Kennan (McClains Book 4)

  Kennan

  The McClains Book 4

  Kirsten Osbourne

  Copyright © 2018 by Kirsten Osbourne

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  Also by Kirsten Osbourne

  Chapter One

  Scotland 1193

  Eight-year-old Kennan McClain loved being a Highlander. He loved his clan, he loved the hills, but most especially, he loved Gillian Campbell. As the youngest of the Laird McClain’s seven boys, he felt picked on by his big brothers at times, and Gillian understood. She was the youngest of Laird Campbell’s ten children, and with the two clans being so close in everything they did, they just seemed to gravitate toward one another as playmates.

  The best thing about Gillian was she helped him keep his secret. His whole family knew that he had an odd power, because he was the seventh son, but her family did not. Only Gillian knew, and she would even lie to her older brother and sisters to help him keep his secret.

  Summer was the best time of year because Kennan was often allowed to play for hours and hours with Gillian, and though she sometimes wanted to play silly girl things, she always listened to him. When she wanted to play “laird and lady,” Kennan was able to swing his wooden sword around and slay beasts who were after his family.

  “I need you to come home at a decent hour tonight, Kennan McClain,” Gillian scolded, her fists on her hips. “The Stewarts are coming for supper, and you know how difficult Lady Stewart is. I swear if she asks me why I wear me hair down one more time, I might just stab her in the eye with your hunting dagger!”

  Kennan laughed. “I will come home when I am ready to come home, and that is that. I am the laird of this clan, not you. I get to decide what I want to do.”

  Gillian stepped closer to him, her hands on her hips. “Do you really want to talk to me that way, Laird? I dinna want to have to lock you out of the keep and let you sleep with your soldiers.”

  He shook his head. “You would not dare. Who would protect you if a bear got into the keep, and you had locked me out?”

  She laughed. “I have never seen a bear in this keep. Have you? Now kiss me goodbye and be on your way!”

  Kennan wrinkled his nose as he leaned down and kissed her cheek. He was able to do it without yelling “ew,” so he was getting better at this game, though he wished they could play ball instead. “I will return when I return,” he called, ducking under the branches that served as the front door of their keep.

  Watching him leave, Gillian had a smile on her face. The boy still had a lot to learn about being a laird and having a lady for a wife, but he had years in which to learn it. By the time they were old enough to be married, she was sure he would be trained as he needed to be.

  She did not even mind that he could stick his hand through rocks when he wanted to. To Gillian, that was just part of him being Kennan. Kennan McClain. The boy she would someday marry.

  She went about her day, using leaves as small plates and acorns as cups. She would serve a meal fit for a laird when Kennan returned. She wondered what he was doing while he was off at work. He said he was training his men, but none of his brothers would ever pretend to be his men. They were not very accommodating of their play. His oldest brother, James, was too busy courting her sister, Kirsty. The two just seemed to fit together well, and she knew their parents were thrilled by the match.

  When she heard a strange sound, she turned and screamed. A wolf was staring at her. “Kennan! Help me, Kennan! There is a wolf!”

  Kennan ran back to her, immediately shifting into his “ghost form,” as his brothers called it. He had the ability to make himself into vapor. His father called it “becoming intangible,” but that sounded strange to him. He liked thinking of his power as a “ghost power.”

  He turned intangible and ran at the wolf, hoping he would frighten it. When that did not work well enough, he did something he had been practicing for a while without anyone knowing. He moved his hand into the wolf’s chest and turned only his hand back to his normal form, keeping the rest of him ghost. He grabbed onto something inside the wolf and pulled it out.

  Immediately the wolf fell to the ground, lifeless, its eyes still open and staring unseeingly. Looking at his hand, he realized he had pulled the heart from the wolf. He stood and shuddered for a moment, wanting to throw up. He had hunted before, aye, but he had never killed an animal with his bare hand.

  He looked over at Gillian, who was looking at him in half-horror, half-hero worship. “You saved me!”

  Kennan dropped the heart and made himself fully tangible, still shaking. Gillian threw herself at him and hugged him close. She was shaking as badly as he was. He wrapped one arm around her, stroking her back, trying to make her feel better. He kept the hand that was dripping blood straight out to the side. She did not need to have that touch her.

  Finally, she pulled away from him, tears coursing down her cheeks. “We are going to have to get your hand washed up. And I think we are going to have to tell our parents.”

  The way she said “our” frightened him. He had always hidden his powers from everyone. Everyone but family and Gillian. Mayhap her parents would not understand that he could make himself into a ghost. What if she was no longer allowed to play with him? “Let us go to the loch.”

  She nodded, and she held onto his non-bloody hand as they walked to the lake. She watched as he washed himself, and then they headed to the keep. She knew her parents would not be pleased she had kept such a big secret from them, but she hoped they would understand.

