Dougal’s Poached Peach Sundae
“So you did it with Colum’s knowledge. Was Letitia willing?” Knowing by now just what sort of ruthlessness they possessed, I wouldn’t put it past the brothers MacKenzie to have forced her.
Dougal nodded. His anger had evaporated.
“Oh, aye, willing enough. She didna fancy me particularly, but she wanted a child – enough to take me to her bed for the three months it took to start Hamish. A boring job it was too,” Dougal added reflectively, scraping a bit of mud from his boot heel. “I’d as soon swive a warm bowl of milk pudding.”
“And did you tell Colum that?” I asked. Hearing the edge in my voice, he looked up. He regarded me levelly for a moment, then a faint smile lightened his face.
“No,” he said quietly. “No, I didna tell him that.” He looked down at his hands, turning them over as though looking for some secret hidden in the lines of his palms.
“I told him,” he said softly, not looking at me, “that she was tender and sweet as a ripe peach, and all that a man could want in a woman.”
Diana Gabaldon, Outlander (Chapter 34 – Dougal’s Story)
