Kilgannon (7 page)

"I am telling Mary about Kilgannon rescuing you in Paris and how grateful we are to him," the Duchess said to her husband.

"We are indeed, Mary," Duke John said. "But don't play matchmaker, Eloise. You know how that always ends up." He turned his merry eyes to me. "Edmund Bartlett will not speak to us just now because of my wife's attempts to marry him to Lady Wilmington."

"She would have been perfect for him," said the Duchess. "All that land. ..." She sighed. "It would have been ideal. They could discuss everyone! Who else would marry him?" I laughed with her.

The next day was quiet, spent at home with Will and Betty, all of us watching Louisa plan her dinner. I thought we would be a small group but now learned there would be eighteen in all. Louisa had invited the Duke and Duchess, of course, and Alex, Angus, and Robert, two of our Fairhaven cousins, and Becca's parents, just returned to London. Three other friends and, of all people, the Marquess and Rowena would also be included. If only Becca and Lawrence had not stayed in Bath with his parents, I thought. I needed her here with me now. I suspected Louisa was inviting Rowena just to make it interesting and told her as much. She laughed.

"Mary, if Alex's head is so easily turned you need to know that at once. And Robert will be there to keep you company."

Betty fluffed her hair and frowned. "I think it's foolish to have Lord Campbell and Lord Kilgannon here together."

"If they cannot behave like gentlemen in my home, they will be asked to leave," said Louisa crisply. "My dinners have never been anything but a success, and this one will be no different. Robert is always well behaved, and I cannot imagine Alex being anything less. Remember that he is my cousin, by marriage, at least."

I swallowed a smile, thinking that Alex had bewitched Louisa as well. But I agreed with Betty. I had no doubt that Robert would behave properly and I assumed that Alex would do the same, but I would rather not have them at the same table and rather not have Rowena in the same country. I hoped Alex's remark that he did not pay attention to other men's wives was accurate and wondered if I could be well behaved if Rowena flirted with him as she had done last time. And then I caught myself. His. Him. As if there were no other man on earth. I was farther down this road than I'd thought.

The day dragged by with no word from Alex. That evening I could not sleep and sat alone in the library after everyone else had retired, searching for every bit of information on Scotland that I could find. I found several treatises that claimed dismay over the barbarity of the Scots and their horrific land. I had almost given up hope when I found an atlas and pored over the maps, finding Lothian, where I had visited Duncan and Louisa. The general outline of Scotland I knew, of course, and that there were highlands and lowlands, borderlands and the north, the many lochs and Glen Mohr. I found Robert's Argyllshire and Alex's western Highlands. They were not as far apart as I had remembered, at least on the map. How very far apart were they in reality? I stared at the page. How could such a small country be so difficult to manage? For centuries now, one group or another had been trying to dominate this bit of earth and its people. I found Skye and the Hebrides off the shore of the western Highlands, but Kilgannon was not marked. Almost nothing was noted in that region, and I wondered where in that remote, rugged terrain lay Alex's home.

The following evening I found myself dressed in blue silk, pacing in the dining room, more anxious than I'd been in months. I'd tried to pretend to myself that it would simply be another of Louisa's elegant dinners, but I knew it would not be. What if Robert and Alex were rude to each other? In Scotland we are enemies rang in my mind. And Rowena. Next to her I felt much too tall, ugly, and clumsy, the country cousin who never quite measured up. It was in this state that Louisa found me and laughed kindly.

"You're beautiful, Mary," she said, embracing me. "Just be yourself. If either Robert or Alex is disconcerted by the other, then so be it. Robert should have asked you to marry him months ago. Perhaps Alex being here tonight will spur him on. As for Alex, I suspect that a man who looks like that is used to easy conquests. Let him see he is not without a rival." She smiled. "Mary, one of these men might be your husband one day. Watch them closely. How a man behaves in polite society under duress gives you a glimpse into his soul. If either misbehaves you'll see it and you'll be armed with that knowledge. Picking a husband is a complicated undertaking, my dear, but you must live with the consequences. Get the most for what you're bargaining."

