“Roundabout as it is, you’re back to calling yourself my duty. I wanted—want—to help you. I don’t feel obligated, and I never did.”
“Mayhap. But you wanted to rescue me.” Emelie bit her bottom lip again. “Why?”
“Because you were naive and alone. I saw the opportunity to help you.”
“But why did you even feel compelled to help me?”
“I don’t know. I thought I could—” Dominic broke off. Emelie’s eyes locked with his, and he feared she felt everything he thought. He knew what he felt, but he didn’t want to say it aloud, to admit that his motives had been selfish.
“You thought you had a second chance. A second chance that would redeem yourself. You’d feel better by taking me in and rescuing me, and you thought your clan would approve of me after what Colina did.” Emelie stood up, and Dominic followed. “Regardless of whether you grieve your dead wife, you want me as a substitute.”
“I do not,” Dominic hissed as he grabbed Emelie’s arms.
“Ow,” Emelie whimpered.
“Dear God. I’m sorry, Emelie. I didn’t mean to be rough with you, I swear. I didn’t realize.” Dominic took a broad step back, and Emelie could see the shame written across his face. It crushed him to think he’d done her any harm. As she looked at Dominic, she realized that he was a man in pain. A pain soul deep, and eating him alive. She took a step toward him, and she feared he would be the one crying. She took another, tentative as if she approached a wounded animal.
“I know you didn’t, Dom. You never would do it on purpose. You’re a wee stronger than me, and a good deal bigger. You didn’t realize it,” Emelie soothed as she ran her hands over Dominic’s chest.
“I just didn’t want you to walk away. I will never imprison you and use my size against you. I truly am sorry. I acted without thinking.”
“Dom, it’s all right. You’ve given me much to think aboot and much to digest. It’s a wee overwhelming to know the truth.”
“Emelie, I need you to know something else.”
Emelie braced herself for whatever was coming. She doubted she would appreciate whatever it was. “What else?”
“Yesterday, I couldn’t take you in my auld chamber because it reminded me of Colina. But not because I miss her. It felt as though her evil lurked within. I want you nowhere near that. You are too pure of heart to be dirtied by aught that was hers. I will never use that chamber again.”
Emelie was certain her lip would crack from how often she bit down on it during this conversation. She released the tortured skin before gaining her courage to ask, “What chamber will you use?”
Dominic didn’t have an answer. It wasn’t uncommon for married couples not to share a chamber, but he had with Colina. He didn’t want anyone to think he shunned Emelie, nor did he want people gossiping that she barred him from her bed. But he wanted to respect Emelie’s space.
“Where did you sleep last night, Dom?”
Dominic heard no accusation in Emelie’s tone, but there was doubt. He would disabuse her of any fear that he’d made his bed beside another woman. “On the floor before the hearth in Brodie and Laurel’s solar.”
“The floor? Dom, really?”
“I won’t embarrass you by going to the barracks or sleeping in the Great Hall.”
Emelie felt tears stinging the back of her lids, and a lump swelled in her throat. “You would rather sleep on the floor than share a chamber with me. You said it was so I could have more time with Blythe. You just didn’t want to be near me. Are you disgusted by the idea of sharing a bed with an unchaste woman?”
“Disgust me?” Dominic cupped Emelie’s jaw and swooped in for a kiss. Emelie didn’t hesitate to reciprocate in full measure. He wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off the ground. If there weren’t guards with them, she would have wrapped her legs around him and clung to him like a bear climbing a tree. “You do not disgust me, Em. You never have. Far from it.”
“I just don’t understand.”
“I told you the truth, Em,” Dominic said as he lowered her to the ground. “I can’t imagine not living in the same keep as Brodie. You’ve been with Blythe your entire life. I didn’t want to rob you of your last few chances to be together when I couldn’t imagine how hard it would be for you. I don’t think I could have left Brodie behind.”
Emelie nodded. Her lips thinned and turned down, but she believed him. “But what aboot now?”
“I don’t want to intrude on your privacy or your chance to sleep. I fear disrupting you when you need rest.”
Emelie looked at the ground, too embarrassed to admit how she really felt. She closed her eyes, hoping shutting out the world—even Dominic—would make it easier to tell him the truth. “I didn’t sleep well last night because I missed you.”
“You missed me?” Dominic nudged her chin until their eyes met.
“When you were beside me, I slept better than I imagined I could, even on the ground. I fell into a deep sleep this morning with you beside me. It’s not that I’m scared to be in my chamber alone, but I feel much better when you are near.” Emelie felt the heat rising in her cheeks. As she repeated her words to herself, her chest tightened and her belly sucked in. “I shouldn’t have said that. That sounds horrible after what you told me.”
