Page 5 of The Mad Highlander

5

I ris’ eyes wandered around the room, taking in the lively atmosphere. The tavern was filled with a medley of both old and young, their laughter and chatter filled the air in a low murmur.

The atmosphere inside the busy tavern fascinated her as Iris bit her lower lip and looked around. Everyone seemed to be in good spirits, laughing and chattering away as they drank their warm ale. Her years looking after her brother hadn’t provided her with many traveling opportunities. She felt almost out of place among the many men and women in traveling cloaks.

Cayden hadn’t said so much as a grunt to her once they had entered the tavern. He seemed to be avoiding her gaze as he beckoned the barmaid closer with a wave of his hand.

The curvy young woman with a plump face and a light spray of freckles across her nose sauntered over with a wary look. She could not take her eyes from the scars on his arms nor the fact that he was the biggest man in the tavern. “Ye called, Me Laird?” She kept her head bowed low as she spoke to the Laird.

“Aye, we will have two bowls of yer finest stew,” Cayden ordered, pointing with his thumb toward Iris to indicate who the second bowl was for. “And plenty of ale for me men.”

“Of course,” the barmaid replied softly. She turned to the other men at the table, and her mood instantly lightened. She conversed with them briefly to inquire if they needed any food and giggled at the comments they made.

The barmaid smirked at Iris before sauntering off again with her hips swaying seductively from side to side. Iris glanced around the table. All the men, bar one, were watching the maid walk back toward the kitchen—the Laird looked down at the table with his brows furrowed.

Iris did not mean to smile, but she did. It was not something she had ever thought she would take pride in, but the barmaid had been intimidated by the Laird, scared even. The barmaid had barely been able to look at Laird O’Brien. The same was not true of Iris. She had looked at him and questioned him. And that was not all—he had looked at her in ways that made her stomach churn. He had looked at the beautiful barmaid in no such way.

“What have ye got to be so merry about?” the Laird asked, catching her smiling.

She quickly straightened her spine and turned back to him after fixing the fabric of her emerald dress over her knees. “Nothin’, Me Laird. I was only thinkin’ about how pretty the barmaid was. Yer men certainly think so.”

There were some calls from the men in agreement.

“Aye, I suppose she is a fair lass. Yer a fair lass too, but ye will be a lady of a castle and nae a barmaid in a tavern.” The corner of his mouth hooked up into a smirk as he sat back in his chair and lazily threw one arm over the back, examining her expressions with his piercing gaze.

The simple gesture made her heart flutter with anticipation as she quickly licked her lips before biting the bottom one. “I hadnae thought about it like that. I ken I am to be yer wife but the lady of the castle?” Her pulse quickened when his eyes darkened again.

“What use would I have for a woman like that,” the Laird asked, jerking his thumb toward the kitchen, “when I’ll have ye for me bed?”

The sultry smirk on his lips made her uneasy as he seemed to pin her in place with his stare. She wanted to stare back into his eyes and prove that she was not afraid of him, but she looked down at the table instead.

There had been fear before meeting the Laird, but that was all overshadowed by the prospect of sharing his bed. It excited her to be with such a man undressed, but she was scared of what he would do to her in his bed.

I have to be strong. That means risin’ to any of his challenges. He says such brazen things out loud to get a rise out of me. I shall meet him head-on!

Turning back to Cayden, she pasted a seductive smile on her lips. “Ye know, I dinnae ken a lot about yer clan; will ye nae tell me anything ’afore we arrive?” She crossed her arms in front of her chest and pushed her bosoms forward as she leaned over the table, making sure to use her arms to bolster her breasts. She felt almost foolish behaving in such a wayward manner, yet she couldn’t think of another way to show she was unafraid of him and could rise to his challenges.

Cayden turned to her with a frown. “I dinnae ken what to tell ye. It’s a clan much like any other. We have a castle an’ lands, everyone works for their keep, an’ we stay out of the other clan’s ways.” He frowned at her as his eyes dipped to the swelling of her breasts and back to her face.

