“I love ye, too.”
The words trembled between them, and for some reason, they felt big and simple. They felt like the truth she had been circling for months. The truth Murdock had wanted her to admit to herself.
Neil closed his eyes for a brief moment, as if the admission struck him in the chest. When he opened them, somethingfierce and tender burned there. He moved slowly, giving her the chance to step away. She did not.
He lifted his hand to her cheek and traced the trail of tears with his thumb. His palm warmed her skin.
Her breath caught, then steadied. He bent his head, and she rose on her tiptoes without thinking.
Their first kiss by the lake was soft and careful. A slow meeting of lips that carried sleepless nights and almost-kisses and sharp words and gentler ones.
He drew back first. Only an inch. She stayed close and touched her forehead to his. His breath feathered against her mouth.
The children were still playing by the shore. Maggie was still chasing imaginary foes. Water slapped against the stones and ebbed.
Kristen closed her eyes and listened to the new sound in her chest. It was not silence. It was not the old ache. It was something steadier.
For the first time in a long while, she felt more hope than fear.
Neil kept an arm around Kristen’s waist, afraid that if he let go, she would fade like a dream.She did not pull away.
The water lapped softly at the shore, and the breeze moved the grass in slow waves as small feet pounded over the turf.
“Ma,” Finn called. “Maggie found a frog.”
“Frog! Frog!” Anna cried, as if she had discovered treasure.
They skidded to a stop when they saw Neil’s arm around Kristen. Then Anna barreled between them and hugged their legs.
“Hugs,” she declared.
Kristen laughed. The sound shook a little, but it was real. She curled a hand over Anna’s head and bent to kiss her hair.
Finn hovered, his fingers worrying the hem of his tunic. “Can I join, too?” he asked.
“Aye,” Neil replied. His voice came out thicker than he liked. “Ye are part of this.”
Finn pressed into his side and held tight.
Skye hung back with a hopeful look. Neil loosened his hold on Kristen and opened his other arm. “Ye too, lass. If ye like.”
Skye stepped in, and the little knot of bodies grew.
Maggie shoved her head between Neil and Finn and wagged her tail so hard that it thumped all their shins. Kristen laughed again, her eyes twinkling.
Something loosened in Neil’s chest, and the weight he had been carrying for years lightened. He let out a rough breath that turned into a quiet laugh. The sound was easy for the first time in a long while.
“Right,” a voice called from the slope. “If ye are done squeezing each other half to death, the kitchens say there are fresh bannocks. I would hate for them to go cold.”
Murdock stood with his arms crossed over his chest. He tried for gruff and did not quite manage it.
Skye wriggled free at once and sprinted uphill. She shouted about frogs and hugs and bannocks all in one string, while Finn and Anna followed at a tumble. Maggie tore after them and barked simply for the joy of it.
Kristen squeezed Neil’s hand and then let go. She moved after the children with quick steps and a watchful eye.
Murdock came to stand at Neil’s side. For a moment, they both watched the small group crest the hill. Kristen looked back once and smiled. Then she set a steady pace for the castle.
“Ye remember how ye got her?” Murdock asked.
