4
" I will no’ be tellin’ ye ‘I told ye so’, but I will be usin’ words to that effect.” Marcum said as he sat behind the table in his study. “I was right, aye?”
Graeme knew any attempt to deny that everyone else had been right would seem ludicrous. Instead, he paced around his father’s study, his mind sprinting from one thought to another.
“As was yer mum,” Marcum said as he poured himself a cup of fine whisky. “And yer brothers. They were right as well.”
Graeme stopped pacing long enough to glare at his father.
The man sat tall and proud in his chair, a look of deep satisfaction etched on his face.
“Are ye quite done?”
Marcum laughed, a deep, rumbling laugh that made his belly and shoulders shake. “Well, the cook, stable master, and blacksmith knew it as well.”
Graeme let out a long heavy breath. “Aye, everyone on God’s earth knew but me.”
“Aye, ye have the way of it, son. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
5
" She stood before him in a pale green dress, her hair unbound and tumbling down her back, her smile –the one he should have seen days ago –was enough to light up the darkest night.
His mouth had suddenly become dry and paralyzed, as if he’d been born without the ability to speak. Or swallow. Or think any coherent thought. Graeme felt all at once foolish, immature and unworthy.
He was about to turn and run away like a boy, when Josephine all but flung herself into his embrace, twining her slender arms around his waist and resting her head against his chest.
“Graeme,”she said, a note of glee in her voice. “I’ve waited a very long time for you.”
The sensation of feeling foolish, immature and unworthy fell away as he wrapped his own arms around her. Why did I resist this for all these years?
She pushed away slightly to look up at him. He studied every inch of her lovely face. Josephine was quite beautiful, with her creamy skin and oval shaped face. Her green eyes reminded him at once of the summer grass that lined a French countryside. Dark lashes surrounded those eyes –eyes that were sparkling with joy and excitement as they looked into his. A pert, little nose and deliciously looking full, pink lips, which he was quite certain would feel as soft as a whisper against his own.
He wondered then if anyone would object if he married her now. This very day. This very moment.
“Ye’re beautiful,”he said.
Those cream colored cheeks turned a lovely shade of pink when he gave her the compliment.
“Jose—”he stopped himself. “Joie, I ken I am wholly unworthy of ye, but would ye do me the distinct honor of marryin’me?”
Josephine had already agreed to such, more than four years ago. She had learned, however, through his letters, that it had been quite important to Graeme that he be able to marry a woman of his own choosing.
Her heart felt close to bursting from her chest.
He was choosing her of his own free will.
A joy-filled smile curved on her face and she flung her arms around his neck. “Aye, Graeme MacAulay, I will marry you. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
6
" Now, are ye goin’ to let me teach ye how to swim?”
Reckoning ’twas better to let Elise have her way than to have the topic turn back to Albert, she reluctantly agreed.
“’ Tis terrifyin’,” she murmured as she stared out at the calm water .
From somewhere inside her, a little voice whispered, ye’ve been through far more terrifyin’ times than this. Taking a deep breath and straightening her back, she decided she could at least try.
“Verra well,” she said in a resolute tone. “But I swear, if ye let me drown, I’ll haunt ye all the rest of my days.”
Elise laughed heartily. “I swear, I’ll no’ let ye drown. Albert would kill me. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
8
" I claim her,” Albert said. “I will marry the lass.”
Josephine and Laurin gasped in wide-eyed astonishment.
Josephine reached out and grabbed Laurin’s hand to keep her from either falling off her mount, or jumping down in order to run away.
Helmert threw his head back and laughed. Darvord and Clarence joined in.
From her vantage point, Josephine could see the murderous glare in Albert’s eyes. She could also see that he was quite serious.
After several long moments of guttural laughter, Helmert looked up at Albert. “Ye cannae be serious? Ye want to marry Laurin? She has no dowry or name to offer ye.”
“She does no’ need a dowry or a name,” Albert told him firmly. “I have a bride price.” He reached into his sporran and removed a leather bag filled with coins and tossed it to Helmert. “One hundred and eight merks,” he said before turning away to head toward the horses.
