Kennan (McClains Book 4) Read online

  Morvan nodded, smiling. “Am I to follow along but look the other way if you ask?”

  Kennan grinned. “I knew you would understand. The second reason I asked you is you are a very intelligent girl. I know you will not say anything about what you happen to see.”

  “Aye. You will not even know I am there.” Morvan looked thrilled to be able to help her family, but more than that, she looked happy that she could help the young couple.

  Kennan handed her some dried venison and an oat cake. “There is plenty more where that comes from.” The truth was the clan was taking care of their family, but her parents were proud like most Scots, and they did not like taking charity. This way they would earn their food for a while. “It is your job to make sure no one else is following us.”

  Morvan nodded, taking a bite of the venison. “Anything you say.”

  As soon as they were out of sight of the castle, Kennan took Gillian’s hand in his. Morvan was walking far enough back that they could speak softly without her hearing. “I would like to kiss you, Gillian, and not the way I kissed you when we played laird and lady of the keep.”

  Gillian smiled up at him, thrilled with his solution for having a chaperone. “I can think of nothing I would like more. Morvan is safe?”

  He nodded. “Her father lost a leg in a hunting accident. The clan takes care of them, but they are proud and want to earn their own food. This is a way to feed her entire family without hurting their pride.”

  “Sounds like a good solution.” She squeezed his hand, happy to be touching him after so many years of being kept apart. “Tell me about me Kennan. It has been so long, I fear I barely know you now.”

  “That was your father’s argument. That you had the right to get to know me better before an engagement was started.” He shrugged. “I am the boy you knew, but older with more responsibility now.”

  “You are going to have to do better than that, Kennan. You are almost a stranger now, but a stranger I feel a pull toward—one I know I am meant to marry.” She turned around and saw Morvan still following along behind, eating at her oat cake. The girl was loyal to one person and one person only. “What would you say to taking me to our old keep in the woods? That is where you should kiss me for the first time. In the place we spent so many hours together, imagining our futures.”

  Kennan smiled slightly. He had not been back to the “keep” since the incident with the wolf, but he was not afraid to go there in any way. “Aye, we will go there.” He changed course and walked toward the spot he still had nightmares about.

  Chapter Two

  As they entered the woods where they had played as a child, Kennan found that he was more nervous about returning to the place where Gillian had almost died than he realized he was. He took a deep breath and forced his legs to go forward, leading him toward the “keep” he had built with his own two hands for her. He could see that the sticks he had laid out for her to stay inside while he trained his men were still there. He could not believe the feeling of nostalgia that washed over him.

  Squeezing her hand tighter, he walked to the small keep before turning to her. He looked over, and Morvan was leaning against a tree, not paying any attention to them. The young girl was being true to her word, carefully following along, but doing her best not to look at anything the couple did.

  Kennan put his hands on Gillian’s shoulders, rubbing them softly. “I feel like I have waited me entire life for this moment.”

  Gillian smiled sweetly. She wanted to seem ladylike, but she wanted to grab him and pull his lips to hers for a kiss. She worried Kennan would not think that was appropriate, so she waited, wishing he would hurry. When his lips finally descended on hers, it was as she had always imagined a kiss from Kennan would be. Soft and sweet, but with an underlying passion that made her insides flip around.

  He lifted his head, brushing his lips across her cheek. He remembered when he had had to fight against saying, “ewww” when he kissed her, and now he wanted to go on forever. “Gilly, I promised your father that I would not ask you to marry me until we were older, but . . . I want you to know that I plan on spending forever with you. You are the girl I belong with today and every day for the rest of me life.”

  Gillian felt a tear in her eye and swiped it away with the back of her hand. “I needed to hear you say that, Kennan. I know we will have a hard road ahead of us as the laird and lady of a large clan . . . but I think we can do all we should. I believe that this is our destiny.”

  He cupped her face in his hands, looking deeply into her dark green eyes. “There has never been another girl that even turned me head, Gilly. You are mine, and I have known it since I was a boy.” His lips brushed hers again, more insistent this time.

  Gillian wrapped her arms around his neck and sank into the kiss, feeling loved and wanted and needed all at once. It was a glorious feeling for a youngest child who had never felt as if she belonged anywhere . . . except with Kennan. Always with Kennan.

  Finally, Kennan lifted his head and smiled at her, stroking her cheek with the back of his index finger. “If we dinna get back to the keep soon, both of our fathers will be out looking for us.”

  Gillian sighed. “I could stay with you like this all day, Kennan McClain.”

  That earned her one more kiss in Kennan’s mind, and he leaned down and brushed her lips with his briefly. “I wish we did not have to wait until after the harvest, but I promised your father. He is a stubborn one.”

  She laughed, the sound breathy and tinkling to her own ears. “That is me papa. Stubborn as they come. I hope you know that I take after him in all the important ways.”

  “Are you telling me you are going to be a stubborn wife to me, Gillian Campbell?”

  She rested her head on his shoulder for a moment as they walked. “You would not want anything else from me.”

