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“I only had one,” Sebastian said, flushing pink.
“Liar!” Campbell laughed. “You had three—I saw you eat every one of them!”
“You had more than me,” Sebastian said.
“I did not.”
“Yes, you did, Cam!” Flora cried. “You had six—I saw you take that extra one when Mrs. McLeish wasn’t looking. You’ll eat so many that one day you’ll burst.”
“That’s enough, children!” Delilah snapped from her position at the head of the table.
Beside Attie, Fraser let out a snort.
“Does something amuse you, husband?” Delilah’s eyes flashed with danger, and Attie stifled a laugh at the expression on Fraser’s face. Herculean Highlander he may be, but he was ruled by his wife.
“I used to eat bannocks before supper, Lilah,” he said.
“Yes,” she retorted, “and just look at you now! So big you can hardly fit through the doorframe.”
“Ye’ve not complained about my size before,” he said, a wicked gleam in his eyes.
“Pas devant les enfants!” Thea cried.
“Quite so,” Delilah said, glancing at the children. “Devon, perhaps you can tell us whether your hunt was fruitful today. Did you catch any haggis on the mountain?”
Devon looked up from his plate and shrugged.
“We’ve been haggis hunting, haven’t we Campbell?” Fraser said. “Why don’t ye tell yer cousin about it?”
Campbell, who sat between Sebastian and Griffin, nodded enthusiastically.
“They live on the tops of mountains,” he said, “and they’re very difficult to catch unless you know how. They only go round the mountain one way.”
“What do you mean, Campbell?” Attie asked.
“Their legs are shorter on one side,” Fraser said, “aren’t they, Cam?”
Rowena leaned forward. “Why would a creature have legs of different length?”
“So they can walk round the mountain easily,” Fraser said. “Where the mountainside is very steep, the haggis can remain upright if he walks around the mountain. He has six short legs on one side and six long legs on the other, so he can keep his balance.”
Sebastian closed his eyes as if in thought, then opened them again. “So, a haggis has twelve legs?”
“Only the male haggis,” Campbell said. “The female haggis has ten legs, doesn’t she, Papa? That’s what you told me. And her short legs are on the other side.”
“The other side?” Attie asked.
“Yes, that’s right!” Flora explained excitedly. “Do you know why that is, Sebastian?”
Attie’s son shook his head.
“It’s so the male and female can meet and make friends.”
“Make friends!” Across the table, Griffin let out a snort. “I never heard it calledthat.”
“Griffin!” Thea hissed. The huge man flushed and nodded.
“Sorry, my love.”
