The Clan MacDougall Series (121 page)

“She did what?” Wee William’s angry voice thundered across the training fields. Everything came to an abrupt halt. Men began heading toward Wee William and Rowan to learn the source of his anger.

Rowan fought hard to take on a serious demeanor, but he found the look of terror blended with fury on Wee William’s face, comical.

“Aye, Wee William. She went to Angus and in front of the whole council, she asked him to help her find a husband.” Rowan had to bite his cheek to keep from laughing. “And they agreed to help her.”

Wee William glowered at no one in particular. He was furious with…well, with the entire world. He would have sworn, not more than a few moments ago, that he had his feelings for the lass completely under control. Apparently, he had misjudged his heart.

Nay, he could not blame his heart. ’Twas Nora’s fault. Somehow, she had managed to cast a spell upon him, had bewitched him in some manner, to make him feel this way. He swallowed hard and considered it.

“What about her mournin’ period?” The thought had come to him so quickly, the words spilled out of his mouth before he could rein them back in.

Rowan raised both eyebrows. “Angus says there be no reason for the lass to be in mournin’ if she has to lie about her feelings. He said it would be an affront to the good Lord to make her pretend to mourn a loss she welcomed. And ye ken how Angus is about lyin’.”

A year. Was it really too much to ask for? He believed that after a year of Nora in mourning, he’d have his feelings for the woman so under control that when or if this day had come, he’d be better able to deal with it. He also knew that the men would have to stay away from her, what with her being a widow and all.

His plans for the next year flittered away like autumn leaves in the wind.

“Don’t ye think it’s a bit soon fer her to be lookin’ fer a husband?” Wee William asked.

Rowan feigned incredulity quite well. “Nay! The lass
needs
a husband. She needs a home fer her brother and sister. She wants bairns of her own, Wee William. She canna live in the castle fer all her days!” He clicked his tongue and shook his head for added emphasis.

If she wanted bairns of her very own, that meant she’d have to join with a man. It was too much to hope for another immaculate conception. His stomach roiled at the thought of someone other than himself giving her that which he could not admit to wanting to give her.

The image of a naked Nora, lying in the arms of any other man, brought forth a rage he had never quite experienced before. Before he realized what had happened, he flipped the trestle table onto its side, the contents spilling to the ground, crushing the casks of ale and tankards in its wake.

The crowd that had formed began to cautiously walk away. Wee William’s face was twisted into an ugly scowl. His chest heaved as sweat trickled off his brow.

“If one man so much as blinks at Nora, I will tear him apart, piece by bloody piece and feed the bits to the scavengers!”

There wasn’t a man present, or another who would hear of it later, that did not believe every word he said.

Nora could not make sense of it. The men were behaving worse than before she had asked Angus to find her a suitable husband. There was simply no denying it.

Earlier that morning when Mary asked her to help take bread and meat to the men on the training fields, she had happily agreed. On her way to the fields however, two men actually jumped behind the bushes that lined the walkway. One of the stable boys crossed himself, mumbled something in Gaelic, and then raced back into the stable, slamming the door behind him.

By the time she reached the fields she was on the verge of tears. She was not a vain woman, by any stretch of the imagination. However, she did have some pride. She knew she was not an ugly woman. Oh, she might not be as stunning as Isobel, Bree, or Aishlinn. But the way the men were all behaving, one would think she had warts growing on the end of her nose and was missing most of her teeth! It was positively disheartening.

She had, of course, no idea of what had taken place when Wee William learned of her visit with Angus and the clan council. He had let loose with a slew of curses that made even the most hardened men blush. Not only had he tossed the drink table that sat next to the training fields
again,
he had torn it to shreds. Once he was done making sure the table was in fact dead, he began cursing again. He warned any man within ear shot that if they so much as
thought
about offering their hand to Nora, they would suffer a fate worse than the drink table.

The men refused to train with him.

Father Michael tried to speak with him after hearing how he responded to the news. It took more time walking from the kirk to find Wee William than it took to realize he’d made a grave error in judgment. Were he not a man of the cloth, Wee William could have throttled his neck. He told the priest just that.

