Page 9 of The Mad Highlander

9

I ris sighed heavily as the gravel of the courtyard crunched beneath her boots. It troubled her deeply that Cayden had thought she had used the kiss to pry information out of him. He was the one who had kissed her, even though she had provoked him.

She hadn’t intended for things to go that far. Yet she yearned for things to go that far again. The kiss had stirred things within that had not been stirred before.

Oh, Lord, help me, what must I do?

“Why do ye look so down?” Robyn suddenly spoke up from beside her, making Iris jump with fright.

“Robyn, I didnae see ye there!” Iris felt foolish, clutching at her chest. She had been so absorbed in her own thoughts that she hadn’t been paying attention to her surroundings.

A few men who had been passing sniggered and shook their heads before going about their business.

Great.

The entire O’Brien clan would think she was a fool, and she hadn’t even been there for a full week.

“Hmmm, I would love to ken what ye were thinking about. What is troubling ye so? Is it me brother or yers?” Robyn smiled at her, taking a seat beside Iris on the bench and tilting her head to the side in question. She seemed just as cheerful as she always did, yet her cheeks were unnaturally pinker than the day before.

Regaining control of her breathing, Iris lowered her hand and smiled at the girl whom she was quickly beginning to think of as a friend. “It was neither, I was just wondering if I would ever get used to such a large home, I dinnae ken where I am.” She decided to lie, avoiding a difficult conversation with something else that was true.

“Hmmmm,” Robyn murmured, drawing the syllables out a little longer this time. “An’ how did yer little dinner trick go last night? Ye didnae come back down. Maither an’ I were hoping ye would give us an account of things, but we waited in vain.”

“Dinnae tell stories, Robyn. Ye may be a young lady now, but I can still box yer ears red until they match that rouge ye caked on again today.”

It was Robyn’s turn to jump as she turned to see her mother standing behind the bench. Even Iris hadn’t heard the woman approaching. Iris wondered if she hadn’t heard Robyn coming because of her lack of attention or if all the O’Briens possessed the uncanny ability to walk without making a sound.

Margot smiled mischievously at her daughter before turning to Iris. “Dinnae mind her, lass; she wanted to wait up, but I told her that she ought to be minding her own business, like her brother warned her.” She narrowed her eyes again before turning back to Robyn. “By the way, yer brother was looking for ye this morning, something about Eilis wanting to leave service. Ye wouldnae ken anything about that, now would ye?”

Robyn pursed her lips and turned her head in the opposite direction, attempting to rub some of the rouge from her cheeks with the back of her hand.

Margot shook her head and turned back to Iris. “Me bairns will be the death of me, nay matter how old they get there is always some kind of quarrel to settle. Never mind that now, how are ye settling in?” Margot’s eyes filled with kindness as she placed her hands on the back of the bench and examined Iris.

Feeling the sting of missing her brother after the fond way that Margot spoke of her children, Iris sighed. “I am coping, thank ye; I was just saying to Robyn that I feel a little lost. Castle O’Brien is so big, I dinnae think I will ever find me way.”

“Well, it’s a good thing that I found ye then; I was just looking for ye. I wanted to ask if ye would care to join me for a walk. I was headed to the edge of the forest behind the castle. The heather is in full bloom this time of year, an’ I think we need some more.” Margot winked at her, beckoning her up with a nod.

Grateful for the distraction, Iris stood and fixed her shawl. She still wasn’t sure how she would address things with the Laird, but at least if she ran into him, she would be able to judge how he reacted to her. She reasoned with herself that it may even be easier for her to have Margot and Robyn at her side; she could use them as an excuse to leave if things got too awkward.

Margot sighed heavily and paused beside her daughter, chewing the inside of her cheek as she observed Robyn’s failed attempt to clean her cheeks. The back of her hands were covered in a layer of pink rouge. “Perhaps Robyn would like to join us when she’s returned to her normal bonny self. If she does, I hope she leaves her meddling rouge-covered twin behind!” Margot cackled loudly at her own joke before walking off and expecting them to follow.

Iris stifled a giggle and pursed her lips when Robyn shook her head in defeat before following suit.

Life at the castle wasn’t all that bad which had come as a charming surprise to her after all the terrible stories.

If only the laird could be as charming as the rest of his family .

The walk turned out to be exactly what Iris needed as she laughed at the light banter between mother and daughter. They hadn’t bumped into Cayden, yet Iris found herself thinking of other things as Margot showed her exactly how to remove the heather stems without damaging the flowers.

The sweet scent that filled the air around them provided her with a moment’s respite from all of her troubles. Robyn seemed preoccupied with her own thoughts, yet that hadn’t stopped Margot from chattering away.

“Ye want to grip the stem right at the base like this. If ye place yer fingers any higher, ye will risk bruising the stem an’ the flowers willnae last as long.” Margot skillfully removed the stalk of flowers with a flick of her wrist and handed it to Iris who placed it in the basket draped over her arm.

“Ye seem to know a lot about herbs an’ flowers,” Iris remarked after surveying all the plants they had gathered during the morning.

Margot tucked a loose strand of her graying hair behind her ear and smiled. Her delicate hands were beginning to show the telltale signs of age yet not so much anyone would have thought she was aging. Her movement still seemed spry and youthful. “I’ve always enjoyed being in the gardens; me maither always said that I would have made a better cook or even a healer rather than the wife to a laird.”

