Chapter Thirty-Eight
Ailith
Ailith limped outside to sit by the loch the next morning.
Magni and Morgan had chosen a beautiful spot to build their cottage, and she intended to enjoy the last few days they were here.
The group was still celebrating the win over the Unseelie inside, but she’d developed a fierce need for quiet and left, seeking the peace of the loch.
Perhaps she just needed the nearness of the stones that had given her the answer to freeing sweet Heilyn.
She found a fallen log not far from shore and sat down.
Her leg felt better than it did last eve. She’d have to have Eli take a look at it, but from what she’d learned from Aunt Jennie, she didn’t think it was broken. A sprain is what her aunt had called it—turning it over too much. She’d gladly limp for a wee bit to be out of that hell hole.
On their return from the faery hill last night, they’d stopped at Edan’s clachan, where his brother and sister had waited up for him. Heilyn was as adorable as any wee one. At just a bit over a year, she didn’t talk much, but her words were quite intentional. “Da! Home!”
Fatigue covered Edan’s face, so he said a few words before taking his daughter inside. “Many thanks to you all, you’ve done so much for our family that I don’t know how to repay you. Godspeed, and I promise to bring Heilyn on the morrow after we’ve had a rest.”
That ending had left her cold. Edan’s expression had been one of relief, but the way he looked at Ailith was not the same as he’d looked at her before. A few days ago, he’d looked at her as if she was the most precious gem in the world.
This look had chilled her—exhausted and beaten. But also a look that said he didn’t care if he never saw her again.
Her mother had advised her not to think too much on how he had left, as if seeing into Ailith’s mind the way Sylvi did.
As she sat there, her mind filled with a man who had found his daughter and saved her from the fae.
All she could think of was the love she saw in his heart whenever he looked at his sweet lassie.
It helped her to see what she wanted in her life.
A man who loved her as strongly, a man she could build a family with, a man who understood that her clan was special.
But she didn’t think that man was Edan, and her heart was splitting as that realization became truth.
Leaving the log, she did her best to stroll across the beach, watching the few fish bold enough to swim near the surface peek up and disappear again.
She had thought it possible that Edan was that man, but so much had changed.
How would they ever find a way to make a life together when their clans were on different isles?
Her boots caught on a rock, her unsteadiness from her injured leg nearly sending her into the water, something she didn’t wish to do this early in the day.
Had she not been so focused on a handsome man with dark hair and brown eyes, she may not have tripped.
She quickly stepped back, freezing as a sudden understanding hit her.
This was the first day in a long time that the foremost thought in her mind was not of the time she’d been held captive a cold cellar.
Every single day since she’d been stolen from her home and locked in a cage like an animal, Ailith had awakened, many times in a sweat, memories of thinking she’d been left to die fresh in her mind.
Had Edan set her free?
Instead, her mind had gone to a pair of strong arms that were always there to catch her, and they did not belong to her father.
Much as she loved her sire, Edan’s firm touch, the way he looked at her, always staying close, brought other things to her mind instead of an evil neighbor.
The recognition would bring her to tears if she allowed it, but instead she settled in a chair moments before the sound of horse hooves could be heard coming down the path.
She turned, surprised to see Edan arriving with his daughter in his lap.
“A!” Heilyn’s excitement shone on her face as her wee finger came up to point at her. “A! Home.” The lass’s sweet voice and smile would warm the coldest night in winter.
Ailith waved, unable to get up because her leg pained her from the near trip.
“What’s wrong?” Edan’s concern touched her. He did care for her, she was certain of it. But how strong was that feeling?
“I just tripped again, which did not help my injury from last eve,” she whispered.
“Stay where you are. We’ll sit for a moment.” He took another chair, and Heilyn pushed away, pointing to a pile of small stones not far. She picked one up and tossed it in the loch, whooping when each one splashed in the water.
Ailith was quite certain her grandmothers were watching the lass, a smile on both of their faces. “She is so sweet, Edan. Has she said anything that makes you think she remembers the hill at all?”
She could see that his manner had changed. The concern she’d seen on his face had disappeared, yet the way he looked at her was different. Ailith no longer felt special.
The true gem in his life had returned. Was there no room for her? True, they had argued by the hill, and he’d been furious that he couldn’t enter when he’d wished to, but had they not accomplished something together?
Could they not get past that horrific day?
“I see no difference in her. She slept well, she’s eating well.
She talks about being home, but she hasn’t mentioned any monsters at all.
I would think that would be foremost in her mind.
Milo hasn’t said anything either. Catrina was going to join us, but he didn’t want to leave.
He shook his head furiously and said, ‘Nay, Mama.’ They’ll visit another time. ”
Heilyn tossed four more stones into the loch when the door opened, Ailith’s mother stepping out to speak to them. “Heilyn, would you like a berry tart?”
The lassie whirled around and raised her arms, heading toward Ailith’s mother without hesitation. “Aye.”
Edan stood and said, “Good morrow to you, my lady.”
“No need to be formal, Edan. Emmalin is fine. I’ll take her inside while you two have some privacy. You don’t get it often around my clan.”
