Finding My Highlander (27 page)

He swung her around, threw back his head, and roared. “You’ll never leave me Andra, I will not allow it. Do you understand me? You are mine. We belong together.” He set her down, the leaf cover of the forest floor thick about her feet. Gripping her wrists, hands crossed one over the other, he asked, “Will you take me as your husband, Andra, freely and without reservation?”

She gripped his wrists in return, their hands clamped like vices. “Yes, I will marry you, Kendrick. I will marry you and love you for all eternity as God and your clansmen are my witnesses.” She flicked a glance to the men still mounted on their horses.

“I think this demands a celebration and a good night’s rest.” Lorne exclaimed, and the other men hooted their approval. He pulled out a flask of
uisge beatha
and they all took a drink, even Andra, who choked a bit on the slow burn that followed.

They returned to the cave, bundled their belongings and secured the supplies they intended to leave behind, everyone anxious to return home.

When Kendrick and Andra retired to a room at an inn along the road, he stoked the fire in the brazier and then stripped her slowly, touching her so gently she thought she might melt.

“My beautiful, fierce, wee banshee. My wife.” He slanted his lips over hers sliding his tongue tantalizingly at the crease, seeking entry. Meeting his urgent strokes with her own she clutched him to her naked body.

“That bed looks a bit small for two.” she smiled wickedly.

“Nae love, it will do for tonight, but when I get you back to the castle, I’m tying you to my verra big bed and not letting you leave it for days.”

“I think we should wait until we make this marriage official before you start tying me to your bed in the castle. There would be no stopping tongues from wagging over that.”

He stepped back, his hands on her shoulders. “This marriage is already official, wife.”

“What?” Mouth agape, eyes wide; she had no idea what he meant.

“Your words earlier, you said you took me to husband and that you loved me. You swore before God and the men, did you not?”

“Well, yes, but…”

“That is all it takes in the Highlands,
mo chroi
. You are mine, we are wed, and no one will take you from me. However, if it’s official you want, we can repeat our vows in the keep with the rest of the family present. I suspect my mother and Isabel will demand it anyway.”

She realized that he’d laid her on the bed and climbed over her. Heat flamed where his hands roamed, then cooled when they moved to other regions. Their first joining of the night was unrestrained, hot, and fast. But oh, the second time, they came together in sumptuous, slow delight. They nipped and tasted their fill, finally falling into a deep and restful sleep, her lying atop him, her head nestled into the crook of his neck.

Chapter Forty

After the evening meal on the first day following their return to the castle, Kendrick stood and with a deep reverberating voice called for silence and the clans’ attention. “I wish to announce that Andra Heather Adair Cameron, daughter of Angus Brian Cameron and—”

He never finished the announcement. Alith rose from her chair, clutching her throat and gasping for air, then fell to the floor.

The crowd rumbled with hushed strains of concern and frightened looks at Andra. Obviously, a few had not embraced her as much as surmised. Perhaps more than a few would not rejoice over a union between their laird and a Sassenach who also carried the Cameron name. Enough of them would see Alith’s collapse as a bad omen to the union.

Andra swooped down to check for a pulse. “She is alive, her pulse strong and steady. Whatever do you think happened?” She gently patted the old woman’s cheek while rubbing her arm. “Alith, can you hear me.”

Jane knelt beside them and pulled a vial from her skirt. She uncorked the vial and waved it under the old woman’s nose. A strong astringent odor accosted Andra. Alith’s lids fluttered open. Her eyes, milky with age, latched onto Andra. Raising her hand to cup Andra’s cheek she said, “I kenned you were ours, lass, as sure as I breathe, I kenned it. My verra own sweet lassie.”

Beatrice knelt beside them, “Hush now, Alith. We’ll take you to my rooms where Jane can attend ye.” She tipped her head, a signal to Kendrick.

Alith refused to relinquish Andra’s hand, grasping with a clawed grip. She kept saying it was in the eyes, and she should have seen it right away. Andra wondered if Alith had suffered a stroke.

Once settled on a bed with pillows behind her, Alith asked for a sip of wine.

“Won’t you allow Andra to leave while Jane examines you, Alith?” Beatrice pleaded.

“Nae, she must stay with me; I have many questions for my Andra. Don’t fuss now. I’ll be fine, just a bit of lightheadedness ‘twas all. The rest of you may leave us, return to your meal. We’ll send for you if you’re needed.” Despite eyes rheumy with tears, the strength of Alith’s voice brooked no refusal to her request. The others departed, but Kendrick stayed by the bed near Andra, “I will stay with you as well.”

“Aye, of course, MacLean. What I have to say might interest you”

Alith’s thumb trailed over Andra’s hand seeking the ruby ring on the middle finger of her right hand, panting slightly as if that small effort exhausted her. “Ye said this ring belonged to your da, is that nae right?”

