Aidam smiled. He liked this boy—his mother, Wynne, and his father, Damon.
Aidam had a dalliance with Wynne six or so years previously. He had been a lad of only twenty, and Wynne had been fun, full of laughter and possessing the exact type of skills and charms a lad of twenty found irresistible. Still, he was only a boy, barely out from short pants. The day she’d announced her pregnancy a few months later, he’d dropped to the ground and prayed, all but sure he was going to be a father, but she had only laughed. Once reassured that the boy wasn’t his, he was able to see Wynne for the friend she was. Although her true love, and the lad’s father, Damon did not quite see it that way. Instead, he saw his way right into a fist into Aidam’s face. Wynne and Damon were now married. Damon and Aidam had forgotten their earlier competition for Wynne’s favor, and as far as Aidam could tell, they were all quite happy with how things turned out.
Still, even though Liam wasn’t his son, Aidam enjoyed spending time with the boy. When Jemina was younger, she’d enjoyed Aidam’s games, but her foray into womanhood had mostly put a stop to anything that was close to being considered child’s play. But Liam still wanted to play ball, and watching how seriously he took a game of throw and catch was, for Aidam, one of the simple pleasures of castle life.
Is this what it would be like to have a son of me own? If I found a wife and settled down?
What was he thinking? He’d sworn years ago he’d never do that. Oh, he wanted to win women’s hearts, yes—but notkeepthem.
And Ellie? What do I want from her?
“It means ye should ask him,” Aidam finally replied to the lad.
Aidam wasn’t sure of the answer to either Liam’s question or his own and was glad for a distraction as Jemina suddenly entered the courtyard, hurrying over.
“Aidam, we need to talk,” she said. “Liam, go on back to yer mam, now, won’t ye?”
Liam shrugged.“I cannae go back to Mam. I’m winning, and Aidam promised that if I win, he’ll give me a whole penny,” Liam said proudly. “I just need to catch it three more times!”
Jemina rolled her eyes. “Give him the penny and come with me, Aidam. It’s urgent.”
Aidam raised an eyebrow. “Greetings to ye as well, Cousin,” he said. “I havenae seen ye in weeks, do I nay deserve a warm greeting? What is the urgency?”
Jeminawasprone to the dramatic. Ever since her mother died, she’d barely left the castle keep. Without the influence of a woman’s hand, she had a somewhat skewed perception of what was and was not worthy of someone making a fuss. However, she rarely looked at him so seriously. Reluctantly, Aidam told Liam that they could play later. The boy sulked but perked up when Aidam gave him the promised penny before heading to follow Jemina.
Jemina led Aidam back inside and up the stairs, not speaking until they reached her private rooms. He hesitated, raising his eyebrows—Jemina never letanyoneexcept her lady’s maid into her chambers.
“Cousin, why all the secrecy?”
“It’s the only place I ken we’ll nae be overheard.” Jemina scowled. “Please.”
Aidam followed her inside and sat on her plush settee. “Well?” he asked once the door was closed. “What’s this all about?”
“Lady Heloise. What do we ken about her?” Jemina asked, frowning. “Ye were friends when ye were bairns, aye?”
Aidam blinked. He should have known Jemina would want to discuss Ellie. How could she not? The marriage was a shock to the whole clan. Why would it not be the most shocking to the Laird’s daughter? “I was, aye. Ye dinnae look very happy about her being here.”
“Well, I want to ken who she thinks she is!” Jemina declared. Her temper flared in the way it had started doing as soon as she turned four and ten, three years before, and Aidam unconsciously moved back. “She cannae just storm in here and decide she’s the lady of the place. Me mam…”
“Auntie Elizabeth has been gone for quite some time now,” Aidam said quietly. It had been years, actually, since his uncle had become a widower. Jemina had only been two and ten at the time. “She cannae be the lady of the clan when she’s nae here anymore. Ye ken that.”
“Then it should beme,”Jemina protested. “Not some wee lassie from another clan who thinks she can be my stepmother. She’s only five years my senior! I can manage just as well as she can!”
Ah. So that’s what this is about. Aidam stood, reaching over to embrace his cousin. “Ye poor thing,” he said. “Ye poor, silly lassie. Do ye really think she’s here to replace ye? Heloise has nae more inclination toward being the lady of the keep than ye do, though she’s better at it now thanks to having a bit more practice. She’s got a temper on her like a storm.”
Jemina returned the embrace but frowned as she pulled back. “A temper? That shy woman?”
Aidam grinned. “Och, aye. A temper like ye wouldnae believe, but a heart of gold. She’ll tease ye, but she’ll hold ye while ye cry, as well. She’s one of the kindest, wittiest, most baffling women I’ve ever met. Shekenshow to be a lady. I bet if ye asked her, she’d teach ye.”
Jemina seemed to waver a little. “Why would she teach me? Does she nae want herownbairns with my father? Once they have a son, I’ll be cast aside as nothing, after all.”
Aidam shook his head. “I dinnae see that happening,” he said. It made sense that his uncle and Ellie would probably have children after they married. Hell, his uncle said exactly that to him back at the MacAskill Keep. Yet, Aidam couldn’t stand to imagine it. He shied away from the thought, instead saying, “And even if they did, so what? Ye’re still the oldest child, and Uncle’ll want ye to make a good marriage. Lady Heloise can only help with that.”
“So she can get rid of me,” Jemina said, though she sounded less certain. “So, thatshe’s the woman with all the power here.”
Aidam sighed. He offered his hand and, after a moment, Jemina took it. “Come with me,” he said. He may have gotten nowhere with Ellie, but he wouldn’t allow Jemina to be afraid of some kind of unknown horror that Ellie would cast her out. He knew both lasses better than to allow that to happen. Nay, he would have to show his cousin some kind of truth about Ellie, even if he was unaware of exactly what that truth was, himself.
* * *