  When they reached the keep, they found only their mothers there, in the sitting room laughing about a story Lady Campbell was telling about one of her children. Both mothers immediately looked at them, and Kennan could tell that his mother had spotted the blood on his shirt. “What happened?”

  Kennan sat down on a chair that was usually reserved for his father, and he was not surprised when Gillian hurried to her mother and buried her face in her mother’s shoulder. “We were playing in the woods. We have a place where we play almost every time the Campbell children come to visit,” he said softly, taking a deep breath. “I had left Gillian at our pretend keep, and I went off to train me soldiers, and then I heard her scream.”

  Lady Campbell pulled Gillian onto her lap, stroking her back softly. Kennan wished he could sit on his mother’s lap, but Gillian was a full year younger than him, and she was a girl. He would someday be laird over the McClain clan. He needed to be strong.

  His mother gave him a comforting smile. “Go on, Kennan.”

  He tried to keep his voice steady as he calmly told them what had happened. When he mentioned pulling out the wolf’s heart, his mother’s face paled. She looked at Lady Campbell, who looked even more shocked than she did. “I need to explain something about our family,” she said softly. “It is a secret we dinna share with anyone, so it has never been mentioned to you. Just like Kennan, Braden is the seventh son of a seventh son. They go back as far as their line can be traced. Every seventh son is born with some sort of power. Braden has the ability to grow crops on his command.”

  Lady Campbell nodded. “We have surmised as much. Every time
our crops are bad, Braden comes over and then next day, they are better than they should be for the time of year. We knew there was something odd about Braden.”

  Kennan’s mother nodded. “I am glad you realized. It should make this a bit easier. Braden’s father, Robert, can move things with his mind.”

  “That we have not observed, but your entire clan knows you are odd. They mention it often.” Lady Campbell smiled at Kennan. “What is your power, Kennan?”

  “I can turn meself ghost-like and move through things. Today was the first time I made just part of me solid, and that is how I took out the wolf’s heart.” Kennan felt bad for killing the animal because he had been taught long before that if you killed an animal, you ate it.

  “You saved Gillian’s life,” Lady Campbell said, holding her daughter as close as she could. “Thank you.”

  Those words were more than he could take. Kennan could no longer act like a man. He jumped up and ran to his mother, silent tears shaking his entire body. “I did not want to kill the wolf, but I could not let him hurt me Gilly.”

  Gillian, from the comfort of her mother’s arms, reached for Kennan’s hand and squeezed it tightly. The mothers noticed the gesture, but neither said anything. Their children were connected and always had been. It was hard to explain, but they both knew the two of them were destined for one another.

  1205

  Kennan stood between his parents, watching for the Campbells. He had stood in just this place, waiting for them more times than he could count. His heart fluttered just a little as the three of them rode into sight, Laird, Lady, and their youngest daughter.

  It was all he could dinna to run to the horses as he had as a child, yelling for Gillian. Today was special, though. He planned to ask her to marry him. They had grown apart in the past few years, each of them interested in different things. Instead of running around the land with him, Gillian had instead had tea with their mothers. There had been no more stolen kisses . . . no more times alone together, since he had killed the wolf.

  It was not that her parents did not trust him, for it was quite obvious they did. His mother had explained that there was an odd connection between him and Gillian, and they had thought it best to keep them in sight at all times when they were together. Kennan had understood, but he had not liked it, and from the glances he had received from Gillian, he knew she had not liked it either.

  He stood tall and proud as she walked up the steps to the keep, nodding to his parents. “It is good to see you, Lady McClain. Laird McClain.”

  “And you, Gillian. You grow more beautiful with every visit.” Lady McClain took a step forward and kissed Gillian’s cheek. “I am glad you have come today.”

  “As am I,” Kennan said, his eyes meeting Gillian’s. She had not always come in the most recent years, and he thought he understood why. Her parents had not let them be together, so why would she want to visit? “I would like some time to speak with you today, Laird Campbell.”

  Ian Campbell looked at the youngest of the McClains, nodding politely. “I would enjoy that, Kennan. Should we hunt?”

  Kennan nodded. “I would like that. I will get me bow and arrows.”

  “Just dinna kill another animal by pulling its heart out,” Ian said, a twinkle in his eye. The Campbells had not been offended at all that Kennan had a power, and they had been very supportive, still keeping it quiet.

  “I try to only do that when there is a girl I want to impress,” Kennan said with a grin, running off to get his bow. When he came back, he saw Gillian away from her parents, her fiery red hair falling out of the braid she had it in. He squeezed her hand as he walked past her, determined that she would not leave without a wedding date set. How could she? They were meant to be together, and everyone knew it.

  The hunt with Laird Campbell went well, with Kennan backing off to let the older man shoot a stag. “Good shot, sir.”

  “Why are we hunting alone together, Kennan?” The laird went to his kill and carefully sliced its throat to bleed it out more. “Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?”

  Kennan pulled himself up to his full height and took a deep breath. “I would like your permission to ask Gillian to marry me.”

