Page 37 of Taken By the Savage Highlander

“I do not think I will ever fully understand that man,” Margo said as she struggled to put together the new information she’d been given.

When she looked at him, she still saw the savage, ruthless Highlander that bargained her life with her father. Now, a new picture was being painted around that. No matter how she looked at it, the pieces of this puzzle didn’t fit together.

“Give it time and ye will get to ken him better than ye imagined ye could,” Mrs. Campbell said, something in her tone making Margo feel as if Mrs. Campbell saw something in her thoughts that she could not.

“Perhaps,” Margo nodded, reaching her hand into the basket to stroke Treasure’s head. The kitten made a soft noise, then three other heads popped up from the bottom layers. “Well, I’ve found the rest of the kittens.”

“Ach, I wondered why the basket was so heavy,” Mrs. Campbell laughed. She pushed herself away from the desk and walked toward the door. “I was hopin’ to save some of our good linens from becomin’ cat beddin’. Seems I arrived a bit too late for that.”

“He used the good linens?” Margo asked, looking away from the kitten pile to the older woman.

“He did,” she said with a sigh, shaking her head. “I’d say that he is simply a man and doesnae ken any better.” Then, she continued on her way, saying, “I hope that his basket keeps them from gettin’ themselves lost in the castle. I found one in me washbasin last evenin’.”

“I cannot make any promises about them,” Margo shouted after her with a giggle, turning back to the tiny terrors.

The three that were hidden in the bottom of the basket moved to pile onto their siblings. It was a rare moment of calm, and Margo knew this would only last for a few hours before they were moving again. After giving them all one final stroke, she rose to her feet.

“I should tell Eleanor where you all are,” she muttered, putting her hands on her hips. Then, she smiled playfully. “And perhaps I should go and thank Laird MacLeod. He’s built you quite a nice shelter, don’t you think?”

“Ye got these repairs done quickly,” Cameron said, his arms crossed over his chest as he observed his men finishing the roof. “I’m impressed.”

“I believe we’ve gotten quite skilled at rebuildin’ things,” the cook said, who’d taken on most of the project’s coordination. “We’ll have replaced the entire castle in a few years.”

“Ach, well, we’re rebuildin’ everythin’ much stronger,” Cameron said, stepping forward to hold the ladder steady as one of the men descended. “Once we’ve finished makin’ all the repairs, we willnae ever have to do this again. The castle will still be here long after we’re gone.”

“Aye,” the cook agreed. “We are buildin’ somethin’ that the clan can be proud of. Fixin’ this place structurally, eliminatin’ scarcity… Those things will be yer legacy, me Laird.”

“I am only as good as the people I am leadin’,” Cameron said, the mention of a legacy pulling all of the worry about his heir and Margo’s dowry to the surface.

He had yet to find a solution, and their time was quickly dwindling. Lying with her was out of the question. He refused to pressure the woman into a bed she never chose. She was admittedly bound to him by marriage; but even if they were to conceive an heir, he doubted they would be able to produce confirmation before the deadline.

And then I will have to find another way to provide for me people.

“And we are only as good as our Laird,” the cook replied, apparently refusing to let Cameron deflect.

“I will keep that in mind,” Cameron said, waiting until one of his guards came down from the roof to step away from the ladder. “What do ye need to finish the repairs?”

“We’ve finished,” his guard reported with a grin. “I believe it was a blessin’ in disguise that the beam fell when it did. It was startin’ to rot from the inside. We wouldnae have seen it, if it werenae for the storm. It was still firm to the touch, but the center was startin’ to disintegrate.”

“Ye’re nae the first to suggest this wasnae a tragedy,” Cameron said, grabbing hold of the ladder and tucking it under his arm. He remembered the fear that had gripped him when he thought Margo was going to be hit. “Had anyone been hurt, we’d be speakin’ about the situation quite differently.”

“Aye, but ye were there to keep anyone from bein’ directly in the path of harm,” the guard replied, apparently seeing the tension that Cameron was holding in his shoulders. “It was certainly an emergency, but we are quite good in emergencies, wouldnae ye say?”

“I suppose we are,” Cameron agreed after a beat. “But I would prefer it if we avoid things collapsin’ in the future. We have enough repairs to worry about without a missin’ roof.”

“I cannae say ye’re wrong, me Laird,” he said, shifting his mallet from one hand to the other. “Should I make me way to the village?”

“I have to speak with Gavin and receive his report,” Cameron said as he began to walk toward the courtyard. “Ye’re off-duty for the rest of the day. Rest. Ye may be workin’ on the fishin’ boats tomorrow.”

“I willnae complain about goin’ to the shore,” he laughed as he waved Cameron off. “I’m nearly out of me whisky.”

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

“There are only two more fishin’ boats that need be repaired,” Gavin reported as Cameron approached him.

“I havenae asked ye for yer report yet,” Cameron said, though he wasn’t upset with his man-at-arms for getting to the point so quickly.

“Aye, but ye were goin’ to,” Gavin replied easily. “The children are askin’ when ye’ll be back, ye ken?”