"He pulls away," Mairi said gently.
"Aye." Ada's hands curled around the warm cup. "Said he needed more time. But how long dae I have tae wait fer him tae trust me?"
"As long as it takes, I suppose." Mairi reached out, squeezed Ada's hand. "I ken that's nae what ye want tae hear. But Magnus, he's nae a simple man, lass. What happened with his first wife, it changed him. Made him afraid of trustin' again."
"Everyone keeps sayin' that. But nay one will tell me what actually happened." Frustration leaked into Ada's voice. "Dae ye believe he killed her? Like the rumors say?"
"Nay." Mairi's answer was immediate and firm. "I was here when Freydis died. I was the one who tried to save her. And I can tell ye with absolute certainty, Magnus didnae kill that woman. If anythin', her death nearly destroyed him."
Ada leaned forward. "Then what happened? Why willnae anyone tell me?"
"Because it's naebody’s story to tell other than Magnus's." Mairi's expression was gentle but unyielding. "If ye want tae ken the truth, the whole truth, ye need tae ask him. Make him tell ye what happened that night. What Freydis did, that broke him so completely."
"He willnae talk about it. Every time I bring her up, he shuts down."
"Then keep tryin’." Mairi's grip tightened on Ada's hand. "That man loves ye, lass. I'm as certain of that as I am of me own name. But his love is all tangled up with fear and pain from the past. Until he faces that, until he tells ye the truth and lets ye help him carry it, he'll never be able tae give ye all of himself."
Ada absorbed that, turning it over in her mind. "Ye really think he loves me?"
"I ken he daes. I've seen the way he looks at ye when he thinks nay one's watchin'. I've seen how protective he is, how gentle despite all that rage he carries. That's nae just attraction, lass. That's love." Mairi smiled sadly. "But love isnae always enough if ye cannae trust it. If ye cannae believe the other person willnae destroy ye with it."
"So what dae I dae?"
"Be patient. But also be honest. Tell him how ye feel. Tell him what ye need."
Ada nodded slowly, wiping away the last of her tears. "And if he still cannae let me in? If he's too broken tae love me the way I need tae be loved?"
Mairi's expression turned sad. "Then ye'll have tae decide if ye can live with that. Or if ye deserve better than a man who can only give ye half his heart."
The words settled heavy in Ada's chest. Because she knew the answer already.
She deserved better. Deserved a man who could love her without fear, without constantly waiting for her to betray him.
But the problem was she didn't want any other man.
She wanted Magnus. Broken, guarded, impossibly complicated Magnus.
And somehow, she had to find a way to make him understand that she wasn't going anywhere. That he could trust her with the darkest parts of himself.
That his past didn't have to define their future.
If only he'd let her try.
CHAPTER 25
Magnus found Ada in the courtyard, speaking with Mairi near the herb garden.
The morning sun caught her hair, turning it to spun gold, and for a moment he just watched her. The way she gestured with her hands as she spoke. The small smile on her face despite the bruise marring her jaw. The strength in her bearing even after everything she'd recently endured.
She was remarkable. And he'd been a fool to keep her at arm's length for so long.
Mairi saw him first, her eyes meeting his with a knowing look. She said something to Ada, squeezed her hand, then made her exit with a pointed glance in his direction.
Ada turned, found him standing there. Something shifted in her expression. Uncertainty, maybe. Or wariness.
Magnus hated that he'd put that look there.
"Good mornin'," he said, closing the distance between them. "How are ye feelin'?"
