Cam could see that the old man was resistant. Hurt, even, that his grandson should lie to him.
“I want ye tae understand how I feel,” Cam said. “I think I want tae marry her.”
That brought a reaction from Nikolaus, who stopped chewing and looked up at his grandson.
“Marryher?” he repeated, aghast. “A lass from the hills?”
“Aye.”
Nikolaus was trying to keep his composure. Sighing faintly, he set down his spoon. “Cam, I dunna want tae hurt ye, but ye canna be serious. A lass from the hills is—”
Cam cut him off. “She’s different from any lass I’ve ever known,” he said. “She is smart and she is strong. She’s not like the women in this town; she doesna care about a man’s money or his position. She only cares about his heart.”
Nikolaus wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and stood up, collecting his thoughts. “But ye know nothing else about her, lad.”
“I dunna need tae know anything else about her.”
“She’s from the hills. That means she’s either Ruthven or Keith.”
“I know.”
“Has she told ye of her clan? Has she spoken of her family?”
Cam shook his head as the conversation grew heated. “I told ye that I dunna care,” he said. “I think she’s afraid tae tell me, but the truth is that I dunna care. Neither the Ruthven or the Keith have ever done anything against me, so I dunna care where she’s from or who she’s part of.”
Nikolaus was standing by the hearth, sincerely trying not to blow up at his foolish grandson.
“If ye dunna care, others will,” he said. “What of her family? What if they refuse tae accept a husband from Netherton and Clan Lindsay? Have ye thought of that? Ye may love the lass, but if her family refuses ye, there’s nothing ye can do.”
Cam watched his grandfather, the way the man was coiled. There was a good deal of pent-up emotion in Nikolaus’ manner, more than Cam thought there should be.
“I dunna care about her family right now,” he said. “I only care about ye. Do ye have a great hate for Keith and Ruthven, then? Ye’ve never told me so. Ye’ve never paid much mind taeclan ties or relations. Ye always said that if a man has a good heart, it doesna matter where he’s from.”
Nikolaus’ shoulders slumped. “That is true,” he said. “But I speak from experience. There was a Keith lass I was fond of, once, a very long time ago. Like ye, I had dreams. I thought she was the only woman for me. But when it came time tae meet her family, they had a powerful hatred for anything related tae the Lindsay. They told me they’d kill me if I dinna leave her be. I dinna listen, and tae prove their point, they injured my mother when she was working her garden one day. After that, I stayed away. I had no choice.”
Cam was listening intently. Now, his grandfather’s staunch resistance to his entanglement with a lass from the hills was starting to make sense. It was also quite distressing.
“Ye never told me that,” he said after a moment.
“I never had cause tae,” Nikolaus said. He looked at his grandson imploringly. “Lad, I tell ye this for yer own good. I would hate tae see ye disappointed, or worse. Ye must forget about the lass from the vale or her family might not take kindly tae it.”
Cam understood his grandfather’s point, as discouraging as it was. But he didn’t agree with it; he couldn’t. Isadora was different. He couldn’t believe that anything would destroy their budding romance or their plans, not families nor clans nor old hatreds.
He wasn’t going to let them.
“Then I’ll take her away where clans dunna matter,” he said seriously. “I’ll take her tae Edinburgh. I’ll find work there and we’ll be married. I understand yer concern, but I canna give in tae hatred that I dunna feel. It’s foolish.”
Nikolaus could see the heart of a man who only wanted to love a woman regardless of the circumstances. “Mayhap it isfoolish, but it is the reality,” he said. “Please, lad, for my sake… stop seeing the lass before it’s too late.”
Cam wasn’t going to listen to him. He was starting to become defensive. Rising from his seat, he went in search of his cloak.
“It is already too late,” he said, swinging the heavy cloak over his shoulders. “I know ye’re trying tae spare me the heartache ye went through, but I have my own life tae lead. When I come back from Brechin, I will go and bring Isadora back here tae meet ye. Ye have tae see her tae understand what I feel for her, Granda. I know ye’ll like her.”
Granda.It was rare when Cam addressed Nikolaus that way, so when he did, it meant something. Cam could be more stubborn than most, but Nikolaus wasn’t going to cave to him.
Not this time.
“Dunna bring her here,” he said. “Not until ye know of her family. Not until ye know everything about her and her family is agreeable tae ye bringing her tae me. Until then, I dunna want tae see her. Do ye understand me?”
