Grant Clan 06 - My Desperate Highlander (13 page)

As soon as Gwyneth stepped inside the chamber, Diana launched herself at Micheil, throwing herself into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his lips.

“My knight, finally my knight is here.”

Micheil could hardly believe his ears. Had she just said what he thought she had? If he was her knight, did that mean she wanted him? “Truly? You want me?”

“Aye. Micheil, do you not see? You are the one my mama told me about.”

He shook his head. “I’m not a knight, Diana. I cannot be all you had hoped for.”

“I’ve had much time to think on it, and I was confused. My mother told me I would fall in love in Edinburgh. Aye, she told tales of braw knights and jousts, but she never said my husband was a knight. She said she had a dream where I met a man and fell in love in Edinburgh. ‘Tis you. I have fallen in love with you here in Edinburgh, just as my mama said.” Micheil kissed her, a long deep kiss that made him daft, a kiss that made him want so much more. She tasted so sweet, yet she lit a fire in him like no one else ever could. He had to admit, his daft brother was right about one thing. He was in love with Diana.

He pulled back and stared at her, happy to finally have her in his arms again. “You frightened the hell out of me, Diana. I had no idea where you were.”

“I have been such a fool. Thank you for coming for me. You wouldn’t believe what they wanted me to do.”

“Molly here—” he nodded his head in her direction, “—gave us a wee idea of their plans. There was no way we would ever have let them steal you away to England.”

“Thank you, Molly.” Diana smiled at the shy girl.

Molly smiled and stared at her feet, her hands clasped in front of her.

The door flew open, revealing Logan in the doorway. As soon as he took in the situation in the room, he nodded to a person outside the door. The next moment, King Alexander strode in, followed by two guards. His eyes grew wide at the sight of the guards on the floor before finally settling on the old woman on the bed. “Ena, what have you gotten yourself into this time?”

His gaze fell on Diana, who had stepped away from Micheil, but still hung onto his hand.

“Untie the foolish woman, Ramsay. She has some explaining to do. I warned her she could not have everything her way, but she never listens.”

The king looked at Ena again, a furrow in his brow. A loud crash sounded from inside the adjoining chamber.

Logan yelled, “Gwynie? You need help?”

“Nay, we’ll be out in a second,” she shouted back.

Logan smiled, but then his eyes landed on King Alexander, who was scratching his jaw, seemingly puzzled by the woman on the bed. “Isn’t she your relation?” he asked the king. “I thought Clarice was your cousin?”

King Alexander sighed. “Aye she is. But Ena is not a blood relative, and she has always had unusual ideas. Apparently Clarice is much like her. I’ll see them both in my solar for a full explanation. The guards will escort her.” He nodded to one guard, and he helped Ena up and guided her out into the corridor.

Gwyneth opened the door to the chamber and said, “You’re welcome to enter if you would like. Please bring Molly with you.”

Placing an arm around Diana, Micheil took Molly’s hand into his free one and ushered her inside the other room. She clung to him, refusing to move away, which broke his heart. Gwyneth stood next to the bed, a bit in front of Randall, who was crouched over in what appeared to be exquisite pain. She had a plaid over her arm that extended toward Randall’s midsection.

“Apologize, Randall.” Gwyneth didn’t look at the man, but she moved her arm a touch, making Randall squirm.

Micheil thought Baines looked a wee bit green, but he was quite enjoying the sight. Rather than interfere, King Alexander watched the scene from the back of the room, his arms folded as he took in the tableau before him.

“Sorry,” Baines whispered.

“That’s not good enough. Molly, come up here close to me, please.”

Molly kept her head down, but she moved toward Gwyneth.

“Again, Randall. And you need to address her.”

“I’m sorry, Molly.” He stared at the top of Molly’s head.

Gwyneth gripped tighter.

“For?”

“For touching you inappropriately. I’ll never do it again.”

“That’s better. Molly, you may step out of the room if you wish, sweet.”

Molly whirled around, clearly anxious to get away from the man. Clearly sensing her anxiety, Diana followed her out, her hands on Molly’s shoulders and closed the door behind them. Micheil stared at Baines, still puzzled by what exactly Gwyneth was doing to him. Dagger in his belly?

Logan sighed. “Gwyneth. Did you truss him like a turkey?”

Gwyneth smiled at her husband. “He deserved it, Logan.”

“Mayhap, he did.” He stood next to his wife and kissed her forehead. “Let go of the man’s bollocks, would you please?”

Micheil’s eyes widened. That would explain why Baines looked as if he were on the verge of fainting.

Logan laughed. “Besides, he is no Scot. I think you could have bested him without any need for that.”

Gwyneth scowled and stared at Baines, fear and pain still oozing from his pores. “Fine, you’re probably right.” She let go of whatever she held and dropped the plaid, releasing a cloth with ties on it and allowing it to fall to the floor.