“I find that fascinatin’.” She leaned even further forward and batted her eyelashes at least five times while smiling at him. She was beginning to lose her nerve beneath his gaze, but she reassured herself that it was all for a good cause.

The frown creasing his brows deepened. “Why?”

“Why what?” She suddenly realized that she had sounded like a fool and sat back, placing her hands on her lap and interlacing her fingers. Heat flooded her cheeks when she realized that she had tried far too much too soon. She should have just started with a simple touch instead of bringing out her breasts. She opted to bat her eyelids again, determined not to give up.

“Ye grew up in a castle; why do ye find it fascinating? An’ is there something in yer eye?” He tilted his head to the side and observed her while drumming the tips of his fingers on the table.

“I think it’s a piece of dust from the journey.” Iris felt sheepish as she stopped batting her lashes and quickly rubbed her eyes. She wasn’t cut out for a life of flirting with men when she hadn’t even considered getting married anytime soon.

She looked to the side when a group of Cayden’s men burst into laughter at something the barmaid had said. She placed her arm over one of the men’s shoulders and whispered in his ear, eliciting a round of applause from the rest of the men.

How did the barmaid make it look so easy?

Cayden seemed to be puzzled by her antics as the barmaid came and placed the bowls of stew on the table along with the ale. She kept her gaze down as she approached Cayden again, keeping her distance when she gave him a mug of ale.

“Ye just let me know if ye need anythin’ else, Me Laird.” Her voice trembled as she spoke.

“I think ye had better ask Lady O’Brien if she needs anythin’ else.” He held her gaze with an intense stare without looking at the barmaid.

The barmaid looked at Iris and quickly nodded.

“Do ye need anything, Me Lady?”

“No, I am fi—aye! Maybe some more ale.” Iris didn’t know what came over her, but the Laird had suggested the barmaid attend to her, and she could not help but feel it was another test. She was not a fragile woman who remained quiet and stood behind her man.

Lady O’Brien? Her man?

She wondered if he was teasing her by referring to her as his wife when they weren’t married yet. He hadn’t mentioned anything about when their handfasting ceremony would be or if he intended to have one. He didn’t seem like the teasing type, but then again, she only knew him from the rumors she’d heard. The little conversation they had shared hadn’t helped much either.

Quiet set in again as they ate their meal, savoring the rich flavors of the mutton stew. Iris hadn’t realized how hungry she had been until she dug into some of the fresh bannocks that the barmaid had brought. The hot bread absorbed the stew and felt like heaven as it filled her stomach. All she needed now after finishing her ale was a warm bed and a good night’s sleep. There would be enough time in the morning to coax the Laird into a conversation.

“Give us a song!” One of Cayden’s men lifted his mug of ale in the air, sloshing drops of liquid over his arm.

The men joined in with another cheer as a man who had been seated in the corner of the inn stood along with his bagpipes and began to serenade the travelers with an old song.

Iris paid little attention to anything else that was happening as she ate and thought of her brother. If Tristan were right, Ashton would be kept as a bargaining chip with their clan rather than someone they senselessly killed. She felt almost guilty for thinking of her own needs when her brother was more than likely languishing in a dungeon.

“We will start making plans to get yer brother back as soon as I get back an’ ensure the safety of me own clan,” Cayden broke the silence that seemed to engulf their table.

Iris looked up in surprise. Had he been able to tell what she was thinking about? She pushed the bowl aside and swallowed the last bite. “That is kind of ye, Me Laird.”

He nodded while keeping his head low and shoveling another bite of bannock dipped in stew into his mouth.

Her stubbornness set in again when she noticed that one of the men had begun to dance with the barmaid. His hands practically roamed over her body as he swung her around.

He was interested in that, but he was not interested in letting her know the type of man he was. She had not spent much time with him, but she didn’t see him as the type to kill his own family. He cared for his men and his clan, and he had cared for her.

