Page 17 of Hunted By the Hard Highlander

“I’m nae sure,” Bella said, reaching into the bag she had brought along with her. She was professional, delivering each word as precisely as she could. “She wasnae in the great hall for supper last evenin’. I believe Mrs. Duncan sent her breakfast this mornin’.”

“Aye, and she hardly ate any of it,” Mrs. Duncan said from the doorway. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she was watching the healer work with a crease between her brows. “She is feelin’ much worse than she is lettin’ on. I daenae ken when it started, but she simply cannae hide it any longer.”

“She is stubborn,” Hendry said, finally taking up his post against the far wall. His duties within the castle could wait until Isabella had finished assessing and treating her. “I imagine she was told nae to overexert herself.”

“Ye would be correct,” Mrs. Duncan confirmed. “I should have insisted she stay in bed, but I dinnae imagine that she would put herself outside in a storm.”

“It doesnae matter how hard ye insisted,” Hendry muttered through gritted teeth, “she was goin’ to do as she pleased regardless.”

She is always goin’ to do as she pleases.

Chapter Nine

When Aurora’s eyes opened again, she could not tell how long she had been asleep. It felt almost as if she could have been out anywhere between five minutes and five weeks. But she noted, with a bit of relief, her body felt much lighter.

But I daenae remember how I got here.

“And this one helps with nausea?”

Adair’s voice came from her left. When she turned her head, he was holding up a small vial and looking over his shoulder. She could not see his face, but she could imagine the inquisitive expression. Standing at the window was the obvious recipient of the question, his posture stiff.

“Aye,” Hendry said, the response short but not impolite. There was a tension around him that seemed a lot like worry, but the bright sun streaming in through the window concealed his expression.

Of course he is worried. If I amnae well, he will have to search for another bride.

“Aurora!” Adair exclaimed, putting the vial on the nightstand and grabbing her hand. It was reminiscent of the way she had held onto him the last time she was at his bedside. His grip was steady, but careful, like he was afraid that grabbing onto her too hard would injure her. “Ye are awake.”

“Ye are up,” she said, her mind finally registering what it meant to see him sitting here. “And yer color has returned. Ye look as though ye are feelin’ better.”

“Aye, but ye’ve lost yers,” he said with a frown. “That isnae good, Aurora.”

“It will be back before ye ken it,” she promised him. Even if she did not know for sure, she was determined to heal and get better for his sake. Then, she leaned in, lowering her voice playfully. “And was the Laird good to ye? He dinnae say anythin’ that was too infuriatin’?”

At the window, Hendry’s shoulders tightened imperceptibly. He was listening, but refraining from engaging. Her poking had not prompted him into motion.

“Aye, he was honorable as he promised to be. I promised him that it wasnae his fault ye had fallen ill. Perhaps the sickness has left me and jumped to ye,” Adair said thoughtfully. There was a twinge of guilt settled on his features, one that he could not seem to school away. “I will fight it off for ye, Aurora. I willnae let ye be ill for long. I promise ye. I will make Bella and Laird Anderson teach me everythin’ they ken and cure ye meself.”

A light laugh came from the corner of the room, and Aurora turned to see a maid putting away fresh linens. She was attempting to hide her smile, but Aurora could see the flash of her teeth. When she glanced back at Hendry, she swore that she saw the corners of his mouth tilting upward.

That hermit facade isnae as impenetrable as he would like me to believe.

Aurora leaned forward, cupping the back of her brother’s head and bringing him down to press a kiss to his forehead, ignoring the way he struggled a bit out of embarrassment. When she released him, she said, “Ye should rest more. I would like to have a moment alone with Laird Anderson. I will see ye soon, aye?”

Adair looked as though he were going to argue, but after a moment, the fight went out of him. Even though he did not know the complexities of her arrangement with Hendry, he seemed to understand that there was a gap in his knowledge. He nodded, glancing between Aurora and Hendry. Then without another word, he shuffled out of the room.

For a few moments, she stayed silent. They were not truly alone. Aurora waited until the maid left after putting away the supply of clean linens before she spoke, her head inclined toward Hendry, her voice holding as much levity as she could muster.

“I havenae had the chance to thank ye properly yet.” She pushed herself up, leaning against the headboard so she was not laying on her back for the conversation. The light filtered in, dust motes floating through the beams. “Ye saved Adair’s life. I couldnae admit to meself just how weak he was before we arrived. I daenae think he would have survived even another week. And now ye are lookin’ after me…”

“Ye daenae need to thank me,” he said, taking a step away from the window. The sun no longer obscured his features, and she could see that there was a hard line of worry on his forehead. She had an inexplicable desire to call him over and smooth it away. “I willnae let anyone, especially a child, suffer from illness if it is within me power to help.”

“That doesnae change the fact that I am grateful for what ye’ve done for him,” she said, her throat thick with sincerity. Then, realizing that she may have said too much, she added, “And me gratitude doesnae change anythin’ between us. I will fulfill me duties to ye and the clan because I am repayin’ a debt. It isnae because I am surrenderin’ to yer will.”

A beat passed as the words landed between them. Aurora felt her face starting to heat up, the sharp pull of embarrassment making itself known. Still, she refused to look away for even a moment.

“If that is what ye must tell yerself,” he said, an almost prideful smirk settling on his lips. She tried to ignore the way it made her stomach swoop. “But yer actions are much more truthful than yer words.”

“Me actions and me words have been sayin’ the same thing,” she said a bit stubbornly. If her limbs were not so heavy, she might have tried to rise, to get closer to his height. “I believe ye are the one sayin’ things just to make this arrangement easier for ye to stomach.”