Baines let out a deep sigh and held his middle.

Gwyneth’s elbow snapped him in the face, breaking his nose with a loud crack. He fell back onto the bed, his eyes rolling back into his sockets. She wrapped her arms around her husband’s neck. “I guess you were right, Logan.”

Logan glanced over her shoulder at Randall on the bed. “He won’t be quite so pretty anymore, will he?”

The king whispered, “I understand why Hamilton employs the two of you. Ruthless, my dear, but deserved. You may guard me anytime.”

A wee voice interrupted them from the other chamber. “No, no, please, someone help her! Clarice has my sister, and she is taking her away.” They opened the door between the rooms and Micheil rushed over to join Molly at the window, arriving just in time to see Clarice running through the courtyard dragging a wee lass behind her.

Gwyneth tore into the chamber after him, heading straight toward Molly. Logan and the king were fast behind her.

“Diana, stay with Molly,” Micheil yelled. “We’ll be back.” He assumed he and Logan would head down the stairs, but Gwyneth went straight for the window, dropping her mantle on the way.

“Husband, hold the rope for me.” As she climbed out, Logan grabbed the rope to steady it and make sure it held.

“Hellfire, you are letting her go first, Logan?”

“I accept her strengths, she accepts mine,” he said over his shoulder.

***

Gwyneth couldn’t help but smirk in response to Logan’s comment. She shimmied down the rope, thanking God for her wonderful husband. She would get Maggie back. He knew it, and so did she. Fortunately, she didn’t have much of a belly with this bairn yet.

She landed and took off after Clarice, still able to hear her husband’s conversation with his brother.

“Hell, Micheil, can you not see she is faster than I am? She’s lithe and quick.”

She had to block him out and focus on her goal, focusing all her energy onto her target. Her fingers caressed the end of her bow, making sure it was where she expected it to be. When she needed, it would be in her hands in seconds.

The wind had come up and was whipping all around her, which better helped her follow Clarice with her voluminous skirts billowing around her. Wee Maggie kept up with the daft woman as best she could.

“Hang on, Maggie,” she cried out. “I’ll get you back with Molly.”

The lassie’s head turned back to see who was following them, and Gwyneth hoped she had the courage to stay strong. Clarice headed straight for the stables, causing a painful memory to creep back into her mind—the day she had failed to kill the man who murdered her brother and father. Eventually she had succeeded, but the memory of that day still smarted.

Well, she would not fail today, she assured herself. She would be strong for two wee lassies who deserved a better life. The bitch dragging Maggie would be stopped, no doubt. The opening to the stables was on the far side of the building. Clarice would have to run half the length of the building to get to the end, which gave Gwyneth the most perfect target she had ever seen.

She smiled and reached for an arrow in her quiver.

Gwyneth nocked her arrow and released it just before Clarice reached the corner. She made a direct hit, right into the dress billowing behind the woman. The material pinned her to the wooden wall. She jerked backwards as Gwyneth sent two more arrows flying, one hitting Clarice’s hand, forcing her to release Maggie, and the other securing her bell sleeve to the wall above the skirt of her gown.

Logan and Micheil, who must have been running fast behind her, passed her as she made her way to her quarry. The wee girl who had been Clarice’s captive headed straight for Gwyneth and threw her arms around her waist, burying her face into her tunic.

“Where’s my sister? I want Molly,” she cried out as Micheil and Logan grabbed Clarice and tied her hands so they could lead her back into the castle.

“Do not worry, lass,” Gwyneth said. “We’ll get you together.” Maggie had beautiful chestnut hair and the bluest eyes Gwynie had ever seen. She knelt in front of the wee lass and said, “I promise. I will not allow anyone to separate you two again.”

***

As the rest of the group moved on toward the king’s solar, Micheil tugged Diana into an alcove. She gazed up at him with an expression that humbled him. He took his hands in hers and rubbed his thumbs across her soft skin.

“Micheil, what is it?”

He cleared his throat, trying to come up with the right words. Everything had happened so fast, but that did not matter. He knew in his bones this was right. “I…” He glanced up at the ceiling, and started again. “I knew I was developing strong feelings for you, but I had no idea how strong. ‘Twas my brother who recognized my love for you, even before I did. For so long, I had no interest in settling down in marriage.”

Diana stared at him, her eyes misting at his words. The beautiful smile on her face told him they were happy tears, which gave him the strength to continue.

“You came into my life and turned everything upside down. I love you, and I want to spend a lifetime showing you how much I care. I want to run from here, show you the moon and the stars and have you at my side always. Diana of Drummond, will you marry me?”

Diana squealed and threw her arms around his shoulders, jumping into his embrace. “Aye, Micheil. Naught would make me happier.” She settled back onto her tiptoes and cupped his face in her hands. “I love you, too. Aye, aye, aye.”

