They’d made her lose the one thing that held her heart.
Her now shattered heart.
She wanted to put the pieces back together and the only way she could do that would be to see Malcolm. She had to ask him if he loved her. She sighed. She kenned he did, but she wanted to hear the words from his beautiful, full lips. And then she wanted to feel his strong arms wrap her in an embrace as he whispered to her that he was never going to leave her again.
Probably the dreams and whims of a young lass.
But the only way to find out was to ask him. She needed to find a way to go to him.
She sat up, bringing her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them as she thought.
“Rosalyn lives no’ far from here,” she stated suddenly.
“Your friend from years ago?”
Lizzie nodded her head. “Aye. She’s near, but no’ too near. I could tell Mama and Papa that I need to clear my head. Get out of the house and talk to someone near my age that may understand what I’m going through. Surely, they’ll agree.”
“Miss, I am no’ certain that is the best of ideas. Does she still live there with her parents?”
“I believe so, I havena heard that she’s married and moved away.”
“Do ye think she will see ye?”
Lizzie laughed. “Mary, sometimes ye are so silly. I have no intentions of actually going to visit her. I will use that as an excuse to get us out of the house. Once out, we will make our way to Culzean.”
“Nay, absolutely no’.” Mary shook her head vehemently. “One time was enough. I nearly lost my job, if ye recall.”
Lizzie rolled her eyes. “Ye didna. I would no’ allow that to happen, and ye ken it. From the get go, I told my parents that ye were only doing what I told ye to do. The same will apply here.”
“I canna condone such a plan, Miss.”
“Ye dinna have to, Mary.” She pushed off the bed and walked over to her wardrobe, swinging the doors open wide. “Now, come help me pick a few appropriate outfits so that we can be on our way as soon as I convince my parents that I need to talk to someone my own age.”
It was Mary’s turn to roll her eyes. “Ye are stubborn, Miss.” But she joined Lizzie at the wardrobe, and in no time, her travel bag was packed.
Downstairs, she found papa reading his Paper and Mama putting the final touches on her current needlepoint project. They both looked up when she entered the room, and it was as if all the warmth had suddenly been sucked out of the room.
“Mama, Papa,” she announced, “I would like to visit Rosalyn for a few days.”
Her parents exchanged a look. One that told Lizzie they kenned that she was about to feed them a story.
No matter. She ignored their look and plodded on. “The house is too stuffy. I have all these thoughts running through my head. All these feelings, that quite frankly, I am still confused about. I think it would do me well to be around a peer that can understand what I am going through. Certainly, ye can agree?”
For some odd reason, her mother’s mouth turned up into a slight smile, before sharing a knowing look with her father, who nodded his head.
“How long will ye be gone. Or do ye expect to be gone?” Mama asked.
Lizzie was taken aback. Was she not going to have to fight to get them to let her out of the house? This was a most welcome turn of events.
“I hadna thought of the amount of time needed to clear my head. But I think I would need,” she quickly calculated how quickly she could make the trip to Edinburgh and back if she pushed, “a week, at least.”
“Well, that certainly is a lot of time to catch up with an old friend and to discuss whatever else ye need to. I am sure Rosalyn and her family will be happy to see ye.”
“Thank ye.” It was all she could think to say after not having to fight for it.
“Ye will be taking Mary?”
“Aye, of course.”
