His Highland Prize (The Clan Sinclair Book 3) Read online

  Even in his own head that sounded ridiculous. By now, Hagatha probably had a fire lit in one of the other chambers with the intention of having her moved. He could easily carry her to another chamber, but the way she was tucked in and resting made him averse to the idea of moving her, and away from him.

  “I see ye couldnae be patient even a moment longer. How did ye ken she wasnae still in a state of undress and not ready to receive visitors? Ye should be in the passageway and not gawking like a trout with its mouth open.” Alex looked down at Hagatha who had moved quietly to stand before him. “She can rest here while I finish having a chamber prepared for her. I had a fire lit and a bed turned down for her. The room only needs a little longer to warm.”

  “Nay.”

  “What do ye mean ‘nay’?”

  “I mean just that. Nay. She isnae to be moved until she is awake and able to move on her own. I dinna want her jostled or disturbed. She’s obviously been through quite a trial already. If she isnae bothered by being in here, then neither am I. She stays.” Alex assumed the most natural position for all the Sinclair men, feet hips width apart and arms crossed.

  “Dinna start with that. Ye dinna intimidate me. Nae when I used to change yer dirty nappies. She canna stay in yer chamber. She’s barely more than a lass, so it isnae proper for a maiden to be in here. By now, the entire keep, if nae the entire clan, kens ye brought her in here.”

  “Aye, they all ken that she is unconscious as well. Does anyone truly believe I would molest an unconscious lass?” Alex looked duly insulted.

  “Nay, I suppose they wouldnae.” Hagatha began to move around the immobile monolith that was Alex, but he reached an arm out. He pulled her in for a loose embrace having hugged her his entire life.

  “Thank ye for tending to her. Do ye ken if she will make it?”

  “I wouldnae have set aboot having a chamber prepared for her if I thought it wouldnae get used.” She tsked as she patted him on the back and moved to the door.

  Alex walked silently to the bedside opposite from where Aileen leaned over her patient. She looked up when he stopped.

  “She will be well, ma lord, as long as a fever doesnae set in. She doesnae have one yet, but it vera well could come on during the night. If it does, I expect it will be fierce, and I canna say yet what will happen.”

  Alex simply nodded his head. He moved to the fireplace and lifted the chair in which he had sat holding his guest. He could not think of anything else to call her at this point. He brought the chair close to the bedside and sat down.

  “I will stay with her, ma lord. Ye dinna need to.”

  Alex simply shook his head as he bent forward to press the back of his own hand to her forehead. He was only mildly reassured that there was no fever, but she was still unnaturally cold and pale.

  “Why isnae she warm yet? Did ye nae let her soak long enough in the warm water?”

  “We did, but we couldnae keep her in there too long for fear of her temperature changing too rapidly, too soon. Hagatha put two heated bricks in the bed with her, and she had a plaid wrapped around her beneath the covers as well as the three ye can see on top.”

  Alex simply nodded his head as he kept watching her. Aileen moved about silently collecting her things and put them back into her bag from which she also drew an extra length of plaid. She walked over to the hearth and was about to sit down when Alex spoke again. His voice was so low that he barely heard himself.

  “Ye dinna need to stay. I ken ye have worked hard. Go to the Hall and get something to eat. Hagatha can arrange for ye to sleep with the other women tonight. I will call for ye the moment there is a need, but I dinna think she will move much tonight. Between exhaustion and being battered by the weather, I dinna think she will on the morrow either.”

  The healer began to shake her head and disagree, but Alex’s dark eyes and set jaw made her stop before she even started. It was clear that he would not budge and that his words were more an order than a suggestion. She nodded and moved to the door.

  “There is willow bark tea on the table beside the bed. If she seems restless, ye can give her a few spoonfuls. If she’ll take it, give her small sips of water too. Nae too much or she will retch or choke. The honey is for her cracked lips, and the salve is for her feet. She’ll need that reapplied every couple of hours.” With that, she quietly opened the door and stepped out. She left the door slightly ajar. Even if Alexander was not worried about propriety someone had to be for the girl’s sake.

