Page 4 of Tempted
“If she were my charge, I’d soon whip some obedience intae her,” declared the Scotswoman. The steward laughed in her face. God’s passion, it would take a strong man in jackboots to whip obedience into Flaming Tina Kennedy.
Ada said, “She’s sixteen, almost seventeen—a woman grown. She’s too old to take orders from a nursemaid.”
“Beth takes orders from me,” Kirsty stated firmly. Ada wasn’t about to start pulling young Beth to pieces but said, “They are different as chalk and cheese. Valentina is all comely, shapely fascination and beauty.”
“And well she knows it,” Kirsty accused, her eyes traveling down the tables to the men surrounding the tempting redhead “She has a reputation for bein’ a honeypot, an’ no wonder, when ye’ve been in charge of her morals.”
Ada was a widow who could not deny she enjoyed the company of men. “Jealousy ill becomes you, woman.”
“In my experience men prefer a bit more innocence. They dinna like it when some o’ the bloom has been rubbed off,” Kirsty said maliciously.
“In your experience? There’s a figment of the imagination.” Ada had had enough and decided to silence her adversary. “Do you know what happens to spinsters on their fortieth birthday? Their holes make up!”
Kirsty gasped, turned beet red, and fled from the table. The steward was still choking on a mouthful of ale. Ada’s satisfaction diminished somewhat when the page tugged at her sleeve. “Laird Kennedy wants tae see ye.”
A pale Lady Kennedy followed her husband into the first-floor room he used for conducting his business. Valentina followed her in, and Ada brought up the rear, whispering, “One more day and he would have been gone.”
Tina had a habit of shrugging one shapely shoulder, and Ada sighed with resignation. Sparks were bound to fly when two such volatile personalities came together.
Mother and daughter seated themselves while Ada stood guard behind Tina’s chair. At one time Rob Kennedy had been a handsome man with a flaming torch of hair. Now it was sparse and gray. His florid face showed sagging jowls, and his paunch thrust forward as a testimonial to Mr. Burque’s talent. He was still an imposing man, however, with his broad back and shrewd eyes. He stood with his backside to the fire and asked in a deceptively quiet voice, “Do I detect a conspiracy here?” His eye fell upon his hapless wife. “Just how many proposals have ye been keepin’ from me?”
Elizabeth grew even paler. “Rob, I know nothing of this,” she said softly.
“Know nothing … know nothing? God ha’ mercy woman, do ye go through life wi’ blinkers on? Ye know nothing—ye never do!” His voice had risen, and it had a grating quality that pierced the eardrum painfully.
“Please don’t browbeat Mother,” Tina said reasonably.
“I’ve no intention of browbeatin’ yer mother—‘tis ye I’ll browbeat!” He locked eyes with her and demanded, “What earthly use are daughters tae a mon?” Silence. “I’ll elucidate. Lasses, in especial ravishin’ beauties like yersel, are valuable tae forge marriages between powerful clans tae preserve peace, tae extend power, and tae increase wealth.” He turned on his wife again. “I shouldna listened tae ye. I shouldha sent her tae court—she woulda had a husband an’ a bairn in her belly by now.”
With great daring Elizabeth said, “The last Kennedy who went to court didn’t manage to catch a husband.”
“She did even better—mistress tae the two most powerful men in Scotland, Archibald Douglas, Earl of Angus, an’ now the king hissel, if yer talkin’ about ma wee cousin, Janet Kennedy.”
“Don’t you dare say that name in this house,” Elizabeth whispered.
“Janet Kennedy? She’s a bit o’ a whore, but let me remind ye, woman, the Kennedys were Kings o’ Carrick. We ha’ the finest blood in Scotland!” he shouted.
“I was speaking of Douglas,” Elizabeth said quietly.
Rob Kennedy cleared his throat. “Aye, well, I didna mean tae stir painful memories, Lizzy. Foul fall all the bloody Black Douglases.”
Elizabeth had her handkerchief to her eyes. “May I leave? I’m feeling unwell,” she pleaded.
He nodded, not trusting himself to speak until she had departed, then his invective burst forth like a dam upon the remaining pair. “Now see what ye’ve done! I should flay ye fer upsettin’ yer mother!”
Tina was on her feet. “You did that when you brought up the profligate black-hearted Douglases.”
He waved his hand dismissively. “Och, the woman’s too sensitive. It all happened over fifteen year past an’ best forgot. She acts as if Damaris was her sister rather than mine.”
“Damaris was her best friend, her only friend in Scotland. The Douglas Clan poisoned her—mother will never forget!”
“That’s no’ the issue here.” As he caught sight of his daughter’s vivid beauty, he wondered how on earth he’d produced such an exquisite child. The fireshine played across her heart-shaped face and turned her hair to molten copper. She drew men like bees to a honeypot and it had been a puzzle to him why none had offered for her. His heart softened. “Lassie, I want a Campbell or a Gordon for ye.”
“Father, I don’t want to marry. Why can’t you teach me to sail one of the ships so I could take the wool to Flanders?”
His face hardened again, and his accusing eyes came to rest on Ada. “Wheesht, woman, ‘tis ye who’s put these daft ideas in her haid! Why could ye no’ make her gentle an’ biddable?”
“My Lord Kennedy, Scotland is a harsh land filled with harsher men. I swore I wouldn’t make the mistake of making Tina soft like her mother and Beth. Besides, she’s too much like you to be gentle. As for biddable, it will take a very strong mate to make her that.”
