Page 11 of The Iron Highlander
Chapter 6
“Aye,they need to be treated delicately. Too much of anythin’ could upset the balance, and yer goin’ to end up with a gloomy flower. Maither showed me how to check on them since I was a wee little boy, younger than you. This here, she’s been alive my entire life. Seventeen bouquets from her, if I count it right,” said Reuben, as he pointed at a bunch of flowers in the garden. He was excited to share the details with Lily, as she seemed to have a very keen interest in flowers.
“They are beautiful, and these here. Look how full they are!” Lily exclaimed, gingerly touching the flowers as though she would hurt them with the slightest pressure.
“Well, they were brought up with love and care, and so I see no reason why they would not be like that. Ye see, that kind of love would help anybody, and my ma showed that to me, and made sure that I would do the same to anybody else. These flowers are like my children. I’d protect them at all costs, same as my family. It’s a valuable lesson, one I’m proud to have learned.”
Reuben raised an arm to wipe his forehead, and through his forearm, he spotted Kate standing a few meters away from him. Even dressed down in the same work clothes which had been made available for the servants, she had somehow managed to look extremely beautiful. He had turned his head away just as he began to take in her features and returned his focus to Lily who seemed to be completely taken by the flowers behind him. He turned around and saw that there was nothing behind him, and raised an eyebrow in confusion.
“Can I have one?” Lily asked.
But Reuben wasn’t listening. He had turned back to Kate and saw that she was looking at them both. Her eyes were fixed on him, like a hawk with a piercing gaze. Almost as though she expected him to hurt Lily. As much as he was taken by her, the fact that she did not trust him had infuriated the Laird. He had done nothing to her to deserve that kind of treatment, and yet that was all he got. If he had his way, he would have Kate leave, so she would deal with all she had by herself, and leave the others for Grear to look after.
“Yer goin’ to have to excuse me. I have to go,” Reuben said.
He turned and walked away, and for a moment, his heart sank as he saw the look on Lily’s face. She had said something which he had not heard, but he had already left. Something was on his mind, something which he had to deal with. Reuben made his way through the plants until he was close enough to Kate for her to hear him with ease.
“I do not like how yer looking at me. Ye think I’m goin’ to hurt yer sister?” Reuben began. “Yer in my home. If I was goin’ to hurt ye, I’d have done it while ye slept.”
“I cannae trust a man like ye.” Kate fired back.
“Why is that?” Said Reuben. “What did I do to ye?”
“Ye’ve hurt people. The McDonald family has hurt people, and I was one of them. Ye cannae just expect yer sins to vanish cause now ye plant a bunch of flowers. That’s nae how this works. Alright” said Kate.
“Who do ye think ye are to come up to me in my castle, and tell me how anything works?”
“Reuben!”
He turned at the sound of his name to see his mother by a window, watching the altercation. The Laird sighed, turned and hurried away. Just as he walked by her, he smelled it again. The fresh lavender scent that had filled his nostrils since she had arrived. The aroma had lingered in the hallways, making him feel her presence in the entire house. Reuben had found himself thinking of her more and more, and yet when he tried to make things right with Kate, she only seemed to want a fight with him.
Pushing the doors of his chambers open, he got in and reached a large pot next to the fireplace. The water in it was fairly hot, and would be enough for a bath. Shutting the door behind him,he poured the water into the bath before slipping into it. The warm water on his skin felt good, and would allow him to wash off the dirt and sweat which had gotten on him as he worked. As he cleaned himself, he realized that his muscles ached from all of the work he had been doing.
But they were not the only thing that ached. He looked out the window and spotted the other girls. Willow and Freya. Both carried a bag of millet back to the small storage room on the side. He spotted the trough where the birds ate from and realized that the girls had joined the servants in feeding the peacocks.
Reuben shook his head as he had seen that reaction before. He had seen different women from all over who were absolutely in love with him. But with Kate, it was different. He was the one who had thought of her. He was the one who caught himself baffling over how well the gown of the servants fit her. Holding tight around her hips and accentuating her figure. Her breasts were held in place, but just barely. It was as though the dress had been made just a little too small for her, and it completely rocked him.
He shook his head to get the thought out of his mind. He was the Laird, a man who had his fair share of women. He could have anyone in the town, and he knew it. He had been with a handful, and they were all beautiful women. But there just seemed to be something about Kate that made his heart stop. Even as they argued just a few minutes ago, he found himself staring at her lips.
They were full and red, and for a moment, he wanted to touch them. Reuben’s mind began to drift to other things he would like to touch, and he shut his eyes. Lowering his body into the water, he sat under for a few seconds, allowing his mind to get cleared and the desire which he felt to quench.
Kate did not like him, and so he would have to kill any feelings of attraction he had towards her. If she was going to be cruel and insensitive to him, he would do the same to her. He was the Laird, and she was seeking protection in his castle, and so she would have to play by his rules, and not the other way around.
He got out of the tub and began to clean himself off, seeing some bannocks which had been left out on the table for him. As he dressed, he munched on a few slices and ran his hands through his hair to get the water out. He dressed in one of his finer kilts, looking to head out to the town later. He had to see the people and keep up appearances, bolster their faith and trust in him as their Laird.
As he worked on his buttons, he heard a knock on the door, and Hudson pushed it in a few seconds later, a dopey smile on his face. He looked to his best friend, “Where are we off to?”
“The town, need the people to see me, see if there’s anything I can do for them.” Reuben replied. He put down the bread, stopped and offered it to Hudson. “Ye want some Bannocks?”
“Aye,” Hudson replied. “I’m coming with ye?”
“Surely, I cannae do it all alone now, can I?” Reuben asked as he adjusted his belt.
“Well, yer the Laird, and so the people need ye.”
“I ken, and I need ye by my side. So get dressed,” said Reuben.
“I am dressed,” Hudson replied.
