I huffed a breath, but with the sun warming my side and the fresh scents of spring in the air, it was easy to dismiss bitterness. Farren spoke nothing of the markings beneath the wraps on my wrist, at least, and now that she’d caught her blunder, she was more likely to use reservation when speaking.
Renna cast a sidelong glance at her sister, lips a tight line.
“Sorry,” Farren amended, casting her eyes down.
“I’m not pregnant.” The contraceptive I’d drunk would be effective. And, even if it wasn’t, it didn’t matter much. I’d only made it as a precaution. When I became a woman, Leighis explained the windows of fertility, and I made a point only to take a man when I was confident I couldn’t come with child.
Quiet hung between us, fractured only by the chatter coming from the market.
Renna shifted her weight, and when she broke the quiet, her voice held a note of hesitation. “Evera, do you think—” She licked her lips, then tried again. “Has it been long enough since Cas’s birth?”
The corner of my lips rose as I caught her implication.Though Aureus would dissuade me from speaking of anything related to healing in public, those in the market were a distance off, and no one took note of us. Farren and Renna were my oldest friends, aside from Ruairc, with who I’d not been close in some years. There was a comfort in the way my friends came to me for advice on medicinal things with such casualness, with such trust in my abilities. It felt like acceptance, and it warmed me.
“She named him Castien,” Farren said. “Isn’t that a strapping name? A strong one, too. He’ll be a charmer one day for certain.” She’d obviously missed her sister’s underlying question.
I exchanged a knowing look of amusement with Renna, and Farren pouted and looked between us as if aware she was missing something, but unsure of what.
“Are you still bleeding?” I asked Renna.
She shook her head. “The bleeding stopped about a fortnight ago.”
“And do you have any pain?”
Eyes falling to her infant, Renna shook her head. “No, not like that. Some discomfort with nursing, but that’s not really relevant. I’m not sure why I brought it up.”
“Because it’s on your mind.”
Renna’s joy in looking upon her child caught my heart. She stroked the blond waves atop his head with her thumb. Her own hair, loose and tossed over her shoulders, matched perfectly with the boy’s. But his hair could darken with time, should he take after his father.
“He appears to be growing well, but I can stop by and check your latch later if you would like. It can be uncomfortable when you’re getting used to it, but it shouldn’t hurt.” Of course, these were all the only things I knew from my teachings. When Neirin drew my nipple into his mouth and suckled—
“Is everything okay?” Renna asked.
My cheeks flushed. I parted my lips and blinked to dismiss my distracted gaze, but Farren broke in first.
“Oh, it’s because of what I said, isn’t it?” Her shoulders sank.
I let out a breath and shook my head. “No, Farren, it’s fine, truly. My mind was elsewhere. It doesn’t matter. You should be fine, Renna. Just make sure your husband knows to ease into things. It’s still a bit early. Nothing too—”
“Rough?” Renna grinned.
I laughed. Being older than Farren, Renna was more thoughtful in her words, typically. More aware of the social standards she was expected to adhere to. But marriage had brought out another side of her, or rather her, blacksmith husband had.
“Yes,” I said, “nothing too rough.”
With a sigh, Renna conceded. “Better than nothing, I suppose.”
Farren, catching on, blushed. Her eyes darted to the market square, and she sucked in her bottom lip. “Oh, not more of yourstories, Renna.” She glanced around nervously. “Certainly not here.”
Crossing my arms, I grinned.
A wicked gleam sparkled in Renna’s eyes, and she leaned in toward her sister. “You don’t like my stories?” Exaggerated feigned innocence laced her tone, and the flush of Farren’s cheeks deepened. Though I hadn’t a sister of my own, the connection the three of us shared was as close as one could come to siblings.
There was a simple joy in flustering Farren, and those in the market were too busy with their shopping to worry themselves with overhearing our conversation.
“Ienjoy your stories,” I assured her.
Quick-thinking Renna turned the implication back on me. “It sounds like you have stories to tell of your own?”