  Kennan smiled, slipping his arm around her waist. Oh, how he wished her father would be just a bit less stubborn and let them marry sooner. He knew better, though. At least with their clans so close together, he could ride over and see her whenever he wanted. “Nay. You are perfect just as you are.”

  Her laugh filled the air again. “It is probably good that we are going to have so much time together before the wedding. You really do need to get to know me better.”

  He glanced over his shoulder to make certain that Morvan was following along. He was glad to see she was. He would make sure the girl was always their chaperone. It would help her family as well as him. Yes, she had worked out well.

  “Tell me what I need to know about you,” he commanded softly.

  “I am not the most ladylike of the Campbell daughters,” she admitted. “I like to ride bareback through the fields and swim in the loch. I hate to do embroidery, and mostly I find old unfinished pieces me sisters had worked on and pretend that I am sewing while I really gaze out the window, wishing I could run like the wind.” Her eyes were filled with laughter as she made her confession, knowing he would not mind. He knew her already. This would not cause him any alarm.

  “You think this surprises me?”

  Gillian shrugged, smiling at him coyly. “I like to use me bow and arrow and hunt when no one is looking. Me papa says it is awfully unladylike and no man will ever have me after he finds out.” She looked at him with a slight grin. “What about you? Will you have me?”

  Kennan laughed. “Of course, I will have you. How could you think I’d want a woman who did not know how to use a bow and arrow? Do you use a hunting dagger with expertise as well?”

  She shook her head. “I tried to get Little Ian to teach me to use a dagger, but he said he was already taking his life into his own hands by teaching me to hunt.” Her older brother had been known as Little Ian for as long as she could remember.

  “I am sure your papa would not be pleased by your unladylike tendencies, but I still have nightmares about almost losing you to a wolf. I like knowing you have the ability to defend yourself if necessary.” Kennan did not l
ook at her as he mentioned the nightmares about the wolf. He knew she must still be haunted by the experience herself.

  “I have never been able to discuss that awful day with anyone. Me parents did not let me tell me brother and sisters about your power, so I had to hide what happened that day. Every time I spoke of it, Mama would cry, so I just pretended it never happened. I have had bad dreams about it. I worried you would not ever want to spend time with me again because I was the reason you had to kill that wolf.”

  He stopped walking, looked around them, and pulled her into his arms, holding her close. “We have been through more than many married couples together already. We must always let ourselves talk about the difficult times we have had together.”

  Gillian sucked in a deep breath and buried her face in his shoulder. His arms around her made her feel safer than anything else in the world. Even safer than her papa’s arms. But underneath it all was something else. Something that felt a little dangerous about touching him this way.

  “Take your hands off me daughter!” Laird Campbell bellowed at Kennan.

  Kennan slowly released Gillian, turning to face her father. “We were just talking of the day with the wolf. We felt the need to be close to one another as we faced those memories.”

  Laird Campbell shook his head. “You are going to have to stay within sight of the keep at all times. Did I not already tell you that?”

  “No, sir, you did not. You said we had to have a chaperone with us, and we do.” Kennan looked over at Morvan, who waved enthusiastically.

  “Well, from now on, you will stay within sight of the keep. I worry things will move too quickly with the two of you.” Laird Campbell was not about to back down. This was his youngest daughter—his pride and joy.

  “Yes, Laird,” Kennan said respectfully, wishing he could argue with the man, but he knew that was a bad idea.

  “Yes, Papa,” Gillian said softly. “I do wish you would not make us wait so long for an engagement. Kennan and I belong together, and you know it.”

  Laird Campbell looked back and forth between the two young people. “You think you are ready to get married now, do you not?”

  Gillian nodded. “I have loved Kennan with all me heart since I was a young girl. Long before he saved me life, I knew I would spend the rest of me days with him.”

  Her father frowned. “I dinna think the two of you know one another well enough yet. I think you need to wait a while and truly learn about one another.”

  Gillian stepped forward and put her hands on her father’s arm. “Please, Papa. I think you are making a mistake by keeping us apart.”

  “I will talk to your mother and the McClain laird and lady. We will decide what to do after our discussion.” He glared at her. “But for now, you are coming back to the keep with me. You may wait in the parlor with the door open. Open wide, not just a little. I will not have the two of you doing anything that will force a quicker wedding.”

  At his words, Gillian cast a grin at Kennan. She did not know what he was thinking, but she had definitely thought about the possibility of getting herself with child to make the wedding happen faster. “Yes, Papa.”

  Laird Campbell sighed loudly. “I know you far better than you think I do, Gillian. I know when you say, ‘Yes, Papa’ what you mean is, ‘I will pretend to obey you and do whatever I want to do anyway.’ Dinna think you are fooling me!”

  Gillian stifled a giggle as she saw the fury on Kennan’s face. “He is right, Kennan. No need to go to battle over something like that. Me papa knows me well.” She stood on her tiptoes and kissed her bearded giant of a father. “He loves me best, too.”

  Her father did not respond. “Come along, Gilly. I will save you from yourself if it is the last thing I do.”

