The laird swatted at him, and his siblings burst into raucous laughter.
“You have the look of a man well satisfied,” Duncan continued. “Was she worth the silver penny you expended to get her out of Willie Douglas’s clutches?”
Conal Bruce grinned. “Aye. She’s probably worth half a groat at least,” he said.
“How many times?” Murdoc boldly asked.
“Four, and I was ready for her again but that when I awoke she had gone,” the laird said. “Have either of you seen Adair this morning?”
The two shook their heads.
“Agnes Carr would be jealous,” Duncan remarked. “I doubt you ever stuck her four times in a night. I don’t think I’ve ever done it that much myself,” he mused.
“You will when it’s the right woman,” the laird said, chuckling.
“Four times,” young Murdoc said enviously. “I didn’tknow a man could do it that much at one time.” Murdoc was sixteen.
His brothers laughed at his observance.
“You will one day, youngling,” the laird promised.
“Grizel, where is Adair?”
“In the kitchens, my lord,” Grizel said.
“Tell her I want to see her,” the laird replied.
Duncan and Murdoc eyed each other knowingly, and chortled.
“Yes, my lord.” Grizel curtsied, and disappeared from the hall. She returned some minutes later to say, “Mistress Adair begs you will excuse her for now, my lord.
She is cutting several new shirts for you, and does not wish to stop in the middle of the task, for it would be difficult to begin again.”
“You will return to Adair and say that when the laird calls her she is to come with all possible haste,” Conal Bruce told the serving woman.
Grizel curtsied again, and left the hall.
“The lass is sewing you new garments,” Duncan said.
“Can you not be a bit more reasonable, Conal? ’Tis a thoughtful act. She saw your need and sought to fulfill it.”
“Aye, Conal,” Murdoc agreed. “I wish she would sew some shirts for me.”
“She has to learn that I am her master,” the laird said stubbornly. “Remember I paid a silver penny for her.”
“I would say taking your mighty cock four times in a single night was more than repayment, Conal. She has worked hard to restore a sense of order to our home. It has not looked as good or been run as well since our mam died.”
“She is mine!” the laird replied.
“No one denies that,” Duncan answered. “But she’s a lady, Conal, for all her hard luck, not a common whore.”
“Nay, sir, I am no common whore. I am the Bruce’s whore,” Adair said as she joined them. She turned a fierce look on the laird. “What do you desire of me, my lord?”
“That when I call you, you come,” he said testily.
“I have other chores than to serve in your bed, my lord,” Adair answered sharply. “Your clothing, the garments of your brothers, all need refurbishing. And the cold larder is not yet full for the winter, which is nearer today than it was yesterday. Today I will sew for you, and you will hunt again for the keep’s sake. If it pleases you, of course, my lord.” She mocked him with a curtsy, her violet eyes flashing with defiance.
“Come sit in my lap,” the laird said.