“Yes, my father said it had passed down from his grandfather to his father then to him. It’s a family heirloom.” Andra recalled how Alith had expressed great interest in her rings when they first met.

“Why did ye not tell us, my dear?”

“Tell you what?” Andra asked, keeping her voice low and soothing. Alith’s agitation concerned her, especially since she’d sent Jane away.

“Did ye not say your father told you his family had died, that he had nae clan remaining in the Highlands?”

“Yes, his parents died fairly young. My mother’s father met him—I don’t remember where—and invited him to live with my mother’s family for a short while before he attended university. In fact, my mother’s parents helped pay for his education.”

“And what were your parents’ full names, Andra? I don’t recall we ever discussed that, did we?”

“I can’t say that we did, Lady Alith. My mother was Gillian Edna Adair and my father was Angus Brian Cameron, although everyone called him Brian.”

A choked sound rasped in the old woman’s throat. “I am not familiar with the Adair clan,” she whispered, shaking her head, her hands trembling.

“There is no one left in my mother’s family, they have all been dead for many years now.” Andra answered.

“Do you ken the names of your father’s parents?”

“Why yes, his father’s name was Donald James Cameron, and his mother’s name was Davina Alith Cameron. Until I met you, I had never known another woman with the name Alith. But I’m told it isn’t an unusual name in the Highlands.”

“There ye have it!” Alith exclaimed. “I kenned it must be so.” She kept shaking her head while rubbing the ring. Andra’s fingers numbed from the clutching pressure. “He remembered our names yet he told you his kith and kin had died? ‘Tis that the right of it?” Before Andra could respond, she added, “Mayhap he tried to contact his uncle’s clan and they told him we were both dead.”

“He…wh…what? You’re not suggesting he is a relation of yours?” Her father had been born in 1953. Andra shrugged her shoulders, turned to Kendrick with eyebrows raised in question, and then turned back to the old woman. “That could not be possible.”

“Aye, I am telling ye, ‘tis. ‘Tis more than possible. When we first met, your ring reminded me of Donald’s ring, but then I hadn’t seen it in a long time. I imagined someone else could have had a similar ring made. Now, I am sure ‘tis me Donald’s ring you wear. We had one surviving son, Angus Brian Cameron.” An anguished hitch caught her voice before she continued. “He would have received that ring upon his father’s death just as Donald had received it from his father.”

“But…but…my father’s parents’ names….”

“Aye, Donald James and Davina Alith Cameron. ‘Twould be me dear, departed husband, Donald, and meself. Although, everyone here kens me as Lady Alith MacLean, me full name is Davina Alith Dunbar Cameron MacLean, you see. Dunbar being me father’s name. When Donald died in battle, they returned his body which was missing his ring. Our youngest and last surviving child, Angus Brian Cameron, fought in the same battle, but they ne’er found me boy. No one ever heard from or saw him again. They buried many of the lads in mass unmarked graves. ‘Twere a terrible thing to do, but that was the way of it, and no one remembered seeing Angus after the battle.”

She took a deep shuddering breath, still clinging to Andra. “Mayhap your father suffered a head injury during the battle that took his da. That could explain it. Saints be praised for your mother’s parent’s generosity toward a lost, young man. He must have sworn fealty to your family’s clan for their kindness. Was that the way of it, then? Did his memory ne’er return?”

Flabbergasted, shocked, bamboozled. How many words existed to describe baffled and bewildered? This couldn’t be; her father would have told her if he had come through time, wouldn’t he? Andra was as shocked as Alith.

With eyes as wide as saucers and a stupefied expression on her face, she simply stared at the old woman for several seconds. “Alith, I’m completely lost. I don’t doubt that you believe my father was your son, but I can hardly make sense of it.” This astounding information made Andra light-headed and queasy, so she redirected the conversation back to Alith’s history with the MacLeans.

“How did you come to live with the MacLeans?”

“Oh, ‘tis a long story, but I’ll shorten it for you. I blamed my husband’s clan for the loss of my family, me sons and husband. I could not forgive them. Me own father and mother were long dead by then, and I had no surviving siblings. I could have returned to the Dunbar clan, but Edme MacLean and I had been friends since we were bairns, and I desperately needed a friend’s comfort.” Her parched lips puckered as she reached for the wine and took a long drink, then continued.

“Donald, God rest his soul, had left me with a few valuables: a fine horse, a few jewels, and enough coin to make me way if ever something happened to him. He understood my unhappiness with the clan. I held great anger in me heart following the death of our first two sons in a foolish skirmish with a border clan. Shortly after they returned Donald and the other senior warriors for burial, I left the Cameron clan and made my way to me dear friends, Edme and Ailbeart MacLean, Kendrick’s grandparents.”

