“Aye, that is true enough.”He held her gaze, his own filled with conviction.“Know this, lass.If ever I have a home, you are welcome within it, be you wedded or not, for so long as you should choose to stay.”
A lump rose in Leila’s throat at his unexpected offer and relief flooded through her.“Thank you, Duncan.I do not know what my fate will be, so your generous offer is most welcome.”
“None of us know our fate, lass, none of us.”Duncan took a deep breath.“But I will do all that I can to make a home for Radegunde.I know that she would welcome your company as much as I would be honored to have you as a guest.”
Leila blinked back unexpected tears.“Thank you.You are a good friend, Duncan.”
“For a Franj,” he teased, a merry glint in his eye.
Leila laughed.“For a Franj,” she ceded, for she had learned that there was much more diversity in Christians from the west than she had once believed.“I hope I am a good friend for a Saracen.”
“The best I have ever known,” he agreed promptly.
“And how many Saracens do you call friend?”Leila teased, her mood lightened by his offer.
“Only one, but she is worth a thousand others.”Duncan grinned.“Why, we crossed the breadth of Christendom to find such a friend.”
“That was not the sole reason you journeyed so far.”
“True enough.”Duncan dropped his gaze quickly to his saddlebag.“But few need know the truth of it.”
Leila nodded without looking at the bag.What would happen to the reliquary now that they had reached their destination?Could it truly be hidden in this keep forever?Or would the Templars take it to another sanctuary?
Would she be entrusted with the truth?
If naught else, she would do her part to see the prize defended, as she had before.
The changein Leila’s appearance was most troubling.
Fergus had known that she was a maiden all along, of course, ever since that first day in Jerusalem.He had caught glimpses of her hidden truth on their journey.A quick smile that was unabashedly feminine.A flash of a wrist too delicate to be that of a boy.But seeing her in women’s garb had been a revelation.
She was a beauty.
And that kiss.
That kiss.
It had been wholly unexpected, yet not unwelcome.His powerful reaction to it had been a surprise.The memory tormented Fergus.His lips burned in recollection of it in the middle of the night.His pulse leaped at the sight of her.His dreams were filled with the possibilities of what would have come next, if he had not stepped away and returned to the festivities in Bartholomew’s new hall.He would have sworn that each time he licked his lips, he tasted Leila’s sweetness, though it was impossible.
It had been a fortnight and still he thought about that kiss at all hours.
He had even dreamed of Leila, holding a babe with golden skin and eyes of blue.The child’s hair was dark and wet, as if it had only just been born, and Leila appeared to be tired but radiant all the same.Curiously, Fergus knew it was a boy.
The boy had to have a father from the west for his eyes to be of that hue.That should have reassured Fergus that Leila would have her desire fulfilled, but the vision had troubled him greatly.He had awakened on the night it had come to him and wondered at her future.Would she be happy in Scotland?Who was the father?Would that man treat her with honor?Leila looked delighted in his vision.
That beguiling sight, coupled with the memory of that kiss and his questions, meant that Fergus found Leila dominating his thoughts more than he thought she should.
It was clear he had been chaste too long.His marriage to Isobel could not be celebrated soon enough.
And what of Leila?He had to find her a good husband, with all speed.
As Fergus approached his father’s keep for the first time in four long years, he was surprised to find himself wondering what Leila would think of his home.Nay, he had wanted her approval.It was impossible to keep himself from riding alongside her, telling her about it, watching for her reaction.Leila’s admiration of Killairic gave him enormous pleasure—more pleasure than was reasonable.He should be concerned with how soon he would see Isobel or even what she would think of his gifts for her.
But it was Leila who claimed his attention.
Given the duration of his absence and his chastity, Fergus supposed it was inevitable that he had begun to notice other women, particularly one in whose company he had journeyed so far.Four years was a long time, almost an eternity.Was it not reasonable that his memories of Isobel faded?
Fergus was glad to be home.He told himself that he was glad of his pending nuptials, and of the promise of soon seeing Isobel again.
