Chapter Thirty
Ellie walked into her old bed chamber and, closing the door behind her, breathed a long sigh of relief. They had been successful.Barely, she thought. It was a precarious morning, a long morning, but Sinclair had done what was right in the end. She was relieved to know that the good man that Aidam loved and remembered was still inside his uncle underneath the pain and the anger.
She walked over to her vanity and thought about how strange it was to be back home. It was comforting, but she would miss Aidam. She loved him. She knew it in her very bones he was hers, but she knew not when they would see each other again.
After Sinclair and her mother agreed to the terms of releasing the contract between them, Aidam left the study to bring the news to Jemina and Evander, and then Ellie presumed head back to the Sinclair keep with the men. After all, they had no agreement between them, and he had no reason to stay on at MacAskill Keep.
Even though the Sinclair clan was their neighbor, Ellie could not think of a reason for them to see each other again so soon.
“Will he miss me?” she said aloud to the empty room. The maids had brought up a fresh bath, and as she sank into the still warm water, she realized she missed Aidam already.
She thought of the bravery he had shown in escaping his uncle’s dungeon and how he had come for her. Surely, she meant enough to him for him to come to her again. If not, she thought, she would have to go to him. Standing from her bath and wrapping herself in soft linen, Ellie had a realization. There was nothing worse than facing an eternity of being apart from him. Nothing. She would not suffer in her life as her mother and Laird Sinclair suffered in theirs.I will go to my love,she thought.
She dried off quickly and ran a comb through her hair. After changing into a fresh dress and redoing her braids, Ellie decided she would not wait. She could sleep when she was dead. At that moment, she would ride to Aidam and tell him that she loved him.
She made her way to the door, and as quickly as she could, whipped it open. When she decided she wanted to find the love of her life and admit it, she wanted to find him now. Perhaps if she hurried, she could catch up to him on the road with the Sinclair men.
“Where ye runnin’ off to, lass?” Ellie jumped back in surprise and let out a small yelp. Aidam stood in front of her. He was there, at the door to her chambers.
“I…uh…I was off to find you,” she stammered.
“Well, I’m right here,” he replied, giving her a cocky grin. She could see the side of his face was swollen from where his uncle had hit him during their fight. She reached out a tentative hand and touched the bright red skin.
“Does it hurt?” she asked.
“Nay. It could’ve been worse.”
“Aye, yer uncle has a lot of fight left in him.”
“He does, but I’m nay here to talk about me uncle,” Aidam said.
“Did ye find Jemina and Van?” She wondered what her brother would think of the revelations of the afternoon. How heartbreaking it would be to find out the man he had known his whole life to be his father was not. Then again, perhaps finding out he still had a living man to call his Da would be a blessing for the lad. And how would Jemina feel about having a new brother in her life?
“Aye. They were relieved to learn everyone was all right, and no blood would be shed. But I did not tell the lad. I only told them that the issue between our families had been resolved. I didnae think it was my place to tell yer brother about me uncle being his Da.”
Ellie had to agree with him. He showed sound judgment. She was unsure how Evander would take the news, but perhaps it should come from her mother and Sinclair directly.
“Thank ye,” she replied. “Thank ye for everything.”
“Och, lass, ‘twas nothing. Now ye were off to find me, ye say?” He asked, stepping further into her chamber. He was so gentle in his movements Ellie could barely hear the click of the lock as he closed the door behind him.
She backed up, suddenly nervous. The back of her legs hit the edge of her feather bed, and she slightly lost her balance. Aidam reached out and wrapped his arms around her before she could fall.
“I didnae ken when I would see ye again,” she whispered. “I wanted to thank ye for…well… for everything ye did for my family and me.”
“For us,” Aidam said. His voice was low and smooth. Ellie closed her eyes and breathed in the scent of him. Like her, he had had a bath since she saw him last. He smelled of fresh soap, leather, and the masculine scent that was all his own. It was familiar to her now, and Ellie found she could not stop breathing him in. In all her years, she knew, there would never be a man who smelled as much like home to her than Aidam.
“For us?”
“Aye, lass, for us,” he repeated, sitting her down on the edge of the bed. “Ye see, Ellie, I cannot live without ye. Once I kent ye refused me uncle, I was determined to make ye mine. And now that we’re free, well, I hope ye dae nae mind, but I took it upon myself to ask yer mam and my uncle both if I could ask for yer hand.”
He knelt before her, and Ellie saw a new emotion in his features. His face gentled, and his gaze softened.
“Lady Heloise MacAskill…Ellie,” he began, taking a deep breath and wiping his brow before taking both of her hands into his own. “I love ye, lass. Ye are to me as the verra air I breathe in. I cannae imagine another day on this Earth without ye. Will ye do me the honor of letting me love ye for the rest of our lives and consent to be me wife?”
“Ye want to marry me?” she uttered.
“Aye,” he said. “And no other.”
