The Promise (Highland Lairds of the Crest #4)

Chapter 29

CHAPTER 29

Brianna was roused by a light tap on their door some hours later. Aidan tightened his arms around her with an affectionate hum just as her eyes opened, and brushed his lips across her forehead.

“Your breakfast is here,” he said softly in her ear. “Don’t move.”

That she could do. While the night had all been a bit of a blur, between her panicked awakening and holding onto him for dear life afterward, Aidan had made love to her again. This time, however, it was unhurried and deliberate, and unforgettably profound in slow motion. She hugged the pillow they’d been lying on, breathing in his scent while admiring his broad shoulders and back as he walked across the room. He put on a soft pair of trews (in this case, long, drawstring shorts), that she was seriously considering confiscating for herself. They would be perfect for lounging or sleeping in.

Once decent, he opened the door, and stood aside, allowing Gwen to lead a parade of staff quietly into the room. Brianna smiled softly, waving her fingers at Gwen to return her greeting. It was still so early, she guessed that Gwen had made it a special point to be up to ensure that Aidan was seen off adequately. Brianna watched as a large tray was placed on the table by the window, buckets of hot water were set on the hearth, and the fire brought back to a healthy roar. Then the staff left as quickly and quietly as they’d arrived. Gwen, however, remained, and that’s when Brianna realized she was here to check on their wounds, particularly Aidan’s since he was leaving so soon. After she gave him a quick once over, he sat down without being asked, so Gwen could get a better look at the cuts on his face, tilting his chin to catch the firelight.

Once she gave him a clean bill of health, Gwen nodded and smiled as she said, “Careful, she wants your pants,” nudging her head toward Brianna.

Brianna couldn’t see Aidan’s expression, but whatever it was, prompted an eye roll from Gwen.

“No,” Gwen said, “She’s literally eyeing your pants.”

Brianna stifled a laugh as he turned around and raised a brow in her direction, and when he faced her, Brianna just shrugged, and scooched herself back, against the headboard.

“Am I right, or am I right?” Gwen said as she came over, and now Brianna’s laugh spilled out.

“Totally,” she said. “They look too comfy not to take. ”

“I knew it! And how are you feeling?” Gwen asked, reaching for her wrist.

“Sore, but honestly not as bad as I thought it would be.”

“Hmmm.” Gwen took a long moment to inspect the abrasions and bruising and smiled. “Well, I’m very happy with how it looks,” she said, wrapping it again. “Even the swelling is down.”

Brianna nodded, watching as Aidan carried a steaming mug of … her nose wriggled as she caught an aroma of— “Is that coffee ?” she asked, grateful and horrified both.

“It is,” Gwen said, then raised her hand, obviously clocking Brianna’s flabbergasted expression. “But before you freak out, it’s important that you know, we keep things under wraps.”

At this, Aidan pulled a face and muttered something unintelligible.

Gwen sighed. “We do , despite what Aidan thinks. It’s not like Captain John travels the world with my whims in mind.”

At this, Aidan raised a brow and Brianna covered her mouth and giggled. It was clear this was an old argument.

“Okay fine! Well, at least he doesn’t anymore . I can’t help it Grey still surprises me with an occasional treat!”

Brianna reached out and patted her arm. “Guess what, I don’t care right now. What I would love, is some of that.”

Gwen smiled and handed her a steaming mug. Brianna inhaled first, enjoying the familiar sensation, then took a deep sip and said, “Oh, this is good.”

Gwen winked, then stood and started for the door before turning again. “Oh, I heard you’re partial to Aidan’s favorite tea blend, too. There’s plenty more where that came from.”

Aidan smiled sheepishly, and Brianna thought it was so sweet that he’d never said anything about it being his tea, he just enjoyed that it made her happy. She exchanged a wave with Gwen before she turned to leave, Aidan followed her to the door, where he motioned for her to wait. Brianna watched absentmindedly, focused mostly on her coffee, as he turned to the wardrobe, then dug around in it before he pulled something out and pressed a bundle of some sort into Gwen’s hands—maybe laundry? Brianna was too busy sipping coffee and admiring Aidan’s trews, well, mostly just admiring Aidan in his trews to pay it much attention.

