Aidan (24 page)

“But I’m afeard. I dinna ken any o’ them. They are strangers
te me.”

“Then I’ll be there by
yer side when ye and yer sister meet the MacDuffs. And ye’ll have nothin’ te fret aboot becooz ye’ll be there as me wife.”

“All right,” she said nervously. “I’ll do it, Aidan. No’ fer me, but fer Coira. She’s ne’er
even kent her own mathair nor her faither, so I think ye’re right and this is important.

“Then put on the gown, me angel, and let’s go get married.”

Chapter 27

Effie felt like the luckiest girl in the world as Aidan slipped the ring on her finger, just as they’d finished their vows. She wore her new gown, and matched Aidan’s plaid. Her sister stood next to her, holding the bouquet of wildflowers she and Kyla had picked for her this morning, and Kyla was next to her, crying happy tears. Onyx and Ian stood alongside Aidan, while Storm, Wren, and the entire MacKeefe clan as well as the MacDuffs watched on.

Aidan had convinced her to
meet the MacDuffs before they were married, so they could be present at the wedding as well. It had gone better than she’d hoped and she’d even found a few blood relatives she never knew she had. Coira enjoyed meeting them as well, and now Effie felt as if they had two families.

Madoc
had brought his wife, Abbey and their new baby boy, as well as their other two children to the competition as well. And Onyx’s wife, Lovelle stood next to them with their new baby boy, Creighton, in her hands. They had given him a Scottish name at Onyx’s insistence. And Onyx had even brought his father, Talbot, from England, so he could be with Onyx’s Scottish family.

“I pronounce ye husband and wife,” said the priest, closing his book.

A shout went up from the crowd, and Aidan reached over and kissed Effie, then lifted her off her feet and kissed her again.

“Congratulations,” sai
d Storm, coming to greet them. With that, congratulations and hugs and kisses were given all around.

“Jest becooz ye’re a
married man now, Aidan, thet disna mean ye can best me in the caber toss,” said Storm.

“Well,
me wounds have healed nicely, and I feel strong as an ox today,” said Aidan, winking at Effie.

Renard walked up with Niall at his side, holding on to Aidan’s squirrel.

“The games are starting,” he said. “There are competitors here from at least a dozen clans.”

“Let’s go,” said Ian, then he looked
back to Renard and Niall. “Are ye two sure ye can hold on te Reid, Kyle, and also Tawpie throughout the games?” he asked.

“Aye,” said Nial
l. “We have yer wolfhound and wildcat tied on leads, so they willna cause trouble.”

“Guid,” said Onyx, putting his arm around his wife and coming to join them. “Becooz there are a lot o’ bairns here today and we dinna want trouble.”

“No one is goin’ anywhere afore we’ve made a toast te the new couple with some o’ me mountain magic,” said old Callum MacKeefe who had come from his pub in Glasgow to join them. He nodded his head, and several clanmembers passed out wooden cups and filled them with the potent whisky.

“Gran
da,” said Storm, holding his youngest daughter, Heather in one arm, and a cup of mountain magic in the other, “ye make the first toast.”

“All right,” said Callum. “I toast
te Aidan and Effie and thet they will have plenty o’ laddies te drink me mountain magic.”

“And I toast
te them as well,” said Kyla, holding her cup in the air, “thet they will have plenty o’ lassies te drink it too.”

Cheers and laughter went up from the crowd, and everyone drank to the toast
s.

“Kyla,” said Ian, downing his whisky and smacking his lips. “Ye ken thet lassies canna
really drink this, so dinna even pretend they can.”

“Oh no?” She looked at him and smiled, then raised the cup to her lips.

“Dinna do it,” said Effie, remembering the last time she had tried this herself.

“Dinna worry, Effie, since Ian thinks o’ me as one o’ the boys, this shouldna affect me.”
She downed it, made a face, and then a smile widened her lips. “Ye see, Ian, ye are no’ the only one thet can drink mountain magic. And if ye’d like te watch me, I am goin’ te win the sheaf toss as well.”

