As exhibited by the bruise on my forehead that I’d hastily covered with makeup this morning. It was a stark reminder that I was awkward at dating, having only rarely hooked up with men when I desperately craved intimacy—and even then, it was always on my way out of town. But given both Luch and I were keen to make Loren Brae home, it wasn’t as if I could do that and sneak away in the night.
“His cottage is warded.”
At that, I paused at the door and turned to Gloam. He’d hidden in a shed behind Luch’s house the day before and had nosed around the space.
“It is?”
“Aye.”
“From him? Like his own wards?”
“Hard to say. Just that there’s protection there.”
“Huh. That’s strange.” Mulling it over, I opened the door and stopped.
On my doorstep was a bundle of wildflowers, still damp with dew, wrapped in a simple twine bow. Picking them up, I turned them over, but there was no note to be found.
Were these from Luch?
Or maybe it was a “thank you” for helping with the hedgies the night before?
Pursing my lips, I took the flowers with me to my practice, placing them in a cup of water on the front desk where I could see them.
Faelan of the flowers.
Eriska endlessly knotted flower chains together and draped them over my head as a child. I hadn’t thought about that in years.
“You’re most at home in nature, wandering barefoot through the woods, flowers in your hair, chattering nonsense to the animals, Faelan of the flowers. It’s a gift.”
And though I’d grown out of the barefoot wanders andflower chains in my hair, I was thankful my affinity with animals had only grown stronger.
And my love of flowers had never left me.
After she’d died, I’d had a delicate tattoo of a peony, her flower, and a water lily, mine, inked on the inside of my left wrist. Sometimes I rubbed the tattoo when I needed strength, or just to feel close to her once again.
“Good morning!” Shona, the owner of Edith, my hedgehog patient from the evening before, poked her head in the door carrying a wicker-style picnic basket. She was my first client of the day, even though I suspected there wasn’t much for me to do other than tell her that Edith would likely take care of her babies just fine. “How are you today? Pretty flowers.”
“They are, aren’t they? Are they from you?” Shona was a gardener, so it wouldn’t have surprised me if she’d left a bunch for me as thanks.
“Um, no. Though now I feel a right shite for not bringing you some.” Shona’s face dropped and I rushed to reassure her.
“No, no. It’s fine. They were just … on my doorstep with no note today. I couldn’t help but wonder if they were from you for helping with Edith. How is she today?” I waved them back to the exam room, hoping to move the conversation smoothly past the mystery of the flowers.
“A secret admirer, then. How nice.” Shona beamed at me, her blue eyes twinkling. She was a pretty woman with straight blond hair, happy eyes, and work-roughened hands. I peered into the basket, ignoring her comment. Inside, Edith slept, curled around her babies.
“Och, aren’t they sweet? I’m reluctant to awaken them. Have you been monitoring them? Is she feeding?”
“Yes, though I’ve really tried not to disturb her.”
“That’s really for the best. Mums can get easily stressed. The best thing you can do really is give her a safe and quiet space to rest and nurse. The less disruption she has, the better.”
“Oh no. Do you think the party last night was bad for her?” Worry crossed Shona’s face.
“She seems all right. If it had been too much she would have abandoned them out of fear. Give her a quiet few weeks, and I suspect she’ll bring them along well.” I eased the top of the basket closed, not wanting to bother the new mum too much.
“You’re meeting with Sophie later?”
“I am.” I tilted my head in question at her. That was odd. Why did she know that?
