To Marry A Scottish Laird Read Online Free

man’s derriere was.

 
    Chapter 2
    “ M MMM. ’ T IS GOOD.”
    Joan glanced sideways to Cam and nodded silently. They were sharing a small log as they ate the rabbit and vegetables by the small fire she’d built. The meal had turned out surprisingly well considering she’d had so little to work with. Or perhaps this meal tasted so good to her because she hadn’t had meat since setting out on this journey. Joan hadn’t wanted to draw attention to herself, or take the time to bother with a fire while traveling on her own, so had made do with berries and any wild vegetables she’d encountered. She’d also packed two loaves of bread in her bag when she’d set out, but had finished the last of that while watching over Cam.
    Of course, he thought it was good too. But then this was the first bit of food he’d had in three days. That was sure to color his opinion.
    “So Jo,” Cam said suddenly around a bite of rabbit. “How old are you?”
    “Twenty,” Joan answered without thinking, and glanced up with surprise when the Scot burst out laughing.
    “ ’Tis sorry I am boy, but ye barely reach me chest, yer face is hairless, yer voice has yet to change, and ye’ve no’ developed a bit o’ muscle yet.” He shook his head. “If ye’ve seen more than twelve or thirteen years, I’ll eat me horse.”
    Joan ducked her head, and picked at her meat, but her mind was in a bit of a muddle. She’d briefly forgotten that she was supposed to be a boy. That was a dangerous slip. Not that she believed Cam would harm her if he knew she was a female. She’d saved his life, after all, and that after he’d saved her. It didn’t suggest he was the sort to attack a woman traveling alone. Besides, there was little he could want from her. She had no money, and from what she’d seen of her face in the river’s surface when she was washing the rabbit, she was a mess. Joan had hardly recognized herself. Her face was almost universally swollen. Her eyes had black circles around them that were just beginning to turn green at the edges as the bruising started to fade. Her upper lip was swollen and cut and there was another bruise on her jaw as well. She wasn’t anywhere near attractive enough to move a man to want to attack her. Still, she’d donned this garb for the journey for a reason. ’Twas better to be safe than sorry. Besides, she didn’t want Cam to have to eat his horse.
    That thought made her smile, which in turn made her wince as her split lip complained at the stretching.
    “Who are ye to deliver the letter to in Scotland?” Cam asked suddenly.
    Joan hesitated about answering. The Scots were well known for their clan feuds. If the MacKays were an enemy of the Sinclairs, would he try to stop her from completing her task? She frowned at the possibility.
    “Ye will no’ tell me?” he asked with surprise when she remained silent.
    Joan shrugged. “What can it matter to you?”
    Instead of responding to that, he suggested, “Tell me about yer mother then.”
    Her eyebrows rose with surprise. “Why?”
    “Why no’?” Cam said with a shrug. “Neither o’ us is in any shape to travel, and we’ve naught better to do than talk. ’Sides, I’m curious to ken what kind o’ woman would move a lad to take on a quest like this. ’Tis a large task indeed for a young boy to try to make this journey on foot and with no coin. She must have kenned she was settin’ ye a difficult and dangerous task and yet she asked it o’ ye anyway.”
    Joan lowered her head again. The fact that she was a woman made the task an even more dangerous one than Cam thought, and her mother had been aware of it. She’d repeatedly fretted over and warned her about the many and varied dangers. She’d insisted she take every precaution, and she’d berated herself for not handling the matter herself while she’d still been healthy enough to do it. Finally, she’d apologized to Joan, telling her that she loved her, and that she hoped Joan