Not one MacAulay brother or man moved, for they were frozen in place by what they’d just seen. Tightfisted Albert, the man who rarely parted with his money, had just paid an unbelievable amount of coin for Laurin’s freedom. ’Twas a shocking moment no one would soon forget.
Helmert was also surprised, but for different reasons. He tested the weight of the pouch and looked up at Albert. “Be ye certain ye want her?”
Albert answered with a stone-cold glare.
“She be no’ pure, ye ken?” Helmert said. “She’s been used more times than a —”
Albert did not give him time to finish the taunt. He drew back and slammed a large fist into Helmert MacAdam’s nose. Helmert fell back and landed with a thud . Rivulets of blood ran from his nose and trailed down his cheek. Neither of his friends bothered to step forward to offer any assistance. Albert stood over him. “I be no’ as kind as me brother. I do no’ give any man the opportunity to insult me betrothed. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
9
" I still cannae believe we are finally here,” Laurin said, sounding more hopeful than she had just moments ago. “Ye’re certain we will be safe here?”
Josephine smiled thoughtfully. “What do you think?”
Laurin thought about it for a few moments before she answered. “Well, they do seem kind, aye? And so far, no’ one of them has tried to lift me skirts. And they do no’ drink and curse and carry on like the three eejits did.”
The “three eejits” she referred to were Helmert, Darvord and Clarence . ’Twas a living nightmare the three men had put them through, though Laurin suffered far more than Josephine had. Trusting anyone was not an easy feat for Laurin, and who could blame her after all the “three eejits ” had done to her over the past few years? Though it was comforting that she believed the MacAulay men were kind, Josephine knew it would be a very long time before Laurin put complete trust in any man.
“I agree,” Josephine told her. “They are a marked improvement over the eejits.”
Laurin giggled. “Pigs be an improvement over the eejits. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
10
" Before she could utter another word, Albert’s voice boomed from the hallway. “I will kill him. If he has so much as hurt one hair on her head, I will kill him.”Albert stood with his hands on his hips, in full battle gear. Chain mail, helm, sword and dirks. The half helm did not cover his face entirely. And it could do nothing to mask his fury. Purple with rage, his eyes afire with barely controlled rage, he stood with his shoulders back and a fierce glare that warned he meant every word he spoke.
“Albert, I be so sorry,”she told him. “I do no’ken how he came to know about the sword or why he wants it.”
“Joie,”Albert said as he took one step forward. “I do no’give one bloody wit about the Gladius. Ye are me sister now and I would never do a thing to bring you any pain. But Laurin? I love her with all me heart.”
He needn’t say more. The pain, the anguish, blended with fury, were clearly evident.
“I will not ask you to show any of them any mercy,”she told him.“Laurin is the sister of my heart. Please,”she choked on her words. “Bring her home. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
11
" Josephine placed the cloth back in the basin then filled a cup with cold water. Helping Laurin sit up to drink, she encouraged her to sip slowly.
“Sister of my heart, I cannot tell you how happy I am to see you awake and without the fever.”
Laurin smiled and thanked her. Falling back against her pillows, she asked, “The Gladius?”
“’ Tis safe with Graeme. And it will remain in his possession until we have a daughter of our own.”
Laurin envied her friend, but not with spite or malice. “I be so verra glad that ye have found true love,” she told her.
Josephine returned her smile, leaned in closely to whisper in her ear. “If you open your eyes and your heart , I believe you will discover you have found it as well.”
Confused, her brow knotted. “What do ye mean?”
Josephine pressed a tender kiss to her forehead. “Look about the room, my sister, and you will find I speak the truth.”
Laurin looked at Albert with a confounded expression.
Josephine whispered one last thought before quitting the room. “He never left your side. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
12
" Albert slid quietly from his horse and walked across a small clearing, and before Graeme knew what was happening, picked him up and threw him arse over toes into the cool water.
As the very stunned — and soon Albert would realize, quite angry — Graeme got his bearings and stood up, coughing and sputtering, Albert turned back to his horse.