  “Who are ye, lass? How did ye find yerself alone? What happened?” Alex asked these questions but knew no answers would be forthcoming. He watched as she slept peacefully. Eventually, his own eyes began to drift closed. He rested his head on his arm on the bed as he continued to face her. His last thought before drifting off was that he would find out what happened as soon as he could. No one, especially a young woman, traveled alone in such weather in the northern Highlands. Not unless it was dire.

  Alex awoke to a subtle shifting of the mattress under his arms and head. He looked around and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. His eyes settled on the sleeping woman in his bed. Brighde was shivering uncontrollably. It was even worse than when he brought her inside from the storm. He moved forward to check her forehead for a fever. Her brow was frigid to his hand, so he moved his palm along her cheek and down her neck. He pulled back the covers just enough to draw her hand out. Her nails matched the blue tinge of her lips.

  “Shite.”

  With no fever, he knew there was nothing else the healer could do except for the only thing he could do. In the back of his head, he knew he should probably call Aileen or any other woman to help him, but something compelled him to be the one to warm her. He moved over to the fireplace and threw two extra bricks of peat and three pieces of wood into the flames. He brought two more lit candles to the bedside tables, then looked over at the door. The draft through the passageway must have pushed it halfway open, so he mostly closed it, leaving it only ajar. He moved to the empty side of the bed and unpinned his plaid from his shoulder. He looked at the door one more time before he unbelted his plaid and caught it before it landed on the floor. He hesitated for only a moment before he pulled his leine over his head and drew back the covers far enough for him to climb in. He scooted close to the shivering, sleeping form and gently unwrapped the plaid before he reached for the hem of her nightgown. He had a momentary pang of guilt when he thought how she would react if she awoke. He did not want to scare her or make her worry that he had taken advantage of her but using his body heat against Brighde’s skin was the only way that she would warm up. He gently lifted the front of her nightgown up to her waist and then rolled her to her side. He was then able to lift the back up to her shoulders. He tried to leave the front of her nightgown hanging as far down her body as he could. He drew himself close to her and wrapped his arm around her front on top of the flannel. His body reacted immediately to the soft curves that filled his arms and pressed against his front. He willed his cock to relax and not swell as it clearly longed to do. He was not there to molest the woman or indulge in any sexual fantasies, but his body seemed to be of a different opinion from his head. He breathed in the light floral scent of the soap the women must have used. It was the lemongrass that his mother had preferred. As soon as he recognized the scent, he thought his body would calm. Normally, nothing would shut down his ardor like a woman who smelled like his mother, but this woman seemed to be an entirely different story. Despite recognizing the scent, his cock remained at attention.

  “Bluidy hell,” he muttered. “This isnae what I intended. It has clearly been too long since I’ve been with a lass.”

  Alex knew that putting any space or any material between them would defeat the point. He took several deep breaths and tried to think of anything else besides the feel of her round bottom pressing against his groin. He shifted his body slightly so that he could move his hips away and press his chest more firmly against her back. As the hair on his chest brush
ed her back, Brighde moaned softly. It was not a moan of pleasure. It was clearly pain. Alex leaned back slightly to allow the light from the fire and the candles to illuminate her back. It was covered in bruises and some scratches. Alex sat bolt upright and reached for one of the candles. Nothing could have cooled his ardor as quickly as what he saw now. He lifted the flannel gown high enough that he could see her entire back. It was riddled with bruises in various shades of healing. He could tell they were a couple of weeks old, but their distinct and dark coloring only proved how horribly she had been beaten. He only now noticed that a bandage was wrapped around her ribs, and it must have been the pressure against her bandage that made her moan. He gently rolled her onto her back. Yet again, he looked towards the door to make sure no one was near. He felt a bit like a naughty lad peeking at the lasses while they swam at the loch. He slowly lifted the front of her gown and tried to keep his gaze averted from the thatch of blond curls that lay at the juncture of her legs and hips. His eyes instead landed on the dark bruises that covered her breasts and chest. These were clearly the result of someone pinching her, and pinching hard. He looked back down to where the bandage was wrapped around her middle. He could see bruises peeking out from the top and the bottom. He pulled the nightgown back down. He had seen more than enough. He felt rage swelling in his chest, and his ears began to ring. Someone, no some man, had beaten this woman within inches of her life and very well may have raped her. Alex forced himself to take several deep breaths before he gently rolled her back onto her side. This time, when he lay next to her, he was exceedingly careful about how he wrapped himself around her. After only a moment or two, he heard her sigh and felt her body relax against his. He, too, relaxed and drifted off once again with his arm lightly but securely wrapped around her middle.

