Marti Talbotts Highlander Series 1 - Anna Rachel u Charlet

often, the people will think you daft.”
    “You are right, of course. May I walk you home?”
    Maree giggled. “You already have, I live in this cottage.”
    “I see.” He lifted his hand to his forehead and rubbed his brow. “I am not doing this very well, am I?”
    “Doing what?”
    “I am hoping to spend time with you while I am here, but I do not know how to ask. What does a MacGreagor do when he wants to learn about a lass?”
    “Well, I like to take walks and ride a horse, when someone will take me. Kevin does not like the lasses to go riding alone. He worries about us.”
    “As well he should. I will ask his permission to take you riding tomorrow , after the noon meal. Are you willing?”
    She was delighted and quickly nodded. She loved to ride and few had time to take her.
    He started to walk away and then thought better of it. “Would you like to take a walk now? I seem to be free at the moment.”
    “I would like that very much.”

    Her name was Steppen and she was finally six-years-old. The color of her MacGreagor plaid was predominantly blue, the pleats where crooked and her wide leather belt was so loose, it barely kept her long skirt held up. She wore a white shirt and a small stretch of cloth over one shoulder, just like the grownup women.
    She had light brown eyes and very light blonde hair, with a lock in the front that would not stay out of her face, no matter how many times she pushed it away. Being six opened a whole new world to her. She could go anywhere inside the wall by herself now, and she wanted to see everything. First, she stopped to hug Maree and listen to her story, and then she was off. She wasn’t sure exactly how to start her exploration, but soon decided to go all the way to the drawbridge, and work her way around the inside of the wall until her circle was comple te.
    Her world consisted only of the MacGreagor hold. It was a pleasant place with a meadow outside the wall, and a path that led through the trees to another clearing where the MacGreagor’s rested their dead. She never wanted to see the graveyard, but she wanted desperately to play in the meadow. Steppen had hardly ever been outside the wall except to bathe or swim.
    When she reached the lowered bridge, she took a peek at the moat. The children were not allowed to go across the bridge alone until they were ten. They must also know how to swim and swimming did not come easy to her. She sighed. Ten would probably never come anyway; it took all her life just to get to six. Steppen looked beyond the bridge to the road and the forest. The road was straight and she had only been down it once. That was when her father took her for a ride on his horse. It was the happiest day of her life and remembering it made her smile.
    Next, she looked at the wall and had a question -- who the devil planted flowers by the wall?
    She was amazed her parents let her live so long. They were always fussing and fuming about something she did. At least they had not taken her to see Laird Kevin. Kevin would never hurt a child, but he could, and would, punish her by making her clean something. That meant chores. Long ago, she pledged to avoid chores at all costs.
    “Hello, wee one.”
    She jumped about a mile high and then looked at the giant’s big shoes. They weren’t her father’s shoes … that she knew for certain. She let her eyes drift up his very long leg with leather straps that laced up to his knee, then over his blue kilt and up to his wide leather belt. Her neck was starting to hurt already and she was only half way there. It occurred to her she could run, but if the giant’s arms were as long as his legs, she doubted she would get very far. She looked at his shirt, raised her eyes to his neck and at last, found his face. “Who the devil are you?”
    He smiled. “My name is Connor, what is your name?”
    She sighed. “They call me all sorts of names.”
    The little girl was about to fa ll over looking up at him, so Conner took pity and knelt down on one knee. “You mean you have more than one name?”
    “Depends.”
    “On what?”
    “On how much trouble I am in.” S he put her hands on her hips with her thumbs going the wrong way. “Do you have children?”
    “I have two. The first is Justin and the second is Danny.”
    Steppen patted Connor’s arm. “Who the devil planted all those flowers?”
    “I do not know, perhaps Anna planted them.”
    “Oh, so you know our mistress. I like her, she smiles a lot.