At that point, a swarthy looking man, wearing a ridiculous looking tunic and an even more ridiculous pair of trews, jumped from behind two large boulders with his weapon drawn. “Prepare to die, peasant,” he shouted in French.
Albert raised a curious brow as he unsheathed his broadsword. The falchion the Frenchman had pointed at him was no match for his broadsword. “Who the bloody hell are ye?”
“I am Remi Francois Claremont LeFavre,” Remi answered with a slight bow and flourish. “Brother to the man you just threw into the lake and whose honor you have besmirched by your actions. Again, peasant, I tell you to prepare to die.”
Albert rolled his eyes and re-sheathed his sword. “Is this fool with ye?” Albert asked Graeme. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
14
" Traigh began the taunting first. “Pray, tell me brother, be there any truth to these rumors floatin’ about the keep?”
Graeme shot him a look of warning. It didn’t do a bit of good.
“What rumors be those, brother Traigh?” Albert asked, feigning ignorance on the matter.
Traigh crossed his arms over his chest. “Why, the rumors that our brother Graeme has fallen in love with our Joie. So much so that they will be married this verra day.”
Graeme had two choices. He could tell his brothers to shut their mouths and leave him be or he could stand like a man and admit the truth, at least as much of it as he could without looking like a fool.
“Aye,” he said as he stepped toward them. “The rumors be true. I have fallen hopelessly in love with my Joie, and aye, we will be married this verra day. Before the evenin’ meal, in fact.”
Traigh and Albert were momentarily stunned at Graeme’s open admission. But ’twas short-lived. Broad smiles broke out on their faces and soon, they were congratulating him with hugs and heavy slaps on the back.
When the celebrating was over, Traigh asked, “Do ye ken what ye’re to do this night? After the weddin’?”
Graeme’s smile evaporated almost instantly. “If ye utter one unkind, disrespectful word as it pertains to consummation and me wife, I swear, I will beat ye within an inch of yer life.”
Traigh quickly wiped away the smile and attempted to appear serious and fully chastised. “Aye, Albert, he be in love, let there be no doubt. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
15
" Irline crossed her arms over her chest and stared up at him, her curiosity quite evident. “A boon?”
“Aye, just one boon.”
“Tell me what boon it be that ye seek. I’ll no’ say aye or nay until I hear it.”
He was quite thankful that she was at least willing to listen. “Let me have just a few moments with Joie, alone, without all the women around.”
“Are ye daft?” she asked with a most serious tone.
“Aye, I fear so,” he said as he offered her a warm smile. “All I ask is fer a few moments alone with her. I’ll even keep the door open and ye can watch to make certain I do no’ do anythin’ either one of us would be ashamed of.”
Irline studied him closely for several long moments, sizing him up, looking for any hint of insincerity or deceit. Finally, she gave a curt nod of her head. “Verra well,” she said.
Graeme was so overcome with relief that he scooped her up and hugged her. “Put me down, now, Graeme MacAulay!” she said as she smacked the back of his head.
He was still smiling when he carefully set her back on her feet. “Thank ye, Irline, from the bottom of me heart.”
“Do no’ thank me yet, Graeme. If yer mum finds out, I’ll lie and tell her ye held us all at sword point.”
“’ Tis a risk I be willin’ to take,” he said. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
17
" I only want her to feel safe. No’just with me, but with all of us.”
Marcum smiled thoughtfully from behind the desk. “She will, son. It will simply take time.”He sipped at his whisky, studying his son closely for a long while. “Are ye willin’to wait?”
From what his father told him, it could be years before Laurin felt safe enough to allow him entry into her heart. Years. “It be true, that I be no’gettin’any younger,”he answered.
“None of us are,”Marcum replied dryly.
There was not another young lass on their island, within their clan, who had ever made his heart thrum so feverishly against his chest. Laurin’s beauty, her smile, were rivaled by none. From the first moment he’d set eyes on her, he simply knew. Knew to his bones, that she was the one. He’d settle for no other.
“Aye, I can wait. As long as she needs.”
Marcum quirked a questioning brow. “Years if need be?”