“I can’t say that I agree with that statement.” Iris smiled warmly, enjoying the peaceful direction that the day had taken. If Ashton had been with her, she might even have been able to grow fond of Castle O’Brien.

The woods surrounding the castle were quite idyllic with various kinds of birch and ash trees. The underbrush proved to be quite bountiful as Margot had shown her what kinds of mushrooms were edible and which could be used for poison. The fact that Margot even knew things like that only troubled her a little.

“Maither, do ye think that we can ask the dressmaker to come? I think that Iris needs a new dress. She hasn’t had one since she came to the castle,” Robyn asked thoughtfully, keeping her eyes on the flower in her lap as she dreamily plucked the petals.

“Does Iris need a new dress, or do ye want one?” Margot came up straight and narrowed her eyes at her daughter.

“I think we all need new dresses, actually. I don’t see why we have to wait an entire year before Cayden allows us new clothes,” she grumbled under her breath and discarded the final remnants of the stalk of heather.

“Perhaps yer brother would nae be so strict if ye stopped meddling with the maids. God alone kens how much money he has to spend sending them off to their new lives an’ paying their wages.” Margot shook her head before returning to her task.

Iris watched in amusement as Robyn seemed to take offense at her mother’s words.

“Even maids deserve to find true love. I willnae apologize for doing what is right. Eilis was in love before I gave her any kind of encouragement. I was merely the final push that she needed.” She spoke with such determination that her eyes began to sparkle.

Margot glanced at Iris before smiling. “Oh, an’ with all yer endeavors in pursuit of true love, have ye thought about working on yer accomplishments? Ye will need to wed someday as much as the maids do.”

Iris giggled at the way Robyn turned red; for all her talk of true love, she didn’t seem to want it for herself. Iris didn’t know her that well yet, but she wondered if Robyn ever thought of finding love for herself. There was every possibility that she already fancied someone, but Iris didn’t think that was likely.

Someone as bubbly and open as Robyn would surely not have been able to hide her affections. Iris wouldn’t have minded if Robyn and Ashton took a liking to one another; she was a lovely girl, and he was lively enough to keep her entertained.

Ashton.

Iris felt her heart ache at the thought of her brother. She felt guilty for finding any kind of enjoyment in the world when Ashton was locked in a dungeon. One night shy of a fortnight still seemed like an eternity to her.

“Oh, there’s Cayden now. I’ll ask him if Iris can have a new dress; he cannae say nay if it’s for his bride.” Robyn jumped to her feet, dusting her hands together.

Iris felt her heart skitter at the mention of his name. She hadn’t thought of confronting him since they had settled by the heather bush.

“Where is he?” Margot followed her daughter’s gaze along with Iris as they spotted two figures in the distance behind the castle.

Who is she?

Iris felt a strange clenching sensation in the pit of her stomach as she spotted Cayden’s tall figure walking beside a thin woman. Her copper curls floated about her face, framing what Iris could only assume was a very pretty face. Even from a distance, she could see that the woman’s skin was lighter than milk. Her sleek figure spoke of elegance and grace as she seemed to hover over the ground rather than walk, her cloak hiding her shoes from sight.

“I can't believe he’s talking to Astrid again,” Margot muttered under her breath turning her attention back to the flowers.

“Who is Astrid?” Iris felt her curiosity growing when Cayden laughed at something the woman said.

Robyn seemed to spring into action as she bounced toward Iris, taking her hand and turning her around. “Iris, have ye seen the stream that runs through the forest? I must take ye there at once. It’s such a bonny sight. I’ve often sent the maids there when I ken that a hunter they fancy is in the forest. Ye an’ Cayden should take a walk there; it’s very romantic.” Her words fell over one another in torrents as she gently pulled Iris away.

Feeling confused, Iris began to protest but quickly turned around when the mystery woman’s laughter reached her ears. The sound was light and airy, sweeter than a bird’s song yet far more sensual.

Cayden seemed to spot her as the two stopped walking. His eyes remained fixed on Iris while the woman glanced at Margot and Robyn.

Something inside of Iris caught flame as she bit on her lower lip; if Margot and Robyn weren’t going to tell her who the mystery woman was, then she would just have to ask Cayden herself. Lifting her chin defiantly in the air, Iris set off, walking straight toward Cayden.

“Iris, I dinnae think ye should…” Robyn reached out and began to protest, but Iris ignored her efforts.

“Oh, dear.”

Iris could hear Margot muttering under her breath again, but she didn’t care. Too many decisions had been made in the recent past, and she wasn’t about to allow anything to go on under her nose, not when her brother’s life rested on her impending marriage.

“I was hoping to run into ye this morning, Me Laird; we never finished our conversation last night.” Iris had been looking at the mystery woman, but she could not help but glance at the Laird’s lips when she was before him. As soon as she looked at his lips, she could not help but imagine kissing him again. Iris gasped sharply and tried to look away.

What am I doing?

She stared at the woman he had been conversing with, but that was not any better. Once again, she found herself in a situation of her own doing without thinking. She did not know what she would feel if Cayden confessed that the woman was indeed his past lover or even his present mistress! The situation suddenly seemed absurd to her. Why did she seem to act so impulsively whenever Cayden was around?

Her nerves faltered as the beautiful woman with copper curls and amber eyes smiled at her.