Page 74 of Highlander’s Forbidden Fruit

And Evanna? What of her? Fate was like a knife blade plunging and twisting into their hearts at every turn. Would she ever know happiness? Would he?

Running a hand through his hair, he squared his shoulders and dismissed his thoughts. The time for thinking would come later. Right now, he needed to leave the clearing. Vano’s tribesmen might return in greater numbers, and he wouldn’t want to meet them alone.

Aleck threw snow on the fire and covered it with sodden leaves. He refilled his water skin and then got to the hard task.

Being very careful he lifted John’s body and respectfully mounted it on his horse. Tying it securely, he walked his own horse out of the clearing. He needed to head home. Laird MacLeod would know what to do.

He turned the horses towards Glenlivet.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Christmas eve at Glenlivet was a busy time for everyone. Mrs. MacTavish was red in the face, baking cakes and basting roasted meats from dawn to dusk. The laundry woman was beating the clothes and linens extra hard to get the last bit of dirt out. Children were scrubbed. Men were washed. Women preened and made last-minute purchases of laces and bits and bobs for their dresses.

Even Lockard was busy marshaling his men for an entirely new battle - the beautification of the castle and church.

Inside the castle was no different.

Bolts of cloth were stacked high in every corner of the salon. Baskets full of preserves, wheels of cheese, and fruit cake were everywhere one looked. Mrs. Lane was busy measuring and cutting the cloth, Sarah folded the pieces, and Evanna labeled each basket ready to be dispatched to the Laird’s subjects on Christmas morning.

After what felt like the hundredth label, Evanna put her quill down and massaged her hands. “I think that’s enough for now. Let’s take a break for lunch and start again afterward?”

“Excellent idea, Lady Evanna.” Mrs. Lane stood up and arched her back. “I could use a strong cup of tea too.”

“Will you have Mrs. MacTavish send a light lunch up to the Laird’s chambers? I’ll have lunch with him.”

“Aye,” Mrs. Lane nodded. “Come, Sarah. Let’s get you fed.”

Evanna watched Sarah scurry behind Mrs. Lane. The old housekeeper had taken Sarah under her wing. Before long Sarah would be skilled in the art of housekeeping as well as herbs and medicine.

Evanna smiled a secret smile. Her Christmas present for Sarah was private lessons with the local physician, Duncan. Men were territorial about the knowledge they had amassed, and Duncan had looked down upon the suggestion of a female student. It had taken some convincing but eventually, he had given in on the condition that if he found Sarah lacking, he would stop the lessons immediately. Evanna was sure the Laird would convince him not to be too hasty if such an incident occurred; although she had great confidence in Sarah’s ability, not only to learn, but to charm an old crank like Duncan.

Now that both Sarah and Mrs. Lane were out of the room, Sarah brought out the piece of parchment she had hidden beneath the labels. It was a letter, incomplete and marked out in several places. Biting her lip, she reread the letter to Ashton explaining her decision to marry John. There were a lot of false starts, passive sentences, and random tangents; but the real problem was that the letter was not convincing.

Evanna knew this was because she was not convinced she had made the right decision. Laird Julius’ health had improved day by day. He had taken Vano’s dismissal rather well, and he was finally eating more than a morsel. But still, Evanna hesitated to broach the topic of her eventual nuptials and how she did not look forward to them.

She scratched at another confusing sentence in her letter. The more she delayed the letter, the more offended Ashton would be at her lack of explanation and blatant disregard for his advice. She wrote a few more lines, frowned at them, and cut them out vehemently.

Giving it up as a bad job Evanna stuffed the letter back in its hiding place and stood up. She was getting nowhere with the letter, and she couldn’t risk running late for lunch with her father. It was more important that the Laird eat. Ashton could wait. Evanna trusted their friendship could weather the current storm and come out stronger. She hoped to have him as an ally in her married life in England.

Along the way to her father’s chambers, she caught glimpses of the snow-covered hills and the blue sky. It was a bright day, unexpected for the heart of winter. She wondered how far Aleck and John had reached, and whether they were getting along or at each other’s throats.

Her worry was more for Aleck than for John. After his journey in Scotland, John would be safe in his home whereas Aleck was headed into the unknown where danger was rife, and there were enemies wherever he looked. Evanna’s heart beat in her throat whenever she thought of Aleck surrounded by brigands. If only she could sprout wings and fly to him to protect him or rescue him.

When she was a child, her nanny had told her a story about a Fae King who possessed many magical instruments. The most fascinating of his possessions was a magic glass that could spy on people many miles away. Evanna wished she had such a magic glass so she could watch over Aleck wherever he was in the world. But she was no Fae Queen, and magic did not exist.

She found her father poring over ledgers, his bushy eyebrows knitted into a frown. Fierce love for him slammed into her like physical pain. Planting a kiss on his head she took a seat on the table where a light lunch of cheese, bread, and fruits had been laid. Spreading a generous measure of butter and honey on a thick slice of bread Evanna fed morsels to her father. It amused and saddened her at the same time that the roles had been reversed. Now she must care for him, just as lovingly as he had cared for her when she was a child.

“I have a bone to pick with ye, lass.” Laird MacLeod tapped the ledger. “Seems to me the purse is much lighter since ye took over the household. Going to run me to the ground before ye leave with yer Earl, eh?”

“Ah, ye’ve caught on to my plan!” Evanna played along. “I’d hoped if I ate ye out of the house and home, ye’d move to England with me.”

“And return the favor?” he winked.

“Nae, I’ll have ye imprisoned in a tower and feed ye naught but cheese and bread,” she said, breaking off a piece of cheese and feeding her father.

“Yer a cruel daughter, and there’s nae doubt,” he smiled at her affectionately.

“Aye, the worst,” she agreed.