Simon shifted in his seat, not meeting Lachlan’s eye. “She’ll not last long here. I think she’d do a good job. She can go and make friends with Emma, and we’ll take it from there.”
The penny dropped. Lachlan let out a deep belly laugh. “Ye have a fancy for her, don’t ye? Oh, that’s ridiculous. Ye don’t have to do all this to have the lass, ye know. She workshere, for heaven’s sake. The lassies here are the most attainable women in the highlands if ye have the coin for them.”
Simon had gone faintly pink in the face. “That’s not the point.”
“These lassies are all the same, Simon, ye fool. Very well, though, I’ll agree. Wee, useless Flora can go. So, where is Emma Gallagher, then?”
Simon grinned. “MacPherson Keep, of course. I’ve got a contact, and a plan, too.”
A smile spread across Lachlan’s face.
“Well, now. That’s convenient, eh?”
Busy, busy, busy. If Emma didn’t allow herself a moment to breathe, or think, or sit down, she found that she didn’t think at all about Gregor or Thomas. There were herbs to be ground up, pastes to be made, and a reviving tea for Delphine, who was getting one of her headaches.
Delphine was currently in her room, lying on the bed, with her eyes closed, and that left Emma alone in the Chamber. A few people had come in and out—a farm laborer who needed a dressing changed on a wound, a young pregnant woman who wanted something for morning sickness, and a maid who suffered from terrible spots on her face and wanted to know if Emma could do anything about that.
Emma could, as it turned out. The relieved maid went scuttling away, the small tin of paste clutched in her hand, and Emma immediately looked around to find something else to occupy her time.
She needn’t have bothered.
A sharp rap came on the door, but before she could answer, the door pushed open.
Thomas peered inside, his smile widening when he saw her.
“Good afternoon, Emma. Working hard, I see.”
“Is it afternoon already?” Emma replied, not sure whether she was pleased or disappointed to see him.
Annoyed, she decided. That would explain the fluttering behind her ribcage and the strange tingling feeling low in her gut.
He stepped inside, exuding confidence. She sometimes wondered whether people liked to be around him because of how he made them feel. They parted ways from him feeling confident too, happy in themselves, and… andelated, somehow.
Not that she had ever felt that way, of course. She had just observed it in others.
She cleared her throat, pressing her hands flat against the cool, smooth stone of the table. “What can I do for ye, Laird MacPherson? Delphine is indisposed at the moment.”
Thomas didn’t seem disappointed. “Aye, but I came here to see ye.”
As she had expected. The words sent a silky-smooth flutter down her spine, no matter how hard she pretended they did not.
She tilted up her chin. “What for?”
Thomas eyed her for a long moment, nibbling on his lower lip. She tried not to look at his mouth, where his sharp, vulpine teeth rested on his reddened lip.
So far, it was not working.
“Ye had a nasty shock yesterday,” he said, after a moment. “I came to see if ye were all right.”
A pang of fear shot through her. She cleared her throat again, glancing at Delphine’s closed bedroom door. “I am quite able to do my work, Me Laird.”
Thomas followed the direction of her gaze, and she cursed herself for being such an obvious fool. “Did ye not tell Delphine?” he asked, frowning.
Emma let out a long breath. “No, I did not. I thought it would upset her. Besides, if I’d followed her advice, it would never have happened.”
Thomas tilted his head to one side. “Well, I understand that. Delphine cares for ye like a daughter, ye know.”
She was going red, Emma just knew it.
