Page 34 of Kilted Seduction
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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Thora rolled over onto her side and stifled a groan into the nearest pillow. She’d been trying for a candlemark or more to go to sleep, but her mind refused to quiet. Her thoughts were never silent, and sleep eluded her like a feral cat avoiding human hands.
She knew she should be exhausted to the point of unconsciousness. Between the strength of the vision and her efforts to save the young boy, she should have found it impossible to stay awake. That was how it had been in the past, especially with a vision of such urgency that it would not only form a dream image, but shake her from her slumber besides.
She knew why her thoughts wouldn’t settle. The answer to that was lying on the ground, wrapped in blankets barely a step or two away.
Aedan Cameron. She’d seen the way he had looked at her after she’d gotten the boy to breathe, after they’d ensured his life was in no immediate danger. For the first time since they’d met,she’d seen him looking at her with respect and consideration, rather than the faint air of condescension his gaze had held before. For the first time, the look in his eyes had suggested that he was actually reflecting on the things she’d told him, and perhaps, rethinking his beliefs about the existence of her Gift.
With a sigh, Thora rolled over further to tilt her head over the edge of the bed. To her surprise, the pile of blankets on the floor was empty. A careful look around the room revealed that the door to the terrace had been unlatched.
Thora thought for a moment, then rose and slid her feet into her slippers, before pulling on a warm outer robe. Once she was properly dressed against the chill, she went toward the terrace and stepped out.
The snow was falling lightly, drifting past in noiseless swirls of soft white cloud that hissed and vanished against the occasional flame of a torch or lantern. Aedan stood leaning against the wall, dressed in loose trews and a shirt, his feet bare on the cold stone. Thora tugged her robe a little closer around her, then went to stand beside him, content to lean close to his warmth and watch the snow fall.
He looked tired, and she recalled how stiff he’d been in the morning, from lying on the floor. “’Twas a difficult night, and a hard thing ye did, savin’ the lad. If ‘twould help, ye can tak’ the bed tae try tae get some rest.”
That earned her a brief smile, and a soft shake of the head. “’Tis nae necessary. I cannae seem tae sleep, regardless.”
Thora nodded. “Nay more can I.”
They stood in silence a moment longer, breath ghosting clouds into the chill night air. Then Aedan spoke again, his voice slow and quiet, oddly uncertain for a man who usually seemed so confident. “Ye kent the boy was in danger. Afore he even fell, afore he even reached the river… ye kent what was about tae happen.”
It was a soft, almost painful admission, and Thora chose to answer it gently, and as honestly as she could. “Aye. Me Gift gives warnings when a disaster is about tae happen. They’re nae always visions, and nae always clear warnings, but we were fortunate that this was both.”
Aedan’s brow furrowed, as if he was thinking about her words. “And what… what dae ye dae when they are nae clear? Or nae visions? How dae ye…?” He trailed off.
“I act on it, as best I can with what I ken at the time.” Thora studied his face, what she could see of it in the patchy darkness. After a moment, she continued, trying to explain, hoping he would understand. “I was a child when me Gift began tae appear, tae make itself felt. But I didnae understand what it was, didnae ken how to discern what it tried tae tell me at times, what a vision meant, or how tae respond. ‘Twas a time… I acted too late, and too slowly. And I’ve regretted that mistake ever since, and sworn nae tae repeat it, nae matter the cost tae meself, or me reputation.”
Aedan shook his head. “I couldnae do such. I cannae abide situations I cannae control, or that make it seem I might be failin’ in me duties, be they as a man, a warrior, or a laird.”
“Every person falters at times.” She couldn’t say why she spoke the words, but they seemed right, for Aedan huffed out a breath of air, even as his shoulders relaxed.
“’Tis nae… ye have tae ken…” He paused, brow furrowing again, and his words coming as slowly as her own had, a few moments before. “I was a bairn when me maither passed, and me faither refused tae wed again. I grew up kenning I was the only heir me faither had, and then…”
He paused, and took another deep breath. “I was scarce more than a lad, just barely old enough tae progress from a serving boy tae a warrior-in-training, when me faither was killed in battle. ‘Twas sudden and losin’ him shook the entire clan.”
“Includin’ ye.”
“Aye. I had tae tak’ the lairdship, but there were a number o’ people, inside the clan and out, who didnae think me old enough or well enough schooled in me duties tae dae so. They didnae think I’d the strength or skill tae claim the lairdship, let alone hold the clan taegether.”
