Page 65 of Desire

I gently stroked Edmund’s cheek and looked up at Darian.

“Why don’t you go with Brandle and leave Edmund for now?” He nodded his head toward the well.

Understanding, I stood and held out my hand to Brandle. He picked up the empty water bucket and twined his fingers through mine.

“Is there a reason we need to be alone?” he asked as we rounded the corner of the cottage.

“Alone? No. Away from Liam and Edmund so we don’t disturb them? Yes.”

He set the bucket down next to the well and started drawing some more. He didn’t say anything as he worked, and I waited until he had the clean water up before taking it from him and heating it.

“Garron asked me to do something. I did it, and Darian believes you’ll be upset by it,” I said, dipping a cloth into the wash bucket. I motioned for Brandle to sit on the edge of the well and moved to stand between his legs.

“No falling into the well,” I warned as I began washing his face.

“Are you going to tell me what Garron asked you to do?”

“I will. Darian said you all have patience. I disagree. You’re an impatient lot.”

Brandle smiled widely, the corners of his eyes crinkling with it.

I stared into his eyes and lost myself. “You are so handsome.”

He chuckled and reeled me closer.

“We heard what you said to Daemon this morning. Thank you for trusting us.”

I tipped his chin up and wiped the cloth over his neck.

“I do trust you. But do you trust me?”

Some of his humor faded. “Why do you ask?”

“Garron said I needed to know how to remove memories to protect everyone in the glade if something should happen to him. I successfully hid a memory of his, one he asked me to remove. Darian said you wouldn’t be happy.”

“And that’s why we’re at the well? So I wouldn’t disturb Edmund and Liam with a lecture?”

I nodded.

“The wrong person accompanied me, then. Any lecture I have is for Garron, not you.”

“Lecturing him won’t undo what’s been done. And he can’t explain why he did it. The memory is gone for now.”

“But you can explain,” Brandle said.

“I can, but I won’t. I trust Garron. If he believes it’s best forgotten, then so do I. When it’s no longer an issue, the memory will return as it will no longer need to be a secret.” I set the cloth aside. “I don’t like secrets, Brandle. They’re frustrating and often cause problems when they finally are revealed.”

“In that, we agree,” he said. He reached up to smooth back a wisp of my hair. “I saw Garron return the tracker to the forest. Was the tracker’s memory cleared?”

“Garron ensured he would only remember small men and a weak woman. Nothing of what he saw or heard in the cottage.”

“Good. His memory will then match what the ones outside the cottage saw.”

“We also took the tracker’s coin. He wouldn’t say what it was for, though.”

“You both did well.”

“Not well enough. Once the others find him, they will try again.”

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