Ailith said, “My thanks, Mama.”
Once the door closed, Edan said, “First of all, I must apologize for my actions at the hill. For arguing with you. I have no justification for what I said and did other than it was a sheer act of desperation. Fear is not a strong enough word for all that coursed through me.”
“Edan, you don’t need to apologize for being upset. You are forgiven.”
“And I wished to clarify something about Florie, my wife, and our relationship.” Ailith could see he struggled with his thoughts so she waited until he was ready.
“Florie and I were betrothed long ago, though I knew naught of it. After her father approached me, I decided to honor a pact my sire had agreed to before he took us to Jura. Had I not returned, we might never have married. But I did return, and her father saw me at the market. He was at my doorstep the next day. Did you see her image at all in your visions?”
“Aye, I did. She was verra pretty.”
“Ailith,” he said. “My relationship with her was so different. Nothing like my feelings for you. I respected her, especially watching her carry our child and giving birth. We got along, and I’d hoped that as time passed, I would grow to love her, and she would love me.
It never happened. I could see it in her eyes.
Though I tried, and I knew we could get along for the sake of our daughter, there were no feelings between us like those Catrina has with Arne, or Roger has for his wife.
I don’t regret our marriage because I wouldn’t have Heilyn.
I just need you to know I’m not trying to replace her with you.
What I mean to say is…” He ran his hand through his hair.
“You are nothing like Florie, and my feelings for you are growing stronger every day. Now that this is over, I need to ask if you are interested in pursuing a relationship with me?”
Her heart swelled as she considered his words.
Knowing he had been married did make things a bit different, but would it matter in the long run?
Probably not, especially since he’d said he had not loved her.
Marriage contracts were often made without consideration for the man and woman, designed instead to benefit the families.
Not so in Clan Grant or Clan Ramsay, however.
Her great-great-grandmother had made Alex promise not to force marriages, and Brenna had brought that promise to Clan Ramsay.
Still, it was common practice throughout the Highlands.
She leaned toward him. “Edan, nothing would please me more, especially now that we are free of the Unseelie.”
He grinned, and she noticed he had a dimple on one cheek. “I’m falling in love with you, Ailith Grant. But how could I not love a woman who saw me broken and didn’t turn away? I am grateful for that.”
She leaned toward him, kissing him briefly. “And I feel the same. You have helped me find a strength I didn’t know I had.”
“I wish I could reason it all in my head, but it will take time. My iron blood… I’m noticing things now that I’d ignored all along. It hums sometimes. Does yours, or is it just my blood?”
“I’m certain I do not have iron blood, and it does not hum.”
“I noticed it grew warmer inside the hill. It nearly felt as though it was burning from the inside out. The burning sensation lessened when you grabbed my hand and totally disappeared once we ripped the root apart. Do you think it truly caused all the trouble in the hill?”
“I doubt that anyone could answer that for certain, Edan.”
“I once thought we shouldn’t have come to Islay, that if we’d stayed on Jura, Florie might still be alive. But Florie said she’d never leave Islay.”
“That brings up a recurring thought I’ve had. There’s one problem between us.” She caught his gaze, his brown eyes heating her insides in a way no other man’s had.
He reached for her hand. “I know. I’ve thought about it too. If you leave soon, we’ll be on separate isles, and they are not close either. When do you return to Duart Castle?”
“In two days. We promised Daran two days of swimming, even though the water is cool. He doesn’t care as long as he can jump from Morgan’s boat.
Dyna promised Uncle Connor she’d go hunting with Morgan, and they would smoke their catch the next day.
Magni wants help with his garden, and John promised to assist him. ”
“I’d be happy to help too. I’d also like the chance to speak with your sire.”
“Edan, I need to ask you something. When our hands touched, did you notice anything unusual?”
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
“I noticed several things, Ailith. Whenever you touched me near the hill, a surge of power shot through me. That was something new to me. I noticed that together, we could do much more than apart.” He left that comment there, not drawing his own conclusions because he wanted to hear hers.
“We complement each other. Separately, we couldn’t tear the roots or fight the warriors, but together, our hands clasped, we fought against everything.
The Unseelie are afraid of you, and will always keep their distance.
Together, we destroyed part of the hill.
Taking the root, the source of the Unseelie’s power, crushed a good portion of the hill.
The hill cracked with just your touch, but our combined touch nearly obliterated everything. That’s an amazing power.”
“I noticed that. What does it mean?”
Ailith reached for his hand again. “It means that together, we are something special. I think we belong together. Do you not agree?”
“I do,” he said, kissing her fingertips, a shiver traveling up her arm. “The universe wants us together. I’ll not fight the heavens.”
Her gaze fell across the loch, the breeze rippling it in spots.
Edan squeezed her hand and whispered, “Is it over, Ailith? Will Gruin never bother us again? Did he die when the hill collapsed?”
“You have many of the same questions I have, and I can only answer with something Dyna mentioned last eve.”
“What?”
“It’s never over until Lia says it is.”