“A sack of flour, eh? Harsh.”
“Be serious.”
“I thought ye would have wanted me dead.”
She pressed her lips together. “Enough of that. Did ye bring the annulment? Or are ye simply here to update me on its progress? I’ve heard nothing from ye.”
“Nay,” he answered calmly.
She narrowed her eyes at him. Did that mean no to all of it? Was there no progress?
“Why are ye here?” she asked.
He took a long moment before responding.
The rain was falling more heavily now, spattering on the ground and lifting a soaking mist at least knee height. The crowd had finally seen sense and began to disperse. Somebody led away a horse which she assumed was Evander’s, the poor damp creature in need of a good drying down and some warm oats.
Hunter had gone. She was glad of that. There’d be no good standing here and talking honestly to Evander with him staring at them. Helena was gone too, and that was another relief. It would do her mother no good to stand out in the rain, getting soaked.
It occurred to Skye, belatedly, that her clothes were soaked through and stuck damply to her skin. She shivered, thinking wistfully of the warm fire still burning in her room.
“I wanted to speak to ye,” Evander said.
So that was it, then. He wasn’t going to add extra details until they could speak in private.
She pressed her lips together, her gaze dropping to the bloody stain on the front of his shirt.
“Well, we had better get out of the rain,” she mumbled.
At that moment, lightning split the sky once more, accompanied by an angry roar of thunder. The storm was getting closer. There was no space at all between the thunder and lightning, which meant that it was right overhead.
“Come on, in ye go,” she sighed, gesturing for him to step inside. “I’ll feel guilty if ye are struck by lightning.”
He obeyed meekly.
That was another strange thing.
Where’s his fire?she wondered, the corners of her mouth tugging down.He didnae fight Hunter. He’s nae snapping at me. I daenae understand. Perhaps it’s because the annulment has come through and he’s relieved. I wonder if he’ll marry another woman.
That thought made her chest tighten.
She swallowed hard, willing herself to be calm.
This is none of me concern. It stopped being me concern the second I left Keep Bryden.
Turning on her heel, she strode away down the corridor. He followed, and this time she could hear the gentle pat of his footsteps, slow and even. She was walking fast, in the hope of making him jog, but he kept pace with her easily, his long strides quickly catching up to hers.
Stupid tall man. I’d like to trip him up.
He gave a low chuckle, as if he could read her thoughts, and she glowered up at him.
“Enough giggling,” she snapped. “Once the storm dies down, ye areout, ye hear?”
“I hear,” he answered mildly.
She was not convinced.
