Chapter 7

“Are ye mad?” Catreena exclaimed, clearly horrified by the notion. “’Tis far too cold fer swimmin’. Anyway, we cannae take our clothes off, the guards are over there by the wall watchin’ us.”

“Och, I’m sick of always bein’ followed around everywhere. It spoils our fun,” Ilyssa frowned. But she soon appeared to be thinking again. Then, she said, with a look of mischief in her dark gray eyes, “That’s nae problem. I ken just how tae get rid of them.”

“Oh, Lord save us,” Catreena sighed, getting up, her book tucked beneath her arm. “I dinnae want tae ken.”

“Nay, listen, ’tis easy. One of us can go flirt with them and distract them, while the others go and sound the alarm. They’ll rush back tae the castle, and we can go swimmin’ in the loch without an audience!”

“I’m nae sure,” Kira said hesitantly, fingering her scarf nervously.

“I’m nae gonnae dae it. ’Tis too risky. Ye’ll get us and the guards in trouble,

and ’tis far too cold for swimmin’, Ilyssa,” Catreena said, hugging her book.

“We’ll stay in the water fer nae more than a minute. ’Tis so refreshin’, I promise ye. I always feel so energized after doin’ it,” Ilyssa said persuasively.

“Bran and Alec will be furious if they find out,” Catreena protested.

At that, Kira’s ears perked up, and her hand dropped from fiddling with her scarf. Anything that gave her the chance to anger Alec sounded very interesting after what he had done to her on their wedding night. She still had not had her revenge. This could be the perfect opportunity.

“I’ll dae it,” she said at once. “It sounds like fun.”

“Ach, I suppose I havet ae come too then,” Catreena said resignedly. “But I’m nae getting’ in the water!”

“I kent I’d convince ye in the end!” Ilyssa crowed, clapping her hands in glee. “Now, listen, here’s what we’ll dae.”

A few minutes later, with the possibility of the thunderstorm approaching vanished from her mind, Kira found herself walking up to the group of guards. She had been allotted the task of creating a diversion by flirting with them because Ilyssa was already too well known for her tendency to pull naughty pranks. If she had attempted it, the men would have rumbled her from the start. Plus, as the new Lady Mackintosh, Kira’s behavior would not be questioned. She decided she would distract them more by introducing herself than by flirting, as that would not be befitting of the wife of a laird.

“Good day te ye, lads,” she said, coming up to the three men and giving them a big smile. They immediately stopped their chatter and turned to her with bows of deep respect

“Me lady, good day te ye,” said the man in charge, a sub-lieutenant by the looks of his insignia, she concluded. The other two much younger men chorused their greetings, looking rather bashful at being approached by their laird’s wife. “Forgive us fer nae removin’ our helmets. We’re nae allowed tae in any circumstance while we’re on duty,” the man in charge apologized.

“Och, dinnae fash yersel’, lads,” Kira said. It was hard not to giggle seeing the younger two blush. “’Tis good tae ken ye’re so careful of yer duties. It makes us all feel protected.”

“Why, thank ye, me lady,” the head guard said, looking pleased. The other two nodded and smiled tentatively. “’Tis nice tae be appreciated. Ye ken we’re always watchin’ over ye, ready tae keep ye safe if anythin’ should happen.”

“And I’m grateful. I thought I should come and introduce meself and get tae ken yer names as I am now a part of the clan.” They all looked so pleased, she felt a twinge of guilt at deceiving them. But the lure of angering Alec was too tempting to resist. “Me name’s Kira,” she added, turning up her smile.

“We ken, me lady,” said the sub-lieutenant with another small bow before indicating the other two. “This here’s Kevin, and that’s Keith.”

“How d’ye dae, Kevin and Keith,” Kira said, watching with secret amusement as their faces reddened further as she beamed at them both. “I’m pleased tae make yer acquaintance.”

“Me lady,” they both muttered, bowing their heads once more.

“And I’m Roland Romsey, proud tae be a sub-lieutenant in the laird’s army,” the elder went on.

“I’m honored tae meet ye, Roland,” Kira told him. “That’s a very important

position ye have there, bein’ in charge of these?—”

At that moment, the peace of the afternoon was suddenly shattered by the loud, resonant clanging of a bell. Roland and his minions were instantly on alert.