He kissed her tenderly, so ecstatic that she had accepted. He ended the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers. “Will you marry me here in Edinburgh or would you prefer to talk to your sire first?”

Tears slid down her cheeks. “Here, Micheil. ‘Tis the last part of my mama’s dream to come true. She said I would fall in love and marry in Edinburgh.”

He smiled and brushed the wetness from her face. “Then as soon as we finish in the king’s solar, I’ll search out a priest if the king agrees.”

***

Diana’s gaze searched the chamber as she tried to process everything that had transpired in such a short time. With the exception of the young girls, the entire group was squeezed together in the king’s solar as King Alexander paced behind his desk and his guards at the periphery and the door. “All right. Who wishes to start explaining this disaster to me?”

No one spoke. While Logan held Baines in front of him, Micheil stood near Clarice. Ena sat in a chair, refusing to look at anyone.

Randall finally spoke. “I have no idea what has happened. I married my betrothed Clarice today, but I have no idea who these people are.” He jerked his head toward Logan and Micheil. “I would prefer to be allowed to spend my evening with my bride. I am totally innocent.”

“Innocent?” Diana huffed out. “If you are innocent, then why was I kidnapped and held captive in the chamber next to yours?”

“All right. So I made one mistake. There is no reason you should not release me. I have not taken her innocence.”

Gwyneth snarled and took three steps toward him. “Give him to me again, husband.”

His eyes frantic, Baines held his hands out in front of him. “All right. Two mistakes.” He pointed at Gwyneth. “Just keep her away from me.” He took a moment to regain his composure, then continued. “I apologized to the lassie, but this one,” he pointed to Diana. “She has been chasing me for two days. I was just giving her what she wanted.”

Diana’s reaction was swift. “Aye, you fooled me once, but not again, especially after your shenanigans on the jousting field showed your true colors.”

Micheil let go of Clarice and strode over, his fist connecting with the English knight’s face. Baines was quick to cover his broken nose, so Micheil’s fist slid off his cheek and knocked him backwards.

“Enough!” King Alexander bellowed. “I care nothing for this English fool. Take him out of the room for now, guards. I want to talk to the other two.” He motioned to Clarice and Ena. “Now what foolish plan did you instigate, Ena?”

Ena gave the king a haughty stare. “Clarice is in love with another, and she did not wish to marry this fool. We checked into his background. He would never stay true to her. I didn’t blame her. I knew you insisted they wed, Alexander…”

“Ena?” The king gave her a piercing look.

“As you wish, though I knew you when you were in swaddling cloth. Your Grace. Clarice is my only granddaughter, and I seek her happiness. She did not care to have relations with Baines or carry his child, so we kidnapped a redhead to stand in her place. What harm could it be? ‘Tis done all the time in England.”

“The harm is you kidnapped the daughter of a Scottish chieftain.”

Clarice’s eyes widened. “What?”

King Alexander bellowed. “She’ll be chieftain of the Drummond clan. And why did you take the poor wee lass and run with her?”

“I do not wish to be married to Baines. I do not like him, and I decided to run to my beloved,” Clarice answered, her arms crossed in front of her.

The king waited, glowering at her.

In a small voice, she added, “I wanted a maid. My beloved doesn’t have one for me. She’s just a wee lass, and she does not belong to anyone. I checked. Can’t I have her?”

“Nay!” the king shouted. “If I dissolve the marriage, will the two of you behave?”

Diana saw Ena lean forward from her chair, staring at her granddaughter. The old woman fussed with her skirts for a moment before she finally spoke “We’ll go home. If you could share the gold purse with us, Alexander…”

“Ena. I will throttle you yet.” He leaned toward her, clearly exasperated with the old woman.

“
King
Alexander. My pardon. We could use the coin.”

“Nay, no coin. You will get enough to get you home with my guards as escort.” He turned to stare at Clarice. “And no servants. Arrange your own back in England. Wait until I see your mother again.”

Shaking his head, King Alexander turned to his guards. “Take them away and put them in a chamber somewhere. Do not let them leave until I say so. Logan, you will locate the priest so I can have this marriage annulled. What a disaster. Micheil and Gwyneth, go get your aunt and your daughter and bring them here. God only knows what other blackguards may be out there tonight.” He stepped out into the corridor and called more guards. “Clear the courtyard and the great hall. The festivities are over.” The men disappeared to carry out their instructions.

Logan left with the guards to do as he’d been ordered. The king shook his head and turned his attention to Gwyneth. “I commend you for your service to the Crown, my dear. I am proud to say I have seen you in action with my own eyes. When your family arrives, you will have your own hall for the night. There is plenty of food.”

“My king, I would like to petition the Crown for a boon, if I may,” Gwyneth whispered.

