Chapter 14
Lachlan sat on the edge of the bed and stared at Sloane.
She was sleeping peacefully now, but in his mind, he could still see the pain etched on her face while the healer dressed and tended to her wounds.
Blood had rushed to his ears and he barely remembered what the healer had said, but he knew that she was going to be okay.
She would have to be. He couldn’t lose her when he’d just found her.
“I don’t mean to interrupt,” a voice said shyly. “But the door was open and I wanted to check in on Sloane.”
Turning his head, Lachlan was about to order whoever it was to leave when he realized he only had a faint recollection of who she was.
Pretty and young with blonde curls that fell over her shoulders and a dainty face, she was blushing furiously and studying the floor like there was something fascinating between her feet.
As he followed her gaze, he saw the slight bulge in her belly.
“Isla?” he asked softly.
She nodded and he was even more confused. He’d heard that Robina’s daughter was pregnant, but he had no idea that she and Sloane were friends. Isla was so painfully shy that she barely spoke to anyone.
“She is sleeping right now, but the healer said that she would be fine. She might just be in some pain over the next couple of days. I’ll be happy to let her know that ye stopped by.”
Isla rubbed her hands over her stomach. “Is it true that she saved a child’s life?”
“Aye.”
“She’s saving mine as well. After everything that my mother said about her, I had thought that she was a horrible woman, but she has such a big heart. I should have known that my mother was lying about her.”
It was the most that he’d ever heard Isla speak. “How is she saving yer child?”
“Letting me stay here, of course. I know I have ye to thank for that, but it takes a strong will to stand up to my mother and that is exactly what Sloane did when she invited me here. I would have been living with the pigs and what hope could I have had for my son? But now I can find a path for my life that will give him a good future.”
Turning his head, he looked at Sloane’s sleeping face and then turned back to her. “Ye are staying here?”
“Aye.” Her smile faltered just a little bit and she dropped her head again. “Ye didna know. Oh, I am so sorry. I will pack and leave immediately.”
“No,” he said loudly and whipped his head back around to make sure that Sloane hadn’t awoken. He wasn’t pleased that his wife had invited someone into the keep without telling him, but she was mistress and this was yet another example of his wife’s hurt heart. “Please, stay. Ye are welcome here.”
“Thank ye,” Isla whispered and slowly shuffled into the room as she held out her hand.
“I wanted to give this to Sloane. I was helping Freya mend the last of the dresses that the other women ruined and this ribbon slipped out. I believe that it was sewed into the lining, but ’tis odd.
It’s a hair ribbon, so I wasna sure if she wanted me to sew it back. ”
Yet another revelation. Lachlan scowled at her until she took a hesitant step back. “The women ruined her dresses?”
Her eyes widened with horror and she dropped the wide blue ribbon into his lap. “I am so sorry. I should go.” With a squeak, she whirled around and raced from the room.
Isla closed the door a little too forcefully causing Sloane to stir and open her eyes. “Lachlan?” she whispered as she struggled to sit up.
“Easy,” he murmured as he put some pressure on her shoulder to keep her down. “Doona move so quickly. The healer said that ye might be in pain for a while. ’Tis still night, so ye should sleep.”
“’Tis night?” She gasped as she looked out the window. “I was just going to rest for a bit. Did I sleep through dinner?”
“I had them bring some stew up for ye and I can heat it up for ye if ye are ready,” he said as he handed her the ribbon and moved to the fireplace to set the small pot over the hanger. It was good that she wanted to eat. The more she ate, the stronger she would be.
Turning around to ask if she wanted water, Lachlan found her staring at the ribbon with trembling fingers.
“Sloane?” he asked softly. “Isla brought that.” Gasping she looked up sharply and he smirked.
“Aye, I know about that. She said that she thought the ribbon might have been sewed in the dress that she mended.”
“It was,” she admitted. “The ribbon belonged to my mother. After she died, Emmeline, one of the servants, snuck into her room and kept a few things for me because my father had ordered all of her things to be destroyed. In my tenth year, Emmeline gave it to me. She impressed on me the importance of keeping the items hidden, but I didna listen. My father found out and took everything back. The only thing that I could save was this ribbon. I sewed it in the dress so he wouldn’t find out that I had it. ”
It broke his heart that a man could be so cruel to his daughter. Returning to the bed, Lachlan gently took the ribbon from her hands. “Isla tells me that ’tis a hair ribbon and I think ye should braid it into yer fiery hair. No one will take it from ye here, Sloane. I promise ye that.”
