“We will get ye what we can.”
Harcourt watched the two enter the stables to select their horses and sighed. The MacFingals had a reputation for their ability to spy or steal with a skill none could match. The clan had, more or less, stopped stealing since their laird, Ned and Nathan’s eldest brother, Ewan, was trying very hard to shine up the MacFingal name. The skill they had for spying, however, as well as their reputation for being fierce, skilled fighters, had proven very helpful to Ewan in getting some of his far-too-many brothers into good positions with other clans. Harcourt knew the necessity of what he asked of Ned and Nathan but hoped he had not put them in too much danger.
Nathan and Ned had soon selected their horses and packed their supplies. After wishing them a safe journey, Harcourt turned to go back into the keep only to catch sight of Annys. She stood watching the MacFingals leave, her soft, full lips curved into a small frown. Harcourt’s gut clenched with want as the memory of her kiss washed over him. It had been two long days since he had kissed her and she had done her best to avoid him since then.
That would stop now, he decided, as he walked toward her. He refused to be ignored. He wanted more than the occasional kiss snatched when he caught her alone at some weak moment. Harcourt decided he was going to seduce her and he smiled when he reached her side, looking forward to the challenge. The way she looked a little wary did not surprise him. He suspected he looked somewhat predatory, the hunter inside him revealing itself in his smile.
“Has something happened?” Annys asked. “Is that why Nathan and Ned are leaving?”
“Nay, nothing has happened.” He was not surprised that the question was so often asked around Glencullaich. “I just decided it was past time we kenned where that fool Adam is and just what he may be doing. Kenning where he is could be a great help. He slips in and out of your lands with far too much ease and disappears far too quickly. I want to ken how he does that.”
“It is going to get worse, isnae it?”
“Oh, aye. The mon has only two ways to get his greedy hands on this land, doesnae he. He can be rid of you and Benet. Or, he can just take it all away from you, making verra certain that ye and Benet dinnae survive the taking to challenge him later.”
She paled and he put his arm around her slim shoulders, pulling her up close against his side. It was a harsh truth but she had to face it. Harcourt suspected she was aware of what the next step in this dance would be, certainly after Sir Adam’s attempt to kidnap her, but it was time to face the truth with her eyes wide open and her mind clear of doubt or false hopes. She needed to be fully prepared for the battle he knew was coming.
Annys forced herself to stop enjoying how he held her close and started thinking again. The man was skilled at muddling her wits. The moment he was near all she could think of was how badly she wanted to kiss him. She inwardly cursed, recognizing how cleverly she could lie to herself. In truth, when he was near, all she could think of was making love. She was failing miserably in shaking free of that weakness.
“I ken it,” she said, pulling away from him and ignoring how her whole body protested the loss of his warmth. “I do. I just wish it wasnae so. Worse than that, I think too often on how Sir Adam is actually right to claim that Benet isnae the true heir.”
“Oh nay, lass. Benet is indeed the true heir. David claimed that lad as his son and the lad was born within the bounds of your Church-blessed marriage to the mon. That is all the law and the Church require. Lass, trust me to ken this as truth when I tell ye, Benet will nay be the first heir who carried none of his mother’s husband’s blood.”
“That is rather sad.”
“At times. At other times ’tis for the best. I dinnae think many do as David did but others ken weel that the son they claim as heir, the lad they raise and train, isnae truly their get. There are many reasons for that, too. Nay begetting a son of his own is the most common of reasons. The moment David held Benet and claimed, ‘This is my son,’ Benet became the true heir to Glencullaich in the eyes of the law and the Church.”
“That fact doesnae stop the whispers Sir Adam has stirred up with his talk. Whispers and doubts my son may have to suffer from for the rest of his life.”