“Yes.”
Glynna smiled, displaying neat white teeth. “Hallo, milady,” she whispered very sweetly in Old Gaelic.
“Hallo,” Morag answered back with a grin, apparently having learned about as much of the tongue as Janet had. “You are verra pretty, Glynna.”
“Thank-ye.”
Janet’s brow furrowed. Obviously Morag had learned a bit more of the tongue than she had. She reverted back to English. “How did you know those words? And how did you know Euan’s name?”
“Stuart.”
“Stuart?”
“Yes, Stuart,” Morag responded. Her cheeks pinkened a bit as she cleared her throat. “My, uh…”
“Husband?”
She nodded. “I tried to tell you that day in the forest but—”
“It’s ok,” Janet said wryly, “I pretty much figured it out for myself.”
“Among other things, I’d wager.”
Janet shook her head. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Morag chuckled. “We were in the same boat as you and your husband, you know, even if the men would no’ let us see each other until we docked.”
“And?”
She grinned. “Your man was doing more than a wee bit of moaning from what I could hear all voyage long.”
Janet’s face flushed with heat. She couldn’t hold back the small smile that tugged at the corners of her lips though. “So glad I was able to unknowingly provide entertainment,” she murmured.
Morag smiled, chucking her playfully under the chin. “Quit blushing. You have the look of a turnip.”
Janet happened to glance down just then and noticed that Glynna was watching a little girl across the room play with a doll. The look in her eyes was one of unadulterated longing, a child desperately wanting to play, yet she made no move to dislodge herself from Janet’s side even though it was obvious she’d rather be doing little girl things.
Good lord, Janet thought, she’d never met a child so in control of her naturally playful and exploratory nature. Not a good thing at the age of six, to stand off to the side rather than indulge. She turned to Morag. “Do you know the word for ‘play’?”
“Hmm.” She thought that over a minute, then threw a word at Janet.
Janet nodded her thanks then turned back to Glynna. “You may play now if you would like.” She smiled down to her.
Glynna’s return smile was so big as to border on bursting. Janet now understood that when Euan had first brought the little girl to her side, he must have instructed her to remain with Janet unless told otherwise. Good grief how boring for a six-year-old!
“Thank-ye, mum.”
Janet’s back stiffened. She hadn’t been expecting such an endearment so soon, if it all, and she was confused as to how she should feel about it. It was frightening. And yet heart-warming at the same time. Realistically she knew the little girl was probably only calling her by the name she’d been told to use, but it didn’t keep her heart from swelling up just a bit. “You’re welcome,” she said softly, scooting her gently away from her skirt. “Go play now.”
Morag chuckled as the little girl bounded away. “She is a verra pretty wee thing.”
“Mmm yes. She is.”
The conversation turned then as they caught each other up on all that had transpired since they’d been separated. “I love it here.” Morag waxed nostalgic as she spun around in a circle and took in the massive great hall and its bustling activity. “Stuart might be a bit high-handed at times, but he’s good to me, gentle with me. No’ at all a tyrant as my damned brothers were.”
Janet didn’t know the first thing about Stuart, but she could agree with that bit about Morag’s brothers. She shook her head, bemused. “Are you telling me you don’t want to go back to the future?”
Morag sighed, then shrugged. “I really don’t know, Janet. I was no’ thrilled with my life back in Nairn, hated it in fact. I would have gone crazy had I no’ had you for a friend.”
