“No. Tom needs to dress before they return.”
“Aye, ye wouldnae want to scandalize anyone with all those spider bites.”
“What?” Tom and I demanded in unison—his tone much calmer than mine.
“The ones all over yer chest in a line down to yer roger.”
“I— What?” He’d gone shockingly pale and I was almost certainly equally peaked.
“Strange spider—that. I’m surprised ye didnae see it when ye were down there, Xander.”
“Sorcha, I—” I started, but in my rising panic, nothing followed.
“Relax. I’ll not tell anyone. It explains a great deal, actually.”
“What?” I demanded.
“Why yer still here. Why ye came at all. Why yer friend with the too-long legs arrived days later with even less warning thanye did and no plans to leave.” She leaned a hip against the wall she was working on, one arm cradling her belly.
“And you’ll simply remain silent about this?”
“Yes.”
“What is your price?” I demanded
“Pardon?”
“Your price? You want something from me in exchange.”
“I’ll not say no if ye want to pay me. But I dinnae need anything—not aboot this.”
“Why?”
She sighed, her gaze flicking to the floor before meeting mine again. “Ye could have had me arrested—as I said. But ye didnae.”
“I’m also keeping you here against your will.”
“If ye think I couldnae have escaped last night when ye had yer wee tryst, yer a fool. Or a hundred times before or after.”
“You knew about that?” Tom asked.
“Everyone with eyes knew about that. Yer not exactly subtle. ‘Oh, I couldnae ask ye to give up yer bed. I’ll take the one over here all by its lonesome with a door and a lock…’” she dropped her voice an octave as she mocked him.
“Does Godfrey…” Tom asked, too warry to finish the sentence.
“Probably… I’m not certain,” I supplied. “But Lock certainly doesn’t?—”
“Dinnae worry aboot Lock. We had a wee laugh aboot ye this morning.”
“What?”
“If ye dinnae want people to find out aboot ye, ye should be less obvious. Of course ye had to flee the damn country if this is how ye keep a secret.”
“I— But— We— You…”
“That’s nae a sentence.”
“Sorcha, I…”
