“I have appointed Anwen to oversee the keep’s servants which will be a significant help and once I have the keep running properly it should not take much of my time. Besides, my thirst for knowledge will never leave me and the room will prove a great reprieve for you.”
“How so is that, wife?” he asked, captivated by her playful smile.
“While I am kept occupied in the room, you will be free of my endless questions and thoughts.”
“Now that is an excellent reason,” Torin said, his own smile teasing yet the idea that she would be shut away from him actually disturbed him. “But what happens when bairns come along? They will need your attention, your love.”
“And my knowledge,” she added. “They will spend time with me in the room learning in between our walks in the woods where by then I hope to have gained knowledge of the indigenous trees, plants, fungus, animals, and whatever else there is for me to learn about. Of course, you will be with us and can teach the children what you know. And there is much you will be able to teach them that I cannot. I cannot fish, nor do I know how to handle a weapon, and I do not know how to swim. Do you? I believe it would be important living in the middle of a loch.”
“I know how to swim, and I can teach you in the summer if you would like, to fish as well,” he offered, though why he could not fathom. She no doubt would ask him endless questions, he would have no peace and yet… he looked forward to it.
Flora reached out and hugged her husband’s arm, her voice full of excitement. “That would be wonderful. I would love to learn how to do both.”
“I will also teach you how to defend yourself in case you should ever find yourself in a situation that leaves you no choice. That way you will stay safe until I have time to reach you,” he said, the thought sparking anger in him. He would never want to see his wife in such a dangerous situation, but he was not foolish enough to believe it would never happen and he wanted her prepared.
“I would like that as well,” she said.
He chuckled. “Of course, your incessant questions might be weapon enough to keep you from harm, a foe preferring to let you go than listen to you talk endlessly.”
“All the more reason to allow me to have your bedchamber as a place I can retreat to so that you do not have to suffer my constant chatter,” Flora said.
His wife’s quick wit continued to amaze him, turning his teasing into something beneficial for herself. What she suggested was a solution for them both and yet he hesitated. Why? This was one time a decision concerning his wife should be easy.
“You may have the room… for now,” he granted.
“For now?” she asked with a tilt of her head while still holding on to his arm.
“We will see how it works, how things go in the keep.”
“Oh, you mean the ghost.” She released his arm to wave her hand in the air. “I will dismiss him soon enough.” Then she did something unexpected, more instinctive, that surprised her and her husband. She kissed his cheek quick and said, “Thank you, husband, I am grateful.”
Torin stared at her for a brief second before his hand shot to the back of her neck, gripped it firm, and yanked her to him for more than a peck on the cheek.
The shock of his unexpected action froze Flora for a moment, but only a moment, since his kiss tempted far too much to ignore it. It was a commanding kiss and she responded in kind. She had never given much thought to a kiss but now having experienced it she found it something she enjoyed—very much.
Aroused to the point of discomfort, Torin had to tear his mouth away from hers with earnest effort. “By the end of the week, wife, no later.”
He turned and left the room to Flora’s dismay, and she thought that she just might see the bedchamber made ready sooner.
CHAPTER8
Something was afoot, Flora could sense it. She had seen little of her husband the last couple of days and at first, she thought it was on purpose since their kiss had certainly stirred something in them both. But on closer observation she saw that her husband seemed preoccupied with something. She had asked him twice if something troubled him, but he had dismissed her inquiry with a placating response.
“Nothing for you to worry about.”
To Flora, which meant something did trouble him, but he was not about to share it. It only served to make her more curious, so naturally she had to investigate and find out for herself. The one person who had proved to be helpful and informative was Anwen. She had taken well to her position in the keep, the servants trusting and respecting her. And with no ghostly interference since the breath of wind that had frightened those present at the time, no one protested their chores in the keep.
All was going well, Anwen presently helping Flora in the bedchamber she and Torin would share. The windows had remained open for one day to rid it of the musty odor. Today all the furnishings would be removed, the floor swept, and the ashes cleaned out of the hearth.
“Lord Torin’s bed will be moved here, Anwen, and see that a new mattress is stuffed and made ready for it and the bedding washed and the blankets aired well.”
“Aye, my lady,” Anwen said.
“You provide me with much of what I need to know about the keep and the clan itself and I deeply appreciate it. Tell me if I am wrong, but I sense something amiss in the village.”
Anwen was quick to shake her head. “Not the village, my lady, or on the isle.”
“Then what?”