Kendrick had pulled a chair beside Andra and rubbed gentle circles on her back as they listened to Alith’s story. When Andra glanced at him, she could see this new development had rocked him on his heels as much as it had her.

Except for the quiet hitching sobs from Alith, they remained silent for several moments. “Please. Tell me, you…m…my father… Oh God! I don’t know how to phrase this question. Please, tell me,” she sucked in a breath, “that there is no connection between us and Cormag Cameron or his clan?” All the air left Andra’s lungs in a whoosh.

Unfocused eyes spilled a stream of tears down the old woman’s face. “No. Well, mayhap, but the northern Camerons severed their connection with the southern clan, of which Cormag was laird, many generations ago. ‘Twas me understanding verra bad blood existed between them for as long as anyone remembered.” Alith swiped away her tears and took a calming breath before continuing. “To the best of me knowledge, Donald’s people never associated with the southern Cameron clan.”

“Well, at least that puts my mind at ease.” However, Andra could find no ease with this new discovery about her father. Though the more she listened, the more her father’s heavy brogue, the odd turns of phrase, and things he’d said over the years, came back to her. His reluctance to provide more than cursory details about his family, though he loved to regale her with stories of the Highlands and their people, confused her to this day, but now made more sense. Andra barely registered that Alith spoke again.

“When I arrived at Ruadhstone Castle, Edme was gravely ill. I nursed and cared for her until she recovered her strength. My gift in the healing arts made me a valuable asset to the MacLeans. When Edme recovered, I took the clan name. I knew only sad memories remained with Donald’s clan. Besides, I dinnae want to see the Camerons again, nor did I want them to seek me out.”

Kendrick interrupted at this point. “Lady Alith, you look pale and wan, I think you both need to rest. Could we assist you back to your own room for the night? We can talk more on the morrow. Andra still recovers from her ordeal in battle, and I dinnae want her to suffer a relapse.”

Andra raised her brows in consternation. She felt fit and hale, albeit in total shock. Still, she did feel the need for space to process this new revelation. She could not comprehend the potential repercussions from this discovery.

Alith gripped Andra’s hand, “You won’t leave us, girl? Give me your word that you’ll stay and meet with me on the morrow?”

Before she answered the question, Kendrick responded, “She won’t leave us, Auntie. She is my wife. We are handfasted. That’s what I planned to announce when you collapsed. But we plan to repeat our vows before kith and kin verra soon. I’m sorry we caused you such a shock with the announcement. Let us meet again on the morrow. You have much to discuss, but there will be plenty of time for those talks after we rest.”

A brilliant smile lit the old woman’s face. “Handfasted, you say. Och, it makes me heart glad to hear it.” She placed rough, gnarled hands on either side of Andra’s face. “To this day I mourn the loss of me husband, Donald, and me wee bairns, especially Angus, your father, as he was our last and youngest son. I tell you true, granddaughter, you are God’s dearest blessing. I am so proud to call you me own.”

* * *

Back in Kendrick’s rooms, Andra stared into the fire speechless and numb. She couldn’t wrap her mind around what she had heard from Alith. How could this be possible? How had her father not told her about his time travel experience?

“What do you think this means? I am more confused than ever. Do you think what Alith says is true?”

He remained thoughtfully silent, and then took her hands into his. “You’ve nae told me much about your father and mother. Isn’t it possible that if you could come here, your father could travel to your time? Mayhap that is why you weren’t meant to return; mayhap you’ve replaced your father here.”

“I honestly don’t know what to think about any of it. I can’t possibly explain this to Alith. We cannot tell her the truth, do you think? Of course not.” she answered her own question.

“Still, I don’t want her to think her son did not love her or want to return to her for he definitely loved his family. He spoke about them with such high regard, but in this new light, I now understand his reluctance to reveal more. He always seemed terribly sad when he discussed them, and I learned not to press him.”

He handed her a glass of whisky. “I think you need to drink this and rest, Andra. This has been a shock for all of us.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, she knocked back the whisky and barely choked on the after burn. Kendrick helped her disrobe and laid her on the bed. He climbed beside her and pulled the covers over them. She curled tightly into his warmth. Andra’s stomach clenched in knots, and her head ached. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sought the relief she always found in his kiss.

“Dinnae fash yourself, my love, we’ll figure this out. All will be well; you can put your worries down now.” He kissed her temple and she melted into his strength assured of his love.

He rubbed her shoulders and back, breathed her scent deep into his lungs until they both relaxed. His need for her pressed hard against her thigh. His touch, like liquid fire, burned away her anxiety. “Make love to me, husband.”

“I like the sound of that, wife!”