“Vanessa, stop playing games with me.” He pulled her close to him. His green eyes bore into her own. “Tell me what you discovered.”
She exhaled slowly. Perhaps she had tested his patience more than was necessary. She kept her gaze on his eyes for a breath, before looking pointedly down at his hands, then back up. He released her. She caught sight of the bloodied shirt piece tied across his injury, and guilt gnawed at her.
“For starters, I came upon a body,” she said. “Though I could not determine precisely how, I decided he must have died a most painful death.”
A heavy frown creased Graeme’s brow. “You’re quite serious.”
“Oh, indeed.” Vanessa began walking again.
“He was dead, though?”
She smiled. “Oh, most decidedly. He had decomposed almost entirely.” When his frown had not resolved, she touched his hand. “It was skeletal remains, Graeme. There is no need for concern. So I suppose I cannot be certain it was a man.” It suddenly occurred to her. “Though he did seem to be wearing trousers. Not to say women don’t on occasion don a pair of pants, but it isn’t common. Unless it is more so here in the Highlands.”
When he said nothing, she said, “Graeme?”
“What?” His brow was still heavily creased.
“Do you suppose it could have been a woman?” she asked.
“It’s doubtful other women have been traipsing about in those caverns,” he said sardonically.
It was a thinly veiled chide, one which she would completely ignore. “I don’t think we can assume that. Scottish women are strong and courageous.” She smiled sweetly.
“You’re not going back into those caves. As soon as the weather allows, you’ll be back on a train to return to London.”
There he went again, assuming he could control her behavior. Yesterday at the train station he’d been overbearing and demanding. Trying to send her home. As if he could assert some manner of control over her. And that was before he’d known they were truly married. Honestly.
She stopped short of rolling her eyes. Clearly, he had a very specific idea about the rights and duties of a husband. It may take a fair bit of work on her part, but she would have to disabuse him of that notion.
“That is utterly ridiculous,” she said. “I have work to do in those caverns. But for the sake of your argument, why? Because I found a dead body? I can assure you he was long since dead. No harm could have come to me.”
“It’s far too dangerous for you. And no, not simply because of the body.”
“I think I managed just fine today even without your assistance.”
He nodded. “Yes, discovering a skeleton is precisely what every man desires for his wife.”
“So far, I have not heard a sound argument. Not only did I discover a fossil today—a perfect one, I might add— but I came upon a new cavern,” she said.
“You went down a new tunnel?”
“No, I found an entirely new cave. There was a hidden passage that led to it.” There, now he knew that if he wanted to find it, he’d need her assistance.
They descended the hill from the castle ruins and skimmed the shoreline of the loch. The cottage was not far, and though she was eager to get back to the cavern for more exploring, Graeme’s wound needed tending.
“What do you mean you found another cavern?” he asked.
“I’m not speaking in riddles. I said precisely what I meant.” Why was it that men assumed women needed help expressing themselves? She’d always said what she meant, how she meant to say it, yet people were always asking her for additional clarification. Vanessa stepped through the gate that Graeme held open for her. The cottage sat in front of them. Smoke billowed from the tops of the chimneys, promising warmth.
“I thought you might find the cavern interesting considering your own research,” she said. Of course, she didn’t know for certain that any of those notes had belonged personally to Graeme, but it did seem that, at the very least, he’d been hired to do some investigation in those caves.
He stopped walking and eyed her, his green eyes narrowing. “What research?”
“There’s no need to be so secretive.” Perhaps she had crossed a line reading through that material, but it had been left out in the open in an unlocked study for anyone to read. She waved her hand in front of her dismissively. “Now that we’re married.” There, she could toss that about just as he did.
“Yes, but how do you know I even have research, as you call it?” he asked.
“I read through your notes. In the study.” She shifted her weight, uncomfortable in the cold now that they were no longer moving. “The ones on the Loch Ness treasure.”
