Page 25 of Never Fall for a Highlander

Perhaps it would be best if she sought out the laird and straightened it out.She needed to check his wound, anyway.

He was not in his bedchamber, so most likely she would find him in his solar.He wasn’t there either, so she took the stairs down to the great hall where she found him sitting at one of the tables with several men surrounding him.

They were huddled together, so it was obvious they were having some sort of meeting.Most likely having to do with the upcoming meeting with The Gunn.She turned and left to visit with Aline for a while to see if she could give her more training when Maude called her from the kitchen.

One of the young lasses had burned her arm and was crying and shaking her arm.“Can ye help her, lass?”Maude said.

“Yes, of course.What is yer name?”

The maid stopped crying for a moment.“My name is Mage, Miss Ross.”

“I need to retrieve my medicant basket.Can ye sit here and wait for me?In the meantime, ye can pour some cool water over the burn.”

The lass nodded and Helena left the room.She hurried up the stairs to Jena’s room.The bairn was still enjoying his meal and Jena looked ready for a nap.“I just came to get my supplies.One of the lasses in the kitchen burned her arm.”

“I though Aline was the clan healer?”Jena said.

Helena pulled the basket of medicants out from under her cot.“Aye, that’s what they told me, but I haven’t seen any reason to believe it.Besides, I would have to travel down to Aline’s bothy and get her back here.By the time I do that, I will have the lass feeling better.”

Jena handed a sleeping Arthur to Helena.“Mayhaps ye can stay here as the clan healer?”

Helena smiled at the hopeful look on her sister’s face.“Nay.Aunt Dorathia is counting on me to return so she can step back from her duties.She has grown old and deserves some rest.”

Jena sighed.“’Twas a good idea.I would love to have ye living here with me.”

The lass was still whimpering when Helena returned to the kitchen.While she applied a soothing cream to her arm she thought about the kiss the laird had graced her with before she left his room earlier.

What did that mean?It wasn’t just an ‘ye owe me a kiss’ kiss.And the tingling in her body even as she cleaned Arthur up continued.She kenned nothing could come of a relationship with the laird.She needed to return to Dornoch and he would be required to marry a daughter from a clan to form an alliance.

She was a nobody.An orphan who would bring nothing to the clan in the way of wealth or alliance.‘Twas best to forget the kiss and stop thinking of Laird Robin Mackay in any way other than her laird.

Chapter eleven

Johen slammed his hand down on the table during the Clan Council meeting.

“’Tis time ye accepted the fact that as laird, ye need to find a wife and begin to produce bairns.”

Robin felt his anger grow.“’Tis no’ something I am ready to speak about now.I have The Gunn coming soon to discuss the problems at the borders and the recent raid that burned a couple of bothies and raped the women,” Robin said.He was truly growing weary of this subject on picking a wife.For a reason he didn’t want to dwell on, the push to choose a wife from a clan for alliance was more annoying since Miss Helena Ross had arrived at Dun Ugadale.

Malcolm, another clan council member frowned.“Doesna The Gunn have a widowed sister?”

Johen jumped in.“Aye, he does.”He turned to Robin.“I saw the messenger leave who came from Gunn.Did the laird mention why he wanted a meeting?”

Robin kenned exactly where Johen was headed.“The messenger only said his laird wanted a meeting.Since we had that raid and the battle following, I am sure the mon wants to speak of border issues.”

“Mayhaps he wants to offer his sister.”

He had no sound reason to refuse to even look at women that would be paraded in front of him, but nevertheless, he held back.The Council had been speaking of marriage alliances and coin for some time, but he’d pushed the idea away because he dinna feel ready to take on the responsibility of a wife, and future bairns, and still meet his obligations to the clan and his younger sisters.

“I think ye have yer eye on the woman who is here from the Sutherland clan to assist her sister, but ended up taking care of ye,” Johen said, his eyes narrowed.“Remember yer duty, laird.”He waved his hand.“Take her as yer leman if ye so desire but keep yer head on straight when it comes time to chose a wife.”

Robin slammed his hand down on the table.“No one needs to remind me of my duty.Helena Ross is no’ a lass to fool with.She is a maid and a member of the Sutherland Clan and deserves that respect.

“I ken what my duty is, and when I think the time is right to select a bride, I will let ye ken.But I will take no more opinions on what I should and should no’ do.”He stood, ready to bring the meeting to an end.“Remember, even though ye are the Council members, I am still yer laird.”

With those words, he pushed his chair back and left the room.

“That was a noisy meeting,” Finn said as he caught up with Robin’s stride across the great hall.When Robin didn’t respond, he said, “Where are ye headed in such a hurry?”