7
UNDER THE MOON'S GAZE
“Inever kent that trees could be this thick,” Brid commented.
She stood in the middle of their makeshift campsite with her head tilted back, her eyes studying the trees overhead. The limbs were so close together and so dense with leaves that she couldn't tell if there was any light in the sky at all. She knew just from the hours they had spent riding that the sun had already set, but even the streaks of light from the moon were blocked by the trees. The world was drenched in shadows, setting her already frayed nerves on edge.
“Aye,” Connor answered, finding his spot by her side, close enough that their knuckles brushed, sending sparks through both of them. “We are in the deepest part of the woods here. It makes for a decent hiding place from Campbell, though it leaves us to contend with another kind of beast.”
Her eyes went wide at his insinuation, and suddenly, her head wasn't tilted back anymore. She scanned the trees, trying to differentiate between all the shades of brown that surrounded the oak trunks. For a moment, she thought it might have been nice to be tucked away from the rest of the world, here with Connor. And his closeness seemed to say the same thing. But thethreat of the creatures that made a home in these trees, or the men who lived on the other side of them, had her thinking twice about it.
“Dinnae fash,” Connor whispered in her ear, “I will keep ye safe from man or beast.”
There was nothing she could do to stop the blush that spread from her cheeks down to her toes. It didn't help that Connor hardly gave her a chance to react before he sauntered off to talk with the others. Shaking herself out of her stupor, she trailed behind him, wondering if there was a way for Connor to protect her from him.
“All right, lads, I ken that it has been a long day of riding, but our job is nae finished yet. All that separates us from Campbell are these woods, so we will need to keep an eye out for guards. We cannae risk a fire this close to Murray Village, so do what ye must to stay warm. We will take the night watch in shifts. I will take first watch so the rest of ye can get some sleep in.”
Brid stood silently behind Connor and waited for the rest of the men to make their way to the campsite. It was the first time she would sleep on a bedroll rather than an actual bed, and she was in no hurry to have that experience. This was also the first time since they had left Finn and Drummond castle that she had any time alone with Connor. She had been too nervous to talk with Connor much on their journey to Aberfeldy Village. This wasn't an opportunity she wanted to squander again.
“I will keep ye company,” she told him softly, “at least for a while.”
Connor glanced over his shoulder as if he had always been aware of her presence there, and gestured with his head to a spot under one of the oak trees.
“Are ye always this chivalrous? Ye must be careful, or the lasses will start to call ye a hero.”
He chuckled and gave her an endearing smile that made her second guess the wisdom of her teasing.
“Would that be a problem if they did?”
“Why here?” she asked, tucking her skirts beneath her as she sat, ignoring his question entirely.
He lowered himself too, the warmth from his body barely touching her, blocked by the distance between them.
“Campbell and Murray castle sit in front of us,” he explained, pointing a finger in their direction. “Which means Aberfeldy Village is at our back. The chances of an enemy coming to find us are mainly from Campbell, so we will keep him in front of us. But a good watchman is always looking at all sides of things.”
She nodded slowly, letting her eyes move across the expanse of the forest as she brought her legs up to her chest, seeking their heat. The threat of her chattering teeth kept her mouth clamped down. She didn't want to be seen as weak. She could manage a little bit of cold just as well as the rest of them. At least, that is what she told herself.
“Here,” he said simply.
In one swift motion, he slid to her side, removing all space between them. Her side pressed against his until she could nearly make out the contours of the muscles that encased his ribs. He didn't stop there, though, as he took the end of his tartan and wrapped it around both of their shoulders, leaving his arm draped across her with it. She couldn't stop the sigh that slipped past her lips. Whether it was from his warmth or his touch, she wasn't prepared to answer. Luckily, Connor acted as though he hadn't heard her at all.
For a long moment, they simply sat there together, little more than two people taking in all that the evening had to offer. Brid's thoughts raced in her mind as she tried to sort through the events of the day. Really, she was struggling to make sense of everything that had happened in the last few months. But shewas too tired to talk about it or really even think about it. So she settled on a different line of questioning altogether.
“Ye grew up in the village we are going to.”
“Aye,” he answered, though it hadn't technically been a question.
“Tell me about it.”
Connor settled in a little deeper, making himself comfortable even as his eyes continued to scan the trees. He knew that she wasn't asking about the mission or what they were going to do once they got inside the village. She wasn't asking for the layout of things or what his plan would be. She was asking about his home, his childhood, his family. And strangely enough, he realized that he wanted to tell her all about it.
“I have spent my entire life in Murray Village. Of course, nay one calls it that anymore, as it irritates Campbell. Most refer to it simply as ‘the village’. It's a home for so many wonderful people. It was nae until I was sent on my first mission as a guard that I ever ventured beyond going to the castle.”
“What was it like, to grow up so near the castle?”
“Och, one would think that ye would lose respect for the castle, for the Laird and his family. But I have only grown fonder of them as the years have passed. With my father being one of Laird Murray's counselors, I was allowed in the castle whenever I pleased. Seamus and I used to cause such trouble with our schemes. My mother claimed that I was the source of all her headaches with the mud we tracked in and the banisters we slid down. But it was the perfect place for two wee lads to grow up. Of course, there were other children in the village around our age. We would run through the forest and chase each other all summer long. In the spring, the markets would open, and I could smell the fresh bread and flowers from my mother's kitchen table. It was heavenly.”
She sighed again, trying to imagine what life had been like.
