Highland Dream (Book 1)

Chapter 20

Hamish’s serious gaze landed upon her, and to her surprise he angled his body quite obviously to block her from seeing Corey. “Aislinn, is Cam not with you?” He gave a noticeable look over her shoulder. At the shake of her head he continued. “Well, you just happen to be in luck. I have a need to speak with Isla, so if you do not mind, I will accompany you on your quest to find her.” He took her arm gently and pulled her in the contrary direction to Corey. Confused at his actions she decided it was probably for the best to try and forget it, or her head may start to hurt.

Corey watched them walk away, angry at Hamish, the situation and even Aislinn. She had called out to Hamish and not him. He was through playing nice. The last time this had happened was two years ago. At sixteen, he realised, he was not ready. But now, with Aislinn, he had to take control. He would succeed with this plan, or no one else would have her.

Hamish walked with Aislinn throughout the Keep, Isla seemed to have disappeared into the mist. He did not trust the clan, if he left her on her own, they would swamp her with questions and the possibility of Corey being allowed near her was too great. As her intention was a tour of the Keep, that he could honour at least. He actually enjoyed her company. She did not mind that he was silent most of the time. And though he had not seen her talk much, she took it upon herself to create a conversation as if he spoke. She was lively and actually managed to make him smile twice, more than he could recall in the last year.

There were many comments from her that she feared she would get lost, that she would never be able to remember the way. But, as she feared this he noticed that she had taken the lead in the direction they were returning, and he knew she was wrong. She would not get lost, that fates had brought her to MacKay keep, and here she was meant to be.

Aislinn’s side was aching by the time they made it back to the main hall. The tour of the Keep had been long and while not too arduous, with her injuries, she had possibly done a little more than she should have done so soon. The large room was filled with movement and sound as servants made preparations for the evening meal. Platter being placed in wait for the feast to come. Spoons and knifes placed in wait for the occupant of that place.

Captivated by the movement, and the camaraderie of the women chatting and laughing as they moved at a speed which belied the perfection of their work. Aislinn failed to see the tiny Isla barrelling in her direction. Fury barley contained on her face. Cringing into Hamish without thought, Hamish took a step forward to cover her slightly. Isla, however, stopped just before them, breathing hard. “That GIRL.” The growl threw Aislinn for a moment, thinking she was talking about her. “I swear, when she surfaces I will be putting her to work in the kitchens scrubbing the pots. Aislinn, feel free to say what you feel to Larena from now on. After this last stunt I wash my hands of her.”

With that she turned and stormed towards the kitchen, Aislinn felt sorry for anyone not doing their job as she walked in. Hamish recovered quickly from their interruption, “Whatever it is Larena has done now, it is sure to be worse than usually for that reaction. The last time I saw Isla like that was after Cam had ‘gone hunting’ when he was twelve. Only he was missing for days and worried Isla to death, let’s say after that incident he never again pulled the stunts that he had before, and didn’t hunt again until he was sixteen.” Pulling her towards the top table he made sure to take it slow and allow for the women of the clan to talk with Aislinn. This was important for her to become a needed and valued member of the clan.

Cam was in a bad mood by the time he returned to the Keep. Issues that could have been sorted out between neighbours were suddenly in need of his command, why he had no idea, it was getting ridiculous. He had not managed to catch any of the elders, it was as if they were hiding from him. Every time he thought he’d seen one of them, another problem magically appeared in front of him. His mood had dropped with each one, and he was convinced he was being set up. When he got his hands on the elders they would definitely pay for this.

His mood dropped further as the twins, as chirpy as ever dogged his steps. Stage whispering comments behind him. But one comment, made in jest, had him pausing. “Repeat that last one.” Artair was perplexed but repeated, “Maybe they were testing you,” and added on as if this had made him see what Cam had, “Close enough to see but too far away to be of help with any of the concerns.”

“The sneaky buggers. Of course, they were testing me. Why else would they have suddenly appeared at the same time as those problems?” Shaking his head his mood improved by a miniscule amount. “I better have passed whatever test they’ve given me, because if they chuck any more at me I may not be held responsible for my actions.” Heading back towards the main hall he managed to calm himself to at least look like he was under control. He knew who he needed to see right now and that was directly where he headed.

AN. New story started, would appreciate if you check it out.