“She surprised me,” said Effie, as the crowd headed over to the
games. “I dinna ken how she does it.”

“She is me sister,” said Aidan. “She has been followin’ me and me friends around her entire life and tryin’ te be one o’ the laddies I think.”

“Och, I think it’s much more than thet,” said Effie, watching Ian and Kyla arguing about who was better at everything as they headed toward the games.

“Come on, Aidan,” said Storm,
“the caber toss is startin’ soon, and I willna be givin’ up me title.”

* * *

Effie sat to the side, watching the competition all day, glancing at her ring from time to time, hardly able to believe that she was now married. She felt so happy, and like she actually belonged with the MacKeefes, and she was looking forward to getting to know the MacDuffs better as well. She ran a loving hand over the brooch pinned to her shoulder, wishing she would have had the opportunity of knowing her grandmother, Isabel MacDuff. She also wished her mother had still been alive and that she could have been here for her wedding. She knew her mother would have loved Aidan.

Coira sat next to h
er as well as Wren, and Onyx’s wife Lovelle, and Madoc’s wife, Abbey. Their many children were gathered around, and had even participated in some of the children’s competitions. Heather, Storm’s young daughter sat on Effie’s lap, while Lovelle rocked her crying baby next to her.

“So, you and Aidan will be having a big family?” asked Lovelle.

“I dinna ken what Aidan wants,” she said, “but I would like lots o’ children. But tell me, Lady Lovelle, what is it like te be married te a Madman MacKeefe?”

“You will never
stop being surprised,” she said. “Nor will you ever want them to stop acting so crazy. It makes them who they are.”

“I guess ye
’re right,” she said, watching as Aidan finished his second throw of the caber toss, and he and Storm were now tied.”

“Wren,” she said. “Do ye think Aidan is goin’ to be takin’ Storm’s title?”

“Aidan may have won lifting the atlas stones, like we all knew he would,” said Wren, “but I don’t think Storm will take it well if he loses his title, so I’m going to have to say no.”

Effie
laughed. “The MacKeefes are verra competitive,” she said. “After all, Ian already won the hammer throw and Onyx the sword hold, and the clan beat the MacDonalds in the tug o’ war.”

“Dinna ferget, I won the sheaf toss,” said Kyla, settling herself next to Effie, and taking a child onto her lap as well.

“This is the first time I’ve e’er been te the games,” said Effie. “I didna even ken thet the women were so guid at the competitions.”

“Do ye think Ian
saw me win?” Kyla leaned over and whispered this to Effie.

“H
e noticed all right,” she said with a smile.

“Effie, this one is fer ye,” called out Aidan
from across the field, hunkering down and cupping the tapered end of the pole. The object of the competition was to keep it as vertical as possible and toss it end over end without it tilting or falling back toward the competitor. “Watch this caber toss,” he said, and Effie gave the child on her lap to Kyla and stood up to watch, feeling very nervous. She knew how hard Aidan had been practicing to beat Storm, but after what Wren just told her, she wasn’t sure if it was a good idea for him to win the title from Storm since he had held it for the last nine years.

Aidan
lifted the caber in one jerky motion, taking a step or two in each direction to level it. And just as he was about to take a few steps forward and throw it, she heard Renard’s voice from behind her.

“Reid, get back here.”

Aidan’s squirrel darted out from the crowd, being chased by Tawpie and Kyle. The squirrel scurried up Aidan’s leg and to his shoulder as the wolfhound and the wildcat chased circles around him.

“
Och, no’ now,” said Aidan, trying to sidestep the animals and still hold the pole upright. Then, to Effie’s horror, the squirrel scampered straight up the pole and settled itself at the top. “Naaaaaaay,” shouted Aidan, and Effie knew it was all over. Aidan was too fond of his little pet to throw the caber end over end when his squirrel was atop it.

