He’d laughed, his voice echoing.“Daenae be a fool, lass. How can ye think that?”
“How can I think otherwise?”
And then, just like that, his anger had vanished. Gone in the blink of an eye, in the snap of the fingers. He’d fixed her with a cool, narrow-eyed look, one that she had not been able to interpret. Just like he was looking at her now.
The memory brought others with it, attached like threads to a piece of torn fabric. She remembered Susan. She remembered the other women clustering eagerly around her.
She remembered the grim-faced circle of councilmen, headed by the austere Andrew Kane, an ascetically thin man with sunken eyes and dips in his temples. The key pieces of her memory, however, remained shrouded. After her kidnapping, there was nothing.
Evander spoke abruptly, shattering the silence and jolting her out of her reverie. “Go on, then, Leah. Lady Bryden needs to rest and doesnae want to be bothered. Leave her be.”
Leah nodded and bobbed a brief curtsey. “Aye, me Laird. Good night, me Lady. Come to the healer’s chambers if ye need anything from me, willnae ye?”
“I will.”
She snatched up her implements and hurried out of the room, skirting past Evander as she did so.
That left the two of them alone, staring at each other.
Skye let her hand drop from where it had been clutching her neckline.
“So,” she managed. “Here ye are. What can I do for ye?”
Wordlessly, he held out the flowers. She took them, her fingers brushing against his. Warmth bloomed inside her. The touch was gone as quickly as it had come, and Evander stepped back.
“Get dressed,” he said shortly, his voice not quiteas clear as usual. “There is a red silk gown in yer wardrobe, with embroidery on the hem. Wear it.”
“I’m getting dressed?” she asked, her voice quavering. “What for?”
His eyebrow quirked. “For dinner, of course. We’ll eat in me private dining room, just off me chambers. Ye should remember where it is, and if nae, a servant can guide ye there. Ye must be hungry, and I daenae believe it’ll do ye much good, huddled up here and eating in yer rooms. So, if ye want to eat, ye will join me.”
She bristled. “I have no choice, then.”
He grinned. “I’ll be waiting.”