Ellen ran in to announce that the first guests were here. Alex, Angus, and Robert had arrived together.

WE HEARD LAUGHTER AS WE APPROACHED THE PARLOR, and at the door Louisa and I exchanged looks of surprise. Alex was pointing at Robert, saying something while the others laughed, and I quickly realized what had caused all the commotion. Alex was in English clothing, a frock coat and breeches, and Robert wore Highlander dress, his plaid blue, a beautiful garnet brooch at his shoulder. Alex walked toward me, both hands extended, his grin wide.

"I'll never argue with yer effect on men, Miss Lowell," he announced. "Ye have both of us playing the fool. But ye must agree that I do look better than the Campbell, no?"

"Not so, Kilgannon," laughed Robert, approaching as well. "I wear this much better than you do."

I stood still, amazed to see them joking together, and then smiled as I took Alex's hands. "You both look wonderful," I said with a laugh, noticing how warm and strong his hands felt in mine. He smiled into my eyes and released me with a gentle squeeze of my fingers. Before any of us could speak, the Duke and Duchess arrived and new greetings were exchanged amid more laughter. This was not how I'd envisioned the evening, but it continued in the same fashion. Alex and Robert tried to outdo each other in their jests, both becoming increasingly outrageous, to the delight of all. Will joined in eagerly, and even Angus was silly. The hours flew by and we were saying good-byes before I realized the evening was over. Robert left first, still in a jovial mood, and Alex, at my side, called after him, "Yer knees are lovely, Campbell."

Robert bowed, laughing, and waved. Alex and Angus left us moments later, thanking Louisa for the evening. Alex gave my hand a squeeze as he said good night. Angus smiled broadly and thanked us, and then they were gone. Rowena, all but ignored throughout the evening despite her placement at the table between Alex and Robert, now embraced me, whispering, "I'd marry Robert and see Alex on the side." Her laughter followed her out the door. I shook my head and turned my thoughts elsewhere.

I would never understand men, I decided. One would think Alex and Robert had been the best of friends for years. I smiled to myself, thinking of their lightheartedness. It had been a wonderful evening. How silly I had been to worry.

The next morning I woke to rain but refused to let it dampen my spirits. Louisa and I left after breakfast, returning well past midday. Ellen met us with the news that the Earl of Kilgannon was in the library. "He's been here for ever so long, Miss Mary, but he said he was happy to wait," she said. "And he brought you flowers, madam," she added to Louisa, gesturing to the bouquet I had not even noticed.

Louisa nodded and asked if Alex had been invited to luncheon. When Ellen said Alex had eaten with Will and Betty, Louisa said then he could wait a little longer and sailed off in the direction of the dining room without looking back.

Will and Betty were upstairs, Ellen said, her eyes twinkling. I went to the library.

Alex was stretched out on one of the sofas, his long legs well past the arm, his nose in a book, and one of Louisa's cats on his chest. I closed the door behind me, knowing full well I should leave it open. Alex looked over his shoulder and sprang upright, the book and cat flying. I laughed to see him
try
to catch the cat, succeed, and then let it go as it twisted out of his grip. It landed on the sofa and after a disdainful look at both of us began cleaning itself. Alex looked up with a smile as I approached.

"Alex, what a surprise!" I said. "How long have you been here?"

"Not verra long. Good day to you, Mary." He bowed, his discomposure short-lived. He wore his Highland clothing again, the dark blue of his vest making his eyes even more extraordinary.

I moved to the sofa and picked up the volume he'd been reading. "Le Misanthrope", I read aloud. "Moliere? In French?" I raised an eyebrow. "You surprise me."

"I dinna think ye'd mind if I read while I waited."

"I don't," I said, and put the book down. "You read French?" He shrugged and nodded. "What other surprises do you have for me?"

"Ah, let me think." He paused, rubbing his chin as though deep in thought. "Well, I can quote verse to you." "In French?"

"Or Gaelic. Or English, if ye dinna mind my accent."