Then he was next to her again. “Just a quick moment,” he said gathering her close, eliciting a sigh of content from her. He rubbed his chin on her head and whispered, “One day soon, we’ll have the pleasure of waking together leisurely, with no cares, Brianna, only our lives before us.”

She smiled, brushing her hand across his chest. “I can’t wait.”

He nudged her face with his and kissed her, then they spent a few minutes cuddling and finishing their coffees before washing up and getting dressed. At first, he’d urged her to stay in bed and relax, citing the early hour. She’d told him in no uncertain terms she would not miss out on seeing him off from the shore and watching until he had disappeared over the horizon.

This made him laugh, which made her nearly forget what they were talking about, that he would be going off on a ship, over the sea toward an uncertain encounter. She held Kitty as Aidan gathered the rest of his things, and when they heard a soft rap on the door, Aidan raised a brow and then looked at her.

“That would be Tristan,” he said.

“It’s okay,” she said quickly and nodded, calling out for Tristan to come in.

The boy opened the door, looking in cautiously, but she could tell he was relieved to be invited in. His eyes lit up as he hurried over to them, sticking like glue to Aidan’s leg while saying good morning and giving Kitty a quick pat.

While Aidan grabbed their cloaks, he asked Tristan to keep an eye on her and Kitty in his absence, then draped the garment over her shoulders, fastening it with the clasp. When his hands moved up to brush her hair back, he looked into her eyes. His were filled with so much love, so much promise, that she nearly lost it, gone was her bravado.

“I will be back. And you will be here.” He pressed his forehead to hers then and told her in a raspy whisper, “You are everything to me, aye?”

Brianna nodded, hoping she looked more confident than she felt as she followed Aidan through the door and into the corridor that led to the stairs, where Callum and Grey were already waiting.

“Hold on,” she said, facing them. She knew that Aidan had sent word to his friend Ronan, and his brother Rhys and he was set to meet them in Ayr. But she hadn’t considered that Callum and Greylen would accompany him as well. “You’re both going, too?”

“They sought to kill you, an O’Roarke. One of my own,” Callum said, straightening to his full impressive height as he did so. “It cannot stand unanswered, and for that, although Aidan doesn’t need me, I will accompany him.”

“Well, I for one, think he does need me,” Greylen said, cuffing the back of Aidan’s neck affectionately as the men chuckled. Brianna laughed, too, struck yet again at how much these men meant to each other. “As well, I’ll take it as an opportunity to see the ship, or what remains of her, for myself.”

At the sound of footsteps, she turned and saw Gwen coming down the hallway. “I’m so sorry,” Brianna started, “I feel like?—”

They all shut her down with a look as Gwen brushed passed her.

“Don’t worry,” Gwen said, waving her hand, “going by ship, they’ll be back before we know it, and I’m sure with gifts and treasures abound.”

At this, Brianna had to smile. If Gwen could be this casual about the whole thing, she would try to rest easy, too. She listened as they spoke of their plans, grateful she didn’t have to participate. She was so engrossed in their conversation, that other than the feeling of Aidan’s tight hold on her hand, she hadn’t noticed anything as they made their way outside and into the courtyard, until they came to the readied horses, attended by a group of stable hands. Waiting there too, was a small group of men, including Alan and Richard. As they approached, the men started to say their goodbyes and Brianna felt her heart sink. She’d hoped she could accompany Aidan further, all the way up to the ship if she could.

Aidan grasped her shoulders. “’Tis still dark, love,” he said brushing her hair back, sensing her thoughts. “And your wrist,” he added quietly, glancing down.

