He kissed her hand eagerly. “’Tis more than love, sweetheart. Much, much more. You are my life.”
She started to respond when her smile suddenly vanished and her eyes opened again. “Where’s Colin?”
Alec kept her hand clasped to his cheek, his red-rimmed eyes steady. “Dead.”
She coughed again. The pain, though still there, was fading. She seemed to be looking at him strangely. “You are wearing your armor?”
He smiled weakly. “It’s almost too small. I fear I have grown in twelve years.”
Ali and Toby chuckled softly at Alec’s expense, remembering that they had almost been unable to secure the protection about his wide shoulders. Alec had not only grown upward, but he had also gained pure muscle and power since he last wore it. Before long, he would have to have a new suit commissioned.
She smiled in response to the low chuckles, her fingers gently caressing his cheek. “You look every bit The Legend. Welcome back, darling.”
His smile faded as his tears returned. Choked, he kissed her palm tenderly, worshiping the feel of her warmth. “I would say the same to you,” he murmured.
The setting sun bathed the fen in a golden glow, kissing the earth with a fading warmth. As Alec gathered his wife into his arms, he couldn’t dwell on how very close he came to losing her. He was desperate to return her home, where she belonged, and put this episode far behind them.
“Tell me of your brother, Alec,” she whispered as he moved toward his destrier.
He paused, confused. “I will later, love. I promise.”
“Tell me now,” she could barely speak.
Alec reached Midas and gently handed his wife to Ali before vaulting onto the saddle. Ali lifted Peyton up to him as if she were made of the most fragile glass while Toby covered her with a traveling cloak to ward off the evening’s chill.
“Tell me, Alec.”
He gathered his reins. “What do you wish to know?”
She did not say anything for a moment. “Was he very tall, with golden-red hair?”
“Aye, I told you he had red hair.”
“And his eyes were sky-blue, like yours?”
He nodded faintly. “Why?”
She opened her eyes, gazing up at his helm-clad head. “He told me it wasn’t yet my time.”
He looked at her, then. “Whotold you?”
“Peter,” she whispered. “He told me it wasn’t yet my time and helped me return to you.”
Alec didn’t say anything. He continued to stare at her, wondering if her experience had somehow damaged her mind. However, there was just the smallest part of him that was somehow willing to believe her. He hadn’t listened to Jubil and ithad nearly cost him everything. Mayhap Peyton had indeed seen something in the great beyond.
He forced a gentle smile. “You are sure it was Peter? I cannot be positive that my brother made it to Paradise. More than likely, he is paying for his sins as Lucifer’s minion.”
She smiled, feeling weak enough to sleep for a thousand years. “He said something else, something strange. He told me to tell Nubs that there was nothing to forgive.”
Alec’s face drained of all color. He stared at his wife, his mouth agape, and she caught his astonished expression immediately.
“What’s the matter?”
“You…. what you said,” he whispered in a tight voice. “Christ, Peyton…. he mentioned Nubs?”
“Who is Nubs?”
He could barely speak. “Me,” he breathed. “’Tis a nickname my brother gave me when we were children because I used to chew my nails until they were bloody nubs. Only Peter called me by that name.”