“Ach, that’s the guard’s alarm. I’m sorry, me lady, please excuse us, we must

return tae the castle at once. We must report urgently fer duty,” Roland explained hurriedly, pushing Kevin and Keith ahead of him as he turned away from Kira and began running after them.

“Aye, of course,” she called after them. “I hope ’tis naethin’ serious.” As soon

as they were out of sight, she whirled around, picked up her skirts, and raced down to the loch. On the way, she heard the alarm bell cease its clamor. Soon, she was joined by Catreena and a giggling Ilyssa.

“I told ye it would work,” she cried as they ran down to the gravelly fringes of the waters, “come, we need to be very quick.”

“Catreena, ye can keep watch fer us then and hold our things,” Ilyssa told her as she and Kira helped each other out of their clothes and handed them to Catreena. In minutes, they both stood in their shifts, Kira wearing her scarf as well. She figured that if Ilyssa mentioned anything, she would pretend she forgot to remove it in her rush to get in..

“I’m covered in goosebumps already,” Kira cried, in the grip of the excitement of the forbidden and the prospect of infuriating her husband. She was giggling uncontrollably as Ilyssa grabbed her by the hand, and they plunged into the water.

“Och, by the Wee Man, ’tis cold!” she hissed as Ilyssa pulled her further into the icy loch until they were up to their hips. “I can hardly breathe.” She was indeed, struggling to catch her breath as the chill seized her and seeped into all her hidden nooks and crannies, making it almost impossible to move on her own.

“I ken,” Ilyssa laughed with delight, “is it nae wonderful? Come on, let’s go all the way in!”

“Eeeek! Nae further, Ilyssa, I’m beggin’ ye,” Kira shrieked, almost helpless from the penetrating cold and her own hysterical laughter as Ilyssa pulled her deeper in. When the water was lapping around her body, her nipples as stiff as chapel coat pegs, Kira hugged them to her in a useless attempt to protect them from the icy caress of the loch.

“Ye havetae go in up tae yer neck tae get the full benefit,” Ilyssa assured her, dragging her forward relentlessly, seemingly immune to having her breath stolen.

“There, Kira,” she said as they bobbed in the water, “’tis refreshin’ as I told ye, is it nae?”

“It is indeed,” Kira admitted with a gasp as small waves lapped over her, chilling her afresh and wetting her face and back hair. “I think I may be gettin’ used tae it a bit,” she admitted as she became more accustomed to the cold water. She tried swimming a few strokes, finding the sensation of freedom, as Ilyssa claimed, amazingly rejuvenating.

Through their laughter, they suddenly heard Catreena call urgently from the

bank.

“Ach, I told ye we’d be caught. I can hear voices comin’, and it sounds awfully like Alec and Bran. Ye’d better hurry and get out, ye two,” she urged them both.

Kira’s heart leaped in anticipation of Alec’s fury as she and Ilyssa splashed hurriedly to the water’s edge, where Catreena waited with their clothes. She was secretly pleased when the waters impeded them, eager for Alec to see her. They were nowhere near getting out when she looked up to the shallow, grassy berm above the loch and made out the large silhouettes of Alec and Bran rapidly coming into view.

Behind them, the helmets of the guards appeared. The men were clearly following their laird up the incline. But as soon as Alec crested the berm and saw what was afoot, Kira smiled to see him turn abruptly and wave an arm in frantic dismissal. The guards disappeared, while her husband and his brother advanced apace, just as she and Ilyssa stumbled, laughing, to the shore.

Catreena virtually threw their clothes at them before turning to greet her brothers, who were now running down the berm toward the lochside. The look of incandescent fury on Alec’s face instantly warmed Kira’s heart if not her chilled body.

Revenge is sweet indeed!

She pulled on her dress as he landed next to her, his face red, his eyes like daggers as they bore into her. Ilyssa was hurriedly dressing too but continued laughing as Bran mildly remonstrated with her.

“What the hell d’ye think ye’re playin’ at?” Alec shouted at Kira. She gave him a sweet smile, a feeling of deep satisfaction infusing her bones.

“Well, I’m nae playin’ the bagpipes,” she replied with sarcasm.

He sputtered incoherently, then released a string of curses. “Dinnae try tae be

clever,” he finally managed to get out through clenched teeth.

“Clever? I’m nae clever. Remember, ye told me so yersel’ the other night,”

she said in a reasonable tone, taking her time to wring the water from her hair.

He literally growled like an animal at that point, and his hands curled into fists.

Her plan was working beautifully, it seemed.

