Last night’s astonishing kisses flashed unguarded through her mind. But he stood frowning, cool and impenetrable.
“Good day!” she said. “True, it is futile to use a pin.” She opened her reticule to take out a small implement and gave him a sweet grin as she waved it. “A toothbrush will do.”
“For the love of God, woman, scrubbing rocks like a scullery maid with a toothbrush will not improve their appearance or their value. It just prolongs the time we spend here.”
“No need for oaths, sir,” she retorted. Rubbing the little brush inside a crevice, she blew at the loosened dirt. Seeing visible marks, she took up a pencil to sketch them.
“We have just a few weeks to finish the road. Mrs. Blackburn. Are you listening?” He dropped to his haunches while she worked. “What do you have there?”
“My uncle cleaned some old stones in a field once with a toothbrush,” she explained as she worked. “And he discovered Pictish carvings of great antiquity. The science of archaeology has made great strides, and we are learning a great deal. Taking great care is important. Even fifty years ago, fossil bones were still thought to be the remains of dragons and monsters, and Celtic bronze items were believed to belong to fairies.”
“They don’t?” he drawled.
She scowled at him. “Now we know the value of caution and cataloguing, so we can unravel early history more accurately. Time has layers, just as the earth has strata. Both will yield secrets if treated with respect.” She wiggled the toothbrush at him. “We cannot dig willy-nilly on this site.”
“Neaves said he would send an amateur. But you know what you are about.”
“I do. My uncle trained me well. I am prepared to do cautious exploration here. If I find something of merit, Sir Edgar will take over.” She pursed her lips at the thought.
“We do not have time to clean stones inch by inch.”
“Youmay not have time, sir, but I do. You can be so impatient,” she murmured as she brushed at the stone and blew lightly.
“In this, aye.”
“Hurrying is senseless if historical treasures could be destroyed in haste. You would not proceed hastily with your road, would you? I will not be hasty with my stones.”
“Your stones!” He huffed. “For the roads, we determine many things, designing according to the lay of the land, how much blasting and where, what materials are needed, and estimate how much time is required, depending on weather and unexpected factors.”
“Like Pictish walls?” She brushed a stone close to his booted toe. He shifted his foot.
“Old walls and stubborn little antiquarians, aye.”
She sat back on her heels and looked up at him. “We have something in common, you and I. We both dig in the earth and take it apart. You build roads, I resurrect history.”
“I suppose we do.”
She stood, brushing her gloved hands, and faced him. “It occurs to me that while I shepherd the past, you prepare the future. But neither of us knows what we will encounter. Look what you discovered with your black powder.”
“Aye, look what I found.” He watched her steadily.
His words last night came back to her. He tested himself against love, and could love her—but he was invulnerable. The meaning in his words suddenly stung. He was adamant about not loving, and she must guard against being foolish.
“Since you are so busy, Sir Aedan, you should get back to your great metal beast. We both have work to do, and I will not keep you from it.”
“True, the Commission is breathing down my neck. They are anxious to know when the road will be ready for Her Majesty’s wee jaunt from Glasgow. By the way, this morning, you had a letter from Sir Edgar in the postal bag,” he added. “He will be impatient too, eager to know if any of this lot will benefit him.” He waved toward the stones.
“Benefit the museum, you mean. I cannot say yet what is here, but he will want to hear some news before he comes out here.”
“Tell him not to come out here at all.”
She tipped her head. “Are you obtuse by nature, or is it a skill you have honed?”
“Have you always been stubborn and willful?”
“Yes.” She spun, knelt in the dirt, and took up the toothbrush.
Aedan spun too, striding away to speak with Hector and Angus. Christina scrubbed furiously at a stone, deliberately not looking toward him.
