Maiden of Inverness Read Online Free PDF Page A

Chapling.”
    Chapling. It was an old word meaning unity, and the man who wore the Highland crown also assumed the chieftainship of Clan Chapling.
    Baffled, Meridene rubbed her temples. “The women of Elginshire? What have they to do with the crown of the Highlands?”
    â€œThey will accompany you to Inverness and stand behind you when you demand the sword from your father. ’Tis a pilgrimage they long to make.”
    Pilgrimage? The word sparked an old and complex memory, but the image was too vague to recall in its entirety. One aspect, however, stood out sharply, and as always, it involved one man: her father. “Oh, no, for I will never set foot on my father’s land. Not for you, not even for the promise of paradise.”
    â€œYou dishonor the women who have sworn to share your quest.”
    The women. A band of strangers who expected her to demand the crown of the Highlands from her father, then bestow it on Revas Macduff. Not for a place at the right hand of God would she face the father who had tried to kill her rather than see her wed to a man not of his choosing. A monster. Scotland teemed with such beasts.
    As if he’d read her thoughts, Revas said, “Your father will not foul so much as the air you breathe. On that you have my word of honor.”
    His useless chivalry angered her more than his selfish assumptions. “The devil with Scottish honor.”
    Revas wanted to shake her and curse her for abandoning her birthright. Deep in his heart, he had harbored the hope that she would willingly come home to Scotland and seek her destiny. He’d underestimated the depth of her feelings and deluded himself about his own. He would do neither again.
    â€œResign yourself, Meridene.”
    â€œDelude yourself, Revas.”
    He had imagined what it would be like to hear her speak his name, but his expectation had not included scorn, for the Maiden should be beyond petulance. He had thought to woo her—a prideful mistake on his part. “Given time, you’ll see the right of it.”
    â€œGiven time, I will wreck your household.” She rose and moved so close that her gown brushed his knees. “I will turn maid against bootboy. I will insult the cook until she leaves in disgust. I will publicly accuse your steward of thievery.” Her pretty nostrils flared and even her hair quivered with the rage she could not control. “When I’m done, you’ll beg me to leave Scotland.”
    By the sacred stone, she was bold, and her formidable passion drew him like wind to sail. His servants would follow the Maiden of Inverness into the fires of hell. He’d spent years making it so. She couldn’t possibly disrupt his household. The notion was laughable.
    â€œSpare yourself the trouble, Revas. Take me back to the abbey now.”
    Excitement thrummed through him at the prospect of harnessing her passion. But first, he had to get her attention. “Very well.” She relaxed until he added, “I will return you to the abbey . . . when our first child is old enough to travel. I’ll even accompany you myself.”
    â€œYou’re mad.” She pointed a slender, unadorned finger toward the door. “Get out.”
    She looked so formidable, so set in her ways. Since the moment she’d ripped off the hood and bed linens, Revas had been stunned by the changes in his bride. As a child, she’d been fairylike in her girlish beauty, but the years had transformed a princess into a queen. Gone were her freckles and inquisitive stares, replaced by flawless skin and a forthright manner.
    She’d give him sons to slay the dragons of injustice. She’d give him a daughter to carry on the most romantic of Scottish legends. With luck, she’d give him years of companionship and help him shoulder the burdens of his office. He wanted all of those things, and he wanted them from her.
    â€œStop gawking at me and get out.”
    It