"Your accent is lovely," I protested.

"That's kind of ye. Some say I speak like a barbarian."

"I do not," I said, and moved across the room.

"Good." He grinned as he watched me.

"Did you enjoy last evening?" I asked.

He nodded. "Aye, Mary, I enjoyed myself hugely. Did ye?"

"I did." I moved to the fireplace and toyed with a candlestick. "Why did you wear English clothes?"

"To show ye that I could. I find that if I wear yer clothes I'm treated differently."

"If you wore my clothes you would be treated differently."

We both laughed. "Ye ken what I mean,
Mary
."

"Robert wore Highland clothing. I wonder where he found it."

Alex shrugged, moving closer. "In his clothes chest, no doubt. He is a Campbell, ye ken. Even though we dinna like to admit it, Argyll is in the Highlands. Not the proper Highlands, to be sure." "But his kilt was different than yours. Yours today is different than the others you've worn." I gestured to his clothing. He glanced down at his kilt and then up at me. I wondered if anyone else had ever had eyes so blue or legs so long.

"Well, each breacan is different," he said. "That's the weave. Each clan or sept has its own mix of colors, but the breacan depends on the weaver. All of mine come from Kilgannon weavers. They use the same patterns over and over. That's called a sett, when the pattern is always the same. Campbell setts are different, and that's what Robert was wearing. There are many who can tell a man's name by the pattern he's wearing. And each clan wears a different badge on their bonnets as well."

"I saw your badge on your hat yesterday. And feathers."

"Aye, each clan has its badge and a plant that marks the clan, but only the chief or the chiefs family wears the eagle feathers."

"It's very different than in England," I said, thinking how foreign his world seemed to me. He shook his head and picked up the cat that was rubbing around his legs. He petted her absently.

"No, it's verra much the same. A farmer from Kent doesna dress like a sailor from Portsmouth. Each wears the badge of his territory and rank. It's the same in Scotland."

"Were you comfortable wearing English clothes?" I watched his hand stroke the cat. He frowned thoughtfully.

"Was I comfortable? Do ye mean did I feel strange, like I was wearing a costume?" I nodded. "No, lass, I wear English clothes often when I travel. I'm just more comfortable in my own clothes, and sometimes I dinna think it makes any difference what I wear. The very look of me marks me as a stranger."

"You look like a Scot."

"I look like a Gael," he corrected me. "Like a Highlander. Lowlanders are not so tall as a rule."

"Are all Highlanders tall?"

"No, but many are. More so than Lowlanders, who are descended from the Picts and Britons and Normans. We're taller. It's our Celtic and Norse bloodlines. That's where we get the fair coloring as well." The cat stretched to his touch. "Is this yer cat?"

"No, it's one of Louisa's. My cat is in Warwickshire."

"Oh, aye, Warwickshire." He nodded at me. "That's where Kenilworth and Warwick are? Yer home is called Mountgarden?"

"Yes. My home is not far from Kenilworth." "Norman country, but verra bonnie. And verra flat."

"Not really," I said, ready to defend my home. 'There are many hills. Mountgarden is on a hill." "Hmmm. When ye come to Scotland ye'11 see mountains. England doesna have any that I've seen." He looked at the cat.

"Alex," I said after a moment. "Did you come today to discuss kilts and cats and mountains?" He held the cat with one hand and brushed back the strands of hair that had fallen around his face with the other. I could hear the cat purring as he stroked her.

"I came to see ye, Mary. I'll talk about whatever ye wish."

I felt my face redden. "You're very direct, sir," I said, trying to keep my tone light.

"Aye," he said slowly, almost smiling. "As ye were. I told ye, lass. It saves time." He put the cat on the sofa and brushed his hands on his thighs. "Mary, I dinna have any chance to talk with ye alone last night, so I thought I'd like to see ye today. Am I interrupting something ye have planned?"

"I had nothing planned."

"Good. And I thought if I came today I'd have a fair chance of beating yer Robert Campbell to yer door."

"He's not my Robert Campbell, Alex."