And still, he had not shaved his beard. He was a complete besotted mess. He had not seen Nora since she had asked for Angus’ help. He was too busy trying to kill tables and build his cottage. A cottage he had sworn and be-damned was
not
in preparation for marriage, but for his auld age. And by God, any man who said otherwise was as good as dead. He also reminded them when necessary, of his threat that any man who so much as walked the same path as Nora was as good as dead.

Nora approached the drink table not knowing it was in fact the third such table to be placed in that spot in the past four days. She looked out at the fields and called out to the men. “I’ve brought you bread and meat!”

Every man, save for Rowan, Black Richard, Daniel, David, and Wee William, turned their backs to her and walked in the opposite direction.

She wished them all to go straight to the devil.

Rowan and Black Richard approached the table first. Were it not for their kind smiles, Nora would have thought she was completely alone in the world. “We thank ye, lass!” Rowan said as he poured ale into tankards.

“Yer a bonny sight this morn,” Black Richard offered.

Perhaps she
was
severely lacking in beauty, grace, and intelligence. Mayhap Rowan and his friends were only being kind to her because they pitied her. She tried to smile but was unsuccessful. Daniel and David’s smiles as they approached the table, were quickly replaced with looks of genuine concern.

“What be the matter, lass?” David asked.

Nora swallowed hard and waved their concern away. “It is nothing of import, David. But I do thank you for asking.”

“Come now, lassie,” Black Richard said. “We can see there be something the matter. Ye do no’ carry yer usual bonny smile.”

“Oh what does it matter?” she blurted out. “I could be as beautiful as Isobel or Aishlinn and it would not matter in the least! The men here, they all find me atrocious!”

A silent exchange took place between the men, and Nora couldn’t help but notice. She was right! They did find her severely lacking. She would never find a husband.

“Lass, the men here do find ye quite bonny. It’s just they be a bit afraid,” Daniel tried explaining.

“Afraid? Of me?” She thought his statement absurd.

“Mayhap not of ye, but,” David’s sentence was cut short by a large hand grabbing his shoulder.

“Good day to ye, Nora,” Wee William said as he held a death-grip on David’s shoulder. It was his way of warning the young man to not utter another word, lest he wanted to lose his arm from the shoulder down. David grimaced and tried to shrug the massive hand from his shoulder. It was immovable.

“Good day, William,” Nora replied. She noticed how red David’s face had become. “David, are you well?”

He swallowed hard and nodded his head. “Aye,” he said through gritted teeth. “Pulled a muscle while sparring with Rowan.”

“Mayhap you should have Isobel take a look at it.”

“Nay, lass. I’ll be well soon enough.” He cast a look over his shoulder at Wee William. “I’ll just be off to rest it now.”

Wee William let David go, giving him a firm slap on the back. “’Tis a verra good idea, lad.”

“Thank ye, lass, fer bringing the food. Looks like rain. Mayhap ye should get back to the keep,” Wee William said as he filled a tankard with ale. Rowan and Black Richard looked at him as though he’d lost his mind before quickly concealing their concern.

Nora looked up. It was a beautiful spring day, filled with bright sunshine. The brilliant blue sky was dotted with fluffy white clouds. There was not a rain cloud to be seen.

Either Wee William had gone daft or there was a hidden meaning to his message. Nora glanced at the men and realized they all had rather peculiar expressions. She supposed they were merely being kind, not wanting her exposed to more embarrassment such as men jumping into bushes and locking themselves behind doors. Pity, that is what she saw in their eyes.

She couldn’t take another moment of it. She spun on her heals and raced back toward the keep. Mayhap she had made a terrible mistake in coming here. Mayhap she should leave and try to find a home amongst another clan, or work at Scottish manor. Something,
anything
, but to remain here another day.

“Yer a damned fool, Wee William,” Rowan said when Nora was finally out of earshot. “A complete and utter fool and I be no’ afraid to say it to yer face.”

He placed himself in front of Wee William and crossed his arms over his chest. Black Richard and Daniel took up rank beside him. Death might be moments away but it mattered not to any of them. Wee William was causing Nora unnecessary pain and anguish, and all because he was too foolish to admit how he felt.

