Ferra didn’t respond, instead taking a healthy swallow of her ale. He was being far too, well, cordial to her.
Kaiden leaned back in the chair, his eyes on her. “I wish tae tell ye I’m vera sorry for the other day,” he started, each word breaking Ferra’s heart. “I didnae mean tae take advantage of ye. Ye have come under false pretenses and helped me get tae this point. I want nothing more than tae thank ye, lass, for wot ye have done for me.”
While she appreciated his gratitude, Ferra didn’t want to hear that he was apologizing for their kiss—her first kiss, at that. All her life, as with other lasses, she had dreamed of the moment. A stolen kiss in the shadow of a barn, or during a dance that would be shared between the two of them alone.
But never should it be apologized for, not when it had affected her so.
“I, I dinnae know w-wot tae say,” she stammered, attempting to hide her disappointment. Now that he was healing, Ferra had hoped that he would see her as what she was meant to be.
As his wife.
“Say ye will forgive me, lass?” Kaiden asked. “And help me walk again?”
She couldn’t say no to that. “Aye, I forgive ye.”
He motioned toward the food that was laid out before them. “Then let’s eat tae get our strength. I fear we are going tae need it.”
The next few days were trying. First, it was small steps around the chamber, with Kaiden leaning heavily on Erik. Then he progressed to the hall, scaring more than one servant as he shuffled around them—in breeks, at least.
Ferra watched with a careful eye, staying largely out of the way while Kaiden learned to shift his weight in order to give his injured leg a rest from time to time. Even the laird watched his son progress occasionally, rewarding him with a mug of ale or a shot of Scots whiskey when he navigated down the stairs.
“I did it,” Kaiden breathed as Ferra joined him on the main landing. “I made it.”
“Ye did,” she answered, hearing the surprise in his voice. “How do ye feel?”
“Tired,” he grumbled, rubbing at his injured thigh absently.
She moved beside him. “Would ye like tae step outside, Kaiden?” she knew he had been cooped up in that chamber for quite some time, and though the fresh air now flowed through the room daily, there was nothing like feeling the sun on one’s face.
“Aye,” he stated. “Lead on, lass.”
They walked to the entry doors and she pulled them open, allowing Kaiden to step out first. The air was still cool, but the sun was high in the sky, and Ferra couldn’t help but smile as its rays graced her face.
“I forgot how much I missed it,” he said softly, tilting his face to the sun. Ferra couldn’t help it; she watched him close his eyes and enjoy the rare moment, her heart aching at the sight.
Bleeding skies, he was handsome, and she wanted nothing more than to ask him to kiss her again.
Would he ever? Ferra certainly hoped that the last kiss truly wasn’t her last with Kaiden.
“Well, well, wot do we have here?”
Ferra gave Erik a grin as he joined them, seeing how careful Erik was with his hand as he clapped Kaiden on the back. “We are enjoying the sunshine,” she replied, as Kaiden eyed his second-in-command, “before he navigates those steps once more.”
“Who would have thought the stairs would be difficult without a belly full of ale?” Erik jested, earning a smile from Kaiden. “I’ve had a time or two mahself.”
“More than a time or two,” Kaiden added with a hearty laugh.
Erik looked over at Ferra. “I will get him there safely, mah lady. I wish tae discuss something with him.”
Ferra was hesitant to leave Kaiden, but he gave her a slow nod. “I’m fine, lass. Go on.”
So, she gave him a soft, confident smile, and strode away, leaving the men to their business. It wasn’t until Ferra was in her room, with the door closed, that she allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief. Kaiden was well on his way to recovery now, and likely, it would be difficult to tie him to the bed now.
She just hoped that he wouldn’t have a notion to overexert himself just yet. The last thing he would need would be a setback in his condition.
Sighing, Ferra fell onto her bed, feeling the weariness overtake her. She had been so worried that she would fail him—fail Shamus—and be nothing more than a woman who was going to get in the way of his future.
But now, she was grateful that she had been able to help Kaiden. The only problem was that he had complicated things between them by kissing her, and now she craved more from her husband.
