Chapter 20

20

A Good And Loyal Wife

W illiam tapped on the wooden desk as he had found himself doing so often since hearing the name Conall Millar.

"Are ye sure it was him?" he asked.

"I daenae ken for sure, but I get the feelin' it was. I havenae spoken to yer wife about it more than what we exchanged at the market place as I didnae think it me place. I am sure she will be able to describe him fully for ye."

"I daenae like she was alone with him in the shop for so long, but she has given me nay reason for distrust. I have gotten to ken Dakota, and I trust her—she was forced into this marriage, but she is still a fine lady for our clan. But the future of the clan is nae somethin' to be decided by me alone. What do ye make of it all, Cameron?"

"I agree with ye, William. I daenae believe she wanted to be alone with him. She could have sent her maid on an errand if she wanted that. Although, she did try to calm me when I got there. I had me sword ready to skelp his arse, as ye suggested doin', but she didnae want me to hurt him."

William rubbed his chin and grunted. "Aye, that is with her nature. She is strong-willed and stubborn, but she kens the right thin' to do. Would it have been in yer best interest to run him through with yer sword?"

"Nay, probably nae. Aye, it was likely for the best that she had me stay me hand. I have to say, I havenae kenned her for long, but she has done nothin' to suggest that she would go behind yer back. And when I put her and her sister under lock and key here, she dinnae like it, but she dinnae question it either. She trusted me, and that means she trusts yer decisions too, William."

"All right, thank ye, Cameron."

"And what of the business in the west? How did that go."

"About as I expected. The farmers and tenants down there strung some stories together about how they were fooled by Conall, but when I pressed them, they started to come clean one by one, and they looked like frightened rabbits—they practically begged me for help."

"What will ye do?"

"I told them that they will have nay financial help from me as we have to send extra men down to protect them from bein' taken advantage of again. They couldnae complain about that, and they all kenned it was their own fault. We'll wait a month, and then send down some of our grain and perhaps some livestock for breedin'."

"They get yer firmness and then yer fairness." Cameron smiled. "They'll be grumblin' for a while about ye nae helpin' them and wallowin' in their own foolishness, and then praisin' ye for your benevolence."

William shot Cameron a frustrated look. "I daenae like all this messin' around, but they need to be taught a lesson. I cannae have more people takin' advantage, but I also want the clan to ken that I'll take care of them."

"Aye," agreed Cameron. "And what of Conall? If he was up here while ye were down there, he has some business."

"Keep me posted with any happenings at the border, and have the castle guards on double shifts for the next week with triple the rations of ale on their hours off."

"Triple! They'll be glad for that."

"And have a wee bit more bravery if Conall brings us a fight."

Cameron looked worried for a second. "Do ye think he'll actually do that?"

"Nay, but ye cannae be too safe, and I believe he'll make a move at some point. It's gettin' late, Cameron, why daenae ye get some sleep. Ye've done a fine job in me stead. Thank ye for takin' care of the castle and me wife."

Cameron yawned at the mention of sleep. "Do ye want me to send her up."

"Aye."

"All right. I'll see ye in the morn."

Cameron left the office, and William went back to reading over the clan documents that had accumulated over the past four days—it was amazing how many squabbles were constantly popping up as if no one could think of anything else to combat boredom.

William rubbed his head—he could not concentrate on anything he was reading. He had not had a chance to see his wife since returning to the castle three hours ago, and there was an unsettling flutter in the pit of his stomach. He did not want to admit it to himself, but he had missed her while he was gone.

Do I enjoy being tormented so much that I miss the torment?

He could not even look at the documents in front of him and kept glancing toward the door. Finally, his wife appeared in the doorway, and he broke out into a grin.

"Welcome back," said Dakota demurely.

William had thought she might come to him for a kiss as she had done on him leaving, but she was holding back.

"Ye're nae scared of me, are ye?"

"Nay, I just…"

"Well, out with it!"

Dakota slowly entered the room, but she would not look at William. "I'm sure ye've heard about what happened, and I ken how people can talk. The seamstress must have heard me, and Daisy was there, but I explained it all to her, and I saw the way Cameron looked at me when I tried to explain it to him."

"Why don't ye just tell me what's botherin' ye."

"I wasnae flirtin' with the Englishman. I promise to ye that I wouldnae do that. I'm yer wife, and I'm nae goin' to look at another man as long as we are married."

"Why don't ye sit down and tell me what happened at the market."

Dakota did as she was told, and she still couldn't look William in the eye. She told him about bumping into him in the apothecary and how he didn't seem interested in her until he found out who she was. And then how they bumped into him again in the seamstress shop.

She detailed how she flirted back with him to try and keep him there until the maid got back with Cameron, and about some of the hurtful things he said to her.

"Can you describe the man?" asked William, his face red.

Dakota was nervous. "Well, he was English, and when I first spotted him, I thought he might be a noble. He wore an expensive suit, and he dinnae look like he fit in at all. He was shorter than ye are William, not as muscular either. He was lacking in every way when compared to ye. He had a hat on, but I could see some blonde hair beneath it, and he had green eyes, not that I spent me time starin' into them. And Daisy is sure he was buyin' ingredients to make a poison or somethin'."

William held her gaze across the desk, and his face was filled with fury.

"I promise that he dinnae mean anythin' to me, William. I promise that I—"

William waved his hand to dismiss the rest of the sentence. "Ye need nae worry about that. Cameron already told me that he trusts ye and that nothin' happened. Even if he dinnae, I can see it in yer eyes that ye are tellin' the truth."

"So, ye believe me?"

"Aye, I do."

Dakota hesitated a moment before she asked, "But why are ye so angry at me?"

"I'm nae angry at ye, Dakota. I'm angry at… I'm angry that he kens who ye are now. He shouldnae have come up here, and he certainly shouldn't have spoken to ye. He's playin' with fire. I daenae want to lose ye."

"Lose me?" asked Dakota, her head rising.

William was the one who could not look her in the eye now. He had not realized that he had felt like this until he had said the words. It was true; he did not want to lose her. And he had missed her terribly during the trip, but now there was this. He finally looked up at her.

She looked terrified. "I'm not in danger, am I?"

"Nay," said William quickly. "I'll be here to protect ye."

William had taken something from Conall, and he was worried about what Conall would try to take from him.