“I’d advise ye no’ to say another word, Rowan,” Wee William said through gritted teeth.

“I tell no lies, Wee William and ye ken it! Ye canna let that poor girl continue to think the men here find her appearance appalling! ’Tisn’t right and ’tisn’t fair.”

“What the bloody hell are ye talkin’ about?” Wee William growled.

Rowan slapped his hand to his head in exasperation. “The men be so terrified ye’ll tear them limb from limb that they go out of their way to avoid her. They will no’ even bid her good day!”

“And what be yer point?” He wanted them afraid. He wanted them to understand without any doubt that he
would
tear them limb from limb if they took the slightest step out of line. He puffed out his chest, proud that his threats of slow, agonizing and painful deaths to any man who got near Nora were in fact working.

Rowan was quite tempted to pick up the table and beat his friend senseless with it. “Because of
that
, the lass thinks all the men here find her unappealing. Ugly. Unworthy of even a how do ye do.”

Regret filled Wee William’s heart. He hadn’t intended to hurt her feelings. There was nothing that wasn’t beautiful about her.

“So ye can see how I come to the conclusion that ye be a fool. The lass is broken hearted and all because ye be a fool and a coward.”

Wee William growled. “A coward?” He was furious. “How dare ye call me that!”

“Yer a coward because ye will no’ tell the lass how ye feel. Ye want her fer yerself, but are too afraid to say it. And ye will no’ let anyone else have her.” He took a step toward his foolish friend. “That is why I say yer a coward.”

Nora had decided to go to Aishlinn’s home instead of back to the keep. She and Aishlinn had become fast friends and a friend was exactly what she needed at the moment. She also did not want to have to explain her tears to anyone in the castle.

She sat now at Aishlinn’s table, her sobs finally subsiding. “So you see, Aishlinn, I must leave.”

Aishlinn smiled at Nora as she offered yer another handkerchief. “Nay! I tell you the truth, Nora, the men do not find you lacking or unappealing.”

Nora blinked a few more tears away. “How can you say that? Men
jump into bushes
when they see me coming. They hide behind closed doors. Please do not try to tell me they’re afraid of my stunning beauty!” She snorted, not caring that it was very unladylike gesture, and blew her nose again.

“Nora, you don’t quite understand how Highlander men behave. Oh, they’re brave, strong, honorable, and quite kind. But dear, not a one of them owns a bit of common sense when it comes to women! Why, you should have seen Duncan the night we had musicians here, and the dance. Why, he nearly had an apoplexy when the other men danced with me!” Aishlinn laughed at the memory. Duncan had been so angry and jealous that night, that his face had turned dark red and he actually growled at a young lad who had the audacity to ask her to dance.

“You are beautiful, Nora. And the men agree, I’m sure of it.”

Nora moaned. “Then
why
are they acting this way?”

“I suspect one of the men, and I’m not sure who it might be, has claimed you for his own. Once a Highlander has claimed you, the others back off. It’s akin to the biggest bull in the paddock letting it be known that a certain cow is his.”

Tears filled Nora’s eyes again. “You’re saying I’m a cow?” she let her head fall to the table. A cow.

Aishlinn laughed. “Poor choice of words. It’s more like a proud peacock strutting around, barking and crying to all who will listen, that he’s laying claim to a comely young peahen.”

Nora thought long and hard for several moments, trying to piece together what Aishlinn meant. “So, you’re saying that one of the men
does
want me, and the other men are staying away out of fear?”

“Aye,” Aishlinn said as she patted Nora’s hand. “That is exactly what I am saying.”

“But who? And why hasn’t he told me?”

Aishlinn smiled thoughtfully. “Because, dear, Highlander men do not own a bit of common sense when it comes to women. He may be too afraid, too stubborn, and too stupid yet, to let you know. I’m leaning more toward stupid.” She began pouring each of them another cup of tea.

Nora giggled as she was beginning to feel better about the entire situation. “So do I just wait until whoever it is, is ready to let me know his intentions?”

Aishlinn stopped mid-pour. “Nay! Ye could wait years for that to happen!” She shook her head, finished pouring the tea and set the pot down.