  The sky was just starting to soften from the darkness of night when Alexander felt like he was on fire. As he came awake, he could not understand why he felt like flames were licking at the front of his body and legs. As his eyes opened, he remembered where he was and, more importantly, who he was with. He looked down and saw blonde hair that was drenched in sweat. The lass’s back was damp with perspiration too. Alex knew immediately that this was not from him making her too hot. He knew he could be like a furnace when wrapped under too many covers, but this was clearly a vicious fever that took hold. He reached around and pressed the back of his hand against her forehead and then cheek. She was blazing hot.

  Alex climbed out of bed and wrapped his plaid around his waist. He did not bother with his belt but just tucked it closed. He rushed to the door and pulled it all the way open. Stepping into the passageway, he grabbed one of the lit torches from the sconce by his door. He moved across the landing to the top of the stairs. A few people had begun to move about in the Great Hall and others were beginning to awake.

  Spying Elpeth, Hagatha’s sister and head cook, he called down to her as quietly as he could.

  “Elspeth. Elspeth.”

  “I hear ye, lad, and so will everyone else if ye keep squawking.”

  “Can ye fetch Aileen and Hagatha? She’s spiked a high fever. She’s drenched in sweat and feels like she’s on fire.” He turned back towards his chamber without waiting for Elspeth to respond. He knew Aileen and Hagatha, and probably a small army of women would soon be in his room. When he arrived, he pulled his leine over his head and rewrapped his plaid around his waist still not bothering to properly pleat it or to use a belt. He spotted the cup of now completely cold willow bark tea on the bedside table and felt horrible that he had completely forgotten to give it to her or to follow any of Aileen’s instructions. He had fallen asleep twice without thinking about what the woman truly needed. He found the melted ice chips in a small bowl and gently lifting her head, he tipped the cold water to her lips. Brighde parted them as soon as she felt the liquid and allowed it to dribble down her throat. She seemed able to swallow even though she was not aware of what she did. Alex was careful not to give her too much as he remembered Aileen’s warning that she could choke or retch if given too much at once. He had just resettled her on the pillow when Aileen, Hagatha, and his father entered the room.

  All three took in his semi-state of undress and the clear indentations on the second pillow on the bed. As a one, they turned to look at him.

  “Da, I didna do aught wrong. Well besides forgetting to give her the willow bark tea,” he noted the last part as Aileen peered into the cup and shook her head. “I dozed off while sitting with her and woke in the middle of the night to her shivering. She was almost as cold as when I brought her inside. I stoked the fire and climbed into bed next to her. But only to share ma body heat. She seemed comfortable enough, and I must have fallen back to sleep. I awoke just moments ago to her feeling like she was on fire.”

  “This is exactly why I planned to stay here last night. The willow bark would nae have only eased her discomfort but helped lower a fever.” Aileen looked up at him. While her words sounded accusatory, her tone was anything but. She looked from Alex’s worried face to the woman and simply shook her head. “Ye didna do aught wrong. By warming her, ye probably saved her life more than the tea would have. The fever means her body is trying to fight off the infections. If she had frozen overnight, well—” Aileen trailed off as she moved about preparing a fresh cup of tea.

