Iain’s lips twitched. ‘I carried off a beautiful woman and then married her.’
Her jaw dropped for a moment but she recovered quickly. ‘If you are trifling with me, Iain MacAlpin, I warn you now…’
‘I wouldn’t dream of it.’ He turned toward the two figures behind him and smiled. ‘Come. Allow me to present my wife, Lady Ashlynn, and her brother, Lord Ban. Ashlynn, this is my sister, Jeannie, and her husband, Duncan McCrae of Ardnashiel.’
For a second there was a pregnant silence. Duncan’s blue eyes sparkled and he laughed softly in utter disbelief.
‘Well, in the name of all that’s wonderful.’ As he ran his eye over Ashlynn his smile grew. ‘I am truly delighted, my lady, although where this ugly brute found anything so beautiful I’ll never know.’
Ashlynn curtseyed and returned the smile. ‘The pleasure is mine, my lord.’
Duncan turned then to Ban and held out his hand. ‘I’m glad to make your acquaintance, sir. Did he carry you off too by any chance?’
Ban grinned. ‘Aye, my lord, he did—in a manner of speaking.’
‘Is that so? Well, by heaven, there’s a good story here or I miss my guess, and I would fain hear it.’
‘I also,’ replied his wife.
The two women faced each other and Ashlynn found herself looking into an arresting face framed with curling dark hair. Jeannie was perhaps five or six years her senior. She was taller too and her figure fuller, but it was the eyes that one remembered for they were dark and piercing like her brother’s. They missed no detail in their frank appraisal.
‘I once thought that nothing my brother could do would ever surprise me again, but I see I was wrong.’ She softened the words with a smile. ‘For once it feels good to be wrong.’
With relief Ashlynn saw the smile reach the dark eyes and with it came the first glimmer of hope that she might now find a woman friend. Jeannie indicated the three children who stood nearby.
‘My sons, Jamie and Andrew, and my daughter, Fiona.’
As the children made their duty to her Iain surveyed them with frank astonishment. ‘Good God, but they’ve grown. I hardly recognise them.’
‘How should you?’ replied Jeanne. ‘You haven’t set eyes on them in nigh on three years.’
The tension was back and Ban interjected quickly. ‘Children always grow fast, do they not?’
‘So it would seem,’ replied Iain.
His young relatives looked up at him with wide-eyed apprehension for the tallest of them came no higher than his belt. The little girl’s lip trembled. Ashlynn smiled.
‘You are all welcome here,’ she said. ‘Now you are come I see that we shall have great fun this Yuletide.’
The gentleness of her tone seemed to offer reassurance and they began to look a little less anxious.
‘We shall have feasting and music and, if you wish, we shall play some games. Would you like that?’ she asked.
They nodded solemnly.
‘Good. In a little while we shall go in together and you shall tell me what games you like best.’ She held out her hand and after a moment’s hesitation the little girl took it.
Iain watched the scene in fascination. He would never have suspected that she might like children or have such an easy way with them. They seemed to like her too and pressed round her now, clearly sensing safety. Him they continued to regard warily. He supposed it was scarcely to be wondered at. They must have forgotten his existence. Almost three years! The realisation caused an unexpected twinge of guilt. To cover it he introduced his wife and brother-in-law to the various cousins who made up the remainder of the party. When at length that duty was performed he gestured to the door.
‘Shall we go in then?’
Jeannie smiled at Ashlynn. ‘Aye, let’s do that. Then we’ll find a quiet corner somewhere and you can tell me how you had the misfortune to be married to my brother.’
Iain threw his sister a speaking glance which she ignored. Ashlynn began to like her more and more. She caught Ban’s eye and saw him grin. Then they all went in together. After their guests had taken refreshment and been shown to their various quarters, Ashlynn went to inquire if Jeannie had everything she needed.
‘I shall do very well. In truth I had not expected to find such comfort here,’ she replied, looking round. ‘You have made your mark already.’
In fact Ashlynn had raided all the upper storerooms for rugs and hangings and with the aid of Morag and the other servants had put them to use. She had also commanded that fires be lit in the guest chambers some days before, in order to take the damp chill off the air. In consequence the rooms looked and felt much more cheerful. It was pleasing to discover that her efforts were appreciated.