  Gillian winked at Kennan just before she walked meekly behind her father. Kennan could not help but want to laugh. She had her father wrapped around her little finger, and it was very obvious. Mayhap they would be allowed to marry much sooner than either of them thought. He hoped so.

  As soon as they were back at the keep, Kennan led Gillian to the family parlor, sitting on a window seat beside her. Her father took one look at them and shook his head. He pointed at Kennan. “You will sit on the chair. I dinna want the two of you touching.” He turned around and saw Morvan. “You sit on the window seat with me daughter.”

  Morvan nodded, hiding a grin. “Yes, Laird.” She sat down beside Gillian and waited for the laird to leave before turning her attention to Kennan. “Does this mean you will not pay me?”

  Kennan shook his head. “Of course not. You did as you were bidden to do. It is not your fault that Laird Campbell is fierce about his daughters’ purity.”

  “This is true.” Morvan sat with her quietly, looking around the parlor. “I have never been in this part of the keep.”

  “It is where we bring family,” Kennan said softly. He could not even look at Gillian without wanting to kiss her again, and her father had become upset with an embrace. He was certain the older man would not be happy if he caught him kissing his youngest daughter.

  Gillian smiled, realizing what was wrong with Kennan. “I think we shall be allowed to marry sooner after this talk our parents are having. I dinna think Papa would be stupid enough to allow us to spend as much time as we would need to really get to know one another before we were married.”

  “Why do you think that?” Kennan asked with a frown.

  “He is afraid I will deliberately get meself with child. Or allow you to get me with child. Or convince you to get me with child. However it would work, he knows I would do it to get to be married to you sooner.”

  He was a little shocked by how blunt she was being, but he could not fault her reasoning. “Would you really do that?”

  “Would I make love with the man I know I will spend me life with before the wedding so I can sleep in his arms every night soon? You can bet your bottom I would!” Gillian grinned at him, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

  It was in that moment that Kennan realized he did not know Gillian quite as well as he thought he did. He was surprised to admit it, even to himself. “I had no idea you would even consider such a thing.”

  “Only to be with you,” Gillian said, wondering why that seemed to surprise him. She loved him with everything inside her, so of course she would try to hurry to get to the time when she would be his wife.

  A voice was cleared at the doorway, and Kennan and Gillian both looked over. It was Lady McClain, Kennan’s mother. “Would you please join us in the formal parlor?” she asked. “Not you, Morvan, though I do thank you for staying with them.”

  “I was happy to do it, Lady McClain,” Morvan said with a grin.

  Kennan got to his feet, wondering why he was going to join them. Would they say they needed to wait even longer for their wedding? He was suddenly so unsure of his resolve to spend his life with Gillian. She was not the same girl she had been when they had played together all those years before.

  Gillian hurried forward and slipped her hand into his, determined to present a united front to their parents. She wanted to marry immediately. Why was there a need to wait when she knew this was right and loved Kennan with everything inside her?

  As they stepped into the formal parlor, Kennan allowed Gillian to take the only seat available, and he stood, his hands folded together behind his back. He could not believe how nervous he was, as if he was on trial. He had done nothing wrong . . . yet. But he wanted to, and apparently, Gilly wanted to as well!

  Laird Campbell was the first to speak after they were all in the small room together. “Kennan, you told me earlier today that you wanted to marry Gillian as soon as possible. Is that still your desire?”

  For a moment, Kennan wondered if he could change his mind, but then he looked over at his Gillian, her hair hanging wildly over her face, and he knew that he would never be truly happy unless she was his bride. “Yes, I want nothing more.”

  Laird Campbell turned to his youngest an
d most rebellious daughter. “Is that what you want, Gilly?”

  “You know it is, Papa. I told you after he saved me from the wolf that I wanted to marry him just as soon as we were both old enough. We are old enough, whether you think we are or not.” Gillian did not look down. She had never been one to not meet a man’s eyes or to waver in a decision.

  Laird Campbell sighed heavily, looking around him at the others all watching him expectantly. “Your mother has been reminding me what a very opinionated young lady you are. She is convinced that if we make you wait to marry, you will find some way to marry anyway. Is she right?”

  Gillian did not even think about lying to him. “Yes, she is. I should be married to Kennan, and I dinna think you can stop us.”

  The laird groaned loudly before looking at Laird McClain. “Is your priest here?”

  Laird McClain nodded, a smile on his face. “I believe you have made the right decision, Ian. I will go for the priest.” He clapped his friend on the shoulder on his way out of the keep.

  Morvan popped her head into the room then. “I can run for the priest, Laird. I am happy to do it.”

  Kennan looked over at Gillian, his eyes widening. Was he ready to be married to her? Hours before he thought he was, but now . . . he was frightened. What if he could not be the husband she needed him to be? What if she would not slow down and have the babies she was meant to have? She would bear him seven sons. It was the way of their family. “You do know you will have seven sons if you marry me, do you not?” he blurted out without thinking.

  Gillian shrugged. “I can think of nothing I want more.”