Page 63 of The Stag & The Owl
Roark laughed.“Most do,” he told him.“Butthere’s a verra rare, verra beautiful owl whose favorite word iswhy.”
“Hmm.”Cullen seemed to think on this amoment.“My favorite animals are horses, especially stallions.”
“Who would’ve ever guessed?”Roark said, andthey all laughed.
Their tour of the clean, well-run stablescomplete, they went back out into the courtyard.
“I feel like walking,” Roark announced.“Mybacksides spent too many days on a horse lately.Alina, care tojoin me?”
“A walk sounds nice,” she told him.Timealone with Roark sounded even nicer.
“Can Rose and I come?”Cullen asked, alleager boy.
Alina looked to Roark, who arched his browsand shrugged.They were guests here.It wouldn’t be polite to turntheir host’s son away.Plus, Alina liked Cullen.He reminded her ofher youngest brother, Aleksi.
“Lead the way,” she told the lad.
Rose joined them as Cullen showed them aroundthe extensive grounds of the keep, which had its own smithy andbrewing house.
“That’s where we brew our ale and whisky,”Cullen told them.“Our father lets us have a sip of whisky on feastdays,” he said, puffing his thin chest out.“Rose doesn’t like it,but I do.My father says it’s because I’m almost a man, andwhisky’s a man’s drink.”
“I can vouch for that,” Roark said.“Itstands a man upright, it does.”
Alina’s cheeks flushed as the image ofRoark's upright cock came to her, and by the grin on his face, heknew exactly why she was blushing.
“When I’m laird,” Cullen told them, “SilverWater Keep will be known for its whisky and its horses.”
“I’m sure it will,” Alina said.“As I’m sureyou’ll be as good a laird as your father obviously is.”
Cullen puffed his chest out even more.“Rosewill be a great lady of her own keep.”
“I’m sure she will.”Alina met the girl’sblushing gaze.“Do you or your family have a young laird inmind?”
Rose glanced at Roark and smiled shyly.“Maybe.”
“Will your family choose for you?”Alinaasked, playing her part of runaway betrothed.
“No.”Rose shook her head.“It does no goodto choose for a MacLeod woman.A true MacLeod woman knows her mateat first sight and so must choose her own husband.It’s been thatway for hundreds of generations.”
Roark glanced from Alina to Rose and back toAlina, grinned, and toed the ground with his boot.“So I’ve beentold.”
“What of you?”Rose asked him.“Are youallowed to choose your wife?”
“No.My family chose a wife for me when I wasyounger than you.”
“You’re married?”The anguish in Rose’s voiceechoed the voice in Alina’s heart.
“No.Not yet.”
“Who is she?”Rose asked, more than a littlepossessively.
“She’s the daughter of the laird I livewith.”
“Do you love her?”
Alina’s brows arched into her hairline.Rosewasn't shy about her questions or her feelings.
“No,” Roark told her.“I don’t love her.”Hechuffed.“I don’t even like her, or her, me.”
