“Wife?” Leah squeaked from her perch on top of her mount. “No!”
Robert’s own hurried “No!” all but drowned out Leah’s protest.
He stepped to the side of her horse, holding up his arms to lift her down. Though he knew she would prefer to avoid his touch, after only the slightest hesitation she leaned into him, her hands grasping his forearms to allow him to lift her down.
A sharp pain twinged through his chest when he took her weight, and as soon as her feet hit the ground he dropped his hold. That was odd. She was such a tiny thing, less than he bench-pressed on a regular basis at the gym. Whatever it was, it wasn’t something he had time to worry about right now.
“No my wife,” he repeated, catching Leah’s gaze as he continued. “My daughter.”
Her eyes widened and her lips tightened but, to her credit, she made no comment refuting his claim.
He’d considered using this story from the start but had worried he’d have problems convincing them he had a daughter her age they had never known about. Still, it seemed his best ploy and was the only story he’d managed to invent. The result of an indiscretion he’d learned of only recently, a deceased mother, all good reasons to bring her here for their care.
In the seconds after his claim, his mother swept forward, a joyous smile breaking over her face. “A daughter! Och, Robbie, you’ve made me a happy woman indeed.” She threw her arms around Leah, hugging the girl closely to her. “With nothing but sons of my own, you’ve no idea how I’ve longed for a lass over the years to join our family.”
Robert tightened his hold on his emotions. Absurd to feel this pressure in his throat. Still, it did his heart good to see his mother so happy. Bringing Leah here had been a good thing all around. Though he’d never know the comfort of having his own children, his parents would feel the pleasure of thinking their bloodline continued in the form of a granddaughter.
As for Leah herself, though she was obviously surprised at the welcome, she handled it all quite well. This was going to work out even better than he could have hoped.
Now, before he had to face his brother, seemed an opportune time to come straight to the point.
“I’ve come to ask yer indulgence in allowing my Leah to remain here with you.”
“And why would she no?” his father boomed. “As yer daughter, this is her home as much as yers.”
His mother, arm around Leah’s shoulders, herded the lass toward the keep, her expression shuttered as she cast one last look in his direction. “Bring her things, Robbie. I’ll be about getting our bonnie lassie settled and then we’ll have a grand visit, just the two of us.”
His father’s large hand clapped down on his back, accompanied by the booming laughter he remembered so fondly from his childhood.
“Aye, it’s good to have you home, son. And with a daughter as well! Perhaps ’tis a profitable score of years you’ve spent away from us, after all.”
Robert’s step faltered and he stopped in his tracks.Score of years?Could he have heard his father correctly? No wonder everything was so changed. From everything he’d seen, he’d suspected they’d arrived later than planned, but not by this much. This was supposed to be the same year he’d left, not twenty years later!
How could their plans have gone so wrong?
Mairi’s parting advice about the Magic taking over danced through his mind as he tried to accept this unplanned change.
Twenty years.Twenty years had passed since he’d last laid eyes on this world.
What his eyes had shown him all made sense now. Little wonder his home looked so changed, his parents so much older.
Twenty years.What else might have happened in twenty years’ time? A creeping fear spiraled through his gut at the thought. Had he completely failed his oath to Thomas? What might have become of his friend’s poor little daughter?
Jogging forward, Robert caught up with his father, slowing his pace across the bailey to match his father’s halting limp.
“I’m no as young as I used to be, Robbie. It’s good you’ve returned to take yer rightful place at the keep. With you and the lass here, I can put away any worries about what will happen when I’m gone.”
“Da! You’ve no call to say such as that. You dinna look ready to pass on to me. No yet.” Robert smiled over at his father. “Besides, you’ve Richard here to look after things.”
This time it was his father’s step that faltered and stopped.
“Yer brother’s at Edward’s court, thanks to Elizabeth and her father. He calls himself an Englishman these days. He’s even taken the Hawthorne name.” Hugh straightened and started forward again. “He’ll no have any part in the future of MacQuarrie Keep.”
Robert shouldn’t be surprised but he was. That, at least, explained the guard’s comment. It wasn’t bad enough that Elizabeth had broken his heart years ago. Now the red-haired bitch who’d used him as a stepping stone to get to his brother had managed to bring even more trouble to the MacQuarrie Keep.
“Come along, lad. Yer mother’s no a patient woman these days.” Hugh chuckled as if he found his own words quite amusing.
Considering twenty years had passed since he’d been here last, Robert had to admit he saw the humor himself, sad though it was.
