“My apologies, laird,” Albie said.
Jamie cleared his throat, letting it pass. “Lads, I’d like to introduce ye to Elise MacFinnan. She’s come a long way to offer us her services. She’s a MacFinnan spellweaver.”
There were rumbles of surprise. The men glanced at each other and Jamie saw both awe and fear flash across their faces.
Albie was the first to recover. He stepped forward and offered Elise a bow that wouldn’t have looked out of place in the royal court at Edinburgh. “Welcome to Islay, my lady. We are honored.”
Elise blinked in surprise. “Er…thanks. But there’s no need to bow or call me ‘my lady.’ Elise will do.”
Albie straightened. “As ye wish.” He glanced at Jamie, clearly wondering how Elise had gotten here and exactly what was going on, but Jamie didn’t elaborate.
“Mount up,” he ordered. “We’re returning to the castle.”
They walked back to where they’d left the horses, and as they moved his men fell into a protective ring around him and Elise.
“Can ye ride?” Jamie asked her as they reached the line of stamping, impatient animals.
“Um. Sort of. I used to ride when I was younger. Then I discovered boys and alcohol and the pony trekking fell by the wayside.”
Jamie didn’t much like the idea of Elise and boys.
The men fell over themselves offering up their horses, so Jamie instructed Elise to take Donal’s horse—a docile gelding named Smokey—while Donal doubled up with Muir. Jamie swung up onto his own mount, settled his weight in the saddle,then glanced over at Elise. She didn’t look entirely comfortable on Smokey’s back and was gripping the reins a little too tightly.
“Ready?” he asked her.
“As I’ll ever be,” she muttered.
“Then let’s go.” The men nudged their mounts into motion, and they began the trek home.
Chapter Five
“We’re here, lass.”
At Jamie’s words, Elise blinked, coming out of the half doze she’d fallen into on the journey. She was tired and aching, not yet recovered from her solo climb. Add to that the fact that she’d then been hurled through time meant it had been quite a day. She felt like she could sleep for a fortnight.
But her fatigue fell away as she saw where they were. Ahead rose a huge blocky structure built of gray stone. There was a large central keep surrounded by other buildings, all of it enclosed by a large curtain wall. It crouched on the hillside like some snarling beast, glowering down at the surrounding landscape.
Elise found herself staring. “A castle?” she asked, her eyebrows climbing her forehead. “You live in an actual castle?”
“Aye,” Jamie replied, looking slightly bemused. “Where else would I live?”
Elise opened her mouth and closed it again. His answer reminded her how far from home she really was. She tried not to gawp like an idiot as they rode up to the castle, passed beneath the lintel of the huge gates, and into a wide courtyard of packed earth. They pulled their horses to a halt as a crowd of people came spilling from the keep. Young lads came running to take the horses and a crowd of household staff lined up outside the oak-hewn double doors.
They were all staring at Elise. She shifted uncomfortably. Bloody hell. Hadn’t they ever seen a woman wearing climbing gear before?
Elise dismounted and a wide-eyed youth came to lead away her horse, cloths were brought for Elise, Jamie, and his men to towel themselves down, and an older man and woman stepped forward. The woman had red hair tied into a loose plait that fell down her back and a stern gaze that reminded Elise of her old school headmistress. The man had silver hair with a beard to match and wore rich velvet clothes in a dark blue. He had a livid burn scar down the left side of his face which pinched his eye partially closed on that side. Elise found herself staring and tore her gaze away.
“My laird,” the burned man said, ignoring Elise’s stare. “Thank the Lord ye are home safely. When ye rode out so suddenly we feared the worst.” His piercing gaze flicked to Elise. “But it wasnae a raid that called ye away, I see?”
“Nay,” Jamie replied. “I went to collect a…guest.” He stepped back so that Elise was in full view. “Andrea, Phillip, I would like ye to meet Lady Elise MacFinnan.”
The red-haired woman’s brows rose and her mouth made a littleOof surprise. The burned man, Phillip, controlled his expression better, but even he startled a little when the name MacFinnan was mentioned.
Elise stifled a sigh. Great. Was everyone going to react like this?
“Elise, this is Andrea MacCabe, my housekeeper,” Jamie said. “And Phillip MacClelland, my chief advisor.”
Plastering a smile onto her face, Elise stepped forward and held out her hand. “Hi. Nice to meet you. I’m Elise.”
