Highland Troth (Highland Talents Book 3) Read Online Free Page A

getting into, but what he might be taking Caitrin Fletcher into. Yet, she was the linchpin. The enticement. The one thing the Fletcher pinned his hopes to for the betterment of his clan. Fletcher’s clan, not Lathan’s. So what about this trip, this errand, made Jamie uneasy?
    He shifted in his saddle and considered the problem from another angle. He no longer knew the MacGregor. Their time together at St. Andrews was five years gone, and they hadn’t been close. Arriving only a few months after his sister’s death, Jamie had not been the most motivated of students and as a result, had fallen under the watchful eye of several of his tutors, which meant extra hours of study. MacGregor completed his time at St. Andrews during Jamie’s second session there. Before Alasdair left, he had been more interested in socializing and more practiced at getting around his tutors, so they rarely crossed paths. But taking on the mantle of leadership changed a man, especially if that burden came unexpectedly, as it had to many younger sons, and daughters, of lairds killed at Flodden. Chances were, Jamie would barely recognize Alasdair MacGregor when they met again.
    Of course, Jamie no longer knew Caitrin Fletcher, either. He hadn’t laid eyes on her in six years. She might be nothing like the bonnie lass she’d been as a fosterling with clan Lathan. Since then, she’d had six years to grow up, six years to change, six years to harden, six years to... oh, hell . He bit his lower lip for a moment, trying to distract himself, but it didn’t work. What if she remained exactly the same? He’d been half in love with her then. Half maddened by any notice she gave Toran. How would it feel to see her now? No longer a lass too young for his attentions, but a woman ripe for marriage…and the marriage bed. Bollocks. This line of thinking was getting him nowhere good.
    And how would she react when she saw him? She probably expected Toran, primed for battle, reading to defend against his teasing and taunting. Or to use well-practiced feminine wiles to gain his favor, or her revenge. Jamie regretted some of the things they’d done at Toran’s instigation while trying to rid themselves of their unwanted and annoying shadow. At least that’s how Toran had characterized her, and Jamie had no doubt she knew it. Toran never hid how he felt. But if Toran had been the one to make this trip, to escort her to her betrothal, she’d have been surprised at the changes in him since he’d been forced to become the Lathan laird. Bearing that responsibility, he’d grown up, matured, in all the ways that mattered. Even more since Aileana’s arrival.
    More than likely, Caitrin would be prepared for an interesting, even irritating, trip to her betrothal, but no more than that. She’d be focused on her eagerness, or her anxiety, to meet her prospective husband. Women obsessed about such things.
    Jamie glanced around at Kyle and the four other Lathans riding with him on the way to guard and escort Caitrin. Donal had trained them well to fight, but also to avoid a fight. Judging by their silence and the movement of their eyes as they rode, they were alert and aware of their surroundings. They would be even more careful once Caitrin joined them. It wouldn’t do to let her be stolen away by bandits or brigands or lowlanders. The territory between the Fletcher and the MacGregor keeps was not known to be particularly dangerous, but it paid to be prepared. A large party attracted attention a smaller party might avoid. Toran wanted allies, not enemies. Peace, not war.
    Finally, Jamie looked down upon a broad glen. At Will’s nod, he surmised they’d arrived. The Fletcher keep was a tower house with wings built off two sides, added, Jamie supposed, years or even generations after the original tower had been built to secure the surrounding glen. Like most keeps of its type, the tower’s ground floor had no windows and only one door. The first floor above it had