There had to be something that would make him want to open up to her. “Do ye like reeling, Me Laird?” She reached across the table and gently touched his arm, dragging the tips of her fingers over the skin of his wrist.

Pulling away with a puzzled expression, he held her gaze for a moment before pushing back his chair, causing the legs to scrape across the dingy floor. “We had better turn in for the night; there’s a long road ahead of us.” He gave her one last look before turning to leave.

What was that all about?

Iris felt her pulse quickening as he walked away from her without so much as a backward glance. She wondered if she had offended him with her flirting or if he was simply oblivious to what she was trying to do. Following his lead, Iris stood and made her way between the throng of tables and up the stairs, keeping her eyes on his back as he led the way. People laughed and continued to dance, ignoring them both as they left the music behind.

Laird O’Brien was an enigma to her; he was strong, silent, and threatening with his bulking figure, yet he had shown her the smallest glimpse of kindness. What kind of man was he if the stories about his father and brother were true? Had there been other circumstances, or was he trying to lure her into complacency with glimpses of kindness?

She chewed the inside of her cheeks as she lapsed into thought, contemplating all the scenarios that could have justified a man killing his kin.

“These are yer chambers for the evening.” He stopped so abruptly in front of her that she quickly lifted her hands and placed them on his back to stop herself from bumping into him. The sheer force of his muscles made her wrists ache as she pushed herself away.

Cayden turned with a frown, glaring at her as he dropped his gaze to her lips once again and backed her up against the wall beside a door. “One more thing. Ye need to be careful, lassie; dinnae flirt with me if ye are nae willing to face the consequences.” His eyes darkened as they fell to her chest and traveled down her body.

Iris felt her breath catch in her chest as he placed his hands on either side of her head and leaned down, bringing his face closer to hers with his eyes locked on her lips. The hunger that seemed to emanate from his being startled her as she shifted her body back into the wall.

“I… I wasnae,” she struggled to speak as her chest rose and fell, causing her breasts to strain against the confines of her corset.

Why does he keep looking at me like that?

Her pulse quickened as the pit of her stomach coiled with a mixture of fear and attraction.

“Ye were just trying to flirt with me because ye wanted a reaction. I am nae one to give a reaction without a reason, and I dinnae like people givin’ me a reason. Do I make meself clear?” He leaned closer, bringing his lips to her ear as he lowered his voice. “Just remember, ye need to be able to handle what ye ask for.” His hot breath tickled the skin just below her ear as her lips parted with a gentle gasp.

Panic filled her mind as she realized what she had started. Women who flirted with men usually wanted something in return, and while she had only wanted conversation, any hot-blooded man would have demanded she follow through.

The dark look of passion in his eyes when he drew back caught her off guard. She had been trying to flirt with him on a whim, hoping to gain his attention so that he may open up to her. Her imaginings hadn’t strayed beyond the possibilities of a simple conversation.

Cayden reached for the handle beside her and opened the door. “There will be a guard outside yer door as I said ’afore. Ye may rest easy that naebody will disturb ye during the night.” He took a step back and waited for her to go in, searching her face as a muscle in his jaw jumped “Dinnae try me, lassie; ye dinnae ken who ye are dealing with.”

Regaining her composure, Iris pushed herself off the wall and entered her chambers, her breathing rapid as she heard the door shut behind her back.

She hadn’t been trying to flirt with him in the hall, but he had taken it as such and acted accordingly. What would she have done if he’d come into her room expecting her to lay with him? He was a man after all, and men wanted to slake their lusts.

Not any man.

Her pulse continued to race as she leaned her head back against the door. He had stopped when many others would have taken advantage and forced her to consummate their marriage before they even held the ceremony. Her skin tingled at the thought of lying with Cayden. She lifted her hand and ran the tips of her fingers over the section of skin beneath her ear.

Who is he?

Her heart whispered the question in the darkness of the strange chambers that she felt herself being sucked into.