep their voices hushed. She shrugged. “Both the unification and the war.”

“The unification is more than likely goin’ to happen,” he told her, impressed by the knowledge she had. She would make a fine wife if she ever quit being so stubborn.

Then, Celestia reached out and took his hand that rested on his knee. He looked from their hands to her, the weight of what had been keeping her quiet seemed to have given way to an easier expression.

She squeezed his hand and smiled kindly at him. Her smile did something odd to his brain. “Thank ye for lettin’ me speak of this to ye.”

A spell had befallen him, and he hoped that she felt it too. He gave a small, gentle pull of her hand, reeling her in toward him. She didn’t fight it and soon she stood between him, her skirt billowing against his bare legs.

Her free hand lingered barely an inch away from his face, he could feel her warmth radiating from her palm. He gently wrapped his hand around hers and placed it on his cheek. Anthony leaned into her touch.

The look in her eyes was soft, so unlike the stern, angry attitude he was so used to getting from her; Anthony could have laughed in that moment at the difference in Celestia.

He wanted to keep the promise he made to himself, to maintain restraint with her. But before he could think another thought, Celestia ran her thumb across his bottom lip.

And kissed him.

Anthony felt the pull towards her, his body responding in ways he hadn’t felt with others. A spark was lit; he felt it first in his lips, as if it came from Celestia herself, and traveled down his back into his arms and legs.

He felt himself unraveling and breathless.

She began to pull away and his heart skipped a panicked beat, not wanting it to be over yet. His hand slid up the delicate skin of her neck and held her face, pulling her into him again.

He kissed her this time, pressing his lips to hers, feeling a pleasurable ache deep in his gut. He hoped that she felt the spark between them, that same tingle that had shot through his body just a moment ago.

Anthony stood, feeling an eager wanting take over his mind. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her up. He turned and placed her heavily onto the haystack.

He dragged his hands from her waist to her breasts. He played with the coarse fabric of her bodice before looking at her. Celestia nodded, looking from his eyes to his lips as her own parted. She tried to tug him forward, closer to her.

Anthony grinned, running his hands up her chest and palming her breasts through the bodice. He lighted his fingertips across the tops of her exposed breast, feeling the gooseflesh rise as he did.

If they were any closer, she would feel how badly he wanted her then.

He kissed her again and allowed his lips to travel the length of her jaw down her neck to the crook where her shoulder began. Celestia’s hands explored his chest and dropped, lower and lower to the belt of his kilt. Anthony’s brain shut off entirely and he began lifting her skirts out of the way.

And then, “Celestia!”

The voice was close, one of the twins to be sure. Celestia stiffened in his arms and the spell broke. They drew back from one another, a panicked, awestruck look in her eyes as she looked at him.

Slowly, Celestia’s hand withdrew from his neck and pressed against his chest, partly pushing him back from her. There it lingered and grabbed lightly at the thin linen of his shirt. A shy smile flashed across her face; cheeks emblazoned with heat. She looked incredible.

“Anthony?” This voice was Sebastian’s, and he sounded very close. He and the twins had obviously made it back from the meadow.

Anthony moved his hand that still held her cheek, brushing it lightly with his thumb before breaking apart from her. “Come on, stand up,” he whispered with a grin. “Cannae have yer brothers find us like this.”

She huffed out a quivery laugh and stood. Her hands pulled away from him and she focused on brushing any hay that had attached to her skirts.

Celestia didn’t say much, just fumbled with jittery hands to grab down the gas lamp and rushed out of the stables with one last look at Anthony before she left in him the dark.

Anthony waited a moment, hearing her and Sebastian talking, and then when their voices faded toward the house, he stepped from the dark stables into the twilight.

“And where were ye?” Sebastian muttered, eyes filled with mischief, when Anthony reached the back door of the McLean house.

“Just helpin’ out with a horseshoe.”

“Ah, how was puttin’ on a shoe in the pitch dark?” he said, throwing his chin in the direction of stables.

Anthony only smiled and lightly punched Sebastian in the arm in response. A sly smile slid onto Sebastian’s mouth, Anthony laughed and was about to tell him when Chester burst through the back door.

“I daenae ken what ye said,” he said to Anthony, “but she agreed for ye to leave the arrows.” His grin was wide. “And she said ye’s can show yerselves out and to thank ye for teachin’ us.”

“Aye, give her our thanks as well,” Anthony said.

Sebastian nodded beside him. “Ye wee lads took to things well.”

Chester looked as if he was going to complain about being called a wee lad, but from within the house Celestia called him and he disappeared with a wave, leaving Anthony and Sebastian alone.

Anthony flashed a grin at him. “It was a good day.”