She knew he was right, between the early hour and her injury, not to mention Gwen’s pregnancy, it made sense to stay back. Still, it was a sooner parting than she’d expected.

“Give no breadth to unbidden fears, aye,” he said, gently tapping her temple with his finger.

She smiled despite her sadness and shook her head. “I won’t.”

He smiled too, grasping her head in his hands and looking deeply into her eyes. “And know this, above all else—I love you.”

She covered one of his hands, now resting on her cheek, and overcome with emotion, she mouthed the words back. Aidan broke his gaze from hers only when Gwen came up beside her to gently pull her back as the men mounted their horses.

Then, all too soon, Brianna found herself standing on the bluff, watching as the ship set sail, barely visible in the purply dawn. Just as the sun crested the horizon, Brianna was struck by the thought that this image of him was nearly identical to her first. Only this time, his formidable stature, flanked by Callum and Greylen in a clear show of might, was intimately familiar to her.

Tristan, who was standing to watch beside her, reached for her hand as Aidan’s voice echoed across the water: “Brianna O’Roarke of the House of Pembrooke—never forget who you are.” The boy looked up at her and grinned almost knowingly, then ran along the butte before leaping onto a cluster of rocks. Brianna watched as he lifted his hood and threw his hands in the air at the same time that Aidan and his men drew their swords in unison, raising them to the sky.

“And never forget who you belong to—Sinclair of the House of Pembrooke!” Aidan thundered, and his brethren (along with Tristan) echoed with a resounding rallying cry.

It was a fitting salute, and as she wiped away her tears, Henry pressed a linen into her hand. If she ever questioned her worth, that Aidan had left Henry behind with her spoke volumes. When she returned to her chamber, she found Kitty sleeping on the bed, and it was clear that while she was seeing Aidan off, the linens had been changed. She probably made a sound because Tristan looked at her funny. She didn’t want to cry, but she would have at least kept his pillowcase. Hugging herself to mitigate the loss, silly as it might seem, she startled when Gwen came up beside her .

“Sorry, Tristan ran into the hall and said you were upset,” she said.

Brianna hadn’t even noticed he’d left the room.

“There’s no way you would know this of course,” Gwen continued, walking to the wardrobe, “but at one time, Greylen and I were separated for months, and while he was away, his shirt was like my security blanket. Anything of his really.” She bent and opened the bottom drawer. “Poor Anna learned the hard way not to mess with certain things.” Gwen pulled something out of the drawer, and when she turned back to Brianna, she was holding the pillowcases that had been on the bed. “See?”

She felt so foolish standing there blubbering over a pillowcase, but Gwen didn’t seem bothered by it at all.

“His shirt and trews are in there too,” she said. “Why don’t you get some rest? I’m sure you could use a full day or even two of sleep.”

Gwen—naturally—had been right. Brianna spent that entire day and part of the next doing just that. When she finally emerged from her chamber around noon the following day, she ran smack into Tristan, who had been hurrying down the hallway to check on her. As she bent to speak with him, a warm smile on her face, she saw his eyes flick worriedly toward Henry. Brianna looked over at Henry questioningly, but Henry just sighed and shook his head. She quickly put two and two together, figuring that Henry had insisted that she rest undisturbed and Tristan had insisted otherwise, clearly taking to heart Aidan’s directive to look after her wellbeing, too. Amused at the tug of wills between the two, she did what she could to rectify the situation.

“You know, I heard how diligent you were in seeing after me,” Brianna said to Tristan, winking at Henry. “I can’t wait to tell Aidan when he returns. Maybe we could even write him a letter,” she suggested. After all, she had been trying to get her hands on some parchment.

The boy beamed at once and puffed his chest out proudly, and Brianna caught Henry suppressing a smile.

The situation righted, she grabbed his hand. “Now I’m starving, do you think we can sneak into the kitchens and poke around?”

Tristan scrunched his nose as he grinned and Henry chuckled, both signs to Brianna that things were going to be just fine.