“Thank ye,” she whispered fiercely and looked at him with gray eyes brimming with tears. “Are ye upset about Isla?”
“I am upset that ye didna tell me.”
“I am told that her mother is an influential woman in this clan and I didna know how ye would feel about an unwed mother. Isla needs help and support.”
“Then we will give it to her,” he said lightly as he stroked her cheek with his finger. “All ye have to do is ask, Sloane. I will also listen to ye. I promise.”
He rearranged the pillows behind her and checked to see that the stew was heated. Making sure that she ate her dinner, he checked the wrappings of her wound and settled under the blankets with her.
Hoping that maybe they were finally scaling the wall she’d erected between them, Lachlan stayed with her until she fell back asleep.
The healer had assured her that the wound wasn’t deep and that she would heal in several days.
During that time, Lachlan proved to be ridiculous.
He would not let her out of bed and insisted on tasting all of her food.
To make matters worse, he wouldn’t touch her even when she no longer felt pain.
She was just discovering the pleasure of the marriage bed and now, her husband was sleeping on the floor next to the bed so he didn’t disturb her.
Enough was enough.
That morning, Sloane quietly slipped out of bed and saw to her needs without waking her husband.
Refusing to spend another minute lying down, she changed into another shift and sat at the vanity to braid her hair.
Today, she would see to her duties as mistress.
She had much to learn and not a lot of time to learn it before Freya left.
“Sloane,” Lachlan sighed sleepily. “What are ye doing out of bed?”
“Getting ready for the day. That is what one does in the morning,” she said primly. “Lachlan, I am fine. Ye cannae keep me forever. My wound is almost finished healing and I am going mad here.”
Standing, he ran his hand through his wild hair and pursed his lips. “I had hoped for ye to rest one more day. Yer father will be here tomorrow…”
“What?” Shocked, she dropped the brush and swiveled on the bench to stare at him. “My father is coming and ye didna tell me? Why?”
“Because ye were recovering,” he pointed out.
“Nay, that is not what I meant. Why is he coming here? Did he say?”
Guiltily, she realized that she hadn’t sent him any letters. None about her marriage. None about Freya. She needed to tell him that she didn’t believe Freya was the person he expected. Freya was her friend. Her father would be pleased and the thought of that lifted her spirits.
“Ye keep that up, and ye’ll wake the whole keep,” Lachlan said lazily.
“What? What am I doing?”
“Worrying. Loudly.” Walking over to her, he stroked her hair as he stared at her. “Ye doona want yer father to visit. Ye are making that obvious. Will ye tell me why?”
“I never said that I didna want him to visit.” She swallowed hard. The last thing that she wanted to do was cause a rift between her husband and her father. “He is my father. I will welcome him.”
“Ye are speaking of duty and not of want. Say the word and I will ban him from our lands. I doona want to see ye unhappy.”
He was so sweet. Sloane wanted to tell him that her father wasn’t the doting type, but how could she without explaining her unusual upbringing? How could he treat her like a wife if he knew she was raised with the servants? How would he trust her if he knew that she was spying on his sister?
She had no idea that she’d find such happiness with Lachlan. The only way for her to keep it was to tell her father that he was wrong and to do that, she would have to see him.
“There is no need for that. He is my father and I want to see him. Plus, ye cannae ban him. Ye have to uphold the alliance. Will Gair be arriving as well?”
“Perhaps.” Lachlan grabbed her hands, tugged on them until she stood, and kissed her shoulder. “But that is not what this is about. Yer father’s message said that he didna want this to be about the alliance. He wanted to see his little lass and make sure that she was happy.”
Hope bloomed in her chest. “Really? He said that?” He’d never called her his little lass before. It warmed her all the way to her toes.
“Aye. I see that brings a smile to yer face.” Pressing a long kiss to her lips, he picked her up easily and walked her to the bed.
Immediately, Sloane began to protest. “Lachlan, ye cannae put me back to bed. I have much to do before my father arrives. He wants to see that I am happy and I want to show him that I am happy.”
“Aye?” Without hesitating, he lowered her to the bed and followed her down.
She was annoyed that he was deliberately ignoring her wishes, but she loved that hopeful sound in his voice and she smiled shyly at him. “Aye.”