Bound to the Highlander(6)

James shifted in his seat, trying to ignore his persistence. This was ridiculous.

“Father—”

“She doesn’t know about the arrangement.” The priest’s expression turned grim.

“How is that possible?” So much for knowing what happened around her. Perhaps the girl grew too headstrong for them. Though, that was unlikely considering she was just a waif. Yet, Chattan had claimed his greatest concern was her wellbeing, so why keep the arrangement from her? Whether she was strong or weak was irrelevant since her opinion was of no consequence in this matter.

“Because the laird never got around to it.”

“To telling her she’d be engaged in a month? Cruel.” So much for her wellbeing. “And to think, I agreed to this out of pity for the old man. Perhaps he had me fooled the whole time.”

“No!” Addison slammed his goblet on the desk.

James leaned forward. “I should not have to remind you, Father, whose company you keep. If there’s something else I need to know, be out with it and take your leave.”

“I beg your pardon m’lord. I meant no offence. You see, the situation with Lady Aileana requires delicacy and swiftness.”

James cocked his head to the side.

“You imply the lass carries a bastard?” This was too much. How dare he beg on the part of the loose wench? No wonder Chattan wouldn’t give up until the contract was signed. Christ, the girl couldn’t have been more than sixteen summers at the time.

“Father, I think it is time you leave here and beg for alms someplace else.” James stood and pointed toward the door. “You may inform Lady Aileana she is under no obligation from me.” Could it be this easy?

Father Addison deflated and looked like he was about to weep.

“Please m’lord, Lady Aileana is most chaste. She carries no bairn, yet her affliction has to do with another.”

“Enough! I’ll hear no more. You may expect me later today to discuss the contract.” James strode toward the door and cast his eyes outward leaving no doubt in his meaning. Father Addison obliged and left the room, offering a curt nod as he passed.

James returned to his writing table, pausing before moving to the shelf. He opened a wooden box lined with red velvet. Inside were papers his father had insisted must be kept separate from the account scrolls. One never knew when one might need things like land deeds and other written agreements in haste.

Among the documents was a folded, wax-sealed letter. He flipped it over several times before securing it inside his jerkin.

James returned to the writing table, downed the last of his ale, and slammed the goblet hard on the desk with a resounding thunk. He turned to stand at the open window resting his hands on the window ledge. The sky was a pale yellowish hue and the day would be bright, despite the gathering storm within.

He stood motionless for a long time, scanning the activity three stories below. Men trained with wooden swords, a market offered wagons full of produce, and many of his tenants had already arrived to barter their wares. He had everything he needed; enough men to defend his territory, more resources than he could deplete in two lifetimes, and plenty of women to bed when and where he chose.

His legacy to his clan would be ill served by adding a meager estate and a young, unsophisticated lass into the mix. His future success must include a union     with another strong, noble family. Times had changed under a new monarchy and, in order to survive, he must change with them.

King James Stewart, first of his name, had already demonstrated just how far he was willing to go to impose his idea of progress. James and his younger brother, Calum, had travelled to Parliament at Inverness shortly after their father’s death. The king had extended the invitation so that James, among thirty-nine other Highland chiefs, would accept new laws restricting their power. They listened in shock. The resulting uproar ended in three hangings and several imprisonments. James remembered it well.

He had learned much through his dealings with the king to date. This monarch cared little for how Highlanders resolved their issues in the past, and in order to prosper in King James’s new Scotland, he would have to somewhat conform to the man’s ways. That meant earning an earl’s title and strong position at court. The simplest way to do that was to accept a marriage proposal from someone of the king’s choosing. He’d inherited his baron’s title and while that distinction allowed him many privileges, as the Earl of Moray he would be afforded a much stronger voice.

James watched Father Addison cross the bailey’s threshold leaving Moy Hall. A great number of men greeted him as he passed. Despite his tolerance of the old ways, respect followed the priest.