The wolf
hound growled, the cat hissed, and Aidan lost his footing and the pole titled too much for him to right it again. Before she knew it, the caber was on the ground without having been thrown, and Reid was back on Aidan’s shoulder.

“And the
winner o’ the caber toss, keeping his title fer the tenth year in a row is Storm MacKeefe,” shouted the announcer. The bagpipes started back up and the drums did a roll, signaling the end of the competition.

She looked out to see Onyx and Ian collecting their pets and Aidan clenching his jaw while he offered his congratulations to Storm.

“Well, let’s go get some haggis, Niall,” said Renard and they stepped around the women.

“Wait a minute,” said Wren, holding out her arm to stop him. “Renard, did you and Niall let the animals loose so your father would win the caber toss again?”

“We dinna ken what ye’re talkin’ aboot,” said Niall, his eyes darting over to Renard nervously.

“That’s right,” Renard added.

“All right, go on,” she said, and they ran away quickly.

“Do ye think they did?” asked Effie.

“Well, Renard has always idolized Storm ever since he found out he was his father,” said Wren. “I wouldn’t be surprised if a little foul play was involved here, as Renard has always been a sly one.”

“Well, it did look as if Aidan was goin’
te win,” said Effie.

“Aye, it did,” agreed Wren
with a nod of her head.

“It’s
probably better thet he didna win,” said Effie. “After all, he already won one event, the same as his friends.”

“Thet’s right,” said Kyla, having overheard them and joining at their side. “And if Aidan won more events tha
n Ian or Dagger, ye ken me brathair would ne’er let them ferget it.”

“
And then they would constantly be challenging each other and payin’ no attention te us,” said Effie.

“No attention at all.” Kyla looked across the field to Ian
and crossed her arms over her chest.

“And if Storm lost the title, he’d probably be sulking about it for at least a month or two,” said Wren.

“Hmmm,” said Effie, and they all just stared out at the men. Aidan saw them looking at them and headed their way. “I willna tell if ye two willna,” she said quickly before he could hear her.

“Thet’s fine by me,” agreed Kyla.

“Agreed,” said Wren with a smile and three of them clasped hands in front of them sealing the deal.

“What’s goin’ on?” asked Aidan, walking over to her and putting his arm around her. His squirrel chattered from atop his shoulder. “Are ye talkin’ aboot me
losin’ the caber toss, me dream angel? Or shall I say, me wife?” He kissed her, and Effie knew how disappointed he felt.

“Nay, we dinn
a care aboot thet,” she said. “We were jest talkin’ aboot the men in our lives, me husband.” She looked up to him and smiled. “Or mayhap, I should I say, me
MadMan MacKeefe – Aidan
.”

From the Author:

I hope
you enjoyed Aidan and Effie’s story. Through my research, I found rumors that the actual Stone of Destiny may have not been stolen by King Edward I in 1296, but instead switched out for a fake, while the true stone was safe in hiding. Instantly, I knew I had to write this into my story.

While the Stone of De
stiny that we all know is red sandstone, it is said the actual one was black basalt and had ancient hieroglyphs on it. After all, if the true stone had been stolen, why didn’t the Scottish demand that the English give it back, or at least try to get it themselves? Research shows the Scots never even made an attempt to save their coronation stone that meant so much to them. So in my eyes . . . it was because they already had the true one somewhere in hiding.

I also found that there are little to no records of what the Scots were wearing back in the 14
th
century. And while the earliest records show that tartans being used to identify clans, and the use of the belted plaid happened in the 16
th
century, it was also said that weavers from all centuries usually had one design they used to make clothes for the entire clan. So, who really knows. Therefore, you will find tartans in my story, because I just could not picture a MadMan MacKeefe without one. 

And now available is the last book in the series -
Ian – Book 3
.
And in case you’ve miss the first book of the series it is
Onyx – Book 1
.