“That’s a fair point,” Liam conceded, his own attention shifting to his daughter.
They fell into a comfortable silence. It was the first time since their wedding that she truly felt like she was his wife. This wasn’t the love she had imagined, but something had changed. Her desire for emotional connection no longer felt out of reach.
“Ye can swim, aye?” Liam asked, breaking the silence between them.
“I can,” Katherine confirmed, shifting on the blanket, her hand pressing more firmly against his. “I had to teach meself, but I did so in the rivers near the home me father and I were livin’ in. When I was a few years older than Agnes, he took me to the sea to work on fishin’ boats. I fell in, and he didnae get in to help. Told me that it was important to ken how to keep meself afloat.”
Liam went still, his back straightening. Carefully, his tone modulated, he said, “He’s correct if ye plan on bein’ near the sea, but I would prefer ye teach her to swim here.”
“Of course. I wouldnae want her to learn the way I did. It was frightenin’,” Katherine said, watching him carefully. She still couldn’t understand why he seemed so against the idea of the sea. Something must have happened there, but she didn’t know how to ask. Instead, she said, “I could teach her to swim in the ocean after she’s a stronger swimmer. In case?—”
“It looks as if she’s waitin’ for ye to join her,” Liam said, abruptly cutting her off. His jaw was set tight, his hands curled into fists against the blanket.
Katherine followed his gaze to see Agnes watching them. Hewascorrect though she couldn’t help but think that the timing was quite convenient. It was just another way for him to dodge the conversation.
“Aye, she is,” Katherine agreed, letting the subject drop. She began removing her own shoes and stockings. “Will ye be joinin’ us?”
“Nay just yet,” Liam said, guarded but clearly relieved that Katherine was willing to let the topic drop. “I will pack everythin’ away. Then I will join ye.”
Katherine nodded, staying on the blanket for a second longer. Then, she gathered both her shoes and Agnes’, carrying them with her to the river. Even though she wanted to demand he tellher why he was so apprehensive about the sea, she wanted more than anything else to maintain the light atmosphere for the rest of the day.
I will be able to ask him later. For now… I’ll splash in the water with Agnes.
Chapter Twenty-Four
“How are ye feelin’, Me Lady?” the healer asked, setting the empty infusion glass aside. “Ye’re lookin’ much better.”
“I’m feelin’ it,” Katherine said, swallowing again around the bitter, herbal aftertaste stuck to her tongue. “I believe gettin’ some sunlight and puttin’ me feet in the river a few days ago did me a lot of good.”
“I’d say so,” the healer agreed. “I would have preferred that ye rested longer, though. I havenae seen anyone as sick as ye in years. We didnae think that ye would pull through.”
“I’ve heard that I gave everyone quite a fright,” Katherine said, ducking her head.
She didn’t remember the worst of her illness. There were only the flashes of terrible dreams and the memory of an exhaustionso deep that she couldn’t open her eyes. Then, Liam was there looking as though he’d seen a ghost.
“Aye, ye did,” the healer confirmed. “I’ve never seen Laird MacDougal like that.”
The words hit Katherine so hard that the only thing she could do was nod. She waited a beat, and when the healer said nothing else, she stood and walked to the door. When she reached it, she looked over her shoulder and said, “Thank ye. I ken that I wouldnae have healed as quickly as I did without ye.”
“Ye should thank the Laird as well,” the healer said. “He’s the one that stayed with ye and kept yer temperature down. I’m sure that improved yer chances.”
The statement was another blow that Katherine couldn’t quite wrap her mind around. She’d been sitting with the information that he’d been with her all night since she’d fallen ill. Now, though, hearing that he had even played a role in her recovery was dizzying.
“I... I will be sure to tell him,” Katherine said, her voice stilted.
Her heart pounded in her chest as she moved through the corridors. She needed air, not because she was upset but because it felt like her heart was racing ahead. The space he’d kept between themwasshrinking. There might be room for love in this marriage.
It willnae come fast. It may nae come at all. I need to keep meself from gettin’ too hopeful. He’s told me nae to expect it.
Instead, she tried to focus on what was happening. The ceilidh was only three days away, and the preparations were in full swing. Perhaps, after taking a short walk through the gardens, she could visit the kitchens and attempt to charm the cook into giving her a taste of the desserts he’d been preparing.
Stepping out of the castle and into the sun-warm air, she took a deep breath. A mix of floral sweetness wafted from the gardens. It was as if the wind was drawing her closer to the smell.
As she followed the scent, her face upturned to the sky. She moved carefully, not wanting to trip over the stones laid in the ground. Residents of the castle were out enjoying the weather, and she no longer felt as though she were a spectacle here. Instead, she was just part of the landscape.
It felt like true freedom.
For a few minutes, all she heard was distant laughter and birdsong. But as she walked deeper into the gardens, she picked up the low tone of Liam’s voice. Refusing to overthink her actions, she moved toward the sound.
