He rested his hands on her waist and faced her. “And what if we cannot stop it? What if there is no one trying to harm me and it’s just an illness?”
“I don’t believe that.” She couldn’t. Giving up on Cormac wasn’t something she could do. Though she lacked the answers, or even the right questions to ask, they had to start fighting. Or else there would be no future at all. “It’s why I brought you here with me. We’ll stay here for seven days with no one else. If you don’t get sick, we’ll know that it’s not a true illness.”
She took his hands and pulled him up to the bed, guiding him to lie on top of her. Between her legs, she could feel the heated length of him, and she wanted to feel his body moving inside hers.
Cormac kissed her deeply, his hands stroking her body with such tenderness, she wanted to weep. For despite all the ways she’d tried to hold up the boundaries, with a single touch he shattered them all.
And nothing would stop her from trying to save his life.
*
Emma was right.
Cormac hadn’t wanted to admit it, but after nearly four days of spending time together, his strength was improving, day by day. They ate the food she’d packed, spent their hours making love or taking long walks. At night, he read stories to her by candlelight.
Only once did it rain, and they’d laughed and moved closer to the fire, finding other ways to get warm.
Although he should have been heartened at his change in health, Cormac’s suspicions darkened. If he were indeed being poisoned, he had no idea how. There was no way to know for certain who was responsible. It might be his cousin Lorcan, whom Cormac hadn’t seen since his return. Or perhaps his wife Moreen. Both were logical possibilities, for each stood to inherit a great sum if he were to die.
But how had the threat continued in England?
“Is something bothering you, Cormac?” Emma asked. “How are you feeling?” Her arms slid around his waist, and he leaned in to kiss her cheek.
“I’m feeling fine.”
“You don’t sound fine.”
He let out a sigh. “It’s because you were right,a stór.Somehow, I suspect that if we stayed in this cottage forever, I would never become sick.”
“Just like the seaside,” she said. She reached out to touch his hair and rested her hand there a moment. “So, I was right. Someone is causing your illness.”
“Aye. And now, we must decide what to do about it.” He took her hands in his. “We’ll have to find out who is responsible.”
“Cormac,” she said softly. “I think you should stay here and send me back to Dunmeath on my own to learn what I can. If you’re there, your illness will only return.”
“But then that puts you at risk.” He drew her into his embrace. “I won’t allow that.”
“We’ll make a plan together,” she suggested. “Tell me who might want to harm you, and I’ll investigate.”
“I don’t want to leave you alone.” The thought of her facing danger while he remained here wasn’t an acceptable choice to him.
“I won’t be alone. If I ask her, I believe your mother will help me,” Emma insisted. “Neither of us wants you to die. So, we’ll work together.”
“She’s... difficult,” he admitted. Ever since she’d lost her husband and eldest son, bitterness had become his mother’s invisible cloak. She’d let it sink into her skin, transforming her into a woman with little hope.
“I won’t let that stop us from finding our answers,” she said. “Now tell me whom you suspect.” With a chagrined smile, she added, “I would ask you to make a list of names, except I couldn’t read it.”
“It’s probably better if we don’t write it down.” He began to pace across the small cottage while Emma sat on the bed.
“Lorcan and his wife,” he began. “Possibly Aunt Nuala or the servants.”
“I’m not certain itisthe servants,” she countered. “I watched them pack our food myself. Or, at least, I let them think I could see what they were doing.”
He shrugged, not knowing who else it could be. “What do you think?”
She was hesitant, and he saw that she was reluctant to add another opinion. “Go on and say it, Emma.”
“I don’t want to offend you, but we have to consider everyone,” she began. “Could your sisters have anything to do with it? Even unknowingly?”
