“I wish we could stay here all night,” she confessed, “but I daenae think chatterin’ teeth would be very romantic.”
He chuckled. “Let’s stay here until evenin’ falls, at least. Then, I’ll sneak us back into the Castle, so we can spend the night in our chamber, warm as ye like.”
“Mmm… that sounds wonderful.” Suddenly, she peered up at him. “Ye were really at the borders to check on stolen livestock, were ye nae?”
He frowned. “Aye. What makes ye ask that?”
“Nothin’,” she replied, settling her head back down. “Just makin’ sure.”
He tightened his embrace, pressing a kiss to her hair. Yet, concern lingered. Had someone told her otherwise? Were servants trying to meddle, telling lies and spreading gossip to amuse themselves at the expense of Saoirse?
His mind flitted to the person who had scared Saoirse that day. Mrs. Foster. A common enough name. Nevertheless, whoever she was, Noah made a vow to find her. For if she’d said or done something to start sowing seeds of doubt in his wife’s mind, he would put a stop to it. Having come so far, he wasn’t about to let anything ruin the love that burgeoned in his heart. A love he felt so keenly but hadn’t been able to bring himself to declare.
“Saoirse?” he whispered.
“Hmm?”
The words danced on his tongue, begging to be spoken. “I… I think we should return. Ye’re shiverin’.”
“A few moments more,” she protested, not realizing that he didn’t want to leave, either. He just couldn’t get the words, “I love you,” past his lips.
CHAPTER24
The following afternoon,Noah slipped away from the Castle without telling a soul where he was headed. With Saoirse busy in the kitchens, learning how to make a hearty broth, he planned to return before she even realized he’d been missing. He wasn’t sure if it was the wisest of decisions, if she had any shadow of a doubt about his loyalty to her, but he didn’t want her to worry for his safety. And once he’d dealt with the mysterious Mrs. Foster,thenhe would inform Saoirse of his whereabouts and hope she’d forgive him for the slight deceit.
Riding along the forest road, he daydreamed of the previous night. The liberty of making love in the woodlands had done something to them, bringing that same wild abandon into their chamber. He laughed to himself, wondering how on Earth Saoirse had managed to wake up in time to bake bread with Mrs. Wellerby and Mary when she’d barely had two hours of sleep.
That lass has healed this heart of mine and nay mistake.He smiled, remembering the day he’d seen an apparition on this very same road. But since he and Saoirse had renewed their promises to one another, he hadn’t thought of Caitlin McDullogh at all. Not even the pain she’d made him suffer. All of that was in the past, and he only cared about the future.
He was thinking of how beautiful Saoirse had looked after she’d taken a dip in the waterfall pool to refresh herself, glistening wet and radiant, when the village of Brockhole came into view. It looked quaint in the afternoon sunlight. Rainclouds darkened the distant horizon, but they wouldn’t roll in for a while.
Now, where do I start?Noah chewed his lower lip in thought. He had a vague description of the woman, and a name that was undoubtedly false, but if she was as mad as Saoirse had described, perhaps someone would be able to point him in the right direction.
He had just paused to tie his horse to a hitching post, when footsteps approached.
“Laird Huxtable?” a nervous voice whispered.
Noah turned sharply. “Henry, what in heaven’s name are ye doin’ here? Should ye nae be at the Castle?”
The servant seeing Noah there was not part of his plan. However, that worry soon shifted to a different kind of concern. Henry’s face was covered with fresh bruises, red and swollen and yet to yellow. His lip had been split and blood had crusted around his nose.
“I… have left me position,” Henry muttered, bowing his head. “I could nay longer, in good conscience, tend to me duties there.”
Noah frowned. “Whatever do ye mean? Has somethin’ happened? I ken ye’re teased now and then, but if ye’ve been beaten by someone, I can—”
“I cannae work alongside traitors, M’Laird,” Henry interjected: his eyes wild. “I feared for me life, in truth, and with good reason. If I’d stayed, kennin’ what I ken, I’d be dead by now.”
Fear pricked in Noah’s chest, making his skin itch. “Yer life has been threatened by someone at the Castle? For what reason? Who has threatened ye?”
“As I’ll be headin’ as far North as me legs can carry me just as soon as I can, I’ll tell ye what ye deserve to ken,” Henry replied, in a voice as grim as thunder. “It’s yer wife and yer Man-at-Arms, M’Laird.”
Noah swallowed. “What of them?”
“They’ve been… cavortin’. Cavortin’ for as long as ye’ve been married, or thereabouts. At first, I thought ye’d charged him with followin’ her around for safety, but then—” Henry’s voice cracked. “M’Laird, I caught them in the act. Nae three days ago, I saw them with me own eyes. If I could rip ‘em out, I would. And yer Man-at-Arms—he saw me in return. Gave me these bruises that ye see here, and promised he’d take me last breath if I uttered a word. That’s when I left. I couldnae stay.”
Though the rain was still far away, a lightning bolt splintered through Noah’s heart. His mouth opened and closed, but no sound came out. The shock and horror had stolen his words away.
“I was lookin’ for someone who could help me to write a letter,” Henry went on. “I dinnae want to leave without ye kennin’ the vermin that ye have under yer roof. But nay one would help me. I thought I’d have to go without ye ever kennin’ the truth, fearin’ ye’d end up cuckolded, but… then I saw ye and I kenned the fates were smilin’ on me for once.”