The king nodded. “Name it and it is yours.”

“I would like to request to have Molly and Maggie added to our family. According to Molly, they were sent away by their own father out of need, and they were treated abominably by Randall’s family.”

The king considered her request, rubbing his chin. “The two lassies are with my housekeeper. When I have the opportunity, I will speak to the two girls and the Baines family to verify your statement and consider your petition. Tonight they will remain under the protection of my staff and the ministrations of my personal healer. You will have your answer on the morrow. Is this acceptable to you, Lady Ramsay?”

“Aye, and many thanks.”

Micheil had made his way over to Diana and now held her hand. “My king, if I may have a word?”

The king’s eyes narrowed as he turned to Micheil. “Aye, Ramsay?”

“I would like to request the honor of taking Diana of Drummond as my wife. If possible, I would like to do this here, with your priest, with you as a witness.”

Diana held her breath, hoping the king would agree.

King Alexander turned to Diana. “Stay a moment in my solar. Gwyneth, if you’d prefer, you may take a couple of guards back and retrieve your family.”

Gwyneth gave Micheil a kiss and a squeeze on his shoulder before she left. “‘Tis the right thing.” She disappeared with a few guards.

Now that the others had left, the king ushered them both into chairs. Silence settled over the group for the moment. She stole a glance at Micheil and he caught her staring, sending her a look that melted her heart. Could they marry and put an end to all her troubles? She could hardly have imagined a better conclusion to the past several days.

She blushed and stared at her king, awaiting his command.

“Diana of Drummond, the last I heard from your father was that he had betrothed you to Baron Gow. I also received a missive stating that the baron was happy with the arrangement. I thought you to be wed by now, but I have not had the opportunity to speak with you on the matter with all this madness. What say you?”

Micheil said, “If I may, your…”

Alexander held his hand up to silence Micheil. “From Diana, please.”

Diana cleared her throat. “You are correct. My sire has not been well, and he wished for me to marry so our lands would stay within our bloodline, since I am heir to them. When I did not find a suitable partner, he settled on the arrangement with the Baron.”

“And you did not agree to this? Is your sire not gravely ill?”

Tears misted in her eyes. “Aye, I did agree before I met the baron. But…”

He stopped her. “There is nae but. You agreed to this marriage.”

Diana burst into tears and Micheil reached for her hand, rubbing his thumb across the back of her palm.

“Go ahead, speak what you will.” The king waved his hand.

“I did agree, Your Grace, but when I finally met the baron, he frightened me. He was cruel and made some verra crude suggestions to me. I am certain we would not suit. I ran away.” She stared at the ground, embarrassed by her actions.

“And how did you get to the baron’s lands if your sire was so ill?”

“I was escorted by my cousins, Alexander and Robbie Grant.”

“Hmmm.” The king scratched his cheek, his lips pursed. “And how did the Grant feel about the baron?”

“I’m not sure. You see, Micheil and I left…”

“If I may interrupt, Your Grace.” Micheil cleared his throat.

The king stared at him for a moment before finally motioning for him to speak.

“Alex Grant asked me to escort her to Edinburgh in search of an English knight to take to husband. We thought she knew one, but when we arrived…”

Diana’s head jerked to stare at Micheil. Had she heard him correctly? Alex had supported her journey to Edinburgh?

The king held up his hand. “Never mind.” He was silent a moment before returning his gaze to Micheil. “Would the Grant support your request for her hand?”

Micheil nodded. “I believe he would. He did not support the marriage to Baron Gow.”

Diana moved to the edge of her seat. “Aye, Your Grace. He would, I am sure of it. And my sire would as well. He wants me to be happy. The only reason he forced my hand was because I had not yet found anyone who fit my idea of an ideal husband.”

He glanced at her with one eyebrow raised. “And does Micheil Ramsay suit you?”

Diana blushed, realizing how spoiled she sounded. “Aye. Your Grace, I was young, and did not understand much of the world. My sire was almost too vigilant in protecting me from lads and anything outside of our lands and our clan.”

He smiled. “And now?”

She knew she sounded daft. “After my time in Falkirk and Edinburgh, I understand what qualities I seek in a husband.”

“Do tell.”

She glanced at Micheil. “I want someone who will protect me, who will listen to me and support me. The Drummond clan is mine and the land is where I was raised. I wish to have a say in how our clan is run, not to be wed to someone like the baron who would come in and order my people around. He would never have asked my input. I am proud of my clan, and Micheil would help me to do what is best for them. He is kind and wise and patient.” Tears clogged her throat as she spoke.

“And this is what you want?”

“Aye.” She stared at her lap before looking up at Micheil. “I wish to marry someone who would manage our clan like my sire, and I think that man is Micheil. My people would be happy to accept him and so would my father.”