  Alex moved out of the way of Aileen and Hagatha as they tended their patient. He ran his hand through his hair making it stick up on end. He desperately wanted to pace but knew that would not help anyone and would only cause him to be in the way. He looked over to his father who was intently watching him rather than the women with their patient. All he could do was shrug. He did not know what else to say to his father. He felt incredibly useless and not entirely convinced by Aileen’s somewhat lackluster words of reassurance.

  The Sinclair moved over to his son and draped his arm across his back drawing him towards the window. They stood looking at the bailey below as it began to come alive for yet another morning.

  “Da, someone has beaten her. I dinna ken how she survived such a thrashing and then to have walked from God kens where to here. Those bruises are a couple of sennights old. I canna imagine where she came from or how far she walked, but she seemed intent to reach us for some reason. She seemed relieved to hear we are the Sinclairs.”

  “I ken, Alex. Hagatha and Aileen filled me in when they came below stairs. They said that she has been awfully mistreated, and it is a wonder that she made it here in one piece.”

  “Da, mistreated doesnae even begin to describe what I saw.”

  To this, Laird Sinclair raised one eyebrow.

  “I’m telling ye, I didna do aught wrong. When I awoke the first time, she was shivering so hard that her small body was able to shake the bed. I kenned the only thing to do was for me to share ma body heat with her. I could have called Aileen or any of the other women, but truth be told, none of them would have provided as much warmth as I could. I took off my plaid and leine and climbed into bed next to her. Without lifting the covers, I was able to pull her nightgown up and rolled her onto her side. I kept my hands on the outside of the gown, but it was as I brushed my chest against her back that I heard her groan. Da, I barely touched her. I brought the light over and looked at her. Her back is covered with scratches and bruises. I rolled her onto her back and, aye, I did lift up her nightgown, but the sight that met me was the last thing I ever wanted to see. It’s clear that someone did more than just beat her. They may have raped her, Da. She has pinch marks around her breasts, and now that the sun is coming into the chamber, I could see bruises around her neck from someone trying to strangle her.”

  “Alex, I ken all of this already. Aileen examined her thoroughly. She doesnae think the lass was raped, but it has been long enough now that she canna be sure until the lass can tell us herself.”

  “But who would have done something like this to her? Why? She looks to be tall and strong, but clearly no match for a mon.”

  “I suspect that
whoever beat her did so because she rejected him. There are few times where even an angry mon would do so much damage. This looks like wounded pride along with anger. This was punishment.” The Sinclair looked back over his shoulder and shook his head. It was close to only a year ago that his own daughter had been abducted and beaten by a rejected suitor, but even Mairghread’s injuries seemed inconsequential compared to what he could see and had heard of this woman’s condition.

  “What’re we going to do then?” Alex felt helpless for the first time since his mother had grown ill and then passed away. He and his brothers easily stood taller and broader than most men. Alone, they were each a force to be reckoned with, and as a team, they were virtually unstoppable. The only time they had not been able to win was as their mother lay dying. Alex had the same feeling now as he looked back at the slight form that was covered with a mountain of blankets and plaids. She seemed so tiny all of a sudden. As though she had shrunk in just the few minutes that he had turned away.

  “We will tend to her for as long as she needs and then offer sanctuary for as long as she wants.”

  “And if whoever did this finds her and comes for her?”

  “Find whom?” Alexander’s father gave him a pointed look.

  “Thank ye, Da.” He allowed his father to pull him in for a bear hug. Unlike most men or even most noble families, the Sinclairs never shied away from showing their affection to one another. Even at almost a score and a half, Alexander still felt comfort and safety when embraced by his father. Nothing had changed since he was a lad. He had a healthy fear and respect for the man who could still thrash him and his brothers in the lists, but he also knew that his father would give his life without a second thought for him and his siblings. Alex admired his father and hoped one day to be the kind of father and husband Alex had seen modeled all of his life.

  Chapter Two