As soon as her feet hit the ground, he dropped her hand as if he’d been burnt by her touch. She saw that hunger in his eyes again, and warmth bloomed in her core.
Several of his guards and some older men immediately surrounded him. There were servants too, and they all seemed happy to see him—especially the maids. Skye wasn’t sure how she felt about that.
I dinnae blame them. He’s young, the Laird, and very handsome after all.
Arran greeted them all and then introduced her to them.
“This is Skye Pressly, and she is me guest,” he announced loudly. He then turned to three maids and ordered, “See to it that she gets food and a bath if she wishes, and fresh clothes immediately.”
The maids didn’t hesitate, rushing inside the keep. One of them, a woman in her thirties, turned to Skye and said in a friendly tone, “Me name’s Nellie. I’ll see to yer needs. Just follow me, now.”
Skye entered the keep, and Arran followed behind, his head bent in a quiet conversation with one of his men. She looked his way, but he went straight through a door off the entrance hall, and she was whisked away up the stairs.
The chamber she was led to was smaller than the one she had at Castle MacKeith, but much more comfortable. The small hearth was clean and free of ash and dust, and cut wood was stacked neatly in a wooden bin to the side.
The floor, also swept clean, was stone, but there was a woolen rug, dyed red and brown, in the middle of the room and another on one side of the bed. The bed itself was large enough for two and boasted two plump feather pillows, a linen coverlet, and a woolen blanket folded on the edge.
There was a window, with real glass, on the opposite wall, and a cushioned window seat sat below it. Skye imagined herself sitting there, reading a book or watching the clansmen below.
A younger servant entered, carrying a tray with a pitcher of water and some bread and cheese.
“Place that here, Blythe,” Nellie instructed, and the girl put the tray on the small dresser.
Skye didn’t realize how famished she was. “Goodness, I am so hungry. Thank ye, Blythe!”
“Laird MacArthur said ye would need some nourishment, as dinner isnae ready yet.”
Skye smiled and took some bread and cheese and sat in the window seat.
The door opened suddenly, banging against the wall, and she jumped.
“Watch what ye’re doing there, Conley. Ye’re going to put holes in the wall, ye are!” Nellie chided as a thirteen-year-old boy with a shock of red hair wrestled a tub into the room.
“Sorry, me Lady,” he said. “This tub’s as big as I am!”
After some pulling and pushing, the tub was placed in front of the hearth. Nellie started a fire, and it wasn’t long before a line of servants and some of the younger help started carrying hot buckets of water from the kitchens up to the room.
When the tub was full, Nellie handed Skye some sweet-smelling soaps and a drying towel.
“Would ye like me to stay and help ye with yer dress and yer bath?”
Skye hadn’t ever had a lady’s maid, and she didn’t see the need for one now. “Nay, thank ye, Nellie. I can manage.”
Nellie nodded and smiled, slowly circling Skye.
Skye tilted her head slightly to the side and asked with a smile, “What are ye doing, Nellie?”
“Sizing ye up. Ye hop in yer bath before it gets cold. I’m thinking I have some shifts and a gown that will fit ye well enough. Let me fetch them, and I’ll be right back.”
Nellie left the room, and Skye wasted no time undressing and getting into the bath. She just sat for a few moments and took several deep breaths. The events of the last two days had taken a toll on her body and her emotions.
She recalled Arran lying on top of her in the carriage and how she’d wished he would kiss her. And how he had listened when she had told him about her life and Castle MacKeith. But then when they’d arrived, he didn’t speak to her once they entered the keep.
But he did send ye something to eat.
He was, at least, thinking about her.
She told herself to stop worrying about such a silly thing. She had bigger concerns.
