Maybe there was still some hope for them after all.
Chapter Eighteen
Niamh hardly manageda backward glance at Dallan before Eva had her tucked away in an alcove. The keep at Caiseal felt gargantuan compared with Thurles. It even dwarfed Dallan’s family seat at Nás. Set upon a hill, Caiseal stood tall and proud on the vast horizon, a cascade of farmland falling down its gentle slopes.
Eva had wound her way through a corridor at the back of the grand feasting hall, pulling Niamh behind her. They sat in a small alcove on a bench in front of the last window in the corridor. In the field below, men sparred with blunted practice swords. The clanging of their weapons and the shouts of frustration or exuberance easily masked any conversation the two women might have.
It had been six years since Niamh had last spoken with Eva, though they had always gotten on well. Eva had always been the opposite of her brother—soft-spoken and understated, though no less kind or clever for her reserve. Eva’s pale brown hair fell to her back, the top half braided flawlessly. With deep green eyes and a fair complexion, Eva and her brother could hardly have looked less similar in appearance.
“I’ll wager that Dallan will be on that field before we’ve finished talking,” Eva declared. Her eyes might be a different color than her brother’s, but they still sparkled with the same mischief.
Niamh couldn’t argue with that. Dallan had always been a warrior. If he were forced to wait for the women to catch up, Niamh didn’t doubt for a moment he’d somehow end up with a sword in his hand.
“How long do you think it will take him to notice us?” Niamh asked.
Eva narrowed her eyes, taking in the field and men below. “I’m not certain he will,” she ventured.
“So,” Niamh began, “I believe congratulations are in order. Dallan tells me you’ve just gotten married.”
A sweet blush ascended Eva’s cheeks, followed by a smile. “Aye. I’m lucky to have found him. I couldn’t have without Dallan, either. Did he tell you how it happened?”
Niamh watched Eva closely as she recounted her version of the tale Dallan had told on their way to Caiseal. Eva truly loved Finn. Niamh saw it in every word she spoke of him, in the tone of her voice, the tilt of her head, the faraway look in her eyes. Niamh had only met Finn once, briefly, before he’d been sent after the kidnapped princess. She would need to pay better attention next time, knowing he was married to such a dear old friend as Eva. She deserved only the best.
As Eva’s tale came to a close, Dallan strode onto the practice field, taller and more handsome than any man in sight. He made all the other men look like young boys, at least as Niamh saw it. Dallan called the men around him, demonstrating several strokes with one of the practice swords before glancing briefly upwards.
Niamh’s breath caught when his gaze fell on her, her heart racing as he smiled up at her.
“It seems I was mistaken,” Eva admitted with a chuckle. “He noticed you right away.”
For a brief moment, the world felt as it had six years earlier. Niamh sat with Eva, watching Dallan and talking of boys andmarriage, placing wagers on how the men would do in their training. For one ephemeral glimmer, it all came back. Except it wasn’t the same at all.
“I realize this is deeply personal, and we haven’t spoken in years,” Eva continued, her tone sobered, “but what happened?”
“It’s hard to explain,” Niamh hedged.
“I just,” Eva sighed, “I thought everything was going so well with the two of you. And then I couldn’t figure out why you never told me something was wrong.”
Niamh heard the hurt, no matter how long past. She hadn’t confided in her friend, and she hadn’t even explained why they left. At the time all her thoughts had been on Dallan and her own troubles, but now she saw that he wasn’t the only person she’d wounded.
She leaned forward, taking Eva’s hands and squeezing them. “I am so sorry,” she said quietly. “You’re right. I should’ve spoken with you. You were one of my dearest friends, and I didn’t think about your feelings at all.”
“I was so worried about you,” Eva replied. “I thought maybe Dallan had done something foolish and hurt you. I never thought him capable of such a thing, but I also never thought anything could go wrong for you two.”
Niamh couldn’t tell Eva why she’d left before Dallan knew. Something about it seemed wrong. But Eva deserved some manner of explanation.
“Dallan didn’t do anything wrong,” Niamh assured her. “He has always been the best man I know.”
“Then why?” Eva’s brows furrowed in concern.
“I can’t tell you yet. Not before Dallan.”
“You’re going to tell him?” She sat straighter, wiggling closer. “Does that mean you’re getting back together?”
“I don’t know.” Niamh admitted, falling back against the alcove’s wooden wall. “I know he wants me to tell him why I left,and a part of me wants to, but I fear it will lead to a broken heart in time. And the only thing worse than losing him again would be to have him again and then lose him.”
“This secret you’re keeping, you think it will upset him? If it caused you to leave him, it cannot be a small thing. Is that your fear?”
“I don’t think he’ll be upset when I tell him.” Niamh’s heart sank at the notion. “I hope not. I think it will matter more to him later on, but he won’t realize it until it’s too late.”
