Chapter Two
Kendrick realized every eye in the room was focused on him, and he sighed dramatically. “Do you want to marry me, Alyssa?” he asked.
Heather swatted his shoulder. “I’ve talked to you enough about what life will be like in the future. Do it right.”
Kendrick let out a loud groan, but he lowered himself to one knee, and took Alyssa’s hand in his. “Alyssa, will you do me the great honor of marry me?”
Alyssa was frozen as she stared at the top of the head of the man who was kneeling before her. It would mean she was married to Heather’s son, and Holli’s brother-in-law, which wouldn’t be a bad thing. But…what if she wasn’t meant to marry him? Maybe there was another man in the clan who would suit her better.
Holli looked at Alyssa. “By marrying Kendrick, you don’t need to worry about explaining how you magically appeared beside the loch earlier today. He’s a good man, Alyssa.”
Heather nodded. “The best of the best.”
“I thought I was the best of the best!” Bryson said, sounding wounded.
“The best son I have left. Is that better, Bryson?” Heather sighed dramatically.
Alyssa just sat there, frozen, completely unable to move. Everything was happening so fast. She wanted to be with her friends, but was this the way she wanted to do it?
“Why don’t ye walk with me?” Kendrick finally asked. “We’ll talk.”
“That sounds a lot more reasonable than marrying a man I met less than an hour ago and know nothing about.” Alyssa finally found her voice, and she stood up. “Oh!” She looked at the three other women from her time. She pulled out a root beer forHeather, Cheetos for Holli, and a phone and charger for Beth. “I put lots of games on all of them and filled them with books. Do you have a solar charger?”
“Of course,” Beth said, reaching for the phone and hugging it to her.
Her husband looked at it, shaking his head. “I hope it doesn’t have the dreadful game where you pound candies.”
For a moment Alyssa wondered if she was causing marriage trouble by supplying the older woman with a phone. Then Beth said, “I’ll have something to do while you are out healing. It will be good.”
The old man just sighed. “If you say so, dear.”
Alyssa was surprised by how modern everyone spoke, but she realized it made sense with three women from her time having already come back to the same clan.
Kendrick offered Alyssa his arm, and the two of them went to the front door of the keep. “Did you grow up here?” she asked.
He nodded. “Bryson and I both lived in the keep until his marriage to Holli, and then I found a cottage in the village.”
Alyssa made a face. “Doesn’t your father have to die before Bryson takes his place?”
“Not in our family,” Kendrick said. “The youngest always inherits as soon as he marries. I know it’s odd, but this is the way our family has done it for generations. We emigrated here from England several generations ago.”
“You did? How is your family the one who rules the clan then?”
“This is a favorite story of mine.” As he spoke, Alyssa realized he was using a modern American accent, which in some ways made sense. His mother and grandmother had been New Yorkers. “When my family moved here many years ago, my great-great-grandfather had a special power. He could make plants grow with just his touch. When we arrived on the landyou see, the clan had just lost its leader, and were experiencing a horrible drought. My grandfather was told that the man who was able to make the plants grow could take his place as laird of the clan.”
Alyssa smiled. She was certain the story had been exaggerated a million times, but she liked it. “So, he made the crops grow?”
“First, he went out to the field and spread water from the loch all around the plants. He even asked the men to spread the field wider and plant more. Then when everyone was asleep that night, he walked out, put his hand on the field, and told the plants to grow. By morning, the crop was ready to be harvested. He was moved into the keep with his wife, and they were the first Laird and Lady McClain.”
She pursed her lips thinking about the story. “And how did they come to the name McClain. The Mc for families is only in Ireland and Scotland from what I’ve read.”
“You are correct. Our family name was simply Lain back in England, and we took on the Mc part to be part of the Scottish clan. Now we are McClains.”
“Does it bother you that you don’t have a power?” she asked.
“Nay. With the power comes the responsibility of leading the clan and fathering seven sons. I would prefer to simply be Kendrick, part of the clan, but not one with much pressure.” Kendrick glanced at her to see her mind working. His favorite part about the women from the future is they had all been taught to think like men. Conversations were never boring.
“That makes sense to me. I couldn’t marry the youngest brother, and not only because Holli already did. I wouldn’t want to be responsible for birthing seven sons.”
