Ailsa parted her lips, intending to interrogate her further on just what she meant by such a thing, but before she could, Riona clapped her hands together.
“I could use a meal,” she remarked. “Ye wouldnae leave a guest with nothing to eat, would ye, Tavish?”
She brushed past Tavish and into the Keep, not waiting for an invitation, seemingly she had no need of one.
Ailsa studied Tavish’ face, trying to make sense of what he thought of all of this, but he seemed to be doing his best to keep it pointedly empty of any reaction.
Who was this woman?
Why did she walk around this place like she owned it? And what, exactly, was her relationship with Tavish?
Whatever the answers to those questions, the kitchen was quick to respond to the arrival of a guest, and soon, a small feasthad been arranged and brought out to the small dining room off the main hall. Only Tavish, Riona, and Ailsa were in attendance, though Ailsa got the distinct impression that Riona would have preferred if she wasn’t there at all.
“I cannae believe that ye’re finally married, Tavish,” Riona remarked, shaking her head as she planted down her cup of ale on the table with a thump.
She had been drinking steadily since it had first been brought out, and her cheeks were slightly flushed, her words bold—or, at least, bolder than even they had been before.
“We met again at the MacFadden feast,” Ailsa shot back, reaching across the table to take Tavish’ hand.
It was strange to feel so possessive of him when she had been so determined to put as much space between herself and this man as possible for so long. But now that they had finally closed the distance between themselves, she refused to let this woman come in and throw that all off.
He was her husband, after all. He had chosen her. And no matter how fondly Riona seemed to speak to him, it didn’t change a thing.
“At a feast?” she laughed. “Dinnae tell me that ye were dancing, Tavish. I’ve seen how ye dance.”
She shook her hand, and Tavish reached for his ale, not looking at her.
“Dinnae exaggerate, Riona.”
“Tavish never liked dancing,” Riona explained to Ailsa, like she was sharing some deep knowledge that Ailsa would never have been privy to if it weren’t for her. “But in other things, he was certainly a little more open to… leading.”
She let the words hang in the air and then burst out laughing as though she had made the most hysterical joke in the world, grasping his arm with amusement like she was trying to coax a reaction out of him, too.
Ailsa felt a cold shock of discomfort rush through her. What was this woman talking about? Had she and Tavish been together before they had met?
Her eyes darted between them as she fiddled with her spoon, trying not to let her insecurity show too clearly on her face.
She managed to make it through the rest of the meal without letting Riona get under her skin. At least, she hoped that’s the image she had managed to project, because she couldn’t stand the thought of this girl knowing that she had so upset her. That was clearly what she wanted, even if Ailsa could not very well make sense of what she would have gotten out of such a thing. Why would she arrive at the Keep and come swinging in here like she had the run of the place?
It didn’t make any sense to her, and she could not help but feel she had been caught out. She should never have gotten so comfortable, she should never have let that peace get the better of her…
By the time that the dinner plates were cleared away, Tavish excused himself, insisting that he had matters to take care of in his study. Riona gave him a hug before he left, squeezing him a little more closely than she should have in front of his wife.
“It’s good to see ye again, Tavish,” she murmured to him.
He nodded curtly, glancing at Ailsa, and bidding her farewell before he left the room.
And, all at once, the two women were alone together. Ailsa sugared her smile as she turned to Riona, determined not to give her the satisfaction of knowing how much she had bothered her.
“It’s lovely to have afriendof Tavish’s here,” she told her. “How long do ye think ye’ll be stay, Riona?”
But Riona simply looked back at her for a moment, clearly able to see beneath the facade she was attempting to throw up before her. She took a step towards Ailsa, her long red hairfalling into her face, her eyes dark even in the glimmering light from the candles.
“I just want what’s best for him, Ailsa,” she remarked.
“As we both do,” Ailsa replied curtly.
Riona smirked slightly, shaking her head.
