Black Richard's Heart (The MacCulloughs #1) - Suzan Tisdale Page 0,64

of fear coursing through his veins. That quickly turned to anger. He was letting his guard down and with a MacRay to boot.

Nay, trusting her too soon, or ever at all, would undoubtedly lead to nothing but destruction. He would need to proceed with caution and a good deal of skepticism. He had agreed to the marriage because he wanted to stop the warring betwixt their clans. Aye, it helped that she was a comely lass with a brilliant smile and the prettiest blue eyes he’d ever seen.

Still, he had to be leery. What man in his position wouldn’t be? ’Twas for the sake of his clan he had married her. ’Twas for the sake of his clan he would not put his full trust in her. Not for a long, long while. Nay, she would have to prove herself a hundred times over before he could do that.

Lest he be naught more than a fly caught in a spider web. A web created by his wife, with the help of her traitorous, unfaithful father.

So slip from the bed and hide away in his room below stairs like a coward seemed the most reasonable solution.

Sleep had been difficult. Tossing and turning, he finally gave up his pursuit of a restful slumber when he heard voices in the gathering room.

Finding the stairs was not the problem. Traversing them without slipping, falling, or otherwise injuring herself was. Pausing at the top of the stairs, she listened for any signs of life below.

“M’lady?” came a voice from behind.

Startled, she jumped and spun around. Her heart pounded against her breast. She thought she recognized the voice.

“’Tis me, Mildred.”

Relief washed over her. “Good morn, to ye, Mildred,” she replied, pressing her hand to her chest. “Ye gave me a fright!”

“I be sorry, m’lady,” Mildred replied. “Do ye need help in findin’ yer demon of a husband this morn?”

Aeschene noted the mischievous tone to the woman’s voice and had no choice but to smile. “Aye, I do.”

“He be below stairs, in his private study the last I kent,” Mildred informed her.

“Would ye be so kind as to help me make my way below? I fear stairs and I do not always get along these days.”

Mildred cackled and took Aeschene’s hand. “I can help ye.”

Aeschene explained how she would feel better holding the back of Mildred’s dress while they descended the stone steps. “I do not feel so off-balanced that way.”

With a nod of her head, Mildred waited for her to grab hold. “So what will ye do to Richard this day?” she asked as she took the steps down.

“Do to him?” Aeschene asked.

“Aye,” Mildred laughed. “Yesterday, ye were mad enough to bite his head off. I must admit I rather enjoyed watchin’ him turn as white as a sheet when he saw ye on the ledge.”

“Mildred!” Aeschene said, astonished the woman would admit to such a thing.

“Och! Do not take that the wrong way, m’lady. ’Tis just that he has been a grousin’, stern man for far too long. It be about time he had a good woman who can put him in his place. Keep him on his toes, ye ken.”

Aeschene giggled with understanding.

“He be a good man, do not get me wrong. But these past few years have been hard on him. Hard on all of us.” Gone was Mildred’s playfulness.

“I fear I do not ken much about those struggles,” Aeschene replied. In truth, she knew very little about anything anymore. For years, she’d been locked away and forgotten, no longer a part of the nightly discussions with her family.

“But that be over now,” Mildred said, the laughter returning to her voice. “More than glad I am that Richard finally has him a wife.”

“Even if that wife be a MacRay?” Aeschene asked, her tone most sincere.

“Och!” Mildred cackled. “Ye be not a MacRay now, lass. Ye be a MacCullough.”

They reached the bottom landing and Aeschene let go. Her next thought was interrupted by the sound of heavy footfalls and her husband’s voice.

“Aeschene,” Black Richard called out as he crossed the gathering room.

Relieved to hear him, she smiled. “Richard.”

“Well, I shall leave ye to him, m’lady,” Mildred said with a chuckle.

Black Richard watched, bemused by the fact that Mildred was smiling and laughing. “What on earth is she about?” he muttered.

“What do ye mean?” Aeschene asked him.

“Mildred never smiles. Nor does she laugh.”

Believing he was exaggerating, Aeschene smiled up at him. “She seemed in fine spirits to me,” she told him. “She even offered to