He gave a curt nod of his head before downing the last of his whisky. “A lifetime if she needs it. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
18
" He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Ye be a sight for sore eyes, lass,” he told her. “But we’ve no’ much time.”
He handed her up to Marcum, who placed her on his lap and wrapped his arms around her.
“Nay!” she pleaded, her mind dizzy with fear, relief, terror. “I want Albert!”
Marcum started to pat her hands comfortingly when he realized her wrists were bound. He removed his dirk and began to carefully cut away the leather straps.
“Where do ye hurt, lass?” he asked.
Laurin gave a rapid shake of her head. “Everywhere, but I do no’ think anythin’ is broken,” she told him through chattering teeth.
Making certain she’d not fall, he removed his cloak and draped it around her shoulders.
“Where is Albert?” she implored as she searched for him. “I want Albert!”
“Och, lass, Albert be a wee bit busy at the moment,” he explained. “He has a few men to kill. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
19
" Three years later he had another opportunity to see the little girl.
Helmert had been tearing through the keep, bellowing like a mad bull as he searched for his sister. “Josephine , I swear I’ll rip yer head off when I find ye!”
’Twas eerily similar to Graeme’s first visit.
Remembering his first encounter with the tree sprite, Graeme went in search of Josephine. The first place he looked was the auld oak tree, but she was not there. After a careful search out of doors, he went inside. She was not in the larder or the kitchen. It took more than half an hour before he finally located her in her father’s study, hiding under the large desk.
Graeme crouched low so he could see her better. It didn’t appear she had grown much in three years, though she had lost the cherubic face. This time she wore a dark green dress and matching slippers.
The last time he’d seen her, she’d been quite terrified of her brother. Now, she looked quite angry.
“I’ll nae tell, Josephine,” he whispered, offering her a kind smile.
A scrunched brow said she didn’t believe him.
“Pray tell, what did ye hide this time?” he asked, hoping his amused tone would help lighten the mood.
Reluctantly, she finally confessed. “His strop.”
Graeme raised a confused brow. “Why would ye hide his strop?”
The little girl looked at him as though he were quite daft. “So he will not beat me with it. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
20
" Reaching into his sporran, he pulled out a small bundle wrapped in fine linen. “I want to give ye somethin’, somethin’I want ye to wear this day.”Carefully, he unfolded the linen and held his hand out to her.
Josephine’s eyes widened with curiosity and joy. “’Tis beautiful, Graeme!”
“It be a brooch that each MacAulay lad receives when he turns six and ten. I want ye to have it.”
Josephine carefully took it and studied it closely. Made of pewter, in the center of the brooch were two hands, one decidedly masculine, the other feminine. The masculine hand held the feminine hand in his palm. In the center of her palm was a tiny ruby. To one side, the circle had been engraved to look like stars twinkling near a crescent moon. On the other were the words aeterna devotione. Eternal devotion.
Tears filled her eyes as she looked into his. “Ye want me to have this?”
“Aye, I do, Joie,”he said as he placed a kiss on her forehead. “Me great-great-great grandfather presented a brooch just like this to his wife, me great-great-great grandmum. But no’until the first anniversary of their weddin’day. ’Twas a symbol of the great love they had found with one another. ’Tis tradition for the MacAulay men to only give their brooch to a woman who has stolen their heart, a woman they love and trust above all else.”
Tears trailed down her cheeks, her heart beating so rapidly she was certain it would burst through her breastbone at any moment.
“I do no’quite understand how it happened, or how it happened so quickly, Joie, but it has. Amorem in corde meo ut arctius coccino colloeandus arctius ideo astra,”Graeme said first in Latin and then again in Gaelic, “Toisc go bhfuil do ghrá eitseáilte isteach i mo chroí i corcairdhearg, mar sin tá sé eitseáilte amonst na réaltaí.”He placed a tender kiss on her cheek. “As yer love be etched into me heart in crimson, so it be etched amongst the stars,”he told her. “As me grandda said those words to me grandmum all those many years ago, I say them to ye. "
― Suzan Tisdale , Isle of the Blessed
