A small grin grew on his mouth. She had deciphered his strategy. “So,” he said, “ye have decided to lose a kiss to me.”

“Hardly.” She slid her queen back diagonally, taking the pawn that protected his knight. He would need to move the knight, or she would take it, but then another pawn would take the queen. “Perhaps my strategy is to sacrifice my queen to take your horses.”

“Ye do know the goal of the game is to take my king?”

She narrowed her eyes at him with a wry smile that told him that she knew the goal very well. He found himself moving his knight to a spot that was still vulnerable but where she’d lose her queen. She slid to the other side of the board and took one of his pawns. Two more moves and she could take his white horse with her rook.

“I will add your stallion to my herd,” she said, not acknowledging that he then took her rook. Soon only her king, one pawn, and her queen stood in the corner. As he moved closer, she took his rook with her queen, setting herself up to lose it.

“Ye are down to your lowest and highest pieces,” he said, seeing the end perfectly in his mind.

“Go ahead,” she said, but instead of taking her queen, his queen took her pawn.

She looked up at him, questions in her eyes. “I will take your queen. The most powerful piece on the board.”

He shook his head. “Ye are in check.” He nodded down to his last rook that was in line with her king at the other end of the board. “Ye have to move to defend your king or move your king. Either way, I will take it in two moves.”

She slid her queen in front of her king, and his rook took her. Her king, her only remaining piece took his rook, and his queen took her king. “Checkmate.”

He crossed his arms. “’Twas a good game. Ye must play back at Dunrobin.”

She imitated his movement. “Some.”

“With Kenneth? Ye care for him.”

“He taught me chess, along with how to shoot arrows and throw knives.”

“Is he your lover?”

She frowned. “He is three score and five years old, and I am a maid like I said.”

One could still be a maid and have a lover, even an elderly lover, but her reaction loosened the tightness in his chest. “A father, then, to make up for your own.” He watched her face pinch slightly. “For it was obvious Kenneth Macleod would certainly die for ye.”

“Yes, he would.” She tried to hide any emotion, but he saw much in the lines of her face.