How to Handle a Highlander (Hot Highlanders) by Mary Wine Read Free Book Online

little light spilled in from the hallway. Once Moira stepped over the threshold, the girl reached into her apron pocket and pulled out a flint stone. She struck it with a piece of iron until sparks flew onto the pile of tinder left on a small pewter plate. It flared up, and she held a candle over it until it lit. The golden glow spread out around the maid, and she carried it to another candle sitting on the far side of the chamber.
    The maid returned the candle to the holder sitting by the plate. The tinder had burned away, leaving only a thin taper of smoke that lingered in the stale air. She walked to the window and opened the shutters. A cloud of dust billowed up as she pushed out the wide shutters. She wrinkled her nose, but then she turned and offered Moira a smile.
    Moira smiled back. “What’s your name?” she asked.
    “I am Fann, milady,” the maid said and lowered herself. There was a hopeful note in the girl’s voice. She opened the doors of a wardrobe from which she pulled out a folded bundle of bedding and set to making the bed. Moira went to the other side of the bed to help her straighten the sheets. The work went much faster with two of them. A look of relief crossed Fann’s face; no doubt the girl had worried her laird’s new wife might be expecting pampering.
    “The sheets are clean. A bit of time and the night breeze will freshen the air in here.”
    She moved to a chair that had a piece of Matheson plaid covering it. When she lifted it, the candlelight sparkled off the dust. The chair was a sturdy one, built in an X fashion. Fann picked up the seat cushion and beat it against her hip a few times.
    “Do ye wish to take supper below?” She nibbled on her lower lip. “The laird is rather set in his thinking. He’ll insist ye sit at the lower table, because of yer common blood, until ye wed.”
    The girl was flustered but obviously eager to help her new mistress adjust. The way she chattered so freely spoke of a household where the line between mistress and staff was very thin. In fact, the only difference might be that she had the church’s blessing to share Achaius’s bed. The Matheson laird clearly felt he was ruler and to be obeyed instantly. She doubted any maid who caught his eye might tell him no.
    “I’m weary. Would ye be kind enough to fetch me something?”
    The girl lowered herself again and smiled. “Ye may rely on me and me two sisters. They are younger, but our mother has taught us well.”
    Fann hurried out of the chamber, likely intent on finding her siblings to help her bring up the supper tray. Moira understood the nervousness eating at the girl. Everyone needed to make sure they had a place. It might be spring, but there would be no new crops for several months yet. Even then, no one was provided for without giving something in return.
    Moira would be striving to please Achaius for her keep.
    With a sigh, she sat down in the chair but shot back up when she realized how sore her bottom was. She wasn’t accustomed to riding a horse for so many hours in a row. Her cheeks colored as she remembered that she’d be expected to welcome her new husband into her embrace by the next nightfall.
    Or sooner. Her cheeks reddened as she recalled the greeting her husband-to-be had given her. It was possible he’d happily claim his rights the moment the Church blessed them. She certainly wouldn’t be the first bride deflowered in the light of day.
    Or the first one accused of seeking a lover when she got a good look at her groom.
    That fact didn’t make her any less accepting of the accusation Gahan Sutherland had made. Achaius would likely be furious if he discovered she’d lashed out at his overlord’s son, even if the man had deserved it.
    Oh, he had. She smiled with satisfaction. Moira doubted she could find any remorse for her actions, even if she ended up locked in the stocks for daring to forget her place. Gahan might be bastard-born, but he was still a blue blood. The man was