Page 35 of A Virgin for the Vicious Highlander
Mairie blushed. “I cannae believe how long I was in me bed after takin’ that tonic. I dinnae think I’ve slept that long in… I cannae even remember. I didnae wake up until it was already dark and time to go to sleep again!”
“Ye look well rested, Aunt Mairie, and I’m glad of it.” For reasons she could not explain, Cecilia grabbed her aunt and hugged her tightly, needing some comfort after what had just happened in the study… and what she had just heard about Tara and Murdoch.
Hesitantly, Mairie held her in return. “Well, now I’m nae sure ye’re well at all.”
“I hugged ye before,” Cecilia pointed out.
“Nae often.”
Cecilia hugged her aunt even tighter, as if to make up for all the times she had not. They might have stayed like that a while longer if Dipper had not chosen that moment to jump up at her leg, bite a mouthful of her dress, and pull as if it were a new rope to play with.
“I should take him outside,” Cecilia said, pulling away. “I cannae have the wee beastie rippin’ anythin’ that doesnae belong to me.”
Mairie smiled fondly. “Aye, both of ye should get some fresh air. Meanwhile, I’m goin’ to go and find Aileen. She said there was somethin’ she wanted to discuss with me, so I shouldnae keep her waitin’.”
For a moment, it seemed like there was more that Mairie wanted to say, and more that Cecilia wished shecouldsay, but they both fell silent.
Aunt and niece parted ways in the hallway outside the South Hall, heading in opposite directions.
Perching on a low stone wall that bordered the rather plain, modest gardens of Castle Moore, Cecilia watched Dipper running around like a hellion. He sniffed everything in his path eagerly, had already attempted to dig up a flowerbed, and kept trying to chase the rabbits that darted out of their hiding places, seemingly teasing him.
I wonder if it’s prettier in the summer.
The convent gardens were always beautiful in the spring and summer, and headily fragranced with growing lavender and herbs from the kitchen garden. It was the one thing, aside from her aunt, that she would actually miss if she never went back there.
“Cecilia?” A voice broke through her reverie.
She turned to find Tara approaching her hesitantly, holding something in her arms.
“I saw ye out here,” Tara began, holding up what appeared to be a cloak. “I didnae want ye to get cold.”
Cecilia shrugged. “I dinnae mind it. I keep tryin’ to tell everyone, but everyone is obsessed with keepin’ me warm.”
Her tone was shorter than she had intended, and the dismayed look on Tara’s face told her that she had definitely been ruder than she meant to be.
Cecilia sighed, not even sure why she was being so frosty toward Tara.
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, patting the wall beside her. “I think I swallowed a hefty mouthful of bad mood with me breakfast this mornin’. Ye’re nae unwelcome. Thank ye for thinkin’ of me. Truth be told, I feelawee bit cold.”
Tara brightened and went to sit on the wall, draping the cloak over Cecilia’s shoulders. “It’s the gloominess of this castle,” she said. “It gets into yer veins and darkens yer mood. I’ve felt it meself.”
Cecilia laughed stiffly. “Must be why the Laird is so grumpy all of the time.”
“That’s a polite way of puttin’ it.”
“Has he been that way as long as ye’ve kenned him?” Cecilia asked, wondering how she was supposed to bring up the marriage that George MacGill had mentioned.
Tara grimaced. “Aye. I ken he has a lot on his shoulders, and that bein’ a laird cannae be easy, but ye’d think he would crack a smile here and there to put his people at ease. Many of them would appreciate it if he wasnae so… grim-faced all the time.”
“Hm…Have ye ever been in love?” Cecilia blurted out, keenly aware that it had nothing to do with the previous subject. “Apologies, I’m all over the place this mornin’. I just… wanted to ask because, if I take me vows, I willnae have the chance to fall in love. So, I suppose I’m curious about it. How it feels.”
A dreamy look flashed across Tara’s face as she bit her lip, a pink flush rising to her plump cheeks. She could have said nothing at all and Cecilia could have guessed that shedidknow what it meant to be in love.
Leaning in, Tara whispered, “Can ye keep a secret?”
“I’ve lived in a convent for eleven years,” Cecilia replied with a giggle. “I was trained to keep secrets.”
Tara grinned, positively glowing in the pale winter light. “Iamin love, Cecilia. I’m in love with the best warrior in the clan. Ye probably wouldnae ken that we are fond of each other, as we’ve kept it secret and he doesnae want to announce it just yet, but I dinnae think it’ll be long before we get married. There are some who ken, of course, but they’re as sworn to secrecy as ye.”
