“You scared me, too, you know,” she said. “Fighting him.”
“The man who helped take ye will face my wrath,” he said, referring to Bruce.
“When he wakes up, he’ll have a hell of a headache. Evie smashed him over the head with a rock.”
Surprise flashed over his face, then he laughed. “Did she now?”
Chloe told him the story then. Their time in the dungeon when Bruce stole Evie’s stone from her to their escape through the mysterious secret passageway to finding Jamie captured and held in one of the rooms.
“We knew we couldn’t go that way, so we continued down the passageway until we found another door.” She paused, the guilt washing through her as she recalled placing the torch in the bracket under the wooden rafters. “I’m afraid the fire was my fault.”
He blinked confusion as he gazed at her. She explained what happened then.
“We should have tried to get Jamie out,” she said.
“Och, lass, dinnae fash yerself. I told ye. He’s resourceful. He’ll find his way home.”
“Are you certain?”
“If I ken one thing about the laddie, it’s that he’ll find a way to talk his way out of the castle by chasing one of the chamber maids and gaining her confidence.” He chuckled at the thought.
He reached for her bandaged hand, then, taking it gently in his. She didn’t have to tell him they used the stone to get them away from MacDonald’s keep. He knew.
“I didn’t know how powerful the stones were until that moment when we used them,” she said.
“How did you use them?”
“Blood magic,” was all she said.
He seemed content enough with that answer and nodded.
“There’s one thing I realized, though, Malcolm,” she said.
“And what is that, lass?” His beautiful sea-green eyes met hers.
“When I first arrived, all I thought about was taking Evie and returning home. To our time. But Evie isn’t going home. She’s here to stay with Callum.” She paused, taking a deep breath. “And I’m here to stay with you. If you’ll have me.”
His expression softened as he leaned toward her. “I’m glad to hear that, lass. I willna let ye out of my sight until my dying breath.”
She grinned. “And how do you intend to do that?”
He leaned closer, his lips a breath away from hers. “I intend to marry ye.”
Before she answered, his lips brushed hers in a sweet, soft kiss.
“I love you, too,” she whispered. “Forever and always.”
CHAPTER 32
It was a few days before Chloe felt up to leaving the bed. Fatigue hit her hard after their ordeal in the hands of the MacDonalds and then the subsequent surgery. Malcolm was by her side every moment of every day and night, bringing her food and seeing to all of her needs. It was rather embarrassing when he insisted on helping her to the garderobe but she found she didn’t have much energy to get there alone.
Finally, when she was ready to leave, Malcolm fetched Roslyn to help her dress. She was looking forward to getting out of the bedchamber. Plus, she still wanted to tell Evie the good news—that she and Malcolm were going to be married.
“’Tis good to see ye up and around, lass,” she said. “Yer sister has been mighty worried about ye.”
“I’m doing much better, thanks. I’m ready for some fresh air.”
“So long as ye dinnae overexert yerself,” Roslyn warned in a motherly tone.
