She nodded again and sighed so deeply as if comforted by the warmth of their bodies pressed together…or mayhap it was simply because he held her in his arms.
Cradling her.Kissing her forehead, the tip of her nose, and her closed eyelids as that same intense feeling overwhelmed him.
No simple stirring, but something as bright and hot as the flames lighting the room…God help him, he was lost.
Lisette flickered open her eyes and tried to stretch out her arms, but she was tucked so securely beneath the covers that she could hardly move.
Only then, with a glance around her, did she realize she was alone, but not for long.She heard a rap at the door and whoever wanted entrance didn’t wait for a response, Sorcha bursting into the room and running up to the bed.
“Oh, Lisette, did you see that wicked lightning in the garden?Cora’s apple tree, too.Now that the rain has stopped, Aislinn sent some servants out straightaway tae gather the fallen apples tae make tarts for tonight’s supper—”
“Have you seen Conall?”
Sorcha suddenly looked a bit downcast that Lisette hadn’t seemed interested about the apple tree, and then shrugged.
“He left with Cameron and a host of men a few hours ago.There’s flooding in the village from all the rain, but I’m sure everything’s fine now.Look!The clouds are gone.”
Indeed the sky had cleared, Lisette guessing that it must be past midday from the angle of the sun’s rays cascading through the window.Again, Sorcha appeared as ethereal as an angel with her blonde hair framing her face, but she had an impish smile that looked anything but heavenly.
“I know a secret…but Aislinn made me promise not tae tell.It’s a surprise for you and Conall—”
“Sorcha…”
At the sound of Aislinn’s voice, the girl clapped her hand over her mouth and twisted around even as Lisette tried again to extricate herself from the covers.She had slept so soundly that she hadn’t felt Conall climb from the bed, an intense yearning for his closeness overwhelming her as Aislinn retrieved a nightgown from the armoire and then rushed forward to help her.
“Your husband couldn’t have pulled those covers more tightly, aye?You’ve been snug and warm, though, which I’m sure was his aim since he couldn’t remain here with you.He wasn’t too happy to leave with Cameron—but I assured him that I would check on you.I’ve come and gone twice before now, but you were sleeping so peacefully.Was it my sweeting that woke you?”
“Non, I was already awake,” Lisette murmured, the covers thrown back so she was able at last to sit up and pull the nightgown over her head.
She blushed that Aislinn and Sorcha had seen her nakedness, but Aislinn merely took her hand to assist her as she swung her legs to the floor.The moment she put weight on her feet, though, she winced, and sank right back down on the bed.
“Oh, aye, Conall told me that you might have twisted your ankle,” Aislinn said with concern in her eyes.“Sorcha, run and call for the healer, will you?”
At once the girl bobbed her head and rushed from the room while Lisette sighed and reached down to massage her right foot.“It doesn’t hurt as much now, though it is sore.”
“Tobias will know exactly what to do, but your ankle doesn’t appear bruised, a good thing.You’ve not had an easy time of it since you arrived at Campbell Castle, but I hope the next few days will be happier for you, Lisette.”
At the apology in Aislinn’s voice, she looked up in surprise and reached out to squeeze her hand.“You’ve been so kind to me, so gracious.I can never thank you enough, truly.You and your husband and Sorcha—”
“Aye, it’s been our pleasure, but I’ll be happier, too, once Conall sees what’s as plain as the nose upon his face.He’s besotted with you, though I doubt he would ever admit it.Not yet, anyway.These Scots Highlanders are the most stubborn men on God’s earth, and so reluctant to admit to any hidden pain.Cameron’s was his terrible shyness since boyhood.When first we met, he could hardly look me in the eye, let alone speak to me.Conall was the one who told me about his brother’s affliction, but it’s a mystery about what’s made Conall so unwilling to open his heart…though he has begun to done so, Lisette, to you.Do you not see it?”
Chapter12
Lisette felt her heart beating so hard that she could only gape at Aislinn, the astonishing words having tumbled from the beautiful young Irishwoman in a rush.
The next instant brought a soft laugh from Aislinn, who shook her head.
“The two of you as blind to love as can be—ah, but these matters of the heart must find their own way, as they did for Cameron and me.I never dreamed when I came to Scotland to fight for King Robert that one of his most renowned warriors would become my husband, a true blessing from heaven.Your marriage to Conall is a blessing, too, and I pray it’s not long before you both admit to it.Did he tell you he has no intention of seeking an annulment?”
Lisette nodded, still so stunned that her voice sounded more a croak when finally she spoke.“Oui, he said as much on our way to the garden.He told me, too, that he didn’t hate me—”
“A double-edged sword, hatred and love!Of course he doesn’t hate you, Lisette, he cares deeply for you.”
“Non, he said he could not promise me love.I’ve been hoping and praying since we wed that one day, it might be different and he grow to feel as I do…” Lisette fell silent, her face burning at what she had just revealed, even as a smile spread across Aislinn’s face.
“So you have fallen in love with your handsome Highlander…just as I did with Cameron.I’ll not speak a word of it to Conall, I promise, Lisette—but you can answer me now, aye?Do you not see from the way he looks at you that he’s falling in love with you, too?I’ve never seen him so stricken as when he carried you out of the storm.Ah, God, and when I forbade him to visit you these past days so you could rest, I knew he wanted to defy me.He’s not sleeping and scarcely eating and all the while training his men until they’re ready to collapse from exhaustion—”
“Mon Dieu, is it truly possible?”Her heart clamoring in her breast, Lisette felt her eyes welling as she glanced out the window and wished desperately that Conall would return to her.
