Page 23 of Married to the Icy Highlander
“For after yer shift, ye ken.” He winked, squeezing the man’s shoulder before stepping into the entrance hall.
Dinner had already been served, but that suited him just fine. He liked it when the castle was quiet like this, for it allowed his mind to wander—a tad too much, perhaps. But he had no other duties that he needed to perform. His age must be making him a sentimental fool.
He had learned all of these halls with his brother when they were knee-high to a grasshopper. As apart in age and opinion as they were, they were still close. To have the rug pulled from under him? It was like Jessica betraying him all over again. He couldn’t keep being so fundamentally wrong about those closest to him, or else he would have a hard time trusting people again.
Groaning, he rubbed a hand over his face and then ran it absently along the cool stone walls as he lazily walked toward his bedchamber. But the restlessness in his bones didn’t stop there.There were too many possibilities, too many options for him to consider, and he cared for none of them.
What if his brother had been kidnapped? But then Blaine wouldn’t have sent the letter himself. He was likely being held for ransom. Furthermore, if he was dead in a ditch somewhere… swindled or otherwise, it would be just that much harder to find him.
Neil wandered the halls to keep his mind active, only to pause by the entrance to the back gardens when he heard peals of laughter.
The archway that he lingered in framed the scene in front of him like a painting. His daughter and wife were lying on their backs, a thick tartan cloth spread out underneath them as they pointed up at the sky, moving their fingers as if they were tracing patterns in the bright lights overhead. Dinner lay around them—cold roast lamb with mint sauce, a selection of cheeses, fresh strawberries, and some buttery oatcakes—half-eaten and mostly forgotten, from the looks of it.
At least they seemed to be getting along well.
Neil so desperately wanted Ceana to be an easy part of his life. He knew that it was foolish to harbor false hope, but he did hope anyway.
“Did ye find Cassiopeia yet?” he asked.
Ceana turned onto her side at the sound of his voice, and the new position squeezed her breasts together rather prettily. Her face flushed a pretty pink the moment she noticed what he was looking at, but she didn’t roll onto her back again.
Jeanie, however, did not show the same hesitation. She jumped up to her feet, clutched her skirts in her hand, and ran right over to him.
It always took him off guard when she seemed so pleased to see him.
She grabbed his hand from where it had been resting on the pommel of his sword and tugged on it. It was so strange because she had never seemed so excited to see him before. Usually, their meetings were brief and awkward, filled with her yawns as she pushed chess pieces around the board without any real strategy.
Try as he might to spark her interest in such things, she seemed fundamentally opposed to them.
But she had certainly bonded with Ceana very quickly.
“Faither! Come! Ye are just in time!” she cried, pulling at his fingers until he pushed off the wall and allowed her to lead him to the picnic they had set up. He was careful not to mess it up with his large boots before awkwardly lowering himself onto the corner of the tartan.
Jeanie pushed her goblet of juice toward him, but he declined it with a headshake. She offered him a bit of cheese instead, but he could not properly pay attention to her when Ceana was looking up at him like that. She sat up and spread her skirts around her legs.
Why was he so obsessed with every movement she made? He would have to blame it on the drink. That was all. It tended to make him a little aroused.
“It was a long day gettin’ familiar with me new home. I asked Jeanie to join me so we could relax for a moment. I hope that’s all right with ye, M’Laird.”
Neil tilted his head, feeling the accusation in her tone. He opened his mouth to respond, but Jeanie beat him to it.
“Of course, it’s all right! We’re friends!” she declared firmly, expecting him to agree with her.
Neil could not think of a reason to deny her claim, least of all when Ceana’s pretty blue eyes were trained on him.
The declaration itself took him aback.
Jeanie had never asked him about her mother. If she had asked any of her maids, then they hadn’t told him about it either. She had never asked what her mother looked like or what sort of person she was. Which suited him just fine.
She knew that her mother had died in childbirth, as that could be very dangerous. But seeing her now with Ceana made him realize just how badly she needed a mother figure in her life.
Unlike the way she was with him, Ceana was softer and kinder to Jeanie, who seemed to hang on her every word and movement, copying her every chance that she got. She even adjusted her posture when Ceana moved.
“Aye, it is all right,” Neil agreed. “I dinnae wish to interrupt yer sky gazin’.”
“Nay! Ye must join us, Faither! Please watch the stars with us?” Jeanie pleaded. “Right, Ceana?”
Neil arched an eyebrow. He certainly did not need permission from his wife to go where he pleased in his own castle.