  Laird Campbell did not seem surprised, but he did frown a bit. “I know you and Gillian have always had special feelings for one another, and I know you think you can just ask her to marry you with nothing coming first, but I would like to see the two of you court for a bit before there are any wedding plans. I want you to sit and talk with her and learn who she is when she is not seven years old.”

  Kennan nodded. “Aye, I will. Do you have a length of time in mind?” He knew Gillian would agree to be his bride as soon as he could ask, so he wanted to know how long he would wait for the beautiful girl he had always loved.

  “Court her until the crops are ready to be harvested,” Laird Campbell told him.

  The crops had not yet been planted, but Kennan knew his father could have them ready to harvest the next day. He grinned as he realized that would be his way out. “Aye.”

  “Nay, Kennan. It will not be as you are thinking. You may ask her when all of the clans have harvested their crops, which means your father would have to do a whole lot of work to get every one of the fields ready before their time.”

  “Aye, Laird,” Kennan responded. He was not at all pleased by the wait, but he was glad he could at least spend some time with Gillian. “Do you not approve of me for a husband for Gilly?”

  “I canna think of another man who would be a better match for me baby. But you must give her the time she deserves to get to know you better. To get to know you as a man and not a boy who saved her life many years ago.”

  “I can do that.”

  “Aye, I know you can.” Laird Campbell reached for the rope he had tied around his saddle. “Let us get this beast back to your home. I am certain it would make for a fine stew for our supper this eve.”

  Gillian sat with the other ladies wishing, she knew what the touch of Kennan’s hand had meant before he had left to hunt with her father. She was supposed to be working on her embroidery while talking with her mother and Lady McClain, but she had not made a single stitch. Her fingers still burned where Kennan had touched her. Nothing would please her more than her father agreeing to a marriage between her and the future laird of the McClain clan, but her father had made it difficult for them to even be alone together, let alone court.

  When the two men came back a short while later, her father bellowing loudly as was his way, her eyes followed Kennan. Would he try to speak with her?

  “Gillian, would you walk with me?”

  Lady Campbell’s eyes went to her husband at the question, and he made a slight nod. The two families had already had one marriage between them, and everyone knew there would be another if they could make it work.

  Gillian nodded, feeling excitement build up within her. She could not show how excited she was to her parents, but once she and Kennan were alone . . . well, then she could be herself again. No longer a lady stifled and forced to follow her parents’ edicts.

  “I will return shortly,” she said to her mother, a smile touching her lips.

  “Aye, you will. And you will take one of the young ladies of the clan with you as a chaperone.”

  It was all Gillian could do not to groan aloud, but she would obey. If she followed all of their rules without complaining, mayhap her parents would allow her to spend more time with Kennan. A lifetime might be just enough. “Aye, Mama. We will take someone along.”

  She walked slowly and sedately to the front of the keep, not allowing her eyes to meet Kennan’s. Her parents could not know how very much she wanted to be alone with him. If they did, they would refuse to let them even speak to one another without someone sitting right there. It would not be enough to be in plain sight.

  As soon as they were outside, and she knew there were no parents watching, she grinned at Kennan. “Did Papa say you could ask for me ha
nd? Please say he did!”

  Kennan shook his head, his eyes full of sorrow. “Nay. I am to court you until all the harvests are in, and there is no cheating allowed. Me father canna help in any way.”

  Gillian sighed heavily. “He knows we want to marry. Why did he say we have to court for so long?” Though they had not talked privately for a very long time, their thoughts were still in accordance, as she had known they would be. The man beside her was who she was meant to spend her life with, and everyone around them knew it.

  “He thinks you have the right to get to know me as a man and not as the young boy who saved your life years ago. He is afraid that you will feel beholden to me for saving you, I think.” Kennan wanted to put his arm around her, but he knew her parents would never approve. “Let us find our chaperone so we may take our walk to the loch.”

  Gillian knew she should not be so forward, but it did not stop her from doing what she wished. She walked close enough to Kennan that their arms were constantly bumping together. “Do you know someone easily bribed?” she asked, her impish smile that he remembered so well returning to her face.

  “Aye,” he said softly. He went to one of the small cottages and knocked on the door, knowing the family had trouble finding enough food to eat. “I would like to ask Morvan to chaperone Gillian Campbell and me.”

  Morvan’s mother smiled. “You know Morvan would be pleased to do it.”

  “As a reward for her service, she will be invited to supper at the keep tonight,” he said, trying to hide his smile.

  “We will not expect to see her until after supper then.”

  A moment later, Morvan was outside. She was thirteen, and she wanted to do all she could to help her family after her father had been left with only one leg after a hunting accident. Kennan looked at the teen. “I chose you to be our chaperone for two reasons. The first is I know you will happily do anything that will earn you food for your family, and if you follow me instructions, I promise you will have a good meal at the keep tonight with enough food to take home for your family. I will also bring you the meat I hunt for the next month.”