Today, however, she saw another view entirely.
The courtyard extended past her window. The stone fence, which kept out warring clans in days past, today held in some of the animals as they roamed the yard. Peggy had told her that her brothers were going to spend the day fixing the fence, and were now at the portion right below. Kyla had returned to her room at midday to change into attire more appropriate for riding, and movement out her window caught her eye.
The sun shone down on the three of them—Roderick, Adam, and Finlay. Due to the exertion of their work they had stripped bare, with the exception of their short kilts. They were all solidly built, with strong, sinewy muscles. Adam and Roderick were nothing to overlook, but it wasn’t until her gaze turned to Finlay that her heart started to beat wildly. She didn’t know what it was about the ornery man, but despite her misgivings of some of his traits, physically she had never seen better. Unseen up here alone, she drank in her fill of the view. His biceps flexed as he swung his pick, and the planes of the tanned skin on his chest were highlighted by the sun glinting off the sweat.
He was a Highland Laird of the past come to life, and she felt like a traitor to her rational mind as her body yearned to feel his arms around her once again.
She jolted at the knock on her door and heat rushed through her at being caught. She took a moment to compose herself before crossing the room to open the door, finding Peggy on the other side.
“Are ye ready for our ride?”
“Nearly,” Kyla said, turning for a moment and fastening the top of the plaid.
Peggy was determined to work on her skills on a horse. Her brothers had taught her in their own way, but Kyla knew more than just how to ride—she bonded with her horse and they truly became one. Kyla wasn’t sure how to teach that, but she was happy to show Peggy what she could.
“Are you ready, Kyla?” Peggy asked again, and Kyla realized she hadn’t moved in a few moments, still lost in her thoughts. She responded with more enthusiasm than she had initially meant.
“Absolutely!”
“Your cheeks are quite flushed,” Peggy said, peering at her quizzically. “Are you all right?”
“Never better. Let’s go.”
* * *
Peggy was becoming more confident on her horse, Kyla thought to herself. It was a step forward, although many times it was a matter of simply finding the right horse. You had to make the right match—like a marriage, she supposed. A love marriage, that was.
Kyla didn’t see Finlay again until that evening when the family sat down for supper. As she took her place beside him, he gave her a slight smile and nodded his head, more of a greeting than was usual for him.
Kyla caught Jane’s smile at her. Peggy told her that her mother had great hopes that their marriage could become something more than it currently was, but Kyla still wasn’t so sure. She knew Jane wanted to see her children happy, but at some point, Finlay had to make the decision himself—to trust her, to open up to her, to show her that there was more there besides the ornery front he provided everyone.
They heard a noise from the great hall, and just as Duncan began to rise to see what it was about, Kyla was shocked to see Rory standing in the entrance of the dining room.
“Forgive me for the interruption,” he said, still breathing somewhat hard from what had apparently been a quick ride over. “But we’ve a situation we were hoping you could help with—family and all that we are now.”
“Come sit,” Duncan said, waving him in. “Fill yourself a plate and tell us what the trouble is.”
Rory nodded as he took a seat at the extra setting that was hastily laid out for him. Kyla saw the delight on Peggy’s face that it was next to her.
Rory said he hadn’t eaten before heading out to the McDougalls, and shoveled his supper in quickly, speaking between bites.
“Our crofters aren’t paying the rents,” he said without any further lead in. “We go to collect and they turn us away. Their numbers are large and we are having issues with enforcing the payment. They’re beginning a resistance against us.”
Duncan sighed and looked around the table at his sons.
“What’s their reasoning?”
“That we’ve moved them from their land so they should not have to pay the same for what we have moved them to.”
“Sounds reasonable to me,” Finlay finally chimed in.
“Finlay!” said Kyla, defending her brother, as she had for most of her life.
“Really, Kyla, would you pay the same for goods that are of less value? I think not,” he said, his face pinched.
Kyla was torn. She knew he was right, but also didn’t want to betray her family. Instead, she tried to think of a solution without actually sharing an opinion in any way.
“Have you talked to them, Rory?” she asked. “Tried to reason with them? Perhaps they would provide you with a partial payment to, at the very least, cover what they feel is reasonable.”
“I have not talked to them, myself,” he said, somewhat uncomfortably. “Father’s men went.”
“Rory, you have to go yourself sometimes,” Kyla said, attempting patience. “People respect you more that way, to see you in person.”
Finlay snorted and Kyla gave him a look. She knew what he was thinking. His father, and now Finlay in turn, spent most of their days working with the people of their clan. Rory, he had maintained, was a “lazy ass,” and while Kyla could see where he was coming from, she had felt compelled to defend her brother.
“What do you want of us? Why come
