Page 58 of How to Heal a Highland Heart
“I affected him last night!” she gasped. “I breached his defenses, and him leaving the bedchamber this morning was his retreat. And then he regrouped! And his new strategy must be to keep distance between us, to think of me only as an obligation he must satisfy.”
And only at night.
“I dunnae have any notion of what ye speak,” William said, turning his face away but not before she saw his grin. “I best be moving along now to go find Fergus. I imagine it will take me awhile, and I ken Brodee will be waiting for me on the west side of the castle. He’ll nae swim for that long before he’s irritated.”
“Thank ye, William!” she said and impulsively kissed him on the cheek, before she whirled away from the kitchens and ran toward the seagate stairs.
In her haste to get to Brodee, Patience didn’t even notice Kinsey until she was practically on top of the woman. Kinsey, it seemed, didn’t notice her, either. She was standing at the turn in the seagate stairs, looking down toward the shore. Patience followed Kinsey’s gaze, and in the distance, Patience thought she saw Brodee standing, looking out at the sea.
“What are ye doing?” she asked from the steps above Kinsey, curious as to why she appeared to be staring at Brodee.
Kinsey glanced up at her, a startled expression on her face. “Patience! I did nae even hear ye. I was lost in thought about ye.”
Patience frowned. “Me?”
“Aye. I was just wondering how things were going with Blackswell. I did nae want to ask since, well, I was so foolish before, but I do want ye to be happy.”
Patience tried to stop the smile from coming to her face, but at the pull of her cheeks and lips, she knew she was unsuccessful. “The marriage kinnae be dissolved anymore.”
Kinsey smiled, though it did seem a bit forced, but Patience appreciated Kinsey’s effort. “Are ye going to find yer husband now?”
Patience nodded, to which Kinsey motioned her along. “Off with ye, then.”
Patience wasn’t sure what to say to make it better for Kinsey, because she could tell by her tight face that she was still hurting, and she feared anything she might say at this point would only make things worse. So she nodded and brushed past Kinsey. One step beyond her, though, and she felt a hard shove against her back, which propelled her toward the ledge of the stairs.
“My lady!” she heard someone gasp, and then a hand curled around her arm.
Her heart pounded painfully in her chest as she stared down at the rocks below. She’d almost fallen. She felt ill. She turned seeing Kinsey’s hand on her arm and Jane, looking horrified, above them both at the top of the stairs.
“I’m so sorry, Patience,” Kinsey said, her voice shaking. “I slipped and fell into ye. Thank God, I caught ye!”
“Aye,” Patience said, her stomach still roiling.
Jane came racing toward them, her face white with shock. “Are ye all right?” she asked Patience.
She nodded. “I had quite a scare, but luckily Kinsey is strong and pulled me back.”
“Aye,” Jane agreed, her gaze darting to Kinsey. “Lady Kinsey, I was just coming to find ye to tell ye I have drawn yer bath as ye requested.”
For a breath, Patience could have sworn Kinsey looked like she wanted to throttle Jane, but then she smiled sweetly. “Thank ye, Jane.” With a squeeze to Patience’s arm, Kinsey said, “Careful on the stairs. They are quite slippery from the morning rain.” With that, she released Patience and ascended the steps toward the castle.
Patience and Jane were left standing alone. “My lady,” Jane began, “I wanted to thank ye properly for saving me.” Jane held out what appeared to be a tiny figure to Patience.
“Ye’ve thanked me multiple times, Jane. ’Tis nae necessary to give me a gift.”
“Beg pardon, my lady, but it is necessary for me. I would nae wish anyone dead normally, but I must confess I did wish Loskie would die. I did nae want to wed him, because I had a bad feeling about him, but my family needed the money he offered.”
Patience was well acquainted with being used. She reached out and took the gift, and when she did, she squeezed Jane’s hand. “You will wed again, and he will treat you with kindness.”
“I hope so,” Jane replied.
Patience turned the figure over in her hand. The carving was remarkable. “Did ye do this?”
Jane shook her head. “Nay. I’ve no skill with carving, but Cul does, and I asked him to do it. ’Tis Soteria, the Greek goddess of safety and preservation from harm.” Jane fidgeted for a moment. “I thought, well, since ye have endured so much, it would nae hurt to have a goddess watching over ye.”
“I love it, Jane, thank ye. Do ye mind placing it in my room by my bed?”
“Nae at all, my lady.” She took the figure from Patience, the women gave each other a quick hug, and then Jane set off back toward the castle and Patience descended the remainder of the stairs. Once she was on the shore, it didn’t take long to make her way to the west side of the castle where she knew Brodee was. She picked her way across the rocky shore, and then she stilled, a delicious heat sweeping her body. Her husband stood near the water, and in one fluid motion, he relieved himself of the braies he wore, then stalked toward the sea, looking very much like a man with an enemy stalking him. She suspected Brodee’s enemy was his memory of the woman he’d lost.