“Ye ken what I mean!”

“I dinnae ken at all what ye’re makin’ so much fuss about. We were only takin’ a wee swim tae refresh ourselves,” she told him with a wide-eyed look of innocence as she stepped into her stays. She turned around and said over her shoulder, “While ye’re here, ye can make yerself useful and lace these up, please.”

She wished she could see the look on his face when she asked him that, because the noise of helpless fury he made just then was extremely entertaining. However, she had her back to him as he roughly seized her by the waist and proceeded to lace her up as if he would like to have strangled her. Once he was done, he gave her a shove, making her totter and have to get her balance.

“Now, get the rest of yer clothes on, and be quick about it,” he ordered. “Ye too, Ilyssa.” As she did so, Kira could not help noticing the other three staring at them. It was obvious they had seen the way Alec had shoved her and, judging by their expressions, they did not approve.

It was also notable, Kira realized, that Bran had not even raised his voice when remonstrating with Ilyssa and had already accepted her lighthearted apology. It made her revenge all the more satisfying to see Alec was aware of their disapproval, for he appeared to compose himself somewhat, though his cheeks remained flushed and his jaw set. Strangely, it made him appear even more attractive. However, Kira brushed aside such thoughts as he all but dragged her back to the castle by her arm.

When they got to their chambers, he opened the door and pushed her roughly inside, slamming the door behind them. Once again, she had to regain her balance. When she did, she was surprised to see a tub of water already waiting on the rug before the fire. The steaming water looked tempting, for she was still chilly from getting out of the loch. But how could Alec have known that?

“Get out of those damp clothes and get in that tub right now,” he ordered impatiently, rounding on her, his cheeks still flushed with anger.

“What?! I willnae. Not with ye standin’ there watchin’,” she exclaimed, absurdly folding her arms across her chest.

“Dae as I say and get out of them at once,” he repeated in a warning tone.

“Nay.” She shook her head.

“Ha! Ye didnae seem so timid bein’ half naked in the damn loch where everyone could see ye, but when it comes tae me, yer husband, ye pretend tae be all bashful,” he told her.

Reluctantly, Kira realized he was right. There was no point in false modesty at this stage.

“All right,” she agreed at last. Feeling unaccountably shy, bearing in mind what he had just pointed out, she began to slowly remove her clothes, except for her scarf. He stood over her with his arms crossed, as if to make sure she obeyed.

“How did ye ken I wanted tae bathe?” she asked as she was about to step into the tub, still clutching her shift to her front in a last-ditch attempt to hide herself from his gaze.

“I didnae. The bath was fer me. I was just about to get in when the alarm went off.

“Oh,” she murmured, slipping into the still lukewarm water with a contented sigh. Despite it not being hot any longer, it was a lot warmer than the loch and it helped her get rid of her chills. .

“Ye ken, I heard all about ye flirting with the guards tae carry out yer little scheme. I suppose ye thought it amusin’ tae make me look a fool again in front of me own men. And after I warned ye against tryin’ it the other night”

“After what ye did the other night, what did ye expect? Ye deserved it.” She replied, shooting him an unrepentant look. She smiled to see guilt flash across his face and knew her barb had hit home. It was somehow comforting to know he felt bad about it.

“Swimmin’ in the loch is nae somethin’ the lady of the castle should be engagin’ in, can ye nae see that?”

“Ilyssa and Catreena were there too.”

“Aye, that’s bad enough, but Catreena kept at least kept some dignity as she wasnae swimming and the two of them are nae married. Ye, on the other hand, tae top it all off, are married tae the bloody laird! All ye’ve done is make yerself look foolish and flighty and ye embarrassed me in front of me own people!” he argued, pacing by the tub.

Kira heard the genuine frustration and grievance in his voice. All at once, the consequences of what she had done hit her. She imagined what her brother would have felt if he had been put in the same position. All at once, hot embarrassment flooded through her at what she had done.

“I’m sorry, Alec. When Ilyssa suggested it, I didnae think it through. I see now I went too far in gettin’ me revenge on ye fer the other night,” she stuttered. “I apologize. I’ll make sure never tae dae anythin’ like that tae show ye up again,” she promised, meaning every word.

He stopped pacing and stared at her in obvious disbelief for a few moments before he sat down in the nearby chair.

“Well, thank the Wee Man ye’ve seen sense at last!” he sighed wearily and threw up his hands in a gesture of relief.