Page 52 of Hunting for a Highlander (Highland Brides 8)

Geordie raised his eyebrows at that. “Have Rory and Alick picked brides, then, already?”

“Nay. And they were no’ going to,” he said dryly. “Both o’ them barely left yer room those first few days. Rory was tending ye, and Alick was helping, both to tend ye and to carry Dwyn around when she needed to go to the garderobe and such.” Grimacing, he added, “Keeping the women here when neither of the single Buchanans were paying them any attention seemed a waste. And then when the family started arriving we needed the bedchambers so I had Jetta send them all home.”

“Sorry,” Geordie said on a sigh as Aulay carried him back through the still-open bedchamber door. When he paused abruptly, Geordie glanced around to see that Mavis and a couple of maids were changing the bed and cleaning the room.

Mavis glanced over now and beamed at him. “Hello, love, ’tis good to see ye awake again at last. Ye gave the wee lass a fine scare there fer a couple days.” When Geordie managed to smile back, she turned to Aulay and said, “We’ll only be another moment. Why do ye no’ set him down in one o’ the chairs by the table and take a seat yerself. I ken Lady Dwyn’ll be up soon with food and drink. The girls insisted she have something to eat while she waited for Cook to prepare a tray. She’ll be along shortly.”

Geordie saw Aulay nod and then his brother carried him to the table and chairs. Rather than set him in a chair though, he simply sat down with him still in his arms.

“Ye could put me in a chair,” he growled with embarrassment as the maids glanced over at them.

“Ye could no’ keep yerself upright,” Aulay pointed out with a shrug that jostled him in his arms. It made Geordie feel like a damned toddler, and renewed his determination to get his strength back as quickly as he could.

Trying to ignore that he was sitting in his brother’s lap like a child, he watched the women work for a minute and then murmured, “Mavis seems happier.”

“Aye,” Aulay said, keeping his voice just as quiet. “Acair explained he was only paying attention to Dwyn to help ye sort out yer feelings for her, and the pair made up.”

Geordie scowled at the claim, but then let it go, too weary to be annoyed.

“How should we arrange the visits?”

Dwyn glanced up from the stew she was eating at that question from Geordie’s sister-in-law Murine. The lovely blonde was the wife of Geordie’s second oldest brother, Dougall. She was also a very organized-type lady, she’d noticed. Murine was obviously intelligent and clearly enjoyed order in her life. Dwyn would guess that came from having the responsibility for both Carmichael in Scotland, and Danvries in England. Murine probably had to be much more organized than most to help run and take care of two keeps and all their people, Dwyn supposed.

“What do ye mean?” Geordie’s sister, Saidh, asked now.

“Well, do we all go up at once?” Murine asked. “Or do ye think that might overwhelm Geordie when he’s so newly awake? If so, mayhap we ladies should visit first, and then the men can visit after. Or the other way around.”

There was silence for a minute, and then Edith, a pretty strawberry blonde, and the wife of Geordie’s third oldest brother, Neils, turned to Dwyn and asked, “What do ye think, Dwyn?”

Setting her spoon back in her stew, Dwyn considered the question seriously, but then sighed and said, “I suspect he’ll no’ be awake fer long this first day, so ye may all want to come in for a quick word today, and then plan on longer visits tomorrow.”

“Aye,” the other women agreed together, and then they all glanced to the stairs as Mavis led two young maids down them. Each one was carrying something—Mavis had the linens, the maid behind her had dirty clothing and the third carried a tray with various items on it, mostly bowls and glasses that had held broth or cider or mead, a few of the liquids Dwyn had been dribbling down Geordie’s throat for the last week while he lay unconscious.

The three women had barely disappeared through the door to the kitchens when another maid came out with a tray and hurried toward her.

“Cook put on some broth, mead, cider and a little stew in case he feels up to something more solid,” she announced brightly. “And Mavis says I should carry this up fer ye.”

“Oh,” Dwyn said as she stood. “Well, that’s kind, but I could manage, I’m sure.”

“Nonsense, m’lady. I’m pleased to help ye. We all ken ye’ve had little sleep these last weeks while ye tended Laird Geordie. Besides, ye’re newly back on yer feet. I’m pleased to carry this up fer ye.”

Dwyn smiled faintly and nodded, not wanting to argue further. The girl seemed so happy to be given the task. But then everyone had been happy since she’d come below with the news that Geordie was awake. It was only then that she’d realized how worried everyone had been. Her husband was well loved by the people of Buchanan.

“We’ll give ye a bit o’ time to help him eat before we come up,” Saidh said as she headed away.

Dwyn cast a grateful glance over her shoulder, and was smiling as she started up the stairs. She really liked Geordie’s family. They had welcomed her with warmth and friendship, even including her sisters and father in that welcome. She hadn’t spent much time with the men, but the women had spent a lot of time up in the room with her and her sisters as she’d tended Geordie. They were good people.

“Let me get the door for ye,” Dwyn murmured, hurrying ahead of the maid to open it, and thinking it was good there were two of them and she hadn’t tried to manage on her own. She’d have had to kick at the door for Aulay to open it, she thought as she held the door and then followed the maid inside the room.

Geordie was back in bed, but sitting upright with several pillows behind his back and a nightshirt on. He had a little more color in his face too, she noted, though he looked a tad grumpy. She wasn’t terribly surprised at that and suspected he would be a cantankerous patient. Men rarely had much patience when ill.

“Set it on the bedside table, please, Katie,” Dwyn murmured when the maid slowed and glanced to her uncertainly.

Smiling, the lass rushed over to set it down, and then turned that smile on Geordie and murmured, “’Tis good to see ye awake and recovering, m’laird,” before turning away and heading for the door again.

“I’ll leave now ye’ve returned,” Aulay said, moving toward Dwyn as she approached the bed. “Just give a shout does he need to make another trip to the garderobe, or do ye need him moved for any reason.”

“Thank ye,” Dwyn said sincerely, reaching out to squeeze her brother-in-law’s arm as he moved past her. He and Rory and Alick had done anything and everything they could to help while Geordie was down. She couldn’t have managed without them, and she appreciated it.

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