Chapter 13 #2
“Ye see what ye do to me, lass! I willnae get anything done today if I stay here with ye!” And he too leapt off the bed.
Skye shook her head, wondering if all men thought this way, but he was right. It was not time to lie abed. She had duties. She only needed to find out what they were.
She pulled her old dress out of the trunk and held it to her chest.
Arran splashed some water on his face and washed his hands. Then he dried off with a cloth and dressed quickly. When he turned around, Skye had not moved.
“Do ye want me to send Nellie in to help ye?” he asked.
“Oh! Nay, I daenae. I’ve never had a lady’s maid, and I denae want one now. I was just waitin’ for ye to leave.”
Arran walked over and stood in front of her. “Ye will get over this shyness, Skye.”
He looked down at her hands and saw that she was holding the dress she’d worn when he’d captured her in the marsh outside Braewall.
“That is the only dress ye have?”
“Aye. We escaped Clan MacKeith with only the clothes on our backs.”
Arran pursed his lips in thought. “Go downstairs and break yer fast, then prepare to ride midmorning. We will travel to Aberray. If we are lucky, we can find a dress or two already made to fit ye, and if nae, we will buy the material needed to make ye some new dresses and underclothes.”
Skye nodded.
After he left the room, she washed and dressed, tied her loose curls back, and then rushed downstairs.
There was no one in the Great Hall, so she ventured into the kitchen. Nellie, Astrid, and a few other maids were bustling about.
Nellie smiled when she saw her. “There she is, our Lady MacArthur. Come, come sit here and have some porridge and eggs. Normally, ye would have yer breakfast in the hall, as is befittin’ yer station, but since it is late, ye can eat here. I assume ye didnae sleep much, after all.”
Feminine giggles rang out in the kitchen.
Skye, familiar with Nellie and the maids’ banter, held her head high. “I did sleep well, actually, and aye, I am very hungry!”
The maids burst into more giggles.
“Aye, ye would be hungry then!” Nellie joked.
Skye couldn’t help but laugh, knowing that this good-natured teasing was nothing compared to what some brides and grooms experienced. She was sure the guards were giving Arran the same treatment. But information was what she needed more than jokes now.
“Nellie.” Her tone grew serious. “Do I have duties?”
Regardless of how strange the situation was, and how wonderful last night had been, she realized that she was the wife of a laird now. She had to start acting like one.
Nellie sat back in her chair. “Duties? Och, goodness, I really daenae ken. Clan MacArthur hasnae had a Lady in residence for quite some time. What does yer husband say?”
“He hasnae said anything.” Skye threw her hands up in her frustration, before turning to the cook for help. “Astrid, do ye ken what are me responsibilities here?”
“Nay, me Lady,” Astrid replied, turning away from her pots for a moment with a sympathetic look on her face. “As Nellie said, we havenae had a Lady in quite some time. I usually plan the menus, and Nellie handles the maids.”
Skye looked around the tidy, organized kitchen. She’d not seen a speck of dirt in the keep. Everything had always been so perfectly in order, and she had not ever questioned who was in charge. She hadn’t realized until now how much these women were doing, and how well they were doing it.
“From what I’ve seen, the keep and the kitchens are run perfectly well. I dinnae want to get in everyone’s way, but I’m just wondering what I will do here all day.”
“Do ye sew, me Lady?” Astrid asked.
“Nay, I am all thumbs with a needle, unless it’s to stitch someone up.”
“Well, there ye have it!” Nellie replied enthusiastically. “Our people need a healer, and ye are a healer. Word will get out, and ye willnae have time for anything else.”
Skye sat up straighter, happy to hear that she would be of some use in her new home.
“And the keep is yers now, me Lady. Ye can change the window curtains, buy new furniture—ye ken, make it yer home,” Nellie added.
Decorating was not something Skye knew much about, but she might want to make a few changes here and there.
“Arran plans to take me to Aberray today. We leave in about an hour.”
Astrid clapped her hands together. “Abberay ye say?” Skye nodded. “That is a bit of a trip. I will pack ye some food and a waterskin in case ye stay longer than expected.”
Skye finished her breakfast and then inquired after her mother.
“Lady MacKeith rose early and is now sitting outside in the courtyard,” one of the maids informed her.
Skye found her mother in the courtyard, working quietly on her embroidery under the shade of a tall, flowering tree. She was glad to see her at peace.
“It’s a fine morning, is it nae, Maither?” she asked.
Helena looked relieved to see her daughter. “Skye, good morn!” she greeted and then made room on the wooden bench she was sitting on. “Ye look well. Are ye feelin’ well, Skye?”
Skye knew what her mother was hinting at, and she answered honestly, “Aye, Maither, I am well. Arran was gentle with me. I am nae hurt in any way.”
Helena looked relieved.
“What about ye? Did ye rest well?”
“Very well, Daughter. It’s been a long time since I slept safely inside castle walls.”
Skye’s heart swelled at her words.
Me maither is safe.
“Come, Maither. Let’s walk for a bit.”
She linked her arm in her mother’s, and they turned toward the end of the courtyard that led to the gardens.
The garden entrance was a beautiful arch of English ivy, with an untamable vine of delicate morning glory flowers twining up the sides. The wild vines, greenery, and flowers had Skye thinking that she might find a fairy within once she stepped through the archway.
The garden took her breath away with its beauty, but she noticed there was no medicinal garden. She made a mental note to plant one right away.
I can grow much of what I need.
“Married life agrees with ye, Skye,” her mother noted as she looked at her whimsical expression.
Skye looked down in embarrassment. “Arran is treating me well, Maither. I feel safe here. I’m nae sure what the future holds, but right now, at this moment, in this place, I am happy.”
She opened her arms wide. “Look, Maither, it’s beautiful—nothing like Castle MacKeith. And Arran is taking me to Aberray this morn. We will shop for clothes and such. He’s very generous.”
Helena nodded warily. “Be careful, Daughter. Other than kidnapping ye, Arran does seem honorable. I watched him just moments ago reprimand a man for making a mistake in his training. He was firm but nae cruel.”
“His men respect him, Maither.”
“Ye are probably right. But he is very strong and young. Ye promise me that ye willnae let him hurt ye.”
Skye opened her mouth to reply, but Arran approached them right then, greeted Helena, and asked, “Skye, are ye ready?”
“Aye, Arran. Astrid packed some food for us—I’ll run and get them.” And with that, she was off to the kitchen.
She wasn’t gone long before she returned with the sack of food and waterskin.
She spotted her mother and Arran talking, and their conversation looked serious. She stopped within earshot and listened.
“Skye has many good things to say about ye, ne Laird, but I fear she doesnae ken ye well enough to deem ye a good man.”
“And what makes a ‘good man,’ Lady MacKeith?”
Helena did not hesitate. “A good man controls his temper. A good man never hits a woman. And a good man would never put greed ahead of his family or his clan.”
Arran looked at his mother-in-law, and Skye wondered how he would reply. She wondered if her mother thought his pursuit of the land deeds was a form of greed. Arran could promise he’d never be violent toward her, but her mother might not believe him.
“Ye are right, Lady MacKeith. She doesnae ken the kind of man I am. But she will, and ye will too. Until then, I will keep her safe. And ye too,” he replied with conviction.
Helena nodded. “That will be enough, then.”
Skye smiled to herself. This was the closest thing to approval Arran would get from her mother. And it would have to do.
She approached them and announced, “I’m ready, Arran.”
Arran gave Helena a quick bow. Skye hugged her mother, and then Arran took her hand and led her to the stables.